Tracie's Ramblings

Happy Birthday!

2011-10-22T22:23:00.000-05:00

Thanks for creating this crazy wonderful family Grandma, Great-Grandma, Great-Great Grandma! We love you very much!

Some finishing!

2011-10-15T17:58:00.000-05:00

We were done with hockey for the WEEKEND today at 1:00 pm and it is wonderful! I took the opportunity to finally finish up some projects that have been waiting for some attention.

Fingerless mitts were finished and I adore the ziggy zaggy-ness of them!

I also finished the last 6 rows of the thumb of these beauties!

....now to decide what to do with the rest of my weekend!

First day of school 2011

2011-08-29T07:07:00.000-05:00

North Shore Hat

2011-07-10T09:17:00.000-05:00

I made this Frog Tree Alpaca hat from yarn I purchased on our North Shore trip using a pattern written by one of my roomies. What are the odds of there being a yarn shop right across the street from our resort?
Hat details here

North Shore Trip

2011-07-01T09:14:00.000-05:00

The last week of June some friends and I spent some glorious days relaxing on the north shore - it was chilly weather but we had a blast. It was 52F when we left our lodgings that late morning and 92F when we returned home!

Happy birthday to me!

2011-06-05T21:56:00.000-05:00

The Dude

2011-05-12T08:51:00.000-05:00

Great sweater pattern for the sweater in the The Big Lebowski

Adorable bib!

2011-05-05T06:31:00.000-05:00

Here's a link to an adorable bib pattern - this would be great as an addition to a baby hat for those Sibley East babies I knit for.... or for my favorite grand-nephew!

Finished - Cap Sleeve Vest

2011-04-14T06:21:00.001-05:00

I finished the Cap Sleeve Cardigan vest I was working on and wore it to work on Tuesday. Love the fit of it, definitely glad I shortened it from the written pattern and copied another vest I liked. The Berroco vintage chunky yarn will gladly be used again!

Here's details: http://ravel.me/tamsden/1cscv

my how he's grown

2011-04-11T06:45:00.002-05:00

Excellent weekend of hockey where our team managed to make it to the Championship game and win in sudden death overtime. MN Hockey Hub even wrote an article about my favorite goalie ;-)

"Strapped into his goalie skates, Amsden transforms into a one-man skyscraper. Hockey’s version of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar."

afternoon naps

2011-04-04T19:44:00.000-05:00

Drake and I worked so hard on projects during our "mini-vacation" that we decided to reward ourselves on Sunday. He took the love seat and I got the couch :-)

Buzzbee hat

2011-04-01T13:47:00.000-05:00

GREAT pattern from Wooly Wormhead called the Buzzbee hat.

This one was made with some Cascade 220 Quattro superwash wool I got at The Tangled Skein and is adorning the head of a new baby in the SEHS district.

Ravelry details here

I got to SPIN!

2011-02-20T13:29:00.001-06:00

I was thrilled to attend an all-day Spinning workshop at the Minnesota Textile Center. (Definitely recommend their classes)

They introduced us to the spinning wheel, gave us some pointers and then gave us fiber and let us play. They even let me use a wheel that is exactly the same as the one I have at home so I could get some practice.

I am so pleased with my results. I can't believe it was my first - definitely not perfect but I made it! ;-)

Spiral Hat addiction

2011-02-15T19:09:00.002-06:00

Here's a spiral hat for me that I finished out of some Misti Alpaca Hand Painted Chunky this winter. It was the first time I had knit the spiral hat pattern from Tangled skein and it wound up being very addicting!

I started this on February 2nd and finished it on the 3rd... details are here

It turned out really well and both my teen age sons said I could wear it in public so it must look half way decent on me as well - yipee!

This is another spiral hat I made out of one skein of Berrocco's Borealis yarn that was new at The Tangled Skein.

It was a valentine gift for someone...

...and guess what - ANOTHER spiral hat!

This one for a valentine for a spunky blonde in our life that totally rocked it.

This one was made with part of a skein of Berrocco's Vintage Chunky in black to match her black and gold Gustie mittens.

