Archive for September, 2007

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Don’t forget

Sunday, September 30th, 2007
  

To you get your Bingo words into me by 6:00 central today.  Thanks to all those already signed up to play.  Hoping for another exciting round.

 

I didn’t finish the sweater this morning as was my goal.  Spent yesterday out with the kiddos and they hubster instead. However, now that football is on for the day, I am sure to get some knitting time in.


Posted in Bingo, Sweaters | 1 Comment »

Sweater Bingo Any One?

Thursday, September 27th, 2007
  

Ok, it’s Bingo time again.  In honor of knitting my first adult sweater (for me tee hee)

October’s bingo will be sweater bingo.  Remember the rules?  Ok if not here they are again.  Pick 15 of the 25 words listed below.  Send me your list.  I will begin calling words next Monday.  Once I call all 15 of your selected words, email me with a “bingo”.  Be the first to email me, and you win a prize.  Be sure to email me your list by 6:00 Central Sunday 30-September so I have a chance to verify I received your words. Easy enough?  Any questions, feel free to email me or leave a comment. 

1. Cardigan

2. Gansey

3. Pullover

4. Turtleneck

5. Hoodie

6. Cap Sleeves

7. Zippered Front

8. Fair Isle

9. Norwegian

10. Cabled

11. Henley

12. Aran

13. Long Sleeve

14.  Short Sleeve

15. Scoop Neck

16. Tunic

17. Drop Shoulders

18. Raglan Shoulders

19. Boatneck Collar

20. V-neck Collar

21. Crew Neck Collar

22. Button up

23. Cover-Up

24. Set In Shoulder

25. Keyhole Collar

Good luck


Posted in Bingo, Sweaters | 6 Comments »

OWWWW

Wednesday, September 26th, 2007
  

I finally did it.  I poked a Knitpicks Options (metal) needle into my finger, broke the sking and made a hole.  I did that lastnight.  Guess what I did this afternoon?  Yup, did it again in the EXACT SAME SPOT!  It hurts.  Really hurts.  But have I stopped knitting?  Nope.  Still going strong.  Can’t wait though to get to the next part of the pattern, which I think (I am NOT reading ahead) includes going down a size which means I can use my new Harmony Needles. Can’t wait.

Got some weaving done today as well.  Hope to get this cloth off the loom by the end of the weekend.  Have to get working on some other projects.  Pictures coming…honest.  Right now it’s just cloth so I will wait until I have something tangible to show you.

Today’s interesting discussion amongst my two youngest children was the right to call each other stupid.  Jac told Jess that he has the right to call her that because he lives in the United States and (I quote) “that’s what dad is fighting for”.  While I applaud his “right” to call his sister stupid and told him this, I did have to tell them both it’s not accepted in our home.  Now, to get that through their heads will be a totally different thing.

 The weather has turned fall like this week and today has just been a gorgeous day.  I love the cooler temps and the thought of sitting outside spinning or knitting something heavier then a sock while watching the kids play.  I am even thinking of doing some weaving out there if this keeps up. :)

I was remiss in posting BINGO words for September and I apologize for that.  With all our away from home time this month, it just slipped my mind.  I will be posting some words here in the next few days to get us started out right in October.  I invite you to join us for another round.


Posted in Family, Knitting, Weaving | 2 Comments »

Secret Photos

Tuesday, September 25th, 2007
  

The other day I was outside grilling chicken for dinner.  The kids were jumping on the trampoline.  I decided to join them.  I hadn’t been on there in a while.  Little did I know that my wonderful hubby decided at that moment to emerge from his cave and school work and snap secret photos of mom having fun.

After realizing that the chicken was starting to burn, it was a great excuse for a tired mom to exit the trampoline.  That’s when I realized that hubby was taking the photos.

Josh would have no part of the madness and sat on top of the clotheline pole watching.

My kids are very active children and keep me on my toes.  It’s times like the other day that I totally cherish my morning quiet time.  I may not always like opening my eyes well before dawn (especially lately on these cooler mornings) but being able to listen to the bible on my IPOD and have quiet time with the Lord and also knit is so comforting.

Here’s what’s currently on my needles.  I cast on for this project last Thursday and am hoping to be done by Sunday morning.  That’s my goal at least.

This includes handspun yarn, alpaca, wool, mohair, and some “fluff” yarn.


Posted in Family, Knitting | 2 Comments »

Home again

Monday, September 24th, 2007
  

with loads of pictures to share.

Dear Diary,

After our camping trip, we had a day of rest while the daddy took a test for school and the mommy did lots and lots of laundry.  We packed up again and headed out the next day.

On the road again:

The mommy did most of the driving on this trip so the daddy could do his homework and write his paper due the following week.  We didn’t do much but drive the first day.  It’s a long way to get to Ohio.  We didn’t even make it the first day.  We stopped in Indiana for the night and started out the next day for our first visit.

