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Today my hubby and I moved a bookcase and all it’s books down stairs (at least the ones we still wanted) moved to others to fit the new one (it’s a wall unit with a corner and continuation piece). 

I have a gazillian CDs.  I need to ask Chris how I can do a wireless speaker for upstairs.

When was the last time you ever looked at a phone book?  All phone books out!   Sent to ATT in Wethersfield to recycle.

 Note: as I’m typing I’m watching a mommy bunny and her little one nibble on the clover.

I also moved my bed.  Because my little dog can slip under it I found all sorts of chewed up things under it not to mention a year’s worth of pet hair.  The fact that I haven’t moved it in a years does not make me a bad housekeeper.  That’s because I’m a homemaker and my motto is to do what I want when I want because the dirt will wait.

I bought two new chairs yesterday for the living room.   I’ve been looking for about a year now.  Now the rug is wrong and I need a new rug.  Damn, don’t you just hate when that happens?

 Ok, now on to knitting,  the Zodiac is finished, needs to have the ends woven and crochet around the edges.  I also need to make a decision about a zipper or buttons.  The baby shrug is finished and the is being modeled my  BERENGUER Berenguer Baby until my new granddaughter comes.  I believe it’s 6 weeks till due date! 

I’m trying to make a matching petal bib that is in One Skein but am having trouble with the short rows.

Lillian and I are going to see Martine on Wednesday, in Salisbury, MA.

I found some acrylic yarn in my stash - a huge - ball and decided to knit up a Kimono.  This yarn knitted up easy and quite washable. 

But the sweater keeps getting lost.  
I test drove a new car and left the knitting bag in the back and called the dealership twice and they swear they didn’t find it in the car.  I, luckily, bought the car and there it was it the back!

Then that weekend I went to Maine with my girlfriend to visit her Mom and left it there.  SIt’s finished now. I was just attaching the i-cords in Maine.
So now it’s vacationing there until she goes back.

 Feeling frustrated I did the sweater in a 100% Mercerised Cotton by Tahki.  That’s finished too.

Then I decided to organize my stash.  That was a 6 hour project, which included unraveliving some left over balls of yarn that the dog thought were toys.   I have a lot of stash.  

I wonder . . .  Is it alright to throw away stuff you don’t like?  Nah, give it to Good Will.

 I just finished reading a book about “The Troubles” in Ireland (that’s not the name of the book) The Marching Season by David Silva.

Now I’m reading the book club book, which is an easy read.   Next on deck Loving Frank: A Novel by Nancy Horan. A book about Frank Lloyd Wright’s life.  My sister-in-law read for her book club.  She said it was great.

I just wrote a whole post and moved away without saving to get a picture and lost it all uggg

 This weekend I went to my grandson’s playoff baseball game.  The were seeded number  8 and played the number 1 team and lost 12 to 9 in the last inning.   The pitching was great.   My grandson the Pitcher !

 After the game we went out to dinner - his choice of places - any restaurant on the Berlin Turnpike or in Wethersfield or Rocky Hill (I was hoping for Saybrook Fishhouse).   We went to Taco Bell and then to UP in 3-d.   What a great movie. 

Later we walked Beckette and he dodged another “bag pick up”.

My granddaughter, while I”m on the subject of grandchildren went to visit her Uncle Chris and Aunt Beth this weekend.  I think they spoiled her, which is not hard to do.  Her is Ryan and also my unnamed Granddaughter

And let’s not forget my youngest grandson, Jake, who will perform Yankee Doodle Dandy at Miss Joni’s pre-k graduation on Wednesday!

Here he is, Mr. Blueberry Eyes himself: 

I didn’t mention that I forgot to make button holes in the sweater mentioned in the last post.  I bought some ribbon and used snaps instead.  I think I’m going to take off the front snaps and put ribbon on that side too.  Don’t know why I didn’t think of it before.

I just need to weave in the ends on the baby blanket and I can go back to my “Helen’s custom fit sideways sweater” on Tuesday, and knit in public at Sit N Knit Too in honor of Knit in public day.

Well now it’s 12:16 and all I’ve done today is blog, manage email and pictures and read the morning paper.   Off to be highly effective.   ciao

Six days to Chris’ birthday and 19+ weeks until he’s a DAD!

 I’m updating my reading list today. 

This is our new dog.  How did I come to get a dog?  I’ve been thinking about one but didn’t want a puppy or a puppy mill dog.