Unfortunately I didn't get a shot of the finished hat.

Garter Cowl

2011-02-01T19:18:00.000-06:00

Bonnie is the inspiration for this garter stitch cowl that shows off the lovely Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Chunky yarn.

Ravelry details are here

Cast on 30 stitches and knit every row.
Slip the first stitch of each row purlwise.
Bind off when the yarn is almost out and sew ends together offset.
Top half of one side to bottom half of the other side to form a circle.

Knitty's Quest and some bulky mitts

2011-01-25T06:44:00.001-06:00

This is the Quest hat from the most recent Knitty magazine.... made with hand painted cascade 220. The actual image is not sideways so I'll have to figure out why it is turning it.

You can see more details here

This is the Tangled Skein's bulky mitten pattern made with Misti Alpaca handpainted chunky.

You can see more details here

Gustie mittens - a success!

2011-01-09T16:18:00.000-06:00

I may be a little nervous that this needle felting business is just as addicting as knitting but we shall see.... details on ravelry here

I want to do these coasters!

2011-01-06T06:09:00.000-06:00

... maybe I can find some time this summer to create these great coasters?

courtesy of the website linked above

Olek and the Charging Bull

2011-01-06T06:01:00.000-06:00

... all I can say is .... WOW

OLEK AND THE CHARGING BULL ON WALL STREET from olek on Vimeo.

These jokes will leave you .... 'in stitches' - HA!

2011-01-05T06:42:00.000-06:00

These fiber related jokes showed up in my inbox today and I couldn't resist sharing (I hate to groan alone!)

Why did the hog farmer give up knitting?

Answer: He didn't want to cast his purls before his swine!

What did the knitter use to make a suit of armor?

Answer: She used steel wool!

What did Puff Daddy say when 50 Cent gave him a hand knit scarf for Christmas?

Answer: " Gee, you knit?!"

"G-Unit" is the name of 50 Cent's rap group.

GROOOAAAAAANNNNNNNN!

Molly's finished mitts

2010-12-27T20:23:00.001-06:00

I finished Molly's two color mittens after what took way too long due to my own errors. I used Cascade 220 yarn in a bright green and a purple and she loves them! I saw her today at the rink and she had them on - ya hoo!

Details here

I'm teaching a class on these in February on Tuesday nights so there will definitely be another pair on my needles soon. My photographer was TOM - thank you!

Drake's view

2010-12-27T20:11:00.000-06:00

Our christmas gift this year was new furniture (finally) for our living room.

Drake isn't too sure of it yet. The old furniture had a great oversized club chair that he could curl up on and put his head over the one arm and see out the window. This one is a little more complicated to see out and sometimes it just isn't worth it!

Frosty!

2010-12-21T09:47:00.000-06:00

I'm hoping that the fact that I was making a snowman hat had NOTHING to do with our getting all those inches of snow again!

This was a quick and easy hat that turned out adorable. I can't wait to see it on the little 1 year old girls head :-)

Berroco Vintage yarn with some scraps of Cascade 220 for the carrot nose
Details here

Drumstick anyone?

2010-11-25T15:15:00.000-06:00

A Jive Turkey hat for my favorite grand-nephew!

Goalies

2010-10-23T17:02:00.000-05:00

This was the result of a puck hitting the glass when it missed the goal. To say Jim jumped "a little" would be an understatement. It's always good to have reminders of the force behind the pucks that our son is being hit by constantly during his games.

Do you think I could get him to be a couch potato instead?

Email joke on Computers

2010-10-19T08:18:00.000-05:00

I've seen this one before but it always makes me smile:

A SPANISH Teacher was explaining to her class that inSpanish, unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine.

'House' for instance, is feminine: 'la casa.'

'Pencil,' however, is masculine: 'el lapiz.'

A student asked, 'What gender is a 'computer'?'

Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the classinto two groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselveswhether computer' should be a masculine or a feminine noun. Each group wasasked to give four reasons for its recommendation.

