KnitoneInsane2

Wow, where did the time go...

2008-10-10T08:50:00.002-06:00

First off, let me announce the winners to my 3rd Blogiversary contest:

You ladies sure did have me laughing my ass off and I so enjoy a good perverted joke, lol.

1st Place is Miss Beca

2nd Place is Sockknitter54

3rd Place goes to Yarn4kalei

Send me an email (elfiebaby at gmail dot com) with your addy's and I'll ship out your goodies.

Now, let me see...I've been posting regularly on my other blog "Cassandra's House of Yarn" for the HSKS 6 swap I'm participating in. What a blast I'm having in that swap. I won the 1st round of Dueling in the Sock Bracket. The 2nd round starts today and I'll be dueling against one of my own housemates..at least a Slytherin will be going into round 3. I've also finished a bit more than half of the bag I'm knitting for my pal, it's larger than the ones I've made in previous rounds and colorwork too, hehe.

I am also participating in Robyn's Single Sock Swap which is awesome, only 1 sock to knit and no second sock syndrome. I've been in contact with my pal plus the lady who's knitting for me and the yarn is bought, pattern picked and cast on. I'm hoping to have the sock knit up in the next week or two. Since dueling is this weekend everything else will be put to the side till I'm finished with that project.

2008-09-08T14:41:00.004-06:00

On the start of week 2 of school for the little guys. Collin is enjoying his full days of grade 1 and both Justice and Collin are happy to be back with their friends. As for myself, I spent the week in a daze. I just didn't have the energy or will to do much except mope about, watching tv and eating bonbons, lol.

This week, i've just finished updating my etsy store with some new yarns and some mini skeins. I've got the sock blanket bug too so I needed more yarn to keep it going without having to ball up my skeins I already have but that was an idea I was tossing around ;) I've got another big update planned for this Friday to get alot of my stock cleared out for my big order I've got coming in. I'll be whipping up some Harry Potter favs of mine plus House colors.

Speaking of Harry Potter... I also joined the HSKS 6 swap and woot Slytherin! I'm excited :) I've found a few owl patterns in both crochet and knit I want to make up for my partner which I find out at the end of the week. Time to get back to skeining. Also, if you want some fibery goodness see the post below, My Blogiversary Contest.

Happy 3rd Blogiversary, I mean Belated Blogiversary

2008-08-31T19:13:00.003-06:00

Wow, it was 3 years and a few weeks since I first started this blog Aug. 15, 2005. I never meant to blog every day but I was hoping for a once a week but the beginning of this year wasn't the best I've had in the last 3 years. On a happy note I'm doing a 100% better, loving my dyeing, knitting and family (not all in that order,hehe).

To celebrate these 3 years I will be giving away 3 prizes .

Grand Prize is: 3 skeins of Harry Potter inspired yarn, one "The Boy Who Lived"colorway in Nymph weight, "Ron" colorway in Sprite weight and "Hermoine" colorway in the Pixie weight from my etsy store "Faery Fiber"

2nd Prize is 1 skeins of Harry Potter inspired yarn "Dolores" colorway in the Pixie weight from my etsy store "Faery Fiber"

3rd Prize is 1 skein of Harry Potter inspired yarn "Death Eater" colorway in the Nymph weight from my etsy store "Faery Fiber"

All will come with a pair of skull stitch markers since we are closing in on Halloween!

Now, what you have to do, well that is easy..Just leave a comment on this post with the best joke you have. It can be clean or dirty ;) take your pick..just one that is going to have hubby and I laughing our asses off. The blogiversary contest closes Sept 30/08.

hmmm

2008-08-31T15:05:00.004-06:00

hmmm.. well all I can say is wow, it has been a long time since I posted here.

First, I'm doing pretty good. The pneumonia finally cleared the middle of June, my best friend moved to Michigan the end of June and I also barely knit much during that time and dyeing was on the back burner. I wasn't to sure if it was the dyeing that was causing our illnesses so everything was on a stand still till we were 100%well. I dyed a little bit in June just to test the waters and nothing happened to us health wise so the dye pot has been in full swing since the beginning of July. I am so happy, it has been a long time and not dyeing yarn is absolutely depressing to me. Don't get me wrong, I love knitting but dyeing is just another creative outlet for me and the two do go hand in hand ;)

June was a pretty crappy month to say the least, very depressing with Andrea leaving. Now who am I supposed to have coffee with and have our craft get togethers, making pasties, lol. Yeah we made pasties-all her idea too. July was fun a bit hot but not to bad. Took the kids to the park alot, hubby has been working almost every weekend so our plans for camping etc were put on the back burner. I also started dyeing yarn more and the colorways I am loving. August was the same, no camping but we did go to Whoop Up days last week. The kids had a blast at the fair, lots of rides, eating and the petting zoo.

Now, last day of August and the school supplies and clothes have been bought and the kids are dreading school on Tuesday, lol. I'm non to happy either, I've been enjoying the time over the summer with the boys at home. This will be the first time home alone, all day with Collin in Grade 1, Justice in Grade 2 and Jordan working full time. Rob is on days this week so it will be just myself and the dogs, hmmm.. what to do...I know, dyeing yarn for the update on Saturday, hehe. I've got some done but I wanted to do a bunch more mini skeins plus I found a cone of the 2 ply (that is being discontinued)on the bottom of my container I want to dye up.

On the knitting front, I have a pair of socks for the fil on the go for Christmas, a pair of plain jane socks for myself using the Hedwig colorway, plus numerous other projects including the Sock Blanket. I've been resisting the urge to start one even though I have lots of sock yarn leftovers. This is a pic of the first day's progress, 8 squares,not bad. I'm averaging 15-20 minutes per square including the ones I have to pic up and knit for. I've also designed 2 more patterns and have them up on my etsy site and also working on updating my ravelry projects page and advertising Faery Fiber on Ravelry. Hubby has done all that work graphic wise and did an excellent job at that.

Holy Crap, I totally missed my 3 year Blogaversary. Hmmm, give me a day or two to figure out a way to have a belated celebration. I'm thinking a yarn give away!

It has been 46 days since my last post...

2008-06-05T14:57:00.005-06:00

and where have I been? what have I been doing? and no I'm not dead in a pile of yarn some where, although that would be the way I'd want to go, lol.

Well, I've been sick the pneumonia yet again. My doctor said it didn't clear up the last time so after another round of antibiotics, cough syrup and inhaler I'm feeling alot better but not 100%. Still tired, with a cough but not as bad as it was the last month and a half. My little guys too are just getting over their pneumonia too. This has been the worst winter/spring we've had and I thought last year was bad but this is really getting ridiculous and we haven't been the only family in the school suffering like this this year. The boys have had a number of friends plus a few teachers who were out for weeks in the last few months due to pneumonia.

I did receive some swap packages that cheered me up. First from my Sock it to me Twice pal, Megan, a gorgeous pair of red socks and they are so warm and comfy. She went above and beyond and sent some awesome giftees I'm hoping to enjoy once I'm feeling better. Take a look, we have some gorgeous BFL sport from NH Knitting Mama, Happy Feet sock yarn, pocket suduko(excellent), Vogue Knitting summer issue, pez sheep (woot, now to keep that away from the kids till i can enjoy it too ;)), gum and candies, lotion, Knit by Janine Flew and a knitting thimble.

On the Monkey swap front I received a gorgeous pair of socks from Leslie knit with Tofutsies. I've got a skein of the yarn but haven't had a chance to make up a pair of socks with it as of yet. These are super socks and the fit is perfect. She also sent a bunch of goodies for the boys, Collin was especially thrilled cause he is a monkey fanatic. Check out all the fantastic goodies I received. The Gothic Spire pattern by Cookie A is something I have been coveting for some time and have a bunch of Louet Gems just itching to become socks, hehe. Cherry Tree Hill Supersock in the Winterberry colorway, it is absolutely gorgeous and my pics just don't do it justice, a monkey frame, pot scrubber, plate, notecards. Leslie and I had each other as swap pals this round and I didn't know till I received the package, lol.

Super big Thank You to Megan and Leslie for wonderful packages. You really made my week!

I am back, well almost

2008-04-20T15:40:00.002-06:00

First off, I am sorry I haven't posted the last few, umm almost 4 weeks. I've been ill and haven't been on the computer much, well not at all in the last week/two. I am just getting over another bout of pneumonia and crap I am so sick of being sick. I spent a good part of March sick as a dog with pneumonia both the little guys and I and it got to a point where they actually missed 2 weeks of school, lucky one was spring break. Things started looking up and we celebrated Collin's 6th birthday on April 3 and Jordan's 18th birthday on April 4. The boys were well but I was still borderline. The last couple weeks I've spent begging the hubby to put me out of my misery and today is the first day in a month I've felt well enough to do stuff. I go to the doctor at the end of the month, when my doctor gets back from her 3 week vacation to Australia. I'll get my blood tested again and hopefully it is just being burnt out or my anemia is back that's causing my weakened ammune system.

I haven't hit the dye pot for almost a month now and can't wait to get back to it this week. I've also got a huge thank you to send out to Selina Starflame my HSKS4 swap pal who really out did herself. First she had sent me a gift certificate from Elann and I ordered a bunch of Highland wool for a sweater along with some laceweight. Doesn't it look gorgeous :) I also received my package from her and take a look at the absolutely amazing bag she made. I am in awe and can't wait to show it off at the school tomorrow :) She also sent a bunch of awesome goodies too. Thanks so much Selina, you so rock!!

This says it all

2008-03-13T09:32:00.000-06:00

You Are An INFP

The Idealist

You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world.
Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships.
It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close.
But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop.

In love, you tend to have high (and often unrealistic) standards.
You are very sensitive. You tend to have intense feelings.

At work, you need to do something that expresses your personal values.
You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

How you see yourself: Unselfish, empathetic, and spiritual

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Unrealistic, naive, and weak

What's" Your Personality Type?

Update

2008-03-11T12:43:00.002-06:00

Not only do I suck at posting but making titles too, lol.

Well let's see, where do I begin. Hubby and I celebrated our 1st Wedding Anniversary on Feb. 29. We spent the evening hanging out with the kids who were happy as pie we included them :)

Hubby just celebrated his 39th birthday on the 8th. It was a laid back day of me dyeing and him hanging with the boys. I bbq'd some steaks and dogs had some oreo cake and we ended the evening watching a movie.

So, what else have I been up to. Well, after much talking with the hubby about my little business I've come to the decision I'd like to take it more full time instead of dyeing once or twice a month. After the long periods between my dyeing I have a hell of a time getting motivated again. Then once I start back up I don't want to stop so I'm going to be dyeing 3-4 times a week :) Woot! I received a huge order a couple weeks ago and have dyed most of it and updated the store with some new Harry Potter colorways as well as my new Chromatic Dragon line (all D&D inspired). I'll be updating the store more regularly now with another update coming on Friday with some Easter yarns as well as a few more HP colorways. I'm hoping my new order of yarn comes in this week, I ordered some Superwash Sport/DK weight as well as some Bamboo/merino blend to try out.

On the swap front, I've been updating my Harry Potter character blog more than this one, sorry :( For the HSKS4 swap I received a new partner, the one who I was knitting for couldn't continue but this is a big plus for me. I'm now knitting for a Hufflepuff, Woot! That is the only house I haven't knit for and was really hoping to have at the beginning of the swap. My pal loves sock yarn and has no preference as to variegated/solids etc so I'm sending him, yes him, "Cedric" the hottest hufflepuff in my opinion :)

Well, back to the dye pot.

The usual belated update

2008-02-15T08:25:00.003-07:00

Where do I begin...hmmm..I got my first wholesale order out last week to Robyn over at Robyn's Nest. The yarn is so pretty, I saved a skein for myself plus the socks I already have knit up in the pattern I designed for her sock club this month as well. I am very excited, sorry no hints on the colorway or pattern. The pattern will be released in 3 months and will be for sale at that time on my etsy site.

I am now getting my butt into gear and will be sending some yarn out plus another pattern to my test knitters to get going. My order of yarn, about 20lbs worth should be here next week, woot. I can't wait to get back into the dye pot again, there's some new colorways i'm dyeing to try out, hehe.

On the swap front I'm still trying to decide which pattern will work well for my Hogwarts Sock Swap3 partner. I'm using one of my custom dyed Gryffindor colors, The Boy Who Lived for my pal. I'll cast on this weekend and get that baby going, don't want to fall behind. My sock kit for my HSKS4 pal is almost complete. I am super excited about that one, I've got the stitchmarkers, custom dyed yarn done by moi, the bag(almost complete) and some super goodies that are making their way here by muggle mail. I found some nifty Harry Potter stuff so I'm looking forward to mailing those off to my pals.

Time to go get some more laundry done, ugghh and finish one of the many hats i have to make for my little guy's stuffed monkeys, rofl.

OMG, where the heck have I been

2008-01-28T10:55:00.001-07:00

Well, first off I've been working on patterns like a mad woman. I've got 3 written out, 2 test knitted using my own hand dyed yarns. I am so loving them, the 2 ply is just amazing to work with. My test knitter Deb in BC has been test knitting the pattern that will be used for Robyn's Nest sock club next month, which is almost here, ack! She's using the Guys and Dolls colorway, only one was dyed and looks amazing. Right now I am just finishing up the formatting of the patterns and will be posting my Hogwarts Sock swap pal's pattern I made on my blog. That should be up in the next week, fingers crossed.

I've also been playing around with some custom orders too, and just received my order of beads for my stitchmarkers I include with purchases. I've just gotten tired of buying from Michael's Craft store and ending up with half of them busted in the package. I found an online store called the Beading Room and hooked myself up with over a thousand beads, lol. Might as well make it worth my while and the assortment is amazing. It took a little longer than I had hoped to receive the beads but well worth the wait. I ordered Hematite(I so love), gorgeous glass beads, shells etc, etc. I'll have to spend a weekend just making a bunch of stitchmarkers again.

On the home front, hubby's dad took a terrible fall and wound up in the hospital a few days later with cracked ribs and bruised lungs. He will be making a full recovery but needs some rest. This all from sitting on a chair and leaning to far back, falling off and hitting the table on the way down, ouch.

I've also been at the school helping out with skating, no I'm not on skates and haven't been since I was 16, lol. With Collin learning it is best not to have me on my ass as much as he is, lol. I also suffered a major allergy flare up, I switched masks for dyeing and heck if I new the new ones had latex in them. Crap, My eyes were swollen and red with a bad rash on my cheeks. I looked like hell. My allergy meds were no help either, just had to ride it out. I'm back to my old ones, sans latex and everything is going well.

On the knitting front, I've finished the socks for pics for the sock club kit. I was hoping for a chinook here in Lethbridge, but no luck, we just got another dump of snow last night and I'm freezing my butt off. I've also almost finished the bag for the HSKS4 swap, just need about another 1/4 and I can cast off. I also have my pals yarn dyed in a Harry Potter inspired colorway but no hints as to who I'm knitting for or what House she's in ;). I've also casted on for my Sock it to me Twice pals socks using her favorite colors, purple and bright(I mean bright) green that I dyed up for her. I just joined the Hogwarts Sock Swap 3, I was in the previous rounds and had a blast so what the heck why not. One can never have to many pairs of Slytherin socks, hehe. I'm hoping for a Hufflepuff this round, that is the only one I have not knit for, hint, hint. I also received a great e-card from my Sock it to me Twice pal, thanks so much! The card is absolutely adorable and was a great pick me up on such a blah day.

On the yarn front, I've been stalking, I mean reading the Ravelry ISO trade, swap and in search of and made some great swaps/sales. I sold my Knit Picks dye your own I was originally going to use for my store but wound up practicing on and donating to the local Blankets for Canada Society to be used for blankets, sweaters, mittens etc. I just received one of my packages today and it is 2 gorgeous skeins, 1 is Zen String's Serendipity Sport in the Bloom colorway and the other is Urban Gypz's Limited Edition "Mod Olive Cocktail" sport weight. I just love them. I've also got some Briggs and Little coming soon, I'm sure it is sitting at customs, lol along with some STR I picked up on Ravelry too. My Bluemoon Fiber Arts sock club is paid for and I'm patiently awaiting the first shipment, woot! I also received Scout's Sock club kit for December a few weeks ago, very pretty yarn and some cardstock with a yarn stamp. Hmmm, do I really want to take up scrapbooking/cardmaking, kinda but with the dyeing and designing/knitting I don't think I have time. I did play with a few just for funsies.

Well, back to reskeining so I can get a mini update done tomorrow. It won't be as much as I wanted but it's something to keep the Harry Potter fans happy.

Sorry no pics, blogger is acting up so I'll try again later.

Belated Happy New Year!

2008-01-04T22:06:00.001-07:00

Well I welcomed in the New Year with packages galore and they just keep coming. First off I received my yarn I ordered at the beginning of December to dye up for my etsy store. I was so hoping to have a Boxing Day sale but instead I'm having a Happy New Year sale. All sock yarns have been reduced by $4.00 and I just updated with a bunch of new colorways including my little tribute to the Harry Potter books.

I have a huge Thank You going out to Carolynn, my Harvest Sock Swap pal who sent me the absolute best package to welcome in the New Year. Carolynn put alot of time into this package and instead of a Harvest themed package she went with my all time favorite author Diana Gabaldon's series the Outlander. She included 6 gifts based on the 6 books, first off is the Outlander, signed by Diana to me! Unfreaken believable, I almost fell over when I opened the cover to see the bookmark. Hubby thought that was so cool too. 2nd-for the Dragonfly in Amber book I received dragonfly stitchmarkers. 3rd-Voyager, an Asian inspired DPN roll, already housing my favorite dpns, US 1's. 4th-Drums of Autumn, a small beaded pouch in rememberance of Nayawenne. 5th-Fiery Cross, Firestarter socks in STR Metamorphic(woot and the sock fits perfectly). 6th-Breath of Snow and Ashes, White, Grey and silver yarn which will become my winter hat, something I've been wanting and needing to make for myself for some time now. It also goes great with my new winter coat :) and some delicious shortbread and Starbucks coffee. Thanks again Carolynn!

I have another (belated) Thank You to my Monkey Swap pal Jen who sent a pair of beautiful Monkey socks in a gorgeous neopolitan colorway. I also received some adorable monkey giftees, lotion(always needed) and a cute Monkey notebook. "Hank" the monkey is starting to grow and my little one Collin is just loving it, he is a huge monkey fanatic. Jen also ordered some yarn from DK knits which I received today in the Plums and Pears colorway with some body butter. The yarn is beautiful and I've been wanting to try her yarn for some time now. Thanks so much Jen for the wonderful package.

Also in the news, I am designing and dyeing the yarn for Robyn over at Robyn's Nest for her February sock club. I am very excited and the colors are awesome.

Family update: Justice got sick Christmas Eve and is finally getting over the flu, Collin managed to get thru Christmas unscathed but welcomed in the New Year sick as a dog. Myself and Hubby we welcomed in the New Year playing WoW and I was dyeing yarn at the same time, lol. Talk about multi tasking. Now if I can only work in blogging regularly for 2008 I will be truly amazed.

As for Christmas I made out like a bandit, I received a new Sony camcorder, the one with the hard drive so no messing around with tapes and such. My daxie stitcharkers hubby ordered arrived yesterday as well as some Yarn Pirate yarn from my son. I also received the new Harry Potter movie from the little guys which attributed to the inspiration for my new colorways.

Time for a little knitting before bed. Happy New Year!

Thank You's and quick update

2007-12-23T08:05:00.000-07:00

I have a couple of pals to thank for the wonderful packages I received.

First off, a belated Thank You to Angela for the wonderful and delicious Knitter's Coffee Swap 3 package I received. Take a look at all the goodies she sent. First off, Coffee from Longbottoms in Oregon(this is so good) and some delicious cookies(sorry, those didn't make the pic but they are so yummy, hehe). Also included is an "Oregon" travel mug(already put to good use since mine had cracked a while back), lavendar soap, tissues, sachet and mints. For some fiber love, I received Artyarns Supermerino in a gorgeous pink/green colorway and 2 handknit dishcloths, one with a cup of coffee and the other a maple leaf. Thanks so much Angela for being such a great pal.

I would also like to flash a package I received a couple days before Christmas which really made my week. From my Sock it to me Twice Pal, she sent a stocking filled with goodies. Stuffed inside were 2 balls of Hempathy in a pretty pink, lots of chocolate, stickies in my initial, a package of snowflakes for the bath and gorgeous purple stitchmarkers(not pictured but are in use on a pair of socks). Thanks so much pal for my Christmas goodies, you Rock!

Quick update, I was going to post yesterday(Dec. 23) but couldn't find the camera cord.

Justice has come down with a cold/flu, not sure which. He's got a high fever and bones achy and to boot on Christmas Eve. Hubby and I have a huge pile of presents to wrap, yes I wait till Christmas Eve to do my wrapping, lol. Hubby hates it but it has been a tradition since I had Jordan and it was something my parents did as well.

Time to get Santa's cookies ready with his can of ice cold coke so the boys' hit the sack. Merry Christmas.

From the sick bed

2007-12-18T15:06:00.000-07:00

Well, I spent all of last week bedridden. First time that has happened in many years, I'm the kinda gal that just sucks it up and keeps on going especially at Christmas time.

This week I had no choice but to get out of bed and get shit done. All the presents for the kids were bought a few weeks back but I still needed groceries, more wrap/tags and to go back to the Doctor and see the Dentist. Well Dr's appointment was cancelled because I forgot a field trip that was scheduled. This week and had to go to the dentist because I chipped a tooth and with the luck I've been running with lately it got infected, Yuck. I suffered all weekend in major pain and got in on today before I had to pick the kids up for lunch and because of the infection I can't get anything done to it so I'm on antibiotics and pain killers. Thank you Tylenol 3 with codeine for making the week more bearable.

