More Proof

Let me just say Spring Break is AWESOME! Above is a picture of my current sock in progress. I visited the local yarn store Knit 'n Knibble and they always have interesting things going on. We managed to get over on my first full day in town and the shop was packed. Classes were in session and a bunch of other knitters ordering Lattes and Herbal Teas...thus, the nibble part of their name. I swear I just wanted to curl up on the sofa and knit along with them all. Really though with two kids and Nana... no time to sit and gab with the locals.

The yarn is Colinette Jitterbug in the Lagoon colorway. I was so obsessed with the Fulmar on this trip that it inspired me to incorporate one of the cables on this project. Here is the current status of my Beach Lagoon socks.

FO: Baby Cable Rib Daffodil Socks

Pattern: Baby Cable Rib by Charlene Schurch - or my Daffodil Socks (Ravelry link)

Yarn: 2 skeins Lorna's Lace in Daffodil colorway

Needles: US 1

Start Date: March 8, 2007

End Date: March 23, 2007

Comments: Toe-Up with Judy’s Magic Cast-on for the toes and Knot Another Hat’s heel slip stitch formula. The pattern is quick, easy and soooooo not boring.



See? Proof I was on vacation;)

Where Am I?

On vacation of course... it's late... 1:30 a.m. late and I'm wishing I could show you my finished Daffodil socks and the new socks on the needles. There should be a picture...

FO Picture Insert Here!

This would be a shot of the finished object by a palm tree as proof of my vacation, and ALSO, a picture of my sock in progress at the beach...

Beach Picture Insert Here!

Here you would see my sand covered toes. Cute kids building sand castles and me burning under the WARM...must I repeat WARM sun. Mawhahaha to all you northern folks in the cold;) I shall be back up and running regular and freezing my tush off along with you all soon enough.

The most pressing thing...my bloglines. eek! 85 unread blogs. sigh. Lets not even think about the Sock Club package waiting my return. It's good to be under the radar sometimes. Miss you all!

FO: Wicked

Pattern: Wicked

Yarn: 4 skeins Malabrigio in Sealing Wax colorway

Needles: US 9

Start Date: February 24, 2007

End Date: March 15, 2007

Comments: I added an extra two inches to the body, along with added increases for my voluptuous hips. The pattern calls for a moss stitch pattern along the bottom, which I thought was odd. So, I ended with the twisted rib instead. I also decided I liked a short sleeve and knitted for 2 inches before repeating the twisted rib. Over all it's a great knit. Perfect for a first time sweater.

What has amazed me since finishing is realizing that I have an extra skein of the Malabrigo. With a good chunk left over from the 4th ball. I can totally see me making another with long sleeves and love knowing that it's possible with 5 skeins.

Foggy Monday

What have I been up to? sleep. tissues. NyQuil.

I should be home on the couch, but alas Friday is the start of Spring Break.. AKA: Vacation. I'll be off to the sunny side of the states and enjoying every loving minute. can't. wait.

I should have done laundry, but didn't. I did dishes, but no mopping. Knitting was on the list and I most definitely got some of that done. My main goal was to not sneeze snot all over the project in my hands...I did accomplish it. In fact I was in a knitting fever. So obsessed I was that I finished Wicked. It's blocking and just waiting for the right moment for a photo shoot.

The Daffodil socks are coming along great:



Some slight pooling along the heel ankle area, but I enjoy seeing the random swing of color.

Because Wicked is off the needles, I pulled out the Fulmar.



I've missed working on this and happy to have it back in my hands. I've only got three more days to figure out what to bring with me. Will I finish the Daffodils in time to wear them? if so, then should start another pair for the flight? I think I'll toss Fulmar in with the luggage, but have you ever thought... what if my luggage goes missing? urg. The stress of flying.

She's Twisted

How young is too young for a little girls of 3 1/2 to become a roadie, a groupie...to be one so full of Rock!

I Wanna Rock
By Twisted Sister

I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)
I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)
I WANT TO ROCK (ROCK)
I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)

TURN IT DOWN YOU SAY,
WELL ALL I GOT TO SAY TO YOU IS TIME AND TIME AGAIN I SAY, "NO!"
NO! NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!
TELL ME NOT TO PLAY
WELL, ALL I GOT TO SAY TO YOU WHEN YOU TELL ME NOT TO PLAY,
I SAY, "NO!"
NO! NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!
SO, IF YOU ASK ME WHY I LIKE THE WAY I PLAY IT
THERE'S ONLY ONE THING I CAN SAY TO YOU

I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)
I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)
I WANT TO ROCK (ROCK)
I WANNA ROCK! (ROCK)

THERE'S A FEELIN' THAT
I GET FROM NOTHIN' ELSE AND THERE AIN'T NOTHIN' IN THE WORLD
THAT MAKES ME GO!
GO! GO, GO, GO, GO, GO!
TURN THE POWER UP
I'VE WAITED FOR SO LONG SO I COULD HEAR MY FAVORITE SONG SO,
LET'S GO!
GO! GO, GO, GO, GO, GO!
WHEN IT'S LIKE THIS I FEEL THE MUSIC SHOOTIN' THROUGH ME
THERE'S NOTHIN' ELSE THAT I WOULD RATHER DO

Hello Spring

If spring wont hurry up and just get here already then I'm just going to have to do something about it. I had stopped by Loopy Yarns last week for a quick afternoon fiber fix. Nothin' like sniffing some yarn fumes to make the day go better. I then spotted this lovely punch of color....



