Mini-Band Camp

Last Friday and Saturday Mitch had a mini-band camp up at school. We went to help out and eat dinner. One of the parents had a Centennial High School teddy bear and another one brought balloons. The balloon won Ella over. It's funny how she LOVES balloons -- no one told her they were fun or anything.

Shame on me & another hedgie

I have been a knitting SLACKER lately! And I am SO SICK of hedgehogs! :-) I need to do at least 3 more, but thankfully not until the fall! Here is the latest one -- for Dani.

I am really lacking in creative juices here. I need to do something baby for a baby shower on July 14. After two baby blankets, I don't do those anymore! So I'm searching for a sweater pattern. But I have the Itty Bitty Hats book and I'd like to do something fun out of there as well. But a toy would certainly last longer.... I am stuck! :-) I better decide soon....

I finished the latest book on Blossom street.... review forthcoming.

He's catching on....

I have a fully knitted Hedgie waiting to be tossed in to the washing machine. I just made the switch to cloth diapers so I'm a bit tired of the daily interaction with said machine so the poor hedgie just sits...patiently waiting... (not to mention the young lass whose brithday was April 29th is still waiting).

When my husband walked in to the house yesterday, the hedgie was sitting forelornly on the table and my husband asked: "When your going to felt that?" I asked him to repeat it and then just grinned and giggled.

I don't think in his wildest dreams he'd ever imagined he'd know what felting is....!

N.B. I asked for a pair of size 3 Addi Turbos for Mother's Day. I didn't get them (or any other knitting items despite numerous emails with blatant hints). Apparently there is a steep learning curve from knowing terminology to actual purchasing.

Thanks, Secret Pal!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I received the most beautiful package today from my SP10 pal. I got a book by Debbie Macomber (the one I have yet to read); a case for my circulars; a case for all those little things you always need with you as a knitter that matches the circular case; the COOLEST pair of knitting socks; size 1 DPNS; stitch holders; stitch markers; needle point covers; some lovely soap and a hank of Knit Picks Shadow in Grape Jelly that is just gorgeous! My favorite part is the pattern book: Soulful Knitting: Gifts for the Soul, from the Soul. I've been looking for a shawl pattern and there is one in there that instantly struck a chord with me!

Sorry for the bad picture -- I can't find my camera anywhere and I have about 10 minutes before I am invaded by my husband and 2 teenagers.

I get the impression that my SP10 pal is a MUCH more advanced knitter than I am and I'm really excited to finally "meet" her next month.

Now I don't know whether to do the socks or try to make a shawl with the Shadow yarn and the DPNs.... hmmmm.....

Yes, I am still knitting!

Just not that much right now. Thankfully there are only 20 days or so left of school and then I'm hoping to have more downtime! But I am almost finished with another hedgie (it was due April 29) and then I'm going to cast on those wonderful socks from my SP10 Secret Pal. I'm feeling the need to knit with small needles. But the pattern is written for ladies Medium, which I am most definitely not. I went from Large pre-baby to XL post-baby. So I need to figure out how to make an 8, an 11! :-)

Book Review: The Friday Night Knitting Club

Wow. I just finished the book and Wow. This book was everything that Ann Hood's book was not. It is wonderfully written in a unique style.

The story focuses on Georgia Walker, owner of a yarn store in NYC, and her regular customers who make up a Friday Night knitting group. Kate Jacobs, the author, manages to weave together a story that realistically intertwines the lives the members of the club. Like the Hood book, there is tragedy, but it is realistic and it is combined with so many moments of pure joy in the lives of the characters. While Hood's book centers around the knitting group and branches out awkwardly in to other areas of the character's lives, Jacob's book is fluid and moves from one scene to another, but always comes back to the yarn store. Knitting is a part of life and it means different things to different people, but it isn't the circle from which all things eminate.

This is a great story with a few surprises that I refuse to let on. My only regret is that I missed a book signing by Jacobs when she was in Vegas a few weeks ago. I've heard that Hollywood is planning to make this in to a movie and I hope so!