The men's group decided that 'computer' should definitelybe of the feminine gender ('la computadora'), because:

1. No one but their creator understands their internallogic;

2. The native language they use to communicate with othercomputers is incomprehensible to everyone else;

3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long termmemory for possible later retrieval; and

4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you findyourself spending half your salary on accessories for it.

(THIS GETS BETTER!)

The women's group, however, concluded that computersshould be Masculine ('el computador'), because:

1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turnthem on;

2. They have a lot of data but still can't think forthemselves;

3. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but halfthe time they ARE the problem; and

4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if youhad just waited a little longer, you could have got a much better model.

The women won. A SPANISH Teacher was explaining to herclass that in Spanish, unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculineor feminine.

'House' for instance, is feminine: 'la casa.'

'Pencil,' however, is masculine: 'el lapiz.'

A student asked, 'What gender is a 'computer'?'

The men's group decided that 'computer' should definitelybe of the feminine gender ('la computadora'), because:

1. No one but their creator understands their internallogic;

2. The native language they use to communicate with othercomputers is incomprehensible to everyone else;

3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memoryfor possible later retrieval; and

4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you findyourself spending half your salary on accessories for it.

(THIS GETS BETTER!)

The women's group, however, concluded that computersshould be Masculine ('el computador'), because:

1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turnthem on;

2. They have a lot of data but still can't think forthemselves;

3. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but halfthe time they ARE the problem; and

4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if youhad just waited a little longer, you could have got a much better model.

The women won.

Goose Sausage and Goose Jerky

2010-10-01T21:33:00.000-05:00

We took approximately 8 pounds of the breast meat from some geese and added an equal amount of hamburger to 1/2 of it.... and an equal amount of pork to the other half. MANY hours later, we have a batch of Beef/Goose Jerky and Pork/Goose Breakfast Sausage.

...because I'm weird....

2010-09-25T23:20:00.000-05:00

why yes, yes I am weird... but I really needed a picture so I could remember what they use to look like before the black rubber pucks started hitting them...

PS: Please stop growing. Six feet two (and 1/2) inches is a perfectly good size to be for the rest of your life (or until you start buying your own goalie equipment)

Killing time...

2010-09-20T08:43:00.000-05:00

Our first hockey game on Saturday was at 10:00 am and our next game wasn't until 8:15 pm. We spent some of that time wandering around the electronics store.... they were having fun with the 3D television. ;-)

I got spoiled!

2010-09-15T13:48:00.000-05:00

....so it was announced last Thursday that our office is moving to another of our company buildings in another town. This makes my commute double what it was, which is all fine and dandy until we remembered that I'm currently driving the Silverado and getting 14 miles per gallon.

After much discussion and number juggling, we bit the bullet last night and brought home a new Prius. I am not only spoiled to be getting this great vehicle to drive (when I'm the family member driving the furthest) but I also get both of "my" vehicles in the garage! Spoiled Rotten

First day of 10th grade...

2010-09-07T20:08:00.000-05:00

How does the time go by so fast...

....and he grow so quickly!

Zuccini Spindle

2010-08-14T10:49:00.002-05:00

interesting basket

2010-08-11T14:24:00.001-05:00

My friends at The Tangled Skein just got these in... it's a good thing they showed me the pattern for the great bags first or I might be really wondering what those ladies were up to!

gwynedd hat by Cecily Glowik MacDonald

2010-08-11T13:58:00.001-05:00

I finished up this great gwynedd hat from the new KnitScene magazine and really like it... too bad I don't look very good in most hats!

It is knit with 1.25 skeins of Classic Elite Fresco yarn in a gorgeous purple color that my camera just doesn't want to capture very well.

Ravelry link

Yarn crawl results

2010-08-10T09:55:00.004-05:00

There may have been some items that followed me home yesterday...

Yarn Crawl - Happy Birthday Elizabeth!

2010-08-09T18:45:00.001-05:00

Today a friend and I spent the entire day driving to 5 different yarn shoppes in the twin cities... 200 miles filled with fibery goodness!