All I can sum the past 2.5 weeks up as is "F*ck, F*ck, F*ck". I am so behind on everything, my Christmas(fruitcake) hasn't been made and will be put off till after Christmas unfortunately. I love fruitcake, yummy.

I also haven't received my yarn for dyeing which was shipped over 2 weeks ago so I am really pissed. I was planning a huge boxing day sale with over 60 skeins of yarn up for sale but that won't be happening. F*ck you Canada Post for your crappy holiday service *shakes fist*. To boot the yarn has been shipped by Xpresspost and is sitting who knows were. So, alternate plan is if I get the yarn by Christmas eve I will be dyeing on Boxing day to the 28th to get it all done and having a New Years Day special, fingers crossed.

Mail Call

2007-12-05T16:24:00.000-07:00

Check out all the mail that came today, I didn't include the couple of catalogues I received. Crap I think my mail man was stashing my stuff, all week long I've been getting the annoying junk mail and the occasional bill. Today he had to come to the door because he couldn't fit everything in the mailbox, lol. Serves him right.

I received a great package from Penny, my Hand-dyed yarn swap pal. First off, some very pretty hand dyed yarn using some of my favorite colors, purple/red/blues. She did a marvelous job. Penny also included some Swedish Berries(my fav), lotion for my dry hands(much appreciated), a pretty little box with a purple beaded bracelet inside and a kaleidoscope(not shown, Collin has it and is having a blast), lol. Thanks so much Penny, I look forward to making a new pair of tweedy socks in the new year!

I also received one of my etsy purchases, some very cute bags from Stuck in Illinois. No pics because I had to hide one of the bags from Collin (Christmas gift) and another is for my Sock it To Me Twice pal.

*Whew* now I can't wait for my other etsy purchases to arrive :). Time to get back to making the chili. With all the snow we have and are having I need something to warm me up.

PS. big update in the store this weekend plus the introduction of my new 3ply.

OMG, it's December!

2007-12-02T17:23:00.000-07:00

Wow, only 23 days left till Christmas. This has been somewhat of a crappy week. Collin spent the week at home with a bad cold and Justice had to be picked up after first recess on Friday morning because he was vomiting. Yuck, lucky that only lasted a few hours after we brought him home, he had slept for the whole afternoon and evening woke up at 5 am Saturday and was totally well. Collin is back to normal too so school for those guys this week, hehe.

I only got a little bit of dyeing done and will have the 5skeins up in the morning. I did do a bit of dyeing today, a custom order of a WoW toon(so far it looks awesome) and I can't wait for the skein to dry to get the full effect. Hubby is bugging me to get a skein dyed up for his toon, hehe. I plan on spending most of tomorrow and Tuesday dyeing, minus the trips back and forth to the school for the kids. I have some ideas for Christmas themed yarn plus some more of my other colorways too. I will also be introducing my 3 ply fingering weight this week and it is oh so soft.

Well, I'll catch you up a bit more on the home life. I took the family to the craft show last Friday and ended up with a couple things, mostly fudge, lol. It was pretty disappointing, alot of the vendors I looked forward to seeing were not there :(

On Saturday was hubby's Christmas party for the kids under 11 years at Fort Whoop Up. They had Santa handing out gifts to each child and for our boys this was their first year where they actually went up to Santa instead of running away screaming and crying. Yes, it is true, not one picture/conversation, anything with Santa. I think it was because he came bearing gifts, hehe. We had a good time, even went on a wagon ride, roasted some hotdogs and marshmallows, yum.

Time to watch Desperate Housewives and knit a bit.

Sock it to me Twice Contest

2007-11-24T09:37:00.000-07:00

10 things I'm grateful for:

1. My Husband, who is my best friend as well.

2. My boys, they are all healthy and happy. Even the one with all the piercings, lol(he recently took out the two eye ones).

3. Our furry friends.

4. My iPod

5.My knitting, keeps me sane on those days when you really need it ;)

6. Coffee and Swaps, without it I cannot function during the day, hehe and I love giving and receiving gifts.

7. My (hubby's) Aunt Margaret just because she's the best and even though she's miles away she sends flowers on those special days.

8. My stash, when I lose my knitting mojo I can always go back to my stash and fondle what I have.

9. My office, a place to escape, surf the web/read blogs and play WoW.

10. Online shopping, without it I'd be wading in acrylic yarn, Eeek!

Lets101 Quizzes - Fun Quiz

Store Updated, Hogwarts Sock Swap package and FO's

2007-11-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

Woot, I'm updating my etsy store with more new colorways. Thanks to my hubby who has been terrific with coming up with names, color ideas based on our love for D&D, WoW and Mythical creatures. I've also added another "Guy Themed" color, Marble, it turned out awesome if I do say so myself. There is also a couple colors based on the Harry Potter series, I've got Voldemort and Tonks. Here's a peek at the new colors.

I have a super huge Thank You to make to Kathe, a.k.a. Violet LeVeela for the best Slytherin package any Slytherin could ask or wish for. All the awesome goodies, first off check out the socks. Snake socks and an absolute perfect fit, I just love the short row heels. I also received a Slytherin bookmark, a Harry Potter 2008 calender(perfect for my little office), Sock and Glove Book- awesome, Collin is now addicted to sock monkeys and has already asked to go shopping for socks, lol. Looks like more monkeys and other animals will be done over Christmas break and if I can sneak in a few before Christmas for their stockings ;). Now, where did I leave off, oh yes, dog treats that only stuck around for one pic before the little guys whipped them away to give a treat to the girls (huge thanks from Barky and Xena), the cutest stuffed dragon which has a new home next to my computer, Godiva Chocolate pearls both dark and milk, yummy I was so in need of a chocolate fix. There was also a bottle of Gloves in a Bottle (I so needed this :)) and last but not least Clover Takumi Velvet dpns size 0 and Colinette Jitterbug sock yarn in the Lagoon colorway. Awesome, the one and only skein I had my Aunt took this summer and I never did get to replace it. Thanks so much Kathe for the Super Awesome goodies. *happy dance, woot* I will be taking the afternoon/evening off and casting on a pair of socks for myself using my new needles and Jitterbug.

On the knitting front, besides dying to cast on to my new socks I have finished my Harvest sock and will be shipping it out Monday. I need to make one quick little trip to the store for some edible treats. I won't post the pic of the sock till my pal receives it just in case she pops by my blog. One thing I can tell you is that I used Shi Bui sock yarn and wow, very nice to knit with and with the color I chose I went with a simple ribbing since the yarn had a little to much going on to have any type of cables to show up.

I'll post a little more tomorrow about the homefront stuff. Time to knit ;)

More Yarn, Swaps and stuff

2007-11-18T21:02:00.000-07:00

I was able to get 9 new colorways listed on etsy today, 2 are already gone too. Woot! Here's a teaser of what I dyed up last week, we have Chrome, Night Storm, Chocolate Berries, Neopolitan, Nymph, Voldemort, Tonks, Imp, Satyr and Aluminum.

On the swap front I sent out my Knitter's Coffee Swap 3 package so she should have it in about a week or so. My Hogwarts Sock pal received her package, well that is what Canada Post has down for their tracking info. Here's a shot of the Gryffindor socks I sent. I used Louet Gems sport after having a downhill battle with the fingering weight and loosing I switched and wow did they turn out great if I do say so myself.

I also have turned the heel on my Harvest socks and those babies will be going out in the mail by Friday along with some other goodies. I joined up for the Sock it to me Twice swap. I have my pal and already started shopping for her first thing this morning, hehe.

On the home front everyone is doing pretty good. Both little guys caught a cold/sniffles this week but I think it is partially from their flu shot they received on Wednesday. Hubby is now back on nights, what a relief. This means for the next 2 weeks I don't have to worry about running him back and forth to work. Yes, we only have one vehicle. For us it really wasn't an issue till we moved to the other side of town and now with the job change a few months back it means a heck of alot more travelling.

Well, I am pretty bagged. It has been a long week of Dr. appointments and stuff. Tomorrow the kids are in school and I've got the house to clean as well as list some clearance sock yarn on etsy to make room for more cones that hopefully will arrive this week, fingers crossed. More new colorways are developing.

Sock It To Me Twice

2007-11-18T00:47:00.000-07:00

The Questions

How long have you been knitting? Do you consider yourself beginner, intermediate, advanced? I've been knitting for 24 years, wow I can't believe it has been that long, lol. I'm intermediate/advanced, willing to try anything and just started fair isle.

How long have you been knitting socks? 2 years

What are your favorite fibers to work with? merino wool, fingering or sport for socks

What is your favorite color? purple, pink, red, green and blues

What are your current WIPs (works in progress)? socks, I think 3 pairs right now and a scarf

Name your favorite yarns, (brand, fibers, colors, etc.). besides my own hand dyed I love STR, Lorna's Laces, Cherry Tree Hill and Louet Sport

What are some yarns/fibers that you stay away from. Acrylic and Mohair(allergic to mohair)

What is your family situation? (Married, kids, pets?) Married to my best friend, 3 boys, 2 dogs(long haired daxies) and a chinchilla.

Name some of your hobbies. Besides knitting, dyeing I also spin and read.

Name some of your favorite movies? The Polar Express, The Green Mile, Fried Green Tomatoes, The Color Purple just to name a few.

Do you like to read? Romance and fantasy

Do you collect anything? besides sock yarn, fairies and sheep

Do you own an iPod or mp3 player? iPod

What are your favorite type of knitting needles? bamboo

What knitting notion could you not live without? my tape measure and stitchmarkers

Who are some of your favorite designers? Cookie A

Do you subscribe to any magazines? (Knitting or otherwise.) none :(

When is your birthday? March 16

Do you have a "wishlist", (on Ravelry, Froogle, or Amazon)? Amazon

Do you have a Ravelry ID? orianna

If you had a sheep, what would you name it? Socks, hehe.

What a crazy November

2007-11-09T07:41:00.000-07:00

So in between the little guys going to school/volunteering at the school/new etsy store/hubby I have been swamped.

My Hogwarts socks have been finished and the package is leaving here today. With the daze I've been in I totally forgot my bookmark I needed to make. All is finished, list checked twice and it will be off with a few etsy orders today. Here's a teaser of the package and bookmarks I sent off.

I've also almost finished my Knitter's Coffee Swap package, need to grab some coffee and other yummy treats and that can be shipped right away. I also have been working on my Harvest Swap package, most of the goodies have been bought except edible goodies(don't want to tempt myself, lol) and working on the sock and that should go out next week, Woot! My Hand dyed yarn swap yarn has been dyed, now onto the shopping ;)

My etsy store, Faery Fiber is going great! It is just so much fun dyeing and making up the colors as I'm going along. Hubby and the boys have been such a big influence on my colors too. Being in an all male household the boys have been wanting to see more guyish colors, so lots of blues/browns/blacks/greys and I'm loving it. Hubby is even helping with the names and I've been working on a as he puts it "Guy Theme" for the store using different metals for names. Guess what, it is working and I can't keep them in the store, hehe. I'll be listing more Chaos later today, need a few more pics as well as my Cafe Mocha. This weekend I'll dye up some more fingering weight, I'm thinking greens as well as the "Guy Themed" yarns.

Time to take the boys to school. More tomorrow.

Introducing....

2007-10-29T19:42:00.001-06:00

My new Etsy Store.

Finally, after much hard work I finally have my little shop up and running. All the yarn has been re skeined, tagged and my first one sold. I couldn't believe it, yesterday after listing "Chaos" it sold in less than 5 minutes. This was the one I had a tough time parting with but have taken many pics and have started skeining up more yarn for the dye pot.

My store features a 2 ply Superwash Merino, Fingering Weight approximately 475 yards. I hope to have my sportweight in for the weekend or early next week along with some of my prototypes(at a ridiculously discounted price) I have kicking about.

Grand Opening Special- 20% off all sock yarns from now till the end of November.

Work, Work, Work

2007-10-23T07:24:00.000-06:00

After spending the last few days of skeining sock yarn to be dyed I have finally got some to be listed on etsy. Just making tags and taking pictures and hopefully get everything on there tonight, if not tomorrow morning. This has been such an awesome week, lots of work but so much fun. Here's a pic of some of the yarn I dyed over the weekend.

On the swap front I have my Harvest Sock Pattern picked out, I think. I'm starting the sock tonight so fingers crossed I hope it looks great with the Shi Bui Yarn I chose. I've also been finishing up my Hogwarts Two Sock Pals socks(sorry no pic till my pal receives the package, but will be posting the pattern on my blog) and just toes to go and all the goodies have been picked out and boxed. I should have that package in the mail on Thursday/Friday along with my Knitters Coffee Swap 3 package.

I am such a joiner, I just signed up for the Hand Dyed Yarn Swap, hehe. Sounds like fun and I missed the last rounds sign ups so what the hay, I've got tons of yarn to dye.

On the home front, I've been getting together with two other moms from the kids' school and we've been crafting a couple times a week. It has been a nice change from spending my days at home with the boys, not that I don't mind it but it is nice to talk to someone over 4 feet that is interested in knitting/crocheting. Also with Collin in kindergarten in the morning and hubby working I don't have to spend the whole week alone.

Well time to get back to picture taking and tagging. Happy Knitting!

HSKS Trivia

2007-10-19T11:06:00.001-06:00

1. What was the name of the book Dumbledore left for Hermione in his will?
a. The Tales of Beedle the Bard

2. Whose sign was on Xenophilius Lovegood's chest?
d. Grindewald

3. Was October 30, 1980 the night that Lilly and James Potter died?
b. No

4. What's another name for the Elder Wand?
a. Deathstick

5. Whose Potterwatch code name was 'Rodent'?
d. Fred

6. What was so special about the peacocks at the Malfoy Manor?
d. They were all white

7. Who does Harry say was "probably the bravest man I knew?"
a. Snape

8. What thing was Lockhart giving Hagrid advice about getting out of a well?
b. Kelpies

9. What was the occupation of Colin Creevey's father?
d. Milkman

10. Which Professor of Hogwarts was a dueling champion when he was young?
a. Flintwick

Picture Scavenger Hunt

Bertie Botts Beans
http://img.nextag.com/image/Jelly-Belly-Harry-Potter/0/000/005/399/597/539959769.jpg

Jelly Slugs
http://www.sylvanlaneshoppe.com/07JellySlugs.jpg

Chocolate Frogs
http://www.archjrc.com/childsplace/images/potter-frogs.jpg

Blood Pops
http://www.sylvanlaneshoppe.com/candyBloodPops.jpg

Jenean's first HSKS kit
http://www.witherspooncabin.net/wordpress/?p=201

(Bonus Point: Who made the kit?)
Ansley

FO's, Yarn POrn and updates

2007-10-16T17:52:00.000-06:00

Yes, you read correctly, finished objects. I have my Monkey Socks for my Monkey Swap pal completed as of last week and in the mail. They turned out great after a couple bad starts and I really love the cotton. Here they are, a gorgeous blue/white variegated Meilenweit cotton and I will be making a pair for myself in the near future :)

I also completed my bag for the HSKS3 swap and it too has been mailed. This was my first time knitting with 2 colors and also using Patons SWS. What a soft yarn it is and I heard it is great for felting too. I just love how the bag turned out so much so I ordered a bunch of wool from Knit Picks to make more bags/hats/mittens etc, hehe. My Hogwarts Sock Swap socks are also coming along, just the foot on each I'm working on. Sorry no pics yet, maybe before the end of the week ;)

YARN PORN

My yummy Wollemiese package arrived last week all wrapped up so beautifully I had to take a picture before opening it. Take a look at the gorgeous skeins. I am in love, hehe and the service was excellent. It only took 8 days to get the package all the way from Germany to boot. I will be ordering again :)

Family update, well the boys just got over tonsillitis we took a turn for the worse over Thanksgiving holidays. The little guys and myself wound up at the Doctor's office Tuesday and I had pneumonia(once again). Friggin unbelievable, going from a cold to that. The Doctor I seen too was not our normal Doc and they suspect the little guys and possibly myself may have asthma(which would explain why we get sick so easily). We are supposed to check in with her in a few weeks after they are cleared up to get tested so right now they have an inhaler just in case.

I'm really bagged, it was a long day today. I went on Collin's class field trip to the Fire station and had a blast. I'll post a pic of him when I find the cord to my camera again.

Knitter's Coffee Swap 3

2007-10-09T08:04:00.000-06:00

QUESTIONS
1. Whole bean or ground? Either or, I do like using my new grinder :)
2. Fully-loaded or decaf? Fully loaded please!

3. Regular or flavored? Regular

4. How do you drink your coffee? I like cream and sugar or International Delight's French Vanilla coffee flavoring.

5. Favorite coffee ever? Cafe mocha all the way baby!

6. Are you fussy about your coffee or will any old bean do? don't care for folgers, maxwell house but do enjoy the starbucks or anything from a local roaster would be awesome.

7. Favorite treats to have with your coffee? Pie, cake or chocolate cookies, love the chocolate.

8. Anything else about your coffee preferences? I love a dark roast coffee but do love to dabble in the mediums as well.

9. Yarn/fiber you love? Wool, either handwash or superwash. Sock yarn is what I have most of but do need to work on acquiring a variety for the stash.

10. Yarn/fiber you hate? acrylic and mohair

11. What's on your needles? socks, socks and more socks

12. Favorite colors? My favorites are purples/reds/greens/blues and apparently pink since that is what I have most of in my stash.

13. Allergies? Mild allergy to cats and mohair

14. Anything you really love, really don't like, or just need to get off your chest?
Well, I'm pretty easy to please, no worries if it isn't a favorite color because I love all colors. As for yarns, I love the sock yarn in all weights but open to all yarns(natural) :)

HSKS, Yarn Porn and other stuff

2007-10-05T10:56:00.001-06:00

I owe Betty from Gryffindor a Super Big Thank You for the wonderful package she sent for the HSKS swap. I have my first felted bag in my house "Slytherin" colors (I've made them but never kept one for myself). Betty also included one of Wendy's patterns(another first), the "Pagoda Lace", yarn from Seacoast Handpainted in my house colors, cute stitchmarkers for my sock needles, a beautiful bookmark, 2 Crystal Palace bamboo dpns, Harry Potter light up pen and Harry Potter Jelly Slugs, yummy!

Yarn Porn, here's a couple pics of what I received these past couple of weeks. First pic is some lovely sock yarn from Cherry Tree Hill Sockittome in Indian Summer, Louet Gems and 5 skeins of the Malabrigo lace weight, yummy.

Here's some Yarn Pirate goodness in Spooky and Rebel.

Here's the package from yesterday from the Sweet Sheep, we have from left to right, Dream in Color Smooshy in Petal Showers, SheePaints "Pumpkin", Twinkle Toes "Black Cherry" and SheePaints "Cheesecake

I'll have some packages to send out in the next couple of days, my HSKS package is ready to send and my Monkey pal's socks are 3/4's done. I've turned the heel on the second sock so if I put out tonight and possibly tomorrow morning I should be able to send them both out in the afternoon. I'll post pics of them before I ship'em out :)I have also contacted my Sockapalooza 4 pal I'm an Angel for and have decided on some STR for her socks in an array of blues. My Hogwart's 2 sock swap is coming along and hopefully next weekend that will be off by owl. No spoiler pics sorry.

I still have 2 spots left for the Pay it Forward Swap, here's the details:Here's the details as explained from blog to blog:"Here is how it works! I'll send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange! I don't know what that gift will be yet, and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week...LOL... but you will receive it within 365 days, that's a promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog..."If you're interested, let me know by posting to this blog, and I'll start planning your project! This is just the best and I'm looking forward making some cool socks. Time to wake up hubby, he's off for the long weekend and we have to go turkey shopping. It is Thanksgiving here in Canada so to all my fellow Canadians "Happy Thanksgiving" and everyone have a terrific weekend!

Quidditch Round 2

2007-10-04T14:05:00.000-06:00

Trivia

1. In Deathly Hallows what does Harry step on when exiting his room to wash his cut? c. A teacup

2. Which two members of the Order of Phoenix came to escrot the Dursleys to a safe place?b. Dedalus Diggle and Hestia Jones

3. In order to throw off the Death Eaters, several of Harry's friends take Polyjuice Potion to resemble him and each Harry goes with a different member of the Order of the Phoenix to a different location. Where do Ron (disguised as Harry) and Tonks go?a. Aunti Muriel's house

4. At Bill and Fleur's wedding, Harry must disguise himself by taking Polyjuice Potion and takes on the appearnce of a redheaded Muggle boy from Ottery St. Catchpol. He was introduced to wedding guests as Cousin . . .c. Barny

5. Kingsley sends a message via Patronus to warn the Weasleys and wedding guests of the coming Death Eaters. What form does his Patronus take?b. A lynx

6. In the Half-Blood Prince what drink does Romilda Vane try to give Harry?d. Gillywater

7. What is the name of the person that heads the Holyhead Harpies?a. Gwenog Jones

8. What tatoo is Harry reported to have on his chest?b. Hippogriff

9. What color robes do the staff at Weasley's shop wear?b. Magenta

10. Where do Nicolas Flamel and his wife Perenelle live?d. Devon

Dyeing to Knit

2007-09-30T23:29:00.000-06:00

...sit and knit is all I've wanted to do all week. I got alot of dyeing done this past week and low and behold what arrives Friday but more yarn, cones upon cones of beautiful yarn wanting color. I also received a bunch more dyes now all I am waiting for is my new skein winder to get here.

