Catching Up is hard to Do…

Playing off a refrain from an oldie but goodie (come-a, come-a down, doobie doo, down, down…) This is the part where I tell you about the rest of my vacation and catch up on what has happened since I got home. Well, that’s what I planned this post to be about anyway. So, I have managed to download all of the photos I took while I’m away. I even uploaded them to flickr and updated my ravelry with the knitting related pictures, whoo! Things have actually been sort of busy. I didn’t get much time to regroup before jumping right back into my regular schedule, so I’ve been trying to squeeze things in here and there. I think it’s Tuesday already. Yikes! That means tomorrow is October! So, the rest of the vacation was spent wandering around San Francisco (seeing some of our favorite places) with my youngest daughter Monday and my oldest daughter and her husband on Tuesday, finishing off with everybody meeting up at Giants stadium (aka AT&T Park) to see the Giants play the Colorado Rockies. Let’s just say it was a good night for baseball and the Rockies looked better than the Giants, whose starting pitcher Tim Lincecum had a rough night, but ultimately pitched well enough to set a new team record. The cool thing about the outing was it was my Grandson’s first Major League baseball game which was a fun thing to be a part of. Too bad “Papa” (DH) couldn’t be there too. He was extremely jealous back at home. DD1 and I made up our own stitch-n-pitch event during the game too. I got more of the spring forward sock knit between strikeouts. The only other Giants game I ever attended, despite living in the Bay area over three years was one of the last played at the old “Candlestick Park” so it was also fun getting to see the new stadium. The next day was my departure day, but we managed to pack in plenty of fun before I headed to the airport by going to the Oakland Zoo. I’m not sure who was the most excited to go to the zoo, DD1 or my grandson. Either way, despite many exhibits with animals hiding out from the warm weather, we had a nice time and all too soon I had to go to the airport to come home. I wish I could show you every picture I took, but there were so many! Here’s a quick montage to give you an idea of how much fun we had together… Oh, and did I mention that I finally finished Spring Forward between flights home? Here’s a quick look at the finished pair Since I’ve been home, DH has been naturally needing my attention (and the cats have been a little on the clingy side too). We went and saw the movie “Miracle at St. Anna” and checked out a local “Octoberfest” over the weekend. Since I have several projects in limbo due to various issues, I chose to work on baby gifts and finished this cute set and another blanket buddy for babies born last month to church families. I also attempted to read the book I was supposed to have read already for the book club meeting tonight *sigh* it’s not a good read for me. Monday was sock class and I was having a bad reaction to the latest change in weather and had a little trouble focusing, so my class project sock needed several times of being frogged… it’s currently sitting in time out. No picture as it is a bad knit and does not deserve to be called a sock… Today was catch-up on housework and time to start the project for the class beginning on Thursday afternoon. More on that in another post, as I need to get going and I’m sure you’re ready to go read someone else’s more fascinating blog!

Actually, here's one final picture that is probably my most favorite of all from this trip... god bless little boys! Oh, yeah (GO CUBS!)

Vacation so far...

I can't believe how fast this trip is flying by... but here's a little glimpse of how it's been so far...

Some knitting in the park (and a new friend)

Lots of fun and games...

Food...

(Seared cauliflower with a roasted red-pepper pesto...yum!)

Festivals...

and Family

Oh, and as promised, here's the finished Hey Teach

Quick Update

I survived my day of travel to CA. The flights were uneventful and I had a nice time in the waiting lounge in Milwaukee when an impromptu knit meet up sprang up between Me, Terry and Kate while waiting to depart. We had a nice time knitting and chatting together. I finished Hey Teach on Tuesday. It came out great and I have pics to prove it... once I can get them into interspace I am trying to figure out how to get my camera to work with DD's computer. Rumor has it that Saucey is at home pouting. That's about it for now, more when I get time and cooperation. .

Me and Ted

Are members of the not-so-popular “almost society”

He almost pitched a no-hitter last night which would have made history (back-to-back) after the one Carlos pitched on Sunday.

I almost got my “Hey Teach” done over the weekend. I finished off the knitting on the sleeves Sunday night. I had to wait for it to block a little before the assembly and knitting of the button/neck bands. Sigh Here's the rest of the pieces…

(ick, the picture of the sleeves is blurry, sorry) When I’m done here on the computer I’m going to go see how far I can get towards actually finishing it! Hee, hee

Because….

Tomorrow I’m leaving on another trip! I’m going out to CA to see my DD#2 and grandson#1 and then next week her sister (and hubby) will be coming out there as well. So I get to see both my girls!!! There’s gonna be a whole lot of spoilin’ goin’ on!

I hope to be able to do a post or two while I’m out there, because what Nana can resist showing off pictures of her pride-and-joy grandson either?

