FO Report!

First off, the binder has been found. It was left at the apartment and the company that does the coporate housing had it at their office. Thank goodness that their office is close, in Rancho Cordova. The kiddo's and I took a little trip down there yesterday. I could have kissed the woman at the office. Now WHY they didn't contact Safeway and tell them that we had left some belongings there......I'll never know.

Ok on to knitting..... I have 2 finished objects! Wait. did you hear that? Two, count them, TWO FO's.

First up is my International Scarf Exchange scarf. I really liked how it turned out. I would wear this myself. I LOVE the yarn (Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk DK) and the pattern (Zig Zag Scarf). I first saw this pattern over at Anne's, The Knitty Gritty, and I had to order it. Go look at the lace weight cardi she just made. Lace weight! I think I will be making one of these for me in pink. So soft and warm! I think my pal will really like it, at least I hope she does.

And second up is the felted ballerina slippers by Fiber Trends. I made these for Katie out of Cascade 220. She really likes them, and of course she calls them princess shoes. What is it about 4 year old girls and princesses? I made the pattern with the strap but during the felting process, the strap felted so much it would no longer go over her foot! So I just cut it off.

And because I can't just take a picture of Katie's feet....a shot of Ben's as he was running around this morning. And trust me, it's a miracle that he has ONE sock on! He now thinks he IS Buzz Lightyear. He even wants to be called Buzz. So I have a Princess and Buzz, and they call the baby, Baby Dragon. Buzz saves the Princess hundreds of times a day from the dragon. The dragon thinks it's funny and yells BOO everytime. Kids.....................

Oh and no my floor is not dirty....there is water damage to the wood floor in front of the door to the deck.... I could never have a floor THAT dirty!

Sick...with worry

I can't believe it. We've lost the binder that held all of our birth certificates, immunization records, social security cards....

I can't do the taxes because I don't know the kids SS #'s, can't get a new SS card without birth certificates.

I need to enroll Katie in preschool and kindergarten for next year....can't do that without the birth certificate and immunization records.

Guess I'll be on the phone a lot on Monday.

I think may be in a box that was left in the apartment we stayed at.......I'll be calling them Monday too........I hope it wasn't stolen.

I don't think I can knit.

I now feel like a real knitter......

I've knit scarves, socks, mittens, hats, and even a shawl.....but never a sweater. Well I haven't actually KNIT the sweater yet but I bought the yarn for it! I have never made such a big yarn purchase before.....well $$ wise anyway.

17 balls of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran plus the Cotton Angora book. I am going to knit Grace....for me. I have enough cotton angora in pale pink for it also. So now I have to decide, Cotton Angora or the Cashmerino Aran. What do you think?

Cotton sometimes hurts my hands so I am worried about that. I would love to hear from anyone that has used the cotton angora or just anyone that has knitted Grace!

If I use the cotton angora for Grace, then I can use the Cashmerino for Tubey!!! Have you seen
The Wool Palace's Tubey? It is beautiful and as soon as I saw it, I knew I'd have to knit it.

Tomorrow pictures of the scarf for my scarf pal. There will not be any natural light pictures for a week or so. I was going to take my yarn outside and play with my new camera but ummmm it's snowing and so cold!

:-) See what happens when you husband doesn't get you a birthday gift...you buy your own. In my case it was a brand new digital camera. Thanks Greg ;)

The 4's have gotten me (that's the best I could come up with!)

I have been tagged by Laurie, a fellow cow lover :-)


4 jobs you have had in your life
First job was at MJDesigns (that's a craft store for all you west coasters)
Assistant Manager at Papyrus
Receptionist at Big Oil and Tire (That's how I met Cath)
The best job in the world.... MOM

4 movies you could watch over & over
Gone with the Wind
Patriot
Anne of Green Gables
A River Runs Through it

4 places you have lived
Manassas, Va
Middleburgh, Ny
Grass Valley, Ca
Ukiah, Ca

4 TV shows you love to watch
CSI - Miami
CSI - Las Vegas
NCIS
The first 3 seasons of Alias (ummm it now sucks, sucks so bad that its GONE!)

4 places you have been on vacation
Montana
Sun Valley, Id
Flordia
ummm no where else, sad huh?

4 websites you visit daily
Bloglines
Weather.com
?
?