The Creation Museum was simply amazing.  The family had visited there several years prior before it opened and tried to tell me about it, but really, it’s just a place you have to see for yourself.  Dinosaurs greet you as you come in.

And life like robatrons are all over the place.  I could swear some of these “kids” were staring at me.

There were even real frogs from Brazil.  These frogs were tiny and I didn’t think they were real until they started jumping and stuff.

As we walked through the museum, we saw all kinds of things teaching creation rather then evolution.  They teach of a “young” earth rather then a world that is billions of years old.  They teach that dinosaurs interacted with humans and other really cool things.

The mommy was kind of thrilled with the weavings and the cloth on this particular display:

And the daddy insisted on taking this picture:

Although the mommy wanted to find the person in charge of this display because she’s pretty sure that mill spun wool was not around right after the downfall  and sin entered the world.  While perhaps buying acrylic yarn can be considered a sin by some, she was willing to provide some handspun for them to have in the little bowl instead of what they did have :)

As we walked through the perfect world portion, the mommy thought this scene with Adam and the lamb was very moving to her.

The family finally remembered I was with them on the trip and let me pose by this dinosaur to see if I could fit on it’s foot.

We walked around some more and went to the dinosaur room.  Jacob and the others all posed on or around this dinosaur,

The mommy posed me by this dinosaur

And things sort of got out of hand, but mommy didn’t give up without a fight and she got me out…thank goodness

I am told that this was not a meat eating dinosaur and because I am made up of some cotton, the thing wanted me for a snack.  The nerve!

I was pretty shoot up the rest of the day and when Ken Ham walked by me, not once, but THREE times, I was too scared to ask to pose with him.  I think he would have done it too as he seems really nice.  He was escorted through the first time by security, and the second time we saw him, his security guard stopped to talk to us.  The third time he looked kind of busy with someone else who looked pretty official, but it was neat to see that he really does have a hands on approach to the mueseum and his organization (Answers in Genesis)

After spending all day at the museum, we drove for about 2 hours to get to the daddy’s home town.  It was late and dark when we got there, so we got a good night’s sleep and went to see the family the next day.

I was pretty worn out and didn’t want to pose for a lot of pictures but when one of the kids brought me these things to play with, I did want to pose and take a picture.

And here’s a picture of the daddy with his brothers and sister.

There was swimming and visiting the family farm (which is more of a soy/corn farm with no animals) then the next place we went.  The was lots of playing around by the cousins.  The mommy and the daddy were worn out and had to stop for a huge cup of coffee before we hit the road again on Monday to drive up to the Columbus area

We arrived at Windy Lane Farms (the mommy’s brother and Sister-in-law’s farm) around noon and the kids were off and running.  They had so much fun with chickens, dogs, horses, alpacas, rabbits, and even the mice.

Here is a picture of me and the “boys”

I think they were a little afraid of me because of me only being sheep wool and cotton.  I think the mommy is going to try some alpaca socks next (we’ll see).

And here are the girls

And this is the newest baby at only 2 weeks old when we visited.

The mommy took lots more pictures of the alpacas as she thought they were just beautiful, but there are other things to share here so she won’t let me put anymore on.

There are many chores on a farm.

Chris and Uncle Chris had to use the ATV and a trailer to haul trash down the lane for pick up the next morning.  Then Uncle Chris took the boys for rides on the 4-wheeler.

Then a few rousing games of corn hole were played before dinner.

Of course, chores wouldn’t be complete without mucking the stalls, so the kids got a turn at trying that out.

After that was done and fresh hay was put down, the girls got a lesson from Aunt Karen on how to walk the horses from the field into the barn. 

 

The mommy was a little anxious when Jess was walking the big horse, but soon realized that Aunt Karen gave Jess the most docile of horses that would quickly stop and eat grass if any slack was put on her lead.  (whew)

After dinner, the horses were saddled up and the kids (who wanted to) got a chance to ride around the arena.  It got a little dusty in there so the pictures didn’t come out so great.  But the kids had a blast none the less.

Unfortunately, our stay there ended all too quickly as the daddy had to get a paper written and submitted by Wednesday, so we left early Tuesday morning before we could even say good bye to anyone.  As soon as the sun rose, a Starbuck’s was located and more coffee consumed.

We made it home in one day and were sooooo tired that night we could hardly stand it. 

The daddy did get his paper written and submitted on Wednesday and the mommy who finished knitting me while at the farm did get to start on my mate.  But, school is back in session today, the daddy has returned to work, and life has resumed it’s choatic pace, so who knows when she will get to knit more on it.

 


Posted in Family | 10 Comments »

And we’re off again

Thursday, September 13th, 2007
  

Catch ya when I can.  Stay safe ya’all.