That said, I was in Home Depot the other day and there was a couple there with two dogs in thier carriage.  Of course I stopped them and asked about the cuties (dogs).  She said she rescued dogs.  Small dogs.  I asked her how she came to get these cute little guys, because I’ve been to the Hartford Pound three or four times and the dogs I wanted were already spoken for and I was discouraged to go again because they had so many Pitt Bull Terriers and it’s a kill shelter and I love Pit Bulls.

 Anyway she said she travels to shelters, in CT, PA, SC etc.  I was surprised.  I told her my story about the Hartford pound and she said she had a dog from the Naugatuck pound that she had just finished nursing back to health.  His name was Beckett after Josh Beckett.  (one of the dogs in the carriage was Coco Crisp).  Any I gave her my card and she said she’d mail me the pictures.  I liked him and she brought him over for a meet and greet and we had a few days to think it over (win John over). 

And here he is.  He’s probably a year old and very puppy like.  Good with tinkles and not so good with poopies, but we’re working on it.    I’ll write another posting about the cat/dog relations.

He is about 6 lbs - smaller than the cat - beige/blond.  He has a a tail like aPug, a body and ears like a Rat Terrier, but some of his coat is a little longer and very soft  and also my newly finished green socks.

We’re getting our taxes ready to do the taxes, what this means is (I do the bills in our relationship) and my husband says get me this and get me that (because he does the taxes).

I have been knitting and reading and staying in.  In addition, unbeknown to me, I’ve been growing my hair.  I am in desperate need for a hair cut.  This is what happens when I don’t make an appointment when I leave the shop after a haircut.  Then I start thinking maybe I should grow it longer or maybe cut it really short.  Thinking like that always makes me sorry.

I’ve read Home to Holly Springs, and a book about a father talking about his son’s drug addiction.  I also read a novelette by John Grisham  called The Bleachers.  I’m going to gather the info and put it on the reading page on the blog.  Now I’m reading a Kellerman mystery.

On the knitting front I am working on my Pea-pod baby sweater-set. This is my first time using a knitting chart and I’ve frogged a few times. I thought I was finished and realized that I didn’t make the armholes big enough when I went to put on the sleeves. So I had to frog again.   This is the yarn that I bought when Martine and we snuck up to the Webb’s sale.  The other yarn, grey, is waiting for the perfect men’s sweater pattern.  But the hat’s done (but no picture of the hat). If I don’t put in the stash on Ravelry, does it count?

I also ordered some things from Knit Picks.  I had to…  I stepped on my number 5 interchangeable harmony wood needle and had to reorder another one.  Here’s the catch.  If you order $50 or more they ship it to you free!  Who doesn’t like free?  I bought a few knitting accessories and some sock yarn and the Mason Dixon Knitting Book.  Hey if was 40% off.

At the end of next month my grand-dog is coming to stay a week with us.  I can’t wait.  He is so calm and good.  He even gets along with Miss Princess Fluffy. 

Speaking of Miss fluffy, she is getting to be a hairy beast.  I try to brush her while we are watching Television, but she is impatient with me.  I tell her that she is going to have to get groomed, but she just gives me that stare.  As a parting note, always remember to save before you publish

It very very cold and the wind sounds like a freight train as it whips by the side of the building.  Our room is near the end of the hallway and you can hear it make the turn, if you can imagine that.  The wind is blurring vision and the evergreens are bending.  It even looks cold out the window.

 I’m glad I did my exploring yesterday.  The area is so rural that I thought I drove 100 miles but it was only 40.  I had to find a CVS and then I found Diana’s Yarn and Craft store.  As you can imagine, I’ve added to my stash by purchasing some cascade 220 for the next project - an ear flap had and some more sock yarn.  I left them in the car and haven’t put them on Ravelry yet.

I’ve all but finished the Australian wool sweater.  Here it is handing on the shower curtain  at the Hotel.  It still needs some weaving in and the i-cord and buttons.  98.9%  finished and guess what, IT FITS! 

I’ve made some project with the February Lady’s Sweater.  I think each section of the pattern is 2″.  I’m planning to do some more tonight.

I’m reading Kidnapped again and find it as exciting as it was the first time. 

I went to the mall today to take advantage of the sales and only found a work out shirt that was marked down to 9.99 and I paid 4.49.  I also bought a sheet of paper in Papyrus which cost the same price. LOL  I am using it to Modge Podge it on top of my wicker table.