4 of your favorite foods
My creamy Chicken enchiladas
Rouladen
Reeces Peanut Butter Cups
Taco Bella Crunch Wrap Supreme (and me wanting to loose 10 pounds!)

4 places you would rather be right now
Gainesville, Fl visiting my sister
Filati's
St. Joseph, Missouri doing some genealogy research
Upstate New York doing some genealogy research

4 bloggers you are tagging
Cath
Birdsong
Heather
Mini

That's my Brother!!!

Check out the review of the restaurant that my brother works at.

Escabar

My big brother, Jeff Johnson, is the executive chef. I am so proud of him! He is an awesome chef, all the dishes are his original recipes....I just wish I wasn't 3000 miles away, I would like to EAT some of his cooking!

So if any of you are in the Richmond, VA area make sure you check Escabar out!

Oh and the laundry room smell....it's going away. The floor is not carpet thank goodness, but I did find cat urine sprayed on the wall..... I cleaned it off, and then took a shower. GROSS!

Yes I am alive....

Moving during the holidays is hard...moving anytime is hard. I am exhausted from all of it. First moving into a 2 bedroom corporate apartment....let me tell you that moving from a 3000 sq ft home into a not even 1000 sq ft apartment brings a whole new meaning to the words "close family". The apartment was nice but I am happy to be in a bigger space and to be with my "things" again. Can you believe that I had to put my YARN in storage!!!!

But now we are in our new home. The ex cat ladies home. The lady before us had 8 cats...8. Can you say STINKY? I am positive that she had the litter pans in the laundry room because it still smells like cat pee in there. I have vacuumed and scrubbed this whole house to get the smell out. I should buy stock in Febreeze..and that baking soda carpet deodorizer! So now you can walk in without wondering what that smell is....just don't open the laundry room door.

Christmas was great this year. It was the first year that Katie really got into it. All the kids had a blast and we spent the day having a great dinner at my parents.

My birthday was last Sunday. My parents and my in laws were the only ones to get me a gift....or a card. I'll not say anymore on that....(yup Greg is in trouble)

Other than that I haven't been doing much. I haven't had much time to knit. After unpacking all day and getting the house set, I am so tired I could sleep where I sit. Soon things will be better.

I did finish the Koigu pattern and start another sock....pictures when I find the camera!

Knitting? Do I talk about knitting?

Ok, I'll start this post off with a little knitting content......

My SP6 sent me a wonderful gift a few weeks back and I never did take pictures....now the chocolate and cookies are gone but I do have some pictures of the book she sent me. Also of the book that I bought with the gift certificate that she sent me.

She sent me the Handy book of Sweater patterns, and I bought Knitting on the Road with the certificate that she gave me....I love these books!



My Sp5 was great and my SP6 has been wonderful too but I am not going to do anymore SPs....go read the SP6 blog, it's gotten nasty and that's not what it is about.

Not much actual knitting has been taking place. I was making a scarf for a retirement party but I frogged it. I HATE the yarn that I was using. Debbie Bliss Cotton Silk Aran. Not a fun yarn. It hurts my hands and splits like crazy. I ordered some of Elann's new silk and wool to make it instead. The party was last night so the scarf will be late....(more on the party later)

In knitting related news......

Carola, the sweetest woman on earth and a sock knitter extraordanaire, sent me a package from Iceland. ICELAND!!! How cool is that? (no pun intended) She sent a cow purse, a puzzle, some beautiful yellow sock wool, and candy. The candy is not in the picture. I mean come on...Icelandic candy....candy from Iceland....between the kids, Greg and I, it wasn't around too long! As you can see the puzzle was a big hit. Katie LOVES puzzles. She thinks the cow purse is hers....ummmmmm cows are MINE! She said that it could be mine but I have to let her play with it. I can handle that deal.

Ok knitting talk is over, feel free to stop reading.

Anyone left?

I HATE THIS MOVING CRAP! The moving itself isn't so bad. Greg's company pays for movers to come, pack us up and move us. It's the being away from him that sucks. I am so isolated as it is, and my outlet was when he came home each night, now I don't even have that. Good thing he's the boss since I call him at work 50 times a day! Looks like we won't be in a new house until January. I think that in a week or so we will move into corporate housing until we can move in. I haven't been to look at the corporate housing but the pictures on the internet look nice. It's a 3 bedroom furnished apartment. I think I can handle that for a few weeks. By Tuesday I'll know more.

