December is HERE!

Puppy Power!

Emma seems to have a love hate thing for the snow. Last night we let her out and she was bouncing around in the falling snow and scooping up mouthfuls and having a gay ol' time. She does not seem to like doing her business in the snow - I think when we get an amount like this and she drops into position and feels the snow on her parts she doesn't want to go. I guess that is good since if she did her business in the snow it would get all over her. I will need to talk to Tom about shoveling (or blowing?) an area for her in her "Poop Zone" so she can have an area that is more appealing for taking care of business.

I went to Chuck & Don's yesterday on my lunch to see about getting Em some sort of coat to keep her warmer this winter. Her hair is pretty thin on her underside and I worry she will get frostbite or something. They had nice items - but I just couldn't get myself to spend the $50.00 on a dog coat that may or may not fit and that she may or may not use. I think I need to get knitting on more doggy apparel.

How's the weather up there?

We got some serious snow going on. I would say it was a healthy six to eight inches that dumped on us this round. It started yesterday around 1:30 or so and stopped just after we went to bed. Now the temperature is going to drop and it will be cold and gross. Yay. Love Winter. If it's not dumping on us with the white stuff then it is colder than a penguins butt. At least it's sort of pretty and I suppose it's Christmasy. Still. Yuck. And as far as this much snow this early and temperatures being this much below normal - it's just going to make the winter seem ridiculously long. It feels long on a normal year - but to be dealing with serious snow from November to April is just going to seem like FOREVER.

Pod People

I had to stop listening to the Bark n' Knit podcast for awhile. I was getting bored by it honestly. I think I might have to stop trying to catch up from the beginning and just listen to the newer podcasts. Or admit defeat and move on. I think I read in the Bark n' Knit group on Ravelry that she is (Did?) have a baby. And I REALLY don't want to listen to baby baby baby crud. Having to accept that we are not going to have children has been tough. Accepting that all our friends and family are breeding with apparent ease and want to tell you all about it all the time - not so easy. Having to listen to a podcast that is supposed to be about knitting and dogs and having it turn into Baby baby baby? Not so much. So I think I will try some of her newer episodes and see how they feel - and if they are "All About Baby" I will just move on to other podcasts.

In lieu of podcasts I have been amusing myself with Jen Lancaster's Audio books. The girl is FUNNY and very easy to relate to. I am a little surprised to being all hearts and flowers on her since she is republican and conservative and that is SO not my worldview, but I am learning that people (myself included) are more than the sum of their political and world views. She really is funny. And although her life is very different than mine, I find myself enjoying her struggles to be a better person. I feel like that is my life theme. "Always struggling to become better." My husband recently told me that that is one of the things he admires about me. That I don't give up and am ALWAYS trying to be better than I am. Pretty big compliment there!

Stick it & Stuck it

I have been knitting almost every day since my last blog. I finished my "It's My Birthday Too!" Cowl and I love it. I wore it all day at work yesterday and I am pleasantly surprised that I am as in love with it as I am. I thought it's tightness would really bother me - but it was like a free range turtle neck that didn't grab tight at my neck. I wore it with a long sleeve t-shirt and a heavy vest - and it was just wonderful. I found when I ran errands in the snow storm yesterday that it was quite convenient for tucking my chin and lower face into for protection and warmth. Yup. It's a goody! Plus (Hello!) It's knit with Malabrigo. I mean SERIOUSLY. What is NOT to love here?!?!

I also finished my Charity Ornament for the auction at work. I had to mail it to our head offices in Texas - which I am sure cost more than the materials to make the item. **Shrugs** What cha gonna do? I thought the ornament turned out fine. The pattern is really cute. It was knit on size 3 double points with is pretty small needles for me. And I could not get my pom pom maker to work for the life of me. I ended up going old school and wrapping the yarn around a box and trimming it down to size. Worked much better than the stupid pom pom maker. :) Hopefully it sells and hopefully they get lots of money to feed starving children.

I also finished my Noro Band of Truth!

It's the second time I have made this pattern which is REALLY simple and yet very wonderful. I love both of the headbands I have made and think I will just continue to knit these for all my future events. I can usual fix mistakes on something this simple - and I can talk and knit this one. Pretty awesome. I will probably go through my stash today and find another single ball that wants to be a headband and cast on so I can have it "At the ready". I am pretty burnt out on dishcloths. :)

I am also working on The Fidget (or as I call my "Fidget of Doom!" - just because Drama in knitting is funny.) Very easy pattern and the results are quite lovely. I am about 90% done with the knitting and I need to figure out what kind of buttons I want on it. Hopefully I have some lovely one's free ranging around the house - but I am not going to settle on them if they aren't perfect - so we will see. I might have to hit the stores.

