Bl0om where you are planted July 31, 2006

I didn’t realize that was a biblical quote–that coming from a theology major.  Oh well–I actually preferred the Christian Old Testament.  I was referring to a piece of counted cross stitch that has had my eye.  With all this interest in counted cross stitch of late–I wonder if it has anything to do with my Summer of Stash.  No new yarn to buy–how about cross stitch?  Not that there hasn’t been a slip but photos of that to come and I don’t plan to start knitting it until the Fall.

Life has been so chaotic and busy.  Entries have been planned in my head then things like kids and work and flat tires get in the way.  Yea, a flat tire.  I found that when I was picking Owen up from his respite program.  The upside of the whole tire thing was the Homegoods next to Costco.  Oh yeah baby!  I got my chaise.  While red is not my favorite color–it coordinates nicely with our room and the price was right.  Oh, and it is comfortable too!  I am already creating a mess right next to it.

In other exciting but old birthday news, Kevin made me a pie.  He had it in his head to whip up a fabulous birthday dinner for me last Sunday and I had forgotten to tell him my mom was having a birthday BBQ for my sister and I.  He was so cute on the phone with my mom, "But I was going to make a pie…"  A pie.  I don’t know where he came up with that but  nagged him all week about the pie.  Yesterday he made a delicious pie with chocolate pudding, cream cheese and toffee bits.  Yum.   

Last, I have been meaning to post a couple of pictures of my mom’s latest knitting creation.  Are these not gorgeous? The miniatures are old but always amazing.

July 25, 2006

While looking for this counted cross stitch project, I found this needlepoint project.  I think my MIL gave it to me when I was pregnant with Gracie.  She had done just  a bit of the green and I guess I used one color for the wrong section and gave up–with just about 60 or so stitches left.  What the heck–I have been working on it a bit every day and trying to sort out the colors to fudge it.  I am not sure whether I even like this but might as well finish it.

The Leaf Lace shawl grows.  I just want to call it Lace Leaf though–it flows so much better.  There is a minor mistake that may need to be dropped down.  I am letting it sit a bit before I dive in (or pass it off to my mother).  It’s a crappy picture of a crappy mistake but I just haven’t mastered the fine art of a closeup.

Thank you all for the birthday wishes. 

While looking for this counted cross stitch project, I found this needlepoint project.  I think my MIL gave it to me when I was pregnant with Gracie.  She had done just  a bit of the green and I guess I used one color for the wrong section and gave up–with just about 60 or so stitches left.  What the heck–I have been working on it a bit every day and trying to sort out the colors to fudge it.  I am not sure whether I even like this but might as well finish it.

The Leaf Lace shawl grows.  I just want to call it Lace Leaf though–it flows so much better.  There is a minor mistake that may need to be dropped down.  I am letting it sit a bit before I dive in (or pass it off to my mother).  It’s a crappy picture of a crappy mistake but I just haven’t mastered the fine art of a closeup.

Thank you all for the birthday wishes. 

July 24, 2006

If Margene is sending birthday wishes my way, I feel like I should have a better post up than a whinge about bloglines. 

This weekend was terrific.  Work on Saturday.  Dinner out with Kevin on Sat.  A huge lie in on Sunday.  Boomers family park for an autism day with the kids and friends.  Dinner and cake at my mom’s by the pool for my sister and I (our birthdays are 8 days apart).  And a quick look around for a chaise for my bedroom.  A chaise…so indulgent. 

I finished a bracelet for my friends fundraiser Take Back the News.  I worked a bit more on the Leaf Lace Shawl–maybe a picture later.  The purl rows are getting very long and a bit boring.  And I like purling!  I also played around with a skein of Fiesta Watermark for the shop.  Still not sure what to do with it.

If Margene is sending birthday wishes my way, I feel like I should have a better post up than a whinge about bloglines. 

This weekend was terrific.  Work on Saturday.  Dinner out with Kevin on Sat.  A huge lie in on Sunday.  Boomers family park for an autism day with the kids and friends.  Dinner and cake at my mom’s by the pool for my sister and I (our birthdays are 8 days apart).  And a quick look around for a chaise for my bedroom.  A chaise…so indulgent. 

I finished a bracelet for my friends fundraiser Take Back the News.  I worked a bit more on the Leaf Lace Shawl–maybe a picture later.  The purl rows are getting very long and a bit boring.  And I like purling!  I also played around with a skein of Fiesta Watermark for the shop.  Still not sure what to do with it.

Falling on deaf ears… July 21, 2006

…or why won’t bloglines update me?  It’s not like I post that frequently!  Have a great weekend. 

A weeks worth of photos in my camera July 20, 2006

But at the rate that I blog–I think I can probably drag it out a month. 

Tuesday started out with me sick as a dog.  Granny arrived just after 11am.  We put her walker in the car and hit the road.  I sipped Ginger Ale as we looked over KFI’s latest offerings.  Granny picked up a couple of new yarns–Debbie Bliss’s Pure Cashmere and Noro’s new Cashmere Island.  Cashmere Island looks a lot like Kureyon–except it’s skanked and you want to smush it up against your face.  I don’t know anyone who likes to smush Kureyon.  There was a new Sirdar yarn too, Click, for the acrylic fans.  The pattern support was good for that yarn.