So now, I’m off to do some knitting and figure out what to pack… Oh, and on a totally unrelated note… if you’re a knitter or crocheter (or know one), and you want to do something specific to help out a Hurricane Ike victim, one of my favorite independent Yarn Dyers, Ray from Knitivity is in the process of trying to recover from Ike. He actually started his yarn business after he relocated to Houston as a Katrina survivor. He could really use some yarn orders to help with the repairs on his roof (and other basic necessities). So, if you love yarn and especially hand-dyed yarn, check him out. The orders might take a little longer than usual, but you won’t regret it, and of course, every little bit helps.

Inquiring Minds Wanted to Know

Thanks to the comments from Happy Place and Knitnana. They both wrote nice things about it, so I thought I'd expand the entry on the baby bunting to let you know why the front and back look different. I'm using two different colorways of the same yarn in alternating bands of stockinette/reverse stockinette which gives it sort of a horizontal corrugated effect. The yarn is Claudia Handpaint in Copper Pennies and Turquoise Jeans. The project is designed to showcase the yarn and possibilities for using it in projects besides (gasp!) socks. PS... I feel more like a snail knitter with all these things in the works and nothing getting done! I plan on finishing at least one thing by Sunday... I'll keep you posted!

The Rumors Might Be True

There have been multiple UFO sightings in my neighborhood. First an apology: the pictures are what they are, the sun is most definitely not playing nice with the clouds this week!

A portion of one front of the “Hey Teach” is hovering on the needles… (The back is finished though)

The Spring Forward socks are limping to the finish line… The Swallowtail Shawl is still in pupae stages… Shop samples and projects are piling up... Class Socks Bye-Bye Baby Bunting (This is the same piece of knitting, just both the right and wrong sides so you can see how the colors contrast)

Newly cast on projects are cowering in the corner…. (Unbiased)

Along with a certain “course” I’m taking that hasn’t seen any progress in months And new patterns are arriving daily… (hourglass) (Milk Chocolate) Candy Apple Double Identity ... Sigh…

I can only knit so fast...

What’s a knitter to do?

Swap Monkeys!

Today’s mail was good: These arrived from Amber … Monkey socks in red and blue. The best part is she dyed the yarn especially for these… how cool is that?

No Post Today - CBUK*

* Cat between user and keyboard

"I said NO..."

"and I mean no"

Did You Miss Me?

I didn’t mention that I might be absent from the blog because I had hoped that there might be internet access available at the resort we were visiting. There was, for a fee, if you have a laptop… (‘nuff said!) So no, I wasn’t able to do an live vacation feeds to keep my readers informed… And you’re wondering… “wheredja go?” “Whadja do?” (right?) Well, wondering or not, I’ll share some of my adventures. So enough preliminaries I guess… DH and I took a little jaunt to Fabulous Las Vegas. Despite the “what happens…” slogan, I can tell you a few things that we did. We stayed at a nice time share resort (the one that Alan Thicke is spokesperson for). We swam in the pool, we checked out the mountains, we ate a lot of good food, drank a few drinks, and of course dabbled in a couple casinos. Most of the stuff people usually do in Las Vegas. We didn’t get to any shows this time because we just didn’t see anything that appealed to us. (And Cher ticket prices cost more than our room!) It was a very laid-back vacation and we were just happy to have a nice place to relax and escape from every day life. We also visited a very nice yarn shop and had fun driving around the area and seeing a lot of different sides of Las Vegas. You can’t really appreciate the city if you don’t get away from the areas where the casinos are concentrated.

If it weren’t for the heat and the current housing crisis, I think DH would still want to move there. The city just has a funny appeal to both of us.

I must be getting old though, because I saw some really young girls all fixed up to go out partying at the clubs and I was really shocked and a little embarrassed/offended by the dresses (if you could call them that) that they were wearing. Since when is it OKAY to go anywhere in anything that doesn’t even come close to covering your cleavage up top or your rear end at the bottom and call it a dress? The thing that I don’t get is they wear these items with really high heels to go dance in? But first they walk a mile or so on the strip to get to the club… it baffles me. Seriously! And don’t get me started on the time we walked into a casino and there were pole dancers in the main area! It’s definitely not a family place, (which didn’t stop people from bringing their kids) but really! Some things still belong behind closed doors – even in Las Vegas! But, it was a fun trip and I actually did get some knitting done during some of it. On the landing/approach to our gate at the airport, I bound off the last stitches of this: Blue T-shirt; Eden Madil, 100% Bamboo; Size 4 needles; Knitting Pure & Simple Neck-down Shaped T-Shirt by Diane Soucy Here’s a shot of me wearing it in front of the Paris Hotel/Casino Then I started this: Spring Forward Sock, Fleece Artist Sea Wool, Size 0 needle; Started on size 1, knit cuff + 1st pattern repeat, decided it would be way too big, frogged, started over with smaller needle- adjusted pattern to work magic loop. And I also worked a little bit on the Hey Teach I haven’t made as much progress as the Harlot, but my goal is to get the back done by the end of the week. Maybe then I can show a picture! Both Spring Forward and Hey Teach are from the Summer Edition of Knitty. (Just in case you haven’t seen it). Oh and yes, I did win on a couple of slots, but nothing BIG, here’s a pic I snapped of my big jackpot on a quarter machine. It wasn’t enough to bring home.