Lorna's Laces in the Daffodil colorway. Just what I was needing. At home while finishing the Monkey's I plotted through the patterns and came up with this interesting cable. Did a little knitting math and cast-on for a little spring hope.



I'm doing them in "my generic" ...which is toe-up with the gusset heal flap. I can't stress how fun sock knitting has been for me lately. Even with the Wicked growing by the second I'm still favoring the sock knitting.

Who's the cute green guy you ask? His name is Philippe and he keeps me company amoung my messy stack of papers.

FO: Monkey Socks

Pattern: Monkey Socks

Yarn: 2 skeins Gypsy Girl Creations in Holly colorway

Needles: US 1

Start Date: February 24, 2007

End Date: March 7, 2007

Comments: I knit these in reverse...Toe-Up with Judy’s Magic Cast-on for the toes and Knot Another Hat’s heel slip stitch formula. Thirteen days to complete socks...not bad. I think I would have gotten done sooner, but was getting swept away by Wicked.

Little Wicked Top

Wicked is going sooooooo good in the Maaaaaalabrigooooooo. So good in fact, I reached the part where I can try it on. What do you think? How awesome is it that you can try on a sweater to see if your on track??



Don't mind my office cluttered desk. I'm pretty happy so far and what else can I rave about...the yarn is OMG fantastic and the pattern is super simple. Makes me want to do all my sweaters top down.

8,496 Tears Are Shed

I feel so much better now. Ever since discovering this:



Didn't get that? It's okay...cables have a tendency to overwhelm the eye.



I've had a hard time dealing with how to fix it. I was loosing sleep it was so bad. Seriously, I do have to give a shout out to all of your suggestions and support. In the long run I can't cut, ladder down nor fake the cable. That means I had to rip back.

sigh. I know...I had a hard time with it, but once I had made up my mind I felt so much better.

Last night I did the dead. Want to see what it looks like? you know I took pictures.



I would have recorded the whole thing but the sour moaning in the background would have been a huge distraction and just quite pathetic.



Everything is okay. My mind and heart are so happy right now. It would have bothered me to no end. This project has also brought up some insights that I'm not sure how to instill on to my kids. What makes a person who they are, or do what they do. Why do I feel that a job / task / project / life should be done to the best of ones ability. Why half ass to anything? Is this something that people are born with or do they go by example? I might be going off into a tangent right now, but basically if I fail at something.... it wont be because I didn't give it my all.

He's Cracked

My son has finally cracked under the pressure.

What? you say...lets go back to February 15th. This brings us back to a time when I knew my son was struggling in school, yet was unaware of the full clusterfu** that it would become. Friday February 15th was the day that the The Teacher called. It was the day that a progress report come home and showed half of his assignments were missing... missing assignments leads to 0's.... 0's mean failing.

Eric was then put on punishment. I like that word. It sounds like it's painful. Any other time he has been on punishment, it hasn't fazed him. It took 18 days...18 days of no cartoons, 18 days of no computer time, 18 days of no video games, cell phones or Grandma weekends.

People...we are so serious we put the parental code on the TV just to make sure he wasn't sneaking in any unapproved shows. The only cartoons approved are ones that would drive anyone over the age of 5 insane... have you watched Bob the Builder? or as Mac would call it... Bub da Budder.

Eric was then instructed to produce any and all papers from his locker, class room, bed room and backpack. Dudes....we had a pile about 4 inches thick. Half of the pile was graded the remaining was unfinished or if it was finished, no grade. Why would you do the work and not turn it in? The grades he does get range from A's to C's... so as long as he turns it in then he's getting passing grades. I just don't understand the thought process when it comes to not completing an assignment.

Over the past 18 days he has been finishing the unfinished homework on top of his everyday homework. He mumbles and groans while sitting there for hours... and then protests that he shouldn't have to do it, it doesn't count, and wont go towards his grade. I DON'T CARE. You can't just forget about it...it wont go away and I certainly wont let you just slide by or say it's okay do better next time.

Last night he came to me and said... You know what I miss most? ... My cell phone.

I then asked if he understands now that I don't play around when it comes to work and school. I want him to understand that there are consequences for his actions. I don't ask for much. I don't push him to get A's (although I know he can), I don't push for sports or any other activities. I encourage him to try things and to do the best he can. If he just does his best then he'll be great at whatever he does.

He finally came to realize that only an hour a day of study time is completely doable compared to the 4 - 5 hours he's been experiencing. I then asked him if he will ever take for granted the privileges and freedoms we provide. "No Mom, this is horrible and I've learned my lesson."



We broke him. Finally. Punishment will continue until The Teacher has reported back a improvement. He has been begging The Teacher to send something home since Friday... it's a wait and see game now. I don't like having to do this to him, but what else is there? I then think back to my childhood and remind myself that we didn't have computers, video games and cell phones. If I lived through it, then I'm sure he will too.

Gypsy Monkey

Gotta love the incredible titles you can generate off of the word Monkey...and with Gypsy sock yarn this is what came to mind...



Yep, Gypsy Monkey.

Here is my progress so far.