Shawls and pranks

I started working on this last week. It's another Tilly Shawl for some more practice on lace before a start a more complex lace project. Who's it for? Don't know.
This is my completed ISE4 scarf. Just need to block it out. I think blocking wires are in order for this one. Really hate all that pinning!
We have an old dresser in the living room which I use to stash clothes, diapers, etc for the grandchildren. On easter W found a roll of tape and decided to play a joke on us. He taped the drawers and then proceeded to tell us, "Ha, ha, ha, you can't get in the drawers anymore. I taped them shut." I don't have the heart to take the tape off so I just moved the diapers to the top of the dresser.

Global warming ???

Friggin' freezing around here! The grandsons did their Easter egg hunt in winter coats and mittens.

I was watching the news and saw that there was a conference with scientists from all over the world discussing global warming. They had traveled from all over the world after studying locations all over the world to determine that we are having a negative impact on the world and must cut back on our emissions.

I have only one questions? How did these experts get to their locations to study? How did they travel to the conference? Paddle a canoe at the south pole to study the ice cap? Ride their bikes from home to the conference? Hope they didn't use planes, trains and automobiles which would of course add to global warming ............ I'm just saying .............

All the washcloth patterns are from the internet. I'll locate and get links up sometime this week. Cute, fast, and free; doesn't get better than that.

Elephant washcloths

Aren't they cute?
Close up on the green one.

How about a picture puzzle?

Cellphones plus ...........

my hand = technology in the hands of an idiot! OMG!! I can do anything with a computer but cellphones? Ugh!

I manged to open them, put in the batteries to charge, unplug after charging, take off the protective stick-on plastic on every friggin' surface of the phone, turn them on, dial a call, and hang up. When my kids get home they can do the rest because that's enough for me today.

Holy Crap!

Went back today to have the other half of my mouth lasered. Two weeks ago when they did the first half I didn't have time to sit in the waiting room and get nervous. Today he was running a half hour late so I had plenty of time to think things over while knitting on the Opal zebra socks. By the time I hit the chair I was shaking like a leaf. Now I'm in some serious discomfort which hopefully will pass in a couple days. I think he did the easier side first so I wouldn't be afraid to come back.

I finished a couple elephant wash cloths. Will try to get a pic up in a couple days. I casted on a dolphin washcloth to work on when I'm on conference calls. Also almost finished with my shawl. I figured I'd knit to about 56" and it should block out to around 64". Think I'm going to invest in some blocking wires this time around.

Keeping in the "what the hell .... let's cast on something else" mode of knitting I decided make another shawl using the shades of pink/purple knitpicks yarn I got last week. I picked out Wendy's Fir Cone Wrap. I got thru one repeat and just wasn't feeling it. Maybe I'll try it again on bigger needles to give it a more open look.

Cats, scarves, and secret pals

Joey sitting outside on top of one of the cars guarding his yard from ............
Charlie (white dot above and to the right of the mailbox) who is sitting across the street at my neighbor's house. What's he watching? My neighbor's cat who is up in one of the trees after trying to get a bird. Oscar was sitting in the driveway watching Joey on the car but she left before I got the camera.
"Mom, who do you know in IL?" "No one." "Well someone sent you something and it doesn't look like it's from a terrorist." Treats from my secret pal for ISE4.
And I'll leave you with pics of the scarf I made for Yolanda from my MSN knitting group. She received it yesterday and it seems to be a hit.
This is without a doubt one of the most fun things I've made in a long time. I loved the pattern (a modified drop stitch) and loved the way it looked with the yarn (Opal batik). Just the right amount of funk with warmth, lightness, and softness.

This and that

This sock yarn is just CRAZY with color. D1 will love it.
Still plugging away on son in law's zebra socks. I just love how one gusset looks totally different
from the other gusset. Can't wait to see how different the second sock will look in this yarn.
And I've started the second ball of yarn for my ISE4 shawl. I don't think this one will be going to my pal since I got some other yarn I think she'd like better. Oh well, practice at lace knitting is always a good thing.

Grandson story ahead:
I had all 3 of the grandkids Saturday for a day of playgrounds and fun. We had a ball. Yesterday their mom decided to take them out so I met up with them at another playground and we can back to my house for some lunch.

I always feed the kids lunch on tv tables while they watch DVDs. I use to do it with my kids and now I continue this lunch tradition with my grandkids.

W finished his lunch and before anyone had time to tell him to stop he decided to fold the table. Heavy wood table crashing closed on tiny little 4 yr old finger. OUCH! His mom thought it was broken, I ran for ice, screaming and crying everywhere ... you get the picture.

When I got a look at it I could tell no broken bones so onto the couch with the hand proped on a pillow and an ice pack on the injury.