Besides dyeing I've been taking care of 2 sick kids(colds), never fails when you have something to do, hehe. Little guys are much better now that they have passed their germs onto myself and I am doing my best to get over this as quick as possible. Crap I'm grateful the runny nose only lasted one day.

I received my Harvest Sock Swap partner and she has such a great taste in yarns and is turning out to be a very bad influence on me ;). She got to chatting about Woolmeise, it just so happened their website is down till tomorrow and there was none to be had at the Loopy Ewe. She did have other favs, Smooshy, Shi Bui and Yarntini so what do I do, buy a bunch of stuff from both the Loopy Ewe and The Sweet Sheep. I can't recall if I ordered some Yarntini but I do have Smooshy and Shi Bui coming my way, hehe. I will be sure to keep my eye out for some Woolmeise.

I also just sent an email off to sign up for the Knitters' Coffee Swap Three, sign ups just opened and there are only 150 spots so act fast. I volunteered to be an Angel for Sockapalooza 3 as well. The gal I'm knitting for enjoys the same colors of yarns I do, now for the tough stuff, choosing something from the stash or maybe what I've got coming. You know I can almost open a sock yarn only store with what I've got and I'm kinda thinking it is getting out of hand. Enough of the silly talk, anyone know of any sock yarn sales on right now :)

I've got a ton of pics to post and really need to get a decent camera again instead of trying to get Jordan's all the time. Maybe if hubby is reading this post, please dear, can I get a camera for Christmas?

Time for bed, happy knitting!

Another long week and we had snow

2007-09-21T09:58:00.000-06:00

We actually had snow on Tuesday, crap I thought the weather guy was joking the evening before when he said we'd be getting it but sure enough Tuesday morning before the kids went to school it started. Lucky I dug out the coats and stuff so I wasn't running around like a chicken with its head cut off.

Good news, hubby got the job he wanted and officially started training yesterday and he works today and off the weekend and will be in full rotation come Monday. I am so happy and he's loving the 8 hour shifts after spending the last 4 years working 12 hour shifts. His new place of employment is awesome and I'm looking forward to the new happy vibes he'll have working there.

My new routine is starting to come together, I'm up at 6am and now drinking a pot of coffee in the morning just to keep me going, lol. It really has me reconsidering homeschooling especially after what happened yesterday at school. Long story short, Justice came home with yet another shirt cut on the sleeve, this time I asked him about it instead of thinking it was a rip from the park. He tells me another kid, who was supposed to be his best friend from kindergarten, cut it and a few other shirts too and was teasing him about his new clothes(well excuse me for wanting him to dress decently for school). This all happening in school with the teacher there, crap was I pissed and still am. So for me who has trust issues is wondering if I should continue on this school year, this morning I was ready to keep him home and had no desire to set foot in that school. I also talked with Collin and he's having fun and as he put it "He's friends with everyone and they think he's the King of Kindergarten", ROFL, that helped lighten the mood. This school has a zero tolerance for bullying, supposedly and was having their presentation on bullying when it happened. Hubby thinks that the teachers are handling it well and we should wait and see but me I want to go punch the mom in the nose for raising such a friggin brat.

I also received my Harvest Sock Swap Partner, woot. I finished perusing my stash and found 2 perfect yarns and hopefully make a decision this weekend as to wish one I'll be using. I finished the knitted bag I was working on for my HSKS 3 pal, sorry no pics "the boy"(Jordan) has the camera so hopefully I can get them up tomorrow. I finished one Monkey sock after having to frog the first half of it because it was huge, that's what happens when I check my gauge and do a test swatch.

I still have 2 spots left for the Pay it Forward Swap, if your interested and want the details it is a few posts down.

2007-09-13T09:01:00.000-06:00

HSKS Trivia

1. Who is the Hogwarts teacher that Voldermort performed the Avada Kedavra curse on in Deathly Hallows? b. Charity Burbagec

2. Who replaces the Muggles studies teacher in Deathly Hallows? c. Alecto Carrow

3. When Harry meets Mr. Olivander for the first time, which wand law is introduced? c. The wand chooses the wizard

4. According to Mr. Ollivander, what is not necessary to take true possession of another wizard's wand? a. to kill the owner

5. If you know anything about Harry Potter, you will know that Harry's Patronus is a stag. But what is his best friend Ron Weasley's Patronus? d. Jack Russell Terrier

6. Now for the third member of the trio. What form does Hermione Granger's Patronus take?

a. Otter

7. What did Mrs. Wealey make to eat the first night that Harry arrived at Grimmauld Place?

a. Stew

8. In book 5, at the start of term feast, what is Ron eating when trying to talk to Nearly Headless Nick? c. Roast potato

9. A half-giant called Rubeus Hagrid takes you to Diagon Alley for the first time. To get there, you go into the courtyard of a pub called the Leaky Cauldron. There, Hagrid taps a certain brick on the courtyard wall three times with his pink umbrella, revealing the entrance to Diagon Alley. As he decides which brick to tap, he mutters instructions to himself. What instructions does he mutter? B three up…2 acoss.

10. The first place you go in Diagon Alley is Gringotts bank, where you can withdraw money from your vault and Hagrid can withdraw a top-secret package from Vault No. 713 on Dumbledore’s orders. On the second set of doors leading into the bank you notice a poem written. These are the first two lines:Enter, stranger, but take heedOf what awaits the sin of greed,What is the next line? d. ‘For those who take, but do not earn'

Picture Scavenger Hunt

You may either post these pictures on your blog OR simply link to them.

Don't forget to check out the previous post about the Pay It Forward Swap, still a couple spots left. Who wouldn't want a handmade gift arriving on their doorstep in the future :)

Routines and Pay it Forward Swap

2007-09-11T15:44:00.000-06:00

This is the 2nd week of school and I'm still working on establishing a routine. I now have from 8:30 am to 11:15 am to myself from Mondays-Thursdays and so far not much accomplished. I can't believe this is the first time in 6 years that I've had that much alone time in one week unless hubby is off. Justice is in school full days now with 1.5 hour lunch break and he comes home for lunch. My days so far have consisted of running back and forth to the school, grocery shopping (alone) and dropping/picking up hubby from work so I can have the van and get all the other crap done. I have even been in bed by 9pm most evenings and I'm not sure if it is from the new school year starting or the anemia kicking my butt.

So, Collin had is first official day at kindergarten on Thursday and we made a deal, if he didn't cry he would get his Star Wars movies and he did great. The only tears that were shed were by me, I balled like a baby for an hour on Thursday after dropping him off. Poor hubby, he didn't think I'd take it that bad since I just had Justice in K the year before. It was funny yesterday when we dropped Collin off, it was the first day the whole class was together, 21 students and half of them were crying. Collin looked around and said "Mom I'm not going to cry and I'll see you at lunch" what a sweetie. I'll post pics later of the boys.

I have been getting some stuff done when it comes to my little business I'm working on. I've been trying out different dyeing techniques for some time now and have been working on different colorways and should have a bunch of listings on etsy before the end of the month. I didn't think I'd attach myself to any of my yarns but I've fell in love with many and have decided I should probably keep one of each for myself, hehe. Yarn HO!! I placed another big order today for more yarn and will be picking up more dye on the weekend when we go to Calgary and fingers crossed I just may be able to make my way to Make One Yarns, still haven't been there yet and I'm dyeing to get my hands on some Cascade and to bask in the glory of being in a real yarn store. Real yarn store, yes we have a yarn store here but they are still unwilling to get anything great in. It took them a year before stocking Malabrigo and I did inquire as to when they will be stocking the laceweight and their response "It is just to expensive and won't sell here in Lethbridge". Ugghh, that's what they said about Lorna's Laces, Cherry Tree Hill or just anything nice. Crap they haven't even brought anymore Trekking in since the first time they had it last year. ASSHATS! Sorry I'm just tired of seeing all that ribbon yarn/fun fur/and the wide variety of acrylics they choose to stock.

I did join the Harvest Sock Swap and sign ups close September 18 so pop on over and grab a spot. The best thing about this swap is no second sock syndrome, hehe. Since I was in a joining mood, I signed up for Secret of the Stole and those sign ups end October 7 so if you've missed MS3 like I did hurry, sign up.

Now I came across the Pay it Forward Swap on Kris' blog, the great gal I spoiled for the Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap and I signed up.

Here's the details as explained from blog to blog:

"Here is how it works! I'll send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange! I don't know what that gift will be yet, and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week...LOL... but you will receive it within 365 days, that's a promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog..."

If you're interested, let me know by posting to this blog, and I'll start planning your project! This is just the best and I'm looking forward making some cool gifties.

2007-09-09T12:41:00.000-06:00

Hogwart Sock Swap 2 Q&A Contest
To earn Slytherin points I am answering a few questions to let my partner know a bit more about me.Hogwart Sock Swap 2 Q&A Contest

What type of pet do you choose as your companion at Hogwarts? I would like an owl, you never know when you need to send a message to someone.

While shopping in Hogsmeade you stop by Honeydukes for some sweets. What treats do you purchase for yourself? Chocolate Frogs, I love chocolate!

A potion you are preparing needs an ingredient available only at muggle shops. You don't want to stand out in your wizards robes, so you resort to traditional muggle clothing. Describe your outfit in detail. A black t-shirt, jean capris a pair of brightly colored handknit socks and sneakers.

What is your favorite subject to study at Hogwarts and why? Defense against the Dark Arts! I like being in the thick of things, being an Auror would be up my alley. Likewise, what subject is your least favorite and why? Divination - not really interested in reading tea leaves.

Back to the potion you were shopping for ingredients for, what type of potion are you making, what color is it, what are the ingredients, and precisely what does the potion do? A Relaxation potion. I would need one vanilla bean, lavender, a half cup of fire whisky and mix with the feather of a dove. The potion is turns purple once mixed.

Do I or Don't I

2007-08-31T14:46:00.000-06:00

...join another swap, very tempting I tell you. Since I've missed out on the SP11 I seem to be trying to make up for it in other ways, lol. Right now I'm sitting at 4 swaps Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap(almost complete, sent my package out a week ago), Monkey Swap 2, Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 and HSKS 3.

On the knitting front, I've got one monkey sock at the point where I'm going onto the heel, Hogwarts socks started, HSKS 3 bag pattern picked out just need to grab the wool for it. I've also been knitting up one of the patterns I've written had to frog twice, just wasn't happy with the look and the second time my knitting got shuffled around by the kids and hubby and lost 2 needles. With all the yarn overs, twists I just couldn't get it right. I'm now working the heel, the sock fits and is looking the way I want it so fingers crossed on the finished product.

I also ordered more yarn and hopefully will be fondling it by the end of next week. I picked out some Malabrigo lace after seeing Wendy's new "Easy Flame Lace Scarf" pattern(on her sidebar) I just had to get some lace weight. After the super long week both this week and last I needed a little pick me up that chocolate just couldn't provide, hehe.

Speaking of long weeks I'll give you a little breakdown of what's been going on, first working on the pattern and not getting it right with 2 trips to the pond, not to bad. I had to go into the Dr's to get my blood work results and my regular Doc is on vacation so I had one of her collegues, well that's ok because I have seen him before. So it's my turn and I wait a few minutes in the office and the Doc comes in and I tell him why I'm there and he apoligizes for not going over my results before hand, no biggie and starts reviewing them with me. First sugar levels-normal(relief after that diabetes scare a while back), than starts working down, thyriod levels are low but already new that since I'm on hypo-thyroid meds already but he checks back to my previous record from 3 months ago and it has gotten worse. I call hubby and find out the dosage and now I'm getting 1.5 times more of the previous dosage. Now we work are way to the bottom and come across some interesting numbers and he says "Wow, that doesn't look good" , I say "What" almost freaking out and he repeats himself so I ask him to fill me in and I've got my anemia back. Fuck, the way he sounded it was as if I was dying or something. Now I've got my new prescriptions and should see a change in about 6-8 weeks, I sure hope so I am very tired of being tired all the time. You know, I don't know why I didn't think of it over the last couple months when I first started feeling like crap and went in sooner for the bloodwork. I guess I just chalked it up to stress of hubby's job change. That's a whole new story and a bundle of stress to boot. Ugghh and next week the little guys start school, my baby will be in Kindergarten and I will be home alone for 2.75 hours a day unless hubby is off or working nights. This is going to be the biggest change of all, I really haven't had much time to myself especially not 4 days in a row.

Well time to get some knitting done, I'd like to get the heel done on the first Monkey sock before I start supper and wake up hubby for his last night shift.

Have a super long weekend everyone!

HSKS 3 Questionnaire

2007-08-31T12:36:00.000-06:00

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?
Slytherin

2. List your favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length. Or would you prefer circulars?
Crystal Palace, The Collection SRK or Lantern Moon, US 1's/6 or 8 inches. I do use circs and have a number of US 1's & 2's in Addi's.

3. Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length?
Lantern Moon Socks needles would be nice but anything bamboo or wood that is 6 inches or more in length would be awesome.

4. If you are a RAVENCLAW, do you prefer the colors in the film or the book? Do you have a strong preference?
Does not apply, Slytherin all the way, Woot!

5. Do you have any allergies?
Mild allergy to cats.

6. If you are swapping scarves - what is your desired length for the pattern? This will help your partner find the pattern that is just right for you and buy yarn accordingly.
Does not apply, socks only ;)

More Stash Enhancements

2007-08-27T17:02:00.000-06:00

Yep, got a bunch of goodies in the mail today.

First off, I'd like to say "Thank You" to Robyn for the lovely stitchmarkers and Blockbuster coupon she sent as a little thank you gift for spoiling her in SP10. Look they are so pretty, I was actually thinking about ordering a set for myself in the near future.

I missed sign ups for SP11 so I've made up by joining HSKS3 on the weekend, can't wait to get my pals info to see which house colors I'll be using for my felted bag I'll be making.

Now onto the *crack*, I mean yarn. I received my Red Bird Knits and The Sweet Sheep goodies today. This was an especially great day for mail. I picked up my Monkey Swap pal's pattern, yarn to go with it as well as the yarn I'll be using to make her socks with. I'll be using the Meilenweit cotton for the Monkeys and the other yarn, Louet and Cherry Tree Hill is for patterns I've got ideas for and my Hogwarts pal's socks. The Cherry Tree Hill is a back up for the Louet Gems Fingering weight in case I don't like how it is knitting up. It is a little thin and with the colorwork I've got planned I just want to have a back up just in case. Oh my, I also forgot to mention the Tofutsies yarn in the front right, this is my first ball so can't wait to see what it becomes as well as the Sweet Sheep wool wash. Had to make up the 80+ bucks for free shipping some how, lol.

Weekly update, well lots of knitting over the course of the week. My fingers actually cramped up on Friday so I took the weekend off of knitting and spent tons of time with the kids going to the park and what not. Hubby worked a few night shifts this past week and wound up sleeping almost 2 days straight recovering, so much for my back up babysitter, lol. Lucky it was really nice this week, not to hot the boys and I along with my knitting spent most of the time at Indian Battle Park. We will see how he does this week, he's working his last day shift today and starts a couple night shifts on Wednesday and off for the weekend. Hopefully we can spare a few hours to take the kids out so I can get some hardcore knitting done :) or maybe a nap.

Well time to make supper, Chicken Quesadillas are on the menu tonight, yum!

I Won!

2007-08-20T15:59:00.000-06:00

I won a Ravelry invite from Barbara this weekend. My luck is changing, woot! Thanks so much Barbara for hostessing such an awesome contest.

On the swap front, I sent out my Knitter's Virtual Vacation package today. Total weight, 5 lbs of fun goodies and some scrumptious yarn. Silly me totally forgot to take a pic and remembered when I was standing in line waiting to mail the box.

I also received my Monkey Swap 3 pal and have her yarn on order. I can't believe I have almost nothing for blues in my stash, with that being said I placed an order over at The Sweet Sheep and Red Bird Knits. Hopefully they get here before the weekend.

I've also got a few more projects on the go, first try at a pattern I'm working on hit the frog pond all because I got one side backwards, oh well live and learn. I've casted back on and working the cuff. I also finished one of my what I'm calling "thinking socks" just a basic 2 x 2 rib using Regia Tweed. My first time using tweed and I'm so tempted to pull the tweed off, guess I'm not a tweed person although the sock is looking very good. I'll get the second one going a little later. Pics to follow.

Oh my god, I'm going to be on Ravelry!

Sockapalooza Socks have arrived!

2007-08-16T23:33:00.001-06:00

My Sockapalooza socks have arrived all the way from North Carolina. Thank You to Roberto for the awesome package and most gorgeous socks one could ask for. Take a look, perfect fit and they are extremely soft on my rough feet. I also received some other great goodies, a ball of Step for myself to knit with,yummy chocolate, coffee cup, notecards, postcards all with the beautiful scenery North Carolina has to offer and an "Our State North Carolina" magazine. The little guys and myself had a great time reading through it this afternoon and it is one of the first places we would love to see when we get a chance to visit the U.S.A.

Thanks so much Roberto for the wonderful gifts, this was a great first Sockapalooza for me!

I'll be updating my sidebar tomorrow. Time for bed.

Where do I begin

2007-08-14T22:06:00.000-06:00

How about a big "Thank You" to my Hogwarts Sock Swap Pal Shannah from Hufflepuff sent me some awesome socks that fit like a glove. They arrived this morning and wow is that owl tired coming all the way from Texas. Shannah also sent a very gorgeous set of stitchmarkers, size 0's bamboo needles(can't get them here in Lethbridge) and some Diakeito silk in black, hmmm those are going to be fabulous socks. Thanks again Shannah, I'm still only half way thru book 6 but these socks should help me stay on track, hehe. I've worn them most of the day today and they are so comfy :).

I've also joined Monkey Swap 3, couldn't resist since I missed the sign ups for SP 11. I just can't believe it is already the middle of August, where did July go? But lucky me I've almost finished all the back to school shopping, just need runners, Kleenex and film for both boys and I'm finished. Got their haircuts today, I'll post pics of them tomorrow when we are out and about.

I've also got some more neat gifts for my Knitter's Vacation Swap Pal this past week. Tomorrow it is a trip to Fort Whoop Up for more sight seeing and goodies, the boys love that place. Maybe even a trip to the museum depending on how much time we spend at the Fort. I'll be sure to post some pics before I send it out.

Here's a pic of the socks I made for my Sockapalooza pal Marie who just received her package.

And as promised here's a pic of the goodies I bought last month, well some of them anyway(just the really good stuff, hehe). I've got some Cherry Tree Hill in Pink, Fleece Artist Nova Socks in Sorbet, 3 skeins of Seacost Handpainted in Cherry Fizz, Taffy and Penstemon. The second pic has some Louet Gems Fingering in Pink Panther, Shamrock(for Slytherin socks I'm designing) and C*eye*ber Fiber laceweight in Dream for my Knitter's Vacation Swap pal. The last pic is some Sunshine Yarns goodness in Hedgwig and Indie. Yes I went a little overboard but I really needed to replenish my stash after giving my Aunt so much, hehe. I know excuses, excuses. I did get free shipping and also had to order yarn for my Hogwarts 2 Swap pal who's socks I have finished designing and just starting the test knit pattern. Ohh I can't wait and hope she likes them.

Now for an update on what I've been up to, well I've been doing some designing and getting everything down on paper. Wow, the ideas I have had the last few weeks have just been amazing. I think I'm going to have to look into test knitters because I just can't get all those knit up in a year. So far I'm looking at 10 patterns the last two weeks plus the others I have written up but not knitted. I casted on for my Hogwarts Pal's socks but using different colors for the test run. So far the cuff looks awesome, lol. I've also been reading and playing World of Warcraft, our guild is raiding Kara every Thursday and Sunday night so that is a few hours of fun time for me and I do get some knitting in when we take a break or setting up, lol. Sorry to everyone who's tried to contact me, I have been working on the laptop mainly which doesn't have my main email. I'd like to send out a Congratz to Robyn for her new business "Robyn's Nest", go on over and check it out.

Hubby is having a good time at work. It really is kind of weird now after 6 years of the same job and him calling me during the day(many times during the day) and now nothing. I see him off and hear nothing for 12 hours and the first few days it really bothered me but now I've been so productive. Yeah I've still got the kids and the home to deal with but without the phone calls it has just given me a few more hours of time for my designing/knitting/reading. It does work out to him being home more which I don't mind and the kids are loving the new hours too. Hubby has been really supportive of my designing too but still is unwilling to take up knitting so he can be one of my test knitters, hehe.

Time for bed, kids have a dentist appointment in the morning at 8am. Happy Knitting!

2007-08-14T20:11:00.000-06:00

Monkey Sock Swap THREE Questionnaire

The basics:
Do you consider yourself a beginning sock knitter, an intermediate, or have you been doing this so long you could probably knit a pair in your sleep? Intermediate

The measurements:
Shoe Size: 9 US
Foot circumference: 8 3/4 inches
Foot length: 9 3/4 inches

Yarn Preferences:
What colors do you love? Purple, Red, Greens and Pinks.

Do you prefer solids or variegated? I love them both.

Do you prefer wool, cotton or acrylic yarn? Wool, either super wash or handwash.

What colors would you never wear? Mustard Yellow or anything neon

What are your favorite brands of yarn? Lorna's Laces, STR, Louet, Koigu and Cherry Tree Hill.

Are there any new brands you would like to try? Yarn Pirate, Yarntini, Chewy Spaghetti and Tofutsies

Cookie A. Patterns:
Which of her patterns have you already knit? Monkey
Which pattern(s) would you like to knit and don’t already own? Gothic Spire, Rhiannon, German Stockings,Millicent and Mona.
Other pertinent information:

Would you be willing to have an international Monkey Pal or do you prefer one in the US? I would be willing to ship anywhere.