One good thing that happened is Greg and I went to a grown up party last night. We took the kids to my parents and then headed to Reno. Greg's boss is retiring and they had a party at the Atlantis. We even stayed the night. The first time we have left all three kiddo's all night. It was GREAT! I'm ready to do it again. Note to self: Next time if I am still breastfeeding James, BRING THE PUMP! All I can say is OUCH.

And just for Catherine, here are the Turkey's that came to visit me the other day. I was on the phone with her, I look up and this is what I see! We've seen Mountain Lions, Deer, Partridge, and now Turkey's back there. Our very own wildlife viewing area!

Ok got to go get in some cuddling time with Greg. He's off for another week on Monday.....this really sucks.


One more thing, coming back from Reno, my ears "popped" because of the altitude. One cleared and the other one is STILL plugged. Any suggestions so that I can have my hearing back?

When it rains it pours!

I have a crappy knitting blog.....I never talk about knitting!

Anyway my darling husband got a promotion and we are moving..MOVING! I am happy to be getting closer to civilization but the stress of moving I could do without. Greg starts at the new store on Monday...and I will be left here alone with the children. THAT is going to be the hard part. I have to explain to the kids that Dad will be gone all week, we will see him for about a day and a half and then he must go back.

Then there is the looking for a house to rent. Right now isn't a good time for us to buy so it's renting again. I don't really mind that....it's the weeding through the bad places to find one that we want to live in.

For you local readers (who am I kidding, there is no one Local to me) we are moving down to Pollock Pines. Could be bad....I now can drive to my favorite yarn store anytime I want. Good thing that Dh got a big raise :-)

I PROMISE to take pictures of my knitting and post tomorrow. It maybe the last time I have to update in a while.....or maybe I will be updating more since I will need contact with adults and the outside world!

Why I have had no time to knit....

....or do anything else. Can you STAND the cuteness?



A real post tomorrow!

Happy Veterans Day

Happy Veterans Day to all the veterans out there. Make sure you take some time today to think of all the sacrifices that the men and women, past and present, of our military have made for us. I know that itÂ’s just a three day weekend to most, but it really is so much more.

So happy Veterans Day to my Father, all but one of my UncleÂ’s, and to my Brother in Law who is currently special forces. IÂ’m proud to call you family.

I have been tagged by Jennifer for a meme so here it goes:

What is your all-tifavoriteite yarn to knit with? That is hard....I really like Lornas Lace and Koigu.

Yofavoriteite needles? I really like Bamboo but I did get a pair of Addi's for the last shawl I did and fell in love with them.

The worst thing you've ever knit? So far it's been Ben's sweater.... but after I rip out the neckline it won't be so bad.

Yofavoriteite knit pattern? I really liked the Leaf Lace Shawl and the Waving Lace socks that I did for my Sockapaloza pal.

Most valuable knitting technique? lol The knit stitch???

Best knit book or magazine? I really don't have too many knitting books. I love the book that my SP just sent me.....The Handy Book of Sweater Patterns. (Bad me, I have to blog my thank you to her)

Yofavoriteite knitalong? The Sockapaloza one that Alison just did. It's the first one that I finished!

Yofavoriteite knitblogs? Humm I like them all..... I read Catherine, Sockbug, Cara, Birdsong, Heather, Chris and MJ first.......but I have hundreds on my bloglines that I try to read when I have time.

Your favourite knitwear designer? I love the Debbie Bliss designs, classic and beautiful.

The knit item you wear the most? My Koigu socks..... (shhhh I didn't knit them, my Mom did )

Who to tag? Cath, Birdsong, and you :-)


I am making some felted ballerina slippers for Katie. I have one done and thought I could finish the other tonight....but I can't. I must go to bed. DH has commandeered the TV and I do NOT want to watch war movies. So once I am finished with this, I may just go read a book in bed!

Christmas Knitting….Christmas Mice and Christmas Balls?

Christmas is staring me in the face. I have so much I want to knit for Christmas presents, just thinking about it makes me tired. I have started the Koigu Patches of Berries scarf for my Mom and I have started one Liesel scarf. I plan on making 3 of them for various people. I thought I would have a lot of trouble with the Koigu pattern. It is very poorly written but it only took me a couple of minutes of looking at the chart to figure it out. I haven’t had to rip any out yet so I guess I am in the right track!