After a while W says to his mom, "It's going to take a while to recover from this. I'll have to stay here 5 days. I'll show you 5 with this hand because if I use this hand (pointing to his injured hand covered in ice) I could hurt it some more and then I'd have to stay for 6 days to feel better."

With 2 lollypops (one in his mouth and one in his pocket for later) he managed to recover enough to go to the car and go home. Of course his brother got 2 lollypops also because, "N is upset when I get hurt. He thinks he's next."

OMG!!! how did this yarn get here????? $137.29

Pig washcloth. Note to solid yarn is a better choice for patterned washcloths. Oh well, this will be able to sop up spilled milk as well as a solid one would .....
Sock yarn? Like you can ever have enough sock yarn from Astrid's. Some Fortissima, Meilenweit MultiEffekt, Regia, and Trekking XXL. I already know that 5 pair of socks will be made for D1 from this purchase of yarn because she told me which yarns were hers. I'll make a couple pair for my sister in law, my daughter's friend, my hubby, and of course some for me too.
Knitpicks gossamer in Sweet Peas and Leprechaun. I think the Sweet Peas will be used for the shawl I'm planning for my ISE4 pal. The Leprechaun will be a shawl for D1's birthday. Every time I knit lace she eyes it so I'll just make her something. Needles, books, magazines, etc don't count toward my yarn purchases because they are tools for my hobby. I just LOVE these options needles. I picked up sizes 4, 5, 6, 7, and 10.5 so now I have a complete set.

Washcloths ..... the new addiction .....

These things are like potato chips .... can't make just one. Lucky for me I've got an internet filled with free patterns and 30 balls of cotton just waiting to become washcloths. First a cat.
Then a dog.
And a turtle too.
"Diane, I hate to tell you this but the cotton thing you put out on the bed is a little small. My furry butt barely fits on it. If you would kindly make the next one larger I would appreciate it. After all, I'm a bit on the large boned side," says Joey.
What's wrong with this picture? Two things. The town has a leash law and there are no dogs allowed in the beach area of this park. Guess these people don't think they have to follow either rule. At least most of the ice is off the pond so spring is definately in the air.

Thanks Yolanda

A scarf from my new cyber friend Yolanda. Yolanda and I both belong to a great MSN group which has different exchanges during the year. This last one was a scarf exchange.

This is a really hard pic to take because no matter how hard I try I just can't show the scarf in all it's glory. Beautiful navy blue with specks of turquoise and white with a silver thread running thru the whole thing. D3 saw this and her eyes grew wide ..... meaning she wanted to grab and run.

Also included was a crochet bag which was beautiful done and a chocolate treat inside.

Thanks Yolanda!

Weekend round up

Very busy this weekend indeed. Still plugging away on a zebra sock for my son in law.
And started a shawl for the ISE4 .
I'm not sure if this one will go out to my pal or not. I've got some yarn on order that might be more to her liking. We'll have to wait and see. I love how this is coming out. The lace knitting seems to be easier this time around. I finished a secret project. It's blocking as we speak. Loved knitting this one! It's cool looking and an easy pattern to remember.
D1 and hubby spent the weekend working on their new house which means someone had to watch the little ones. This is little missy A discussing how she really would like to live at my house with me forever.
Meanwhile, W and N were outside playing in the last of the 8" of snow from last weekend. Supervising the snowplay was my dad and their dad (before he hopped in that red truck and left for the weekend).

W decided that it takes too long to drive to gram's house (10-15 minutes right now) so he told his mom that they should buy a house nextdoor to grams so they could just run there quickly. Wonder how he'll feel about being over an hour away?

Laser gum surgery today

Thanks to my dad I have awful teeth. It's not really his fault since he didn't have a choice but because of this I've spent far too many hours at the dentist than your normal 2 times a year cleaning routine. My dentist's son was accepted to his first choice of college and I'm proud to say I've probably at least paid his books for 4 yrs.

Today was a fun packed day of laser gum surgery. I procrastinated this as long as humanly possible. Now, 6 hrs later I can honestly say it's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. It only took 1 1/2 hrs (although he had scheduled 2) and I was home and back to work in no time at all. The worst part was actually the novicane injections before he started.

I'm on motrin for 2 days to reduce swelling and an antibiotic for a week so there should be no infection. It's just a little uncomfortable; not really painful. Just amazing.

My hubby had the traditional surgery about 10 yrs ago with all the cutting and stitching. This is nothing like that at all. The only down side is that I'm on a soft diet for a while. Just when this heals I'll have to go back in 2 weeks to get the left side done which means another 2 weeks of soft diet.