Do you have any allergies? mild allergy to cats and the usual dust and pollen.

Will your knitting be exposed to smoke or animals? No, dogs are kept away from my knitting.
Are you on Ravelry yet? If you don’t mind having new friends, what is your Ravelry name? I wish, still waiting in line.

Sign up Now

A Post is Coming...I promise

2007-08-11T19:25:00.000-06:00

I've got a post coming, just getting the kids ready for bed so hubby and I can go see Harry Potter tonight. I've finished the 5th book, 1/3 of the way into the 6th and dying to see the movie.

I've got a ton of news, pics and more. And this pic is for Robyn and anyone else who wants to know who the insane women is who writes this blog, hehe.

By the way, hubby is having a great time at his new job!

Changes, are they good or bad..

2007-08-03T14:38:00.000-06:00

We will have to wait and see. The last couple weeks have been just crazy and I'm waiting to see if we'll get thru everything in one piece.

First off, hubby decided a few weeks back that it was time to move on and no longer manage the liqour store he's been at for the past 6 years. Being a nice guy and the fact he is employed from who he thought was his best friend he let him know right away of his intentions. That didn't go to well, feelings were hurt and after hubby and I going over the time and effort he's put into his job with getting no overtime and just recently received health benefits it just wasn't worth it. Not to mention the crappy staff he has to endure, them not showing up for shifts and hubby having to work them on top of his 60 hour work week with no over time. I am happy to report that hubby has a new and better job, that is unionized with a pension/benefits/overtime and the option to work extra shifts. I'm very happy that this wasn't torpedoed like the last time he tried to leave the liqour store for something better. A long story short is that said friend has shown his true colors(something I knew all along but hubby denied)he's a dick to put it nicely and we are moving on without the false friend. I'd like to say more and have been debating on what to say in my blog over the last week and a half but everytime I tried to write something very nasty came out so it was better just not to post.

Hubby took his physical the other day and passed, got the good news that he has the job and will be starting on Tuesday since Monday is a holiday here in Canada. His first work week is only 40 hours, they usually work 3-12 hour shifts, 3 days off, 2-12 hour nights and just keep rotating. Works out to more time off and more money with the overtime and pay increase and job security. All in all things are looking much better for us considering the few minor setbacks we have had to endure.

On the knitting front, I've received a few packages from The Sweet Sheep of fibery goodness for my Knitter's Vacation Swap Pal, Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 pal and a little cheer me up goodies for moi. I finished my Sockapalooza socks, pics to follow when Jordan brings home his camera. I'll be mailing my package out tomorrow, have to go to Cuppers to grab my pal some coffee and other yummy goodies.

On the reading front, I've almost finished book 5 of the Harry Potter series. Hubby will be grabbing the 6th book tomorrow for me but it doesn't look like I'll be seeing the movie till it comes out on video. With Jordan working evenings and hubby working days we just can't get it together for him to watch the kids and I don't want to go alone. Ahh well, just another thing to add to my wishlist, hehe.

Swaps and other stuff

2007-07-18T11:51:00.000-06:00

So what has everyone been up to? Me, boiling here in the heat and boy am I sick of it. Today is a little cooler than what it has been the last couple of weeks and I can't wait till we have some rain.

My Hogwarts Sock Swap pal Jane, received her package yesterday and her socks fit(here they are) :). I'm very happy she loved the package, especially the wand! This has been a great swap and since I love making socks and really enjoying the HP books/movies I signed up for Hogwarts Sock Swap 2. If anyone is interested in the Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 signups have begun, hope to see you there.

I got a bit of online shopping done in the last week, 2 shops at the The Sweet Sheep. Thursday it was a bit of restocking from my Aunt Margaret's visit and something for my Knitter's Virtual Vacation pal's package and on the weekend I picked out goodies and yarn for Gryffindor socks for my Hogwarts 2 pal Violet and a few more thing for myself, lol. Couldn't be helped I like the free shipping and have developed a new love, Louet Gems fingering weight.

Speaking of Louet Gems, I've got my Sockapalooza pals socks on needles and I'm using the Waving Lace pattern with "Bright Red" Louet Gems yarn. They are coming along great and I am loving the pattern I had to order some "Pink Panther" to make a pair for myself. Pics to follow, The Boy has to find his camera cord.

Well back to knitting and start thinking about fixing supper soon. Happy Knitting!

Hogwarts Sock Swap 2-Second Years

2007-07-13T23:20:00.000-06:00

Hogwarts Sock Swap Questionnaire
Second Years

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into? Slytherin

2. Shoe size? 9 US Foot length? 9 3/4 inches (sound familiar, lol)

Foot circumference? 8 3/4 inches

3. List your three favorite sock yarns.
a. Sunshine Yarns
b. Socks That Rock
c. Koigu

4. Would you like to try a new brand of sock yarn? If so, which brand?
Oh yes please, there's so many..Zen Yarn Garden, Fleece Artist Sea Wool or

anything in fingering/sport weight would be awesome. We have a very

limited selection of yarns here(Regia, Patons Kroy and Austerman Step).

5. Do you prefer variegated or solid sock yarn?
I love the variegated/handpainted but would like to acquire more solids, don't

have many.

6. What colors would you like to add to your sock yarn stash?
Reds, Purples, Greens and Blues either Jewel tones or Pastels

7. What kind of sock patterns do you gravitate toward? Lace? Ribbed? Fair Isle?
Lace

8. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, animals, etc.)
Don't care for smoke

9. Will your socks be exposed to cigarette smoke or animals as you knit them?
Non-smoking household and I've got 2 dogs but they don't go near my yarn.

Always kept up high or on the table.

10. Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?

Yes I am

Proud to be a Slytherin.

Back from Vacation, well sorta..

2007-07-11T16:00:00.000-06:00

I'm back, took a mini at home vacation away from Real Life and wow was that ever needed. The boys and I decided after the past 2 months of running around, preparing for company, kindergarten grad, play dates etc, etc it was time to take a vacation away from all of that. I took a break away from the computer and read the first 3 Harry Potter books and watch the 3 movies and have started on book 4 in hopes to get book 5 done before next week to see the movie. I've also watched a few other movies, got 3 pairs of socks knit, injured my thumb during that time, lol and worked on the tan. The boys and I have been having a blast and I've managed to sleep in till 8 or 9 am some days(that's a big deal for me since I usually get up at 7am).

So, you wanna know what is up with the push to read the books? I'll tell you a little secret, I've never read any of the books before last month or seen the movies. Well I did see a bit of the first one and Jordan is not into Harry Potter(he's a Lemony Snicket fan) and hubby is a LOTR's fan boy so there hasn't been an interest or urgency to see or read the books till I joined the Hogwart's Sock Swap. I am officially a Harry Potter fan(I can't believe it took so long for me to read the books), the books have been a great read and the movies are fun. The best part is getting together the special giftees for this swap, shh, I'll tell you a little secret, I bought my pal a wand(also got one for myself, couldn't resist). It just arrived today after being held up in customs, thankfully they did not open the packages but I'm sure they got a good laugh, lol. The stitchmarkers I made for the swap turned out fabulous, exactly how I pictured them. Now I just have to gather an owl, hopefully not Errol, I can't wait!

I have picked up some things for the Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap already. Yarn is on order, Vulcan ears have been purchased as well as other fun gifts. We will be making a visit to the museum and Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden on the weekend so we will see what other cool goodies can be found.

Robyn the great gal I was spoiling for SP10 received her reveal and the package I sent for her son Sean. I made them matching socks, hehe and even had enough yarn left over for her to make a square or two for his mitred blanket. This was a really great swap, both up and downstream pals are awesome ladies so I think I'll be popping over to sign up for SP11 before I forget, lol.

Well, I think I babbled enough for now so I'm off to sign up/read blogs/knit and bbq.

Summer Holidays Have Begun!

2007-06-29T11:03:00.000-06:00

Woot! Summer Holidays are here and I'm kicking back with a cup of coffee, fondling some yarn and reading blogs, I have so many to catch up on.

I received my SP10 reveal and it is Shelley over at Kitten Knits Yarn and take a look at all the wonderful goodies she sent. I wish I had a better pic but this HP(my old camera) just sucks, new camera next week I hope if they are on sale.

Here's a list of the goodies, we have 2 skeins of baby cashmere in a gorgeous dark pink, bernat cotton in blues, a skein of Meilenweit Cotton in blues/greens/yellow/white(col.#2270) all are just gorgeous and the sock yarn I've been wanting to try for sometime and it is alot softer than the Regia Cotton Surf. I'm trying to control myself and not cast on with it or the Louet Gems Shelley had sent last month but it is so hard, that Flicker pattern keeps calling my name. I also received 2 Briggs and Little pattern books for Mittens and Heavy Socks(needed these for socks for kids/inlaws and mittens for everyone) and a knitted dishcloth dress which I've been searching for for sometime but only found crocheted ones. There was also a journal, lip gloss and lots of yummy chocolate and candies. Shelley sent her favorite chocolates, Guylian, which are one of the family favorites here as well as the others she included. I am all set for the weekend, hehe. Thanks so much Shelley, this was an awesome round of Secret Pal!

I hope my SP10 pal receives her package today, I just checked the online tracker and it has been accepted at the sortation plant in her city as of yesterday. Fingers crossed.

Justice had his Kindergarten Grad on Tuesday, it was so cute. Mrs. Andreachuk and her aides set up a great ceremony, lots of music and singing/dancing was done by the kids. Sorry no pics, have to get Jordan's camera cord to transfer the pics from his camera to my computer. Hubby videotaped the whole thing and I got lots of pics on Jordan's camera and I actually made it through the morning without crying, lol.

Yesterday was the last day of school for Justice. It was only a half day and the whole school, well the ones who wanted to go, went swimming at the U of L. Hubby, Collin and I went to watch and hang out with everyone one last time, wow it was sad. I can't believe a whole school year has passed and Justice will be in Grade 1 come September and Collin will be in Kindergarten. We have lots of phone numbers of his fellow classmates so play dates are to come for the summer. Both Rob and I were talking yesterday and we both don't know how we will be come Monday when our routine has been blown out of the water and don't have to drop Justice off or pick him up. Rob is a real creature of habit and when that is tinkered with he is really out of sorts for a while and me, I'll probably wake up in a panic for the first couple of weeks thinking I'm late getting Justice ready, lol. The two little guys have both opted not to take any summer programs this year and well I don't really mind. As a kid I was shuffled from place to place, ballet, majorettes and all my afterschool sports I was in and the only things I really wanted to do were the sports. Majorettes was fine except when we did alot of parades and stuff, that meant practices every day and that sucked. The boys just want to hang out and we have little day or overnight trips planned throughout the summer and playdates so we are good and I would like to have them with me during the summer too. School is only 2 months away and I'll be alone all day, well half of it so I better take advantage of the time I have with my boys now.

Well enough babbling for now, I'll post tomorrow about my new stash enhancements with pics from "The Boy's"(Jordan) camera.

Catch up

2007-06-22T08:41:00.000-06:00

Here's the catch up post on what I've been up to for the last 2 weeks.

First off, I'd like to send a huge Thank You out to Vicki for the awesome package of fibery and coffee goodness a gal could ask for. This was my first Knitter's Coffee Swap and she really went all out. I received some delicious coffees and both are awesome, some great chocolate, a coffee cup(which has now replaced my much smaller coffee cup, lol) and Reynolds Sea Wool with a book of patterns to go with it. My camera just didn't do the package justice, that's another story there, but the skeins of yarn are pink and purple and oh so soft. Here in Lethbridge we do not get anything but Regia, Kroy and the occassional Austermann or if I hold my breathe long enough sometimes a few skeins(and I do mean a few) of Trekking in the most craptastic colors, lol. Thanks again Vicki for the wonderful gifts!

Now, for the last month I've been getting the house ready for company, this was just supposed to take a week at most. Once I got started, I found boxes of crap inside and all I could say is WTF am I keeping this for and than it started.. hardcore pairing down on our stuff. I've been over run by toys/clothes and crap since I had Jordan so it was high time to get rid of stuff since I've finally come to terms I'm not going to have another one. Yes, I have had a tubal but I kept hoping one day it would backfire and I'd be blessed with another little one. Hubby on the other hand has been praying for the opposite, lol. With all this hope I thought it would be best not to get rid of the good toys or some of the boys' clothes, just in case so 2 weeks ago I paired it all down to just what they wear and what Collin will grow into and only the toys they play with. It is alot of stuff, we got rid of over 50 lbs of toys, that's all the Fisher Price Little People one could buy and assorted other toys, clothes they never wore(tags still on) and gently worn items all given to a family in need and the Women's Shelter. 2 xlarge zip lock bags of yarn found new homes at the Blankets of Canada Society and the hospital's seniors wing and it wasn't all acrylic. I paired down on alot of the wool my Aunt Margaret had given to me that I really won't use and it made room for future purchases, lol. I even gave the rest of my office wear to the shelter since I have decided I will not be going back to another office again. Now that I've cleansed my home of the crap wow do I feel better.

That brings me to some major decisions hubby and I have made. One of them is I have a couple more years at home no work unless it is something I want to do. Two, I'm not going back to office work, I really don't have the patience nor the want to be in an office again. I'm trying to settle down and live a somewhat stress free life, lol, good luck on that with 3 boys and hubby. I just don't think I can do the 8-5 job anymore and as hubby said my "hippy side" is coming out, hehe. I'm just going to work on my patterns, yes, I'm getting off my ass and start submitting and not worry of the rejection I could be facing. I will also be posting a couple of my patterns I've been working on my blog to see what others think and how they knit up by someone else, this was hubby's idea and a good one at that. Once Collin is in school full time I may apply to be a teacher's aide, the lady's at the school Justice goes to are just wonderful and after much prying into how to go about getting the job/duties/pay, hehe, that would be a great career if I decide to get out of the house. I will also be volunteering alot more next year with Collin being in school half days.

With all the changes I've been making to the house and my life I finally dyed my hair again after 14 years of having my natural hair color. I even let hubby pick the color, lol, and I now have med/dark auburn hair again, the color of choice in my youth. I love it and it matches my sunburn perfectly, rofl.

On the knitting front, not much has been happening. My Aunt, well I should say Rob's Aunt Margaret whom I've adopted as my mother came down on the 14th and she taught me how to knit Fair Isle and a new cast on. Wow, was I overthinking that one so I can't wait to get a project going using that technique. She checked out some of the patterns I've been working on and loved them, she just couldn't believe what I use to knit with, as she put it "toothpicks for knitting needles". Hey, I like the US 1's and she's a fan of the 3's or larger for socks. During Margaret's very short stay, only 2.5 days we got alot and I mean alot of shopping done. My favorite yarn store here is closing for good so they have everything going at 30%, picture addis at 30% off, that's $13 bucks Canadian for addis! I bought alot plus yarn to make 2 sweaters for the boys Margaret will be knitting for me, hehe. I did buy some baby patterns and acrylic yarn to make some sweaters for donation so I can get the hang of making a sweater.

Pics to come later, sorry but they will be crappy. Why you ask, well I lost my camera (the good one too, my Canon) at Justice's schools Sports day last week and it wasn't turned in. *Shakes fist at person who has it, wishing ill will to you asshat*! You know the camera won't be any good to them either without the charger for the battery and I kinda have a feeling it was a mother of one of the boys our kids play with. I set the camera down on the bench beside me along with the pizza and the pizza of the said kid. I was watching him while she took her hubby to the airport and she came back said thanks grabbed the pizza and possibly the camera and left. When Rob and I got up shortly after to leave I grabbed the pizzas and do not recall the camera being there, hubby checked the bench before we left and nothing. The funny thing is she has pulled her boy out of school on the last 2 weeks they have left, coincidence? Anyhow, for who ever has it may your eyes be crossed for a very long time! Hubby took the loss very well, but me I've been stressing since yesterday since we did pay a good chunk of money for the damned thing and it took the best pictures. We have decided to buy a new Canon and will start the research as to which one I will be getting.

Sorry to cut the post short, the Knit Off Pattern has just been posted. I'm a glutton for punishment and have joined the Knit off Challenge once again over at Socktopia. More to come, I promise.

Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap

2007-06-08T22:03:00.000-06:00

Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap Questionnaire

1. If you could visit any state in the US, which would it be and why?
Oregon, so I can see Blue Moon Fiber Arts and hubby can go check out the local breweries.

2. If you could visit any country in the world, other than your own, which would it be and why?
USA, to go to all the fiber festivals and check out Las Vegas!

3. Have you ever driven across several states/providence/countries?
No

4. Have you ever visited someplace you consider exotic? Where was it?
No

5. What was your favorite "travel" vacation? Why?
That would have to be the road trip to British Columbia when I was a kid. It was my first time leaving Alberta.

6. Have you ever played tourist in your own home city/state (if international, country)? Explain. Yes, it was a great way to explore Lethbridge/Alberta and take a mini vacation.

7. Are you a museum visitor, beach comer or an amusement seeker?
Yes, love them all.

8. What's your favorite type of yarn?
Wool

9. What's your least favorite type of yarn?
Acrylic or novelty/ribbon yarn

10. What items do you like to knit/crochet?
Socks, socks and more socks!

11. What do you pack, knit/crochet wise when you go on vacation?
Socks if I was to go on vacation.

12. What other crafts do you do/would like to do other than Knit/Crochet?
Sewing/quilting

13. Are you allergic to anything? (Yarn wise or treat wise)
Mohair makes me itchy, treat wise, not a thing :)

14. What is your favorite color? Least Favorite?
Purple is the all time favorite but I love them all except mustard yellow.

15. Sweet or Savory (Treat not personality)?
Sweet

16. Anything else we are forgetting to ask that you think your partner desperately needs to know?
I'm a big milk chocolate fan(with or without fruit/nuts), coffee fanatic and love all types of wool, especially sock yarns.

Mail Call!

2007-05-31T20:28:00.000-06:00

Don't you wish your Secret Pal was as great as mine, lookie what the mail man brought while I was at school with Justice today. My "Secret Knitter" pal who so rocks sent me a memo pad & pen set, matching note cards, a wire butterfly magnet(not sure if she made it but it is so awesome), a lamb in a flower, hubby thought it was a car seat, lol, some yummy swedish berries, Canadian chocolate coins and a Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar, mmmmm, yummy treats and last but not least Cookie's Flicker Sock pattern and 2 skeins of Louet Gems "Carribbean Blue". My pal must be a mind reader because my last purchase at Sweet Sheep had the pattern and yarn in my cart but with the over spending on the Yarn Pirate and other fibery goodness something had to go. I am so happy, hubby even commented my pal had great taste and is doing an awesome job on the spoilage. The Canadian coins were an awesome touch, we were just reminiscing about our wedding the other day and we had used the coins as part of our wedding favors. Thanks so much Secret Knitter, the package is the best!

Friday's Hogwarts Socks Update, more socks and mail...Woot!

2007-05-24T22:20:00.000-06:00

We have Ravenclaw socks in progress for the Hogwarts Sock Swap, these babies were just started on Tuesday. I couldn't resist the temptation anymore and had to wind up the yarn Tuesday night. I managed to get both cuffs done and a couple repeats(basic stockinette on 2.5mm) on one sock for the leg before going to bed. I am ready to turn the heel on one sock and on the second color repeat on the second. A big thanks to Carrie over at Cosmic Fibers for the wonderful job she did on the yarn. Hubby is also hinting for his socks too, he's getting trapped bars in Ravenclaw(he took the sorting quiz too)also from Cosmic Fibers. If you missed out this round of Hogwarts Socks Swap, sign ups will start July 14 for Round 2.

I have also been knitting on Ellen's socks and the STR medium weight is just great to work with. My Aunt's Hederas are 3/4 of the way finished and must get them done before my Aunt gets here the middle of next month. Yes, Hubby's Aunt Margaret and Uncle Dave are coming for a visit. This will be the first time meeting them for myself and the kids. Hubby hasn't seen them since he was a kid too. They will be here for a week and staying at the RV campground down the street so I won't have to worry about entertaining 24/7.

I also received a package yesterday from Rebecca for her contest she had and in it is a gorgeous skein of Alchemy silk/wool(my first skein of this) and I'm loving it. Thanks Rebecca!!

Time to knit.

And the Winner is....

2007-05-21T11:54:00.000-06:00

Post #19-ERIN from Knitters, Not Quitters! Hey Erin, let me know what email addy you would like your gift certificate sent to and Congrats!!

Thanks to the Random Number Generator for its services.

There's a first time for everything and this just happens to be the week. I have been tagged by She Knits She Rants!

Here are the rules:
Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs the 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog.
Here goes...

1. I can't start the day without 2 cups of coffee(minimum), I usually drink 4-5 cups by lunch.

2. I can watch Steel Magnolias, Fried Green Tomatoes, The Green Mile and the Color Purple over and over again, drives hubby crazy, lol. I guess that's why I only own The Green Mile courtesy of hubby, the only one he can sit thru.

3. I can't swim.

4. I am scared of flying(and heights) and have only left Alberta twice, once when I was around 7 and again in my mid 20's for a day trip to Vancouver to move my sister.

5. I'm a shopaholic, but I don't buy useless stuff. Sock yarn all the way baby!

6. I love milk chocolate and usually have a piece of a bar(or whole bar) every day.

7. I'm an online gamer geek(World of Warcraft). When I don't talk about knitting that's when I'm in hardcore gamer mode playing my level 70 Female Night Elf Hunter.

I tag...