How appropriate that Elizabeth Zimmerman was born 100 years ago on this day. Here is a sampling of just some of her designs on Ravelry

Phew.... I'm off to relax in the air conditioning and fondle some of my new yarn!

Flying fun?

2010-07-30T17:53:00.000-05:00

I was expecting to go through Salt Lake City on my flight (s) home from Idaho, however I wasn't expecting to fly over the southern United States and hit the Eastern time zone before arriving in Minnesota 3.5 hours later than I was scheduled.

Good news is that I earned just shy of 3,000 miles toward a free ticket instead of the 1,142 miles I was expecting.

Yes I am a geek

2010-07-21T13:55:00.000-05:00

This made me laugh so hard I had tears come to my eyes. You may have had to have a conversation with a software company lately to truly appreciate it.

Outdoor Baseball!

2010-06-29T10:16:00.001-05:00

We had the incredible experience of fantastic seats at the MN Twins baseball game last night. What a beautiful place to watch baseball!

State Golfer!

2010-06-18T18:05:00.002-05:00

Our "baby" made it to the MN State High School golf tournament this year. Way to go!

He tied for 21st place, just 2 fewer golf strokes and he would have been in the top 10. The golfer who got 1st place had only 6 strokes fewer than Chris.

It was an incredible experience to see so many talented golfers in one spot.

Graduation Open House

2010-06-14T21:03:00.000-05:00

Our open house was wonderful - even though it was raining.... Thank goodness for an indoor space to gather in!

Our Graduate!

2010-06-05T17:55:00.003-05:00

Congratulations to the Class of 2010

He is bound for the STATE golf tournament!

2010-06-04T17:48:00.002-05:00

Confirmation - May 2010

2010-05-12T20:05:00.001-05:00

What a lucky young man to have so many people in his life who love him!

One of his 2 Godfathers - Uncle DJ:

Grandma A:

Grandpa and Grandma R:

And last but certainly not least... Great Grandma - how lucky are we that she is still such an active and special part of our lives!

Prom 2010

2010-05-03T10:30:00.003-05:00

Slipper Mania....

2010-04-30T17:42:00.002-05:00

Intervention needed?

2010-04-28T22:18:00.001-05:00

Pair number 3 and 4 are drying and my mind is playing with my stash for the next pair - help! Join me in my "addiction" and take the class we are offering next weekend

Man vs Tree

2010-04-15T23:09:00.001-05:00

I am working over at another facility this week in a real office with the entire wall behind me a glass window – LOVE IT! With this window, I daydreamed all afternoon about the evening I was going to have that involved meat on the grill, a glass of wine and the Adirondack chair on the deck… or a round of golf. Since I’m leaving for Idaho again on Sunday it was my last free night to just relax…. The golf course didn’t have any tee times until after 7 pm, so I decided to relaxe on the deck.

When I got home, T. had just finished mowing the lawn - good sign for my night! He wasn’t even asked to do it :-)

I changed clothes, grabbed a book and started to go out on the deck to wait for hubby to get home and heard a vehicle coming up the alley. The vehicle turned out to be T.’s truck – bad sign! He decided it would be a great night to take down that big maple that died last spring from our yard.

Needless to say it was almost 8 pm when I called Godfather’s for pizza and attempted to get the slivers out of my hands and clean up all the scratches on my arms. UGH We will definitely have more sunshine on the flower beds this year!

Graduation Open House

2010-04-13T16:44:00.002-05:00

The open house invitations are almost complete - I can't believe his graduation is almost here!

New Project

2010-04-11T12:05:00.004-05:00

I'm making some felted slippers for a friend's birthday... they look so odd in pieces.

"Wool" commercial for NATURAL GAS in Belgium by TBWABRUSSELS

2010-03-22T22:30:00.002-05:00

So cool - check this out!

Flooding..... luckily a minor story.

2010-03-22T20:53:00.005-05:00

Luckily our area is pretty well prepared for the flood waters of the Minnesota river.... I really shouldn't complain about the extra 5 miles I have to drive out of my way to get to work over a bridge that's open.