Patches Of Berries Leisel

I am using koigu #111 for the POBS. This is the first time I have knit with it and I love it. I can’t wait to make myself a pair of socks with it. I am using Karabella Aurora 8 for the scarf. This is great yarn. I love it! It’s my new favorite yarn. One day I would love to make myself a sweater out of it.


Sorry for the bad pictures. It’s raining so I have no natural light. Maybe that’s why I am so tired. I really could lie down and take a nap. And that’s saying something since I never nap, even if I have the opportunity.

I also finished up the front of Ben’s sweater. I will not be posting a picture of that disaster. One shoulder is about an inch longer than the other. That’s in my to be ripped out pile.

I think I will cast on for my Father in Law’s second sock tomorrow. I have to take my darling hubby to the doc for minor surgery. He is getting the big snip. Oh wouldn’t he love it if he knew I was telling the blogging world about that. I am not sure how I fell about this. I was the one that made the appointment and told him it was time but it seems so final. But really, we have 3 children, Greg is in his 40’s, I am violently ill while pregnant, and I am fertile myrtle. All signs are saying that this should be done. It’s just emotional for me. I may be crying in the waiting room tomorrow. Someone tell me I am not crazy :-)


You know it always seems like there is something wrong with this house. Either the roof is leaking, we have termites, the toilet breaks…..I could so on and on. Well we have a new problem. I brought up a box of Halloween items from the basement the other day and what was in the bottom? MICE DROOPINGS! Great. I know it’s common but mice…in the house…well not in the house but the basement is close enough for me. Thank goodness for the Clark man. He will be here on Friday to take care of the problem.

So now I have to go strip sheets and do laundry. Mom and Dad will be here tonight and I have to at least make the house look like I tried to clean it :-)

~Edited to add that surgery went well. I didn't cry......yet. I now have 4 children to take care of for the next few days :-)~

Hey Moneybags.......

I'm worn out. Why do little boys have to be such little boys? The local ER has become on a first name basis with us this past week. One week ago tonight my darling 2 and a half year old was playing with some pennies. Pennies you ask? Why was a 2 year old playing with coins? Let's just say that an adult that lives here (there are 2 that live here, and I am NOT talking about me) let him play with them. Minutes later there was one less penny. Where did it go? DOWN HIS THROAT. He was fine but I was sure upset. After a call to the hospital Daddy and Ben left.

Hours later they were back. Ben was sleepy (it was 10:30pm) and Dad was a wreak. They did x-rays and saw that it was in his stomach, a good sign. The next day he was fine. Daddy just has the fun job of checking if the penny was out. Thursday was more x-rays to see the progress. It had moved into the colon but wasn't progressing as rapidly as they thought it should. They prepared us for the worst.... a colonoscopy on a 2 YEAR OLD!

Fast forward to Saturday night. Ben jumps off the couch and splits his eyelid. No ER visit, just some TLC from mom and he was ok. Sunday morning however TLC wasn't enough.

I was blowdrying my hair and in walks in covered in blood. He had cracked his nose on the hearth...the stone hearth. I thought that it might be broken because of the swelling, and the fact that it wouldn't stop bleeding. So back to the ER we went. No broken nose. It's just bruised and swollen still today.

But the good news...Ben made change! Thank goodness. Now if I can only get him to give 100.00's we'd be all set!

Knitting tomorrow I promise. I've gotten a lot done...I've been a bit worried about Ben ad the knitting helps. :-)

It's Done......

My Leaf Lace Shawl is finished. I made it a bit smaller by taking out one pattern repeat. I will be making this again. I think one in a lace weight would be very nice.

Pattern: Leaf Lace Shawl by Fiber Trends

Yarn: Lornas Lace Shepard Sock in Tuscany

Needles: Addi size 5, 24 inch

Here it is all streched out. It hasn't been blocked yet, I am having it done by the owner of Filatis so that it will be perfect. I really think that Greg's Grandmother will like this.

I am waiting on yarn to start 2 Liesel scarves for presents too. I picked out Aurora 8 and Blue Sky Alpaca, Silk and Alpaca both in a plum color. I ordered it from Knit Happens on Wed so it should be here next week. In the mean time I am working on the Irish Hiking Scarf. My needle exchange pal sent me Britney Cable needles and I LOVE them. I have been wanting them for so long, I just never think to buy them when I am in a yarn shop.