Lisa
Marisol
Robyn
Tanya
Michelle
Melinda
Elizabeth

Knitting update tomorrow, lots has been done!

I'm still knitting!

2007-05-18T21:26:00.000-06:00

...but at a snails pace, lol. What can I say, I've got knitter's ADD. With all the yarn that has come into my home the last month I'm itching to cast on for another pair of socks. So instead of casting on I've been spending time fondling the fibery goodness, perusing knitting mags/books for interesting sock patterns. I did manage to whip up a pair of baby/toddler socks today and since I'm a tad behind in the 52 pair plunge I'll have to get my butt in gear and get a few more pairs of baby socks done to catch up.

I also forgot, I did not post a pic of my Hocrux's in Patons Kroy "Winter Eclipse" I received from my SP10. They are so comfy! Thanks again pal for the awesome yarn. So here are the toddler socks, hocrux's and my fanny's(used the pic from the 52 pair plunge, yes I'm lazy but it's a Friday!)

Well not much else, but for those who haven't entered the contest be sure to comment on your favorite yarn pusher on the May 1st post. Have a great weekend and Happy Victoria Day to my fellow Canucks!

Weekly Update

2007-05-15T12:07:00.000-06:00

Hope all the moms out there had a great Mother's Day. Mine was great, hubby had to work so it was just me and the little guys lounging about on a rainy day. I did get some marvelous gifts from my boys and my Aunt Margaret and Uncle Dave even sent me flowers(they are so awesome!) Here's some pics of my great Mother's Day haul.
From the boys I received a bunch of fibery goodness, we have some Sweet Georgia's "Himitsu", Sweet Socks "Gummy Bunny" and "Angelica", Seacoast Handpainted "Ashes and Roses", C*eye*ber Fiber's "Pink's Navy" and an Ipod Nano. Wow, that is alot of pink in that box.

I've ordered my Sockapalooza pals yarn today and already received the yarn I'll be sending to my Knitters Coffee Swap pal, sorry no pics on that till I send out the package. All I can say it is handpainted from one of my favorite Indie dyers.

On the knitting front, I'm almost done my Aunt's Hederas. She knows she'll be receiving a little something from me but I've also got some patterns on order for her so just waiting on those to come in before I ship everything out. I've also been working on Ellen's STR socks, boy do I love STR medium weight.

I also received my Hogwart's Sock Swap yarn, custom dyed by Dharmafey's Cosmic Fibers, we have Slytherin "2nd year stripes", Ravenclaw "3rd Year-Trapped Bars" for hubby in the middle and Ravenclaw "1st year wide stripes", for my pal. I can't wait to get these babies on the needles. But before I can I must finish the Hedera's to free up 2 sets of 2.5mm ;).

Time to get more stuff done, don't forget, the Contest closes on May 21st, so leave a comment on that post with your favorite yarn pusher.

Packages, Hocrux's and other news

2007-05-09T22:48:00.000-06:00

Wow, did I hit the jackpot Wednesday. I received 2 packages filled to the brims with the best stuff a knitter could ever want and since I was out on Tuesday I had to wait a day to pick everything up.

First up, we have my KTE package from Elizabeth over at Lizard Knits(I stop by her blog regularly)who sent the most amazing goodies. Here's a pic and a little breakdown of what I received. Simply Knitting mag(has some really amazing patterns I'd love to knit), 2 packages of coffee "foglifter"(tastes awesome)"Chocolate Velvet", Hot Chocolate(butterscotch I had last night and yummy!), "Cobblestones" and "Gadget Keeper" patterns, Stitchmarkers with a case made for knitting alternating rows of increases/decreases(I so need these for my sock knitting), Hershey Truffles(I haven't seen these yummy chocolates as of yet), Ghiradelli Esspresso Chocolate bar, yum, lamb pen in purple(my fav color and it is absolutely adorable), some Lavender bath salts and Lavender-Eucalyptus cream, a Crocheted Bag in green made by Elizabeth(one of my favorite colors and the bag is just awesome), a clear plastic knitters bag with a clip to hang of my belt and is now holding the socks I'm knitting for my Aunt and last but not least a skein of Superwash Merino from J Irby Designs in "Pinata", I have been wanting some sock yarn from them for a while now. It is so soft and bright. Thank you so much Elizabeth for being such a terrific pal.

Second package is from my Sockret Pal, Susan who sent some amazing goodies and a gorgeous pair of socks. Here's a pic. I recieved 2 Sabrina mags, Online calendar with patterns, a package of lamb candles, 3 scented candles, iron ons with 2 frog and a crown(my little guys have already layed claim to the frogs, whistle also claimed by the kids, lol, some chocolate eggs, 2 skeins of Acapulco in a gorgeous bronzy color, necklace(so cool), hand woven scarf in an assortment of reds yarns with black/silver ribbon(just gorgeous and matches the necklace, cell phone clip, and check out the socks with the cute little face. The socks fit perfectly! She also painted a little vase for me with a sun and a lamb, this gal is so artistic. Thanks Susan for the great Sockret Pal package.

I also finished my Hocrux socks on Sunday and wow, they look awesome. The Kroy yarn makes a darn good pair of socks alright. Check'em out.

Sorry for the lack of blogging lately, I just found out last week my Aunt/God mother passed away in December and the family didn't want to tell me cause the little guys and I were sick at the time(December) and they knew we couldn't travel so I've been a bit out of sorts with that news. In light of her passing I also went in to the Doctor and got a complete blood work up done since I haven't been feeling well(and with all the history of stomach/cervical/liver cancer I wasn't taking any risks) and getting sick if anyone coughs near me. Guess what, last year I was borderline diabetes and as of yesterday afternoon I'm normal, if it was in regards to something else I may take offense, lol. I am hypo-thyroid which doesn't make much sense to me cause 2 weeks before my blood work I was on a major eating binge and gained 15 pounds and have been post-poning my blood tests just in case of bad news but bucked up on Thursday did the fast and went in on Friday and got it done. I've lost the 15 pounds +1 since the Thursday fasting. Who knows, maybe I just needed the kick start, but I'm very relieved and now with the good news I can get back to my life again without dreading the worst.

I have been knitting this week, I have a pair of Hederas on needles for my Aunt using STR's Beryl. They are looking great and this is my first time using this pattern, yah, I'm kinda slow when it comes to the knitty patterns. I do love them but I always get sidetracked and shh, don't tell anyone I still haven't knit a Clapotis yet. I've got some Cascade 220 I just may use for a mini clapotis.

Well, it is 8:15 am and since I passed out super early last night(both hubby and I with the kids were in bed by 9pm) I better have some more coffee and start the day. Remember for those who haven't left a comment on my last post for the contest, it is still open till and will close May 21st. Thanks to those who have commented, I now have many more new places to shop ;)

Happy May 1st Contest!

2007-05-01T11:01:00.000-06:00

Happy May 1st! To celebrate this month (Mother's Day, Victoria Day for us Canucks and any other holidays that fall in May) I will be hosting a little contest. The contest will run from today, May 1st thru to May 21st(Victoria day) at Midnight Est. time.

To enter just leave to comment on this post telling me who is your favorite online Yarn pusher, I mean store and if you don't shop online tell me about your LYS and you will be entered to win a $50.00 CAN. gift certificate to THE SWEET SHEEP.

Why the contest you ask. One: I've had such great service from The Sweet Sheep and only recently found out it was a Canadian Company. I do most of my yarn shopping online and will buy from anyone willing to ship to Canada. Two: I am just feeling very generous and need to share some fibery love. Three: I can't part with any sock yarn in my stash for a contest, lol. And Four: I need comments, hehe.

Good Luck!

PS: Secret Pals please feel free to leave a comment under your assumed identity ;)

Now onto other news, I received a super package from my Secret Canadian Sister "Ellen". She has done such a terrific job of spoiling me the last 3 months and her final package is the icing on the cake. First we have some Online Supersocke 100 in Tropic, love knitting with this stuff, Coil knitting needle holders, dpn knitting holders, both are so needed, thank you, stitchmarkers and a scarf/belt both of which are just gorgeous and last but not least a Journal. This is not just any journal it is "knitspiration" an inspirational journal for knitters. This is so amazing cause right now my patterns are jotted down in a Spiderman scribbler I poached from hubby. Thank you so much Ellen. Your gifts are just amazing and you really brightened up my day.

Woot, Fanny's are done!

2007-04-30T10:37:00.000-06:00

Here's a pic of my Fanny's for Socktopia. Wow, what a sock to work on, they may be anklets but short row heel and toe I have never attempted before. Heck it took me 3 weeks of reading over the pattern contemplating whether or not I could do it, lol. But after much thought I took on the dreaded short rows and won, with no holes either *cackle*. Here's a pic of the finished socks and my heel, see no holes, I'm one proud knitter.

Now that I have finished a pair with short rows, with only having to frog the heels of both 3 times each and toes once each I think I will make a go of the toe up. After taking a look at the Rockin' Sock Club Kit I really need to master the toe up otherwise I won't have a kit to knit, hehe. I'll give it a whirl right after I finish my Hocrux mate, hopefully tomorrow. Here's a better pic of my yarn porn from last week. Check out the Yarn Pirate *squeals* and the STR "Walking on the Wild Tide".

But here's a little more catch up from the last post. I ended up with a sinus cold not allergies and missed my little guys special day in Kindergarten on Thursday. That really sucked cause I enjoy watching him in class plus talking to someone over the age of 6 helps too ;). Hubby took my place and had some fun but I'm at the end of this nasty thing and things are getting back to normal. We had a great time on Saturday, took the boys to the park(forgot the camera but brought the knitting)for a couple of hours and yesterday we were out all afternoon with me knitting on the sidelines trying not to get hit by the basketball. A good time was had and I finished my socks last night before going to bed. Here's the boys having a blast yesterday.

Well better run, have to pick up the little guy at school in 10 minutes.

Mail Call/Spoilage Ahead

2007-04-24T14:38:00.000-06:00

Woot diddie Woot Woot! I got my Rockin' Sock Club kit and I'm loving it. The yarn is sooo soft. As soon as I get some of these socks done I'll cast on for these, my monsoon socks will have to wait till I try toe up on some regular worsted. Here's a pic of the fibery goodness I received. The other skeins of yarn are from Sweet Sheep, 2 skeins of Louet Gems in Bright Red and 2 luscious skeins of Yarn Pirate, my very first two.

I also received a gift from my SP10 pal a.k.a. Secret Knitter 2007, this was in the mailbox this morning with my newspaper. I guess I'm losing my touch in stalking my mailman, lol. I definately have the best pal ever, look at all the wonderful goodies I received. A Bernat crochet baby gifts book and this is awesome cause I still have some Bernat kicking about and some friends of ours are trying for their own little one. I also received a pretty pack of sticky notes, a pair of sheep(so cool, one is hanging off my monitor) and a Toblerone bar, mmmm.

Now to go nurse this sinus infection/allergies, not sure which it is yet.

Craptastic

2007-04-22T21:14:00.000-06:00

I got that dreaded stomach flu Collin had. What a crappy week, no pun intended, lol. So now that I'm feeling much better I got around to checking my email and getting back to blogging.

I've got my partner for the Knitters' Coffee Swap, Yeah! I can't wait to see her questionnaire and start my shopping. Now, I just have to patiently wait for my Sockapalooza pal. In other swap news, I sent out my last package to my Canadian Secret Sister. I'll wait till she gets the package before I reveal who she is. I also sent out my Knitters Treat package, here's a little glimpse of what I sent.

Oohh, I can't wait to see what she thinks of the goodies.

Here's a pic of my WIP, I have the one Hocrux sock done in Patons Kroy from my SP10. The mate only has the cuff done. I also have my MIL's sock going, just finished the decreases this evening so hopefully those will be out the door by the weekend for her Mothers Day gift. In Monkey news I finally gave in and frogged the pair. The dog fur was just to much to take so off to the frog pond but as I frogged I used the blow dryer on cool and I think I got most of it. Right now it is just a lump of pink yarn and I don't dare touch it yet.

Drat, I just realized I missed the first half hour of Sopranos. Oh well, I'll catch it tomorrow. Might as well get some knitting done before Desperate Housewives.

2007-04-22T21:01:00.000-06:00

Knitters' Coffee Swap QUESTIONS

1. Whole bean or ground? Ground please
2. Fully-loaded or decaf? Fully-loaded
3. Regular or flavored? Regular
4. How do you drink your coffee? French Vanilla coffee cream
5. Favorite coffee ever? Xtreme bean(local dark roast)
6. Are you fussy about your coffee or will any old bean do? kinda fussy, love the dark roasts but do enjoy a good medium roast as well.
7. Favorite treats to have with your coffee? Milk Chocolate or Choc. chip cookies
8. Anything else about your coffee preferences? Absolutely love coffee
9. Yarn/fiber you love? Sock yarn or any other natural fibers
10. Yarn/fiber you hate? Acrylic
11. What's on your needles? Socks, socks and a scarf
12. Favorite colors? love everything except mustard yellow
13. Allergies? no
14. Anything you really love, really don't like, or just need to get off your chest? I don't like the acrylic/ribbon/furry yarns, love anything wool, especially sock yarn. I can't wait to start shopping!

Holy Crap!

2007-04-18T11:58:00.000-06:00

Yes, that's what I've been up to my armpits in plus vomit. It all started on Friday the 13th, Collin started vomiting and had the poops. I had a bad feeling it was the take out we had the day before and since we rarely have it I chalked it up to that. So, yesterday rolls around still no improvement and I'm watching for any signs of dehydration and sure enough by 2:30pm I was sitting in the Emergency at the hospital with Collin and Justice(hubby was at work)waiting to be seen. An hour passes and finally after the cleared out some beds we got in. After getting checked out by the Doc, blood work(in case of diabetes, thankfully turned up normal), he got a shot of gravol in the butt and a script for Immodium all for the Stomach Flu. Man, I tell you everytime this little guy gets sick it is always the worst it can be. Hubby and I are ready to get a bubble for him so he has no contact with germs. Today, he's up and about, drinking and eating a bit with no vomiting. He has gotten some of the color back in his face and looks like everything should be back to normal for the weekend, fingers crossed.

So with all the crap going on I've barely knit a stitch on my Hocrux socks and I'm half way done the foot on the first sock. I did have a chance to go thru some of my yarn and decided to weed out what I'll never use.

EDIT: Mohair is spoken for, TY.
Anyone want some free Mohair Yarn?
I've got a couple of bags going to the hospital for the knitters there and Blankets of Canada too. I'm kinda unsure if the knitters at the hospital would use "Pingouin Soft'Hair" it's 50% mohair, 25% wool and 25% acrylic in lime green and 121 yards in the 50 gram ball. I've got 8 up for grabs and since I'm not a huge fan of mohair, makes me itch plus it gives me the heeby jeebies(reminds me of spiders, lol). Anyone out there that can put it to use, it is all yours, just leave a comment with your email addy and I'll get back to you for your snail mail addy. Here's a pic of my Hocrux sock and the mohair yarn.

I did get some great news today, had a chance to look at a couple of blogs before posting and I WON a contest of at Knittymama's blog. That is so sweet, first blog contest I've won. Thanks Knittymama!!

Time to make lunch for the kids.

Hocrux Socks Finished!

2007-04-13T20:36:00.000-06:00

My MIL's Hocrux socks are finished. I was up till 1 am this morning finishing those off. In total I think it took 2 weeks to knit these worsted weight socks up, sheesh and it only took 2 days to whip up a pair of fingering weight for the Socktopia contest, unbelievable. The pattern is awesome, loving it but the Galway in the dark burgandy, not loving it. Here's a pic of the Hocrux socks before they are stashed till Christmas.

In other knitting news I frogged my Cherry Tree Hill socks, just wasn't loving the basic sock pattern for the yarn. I did cast on for another pair of Hocrux socks in fingering weight using the Patons Kroy my SP10 pal sent. I've got the cuff done and just going to start the leg and it is looking awesome. I also ordered the sock yarn for my Hogwarts Sock Pal , woot, can't wait to get started on those.

Not much else going on, just alot of knitting and organizing the house. If it wasn't so windy today I could have got my windows started but the last thing I needed was dust blowing in. Well, better get my swap mail boxed and ready to go for tomorrow.

Happy Knitting!

When it Rains/Snows, it pours Mail!

2007-04-11T10:33:00.000-06:00

Woot, finally after all the wait I received some of the mail I've been waiting for. My regular parcel delivery gal and her hubby are on holidays so they are pretty backed up on their routes. Now, if they weren't on holidays both know how much my packages of yarn means to me so they usually pop by first thing(7-9 am), lol. Yesterday it was after 5pm when the sub came by and I have some fibery goodness to share.

First off, Super Huge Thank You to my Secret Pal 10. You so rock! So, I opened the box and low and behold there are 2 skeins of Patons Kroy in Winter Eclipse. This is the yarn I've been looking for since I made Collin's socks and have had no luck on ebay or other yarn stores. My Aunt didn't even have anymore in her stash or at the stores down her way. I also received a pair of cable needles(always needed), picture keychain, 2 "T" post it notes and a "Footprints in the Sand" notepaper. Oops, forgot the gummies which almost didn't make the pic, lol.

My other packages I can't show you all because it's for swaps, SP10, Knitter's Treat and possibly my Sockapalooza pal's socks. Yes, I signed up for Sockapalooza last night and yesterday morning I squeezed into(I was #88) the Hogwarts Sock Swap. I am so looking forward to knitting those socks. I also volunteered to Angel in Sockapalooza, what the heck, I enjoy knitting for those who really appreciate it.

I also found my STR Xmas Rock socks(my first pair of STR socks) which have been missing in action for the past 5 months. I thought my oldest made off with them but I found them nicely folded and sitting in between blankets in the closet. What a relief!

Time to get knitting before I make lunch. The dreaded Galway worsted weight socks are almost finished, just have less than half the foot and those can be stashed till Christmas. Sheesh, if I was thinking I could have used the Colinette Cadenza I had ordered.

Edit: I just checked the mailbox and I received another gift from my Secret Pal. Check it out, gorgeous stitchmarkers and some Tim Horton's gift certificates, cause I gotsta have my coffee, lol. Woot! Thanks so much Secret Pal, You are the Best!! Awesome day or what.

Hogwarts Sock Swap Questionnaire

2007-04-10T11:31:00.000-06:00

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?
I belong to SLYTHERIN.

2. Shoe size?
9 US

3. Foot Length?
9 3/4 inches

4. Foot Circumference?
8 3/4 inches

5. List your three favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length.
a. Crystal Palace- 6 or 8 inch, US 0 to 3's please
b. Britanny Birch, 5 inch, US 1's or 2's
c. The Collection SRK, 6 inch, US 0's to US 4's

6. Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length?
Yes, anything Bamboo or Wood or the Addi Naturas in US 0's or 1's and anything over 5 inch length

7. If you are a RAVENCLAW, do you prefer the colors in the film or the book? Do you have a strong preference?

8. Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?
Yes!

Happy Easter!

2007-04-08T10:08:00.000-06:00

Kids are bouncing off the walls, all the eggs have been found and it's time to start knitting, lol.

What a morning, the little guys had us out of bed at 6 am, they did try for 4:30 am but no way that was happening. I had my camera all ready to go, turn it on and batteries are dead, nice, grab Jordan's camera, memory card full and his plug isn't compatible with mine(damn Kodak) and his laptop is buried somewhere in his room. Start the hunt for my back up, the little HP, found it, memory card full, transfer pics and batteries die. Something tells me I should have stayed in bed or at least had a cup of coffee before this had begun. Once the batteries are changed kids start the hunt. It only took 10 minutes this year to find 38 plastic eggs. I didn't want to hide to many that were in the open but next year I won't make it as easy, lol.

Now that I've had 3 cups of coffee, sent hubby to work(yes, he works today, double shift), made cookies with the boys I'm ready to do a little blogging and knitting. I managed a couple of rounds on the Horcrux socks for the MIL. I sent them an email the other day asking their shoe sizes and always thought she had smaller feet than I...NOT. She's got size 10's, same with Rob's dad and he thought they were close to his size 13's(could this have been his plan to get some extra socks, hmm, maybe, especially since I haven't made him any yet). Lucky I didn't make the first Horcrux sock to fit me, lol. These socks are my 3rd time knitting with worsted for socks and wow, working with a solid color is killing me. I did very well when I cast on for these puppies on the 1st, got the leg and heel turned and just totally lost interest on the foot. Mental note, start buying variegated worsted wool, lol.

In other news, I just received my Knitter's Treat pals info!!!! Woot!! I'm all excited, she like knitting socks too. Now, the big decision, what yarn do I send. Lucky I have a few weeks before sending the package out. On the Secret Pal 10 front, I still haven't received the packages of goodies I bought for my pal yet. I'm sure they are held up in Customs, those guys love the sock yarn. I was really hoping to get her first package out before the end of March but now it looks like it will be leaving the middle of April.

My spoiler for SP10 is just awesome! *wave* I should be seeing the package she sent in a little bit, can't wait. Happy Easter Secret Knitter!

Spring cleaning is almost finished now. I still have the laundry room to wash down and reorganize the computer room. Hubby was off Thursday and Friday so we hung the new curtains and dumped the blinds and the place is looking great. Saturday we had our Easter dinner since both Jordan and hubby worked yesterday evening and today. Justice is off this week for Spring Break and maybe, just maybe I will get one day of sleeping in *fingers crossed* and a couple pairs of socks finished. WIP's are the scarf and 3 pair of socks and trying not to cast on for anymore till at least one is finished. It is so hard, I've got sock yarn everywhere, or almost everywhere.