OH. And How could I not mention this. I went out to ONE store on Black Friday. Three Kittens in Mendota Heights had a one hour before we open for 3K Club Members only Private Sale. It was INSANE and I spent a BoatLoad of money in under one hour. I am still giddy at what I got - but conversely - OY. Spent a lot of money and have a TON of new yarn I am trying to work into my stash. Uffda! I seriously have more yarn than I can knit in my lifetime. Sick. Awesome. Sick. ;)

See Emma Run!

Puppy Power

We had our first experience with Emma bolting from us on the street. Tom was showing me how the new garage door worked and Emma came out - and instead of hanging out she bolted down the driveway, down the street and across a pretty busy street into an empty lot. Gave us both a heart attack watching her. YIKES! I know she had a stressful weekend - but man. It was really upsetting. Tom managed to grab her and by the time I caught up with her with the leash Tom was carrying her to me. I hope we never have that happen again. And I am so grateful that no buses were coming down the road at that time. I get sick thinking about WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED. I still shudder from the thoughts!

Our groomer came by this week for Emma's appointment. We have this really awesome groomer who struck out on her own and has a mobile grooming unit (RV) and she comes to our house, Hooks up to our hose and gives Emma a shampoo, blow dry, brush out, and nail trim as well as cleaning her ears and stuff. It's pretty sweet. Before that I was taking a day of vacation and taking her to PetCo. You REALLY burn through the vacation days that way! And the last appointment I had there with a different groomer - was Not good. Emma's nails were ragged - even though I paid the extra to have them filed after the trim. And they talked me into the deluxe spa package - which really Em doesn't need. She is short haired and pretty much just needs a bath and a brush. You don't have to style her at all. So I kinda felt like I got taken for a ride.

Stick it & Stuck it

While the garage doors were going in I sat with my mom and knit pretty heavy on my It's My Birthday Too! Cowl. I would say I am around half way through the cowl. I had a rough row or two where I kept having to back up and re-do. Once I got a little bit past that rough patch I looked back and saw that about three pattern repeats were slightly off. I decided I could live with it. It would suck to rip it out at this point. It's so pretty! The yarn is JUST gorgeous and the pattern is wonderful. Unless of course you screw it up - it does not knit back real well. At least not for me.

So I set is aside when I realized I was talking too much to focus on my knitting and instead did the finish work on 11 washcloths! I have had a pile of them sitting next to my desk for months - and the pile just got bigger and bigger. So it was really nice to get them all taken care of. I am trying really hard to get things cleaned up in my office area. It's a pretty big mess of yarn, books and paperwork these days. I am feeling the weight of all my STUFF. I think watching Hoarders all the time is getting me looking at my stuff a little different these days too. I have so much. Of everything. I think I can justify it because it's just Tom and I and the cat and dog. But seriously - Who needs all this stuff all over the place. I know there are boxes in the basement that we never opened after we moved in this place. Eight years ago. That's messed up! So I keep looking at all my "piles" and thinking - Stuff has got to go!

But a girl can only knit and read so fast.

How's the Weather up there?

Cold. The Snow we got over the weekend did melt a lot - but sadly there is still plenty left. And it's hard and chunky. Happily the roads cleared up pretty quick and there was only one scary moment on my morning commute when I hit a patch of ice. It's my first winter with this car so I am nervous yet about driving it on the winter roads. This car is the peppiest thing we have owned - so I have potential for crashing a lot faster and harder.

Good Morning!

Check out what greeted me when I opened the door this morning to let Emma out. She took one look at it and went back inside. So I had to put on socks, shoes, coat, hat and head out there with her. It would have been fun - but I had not had coffee or anything yet - so I was a little unhappy. Also - After all that she still would not go. Anytime I stood near her potty spot she would run into her dog house and stare at me like "are you nuts?" So it was all for naught.

Kind of pretty though. Wish I didn't have anywhere to go today. Wish we were not installing garage doors today.

Yippy Skippy it's Friday!

What a long crappy week. We have been having record warm weather all week - then today BAM! November is in your face! Weirdly the cold weather brought in one of my better days at work - and not just because it is the last day before the weekend.