Egg bake - yum!

2010-03-21T20:48:00.001-05:00

Tom made egg bake for us on Sunday morning - I wanted to show you my view when I went back for my 2nd piece!

I remember when we use to get TWO meals out of one pan!

Hockey Banquet

2010-03-08T11:28:00.003-06:00

Hockey banquet was last night so the season is officially over.... Here's some shots of our seniors with their Mom's and Dad's!

I finished the Olympic Hat!

2010-02-19T08:47:00.003-06:00

The boys had hockey games at 5:30 and 7:30 last night way over west of us so I wasn't able to attend. (Jim was there to cheer them on). The good part about that is that I could sit on the couch and FINISH my Olympic hat.

Overall I am very pleased with it. I have definitely come a very long way in my color work. There is hardly any puckering and with the exceptionally long floats, that's very good. You can see the navy blue through the white in places but I think that's to be expected in such high contrast yarns. If I were to make it again, I may try duplicate stitch instead to see if that's better but then I worry about the original white stitches showing - 6 of one, half dozen of another? ;-) (don't ya love those old expressions?)

I used Cascade 220 yarn for everything. The red started to bleed a tiny bit in a warm soak but unless you look for it, you wouldn't notice. The hat fits me nicely and is a little roomy at the top of the head but based on the pictures of the US athletes, theirs does too.

Details on Ravelry

Olympic Hat continues

2010-02-18T09:55:00.004-06:00

The hat is coming along slowly but steady. We have 4 JV/Varsity hockey games this week so I am not having a lot of knitting time....

Hockey Seniors

2010-02-17T07:31:00.000-06:00

These are some of the seniors from the high school teams - this group has been playing together since they were beginning youth players (11+ years). I can't believe how fast it has gone!

US Olympic Athletes hat

2010-02-15T20:51:00.002-06:00

I fell in love with the hats on the US Athletes during the opening ceremony and found a pattern on Ravelry for them. I got from the brim up to the white part yesterday. LOVING it! ;-)

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/olympic-reindeer-hat OR
http://cleverknits.com/2009/12/plural-of-moose-is-moose.html

Bulldog Hockey Senior's Night

2010-02-11T23:05:00.001-06:00

Sob - can I really have a SENIOR already?

Ham & Potato au Gratin

2010-02-04T12:23:00.003-06:00

I made a new recipe last night to try to use up some of the ham we have leftover and it was a huge success. All three men in my life asked me to make it again!

I would love to show you a picture but every drop was gone.... since there was an entire package of chopped spinach in it, I was very surprised! They knew it was a green veggie and they ate it anyway! Eldest son said he was going to look like Popeye since he had eaten so much spinach. ;-)

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/meat/ham-and-potato-au-gratin/

Next time I'm going to double it in hopes of some leftovers for lunches.

Finally some knitting!

2010-01-24T19:54:00.008-06:00

I am taking a Magic Loop class from The Tangled Skein and learning a new way to knit - so cool!

I'm also working on a hat for me. I think I may have finally found a hat that I look halfway decent in!

I was originally going to do it all in the charcoal but the braid didn't show up very well. I decided on the pretty brown color instead for the braided area and then switch to the charcoal. I'm hoping to make their cabled mittens in the charcoal for a matched set. Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair yarn and Green Mountain pattern.

My new pair of shoes?

2010-01-23T19:36:00.000-06:00

This is the "pair" of shoes I wore to work on Friday.

When I am sitting at my desk I usually have them slipped off but something felt "weird" when I would walk around. I didn't figure it out (or really look) until almost 5 pm. Can you tell what's wrong?

I was either distracted, tired or too rushed that morning and grabbed one of Jim's and one of my shoes before I ran out the door.

Good grief! His are 3 sizes larger than mine!

Early Morning Fog

2010-01-19T14:30:00.004-06:00

With all of these warm temps, the snow has been melting. This has made for lots of moisture in the air and early morning fog. As yucky as the fog is to drive in, it sure makes for gorgeous trees!