Time for more coffee. Happy Easter Everyone!

Another Birthday

2007-04-04T14:07:00.000-06:00

Yes, another birthday today. My oldest is 17 years old, un-freakin believable. Right now he's at school and than out with his friends. We have been dumped, lol. He spent the day with us yesterday celebrating Collin's birthday and kinda doing his as well. Hubby had the morning/afternoon off so all in all it was a pretty good day and I am beat. Birthdays are now done till December(Justice) except Rob's dad has his in November but that's just mailing a little something, hehe.

The past week has been rough, trying to get some knitting done, cleaning, yes still cleaning but I did get my new curtains/rods yesterday. Got 2 windows done but with the snow I still haven't had a chance to pull the windows out and give them a good cleaning yet. I've also been trying to get the time to look thru my new book "Casts Off" and fondle my birthday order from Red Bird Knits that came on Monday! I thought it was appropriate to picture her book on a bunch of sock yarn, lol. Still waiting for my Secret Pal 10's pressies to arrive. Sheesh, I hope it isn't held up in customs and if it is those guys better wash their picky paws before touching the fibery goodness ;)

Ughh, better drag my butt back upstairs and finish the dishes and tidy up. I'm done for the day with hanging curtains and cleaning after this for today. I leave you with a pic of my 3 boys. Happy knitting!

Happy 5th Birthday Collin!

2007-04-03T12:31:00.000-06:00

My baby turned 5 today! Where did the time go? Since it is Collin's day, he's picked his birthday lunch, BK with a brownie cake(hates real cake) and lots of giftees. Here's a pic of my little guy.

Take care and happy knitting!

I'm Taking the Plunge

2007-03-31T18:06:00.000-06:00

I'm all signed up and ready to knit 52 pairs of socks in one year starting April 1st. Nope, this is not a joke and there is a KAL going, check out the "52 Pair Plunge".

Here's a pic of some of my sock stash all ready to go. The real good stuff is on the yellow blanket(STR, Sunshine Yarns, Fleece Artist etc) and I still have a bunch of sock wool from my Aunt in a cupboard which just may head to the hospital for their knitters with assorted acrylic I have for them.

Monkey sock update, spent all this week picking fur out and trying to blow it out the the hair dryer. What a process this has been and I really don't want to frog them, one just needs toes and the other is half the foot.

Still waiting for my SP10's giftees to arrive, I'm on day 10 and one package is coming from BC, the next province over. We will see what arrives first, the 2 packages I ordered 10 days ago or the stuff I ordered yesterday.

Back to the monkeys, and wait till midnight to cast on for a new pair of socks, Woot!

Knitters Treat Exchange

2007-03-28T09:54:00.000-06:00

Knitters Treat Exchange Questionnaire

1. What's your favourite type of yarn?
Soft natural fibers. My to die for yarn is Handpainted Sock Yarns.

2. What's your least favourite type of yarn?
Acrylic

3. What's the first thing you do when you visit a new yarn shop?
Fondle the sock yarn, lol.

4. What other crafts do you do / would like to do?
Besides knitting I also spin and some crochet.

5. What magazines do you currently subscribe to?
Interweave

6. Put this type of magazine in order of preference:
Knitting / Crochet / Food / Home /Other Craft/Garden/ Fashion / Celebrity Gossip

7. What items do you like to knit / crochet?
Socks, Socks and more socks plus mittens. I'd like to try sweaters one day.

8. Are you allergic to anything?
Dust and Pollen

9. What do you like to* smell of?
(*This is not a typo. The question is: What do you like to smell of)
Soft flowery scents(Alfred Sung and Calvin Klein), hubby prefers fresh baked bread, lol.

10. What's your favourite way to relax?
Knitting or playing MMORPG's(World of Warcraft, woot)

11. You're stood in front of a Victorian style sweetshop, an Italian cafe, an old fashioned bakery and a dainty tea room. Where do you go first?
Old fashioned Bakery

12. What do you come out with?
Cinnamon buns

13. Where do you go next?
Victorian Sweet Shop, gotsta have the chocolate

14. Any other words of wisdom for your pal?
You can never have to much sock yarn ;)

Socks, Socks and More Socks!

2007-03-27T18:13:00.000-06:00

Were do I begin, how about Socks. That is all I have been doing the past week and a bit are knitting socks. I got 2 pairs done in that time and one pair was actually knit in less than 3 days for a grand total of 3 pairs of socks this month, Woot. Before I forget, I'd like to thank the ladies who popped by my blog and wished me a Happy Birthday. Thank you!

My Sockret Pal socks are done and sent, this was a big panic cause I was almost finished the original pair when it happened. The disaster I was hoping I would not have to face, I was so careful too. My pal has allergies to dogs, so I made sure that the socks/yarn were in a ziploc bag at all times when I wasn't knitting on them. I also confined my knitting on these socks to the dining room table to ensure no contamination, lol. But on Monday night last week I was feeling a bit cocky and with my freshly washed lap quilt calling my name and a movie in the dvd I thought what the heck, I'll knit on the couch. I made myself comfy and proceeded to knit and it happened. I fell asleep, yarn on the ziploc bag beside me, out in the open and I wake up hours later to find Barky asleep on the socks/yarn and one dpn missing. My Barky is a little miniature black/tan long haired Daxie who is just starting to shed a bit. I screamed, she jumped and as my luck would have it it is covered in fur. I tried picking it out and thought about washing it but being in the time crunch I shelved the monkeys and started a new pair last Tuesday. This pair turned out so pretty, I used STR Watermelon Tourmaline and a basic sock pattern and they were finished Friday night, I should say 4 am Saturday morning. Not to shabby, now it's just cross my fingers and hope they fit ;).

Here's a pic of my Knit Off Socks/Project Spectrum project for March, done in Koigu on US 2 dpns. Wow, was this tough to get done. Saturday was practically no knitting at all, all my plans went to pot when hubby got called in to work and I had groceries and running around to do. I got about 3 inches done on the leg and passed out. Sunday and Monday were both late nights, I finished these babies at 2 am this morning. Not bad, I would have been done sooner but since my books arrived yesterday I ended up spending hours pouring over them. Not a good idea when your in a Knit Off, lol. The do look pretty damn good if I do say so myself.

Here's some mail I received last week and yesterday, first is my books I ordered from Chapters. We have Sensational Knitted Socks and Artic Lace. I also received some of my birthday loot orders. Check out the STR and Sunshine Yarns Collection, gorgeous or what.

Last but not least a Big "Thank You" to my Secret Sister for a wonderful Package once again. Check out the goodies.

The big 36 today!

2007-03-16T08:41:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday to me, woot!

This is the first year over 30 I'm not depressed about my age. 2007 is becoming a very good year. The stash enhancement is coming along wonderfully and in the next week or two my new yarn acquisitions should be arriving. I even placed an order over at Red Bird Knits yesterday. You get 10% off plus free shipping for your birthday order, how could you not place one. I've got some Lorna's Laces and Cherry Tree Hill coming plus some stuff for my Secret Pal.

Speaking of SP10, I received a Birthday e-card from my SP10 spoiler, Thanks so much Secret Knitter Pal!

Hubby has the day off, first time since we have been together he has had my birthday off and remembered it to boot, lol. He has bought a cake and will be grabbing something for supper tonight that is not McDonalds.

Time for coffee and knitting.

Introducing...the new Stash Enhancement

2007-03-13T10:16:00.000-06:00

My Rockin Sock Kit arrived yesterday along with some sweet fibery goodness from Dani over at Sunshine Yarns. Check it out, the packages were barely in the door and the Sunshine Yarns envelope didn't have a chance, lol, the box was a different story.

The colors are Standing in the Rain, So Sweet, Something Blue(thicker sportweight in a mega skein 570 yds) and last but not least Flame. They are just amazing colorways and I am now finding myself attracted to oranges these days, who would have thunk it.

I got up bright and early this morning, 9am, boys actually slept in and rushed to the computer to order from Dani again. She's got some new spring colorways up with a new yarn she's trying, it has a tighter twist. How could I resist, I'm all about spoiling myself this year and since my Birthday is on Friday what the heck, Birthday Bling! I ordered Sedona, Wildflowers, Snowmelt(so fitting, we got snow this morning), Chocolate Covered Cherries and The Cure. I kinda went overboard but since this is being shipped to Canada and I have to pay shipping anyway I might as well make it worth my while. Lucky me, hubby agrees with my thinking ;).

Knitting update, my sockret pal's socks are both still being knit, I'm working the foot on both so hopefully they will be off to their recipient on Friday/Saturday. It will be nice to get the monkey of my back, Monkey socks that is.

I checked out my Rockin Sock club kit and wow, toe up. Tried it, got defeated and haven't tried again. Lucky for my sockret pal, I would have switched gears and started on the kit.

Time for coffee and more knitting!

To many projects

2007-03-09T15:55:00.000-07:00

To many things on this gal's plate, I just had to add another, lol. Knit Off!-starts March 24 at noon Est and ends March 26 at 8pm Est. What the heck, I do know in crunch time I can get the socks done plus the prize is pretty sweet.

Kids update-took the little guys to the Dr's this morning and they both have bronchitis....again! This winter sure has sucked healthwise in this family, as for myself I'm just getting past this flu bug and crossing the old fingers hoping I don't get what they have or worse.

On the knitting front, my sockret pals socks are 50% done, just turning heels on both those babies and hopefully I will have them ready for Thursday to mail. I can't wait to see what my pal thinks of the socks.

I got an early birthday gift from the in-laws, the sent some cashola so I made a quick stop over at Blue Moon and ordered Little Bunny Foo Foo, Lucy and Downpour.

Time to get supper going.

Knocked Down and Birthday Wishes

2007-03-08T16:07:00.000-07:00

Holy crap, so much for posting the next day. Saturday I got all sidetracked with the new tv being delivered and finishing off the sockies for my Favorite Color Swap 2 pals package for their expected little one. Sunday the little guys and I started to feel a little ill by Monday morning we were knocked flat on our butts by the flu and 4 days later I am finally functional. The little guys are still miserable but seem to be on the road to recovery :). Sheesh, I can get crap done and be fully functional having pneumonia but this flu had us bedridden literally for 2 days.

Before I forget, Happy 38th Birthday Hubby!

Now let us get to some good stuff, first off, big Thanks to my Secret Canadian Sister for the great package I received. She sent a skein of Moda Dea Cache with a charm attached, a set of needles(Justice noticed that they were labeled "for kids" and he asked if I could teach him how to knit, lol), a chocolate bar(didn't make the pictures) and some scrabble stitchmarkers. How did you know I was a big fan of scrabble. Thanks again for the great package

.

I have another Big Thank you to my Favorite Color Swap 2 pal Nicole for the awesome package she sent. Talk about knock your socks off, lucky she sent some STR in Beryl(I've been dyeing to get my hands on that colorway), Fleece Artist Curly Locks in an amazing purple/brown/dark yellows, purple stitchmarkers from "The Bead Hive" a local artist in Edmonton, A red/white heart bag which is perfect for all my stitchmarkers I have hanging abouts my computer area. Nicole also sent a Voluspa vanilla candle which made the package smell ooh so good, some cards for "My Favorite Sock Recipients"-now I just need more recipients, lol. Last but not least one of my favorite treats, Swedish Berries. Thank you so much Nicole for making this a great exchange. The Fleece Artist yarn is going to make a gorgeous Narrow scarf

.

Here's a peek at what I sent my pal, these are the baby socks I whipped up pre-flu and are safely on their way to their recipient in the US

And a little more yarn porn, just for yarn porn, my Kitri sock kit and 2 skeins of Black Jack, couldn't decide which pattern repeat I wanted so I bought both, lol.

Well, I'm beat, time to go plant myself in front of my kick ass 42" grand wega hubby bought for our pretend anniversary/early birthday present for myself. Yes, I asked for a tv, lol, hubby was happy with the 27" flat screen but not me. Looking forward to watching McDreamy on the big screen tonight!

Super Duper quick update

2007-03-02T11:23:00.000-07:00

This is just a drive by post, more to come tonight or tomorrow.

Belated thanks to my Secret Canadian sister for the great package I received. I got a skein of yarn, needles, chocolate(thank you for that, I was in the middle of a chocolate craving, lol) and some special stitchmarkers she made just for me :). Pics later.

Also, some super yarn/furniture/tv purchases have been made, details later.

I also sent my package out to my Secret Sister and she loved it, Woot! I will be sending my Favorite Color Swap2 pals package out tomorrow. Just have to grab 2 more things today and wrap that puppy up.

And last but not least, just checked my email and received a letter from my Favorite Color Swap pal!!!!

This year is just going awesome!

More later, happy knitting!

SP10 Questionnaire

2007-02-27T13:45:00.000-07:00

The Questionnaire

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
Natural Fibers are my favorite, I love merino. I'm not partial to acrylics or the funky fur stuff.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
A knitting pouch and tupperware container.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I was taught by my Grandmother at 11/12 years old and have been knitting ever since with a short hiatus here and there. I consider myself to be an adventurous intermediate knitter willing to try anything once ;).

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
Yes, Amazon on the side bar or any colorway from Bluemoon or Sunshine Yarns, lol.

5. What's your favorite scent?
Cinnamon, vanilla or lavender.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
Yes, I love Milk Chocolate(with or without nuts or fruit). I also love gummies and swedish berries, mmmm.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I spin and crochet as well as quilting(not as often as I'd like).

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
Love the 80's hair bands,Killers, Nickelback, 3 Doors Down, Alanis Morrisette, Finger Eleven, Hinder, Billy Talent

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
Purples, Deep Reds, Greens, Blues and Pinks. I can't stand fluorescents or mustard yellow.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
Married with 3 boys-17(almost), 6 and 5(almost), 2 long haired daschunds and a chinchilla.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
Yes to the first three.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
Socks, Socks, Socks.

13. What are you knitting right now?
Socks and a scarf

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Love it!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
Bamboo DPNs and addi circs

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
Yes to both

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
My lapghan is about 2 years in the making, lol.

18. What is your favorite holiday?
Christmas, I love giving gifts.

19. Is there anything that you collect?
Sock yarn and lambs/sheep.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
Charlene Schurch's "Sensational Knitted Socks", Crystal Palace bamboo dpns for socks and more sock yarn anytime ;). I have a subscription to Interweave.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
I would love to learn fair isle and intarsia.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes! I'm a size US9 and foot length is 9 3/4 inches long.

23. When is your birthday?
March 16, we are almost there, ack!

We have mittens!

2007-02-16T08:04:00.000-07:00

Woot, I finally have a pair of handknit mittens for myself. I got going a week or more ago on the cable fingerless glove pattern Christa sent in my Mitten Kit, the yarn is gorgeous but didn't seem to work with the pattern. The cable was a bit lost in the colors so I frogged the glove and started over using a basic mitten pattern. Voila, here we have a gorgeous pair of mittens using Fearless Fibers Wool/alpaca in the Midnight Rendezvous colorway and they are perfect and so warm. I started these puppies Sunday night and finished Tuesday night and wore them to pick up hubby and I was so toasty, I'm thinking a matching scarf with the extra skein and a bit. I am going to give the fingerless glove pattern another whirl with some other yarn as soon as I finish up the socks I am making for my Sockret Pal.

Here's a pic of my Project Spectrum 2 sock, using Regia Cotton and my Sockret Pal socks using Cherry Tree Hill in the Jewels colorway. Wow, first time knitting with both yarns and the Cherry Tree Hill is just a dream, definitely a close second to STR in my opinion. The Regia cotton is very nice to work with too, first time using cotton in my socks, any tips or tricks I should know?

I also received some mail this week, first off we have the Namaste Messenger Bag in Chocolate and it is so roomy. I love this bag!

The other package I received was from my Aunt Margaret and she sent a box of Wool, 4 balls of the Patons Soy Wool and the rest is sock yarn. I've got a large assortment of Regia, Sisu(haven't tried that yet) and Patons Kroy, enough to make 15 pairs of socks for Hubby. This was her stash she had set aside for Rob and since I have taken over knitting socks for the family she passed them on. What a gal, how can anyone turn down a box of sock yarn, lol. The pressure is on, must complete a few pairs of socks for Rob, his Mom and Dad for Christmas and I am starting their socks next month, lol.

Things are looking good for this month in the knitting department, so far I have a pair of socks and mittens for February and 2 pairs of socks I'm plugging away on. I just may have 3 pairs of socks done for this month, cross your fingers.

FO's, Shopping and other news

2007-02-09T12:29:00.000-07:00

Woot, finished my first pair of socks for this month, very happy. The regia socks came out a perfect fit and the thing with these socks I didn't try them on like I normally do when I'm knitting for myself. I had to give this way a whirl since I have officially taken over knitting socks for Rob's mom and dad and have given his Aunt Margaret a break. She's got her own crew plus other family members she knits for and since I prefer making socks and have not tackled a sweater yet I volunteered for the job.

So, since I will be knitting for hubby's mom and dad I thought I better grab some yarn so that led to an online shopping trip at Little Knits, lol. I grabbed 6 skeins of sock yarn (Regia cotton and some Online) plus a Trekking and Fleece Artist and some Alpaca(on sale dirt cheap) for myself, lol. I've also been having an urge to knit a sweater so I bought Wendy's "Drive Thru/Quicko Cheapo" sweater pattern and will give this a go for Collin. I let him choose the colors and we are going with Cascade 220 in Red 9422 for the main and cream/grey and black for the cc's. I am so excited, just have to go the the LYS sometime this week and pick up some addi's. With all this urges to purchase yarn I went on over to vanCalcar Acres and ordered the Kitri sock kit and 2 skeins of BlackJack Candy, one of the single and one multiple repeats since I couldn't decide which I wanted more, lol.

Now, on the home front, not much to report except all of us are either recovered or very close to recovering from these infections we've been sporting this winter. Both Collin and I still have a mild cough but everyone else is 100% which is such a relief to hear. I am so sick of being sick and the money spent on prescriptions could have enhanced my stash very nicely, let us just say the in what we have spent on drugs could have paid for my Rockin Sock Club!

On the swap front, I am still plugging away at my Sockret Pal socks but have gotten all the shopping done on her package so I should have that ready to go by the end of the month. I also joined a couple of other swaps, one on swapbot, a Secret Sister exchange for Canadians. This one goes over 3 months and we send a small/medium/large package worth $60 for everything. I've got everything to go for my first package and I'll get hubby to mail it on Monday. I've also joined the Favorite Color Swap 2 and since I missed the 1st round I wasn't going to be left out again, lol. I spent most of this morning blog stalking my spoilee and have a page full of info so we'll have to get the shopping started. I also heard from my spoiler and I'm looking forward to finding out who it is when it's over.

Time to start cleaning up a bit so I can get back to my knitting. Have a safe weekend and happy knitting!

Woot, Swaps are starting!

2007-02-08T10:21:00.000-07:00

Favorite Color Swap Questionnaire

1. What are your top three favorite colors? Purple, red and hunter green

2. What crafts do you really enjoy? Knitting first, crocheting and quilting.

3. What products do you really covet? Handpainted yarns(STR, Sunshine yarns, etc, all the good stuff). I have never tried and would love to try some Bearfoot ??, Handmaiden, Louet gems and bamboo dpns.

4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things? Spending time with my kids, reading blogs and baking.

5. Is there anything you collect? Besides sock yarns and dpns, anything with sheep or Fantasy related(dragons, faeries etc).

6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol? Pisces

7.What are your favorite…

…scents/smells? Vanilla, cinnamon, nothing strong.

…types of music and/or bands? The Killers, Nickelback, 80's hair bands and Alanis

…authors? Any mystery or romance

…animals? Lions, sheep and daschunds

…places to shop? Yarn shops

…season? spring

…yarn/fabric/paper/other craft supplies? handpainted yarns, any fabric with knitting related items, as for scrapbooking, sorry haven't tried.

…candies or goodies? Milk chocolate, on its own, anything with cherries/oranges and nuts is great, swedish berries or other gummies except black licorice. Coffee is always appreciated, love strong roasts, mmm, coffee and chocolate.

8. Do you have any wish lists? Yes, Amazon on the sidebar.

9. Are you allergic to anything? Mild allergy to Cat dander and strong scents.

10. Do you have any pets? What are they? 2 long haired Daschunds and a chinchilla

11. Please include anything else you would like your secret pal to know about you- anything that would be helpful in finding you little gifts that you will really enjoy. I love scented candles, stationary, stitch markers, tape measures etc.

Woot, My Mitten Swap Package has Arrived!

2007-01-25T16:25:00.000-07:00

What a great day I am having. Take a look at all the wonderful fibery/knitty goodness Christa sent in the Mitt Kit, she did a super duper job of spoiling me.

In my mitten kit I received a gorgeous red/black with gold bag (thanks Collin for modelling it for me), it is perfect, the fabric/colors/patterns Christa chose are all me. Even hubby who normally does not take an interest in my swap packages commented on how nice the bag was. Christa also sent 2 skeins of the ever so soft Midnight Rendezvous from Fearless Fibers(50% Alpaca/50% Wool), take a look at the gorgeous colorway, blues/greens/purples and did I mention how soft it is. I also received a set of the ever coveted Lantern Moon dpns(my first set from Lantern Moon, sweeet), a cable stitch holder, chibi needles(thank you, I'm always misplacing my last surviving one), Smittens pattern book from Mission Falls, a Cabled Fingerless pattern to go with the yarn she sent and last but not least 2 chocolate bars from Joseph Schmidt Confections (Awesome Chocolate). Sorry only one made it to the pictures, lol, but it was darn good.