Apparently, any money you win in Vegas, does stay in Vegas…

Stitches Midwest Report

I had a nice time. I checked out the free fashion show, attended a class, and of course checked out the market. I really didn’t have too much that I needed to buy, so I enjoyed looking around the market mostly to see what is new, to check out gadgets and books and of course feel-up as much yarn as possible. I stayed with my wish list as far as purchases went. I made one substitution for an item I couldn’t find, and I bought one item left over from the Midwest Fiber and Folk fest list (the vendor had a better selection this time). There were several items that I will be giving serious consideration and possibly putting on my wish list for Christmas. I also WON a prize at the banquet which was cool and received a lovely parting gift just for attending. Since posting pictures of each individual would make both blogger and I crazy, I’ll just give you an overview. There are also a few freebies in this pic! Clockwise from top: Interlacements sock kit(Door prize), 2 skeins of yarn& pattern; Yarnzone sample; Creatively Dyed Yarn 100% Merino fingering; free patterns; Noro Silk Garden Sock Yarn; Heartland Knits Fanning the flames sock pattern; XRX Guy Knits (parting gift); Addi Turbo Lace needles size 4/47”; Debbie McComber Twenty Wishes (autographed); amazing wall of stash yarn samples; SWTC Bag (underneath) and sample skein of Cherry Tree Hill yarn. the only thing not in this picture is: Debra’s Garden Spiral Needle gauge… isn’t that the coolest thing ever? It can be worn as a pendant, attached to a key ring, used as a zipper pull, whatever it takes to keep it handy! (and it’s purple!) My Class was excellent. The instructor Candace Eisner Strick was enlightening and entertaining. She introduced us to several different ways to intentionally put holes in knitting to create different pattern effects, here’s my swatches: Clockwise from top left: Zauberglockhen (little magic bells); The Strick hole; Fluct Nach Kenilworth / one row buttonhole (on same swatch) and Kleeblatt (cloverleaf) .

I’m sure I’ll find uses for a couple of these techniques! I came home tired, but filled to the brim with information and having made several new knitting acquaintances while getting a chance to chat and catch up with a few previous ones. To borrow a phrase “Too much good stuff… “

Another FO!

Yeah, got the August socks done. Now I can devote more time to the T-shirt (hee, hee). Or maybe I'll be too busy at stitches tomorrow! I'm getting more antsy by the minute, can you tell?

So, you want to see a picture? Everyone at knit-night really loved this yarn. I can only tell you if you like the picture you would love them even more in person. I had to wait until the sun came back out today to take pictures and even then, it's hard to see all the colors. Here's a close up...

No fancy-pants pattern this time. Just some plain stockinette stitch socks to better show off the pretty yarn (and the whole pair) Koigu KPPPM (P126) knit with size 2.50 mm needles on 60 stitches; eye-of –partridge heel.

Happy Knitting!

Just a Preview

The Secret Prayer Swap socks are done, but the swap isn’t officially finished until September 1st, so this is all I can show you right now:

(Bright!) The August socks are coming along nicely as well; I got past the heel and gussets last night and hope to finish these by tomorrow …

(it's a shame I couldn't get this picture to turn out better, these spirals are much prettier in person!) The Blue T-shirt is plodding along, and will probably end up being my take along project for Stitches on Saturday. That is unless I’m too busy shopping and meeting other knitters to knit! (LOL). Tonight is meet-up so who knows what I’ll get done there! Happy knitting!