So if you know anyone who is looking at gum surgery I'd recommend a little research and laser if possible.

Smiley yarn makes me smile $87.40

You just can't beat their prices although the selection is limited. I bought 6 balls each of Cervinia Calzetteria sock yarn in Venice and Capri. I think they'll probably end up as CIC socks. 5 skeins of Hokey Pokey in lime. It's a happy color. I'm thinking some more 5 hr baby sweaters for charity. And 4 balls of Trellis in the stained glass color. These will definately be scarves donated to the town's human services department for the holidays.
Moving on ... 30 balls of bernat cotton; 10 each of Newport print, apple green and sea print. This is actually the reason for my trip over to the Smiley website. I'm knitting a ton of washcloths for my oldest daughter. She's been using the store bought ones and boy they wear out quick. The hand knit ones hold up so much better. Thinking of knitting designs into them like sail boats, bunnies, etc. The grandkids will get a kick out of them.
And 6 skeins of cotton ease to make some bibs for a pregancy center in town. Again, the hand knit ones are sooooo much better than the store bought bibs. 3 skeins each of popsical and candy blue.

For anyone keeping track we're up to $241.47 so far this year in yarn purchases. And there's another order of sock yarn coming in a while ..... but that's another posting for another day.

My weekend in review

What a weekend! I finished these socks for greedy sock person ME! Because the stripes were so wide I decided to match them. W saw them and fell in love with them so maybe I'll use this yarn for his socks in September. I'm kind of fence sitting because the stripes are so wide I don't know if they'd look good for kid's socks. I've got plenty of time to think about it.
These are my dreaded back stairs leading from the deck to the backyard. They may not look dreaded but they are. Friday morning at around 9 I decided to bring in a couple loads of firewood before it started snowing. I took one step and before I even had time to grab the railing I was on my ass at the bottom.

First thought in my head "Crap! I sure hope I'm not hurt." because no one was around and my son ... the only person home .... was probably going to be sleeping for another 3 hrs.

Luck would have it that the only damage was a HUGE bruise on my ass and a few splinters and cuts. Thank God I'm not a supermodel because I'm sure without that ass I would have suffered more extensive injury.

Saturday the grandkids were coming over for the day. Plow guy didn't show up so I ended up digging out one driveway with a shovel and unburrying 2 cars in case I needed to go somewhere. D1 and son in law showed up with the boys and little missy. My dad .... with his super baby tracking working perfectly .... showed up 5 minutes later. My dad LOVES babies so he spent the entire time holding missy A. My mom showed up a couple hours later so we had 4 grown ups watching 3 children. Pretty good odds.

We had a great day of watching the Fox and the Hound, playing games, reading, and nap taking. N wore up but told me him frog and dinosaur were still tired so this is what I found when I went up to bed that night.

I ordered chinese food for my parents, D1 and hubby, the little men, S1 and myself. What I ordered vs what I ended up with are 2 different things. I think they almost do that on purpose. It's like a mystery!

Sunday everyone came home from vacation filled with stories and chatter. I've been doing laundry ever since. They would have done their own laundry but everyone has school in the morning so lots of scurrying around to make sure all assignments are done and books are ready.

Current secret project in progress. Believe it or not it's not a sock! I love how it's coming out and can't wait to share pics in a couple weeks. I'm also working on a sock in Opal Zebra but that's been put aside until this secret project is completed.

The Perfect Guy

When my daughters were growing up there were always guys around. Quite a variety of guys. Some we really like, some we really didn't. Some stayed around for years, others only showed up once or twice never to be seen or spoken of again.

Teenage girls tend to look for cute guys. They don't necessarily have to be nice, just cute. Of course cute only carries you so far in life before the fact that your personality sucks outweights your cuteness and you are gone.

So today I picked up D2 and D3 along with hubby after their vacation. Their plane was about a half hour late which was good since I had a terrible time at the airport trying to get to the parking garage. I FRIGGIN' HATE NY AIRPORTS!!!!!

We had quite a snowstorm Thursday into Friday and the plow guy didn't show up until Saturday around noon. I had shoveled one driveway so I decided not to have him plow the rest. The second driveway had D2's car, hubby truck, and my old stationwagon parked in it. So hubby and D2 would have to work getting the 2nd driveway cleared to get their vehicles out.

We had been home about 30 minutes when D2's new guy, Ed, pulled up with shovel in hand. He was there to see her and help dig out her car. What a nice guy. Cute is always nice but thoughtful and caring wins hands down.

Closing on the house

My daughter and her hubby closed on their first house. It's a little over an hour away from me so I'm sad because now I can't just pop over and visit my grandchildren if I happen to be around. They signed the papers on Friday and were planning on spending the weekend up there doing demo work. They won't be moving until probably May 1st because the house was going to require a lot of time and effort ..... hey they are young they've got the energy.