Sadie Hawkins Dance

2010-01-19T14:28:00.002-06:00

Chris attended the Sadie Hawkins Dance - doesn't he clean up well?

Mom, my truck won't start...

2010-01-04T21:07:00.006-06:00

by 5:30 when hubby and I got there, it had turned into:
1) Jump start it with the Buick
2) Dig out the snow piled into the back
3) find a portable air compressor and refill the front right tire (that is only 8 days old!)

Testosterone poisoning? Revenge of the teacher who had their vehicle buried and didn't know Mom and Dad would pay?

At least I finally got to wear my "Elmer Fudd" hat since it was almost -10!

Jim's new scarf

2009-12-29T12:58:00.001-06:00

I made this scarf for my husband's new dress coat. Try it out with your own yarn combinations!

Finished Size is 43 inches long and 5 1/2 inches wide.

Yarn: 2 skeins main color and 1 skein accent color chunky weight yarn
I used 1.25 skeins of grey Nashua Creative Focus Chunky and 1/2 a skein of red Nashua Creative Focus Chunky.

Needle: Size 9 or size to get you the fabric that you like (I used a 24 inch circular)

Directions: Cast on 150 stitches using the main color.
Tip: If you use the crochet cast on, it will match your bind off side - thanks Sarah!

Knit 1 row with the main color, then repeat the next 7 rows as many times as you would like (I did it 4 times)

Row 1: Knit all stitches in accent color
Row 2: Knit all stitches in main color
Row 3: Knit all stitches in accent color
Rows 4-7: Knit all stitches in main color

When the scarf is as wide as you would like it, knit one row in the main color and then bind off very loosely in the main color. (I used a size 13 needle in my right hand when binding off)

Some things finished...

2009-12-21T21:46:00.005-06:00

....and some - not so much!

Tangled Skein's Bulky Mitten in Rowan and Blue Sky Alpaca chunky

Reversible hunting hat in Cascade 220 Superwash and Dream in Color Classy Superwash
Elizabeth Zimmerman's Very Warm Hat pattern that can be found in several of her books.

Mittens and Ear Cozy hat for a little munchkin in Duluth. Cascade 220 SuperWash Quattro

Logan's ear cozy hat

2009-12-06T18:08:00.004-06:00

Is it possible to be more adorable?!?

Cascade 220 Superwash Quattro yarn
Fiber Trends Ear Cozy pattern in newborn size

Class of 2010 (best of the gene pool)

2009-11-30T22:13:00.003-06:00

Oh Baby!

2009-11-16T08:57:00.000-06:00

A Grand-Nephew to spoil!

2009-11-13T13:21:00.002-06:00

Logan Michael

7 pounds 5 ounces
21 inches long
7:54 am on November 13th

Cabled Hoodie is done!

2009-11-11T22:22:00.002-06:00

...and there may be a couple skeins in a color for me that followed me home!

Cabled Hoodie

2009-09-30T12:28:00.008-05:00

I am making this cabled hoodie for a class I hope to teach this fall at the Tangled Skein.

I can't believe how fast this is knitting up! The cables are really standing out as well. I may just need to whip up another one for myself :-)

The yarn I'm using is Cascade Eco-Wool.

I have the two front pieces and the back done and I just finished the first of 2 skeins. An entire wool sweater in under $30 - love it! Tonight I'll be joining the pieces and then knitting the button band, and hood.

Tom is a senior!

2009-09-08T10:36:00.001-05:00

I can't believe he's a senior.... it seems like only yesterday he was running off to the bus for kindergarten!

First day of school 2009

2009-09-08T10:26:00.003-05:00

I have no idea how this happened so quickly but today I took pictures of our two HIGH SCHOOLERS!

Chris is a FRESHMAN and Tom is a SENIOR

This is the very last "first day of school" picture of Thomas, ever, in his whole life!
(yes he rolled his eyes at me but he was thrilled I didn't cry - and sorry Chris' shot is so blurry but he was not in the mood for multiple shots this morning)

Baby Back hat...