My co-worker, my service desk support people and myself have all been working on getting a printer to work for us for about a month now. It's SOOOOO frustrating - and the behavior it's exhibiting makes no sense whatsoever. It's possessed by the devil I swear. So that has been fun fun fun. I also had a former co-worker send me a bitchy e-mail where she did a typical sandwich compliment. First she thanked me for something. Then she made a snotty slap in the face comment. Then she wished me a happy birthday. Jerk. She exhibits the behavior my mom used to call "Dry Drunk" behavior. Her moods and emotions turn on a dime and nine times out of ten - kitty got claws. I have been on the wrong side of her angry stick too often. Argh.

So the weather is gross and that means it's time to do some outdoor projects! YAY! Tomorrow Tom and my dad will be out working on installing the new garage doors. I thought I would be helper girl - but now it looks like I will be hanging with my mom and knitting or whatever. Should be interesting. Not sure how spending that much time with my mom will go. We will see. I better put more wine in the fridge in case. And maybe do a taste test tonight. **Sigh**

As the weather gets colder and colder I find I want to spend more and more time in my owl flannel pajamas on the couch knitting. Sadly that doesn't do a whole lot for reducing the size of my fairly ample butt nor does it advance me in life all that much - but it probably keeps me from choking the living daylights out of my co-workers and family.

I have been struggling with being motivated with my diet and "healthy lifestyle". Mostly I ping pong back and forth a lot between uber goodness and wallowing in a slop bucket. It's been a rough year that way. I can't seem to get up enough steam to stay on the track of righteous healthiness. Well, I am on my last year in my 30's. The countdown has begun to the big 40. I am better health wise on my 39th Birthday than I was on my 38th Birthday. So I would love to say that again (but maybe with exclamation points and a marked lack of fear of swimsuits) next year. I mean seriously - if Valerie Bertanelli can look that flipping fly after doing Eddie Van Halen and having a kid - then what the hell is my excuse? Ok - I didn't start off looking that hot - but come on! I know I can look (and feel!) better than THIS.

And that is another issue. Negative Nancy in my head. What an evil thing that is to have an inner child who does nothing but point out fault after fault. I would giver her a hug but I just know she would use that chance to knee me in the crotch. She is NOT nice. I have got to figure out a way to silence her. Problem is I believe in what she is saying just enough to not feel like I CAN silence her. Garg. How do you learn to love yourself?

What up Dog?

It's Thursday and I want to try and talk about Emma On Thursday's. Honestly not much is new in the world of our awesome Dog. We had a storm last night and that always causes worry for miss Emma. She hates the thunder and the lightning and tends to cower and shake when she hears it. Last night Tom came back from his bike ride as the rain was really starting to hit and he reminded me that it was good to close all the curtains and make the house into a Puppy Cave when the weather turns sinister. Sure enough - She settled on the couch and calmed down while I sat on the other couch and watched Hoarders on demand and knit my Malabrigo cowl. She forgot at one point that it was raining like mad out and asked to be let out. When I let her out she took one step out onto the deck and turned around - tail between her legs - and headed right back inside. Memory of a goldfish? Not such a bad thing. I prefer she push her fears away. I think the best thing we can do for our fearful pup is to try and be steady and calm.

This week has been a tough one for that. I went back to work after a pretty blissful week off for my Birthday. After spending one of my Birthdays working at the store and having to scoop vomit out of the sink in the customer bathroom - I vowed to try like mad to never work on my B-day again. Last year I had to work on my Birthday due to staffing issues - but this year I was able to take the whole week off. Awesome! Sadly - my week back has been mighty stressful and I have been tearing my hair out almost everyday. Which leads to me coming home and ranting and stomping about like JenZilla. Not a great way to keep the dog calm and happy. I try on days like that to run with her in the yarn a little more than normal to make up for it.

Hows the weather up there?
We actually had a record warm day yesterday and today has been mighty nice too. They are saying snow for this Sunday - so it's NOT going to last. (Hello - MN and November? Our day's are obviously numbered!) We are putting in new garage doors this weekend which I am really happy about. Our doors are falling apart and we have to stand there and guide the door down when we close it. I can't imagine pushing the button and walking away from the door. It will rock! Also - Our current doors are ugly as all get out - so it will gussy the joint up to have pretty new doors with NO rotten chunks falling off of them. Sweet. I am sure it will make the rest of the place look like hell in comparison - but you got to start somewhere. And since new windows and siding are not in the budget - this is what we get for now.