Speaking of my Needle Exchange Pal.....it was Cyn of I Hate Waiting. She sent me a pair of size 6 Britney Birch needles, Cable needles, a package of yarn bras, (I love the name too), and a beautiful candle. I didn't take a picture so I'll have to gather everything up and take a picture tonight. Thanks so much Cyn!

Things are starting to feel like fall and winter here. Right up to the COLD that I got. It's the strangest cold ever. In the evening I start to feel stuffy and my throat gets scratchy, I wake up at night to blow my nose....then around 9am I feel all better. So very strange. The sad part is that James got it too. I hate when babies are sick. Katie and Ben had a touch of it and are all well and of course Greg didn't get sick at all.

We are off to the Sacramento area tomorrow to head to Bishop's Pumpkin Farm. The kids should have a great time!!

An Almost FO

I thought I would have a picture of my finished Leaf Lace Shawl but no. Just before I started the edging I took it off the needles to see how big it would be....I thought it was a little small. So I put it back on the needles and did one more pattern repeat. I started the edging last night. My goal is to have it done by Monday. My parents are coming up tomorrow and if it's done than Mom can take it back to the shop where the owner will block it.

It is supposed to be a Christmas present for Greg's grandmother but I think I will send it to her when it's finished. I think she will get some use out of it before winter since Montana has already had snow!!!

I'll be glad once the shawl is finished....then I can move on to more Christmas knitting. My plan is to make something for my Mom, my Sister, and if I can squeeze it out, something for Greg's two sisters. I have decided on the Patches of Berries Scarf from Koigu for Mom. I have heard awful things about this pattern and haven't found anyone who had done it yet. So we will see if I can do it. I ordered the Koigu from Patternworks and boy it sure takes a long time to get here! That will be the next thing on the needles.

I have been wanting to make the "Friday Harbor Socks" from Nancy Bush's Knitting on the Road. I fell in love with them on Jackie's blog. Maybe in the new year I will knit something for myself. Of course I have to get the book first.

I have joined Lolly's Socktoberfest since I am knitting mates for two socks this month. Should be a fun knit a long.

Well, long entry and no pictures. I'll have to post more today. I have to show off my needle exchange gift..and tell you about the swap I started!

It's been too long.

It's been too long. I have to get into a routine with posting. With my first born now in preschool, we have had to adjust to a new routine. Getting her ready in the mornings is still a nightmare but getting better as each school day goes by.

I have so much to mention in this post. First off is my wonderful Secret Pal 6 sent me a gift certificate to Knit Happens tonight. Just today I told myself that I would buy no more yarn until the next year. The end of the year is always a little tight around here at the KnitWit's house....and I have enough yarn to hold me over. So now I get to get yarn and not feel like I am breaking my promise! WhooHoo for my SP.

I also have some ROAK thank you's as well. I got a beautiful origami crane from Julie at Stoneview. Greg grabbed it and it now resides in the office of a Safeway....because he really needs good luck to run a grocery store (yes, I am rolling my eyes). I also want to thank Jennifer of Shamrock Crafts for the beautiful hand made card that she sent me. It really made my day. And last but not least, Juli of Juli's Jots sent me a really sweet e-card. Thanks Juli!

And before I get to what I have been doing, please stop by Snooze's blog and check out her de-stashing sale. It's not under the best circumstances but you might be able to help her out and get something great out of it.

Now me... I have a FO!!!!

It's a OSW that I made out of Cotton Ease. It's a little tight under the arms so I will ship this off to my niece, Aimee in Florida. She'll get more use out of it than me since it's wool sweater season here!

I bought this hat kit at Knit for Her Cure that was held on Saturday at Filati's in Rocklin. It was a lot of fun to go see the lace and felting demonstrations and see all the fun kits. 10% of the kit price will be donated to cancer research and 100% of the money that the yarn company makes off of these kits will go to cancer research as well. For such a good cause how could I resist this furry HOT PINK hat??? The blue cascade is for mittens for my two sons....can you believe that just a little jaunt up the hill it is supposed to SNOW this weekend!!!!!

These are my Beautiful Sockapalooza socks that were knit for me by Tine. Funny thing is that during SP5 I was spoiling Jaq and she was spoiling Tine! Small world huh!