2009-09-07T16:53:00.003-05:00

I made this cute little hat for my new grand-niece/nephew who will be arriving before Thanksgiving. I can't wait to see it on the baby!

New fall classes at Tangled Skein!

2009-09-07T14:50:00.003-05:00

The fall classes are up at the tangled skein - check them out here!

Drake's goofy sleeping style

2009-08-25T17:42:00.002-05:00

When Drake is really sleeping hard, he likes to find something to lean up against so he can sleep on his back. His back feet are usually straight up with his front legs off to the side. It's pretty amusing!

PGA at Hazeltine

2009-08-11T20:32:00.004-05:00

The PGA tournament is being held just up the road about an hour. Chris and Jim were there for the practice round today and managed to get some pictures of Tiger Woods.

It was a great day to be outside. They said the crowds following Tiger were huge!

This is a shot of Chris... and another of some camera lenses Jim wanted to make sure I saw so that he could get my "lens envy" going...

Vacation in Idaho

2009-08-01T16:46:00.003-05:00

We drove out to my brother and sister in law's house in Idaho last week for a vacation. Tom was unable to join us so stayed at home with Grandma and Grandpa. This made the "road" portion of our road trip very quiet. We had a great stay with Bill, Janae and "the girls" and can't wait to see them again. I am amazed at how fast our nieces are growing up into young women.

Baseball has come to an end

2009-07-18T21:28:00.004-05:00

... he's down to just Marching Band, Hockey and Golf now. ;-)

July 4th - CABIN!

2009-07-06T21:08:00.001-05:00

We FINALLY made it to the cabin for a weekend. The weather wasn't very warm but we did get to enjoy the lake a little.

These pictures are of Drake sleeping under Chris in the living room pull out couch. He doesn't exactly fit under it but he was happy "hiding". ;-)

Neckwarmer and Market Bag

2009-06-24T19:39:00.003-05:00

I have actually finished some things! There's a neck warmer (from the luxery one-skein wonders book) that is for a class I'm hoping to teach at the Tangled Skein in July. It is made out of less than 1/2 of a ball of gorgeous hand-painted wool.

I also made a market bag (sunshine string bag) for Mom for her birthday. She thought it was a tank top at first and was relieved when I told her what it was. ;-) Both very nice patterns but boring doing the same stitch pattern over and over.

Thorpe - FO

2009-06-04T10:36:00.002-05:00

I finished the earflap hat I promised to a friend at work for a Silent Auction. It took less than a skein of bulky wool and was fun to knit. It is a little small (size medium) for an adult head so I'll be making more in larger sizes for gifts this coming year.

Brenna's Bella hat

2009-06-01T18:00:00.000-05:00

This is a gift for Miss Brenna - one of my favorite Twilight addicts. ;-) The hat on Bella is above, my "version" is below. Sorry for the model but all my human models scattered this morning when I brought out the camera!

Let there be light!

2009-06-01T07:21:00.000-05:00

After fighting with the fluorescent light in our closet for way too long. Tom has rescued us and replaced the ballast and both bulbs. It was so nice this morning to pick out my shoes this morning by sight rather than by touch! :-)

Mexico City - circa 1983?

2009-05-28T18:54:00.004-05:00

This photo was sent to me by a good friend from high school that I have found again via facebook. This shot was taken of a group of us on the top of the pyramids near Mexico City where we went for a Spanish class trip in high school with Senora Everett.

I am on the far right, do you recognize anyone else?

Cabin...

2009-05-25T18:49:00.000-05:00

We went out to the cabin on Sunday morning/early afternoon and got that last repaired window put back on the porch, the boat onto the lift and the canopy on the boat lift. Other than the jet ski and a good cleaning of the cabin, we are ready for summer!

Drake spent his time chasing the fish, sniffing the grounds and chasing Kudos. Of course he then spent the rest of the afternoon in this position!

Golf Subsections

2009-05-20T17:25:00.000-05:00

May 19th the golf team had subsections at a very tough course.

Chris golfed a 90 and placed 8th overall. The team won and will be competing at Sections on Tuesday.