Go get it from the library or bookstore and enjoy it!

Casting on and Reading

I am busily finishing up all my "homework". I can't wait until May 1!! This has left very little time for anything much less knitting (you should see the laundry). But I have managed to sneak in (a few pages at a time) "The Friday Night Knitting Club" by Kate Jacobs. Book review forthcoming.

I also managed to cast on and finish the front of a hedgehog for a niece whose birthday is April 29. So I MUST finish that soon in order to send it off to NYC in time! Thankfully, I can probably give myself a few hours this weekend and do the back.

That's it for now. Sorry about the lack of anything lately... I will NEVER put off all this work until the end again. From now, I do little bites throughout the entire term.

(Please someone hold me to that!)

Look what I got...

My postal "person" doesn't like to bring packages to my door so I headed to the post office today to get my package. Thankfully, it has cooled down so I took DD for a little stroll over to the post office. As the mail worker dude was handing me the envelope he says, "Here's your yarn." It struck me as very funny (maybe because I hadn't ordered it and yet he knew what it was?).... :-)

Anyway... I got a hank of Chewy Spaghetti (that is the coolest name!) yarn to make a pair of cabled socks! Two things I want to knit and have yet to do -- cables and socks. I've made stockings... and a wee baby sock to learn, but never anything for anyone to actuall wear! I'm very excited! And the color of the yarn is perfect! It reminds me of Easter eggs.







Now if I could just find time to cast on....

It all came is some very pretty tissue paper, which was destroyed by this innocent looking chap. He's cute when he's sleeping.

And a bunny cake....

Here is my creative outlet for the weekend!

My LYS

My LYS is actually a quilt shop with yarn on the side. I love going there. I'm not really a "regular" so to speak, but the people are still friendly (some LYS's -- not so much). They have a frequent shopper program that is totally reachable (you don't have to purchase $1,000 to get $5 back!) and every single month you get a coupon for 20% off of your total yarn/book purchase! Plus all patterns are always 30% off. And the prices are reasonable. I love the teacher there and the yarn portion of the store is really taking off.

So I headed there yesterday with my monthly coupon to get some goodies for my SP10 pal and suddenly realized how boring this LYS really is. For me, for normal knitting they have what I need -- Cascade 220; Debbie Bliss; Noro, etc. But if you want something nice or really pretty... or a cute little doo-dad... not so much. I was kind of disappointed because I really want to support my LYS, but I think the rest of the pacakges for SP10 will be purchased on-line so I can get her something beautiful. I may also venture out the to 2 other LYS's in town....

Which leads me to another point... my city is currently 1.4 million people and growing daily. How is it that we have only 2 full-time, yarn only stores and 1 quilt store with a side of yarn?? We had 3 full-time stores, but one had to shut down. I read the Harlot's page and am following the represent thingy. If there really are so many of us... how does a city this large only support 1-2 yarn shops? Hmmmm... one is kinda snooty and I think LYS owners need to be aware of that -- you never know who the new person in the shop is! And coffee -- why oh why don't any of them sell or offer tea/coffee?? And somewhere to sit down and look at the pattern books? I'm thinking yarn shops need to be more like bookstores -- beverages, comfy seating, and good light! :-)

Happy Easter! I'm baking today instead of knitting. I found a shawl on Elann that I fell in love with. Sadly, I can't come up with $30 to get the yarn... it's a rainbow shawl in Adara (I think). I love color! :-) But I digress... happy easter and I'll throw up a picture the bird's nests; bunny cake; and basket cupcakes I'm baking today!

Bunny -- Finished!

Here is the bunny -- all finished! It is the first time I've put nose and a mouth on a toy. Turned out well. I tied a bow around his/her neck and sent him/her off to Philly. I forgot the cotton-tail though... oh well!