Posted in Family | 5 Comments »

A Camping “Sock-ga”

Wednesday, September 12th, 2007
  

** warning…photo intensive ** A camping journal written from The Sock’s perspective.

DAY ONE

Dear Diary,

Remember me, I am the sock that was started on the trip to Mt Scott. Today we left for our camping trip. It was a typical (of late) camping trip for the family. Rain was in the forecast. But they didn’t care. They forged ahead and left after church. It took a few hours of drive time to reach Lake Murray State Park, but we finally arrived and set up.

It was getting late by the time we set up and arrived so a quick walk to the dock is all we really did.

After the kids did some running around and exploring, we had a dinner of BBQ shredded chicken and pulled pork, and chips. It smelled yummy. Night fell and it was time to retire to the camper for our nightly reading. (I am told that it’s a tradition for my “maker” to read the kids a story each night while camping). After that, Chris and Josh got to go out to sleep in the tent (their first time sleeping out there) and everyone else finally settled down for the night.
DAY TWO
Dear Diary,
Today started out with the traditional pancake breakfast.
It was a little overcast and cloudy this morning. Not so great for swimming, but perfect for fishing. So the boys headed out to the dock for some “guy” time.
But alas, the fish weren’t biting and the only thing that got caught was the family’s “dog fish”. Six years of camping and he’s always had to be dragged into the water. This year, he couldn’t stay away from it.
The skies cleared up later in the afternoon and the sun came out. We were the only family on the lake, but it was nice to have it all to ourselves.
I stayed on shore with my maker and enjoyed the sunshine, the laughter, and the creating of me.
The kids, the daddy, and the doggie all had loads and loads of fun and spent several hours swimming in the lake. The water was warm and clear. Doggie loved being in the water with the kids and the kids loved being spending time with the daddy. It was just pure joy.
All too soon, it was time to return to the campsite to start dinner. A quick stop was made to see how I was progressing.
I was pretty much done and all I needed was to be grafted. My maker started that and I heard young Jessi tell everyone, “shh…mommy is doing the kitchen stitch and we need to leave her alone til she’s done”. Yes, my maker has trained her youngest child right, even though she didn’t quiet get the word right :).
When I was done, I was allowed to hang out around the campfire to watch the meal progress. My maker started cooking the corn and the hamburgers,
and then the kids and the daddy got to roast their hot dogs.
S’mores were indeed consumed, but it was well after dark when that happened and there were no pictures taken of the ooey gooey event.
A cold front came through with the onset of dark and my maker was so pleased to be able to wear me tonight.
My maker was so happy with me. Quiet by accident, certainly not be design, I ended up being perfect. My maker didn’t plan me from the beginning just needing a diversion to the drive up the mountain and was surprised that I ended up being a match to my mate.
The kids just hung out in the camper playing games before bedtime.
I was put into the knitting bag, and my maker found a lost sock friend and decided to work on him.
DAY THREE
Dear Diary,
Our plan today was to go out on a pontoon boat. But the day started out very cloudy, windy, and cold. So, we decided to take a tour and left to go see the animal safari place. Well, we got there and saw that it would be well over 100.00 for the entire family to go through the park. My maker and the daddy decided to drive back to the campground. It was still cool and overcast and the water was choppy, so everyone was just going to go fishing while the daddy took a nap. Suddenly, the skies cleared and winds calmed a bit, so it was decided to take a boat out on the lake after all.
So, we drove to the marina,
We got on our boat only to be told that it needed a part, so we were switched to another. As we settled on that boat, we were told that water was coming into the pump (not really sure what that means) but it didn’t sound good, so we were switched to yet another boat. My maker started humming the theme to Gilligan’s Island and getting very apprehensive about the whole thing. But, we all settled in and began our outing.
My maker thought the daddy looked really cool driving the boat and he looked like he was having lots of fun too.
After we got out into open water, the daddy let all the kids have a try at driving the boat.
Note…Jessi did drive the boat all by herself and did a WONDERFUL job, my my maker just loved this picture.
Cass drove the boat like a pro and My Maker says she wouldn’t mind teaching her how to drive a car.
Chris was quite..umm…the dare devil while driving and gave me and My Maker a whole new meaning to being sea sick.
Josh showed his true ADD tendencies while driving the boat and would turn around to talk and forget he was driving. My maker said there is no way she is teaching him to drive a car.
Jac was the most cautious of the kids and slowly worked his way up to a higher speed instead of just revving and going for it. He also got the most drive time, but shhhhh don’t tell the other kids that.
And so you don’t think that the daddy just let them go slowly while driving, here’s a picture of the “wake”. We did actually go quite fast.
I had a good time watching the sights, the water, the waves, and the laughter.
And my maker enjoyed paying attention to me while the kids were driving so crazily.
She really didn’t enjoy wearing the life preserver but thought it best to set a good example for the kids who also didn’t want to wear them. Even the doggie got into the safety zone for a bit.
My maker finished me just as we pulled back into the marina and declared me done with a flourish. This shot was taken after we broke camp and headed home.
My maker needed something to occupy her hands on the way home and cast on for the next pair. As the sun goes down on this “sock-ga” the sun will rise on our next adventure as we are home for a day of clean up and then headed out again tomorrow. Stay tuned for more sock knitting and travels.
** added by “the maker” **
After going through the pictures, my husband has declared that I am totally insane. I agree :) He also asked me what he owed me (or something like that) for putting up with the boating excursion. No thought required. The newest Knit Picks needles are being ordered today.