After perusing the yarns and lunch for Granny and her rep–it was off to the warehouse!  It was  hotter than hell but impressive nonetheless.  I was too miserable to consider any shopping besides…I am still in the Summer of Stash.  It was pretty cool to see how they pick the orders and pack them up.  It is safe to say that their back room is bigger than Granny’s!  Amazing too, was the Noro aisle and just how empty it was.

Overall, it was a good field trip.  I just wish I had felt better.  No doubt it was better for my wallet that I was queasy.

                                                                  

Rate of acquisition July 17, 2006

Rate of acquisition can be used to describe many things…yarn, pattern comprehension, verbal skills.  Owen has mastered 2 new phrases quite quickly–"Go away!" and "Move!".  My rate of acquisition on yarn has been quite low.  I feel as though I am doing a pretty good job knitting what I have.  I can’t say I am "knitting through the stash" as I am not knitting all that much and therefore–not using much stash!  But what I am knitting is stash.  Except for bracelets.  And I recently acquired quite a few spools of kreinik to knit more.  (30 spools via eBay)

As far as pattern acquistion, I am 10 rows forward 2 rows back.  Row 39, especially is killing me.  I get all set on the repeat and forget to do the middle/end chart.  Sometimes I am able to drop down and fix it.  Other times it just comes off the needles for a little ripping.

Tomorrow presents an opportunity to acquire yarn at a greatly discounted price.  Granny and I are going to Knitting Fever to see the new yarns.  This is kind of exciting…better than the rep coming to us. 

A bit of knit July 11, 2006

Well I started a Chevron Scarf using Koigu from my stash.  I couldn’t find two contrasting colors that I liked together so I decided to use one very bright color that I bought online.  As I was chatting with my mother this morning she remembered the pattern called for two skeins of each color.  Doh!  A yarn waster, really, probably why neither of us ever knit this before.  Thank goodness she has a ridiculously large stash of Koigu.  I can probably find something to coordinate.  Or perhaps back to the drawing board.  This was meant to be a donation for my friend’s organization Take Back the News.  They are having an art benefit and are looking for donations.  Perhaps a bracelet instead…

Speaking of bracelets…I am nearly finished with my second to last for Owen’s teachers.  I just love this one in goregous browns.  Sometimes they are difficult to give away (and photograph).  Owen had a great first day at school.  The bus driver is very nice.  Owen is a bit reluctant to go to school but I can’t blame him–he had a pretty nice vacation last week–despite the incident at Splish Splash.  As always, thanks for your words of wisdom and kindness.

Poor, neglected blog July 10, 2006

It’s like I have nothing to feed it.  Knitting has been infrequent.  The yellow 501 remains unfrogged and uncertain what to do with itself.  I ran out of beads on a pulsewarmer (after I finally got the chart from my mom) and the other pulsewarmer isn’t doing it for me.  Granny says the yarn looks dingy. 

I nearly blogged last night as I couldn’t sleep.  I have been tossing and turning and wrestling internally with an incident with Owen.  We went to Splish Splash on late Saturday afternoon.  Owen had been there once before with Kevin and loved it.  The other two had been there a couple of times  too.  This was my first trip.  The smile on Owen’s face couldn’t have been stretched any bigger.  He loved the double tube and even the big family tube.  He’s a fabulous swimmer so we tried him out on one where you shoot out into a 10 ft. deep pool.  He liked the slide but the drop scared him a bit so it was back to the safety and fun of his beloved double tube.  Kevin took the other two kids on the newest attraction.  After several runs down his beloved ride we went looking for the rest of the family.  Since I could see they were still on line I decided to venture on a new slide with Owen.  It was tubeless–like the other–but the water was shallow at the bottom.  After I got Owen situated on his slide I went to go on the one next to it–only to be cut by an older woman–in her 50’s!  Owen was gone.  The woman got to the bottom and panicked and had to be "rescued".  The lifeguard at the top, one of their foreign employees, would not let me go–they stopped the ride.    Owen was down there–alone.  My stomach still flutters when I think of him down there and me screaming and considering punching the lifeguard.  He didn’t understand autism.  He couldn’t understand that my son couldn’t speak.  It felt like an eternity until they finally let me go.  Owen only wandered like 10 ft. away…but the look on his face as I stood up there and he looked all around for me.  I felt as though I had betrayed his faith in me.  I am supposed to take care of him. 

On the other ride, Kevin and Gracie went first and met Owen after his turn.  I had no business doing this on my own with Owen.  Live and learn.  If that old lady hadn’t cut it wouldn’t have happened.  But still it haunts me.  Park attendents did come but really had little sympathy for the situation.  Park rules state children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.  They didn’t let me accompany my son.  Ugh.  It is still just so upsetting.