It's been busy around here today with a seder for 15 adults and 4 kids tonight. But now we're done. DH is home all week on Spring Break. It's nice to have him around, but distracting. I can't get my "normal" routine to work. That's OK -- I love having him around!

I took this picture of Ella this morning outside. Wow, huh?!?!

Sleepless

That's me tonight and it has been happening way too often lately. Not sure if it is cabin fever (I've been home ALL WEEK with no outside adult interaction due to a sick baby) or this cold that makes lying down not pleasant. Usually when this happens I go out to the living room and knit. But at the moment there is a snoring male in every room of the house! So here I sit on DH's laptop in complete darkness except the light of the computer screen...sniffling... wanting to be tired. HOPING that DD sleeps in tomorrow! Tomorrow night is "Girl's Night" out -- California Pizza Kitchen and Ethel's Chocolate lounge at the Fashion Show Mall! YAY! Hopefully I won't be too tired and cranky to want to NOT go. I organized it so I really need to be able to be there. Plus I obviously need to GET OUT!

I did manage to work on the donkey from the nativity tonight and I finished the body. We finally got rid of the old couch. So now I'm down to a reasonable amount of furniture. We've been living with 2 adults, 2 teenagers, 2 cats, 1 baby with 2 couches, a rocker/glider, and an overstuffed chair with an ottoman in a 900 square foot apartment. TOO MUCH!

I took a tiny bit of NyQuil... it's going to kick at any minute, I just know it!

What is that thing?

This litte one (who just turned 1!)....



Got this for her birthday from me....



Her grandma thinks I should make these porcupines and sell them. I have yet to include an "this a hedgehog" with the gift because I'm curious if the receiver will know what it is!

The Bunny, the bunny, oh I ate the bunny!

That title is for all you Veggie Tales fans....

Here is the Fiber Trends bunny in Cascade 220 pre-felting. Thanks to March Madness, I was able to finish it quite quickly. Thanks to a teething baby, I have yet been able to felt it. But I hope to accomplish that today.

So now I'm debating what to cast on next. Cousin Dani will be 6 at the end of April so she will need a hedgehog, but all I have is blue yarn to cast on with. She may have to deal. I also am WAY behind on the nativity so I may finish Mary before anything else. I spent an entire HOUR in front of the TV with nothing to knit...debating what to pick up next.

It has finally cooled off in Vegas -- low 70s instead of the high 80s. Much nicer for March! And only 1 week left until Spring Break! Woo Hoo! Next Tuesday is state proficiency testing so the boys both have the day off and DH is taking the day off and we head UP UP UP to the snow for the day (the boys are from Hawaii and have never seen it).

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Our littlest leprechaun (and the only one at home today!).

We will be ensconced in front of the March Madness today (with a run to McDonald's for Shamrock Shakes), which means I will be knitting! I'm working on a Fiber Trends bunny pattern in purple Cascade 220 for Sarah for Easter. Hoping to get it done this weekend (riigghhtt!!).

Knitting for Teenagers

We added two new members to our family this week -- both teenage boys. They needed a place to stay and we happen to love them so here they are. I want to make them something... but what do you knit for teenage boys? The older one likes Harry Potter, but I'm not sure it's "cool" for a boy to wear an HP scarf (now a teen girl could totally get away with it)plus it's getting to be warm here (88 degrees yesterday). They did like the purple hedgehog and mentioned making a blue one so it'd look like Sonic the Hedgehog (it's a drive-in, fast food place in parts of the U.S.). A new group of people to knit for.... hmmmm.....

Laying the Hedgehogs to rest.....

The second hedgehog is done. I've named her "Henrietta". Love the way the colors turned out. This was also my first time felting Cascade 220 and all I can say is "WOW!!!". I will be felting lots of Cascade 220 in the future. Speaking of which, the next project is another Fiber Trends pattern -- a rabbit for Sarah for Easter using that same purple Cascade yarn as the hedgehog.

