Parade of Finished Objects...

Over the holidays it was seriously intense around here. Not only was I working on launching the new blanket pattern but I had plans to Knit. All. The. Things. The original plan was to knit something small for most of the little people in my life. And to be honest, I had done a fair job. More things got added to the list, while others fell away.

Monsters for each of my SIL boys. They are at that perfect age (4 and 2), where a stuffie is still kinda cool and then add the "monster" bit in and we are talking winner-winner-chicken-dinner!




My son then saw these little guys and... well, lets say things got weird. My 6 foot 4 inch, 17-year old son... reverted back to his 3-year-old self. He said in the most sweetest voice, "I want one." Which just took me by surprise. I was planning on knitting him a hat, but since he was requesting, I just couldn't say no.

Thus, there was the red and black monster



New slippers for Mac because she grew out of her last pair.



Then there was this moment in late November that my husband wore out his slipper, so that got added to the list and now he has warm toes.



I purchased a thrummed kit from a vendor at Vogue Live Chicago and finished them pretty quickly:



I was then hooked. A quick jaunt to The Fold and was now making more mittens... a pair for Grandma in blue.



Then there was the Lined Beanie for Grandpa Larry made out of some left over gray Berroco Vintage yarn and some green/black Noro yarn for the stripes.



There is more to talk about, but *sigh*, I'm done for now. Perhaps I will pick up blogging more often. I miss it.

Trip To The Farm

Last Saturday my friend Knitterary mentioned a sheep sheering event at the The Children's Farm... I couldn't say yes fast enough! So Miss Mac and I picked her up and off we went to the farm where it was a beautiful bright, but cold day. Lucky for us they had coffee to keep the chill away.



There were sheep. Posing for the camera and all!



And all kinds of animals to pet... like bunnies, cows, chickens, horses, roasters, ducklings and did I mention Sheep?



Then the pipers march the sheep to the sheering platform. Some celebratory music is played and the man with the mic enters the scene where he demonstrates the different methods of sheering.



Do you see that cutie on her rump getting her sheering on? Just too cute! Will totally be going again next Spring.

Holiday Adventures

The holidays haven't fully begun in our house until the trip to see Santa. This was a little stressful for Miss Mac, as she wasn't sure what to say to Santa.

This leads me to the big question. When do I break the news about the Jolly O'Fella? With Eric it was during the summer he turned 8. He didn't seem to broken up about it, but I know with her it's going to be a big deal. She has been talking about him everyday and has plans of sleeping on the couch in hopes of catching a glimpse.



Sigh.

I even asked Eric about how he took the news and he's response was.. "I had my suspicions. BUT, wait a little bit to tell Mackenzie. She wont take it well."



The spirit of Santa goes on for another year then...



We have a artificial tree that we assemble every year, but this time my husband talked me into buying a real tree. So, with family in tow we headed to a local roadside seller.



Tied and strapped we headed home.



Shortly after having put up and trim the tree... It fell over. Don't you love the fact that Eric is laying on the floor eating popcorn while watching TV. Nice. I told him we should do some action shots of him being attached by the tree. With a slight shake of the head, no. Not going to happen Mom.



Mac was a little concerned... I told her we'll be shooting the Holiday Pictures with the tree on the couch. She didn't like that idea one bit.



With all the ornaments and lights taken off, Eric then became a Treehugger. Hahaha.



Everything back on the tree again...



Finally all ready for the family holiday photo... maybe;)

Did You Miss Me?

I love going on vacation. I love it even more when it's for a full week. I love it double when it's full of un-planned events. What stinks is coming back to laundry, bills and dentist appointments.

Since time slips and I want to keep you folks in-the-now, I've got pictures:



We discovered Geoffrey likes to surf the internet.



We ate tons of this.



We made funny faces into cameras.



We discovered fish the size of Miss Mac.



We fell in love with Kara all over again.



We caught bubbles by sunset.



All while knitting on my Feather Weight Cardigan.

It's a Dry Heat

I should have bought the mug because this was the first thing out of every one's mouth once they heard I was heading to Arizona. I get... I did it too, but having been there I can see why people say it. Yet it's so much more.

My cousin got married on the most beautiful day that a bride could ask to have.