Diary of a Mad Knitter

Weds Morning Knit beginning of toe shaping for August socks (approx 2”) Weds Night Knit beginning of toe shaping for Secret Prayer Swap (SPS) socks (approx 1.5”) Thursday afternoon Think to self “August sock foot looks short” measure, try on, realize toe will be 1.5” too short, frog, reknit 1.5” before beginning of toe shaping, put away in disgrace. Take out SPS sock, think to self “this foot looks short, too” double check partner’s foot measurement info, gasp! Sock will be 2” too short, attempt to frog back to end of pattern without getting into pattern stitches. Frog one row too far, pick up stitches carefully, start knitting again in pattern, knit 6 rows of pattern, put away in disgrace. Stop to help prepare car for shipping to SD#2 (long story, don’t ask). Go to work. Thursday (after work) Knit additional pattern repeat begin toe shaping (again), finish toe, put aside and cast on for sock #2, finish ribbing and start pattern. Friday AM Sit in clinic waiting room for 2 plus hours with non-stop Olympic coverage of women’s gymnastic win and men’s swimming achievements. Read book; head hurts from lack of caffeine/repetitious Olympic babble. Finish book, bug receptionist about why-am-I-still waiting? Finally get called back to start test. Get injection, back to waiting room to wait for effects… pull out SPS sock, find difficult to knit because of headache, work a couple rounds, wait more, watch more Olympic coverage… finish test, go to lunch… get coffee finally! Friday afternoon Wait for hubby to finish work in quiet office with NO Olympic coverage. Headache finally subsided; work on SPS sock until time to leave. Stop by car lot on way home to review number’s one and two on short list. Discuss options; decide maybe need to test-drive number three. Friday PM Blue T-shirt calls out in sad, neglected voice from knitting basket work on it for a few rounds. Put aside to work on SPS socks. Watch really awesome finish to Cubs game, check in on Olympics, and go to bed Saturday (all day) Eat breakfast out at Wildberry's (pancakes Yum!); Look at more cars at different lots. Review prices of cars on short list. Stop and have coffee. Spend lots of time on decision making; work on SPS sock while discussing, think number three is best all around, but need to drive first, head out to finalize decision. Test drive car; this is the one. Do financials; work on SPS sock while waiting. Drive old car home while hubby drives new car home. Collapsed until after dinner. Saturday PM Finish up 3rd repeat on SPS sock, but stop knitting to watch Olympics – who can knit with competition like that? Sunday afternoon Church in the Park / softball – Have great fellowship time and picnic, pull out SPS Socks to knit; realize that it is time to start heel, but pattern is at home. Put aside, work on Blue T-shirt. Sunday evening Tired of SPS socks and Blue T-shirt, worked on ribbing of August socks (sock #2) Monday no knitting in morning or afternoon, need to do chores and get ready for work. Monday Evening (after work) Worked heel flap of SPS sock #2 Tuesday AM Realize haven't posted blog or taken pictures in almost a week, knitting progress is negligible, but inching forward. Hope to have pictures and finish something soon!

Whirlwind

Well it feels like I’ve been caught in one these days. My cousin got married last Friday, in a lovely ceremony in Lake Geneva; so I had my parents visiting over a few days. (Unfortunately the Cardinals were in town playing the Cubs and I was surrounded by Cubs FANS)… humpf. Anyway it is always good to catch up with family and we had an opportunity to visit with (ironically) the Twin City branch (Aunt, uncle and cousins) and meet some nice folks who are friends of my cousin and his new wife. (the happy couple)

Then, with barely time to catch my breath Linda, Chris and I took an early flight Monday for a quick trip to St. Paul to meet with the fabulous staff of the Yarnery; to get tips on marketing and promotional ideas to help our shop grow. We also hit a couple of other shops while in MN to get some of the local flavor there and ideas about displays, etc. we also checked out some surrounding non yarn-related shops. There might have been one teeny-tiny yarn purchase on the trip (yarn we don’t carry and which might be hard to find for a while) Linda made me swear on a stack of alpaca that I wouldn’t knit with it at work…

(Malabrigo Silky Merino DK, colors Hyacint & Bahia)

We arrived home late Tuesday, tired, but with heads swimming with many ideas. I suspect things at the shop will get busy for me as I start working on some of the projects and ideas we’re planning.

Yesterday was laundry, recouperating and I think some knitting...

I made progress on a few projects while others are feeling neglected. I’ll try to get some knitting content up in the next post.

You Might Have a “Startitis” If…

You are already working on this: (Top down t-shirt) And this: (Baby Bunting test-knit for shop)

(Oh, and let’s not forget the secret swap socks… with no pictures until they are mailed!)

But then you cast on for This:

And this: (hey teach)

And these: (August sock-a-month socks)

As well as complete 3 sewing projects; do you think?

Yes it has been sort of busy around here at Chez Nana. I’ve found plenty of things I want to knit and apparently am attempting to knit them all at once. It’s really not bad if you have a system. I knit on each project for half and hour to an hour depending on where I’m at in the pattern and then I take a break (or go to work or the store... or...) then, once the break is over I pick up a different project and work on it for a little while. It’s sort of like; um… I guess... time management! Hmmm, yeah, time management… yeah... sounds a lot better than startitis.

Oh, and just in case you’re thinking that I am incapable of finishing anything. I did actually finish these on Sunday. Pair # 2 of the Skinny Stripe socks. How many projects are you working on over there?