Off to cast-on the rabbit~

P.S. I saw on a blog that you can knit the hedgehog pattern in to a LADYBUG!! HELLO!?!? Why didn't someone tell me and can anyone tell me HOW to do that?? I assume you just use black yarn for the body and then red for the short rows

Hedgie v.2 (and a donkey)

The second hedgie is on the needles. The front knits up so fast! But then I let the poor little gal languish as I dread picking up the stitches to start the back (I am HORRIBLE at and DETEST picking up stitches, but it is a necessary evil in knitting). This one has to be done (and felted and dried) by March 24th in order to meet it's owner -- 1 year old Alison! I am in love with the color (even though DH has pointed out that REAL hedgehogs aren't purple and multi-colored -- no imagination, that one!), but then I love multi-colored and rainbowed anything!




Pulled out the SnB book last night to actually "learn" how to pick up stitches. Huh. Who knew it could be THAT easy! No more dreading for me!

Notice the hedgie's photo shoot background... our (DH and I, not the hedgie and I) anniversary was on Tuesday. Pretty flowers and lots o' cards!

Also on the needles... the donkey for the nativity. Let's see... I'm supposed to have 3 sheep and Mary completed. HA! Now it wasn't all my fault. Our group didn't like the "flesh" colored yarn for Mary's face and appendages so we needed some time to find a good color (ended up using cream and adding blush). And after the hedgehog I need to do a bunny for one sweet girl in Philly and then another hedgehog for a birthday at the end of April. Poor, poor, little donkey...

Do you like my donkey "model"?? Move over Vanna... Felix is in the wings!

Book Review: The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood

I thought I would do something a bit new and review a knitting novel I just finished. I say "review" but really, it's just my opinion and you can take it or leave it. Let me say also that prior to learning to knit, I was an avid reader. I'd read a book a day, easily. But once I learned to knit -- I didn't want to waste precious knitting time reading. Now I just read occasionally and mostly non-fiction works.

"The Knitting Circle" revolves around the story of Mary and a recent loss in her immediate family (I'll try not to give too much away). Mary joins a knitting circle in order to not deal with life and try to find something to fill the void she now feels in her life. As the book evolves, we meet the other members of the knitting circle (there are about 8) and learn about their lives.

I had several issues with this book. First, the book deals entirely with tragedy. Every single character had a significant tragedy -- the book is laden with death -- and the one character whose story ends with life is highly underplayed. Second, there was a bit (not a lot, but a bit) of sex in the book that I felt was misplaced and misused. It was like the obligatory sex scene movie makers throw in whether or not it's necessary. The book was written well, but it's not brilliant and it's certainly not the best writing available on the market.

Is the book worth reading? Maybe, but I'd choose Debbie Macombers Blossom Street books over this one in a heartbeat. The knitting theme is there, but it's certainly not cheerful. I'm sure people out there use knitting as therapy (I learned to knit while in the bouts of a serious depression), but isn't there some joy in life and in knitting??

Give it a try and let me know what you think! I'm awaiting "Friday Night Knit Club" and will let you know what I think of that as well!

In the queue(ueueue)

I'm a good speller. Really. I just can't figure out "that" word in the title.

I felt the need to blog, but I don't feel like sorting through the 500 pictures (really, we have 500) on the camera right now to go to the end to get to the recent knitting pictures. So I'll dig something up to post with this. So for today -- a list of items I plan to knit between know and Christmas:

1) Hedgehogs for Friend, Cousin1 and Cousin2 DD1 and DD2

2) Pants for DD

3) Log-Cabin blanket for... me!

4) Finish the clogs for DH

5) SOCKS FOR EVERYONE!!

6) Christmas stocking for Middle Sis

7) Booga Bag

8) Finish the Sushi Wallet

What I need to buy: yarn for almost all of it (except the clogs and stocking)!!

I took the camera to Wal-Mart and the pictures are now on 2 CDs -- I just want to make sure that they are actually on there before I delete the memories to free up room for new ones!

Off to find a picture to put up....