Thank you so much Christa for the super mitt kit. I will be casting on for my Cabled Fingerless mitts tonight, need to get those babies done before the cold weather sneaks up again. Right now we are sitting here almost the end of January with "NO Snow", yes, none. A Chinook blew in a few days ago and left us with nothing.

Thanks to Bev and Scout for another awesome swap!

Here's a quick quiz

2007-01-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

You are The Moon

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Moon is a card of magic and mystery - when prominent you know that nothing is as it seems, particularly when it concerns relationships. All logic is thrown out the window.

The Moon is all about visions and illusions, madness, genius and poetry. This is a card that has to do with sleep, and so with both dreams and nightmares. It is a scary card in that it warns that there might be hidden enemies, tricks and falsehoods. But it should also be remembered that this is a card of great creativity, of powerful magic, primal feelings and intuition. You may be going through a time of emotional and mental trial; if you have any past mental problems, you must be vigilant in taking your medication but avoid drugs or alcohol, as abuse of either will cause them irreparable damage. This time however, can also result in great creativity, psychic powers, visions and insight. You can and should trust your intuition.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

FO's and other stuff

2007-01-24T15:10:00.000-07:00

Well, after treating my boys the last few weeks for bronchitis I managed to end up with pneumonia. Just finished the five day course of antibiotics which are supposed to work for 10 days so hopefully next week I'll be back to normal, what ever that is, lol.

I have managed to get some knitting done this week in between the coughing fits. I finished a pair of socks for my oldest, actually off the needles and on his feet finished. I've got a pair of STR in my own design almost finished, just have to finish the mate and that baby is ready for pics. I cast on for another pair of socks cause heck if I can have a set of sock dpns sitting idle, lol. For that pair I'm using some Regia I received from my Aunt Margaret for Christmas and this was strange too, normally I never want to use the Regia to often but this color #5375 has been calling to me since opening the package on Christmas day. I managed to get to the heel last night and just started turning it before playing on the puter. I'll try to get that done and cast on for the mate tonight and hopefully have a pair done within 4 days.

On the swap front, I sent my Knit Mitt Kit Swap package out last week and my confirmation says she has received it today, can't wait to here what she thinks of the pattern I picked. I'm still waiting for mine but since my pal is from the US it will take a bit longer, so hopefully in the next day or two we'll have a big unveiling. I also participated in a Coffee and Yarn swap on Swap Bot, my pal enjoyed her package, I couldn't resist joining that one. I love sharing my favorite coffee which is roasted right here in the city. As for my package let's just say that opened coffee in a bubble envelope don't mix. The poor Lorna's laces that was sent with the coffee is covered in coffee grounds and so was my computer desk and keyboard :(

Here's a little yarn porn which I've been lacking on my blog for sometime, lol. These are my purchases starting from Boxing day to last week. Yes, my bad. I've been going overboard a bit not to mention the Bluemoon "Rockin Sock club" all paid for a couple of weeks ago, lol. I'm grateful hubby does not care to know how much my yarn costs and nor does he read my blog, lol.

I also made another purchase last night, something I've been wanting for the past couple of months but everytime I want to purchase it, it is out of stock. Last night I lucked out and purchased a Namaste Chocolate Messenger Bag, Woot, over at Scout's Swag. I am one very happy camper right now ;)

Super bad blogger

2007-01-10T15:47:00.000-07:00

Holy crap, I missed saying "Happy New Year" to everyone. Happy belated New Year!

Wow, can't believe it is 2007. Well, we had a great Christmas, the first real super duper Christmas Rob and I have had since getting together almost 11 years ago. Every Christmas we had sucked up until this one. A long story short, either Rob was away on the rigs, someone died, someone was injured(me, burns on arms from hot water and spent Christmas eve in emergency and doped up on T3's for the week after), or either myself or one of the kids or all of us were sick. This Christmas the boys were getting over their bronchitis, I had sinusitis but things went super well. No uninvited guests or family, yes that may not be nice to say but dealing with my family it is a blessing when they are not around, lol. Rob's parents went to Vegas for Christmas and to ensure they stayed there we bought them a couple tickets to see Wayne Newton, lol.

The boys, all 4 of them got lots of kool gifts and I got a ball winder and swift(yes, I did not have either, lol and am really tired of winding by hand), perfume and other lotions, socks, cd's and movies. My Aunt Margaret sent a bunch of yarn, some Soy wool from paton's as well as patterns for felting, oh don't forget the sock yarn and mittens.

While on the topic of sock yarn, I did a little Boxing Day shopping online, since hubby had to work I was stuck at home. I picked up 5 skeins of sock yarn(trekking, haven't tried yet and Schaefer Anne), 3 skeins of alpaca and 3 skeins of lace weight yarn. Woot!! Nice haul and had my shopping done by 5 am boxing day, lol.

I'll post some pics in the next day or two of my haul plus some fo's for 2006. I managed to get an angora scarf knit up for Justice's teacher plus a pair of fetching for one of the aides and the purple lace scarf I had stashed for a "just in case I don't have time to knit gift" was given to the other aide. It was unbelievable, on Dec. 21, Justice's birthday and last day of K for the year I was knitting away on the angora scarf, got everything wrapped when hubby showed up after class and he ran back to the school and dropped off the giftees. What a guy, he told them it was his mistake and he forgot the pressies in the van, gotta love him for taking the hit on that one, lol.

I also have a scarf made for Justice, just straight garter stitch and a pair of socks for Jordan made for Christmas. Now I'm just working on socks for my Aunt(belated B-day gift) in my own pattern designed for her, socks for hubby and a scarf for Collin.

Well, time to get the kids ready for bed. Happy knitting everyone!

Holy Crap, where did the time go!

2006-12-19T11:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post. Where did the time go, oh yeah, sick kids and Christmas prep. Both little guys have bronchitis so after spending 2 hours in the clinic waiting to see the Doc last Thursday for Justice we got out antibiotics at that time Collin just had the sniffles. No biggie, Saturday night the temperature sky rockets and his coughing up phlegm like no tomorrow. So at 2:30 am I decide to take him in to Emergency and sure enough after 2 hours of a bronchial treatment, xrays, a 2 minute consult with the Dr. and numerous talks with 3 different nurses we walk out of the hospital with a prescription and 2 doses of meds to tide us over till a pharmacy opens. In the last week I've gotten 13 hours sleep and that is being generous and it doesn't help that I'm starting to come down with something too. Crap I sure hope it isn't bronchitis too, I haven't had that for at least 6 years(something I used to get from the age of 13 to my late 20's a couple times a year).

On the up side I received my second Sockret Pal package on Saturday and "Wooot" my pal sure did out do herself once again. Here's the list of the most awesome goodies a gal could get: a cone of yarn in burgandy/black that would make a delicious shawl, a skein of her own kool aid dyed yarn, perfect for a pair of sockies and it's an orange vareigated(how did you know I've been itching for some orange yarn?), a curly black with burgandy scarf(sorry, not pictured in the second pic, I was wearing it, lol), red sequins, candy for the kiddies and cookies(or is it cake) which both barely made the pic in between hubby and the boys wanting them, notepad/calendar, knitted sock keychain, a gorgeous wooden Santa and wooden Angel both I will treasure in the years to come(I am a big collector of handcrafted Christmas ornaments and these are just gorgeous. I hope I didn't forget anything. Thank you so much Sockret Pal for the best package ever!:) Once I finish up these last few giftees I will be casting on for a pair of socks with my new yarn, you did a marvelous job with the dyeing.

I do have a few Fo's, to tell you about, will post pics tomorrow since hubby has the camera. I have a pair of socks for Jordan, a pair of Fetching using Mission Falls Merino(and a stashbuster) for one of Justice's teachers' assistants and by the end of today I should have the scarf done for his teacher(another stashbuster). I lucked out with the second aid, I've got a purple Silky Tweed scarf I made in a quick design I conjured up kicking about waiting for the perfect recipient and low and behold on the field trip we went on at the beginning of the week with Justice's class that assistant wears a purple coat/mitts and hat but no scarf. What luck and it is the perfect shade to boot. I still have to whip up a couple of scarves for the little guys but those I'll be using Woolease and large needles so those should go quickly too. How much longer do I have before Christmas? lol.

Well, time for the little guys' medicine again. Happy knitting everyone and Merry Christmas!

Mail Galore!!!

2006-11-22T09:25:00.000-07:00

Woot, lookie what arrived yesterday. All those goodies are from my Sockret Pal and wow did she ever pack an awesome package. First off I received a cute little lamb/sheep ornament which now has a home on a shelf above my desk. I also received the Online and Sabrina mags(the patterns in there are gorgeous), 3 balls of Online Linie 194 Solo, Aloe vera body lotion(so needed with this dry weather we have) a Tomato ornamental plant in a can(so cute and can't wait to try it out) and a green and orange reversable felt mat with pink cut out flowers(perfect for crafting, especially making stitchmarkers). For the boys she sent kinder surprise, lego fire truck and a puppy toy-the goodies for the kids barely got this shot before they were whisked away, lol. Thank you so much Sockret Pal, the boys and I love everything and I can't wait to get the Solo on the needles, I have been hankering to try it out and can't get it here. I'll be knitting the Ruffles scarf in the Fall issue of Knit 1 magazine.

I also received an envelope filled with Christmas money from Rob's Mom and Dad for me to do the Christmas shopping for the family. Woot, guess what I bought with my money? Yarn, from Blue Moon. I should have 5 gorgeous skeins coming in the next few weeks, eeek, I'm so excited. I picked out Jingle Bells, Christmas Balls, Scottish Highlands, Terra Firma and Henpecked for the hubby, lol. He agreed that was a good choice for him, he's got a good sense of humor.

This morning, bright and early, I received another package. Woot! My Knit Picks goodies I've been waiting on finally arrived. A whole 22 skeins of fibery goodness and the book, One Skein which I've been wanting for a while.

On the FO front, I finished my first pair of socks for this month on Saturday evening. Here's a pic of them and they too barely got their pic taken before they were taken by my oldest Jordan. His first pair of mommy made socks and a perfect fit.

Well enough about my good fortune, off to clean up and get some knitting done.

Where's my mail?

2006-11-15T20:01:00.000-07:00

Well, for the last 2 weeks I have been stalking my mailman in hopes he will be delivering a lovely package from my Sockret Pal, who also has been waiting patiently for it to arrive. As of today, nothing and she sent it from overseas in the middle of last month, unbelievable and it's not even Christmas shipping time. I'm wondering if my mailman is a knitter and has been feasting on my fibery goodness for the last couple weeks, hmmm, unless it is being held hostage at customs and we all know those guys love the yarn.

In good news I have a few things to post about, I finally got my delivery of fibery heaven from Dani over at Sunshine Yarns. I have to tell you the colors I ordered are just amazing in person. I can't wait to cast on using the Christmas morning, that one as soon as I seen it in her etsy store I had to order. Here's a pic, we have from left to right are True Blue(Not so Solid collection), Christmas Morning, Pretty in Pink NSS and Steel NSS. Sorry, no pic, blogger has developed an attitude once again. I'll give it a whirl tomorrow.

I've earmarked the pink for my Sockret Pal's socks I will start on after Christmas, the Blue is for my Aunt(I'm going to ease her into handpainted yarns, shh, don't tell anyone she only uses Paton's Kroy/Regia or Regia cottons for socks and has never tried merino or alpaca), the steel will go to hubby and the Christmas morning for me. Thems a whole lotta socks to knit before Christmas, lol. Tammy's knitting sweat shop is open for business. I will be knitting in my sleep.

I also have a FO, sorry not socks but a bogga bag for myself and it is my second felted project to boot. I'm unsure how many more I'll make cause knitting the icord really bites. I fell asleep last night working on it, hehe. Here's a pic before felting, that will be done tomorrow once all my laundry is finished.

I also casted on for a little hat for one of the little guys too using Nature Spun, hopefully get that done by the weekend and stash it away as a pressie at Christmas. I'm thinking hats and possibly mittens for the two little guys for their Christmas gifts and for Jordan and Robert, socks. Cross your knitting needles, I mean fingers and hope these projects get done. I'd also like to get 3 pairs of Fetching done for Justice's teacher and teacher's aides as well. They look easy and what awesome stash busters too. Any other ideas on some quick knits I could use for giftees?? Anyone?

Back to the sweat shop, I mean living room for some more knitting. Happy knitting everyone!

Calendar Pic

2006-11-07T13:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to Deb(Chappysmom) . Stop by and which her a good one and she's also having a little meme on her blog in celebration of her Birthday this month. Here's a pic of my calendar.

Wip's update, Questionnaire and a Thank you!

2006-11-05T21:46:00.000-07:00

Grab a coffee, your in for a long read, lol.

First off, I'd like to thank my Sockret Pal for the e-card and postcard I received. Woot, looks like my pal may be from Germany unless she's throwing me a curve ball and had a friend send it. Either way, what a gorgeous country, the pics on the card are gorgeous.

On the knitting front, I've finished one of the worsted weight socks I've been working on, that baby just keeps dragging but started the mate last night and have the cuff done and hopefully have that baby done for the weekend. Jordan tried on the first sock and it fits great so should keep him toasty on his walk to work on the cold days.
.

I also started another pair of socks using my pattern making the leg longer and wow, it is turning out to be a quicker knit. I'm using STR's Country Clare I recieved from my KSKS swap partner Patti and the colorway is just gorgeous. This is my progress and I just started them yesterday, woot, not to shabby

I've also wound a ball of Artyarns Ultramerino up to start a pair of socks for Jordan for one of his Christmas gifts.

Still trying to come up with some ideas for other gifts, have to make a couple things for the little guys since I like to make sure they have something handmade by mommy for Christmas. Man, I can't believe I wasted so much time this summer and just realized I'm so behind on my knitting. Oh well, playing catch up is fun, we will see how fast I can bang out these socks.

Friday morning I had a pleasant surprise when I went to the mailbox to grab my paper. Lookie what I got, my STR order, Woot! One skein will be for my Sockret Pal for her Christmas package and I ordered some medium weight to give it a whirl.

The Knit Mitt Kit Swap Questionnaire:

Are you allergic to any fibers? no

What are your favorite colors? I love deep colors, reds, purples, greens etc but would love anything for mittens except for fluorescents.

Are you a new mitt knitter? How long have you been knitting mittens? No, I've only made them for my kids.

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn? Multicolored please

What fibers do you prefer in mitten yarn? Wool or wool blends(alpaca,silk etc)

Where do you usually knit mittens? home while watching tv

How do you usually carry/store small projects? project bags

What are your favorite mitten patterns? I like the wrist warmers/gauntlets I've found online

What are your favorite mitten knitting techniques? in rounds on dpns

What new techniques would you like to try? fair isle

What are your favorite needles for knitting mittens? bamboo dpns

What are some of your favorite yarns? Noro, galway, cascade, debbie bliss

What yarn do you totally covet? Would love to try a wool/silk blend or an alpaca/merino blend

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object? tough call on that one, maybe a fair isle mitten pattern or a lace gauntlet style wristwarmer

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)? crystal palace bamboo dpns or addi turbo circs

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be? STR or any handpainted yarn

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack? Milk Chocolate anything or gummy candies

What’s your favorite animal? Sheep

Would you prefer super warm mittens or something more like fingerless mitts? I can go either way since I haven't made any mittens for myself yet, lol.

If you were a color what color would you be? Purple

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature? Sunrise

Do you have a wishlist? Yes, Amazon on the sidebar

Anything else you’d like to share with the group today? Woot, looking forward to preparing my package and having fun.

FO and update

2006-11-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

Woot! After a few months of next to no knitting to speak of I finally completed a pair of socks and they are my own pattern to boot. After working the many kinks, picking the right heel I got those babies off the needles last night after the boys went to bed and here they are in all their glory....worked on STR citrine.

Here's a pic of my little guys last night after making their rounds around our neighbourhood in the cold, got to -5 (with snow)last night while we made our trek, talk about hardcore. Poor daddy and Justice was almost in tears after the first block and there was Collin "More Candy, More Candy!!" as he ran from house to house, lol. That's my boy

More news on the knitting front, I registered for the Rockin Sock Club 2007 since I missed out last year I wanted to be on the ball this time. I've even got it written off as a Christmas gift from hubby, lol.

I also made another purchase from Dani over at Knitting Sunshine, check out her new colorways, wow! I picked up some Christmas Morning(looks awesome and can't wait to get that on the needles)a couple NSS's for my Sockret Pal and a pair for hubby. Will post pics as soon as the package arrives.

Now to type a good copy of my pattern and cast on for another pair of socks. Happy knitting everyone.

Woot! Super Dupper Shopping

2006-10-23T13:16:00.000-06:00

Take a look at the newest additions to my stash.

We have some gorgeous Malabrigo in Emerald Blue, now avaliable at the LYS (and it's about damned time too.) I almost fell over when I found it tucked between some Noro. This is definetely some yarn that should be put out for everyone to fondle and fondle I did till I picked 2 skeins to bring home. One just wouldn't have cut it, lol. I also purchased earlier last week at the same LYS, 4 skeins of Patagonia Nature Cotton(on sale 1/2 price at 6 bucks a skein how could I not bring some home) and it to is so soft.

Since I fell of my own little "Stash-A-long" wagon I've been on since our major purchases for the home the past 5 months I thought it wouldn't hurt to do some online shopping as well, he he. I purchased some STR, only 2 skeins and over at Little Knits I picked up 5, yes 5 gorgeous skeins of sock yarn. I've got 2 skeins of Cherry Tree Hill in Jewels (one will be used for my Sockret Pals socks), 2 skeins of Fleece Artist in Wildflower and Pinata and last but not least some Schaefer Anne. All these gorgeous yarns are new to me, unfortunately I cannot get them without mail order or maybe a trip to Calgary but that's not happening anytime soon. What wonderful yarns and all are so very soft and the colors are beautiful. For those who haven't checked out Little Knits you must, quick shipping and just an overall super shopping experience. Thanks Sue!!

On the knitting front, almost finished the worsted weight socks I started at the beginning of the month. Yes, I know, I should have finished them long ago but hey, I'm using a boring color, no handpainted and it lost my interest very quickly. Now that I have all this gorgeous yarn here and some on its way I must get my butt in gear and get going. I also have been working on a couple scarves, frogged one I was doing in the Patagonia, didn't like the way it was curling so I frogged and restarted in the basketweave stitch. Looks much better and once it's done I'll decide who will be the recepient of the scarf. I want to make something for Justice's teacher and the 2 aides, what great women they are. I also have a scarf for one of the boys on the needles I mentioned a few posts ago but just not liking the way it looks. The Nature Spun just isn't what I expected, I guess I was hoping for something with more substance so that will be taking a dip in the frog pond and may become a hat or something.

I'd also like to say "Hi" to my Sockret Pal who's been great. We've been in contact via email and what a lovely woman to talk to.

The boys are feeling a ton better, those colds sure took alot out of them. I volunteered at the school for Justice's Special Day where I come in as a helper and serve the snacks to the kids and help the teacher when needed and just observe Justice in class. I had a super time, brought back great memories of Jordan when he was in Kindergarten. Another great thing, I had grown women to talk to, can you believe it! I'm looking forward to next month unless hubby takes a turn and goes in, lol.

So much for pics, will try again later when blogger is cooperating.

I'm Baaack

2006-10-13T15:13:00.000-06:00

After 2 weeks of the whole family having the flu it seems we are all coming around and things are getting back to normal here at home. Justice missed a week and a half and Jordan was out for a few days too. Rob, what a trooper, went to work sick as a dog cause they have no extra staff to cover his shifts at either store.

On the Sockret Pal front I just received a postcard and chocolates, well marzipan covered in dark chocolate(Yummy) from my pal. WOOOt!!! It tastes awesome and they boys and hubby enjoy it as well. Looks like my pal is overseas, another Wooot!!! Thanks so much Sockret Pal, and i'll keep an eye out for your package. I just purchased some yarn from an online store for my Sockret Pal and it's enroute as I type this. Hope she loves it, it's some gorgeous handdyed sock yarn and now i'm just trying to figure out what to use for her socks. Decisions, Decisions....

Tanya, your package is going in the mail tomorrow, sorry for the delay and I'm not posting pics till she receives it. Don't want to spoil the surprise.

On the knitting front, I've started a pair of worsted weight(first ones) using Galaxy, they are knitting up quickly to boot. I started a scarf for Justice or Collin, not sure which yet since they both like the colors. There's also a few dishclothes in the works, nice little stocking/package stuffers too.

Sorry, no pics, will get them up this weekend. Thanks again Sockret Pal, you rock.

2006-09-26T16:17:00.000-06:00

Hello Sockret Pal,

I hope the info I provided helps you, if you have any questions feel free to ask away.

Hugs,

Tammy

Sockret Pal Questionnaire
The basics:
How long have you been knitting? 24, yes, 24 years, ack! It just clicked in that I am 35 this year, lol.
Do you consider yourself a beginning sock knitter, an intermediate, or have you been doing this so long you could probably knit a pair in your sleep? Intermediate/advanced, I'm willing to give anything a whirl.

The measurements: I wear a US9 and I prefer a shorter leg, around 5-7 inches max. Let me know if you need more info.
While your pal may ask for some additional info to ensure a great fit, please provide your shoe size, or any other fitting related info you think is pertinent.

(fiber related) Favorites:

What colors do you love? For socks anything goes except for fluorescents, for everything else, it is deep greens/reds/blues and purple.
Do you prefer solids or variegated? Variegated for socks
What fibers do you most love to knit with? Wool, merino and silk/wool blends.
Who do you consider your favorite yarn vendors? STR, Lorna's Laces, Sunshine Yarns
What projects (other than socks, of course*S*) do you most enjoy knitting? Lace scarves and hats/mitts/scarves for the kiddies.