So they drove up to the new house and were met by a sign on the door posted the day before by the building inspector "Unsafe structure. Entry is barred." News to everyone involved in this sale. It was too late to contact anyone Friday so we all spent the weekend worrying.

Monday they got ahold of their lawyer and he said, "Sorry once you sign the paperwork it's a done deal. The only thing you can do is hire a litigation lawyer and sue. It'll take time and money." Called the real estate guy who wouldn't return their call. Wonder why?

Being a small town the building inspector only works Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 to 12. They called him on Tuesday and he told them the list of stuff that needed to be fixed before they would be able to move in. Most of the stuff we already knew (my hubby is a builder) and were planning to repair before the move in date even without the inspector's observations.

The building guy keeps office hours from 7 to 9:30 pm every 3rd Wednesday so he told my daughter to come in and they could go over the list again to make sure nothing was missed and he would issue the permits on the spot.

So they've spent time up there gutting the bathroom, taking up dog urine soaked carpeting and stick down tile, and scrubbing every surface of the house. Next will come weeks of repairing, replacement and renovations which will hopefully go better than the first weekend's suprize.

Once they get settled in they'll file a complaint against the real estate guy who should have stayed on top of everything to avoid this problem. You would think Century 21 would have a better support for their agents to make sure they were following correct procedures but apparently they don't.

Of course there is an upside to all this hard work in the coming weeks ....... someone has to watch W, N, and little missy A while their mom and dad work on the house. Maybe if they twist my arm I'll volunteer.

socks and sweaters

Fo #25 is yet another pair of socks for me, me, me. So nice to finally open my sock drawer and be able to pick out a new pair of hand knit socks to wear every day. My hubby said I was a little greedy in my knitting so far this year and I responded, "SO WHAT!?!?!" My time, my yarn, my needles. I'll use them how I see fit. lol.
A craptastic shot of 2 5 hr baby sweaters I'm working on. Just need to seam them and decide between a hat or booties to go with them since I don't have enough yarn for both. These will go to my daughter's friend who is having twin girls next month.
And I'm plugging along on these wonderful red white and blue socks for someone very special who deserves all the hand made socks I can knit ..... me again ......... greedy knitter.

I knit every night usually 2-4 hrs depending on work and family. I also knit all friggin weekend every weekend for hours on end. If I'm sitting I'm knitting. If I'm waiting for water to boil in the kitchen I'm knitting. Watching tv or a dvd, knitting. Somewhere along the line I crossed hobby to obsession but everyone around me seems fine with it ..... as long as they get hand knit socks, scarves, etc.

This weekend was a flurry of things but I haven't put them all in perspective enough to talk about. The only thing I'll say now is that I had W, N, and little missy A for a sleepover Friday night and it was wonderful. Little ones in a house can't help but put a smile on your face. Messy house with toys everywhere = happy gram.

Yet another cute kid story

N just turned 4 in February and his mom has been teaching him to read. He has known letters, colors, and numbers for quite a while so this is the next step. N is very interested in reading so he's catching on very fast.

D1: What kind of juice would you like from the store?
N: Yellow grape juice.
D1: You mean white grape juice?
N: No. I want the yellow grape juice. I want the juice that's yellow not white.
D1: Ok, I'll put it on the list.
**She write white grape juice on the list that's on the fridge**
N: W Wh Wh ..... hey that doesn't say yellow!
**D1 is now wondering "WHY THE HELL DID I THINK IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO TEACH HIM TO READ?"***

Finished item 24

Socks for my daughter. I'll probably hold on to them until her birthday or christmas.
W and N slept over Friday night. We watched one of the Land Before Time movies, ate popcorn, had chocolate milk, and told bedtime stories.

Saturday morning there was Thomas the Tank Engine movie watching while having bagels and cream cheese. N gave himself a little cream cheese beard. Very cute.

Cat fishing

Cast out a string .... no bait needed ... and see what "swims" by.
You don't have to wait long before you get a bite.
There's only one thing I've always wondered about.

Who is more silly? Charlie for attacking the string over and over again? Or me for dangling the string for 5 or 10 minutes laughing?

Little feet

These are my favorite little feet. They belong to my granddaughter A who is 6 months old. I hope these little feet take her far through a life filled with happiness.

Ode to Trekking 100

Trekking 100 is fun to knit

I made them myself so I'm sure they'll fit

The yarn was just a little splitty

But that's ok because my socks are so pretty

Trekking is soft and the colors nice

I'll use it again and won't think twice

As you can see, a poet I'm not

But you'll have to agree that my new socks are hot