Stick it & Stuck it

I have finished a few projects since my last blog post. I have been on a cowl frenzy. I love them! I can wear them at work without them getting caught in books and chairs and toilets (Nobody likes a toilet dipped scarf!) and they are really warm. Also - they don't add as much bulk to my ample bust line and equally ample stomach line. I knit the Mochi Plus Cowl out of two skeins of Crystal Palace yarns Mochi Plus from my stash. The pattern is really simple and I loved it enough that I cast on almost immediately for another one out of another ball of yarn in my stash.

This time I knit the cowl out of yummy Malabrigo. I used 1 skein of worsted weight and I named the cowl "Clown Vomit Cowl" because the color is awfully like what I imagine it would look like if a clown horked up a colorful stream of yarn. It turned out great and I wear is just as much as I wear the first one I made. But after making two of the same pattern I started to get a little weary of the pattern - which is pretty much knit knit knit with a little purl purl mixed in. I would love to do this cowl in a softer color variation instead of the crazy colored Yarn I am so drawn to - but I think it would bore the pants right off my bum to knit that. (The picture at the top of the post is the Clown Vomit Cowl - Emma was as usual an awesome model.)

After the cowl madness had released me from it's grip I whipped up a simple hat out of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky that I named "Orange you glad I didn't say Banana?" You would think after knitting on my treadmill afghan for the last two years I would be sick of looking at this yarn - But I am so not sick of this yarn. I love this yarn. It's warm and easy to work and has great colors. And just the right touch of mohair fuzzy goodness. Love that yarn. Don't think I will ever NOT love that yarn. It felt's well. It knits up really nicely. I made a bowl out of it once and it's just the prettiest felted wool bowl. I think if I had to make a list of top ten favorite yarns - I would have to include Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky. It's just that awesome. I know Bulky isn't for everyone - but it's for me!

After the hat I finished a headband/neckwarmer in some left over stash yarn (Sandy's Pallete single worsted yarn). I named it Keep them Ears Warm and it does indeed keep my ears warm. I love this headband. When I finished it I wore it almost all night long. I took it off for a minute or two to see how Emma looked in it - fabulous - and then made Tom try it on as well. It's super awesome. I knit it out of some left over yarn I got at a shop many years ago. I had knit my Sunset Hat out of it a few years back and still had a lot left over. This headband only used up about half a skein - so I still have a little more than one skein left. Perhaps it will be a cowl?

And finally - I finished a One Skein Scarf out of the book One Skein Wonders. It's the Filippi Scarf from the lady who used to own Clickity Sticks - whom I got almost all my yarn bins from when they went out of business. I called this Oooh Baby Baby! because it's knit from Plymouth Yarn Baby Alpaca Grand and it's so soft and yummy! It's black with a bit of silver metallic woven in. The pattern was really easy and I did it MOSTLY right. Sadly I bound off the way I always do rather than with the k2tog method the book called for - which made one of my ruffle d edges more ruffled than the other. But still - it's pretty awesome! I mean seriously - running alpaca yarn through your hands over and over for hours - it's pretty awesome. (Emma Once again modeled for me.)

On my needles right now is (wait for it....) a cowl. I know! It's the very popular Birthday Cowl by Nova Seals on Ravelry made out of yummy Malabrigo worsted yarn I got as a Birthday gift from my friend Abbey. I am calling it "It's my Birthday too!" and I have been working on it pretty hard since I got the yarn on Tuesday. I came home - balled it on my swift and cast on as fast as I could. I love the pattern! It causes the edge to curl in a gentle wave. It's just wonderful - and I have taken it to work with me everyday in hopes of showing Abbey it's awesomeness. She has been out most of this week - so I will try again tomorrow. Love love love it!

Three Day Weekends are awesome!

I have to keep reminding myself that it is Monday. Three day weekends ROCK!

Stick it & Stuck it.

So I finished my Snappy Hat of Doom this weekend. It was really hard to knit! I knit it in Bernat Roving and the yarn was very dense and knit tight. The cable row was a nightmare and I dreaded it every time. This was definitely a much funner knit in the chunky alpaca! Not a surprise there though. Alpaca feels like heaven on the hands and I love the feel of the yarn floating around. **Sigh** I heart me some Alpaca.