Walking down the isle to Metallica's Nothing Else Matters makes me just love her even more. Congrats to you both!



No matter where you turn... you've got these beautiful mountains just draping the sky and making even the most mundane strip mall look heavenly.

If you interested in looking at more photos just check out My Photo Set.

Having some time to spare during the afternoon, we headed out for a short trip about Phoenix to get some photos of cactus and mountains. During this I got the opportunity to visit Knit Happens.



I fell in love from the moment I laid eyes on the outside of the store. If you clicked on the above link to their blog, the photo in the top header really explains it all. Isles of yarn, knit samples draped at every turn and this awesome work station which is just barely seen in the photo along the bottom. It can sit tons of knitter and the super cool thing is the custom table has sunk in crevices so knitters can put a run-away ball of yarn. Totally Cool!



Yarn. Knit. Love.

It really does explain it all. Ever in the neighborhood of Scottsdale, check it out.



This is a huge sign on the building as your walking towards the door... How awesome can this get? They need to seriously sell these as smaller car window stickers;)

I did pick up something lovely...



Filatura di Crosa Centolavaggi lace weight in dark teal. I'm itching to cast on this stuff... Perhaps I should;)

Just a Whole Lotta Stuff...

Life is crazy in chez Red's World. Lets look at those highlights, shall we.

The man-child Mr. E turned the big One-Four... yep 14.



I'm proud of him in so many ways, that it's really hard to even count them all. He surprises me all the time with his bountiful love for family and his sassy attitude. I'm happy he's found his voice, because for a long time during his childhood I didn't think he would posses the ability to stand up for himself, let alone others. And just look at him, I think he has his Coolness down pat.



Blocking has commenced for the Celtic Icon. It was a long time coming. Those damn sleeves took FOR.EVER. This also means that I'll need to start taking measurements for a zipper.



I have also jumped ahead a tad and started on the Faery Ring. The Knit-Along starts July 1st, but I just couldn't help myself. This is the boarder hem that is knit until the full circumference of the bottom. Then I'll be picking up stitches along the edge to build the rest of the jacket.

Hey Tooth Fairy!

So my husband asks little Miss Mac, how much do you think the Tooth Fairy will give you for the tooth?

Without blinking an eye: 6 dollars.

Her Little Piece of Heaven

My hubby and I have been going to the Chicago Auto Show for years. It's a little thing we like to indulge in by daydream about winning the lotto and picking your fav out of the bunch.

This year we decided we would bring Miss Mac along as she has a sweet spot for the automobiles.



We ran from car, to jeep, to convertible, to SUV. sigh. In and out and up and down. I'm exhausted just typing it.

One thing I found funny was even though Miss Mac and I look a LOT a like... it was interesting to see just how much she's like her father.



and yes, that is a transformer in the background. sweet.

Just for the Record

First off...let me apologies for the poor photo.

Over the weekend I discovered a height chart from when Eric was small(er) and decided to hang it up in Mac's room. It's a pop-out Muppets chart ... so it's gets hung, Mac gets charted. I then discover this by Kermit's foot:



Miss Mac and Eric were the same height not at the same age, but a full year and a half difference. Eric was three years old at the time and Miss Mac is well on her way to being 5 years old. I knew my boy was off the charts, but seriously it stuns me ever time.

Heck, even in the photo you can see that in that eight months time he grew an inch and some. wow.

A Little Obsessed

Do you see?
How lovely can it be?
A warm mitten for me?

The other night I was reading Thomas The Train Rhyme stories to Miss Mac and now sometimes I get stuck in rhyming things. Does this happen to anyone else?

Anywho... I started the Postwar Mittens Class at Nana's Knitting Shop and became so deeply in love that I could not put it down.

I also have to show off Little Hunter who is quickly turning 3 months old. He reminds me of when Eric was little and how the facial expressions could just about make you tinkle in your panties.

FO: Holiday Fetchings

You know I had told myself that I wasn't going to do this, but alas here I am doing it again. Christmas Knitting! Yes, with having NO idea what to get people, but somehow finding interesting knits is easy to conjure up.