And the above is my very pink package from my SP5, YarnGirl. She sent me two skeins of a beautiful pink cotton wool blend, a sock pattern, a pink notebook and a pink bracelet. I had to wrestle my daughter for it but I won :-) I am in fact wearing it right now. Go check out her blog. Her lace is amazing! Thanks Chris.

Well, I am off to try and finish my Lace Leaf Shawl for Greg's Grandma. I think we are going to pop in National Treasure tonight. Why, I don't know. To me it doesn't look very good. Not to mention that I HATE Nicholas Cage.

SP6 Questions

It's started again......here are my answers.

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you? There are some Liond Brand yarns that I would like to try....but mostly I avoid them

2. Do you spin? Crochet? Nope and Nope

3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.) Not really...exceot I can't stand the smell of smoke.

4. How long have you been knitting? For about a year now.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yes....I'll post a link in my sidebar.

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) Baking scent goods :-)...Vanilla and citrus scents

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? A very large one. I love chocolate.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? I bead and cross stitch....

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) Country music and yes I can play MP3's

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand? I love yellow and soft pink. I really like the fall colors. I don't like really bright colors and I hate red. Well not all read, just bright red....maron is better for me.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am mariied with 3 beautiful kids, a 4 year old daughter, a 2 year old son, and a 7 month old son.

12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know) To finish college, move to the Northeast and remodel an old farmhouse.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? I've been on a Lorna's Laces kick!

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Scratchy wool.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s? Socks :-)

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Socks :-)

17. What are you knitting right now? A shawl, and a couple socks.....oh and a sweater for my son.

18. What do you think about ponchos? Not for me.

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Both

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Bamboo......but I bought my first Addi's for the shawl I am doing and I am really enjoying them.

21. Are you a sock knitter? Yup.

22. How did you learn to knit? My amazingly talented Mother.

23. How old is your oldest UFO? My son's sweater. I started it in the spring and then it got warm.....I really have to get cracking on it.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird? I love cows....can't you tell.

25. What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving and Christmas.

26. Is there anything that you collect? Oh wow......yarn, cows, old postcards, Jasperware, pie birds......I could go on and on

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? None

28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on? There are...check my wish list

29. Any patterns you have been coveting, but haven't bought for one reason or another?? There are some I like......but haven't bought because I don't need anymore right now. I'll post them as they come up.

Needle Exchange Questions

I decided to do Catherine's needle exchange this time around....I guess I should get my questions up!

1. What do you like to knit or crochet? (socks, sweaters, etc.) Socks and shawls.....but am going to start a sweater

2. What fibers do you like? Wool, silk, cashmere or course

3. What type of needles do you use most often? Bamboo....but I bought my first Addi's for my shawl and really like them.

4. Do you like to knit in the round? Yup

5. Do you use a magic loop method or any other we should know about? Are you interested in learning a new method? No....I really love my DPN's but have been thinking of doing Magic Loop. To be honest I don't think I would switch from DPN's.

7. Do you have a favorite place that you shop online? (knitpicks.com, knitpixie.com, jimmybeanswool.com....)? All of the above :-)

8. Do you want to be surprised? then erase all your answers above and write surprise me!!! I won't erase them but I love surprises!

The days are turning colder, and the nights are just FREEZING. No really, below 32...it's freezing. SO of course I am getting excited because that means it's sweater weather.

It's not that I don't like summer, I just love Fall and Winter so much. Greg and I have been talking about where we want to move to next, and I really don't want to move away from having 4 seasons! We had been talking about moving back up to the north coast of Ca but up there there is only one season...GREY. I would miss the snow and fall colors. But up there I would get to wear sweaters even in the summer :-)

Who knows where we will go. If I had my way we would be back east in a heart beat. Greg wants to go too, I just can't leave my parents. If they agreed to come with us then we would go. It would be too hard to be on the east coast while they were still on the west. I need them and I think they need the Grandkids!

So anyway, I've decided that I need to knit myself a sweater. What sweater I have no idea but I really want to knit myself something. Here are the three that I was thinking of........

Lucille, Hattie, Peggy

All of these are out of the Jaeger JB25 book. They are made out of cotton but I would use some sort of wool. I am leaning toward Peggy.....what do you think?

I've been working away on my Lace Leaf Shawl, but really do you want a picture? We all know what a lace shawl looks like unblocked......a lump of yarn!