(fiber related) Dislikes:
What fibers can you not stand to knit with? To wear? I'm not to fond of acrylic anymore but still use it for my crochet swaps.
What colors would you never wear? Fluorescents and pastels

The Tools:
Plastic or Metal? Bamboo or wood? Bamboo baby!
Circs or Straights? For socks I use both dpns(prefered) and circs.
DPNs or Magic Loop? DPN's and 2 circs, for some stupid reason I can't do magic loop, lol.
Are there any knitting accessories you don't have in your collection but would like? circs(addis for socks) and more bamboo dpns for socks(any sizes), stitch markers and sock/project bags

The Extras:
Do you have a wish list? Amazon

Do you like sweet, sour or salty? (or all of the above? *S*) Sweet and Salty

Do you have any allergies your pal should know about? (Certain foods, smoke, pet hair, etc) Smoke
Favorite scents? Scents you can't stand? Vanilla and fruit scents
Do you collect anything (other than yarn and knitting toys of course)? Just started a collection of sheep-stuffed, keychains etc. and spinnable fiber
When is your birthday? (month and day is fine!) March 16
Do you spin? Dye your own yarn? I spin and only tried Kool-aid dyeing
Your favorite author/band/vacation spot, anything you think will help your pal know you better... Diana Gabaldon for author and as for band love all the 80's hair bands, that should date me some. I also love anything Medieval/Renaissance and if I could go on vacation it would be to Scotland.

What a bad blogger!

2006-09-19T16:27:00.000-06:00

After a 19 day hiatus from blogging I am finally getting caught up around the house and things are settling down into a new routine.

Justice is on his second full(4 day week)week of Kindergarten and is really starting to enjoy it. Last week he had a bit of a rough time at drop off, a few tears and holding onto me but got over it quickly once the teachers took him into class. These ladies are pros, I was very surprised on his first day they did not let us parents stay long in the classroom. Just a quick hello, showed us where the kids had their cubbies and it was "see ya later!", say "bye" to mommy & daddy and out the door. Justice had some tears but the teachers where great and had everyone enjoying themselves within minutes. Not so comforting to me, I barely made it out the door and was balling like a baby. This is the first time he was left with someone who is not in the family and it's a little traumatizing(a bit dramatic, but to me it is).

As for Collin, he's enjoying the time apart from Justice and having fun on his own or playing with me. On Justice's first day, Collin cried the whole time he was gone, lol. They both don't mind when Rob and I do something with them separately but to know he was in school away from his family was another story.

Now for a Jordan update, he is at home again after hitting rock bottom. His so called friends he moved out to be with beat him up, stole his paycheque and all his possessions except what he was wearing and 2 pairs of pj pants. To make a long story short, he now realizes how good he had it here and is back in school and working his job at Timmy Ho's. He has a different attitude to boot!!

On the knitting/crafting front, nothing much. Started a scarf for one of the little guys, not sure which one yet and will be starting a pair of mitts using some of my sock yarn. I'll be needing to make at least 4 pairs since a pair is always getting misplaced.

Speaking of knitting/crafting, I totally forgot about my lucky winner!! My boys have just pulled a name and it is, drum roll please........ Tanya from By Tanya and also one of the participants for SP8 in my group!!! I just have to whip out the sewing machine and should have your gift package in the mail for the weekend. I hope you will enjoy everything Tanya.

That's all for now, time to get supper on the table. Happy knitting.

SP's revealed

2006-08-31T18:52:00.000-06:00

Woot! Last day for SP8 and received my package from Kellie. The envelope was a bit beat up but the gorgeous Hand dyed Merino Wool with nylon firestar in Lavender Bright(I love purples) from Brooklyn Handspun was in perfect condition. Woot!!! It is amazingly soft and I can't wait to get it on the spinning wheel. Thanks so much Kellie, it has been a blast and your packages were awesome!

My spoilee for SP8 has received her package today, go say "Hi" to Michelle, I have had an awesome time spoiling her the last 3.5 months and doing my best to keep my identity a secret. Almost screwed up a few times when I was leaving anonymous posts on her blog or signing my name to emails, lol. Michelle was in my group of participants for SP7 and I have had such a great time exchanging emails/comments on the blog with her the last 6+ months I thought it would be a blast spoiling her. I am so happy she had a great time.

As for the lady I'm an angel for, her package is still sitting in customs as of 6pm this evening. I have no clue what's up but they are starting to bug me, they've had it for the last 5 days!

Have fun!

We have a FO in the house

2006-08-29T10:49:00.000-06:00

Here it is, my Lorna's laces sportweight socks knit cuff down on dpns(I really suck at toe up, lol). The turned out really well and I used 52 stitches on a 3mm dpns with a round heel. I'm going to be stocking up on this sportweight for sure!

I joined Sockret Pal that is being hostessed by Dani(one of my participants in SP7) and Rachel. Can't wait, go sign up, they are only accepting 100 people!

I also joined Chrissy's(my SP7 spoiler) SAM2, missed last time and even finished my LL's socks in time for the first entry, Woot.

In SP8 news, my reveal package is still enroute to my pal-sorry customs no yarn in that package, lol but happy to hear it has arrived at the post office in her city. As for the lady I am an Angel for, her package is still listed as sitting in customs, what's up with that. Well lucky we can get free tracking here when we send out parcels so I'll be keeping my eyes on these ones. Now, for my spoiler, she gave me a few hints, so I checked out Shelby's list and for the life of me couldn't figure out who it was. She's signed her emails Kellie, so of course I check for a Kellie in the blog name and I know she's overseas too. I eliminated "Yolanda Gypsy Knits" assuming a gal named Yolanda has the blog, Not! For the past week and a half I've been reading and rereading blogs trying to find my pal and it was right under my nose. So Kellie, I found you!(and still no mail, hopefully this afternoon)

Here's a pic of my boys outside yesterday enjoying the cooler weather. Next week Justice starts Kindergarten, Woot! He's looking forward to it too, Collin on the other hand doesn't want his brother to leave. Hopefully things will go smoothly, just have to wait and see.

Happy Belated 1 year Blogaversary!!

2006-08-18T09:54:00.000-06:00

Woot! Yes it has been 1 year, well on the 15th it was one year ago I had started this blog so I could join SP6.

To celebrate this wonderful occasion I will be hosting a little contest. There will be no skill testing questions or guessing involved, just say "Hi" in the comments and on Aug. 31 I'll have my little guys do the draw. Now, your probably wondering what is up for grabs right? The winner of the draw will be getting their own sock kit, yes a sock kit! It will include a handcrafted drawstring bag(sewn by moi, similar to the KSKS bag I made), sock yarn(Opal), dpns, pattern, chibi needles and what every else I come across, lol. And for those of you who are not in Canada or the US, I will ship Internationally!

Now onto more giving, I am putting the finishing touches on my SP8 pals package, have to pick up some wrap and a card today and off it goes, destination unkown. I am also an "Angel" this round and have to stop in at the fabric store and pic up some wonderful goodies to send to her, or was it a he, I'm not going to tell!

And here's a little something for my wonderful hostess Shelby for SP8, she had asked for some pics of Wip's and it was another thing I didn't get done last week but here they are:

2 sets of the socks are my patterns I am currently working on, I also have my first sport weight socks using Lorna's Laces and my completed lace scarf, my pattern. There you have it, lots of knitting on the go and no Christmas projects completed as of yet, lol. My little guys have been asking for socks so I'll have to get on those puppies asap.

Well, better get going, the boys will be home shortly and I have a potluck dish to start for hubby's best friends birthday party/bbq.

KSKSswap partner revealed and WIP's

2006-08-10T14:11:00.000-06:00

My pal Marisol, whom I was spoiling for the KSKS swap received her package and is enjoying the goodies. I had a great time with this swap, no knitting required, I had sewn up my bag. Check out her blog and you'll see she puts my sock yarn stash to shame, lol.

I also have many WIP's, picked up the needles on the chenille blanket again, who knows it just may get done before the end of the year. I also have 3 sets of socks on the needles, 2 are my own patterns and one my very first toe up on dpns using Lorna's Laces sport. As for other projects, I've got a bunch of crocheted granny squares in the works for my yahoo swaps. Will try to post pics later, blogger is not cooperating.

So, who has started their Christmas knitting yet? Me, I haven't made a list as of yet but may be making some scarves for the ladies and possibly have that pair of socks made for hubby by then. As for the kids, I'm thinking a hat and scarf set.

On the SP8 front, I've almost got my pals package together, just waiting for one more thing to come in the mail and off she goes. I can't wait for the big reveal, only a few more weeks to go!

Time to head to the park with the kiddies. Happy knitting

What a Bag!

2006-07-25T10:12:00.000-06:00

So yesterday, I'm minding my own business tending to my laundry when I hear the doorbell ring. I run upstairs open the door and it is my wonderful Maillady holding my KSKS package, sweeeeet!!! I rip and I mean rip open the box and was just about to start ripping the paper off when my little guy, Justice, says "aren't you going to take some pictures first?" what a cutie, he already knows my blogging routine, lol.

So presenting, my KSKS goodies(be warned, heavy picture post). My pal is, Patti, from "Stitching in Lobster Land". Here's a mini tour of all the Super Duper goodies Patti sent: a wonderful fairy card with her reveal and info, 3 sets of the new Knit Picks DPN's in US 1, 2 and 3's, Sock it to me shoe size to sock length chart, a pretty pink tape measure(which I so needed), a pewter knitting pin(now on my jacket), a set of beautiful blue heart stitchmarkers from Mama Llama, 3 patterns-Country Girl Socks, Cirle of Friendship Socks, both from Heartstrings and 52 Toe Up from Spunky Eclectic all I've never seen before and can't wait to try. Last but not least we have a gorgeous skein of STR Lightweight in the color County Clare and a beautiful blue/green sock bag, which is also my very first Handcrafted bag of any kind. I can't wait to show it off at the LYS this Friday. Thank you so much Patti for the beautiful KSKS blue/green package, the color scheme you chose is perfect!!!!

So, I told ya all I received this yesterday, so what took me so long to post about this Kick Ass package. Well, after reading the card and pouring thru the goodies I went online and starting reading Patti's blog, what a gal. Her pup, Cowboy, had a party with her STR, reminds me off my pups when we left them alone one afternoon and I come home to 2 skeins of Knitpicks Alpaca cloud from one end of the living to the other(still haven't gotten them unknotted). After reading Patti's blog I was reading the 52 Toe up pattern and figured I'd give it a whirl using my Lorna's Laces sport weight. Balled up those babies and gave the figure 8 cast on a go, that went on from 3 in the afternoon till 10:30 pm, with a short intermission for supper. Yes, after all that I still couldn't get the figure 8 right, I kept ending up with a whole on the one side. I got online and went to knitty and gave the Magic Cast On a go and first try got it. Sorry Patti, had to use the bamboo's, the Knitpicks DPN's were just to slippery for me trying to do the make 1 stitch(boy do I suck at that, lol). I did give them a go with sucess on a sock I'm designing and they work great for me knitting cuff down. Definetely keepers, here's a pic of the progress on both socks. So much for adding more pics, will try again later when bloggers not as nasty.

Have a great day, Thanks again Patti!!!!!

KSKS bag, a Questionnaire and more

2006-07-18T18:52:00.000-06:00

Here are the answers to Shelby's questions she asked the people in her SP8 group. Here's my answers:
1) What is your favorite season of the year?
Spring is my favorite, a time for change and looking forward to all the new things ahead.
2) Where is your favorite vacation spot?
I haven't been on vacation for years(and I mean years) but if we had to pick it would be a lakeside cabin so we could boat and fish.
3) If you could visit any place in the world, where would it be?
Maryland but during the Sheep and Wool Fest, hehe.
4) If you could pick any job, and be paid well, what would it be?
Mom
5) If you were going on vacation for 1 week, and had to take ONLY one project with you, what would it be?
A pair of lace socks to knit.
6) If you won a shopping spree to your favorite Yarn shop, what would you get??
Addis, bamboo dpns, tons of Lorna's laces, STR, some alpaca and some really great lace weight merino.

Also completed this past week were my 2-12 inch crochet squares and 4-6 inch crochet squares and they are in the mail, w00t!! I blocked my lace scarf(my design) today and it is just amazing, it turned out way better than I expected. It really came to life during the blocking process and I really don't like to block, mind you this is only the second lace project I've ever made. (sorry no pics, will be sending the pattern off in the next month, cross your fingers).

Now on the Swap front, presenting my KSKS bag and goodies I am sending to my pal:

Yes, those are little kitties knitting and sewing on the bag (talk about calling out to be a knitters bag or what), the inside lining has balls of wool. I made the bag twice the size of "Yarn Envy's Leetle Bag" pattern and included a little pocket on the inside. I hope my pal likes everything and I included some snackies as well plus some Knit Picks Dye your own with Kool Aid for funsies.

I am also preparing my SP8 pals final package. Only 1 1/2 more months left till the end of SP8 and the big reveal, w00t, w00t!!!

Well, that's all I have except it has been very hot here in Lethbridge and the little guys are constantly talking about how they can't wait till Halloween or Christmas. They really can't stand the heat this time of year.

Happy knitting!

SP8 Mail(Woot) and other news

2006-07-10T15:50:00.000-06:00

Lookie what I received this afternoon from my SP8 pal.
What a Sweeeeeeeeeet Haul!!!
Here's the yummy details: First we have 2 great cards, one has 6 gorgeous stitchmarkers attached, handmade by my pal on it with the description of the different beads she used(2 are made with real garnets), the second card is a tour of what she enclosed in the package.
The other giftees are: 1)Regia Jacquard sock yarn which I'll be using this week to give the two socks on 2 circs or maybe the magic loop a whirl,Patons Coral in a two tone blue and it is so soft and the colors perfect, can't wait to get that on the needles, not sure what yet,Wendy Melody for a nice summery scarf
2)handles for a new bag, which just so happens I am working on a bag design and they will work beautifully(and bags are the new scarves, I feel so behind because I have never knit myself one)
3)Chocolate, some Magic Stars for the boys(they love them) and some Galaxy Bars for myself(Yummy chocolate)
4)Bathtime indulgence, Blueberry muffin bath bomb and a bar of lavendar and cedarwood soap and I'm telling you I didn't even have to open the package to get the yummy smells. Even my postlady commented it was a great smelling package.
5)Last but not least to end of the Fibery/giftee goodness is a bag full of Alpaca, "straight from Sweep", does my pal have Alpacas????

Thank you so much SP, the package is wonderful and the boys were especially pleased that they have a "Secret Pal" too, thank you for including them. You really made our day!!!!

Weekend and other news, I finally broke down and gave into my urge to shop on Friday, told Rob if I didn't buy something soon I'd freak. The boys and Rob sat patiently in the van for 15 minutes while I got my fix and talking to the owner of the LYS while shopping, she let me know she will be carrying more wools instead of acrylic. *Jumping for joy* I almost fell over when I heard that news, but after me not shopping for a while and other requests for more of a natural fibers from other gals she's going for it. Thank you yarn gods!!!!

Here's my purchase for the weekend:some mags, check out Knitters Summer edition it has Chrissy's(my SP7 pal) sweater pattern in it on page 84 "French Lilac", bamboo dpns, Regia white sock yarn, Filatura Di Crosa Zarina in a lilac and some Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy in a pale green all for upcoming designs(mine, wooot). I've never knit with hemp so cross my fingers and hope for the best.

On the knitting front, my first sock design is 90% finished and I also whipped up an easy lace scarf pattern and yes it is easy and quick to boot. I've also got 5 other patterns worked out, just have to get into gear and get them knit up. I am really going to have to learn to make sweaters/tanks, I have so many ideas rolling around but don't know where to begin.

As for home news, just working hard on my patterns and trying to keep up with the housework(man do the little guys go through alot of towels on hot days, to much sprinkler time)it has been to hot here to do housework, today it actually cooled off.

On the KSKS swap, I've got my bag almost complete, just have to finish the sewing and make some stitch markers. I so hope she loves it, I picked up some Dragonfly sock yarn from Dani over at Sunshine yarns and have a great pattern to go with it.

Back to knitting and getting supper ready. Happy knitting!!!! And thanks again SP8, your gifts are the best!!!!

What a week, or two!

2006-06-27T08:50:00.001-06:00

Wow, when it rains it pours. So hubby got paid on the 15th, same day the 2nd computer crapped out. Ok, no problem, hubby's pretty good at fixing these things but this one was from a friend and its an HP off the shelf one and a beast hubby never deals with. His plan, take another friends HP with better stuff and useable parts from ours and build a kick ass computer for himself and the babies. Yes, mine is still running. Rob spent all day on the 15th trying to fix it, things were looking pretty good and he got everything together and did the test. Nothing, not a beep or turn of the fan, nothing. I can see my yarn shopping trip going down the drain and believe me, I am so due for a good shop, not just good one of the best ever!! So, at 7:30 we pack up the little guys and head to future shop and pick up an off the shelf one, cause building one is just to expensive right now. $650 later (and that's on sale with $200 off) we head home with the new computer for Rob, the Pixar Cars computer game for Justice and Star Wars xbox lego game for Collin and me, nothing. Not a skein, needles, nothing. Fine I'll go grab something on Saturday, no biggie.

Friday (16th) night Rob has the best intentions of mowing the lawn after 2 weeks of letting it buck and with all the rain we had it was as tall as the little mini daxie we have. Plugs the lawn mower in and nothing, no half fast start, putter, stutter, nothing. I start seeing skeins of yarn flashing before my eyes and knowing damn well I haven't got a chance to get a skein of yarn or needles this payday for myself. I got everyone up before 8am and trucked on over to Sears and picked up a new electric (for some reason Rob cannot start a gas)mower and trimmer and I spent 2 hours doing yard work. Hey, I don't mind doing yard work but after 2 weeks of off and on rain and no mowing, that is a hell of alot of grass and one PO'd wife.

But not to worry, I did budget (really I included it in my budget) for yarn and a really kick ass book for my SP8 as well as some really great sock yarn from Dani over at Sunshine yarns for my KSKS swap partner. I'm designing a bag for that swap, and will be dusting off the old sewing machine this week to get that baby together. Things are coming together for those swaps. I also casted on for a gift I want to send my SP8 as well.

On the knitting front for the Knitting World Cup, I do have a design finished and one sock completed and the other I'm working the leg and hopefully will be finished this weekend but do have till the 9th to complete. I am so happy, it turned out better than I imagined and only minor frogging had to be done. The fit, wow, I know I can whip up a pair of socks using my own measurements and just a basic stockinette stitch and rib cuff and they turn out really well but these ones, I am ecstatic over them. They are being knit in the STR Citrine and it is a gorgeous colorway to boot.

Hubby's even getting in on the designing and has piped in a few ideas of stuff he would like to see made and they weren't off the wall ideas either, lol.

Sorry no pics, blogger is not playing nicely this morning. Better get some knitting done.

Knit Sock Kit Swap Questionnaire

2006-06-14T12:05:00.000-06:00

Knit Sock Kit Swap
The Questionnaire:

What are your favorite colors?
Deep purples/greens/reds and blues. But for socks almost anything goes for me, except for fluorescents.

Are you a new sock knitter? How long have you been knitting socks?
Not that new, 10 Months

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn?
Multicolored please

What fibers do you prefer in sock yarn?
I'm enjoying the Merino right now, very soft.

Where do you usually knit socks?
At home/in the yard or at the park with the kids.

How do you usually carry/store small projects?
I've got a small travel knitting bag I picked up at Michael's craft store.

What are your favorite sock knitting patterns?
I like the Dublin Bay or anything with some lace or patterning to it that is well written.

What are your favorite sock knitting techniques?
I love both DPN's(Bamboo) and a sock on 2 circs.

What new techniques would you like to try?
Must get the courage to try magic loop(have the booklet but haven't read it yet) and either 2 socks on magic loop or 2 socks on 2 circs and toe up(still haven't found a pattern to try for that).

Do you prefer circulars or dpns for sock knitting?
I love them both.

What are some of your favorite yarns?
I love the STR, Lorna's Laces, Artyarns Supermerino or Ultra Merino or anything with a tight twist and colorful.

What yarn do you totally covet?
STR or some brand I haven't tried before like Trekking, Shaeffer Anne or some of Mama E's gorgeous yarn.

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object?
Something that wasn't boring and one I could learn a new technique on, I can only do stockinette for so long, lol.

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)? Crystal Palace Bamboo DPN's and Addi Circs.

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be? STR, so colorful and you never know how it's going to knit up.

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack?
Milk Chocolate,gummy treats that are berry flavored or coffees.

What's your favorite animal?
Alpaca

Do you have pets? What are their species/names/ages?
2 female longhaired daschunds, 2 yr. old mini named Barky and a 1 yr. old standard named Xena.

If you were a color what color would you be?
Purple, I find it inspired my creativity.

Describe your favorite shirt (yours or someone else's)..
hubby's old beer t-shirt with paint stains from painting the interior of the house(with all my favorite colors on it)

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature?
Colorful wildfowers and sunrises.

Tell me the best quote you've ever heard or read.
Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me. Carol Burnett

Do you have a wishlist?
Amazon on the sidebar

Anything else you'd like to share with the group today?
If you have any questions, just let me know. Happy Knitting!!!

You Are an Espresso

At your best, you are: straight shooting, ambitious, and energetic

At your worst, you are: anxious and high strung

You drink coffee when: anytime you're not sleeping

Your caffeine addiction level: high

What Kind of Coffee Are You?