Gone Camping

Saturday, September 8th, 2007
  

Be back in a few days.  Hope you all have a great week.


Posted in Family | 2 Comments »

I can’t believe I’m knitting

Thursday, September 6th, 2007
  
Mood: Calm   Knitting: Socks   Menu: Left Overs   Spinning: silk/wool blend

Seriously. I know I started knitting on Tuesday driving up to the top of Mt Scott. But yesterday, I had a lengthy wait at the doctor’s office and then today while the kids were doing their out loud reading, I did some more. Don’t believe it? Here’s the proof.

And to further our believe it or not thing, the sock (did ya get that Kelly? It’s a sock using the some of the Opal you sent me) is being knit on dpns, top down no less. What is wrong with me? Did someone mess with the time space continuum? I have been a die hard magic loop gal knitting toe up. Oh my! Ahhh, I haven’t really knit much this summer so I am hoping that means fall is in the air. Not that I really want fall to come because that means it’s closer to Jim leaving, but at least I seemed to have found my knitterly mojo again. Whew…

Oh and notice the American Flag? Guess what it is? No wait, I will tell you. It’s a sock knitting bag. Chris made it for me for my birthday. He took two American Flags, cut them off their sticks, hand sewed them together and crocheted a chain for the draw string. You go boy! I tell ya, his imagination and what he comes up with blows me away some days.

And so as to not think that the loom is lonely, I plan to start warping her again later today or tomorrow. Or…when we get back from leave…I am not sure I would get it done before we leave and well…ok I just talked myself into waiting until we get home. But here’s what will be waiting for me. I hand dyed this cotton/rayon blend.


Posted in Knitting, Socks, Weaving | 2 Comments »

A Day In The Wild

Wednesday, September 5th, 2007
  
Mood: sleepy   Knitting: just a basic sock   Menu: baked potato bar   Spinning: green/yellow silk   Weaving: warping the loom for my latest project

Jim was off yesterday as well as Monday.  So, after the kids and I finished up school and he finished up his homework (yes, he’s back in school as well), we loaded up the kids for a quick bite to eat out and headed for the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.  It’s not very far from the house.

The first thing we did, was drive up Mt Scott.  Now, I must say, if you are not from this area and have any idea what “real” mountains looks like, this isn’t one.  But it is a good size mountain for this area.  That being said, I am still extremely afraid of heights (thank you to my oldest brother for pretending to push me off the top of Stone Mountain when I was 7….tee hee) and such, so I didn’t look out the window much on the drive up.  I knitted instead.  Jim laughed and the kids kept trying to get me to look out the window.  I did quickly snap off a few pictures here and there, but didn’t look much where I was pointing the camera.

Once safely on top, I looked around, declared it the top of the mountain, found a sturdy rock and began to knit.
The kids, however, went off exploring with Jim.
There is a trail that leads, so I am told, safely down “a little ways” and the kids were hopping from rock to rock.  Ok, not my idea of fun, but then again, my idea wasn’t appealing to them (see knitting picture above).
Jim set up the telescope for the kids to see what they could see.  They were on the search for our house, our church, or whatever other landmarks they could recognize.  The found quite a few, but alas, no one found our house.
After terrorizing the top of the mountain, we drove back down and headed for the Wildlife refuge.  It was actually a cool overcast day and was perfect for seeing the longhorn steer and the bison.
We ended up stopping at the visitor center (potty and water breaks you know) and I was so tempted to ask if there was a way to collect the bison fiber to spin it up.  I could perhaps even offer a spinning demo?  But I was too chicken to ask.  We did learn that there is a tar pit on the post and it actual bubbles up with tar.  Hey, K. H., you up for a field trip with your kiddo???
And, believe it or not, with all the animals, flowers, cloud formations we observed, this was the most popular stop along the trail.
Yes, the “ancient” pop machine circa 2006.  How those children ooohed and ahhhed over the thought of a nice refreshing soda pop at the end of a weary day.  Mom and dad, though, mean as they are, said no and we all piled back into the car for our 20 minute trip home.
It was a great day spent with Jim and the kids, and I can write this up as a field trip.  Woo hoo


Posted in Family, Home School | 4 Comments »

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