Greg's on vacation this week so I don't see a lot of knitting taking place. Just a lot of wood chopping, house painting, and maybe a yard sale. But that's good, I need yarn money for my sweater!

So I'll leave you with a picture of a very cute 7 month old...................

It's been crazy around here!

I have been so busy I have hardly sat down! My sockapal-two socks are finished. I really should block them but I have no idea how to block socks! I really hope she likes them. It's my first pair of "patterned" socks and I am pretty proud of them.

Pattern: Waving Lace Socks by Evelyn Clark

Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock, Glenwood

Needles: Britney US1's

I have also found out who my fabulous secret pal is!!! It's Yarn Girl of Drop Stitch Knitter. She was awesome and so fun. I know that we will keep in touch. Thanks so much for everything you have made my first secret pal experience so wonderful.

The wonderful knitter that I was spoiling hasn't gotten her last package yet. She is in Toronto and it's been taking 3 weeks for my boxes to get to her. So far it's been 2 weeks since I sent my reveal package so sometime this week she should have it. Hummm should I name her? I don't think that she knows of me....ok here goes. Her blog.

I have also started the Leaf Lace Shawl from Fiber trends. I'm using Lorna's Laces sock in Tuscany. I am loving how beautiful this yarn looks. This is going to be a gift for Greg's 95 year old Grandmother for Christmas. I hope she will be able to use it.

Let's see what else.... I joined Catherine's Needle Exchange. I didn't participate last round but I was convinced that it would be fun so here we go :-)

And also I have gotten my two September sets of stitch markers from the stitch marker swap. The bottom set is from Crafty Lilly and the top set is a mystery. Both are beautiful and I love them so much! The set from Crafty Lilly is a beautiful natural stone bead and the tops ones are the most beautiful pink I have ever seen! I can't wait to cast on for something that will need them!!!

Katie's first day of school

My little princess started preschool this week. She is only going two days a week for a few hours but she loves it. So she's been in school 2 days....2 days....and she is already sick! Yesterday she came down with a fever. And so it starts. I know she will get sick a lot. She has never been in daycare of any kind so she hasn't been exposed to too many germs in her life. Hopefully Ben and James won't go through this when they get to school.

Today I have made cookies with the kids, and surfed knitting blogs. Anything but watch TV. Watching the coverage of Katrina makes me sick....I feel helpless. What can I do? Give money? I've done that but I still feel like I should be doing something. My heart breaks when I think of the children with no homes...or food or water..or toys...or a blanket...or a stuffed animal. I just wish I could do something.

Whoo Hooo....

I am on my way to finishing my sock pal socks. I am on the gusset shaping of the second one. I really liked this pattern and will have to make a pair for me. I can't wait to send these off to my pal. I really hope she likes them.

Now here is my yarn haul from last week. There is some of Knit Picks new merino lace weight yarns ( the purple solid and variegated, and the green) and some yarn that I picked up at Filati's yarn sale. One ball of Rowan Kid Silk Haze to make some Airy scarves, some beautiful Regia stretch, and some Sidar Snuggly for a cardigan for James. There was more but I am sending it off to my SP.

I decided to make the Lace Leaf Shawl for my DH's Grandmother. Claire is 96 and doing very well. She really is a wonderful woman and I love to go visit. Not that we can do that much, she is in Montana, but when we do I really enjoy her stories. I think that she will really like the shawl. I had planned on making out of Lorna's Laces but now I am thinking alpaca would be better. Montana is COLD in the winter!

Now a story to make you laugh..

The night before last I heard Katie crying in her bed. I jumped up and was going to see what the matter was. I guess I was in a hurry....I didn't want her to wake her brothers up....well I tripped over the Fisher Price Barn that was at the end of the bed. I tore a chunk of skin off the bottom of my foot and...ready....GOT A RUG BURN ON MY FACE. Can you believe that? A rug burn? You can not imagine the smart ass comments that Greg and I have gotten about it. Now that it has darkened...I look really silly. It's raw between my nose and my upper lip. Not to mention that I am hobbling along because of my foot.

Ok so it's not funny but a RUNG BURN ON THE FACE.....yeah, go ahead and laugh. If it wasn't me I would laugh!

And yes, my yarn is lounging on all the wood that Greg is splitting for winter.....we think we will need 5 cords to get us through....so far we have about 3.