 No knitting so far today.  I am having a problem finishing my sweater.  I have 1.5 sleeves to go and I keep starting new projects.  Last night I started Maine Morning Gloves and modified the pattern to fit my granddaughter.  Picture to follow.  I finished one and  half the other.

 I had a moment of panic today.  I thought I lost my car in the mall parking lot.  I was busy looking at this cute guy’s butt and got turned around.  The car was there and he left.  Oh, well, a girl can dream

I decided to write here before I entered my new stash in Ravelry.  If I go to Ravelry first I’ll never get here.  I seem to get lost for hours on that site.

 Yesterday, I had the most enjoyable day.  I had a haircutand then went directly to Sit N Knit in Wethersfield until 3:00.  A relaxing day of knitting - hence the stash increase.   I worked on one sleeve of my sweater and am halfway through.  I chose not to  do 2 sleeves at once since the last time Idid that I spent more time untangling the yarn than knitting, at least it felt like that.  My goal is to finish the sleeve tonight and cast on the next.

 Also I recently bought some “doesn’t count as stash” sock yarn.  Blue Socketta, green Pattons stretch because I had to buy the other skein I forgot to buy to make the knee-socks.  You need to skeins of stretch to make a pair, so in order to save on shipping I bought 4 others.

I signed up for Sit N Knit’s Lady Sweater and bought the yarn.  Here’s a picture of what the finished product will look like.The yarn I bought is a soft Berraco purple, it feels so nice.  I snuck in a single skein of a soft soft baby wash pink to make my Granddaughter a pair of wristlets.  Why?  Because she went to Justice with her Aunt and bought a blouse with short sleeves, that  came with a pair of cotton gauntlets.  Flimsy material.

 Today I wait for the cable guy, not HIM, but comcast to put in the second box so we can see hi def on the downstairs TV, then off to Farmington to wait for the school bus.  I’m getting better at this.  I have a goose step schedule and it seems to work without tears.  I wish I could wait and watch Ty practice but I have to sit and wait for the 7 year olds practice - I guess that what you call 15 little girls that can’t stand in a line for more than a minute and the high school girls that are the “coaches” .  The coaches need a  little bit of management skills and to learn the meaning of “preparation”, instead of standing there trying to think of a new routine.

So I can’t get through a post without ranting about politics.  What’s with “THAT ONE”? What was John McCain thinking???  They say as people age they seem to become more ethnic, or maybe it’s the people older than me that get that way.  I think it’s from when they were young all people were “foreigners” - 1st or 2nd generation (and that’s a generalization).  People tended to stay within their groups of ethnicity.  But hey, he’s a politician and should have better handlers.   Slip of the tongue that shows what he is thinking.

 I am voting for Obama.  I made my mind up a year ago.  My first reason is that I think we are going too far right and the church/state thing is to integrated.  Church and state should be separate, no ifs ands or buts.  Second:  Health care!   Does John Mcain really thing a $5000 tax credit will purchase health care?  I have a pre-existing condition, “Pre-Diabetes” (which means that I control it with diet and exercise - not drugs) and when my COBRA ended I was canned because of that condition.  Now I am in a HIGH RISK company and pay - are you ready for this????? $375.50 /per month.  YES THAT PER MONTH - MORE THAN $13,000.OO PER YEAR  - YES MORE THAN THE $5000 TAX CREDIT.   How does that help people like me?

Ok, I am calmer now.  I’m off to Ravelry.

I’m making progress on the sweater that I am designing. I am using a basic sweater pattern from Ann Budd’s book “The Knitters Book of Handy Patterns”.  I was inspired by the new Debbie Bliss Magazines and I didn’t want a plain st stitch  sweater.  I made a cable down the center back and on the right and left fronts 11 stitches I made the same cable that disappears under the collar.   I am at the armhole of the left front, just the sleeves and collar to go.

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Last Saturday I took my granddaughter to Sit N Knit in Bloomfield for a knitting lesson.  The lesson is free, but, you have to buy the materials there.   I bought her some tangerine superwash and me some Shibui Knit sock yarn.  I love the colors but it pools. This the monkey pattern, but I’m disappointed that it doesn’t show the lace very well. 

I worked on these Sunday at the football game in Farmington.  Here is my cheer-leading granddaughter - the redhead in the middle, and my grandson Number 60.

While I’m at it here are two more pair of socks that I made.  One of Noro Silk Garden Sock yarn.  Sorry the picture is so fuzzy.  And the next pair is knit from Lane Cervinia Merino Superfine yarn.