Jim was our family representative at subsections. I have taken the day off to attend sections. We will both take the day off when they advance to state! ;-)

Fresco Mitts & Woven Scarf

2009-05-20T14:02:00.004-05:00

Here's some shots of the Fresco Mitts I finished last winter and LOVE to death. The lace pattern isn't very noticable anymore now that the alpaca has had lots of use but they are very warm and wonderful.

This is the Neckwarmer/Woven scarf I am making for a prototype for a class I am teaching at the local yarn store this July

Oregon Vest - FINISHED

2009-05-14T20:49:00.004-05:00

Two years after being done knitting this vest, I have finally gotten the cloth pockets sewn in. I am pleased with the pockets but not so much with the way they make the stretchy knit fabric so non-stretchy. It is hard to make the cotton cloth stretch when it isn't meant to but it surprised me what a difference it made.

This is detail of the pocket, you can't even see the pretty fabric from here....

elefante

2009-05-10T15:34:00.003-05:00

How can you NOT smile when you look at this cutie!

Cascade 220 scraps with (unpopped) popcorn for weight in the legs and trunk, fiberfill in the rest. Pattern is here and here.

Black Walnut Headboard

2009-05-06T16:55:00.004-05:00

We've done a little bed switcheroo at our house. Jim and I got a new king bed, Tom got our old Queen bed and then Chris got Tom's lofted single. Our house is a mess but we are all sleeping better.

Tom has made a black walnut headboard to go on his "new" bed in school and it is drop dead gorgous. His plan is to have it become a platform bed, this is the first piece.

Diminishing Ribs Cardigan is done!

2009-04-12T16:49:00.004-05:00

My Diminishing Ribs Cardigan from the Winter 2009 issue of Interweave Knits is finished. I made it 2 inches longer from the underarm to the first set of ribs and I lengthened the sleeves so they are long sleeved and I'm really pleased.

I have really long arms and anything that isn't short sleeved or long sleeved makes me feel like I bought the wrong size!

Cascade 220 yarn (6 skeins) in a pretty blue/green heather. Details on my Ravelry page.

Chocolate Chip cake

2009-03-22T13:42:00.005-05:00

Nummy - I have this in the oven right now... I sprinkled the top with chocolate and butterscotch chips but I'm also thinking dried cranberries or blueberries would be yummy for breakfast this week.

Sarah's Bisquick Cake
Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Bisquick? In a cake? Seriously, y'all. It's good stuff.

2 eggs
1 1/2 tbsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
4 cups Bisquick
3/4 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease & flour 9" x 13" pan. Mix eggs, vanilla and milk. Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Alternately add milk mixture and Bisquick to creamy butter. Pour into pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake 35-45 minutes (test with toothpick for "done-ness"). Sprinkle cake top with powdered sugar.

Visit this website for more delicious recipes: http://whachagotcookin.blogspot.com/2008/04/sarahs-bisquick-cake.html

The chips all wound up on the bottom of the cake and make it a very sweet dessert... I'm anxious to try fresh blueberries or dried cranberries to see if my breakfast idea will work out.

Joke of the day

2009-03-20T13:07:00.002-05:00

What did the hockey player give the thief?

....a check

Adirondack!

2009-03-18T18:31:00.005-05:00

Tom brought home his finished Adirondack from Woods class and it is gorgeous. He's planning to make some more so we have a set for home and one for the cabin. I'm not sure this one will ever leave the living room it's so pretty!

Chris in Arizona

2009-03-15T19:20:00.003-05:00

Dad updated his blog so I have some pictures from Chris' trip to Arizona to visit them. Chris didn't want to take a camera so I'm "stealing" one of Dad's shots ;-)

Chocolate giggles?

2009-03-13T14:26:00.000-05:00

This video clip cracks me up!

Hands Free?

2009-03-06T20:21:00.002-06:00

What an inventive (funny faced) kid. No hands free option? Just borrow one of Mom's headbands! ;-)

Is it so terrible to smile nice for the camera? Sheesh!