A pair of Fetchings are so quick and an easy no-brainer. It will become part of a set with the neckwarmer, which I'm hoping will be a winner.



I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was successful and filling. We had a blast with unexpected guests, but with this family you can't help but smile.

Tear Drop

I presumed that my vacation was what I needed most of all to heal me. What I ended up discovering is that what weighs on you can make you stronger, brings you closer to those around you... building bonds with family and enlighten you in areas that were filled with shadow or doubt.

Even though I was on vacation, my mind was not at peace. Each day tolled and mounded on top of each other giving me the feeling of dread. The one thing I can always rely on is my knitting. I cast-on for the newest Rockin' Sock Club colorway Goody Goody in the pattern named Gumdrop.



I however have decided to call them my Tear Drop Socks.

Waking up at an unholy hour and boarding a plan at 6:15 a.m. is just wrong... and especially on a Monday. I pulled out my sock and started knitting. With each stitch I felt stronger. With each pattern line I felt braver. My tears fell and my heart stilled weighed heavy.

It wasn't until I entered the funeral home that I felt whole. With my mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, aunts and uncles all surrounding me... I felt at home.



It's not easy losing a loved one. Especially when you feel that you just didn't get enough time. I felt like I really wanted to know her better and have tons of questions and yearn for answers.

I'm also hoping that when I pass, my existing family will celebrate my life to the hilt with an Irish Wake. I want everyone drinking, singing, dancing and telling of tales, memories and reminiscing the good'o days. Yes it's sad, but I want to go out with a bang!

Patricia M. Carlson
May 8, 1925 - August 20, 2008

My Grandmother was a pretty special lady. More then I think I will ever know. She was strong, brave and the rock in our family. I was lucky to have known her and will aways cherish the times we've spent together. And as a tribute to her, our whole family stood up at the service and sang...

When Irish eyes are smiling
Sure it's like a morn in spring
In the lilt of Irish laughter
You can hear the angles sing
When Irish hearts are happy
All the world seems bright and gay
And when Irish eyes are smiling
Sure they still your heart away

What a Weekend

First off, Saturday was filled with plenty knitting. Nana's Knitting hosts a knit night every first Saturday of the month. I LOVE this...as on some weekends when the kids are away with Grandma, I'm home knitting on the couch anyway. So, why not join along with others?

While there I got the chance to pick up the book: Things I Learned from Knitting by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (AKA: Yarn Harlot). Yeah, we're all pretty psyched that she'll be in town for the book signing on April 25th. Party Time!

Afterwards I headed to Becca's for another knit group meet up. What fun it was to fall in love with the new house and also to visit with Mo (AKA: Mother-In-Law) and Baby M. I came home with new yarn...which I will gladly share with you soon. I would like to give them the full attention of a single post instead of just shoving them along with a weekend update. They are yummy and deserve it.

While Saturday was filled with yarn and visits, we had a few visitors of our own this weekend. Guess who?



These little tykes are going on 6 months come the 16th of April. They are very serious and are truly unique and different. While sleeping they look very similar but once up and at'm they bloom into their own.



Nanaidia and Tyrin are coming along great and most certainly know how to run the show. After having them over, I can't honestly see myself having another. What energy it takes...I think as time goes on and kids get bigger, you forget about all the little stuff. Like spit up down your shirt as you do "bouncy, bouncy baby up". sigh. And I'm okay with all that. That is, the spit up and not having more kids.

I hear you! You say, With all these knitting session you must have progress? Of course my pretties. My "Gator" beach socks are on their way off the needles. Some of you had mentioned a possible pattern for this, as I really have just pulled it out of my arse... I don't see why that would be a problem. I can easily write up the notes from what I'm using now and post a PDF link to download. I do know however that this wouldn't fly on a Knitty submission as you can't blog about the project before or during submission.

I've also been concentrating on this:



Nothing like reading the Stitches Midwest 2008 brochure while knitting with Nature Cotton. This yarn is very lovely and super soft for a cotton. I just don't know what garment will work best and unless I try, I'll never full know. I had intended to knit the Cozy V-Neck Rib sweater from the Fitted Knits, but I just don't see this yarn working well for that. I had caved and figured I like the Wicked pattern so much, that why not try it out.