I tried to knit a second diagonal scarf out of Mini Mochi - but I kept loosing myself in the pattern and finding I was too short on stitches. So I ripped it out and cast on for a simple cowl in the Mini Mochi - ignoring my own rule about letting a yarn rest after you have to frog it - because I am trying to knit up stray balls that are rolling around in the open and that was definitely a stray! This will be my third attempt with these two balls. I think I have a winner this time. I am knitting up the Aspen Neck Cowl and it is so very simple. I followed another raveler's advice and I am knitting the purl rows and purling the knit rows - since this pattern calls for mostly purling. The end is curling a lot - and I don't see myself having enough yarn to get through most of the pattern - but I think it will still work out well. I am almost through the first ball of mochi and the cowl is close to 4 inches - so I am guessing it will be an 8 or 9 inch cowl when I am done.


I also finished another dishcloth over the weekend. I knit it out of Knit One Crochet Too Cotonade which is really fun to knit with. I really love the rich colors this yarn comes in. I get tired of knitting in the happy soft shades of cotton I find at JoAnn's and WalMart... so it's really fun to see some wash clothes that POP. We will see how they launder - how the dye holds in them and how they work in the sink on my dishes. But they were fun to knit. I could see making an afghan out of this yarn with no problem.

How's the Weather up there?

It is crazy warm here this weekend!!! We went camping up by Superior Wisconsin this weekend and it was significantly colder up there - but here near the Twin Cities it has been hitting the 80 degree mark. That is shockingly warm for October and I am loving it! I am so not ready for winter even though it will give me a better chance at showing off my knit wear. :) So having a weekend like this when normally we would be doing yard clean-up and winterizing - well it's straight up a gift!



Camping was really only an overnight - but it's the first chance we have had to get away in months so it was really nice. We took Emma hiking on the trails - which is a bit of a challenge in Wisconsin as they do not allow pets on most of the trails. This really pisses me off. We love camping and want to bring our dog with. Our dog is welcome to come with - but they frown on us leaving her in the camper alone. And we really don't WANT to leave her in the camper. We want to take her out with us and exercise her and have experiences with her. She is such a fearful dog - the more we can exercise her and get her outside the better. So it's really frustrating when we go to a park and try to take out dog out for a walk and are met with sign after sign that states No Dog. Argh! Not cool. Makes me want to stay in Minnesota where dogs are welcome on the trails.


ANYWAY - despite that we had a really nice time and we really enjoyed out get away. I am hoping we can still get one or two more getaway's in this year. With the camper having a furnace in it that is a definite possibility.

Pod People
I just finished listening to the last episode of SassyPants Knitter and MAN did I enjoy listening to those podcasts. I would recommend her podcast to anyone who knits or crochets. She is a HOOT! I hope she keeps podcasting.

My latest listen is BarknKnit. I am only on my third or fourth episode so far - and one episode didn't load on my pod well - so I haven't listened to much yet. But so far I am really enjoying it. I listened to a full episode while on my Treadmill today and listened to her talk about her dog's allergies. I can't imagine a dog with a cotton allergy! I would freak if Emma had that. Cotton is all over the place! So it will be interesting to listen to her figure that out.

On my Needles

I have just been in a hat frenzy this year! I am currently knitting my 12th hat this year. Seriously! Granted - I work in a warehouse and I freeze all winter long - so I wear A LOT of hats. Pretty much I put a hat on in October and my hair isn't spotted again until April.

So right now I am knitting my second Snappy Hat. The first one I knit over the weekend and I knit it in Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Chunky and it is SO soft and warm. I really love how it turned out even though I sort of fudged up the cables at the top of the hat and I suspect knit the cables backwards as well. I am knitting a second one now in Bernat Roving Yarn. It's really dense! And it's a total wrist breaker - although I suspect I will love the end product. It has the look of a hat that you can wear when it's REALLY bitter out. Like a January hat. Every year here in Minnesota we get a week in January that is just revoltingly cold. So cold you can't stand it. I think this hat will be awesome to wear that week. One other thing with this. I am knitting with an Addi Turbo Lace needle - and it smells like copper! ICK! I feel like I am knitting with Old Penny's! I had heard about this when Alana on Never Not Knitting did a review of these needles - and now I know it's true. These needles SMELL! I will be avoiding the lace needles in the future!

Over the weekend I also knit my Diagonal Scarf. (Really original name!) I knit that on Nashua Handknits Wooly Stripes. The yarn is really pretty - but there was a splice in the yarn and the color jogged pretty harshly - so the whole flow of the scarf is messed up there. Pretty irritating. It goes from mossy green to cranberry in the middle of a row. I think if I had planned things out better I would have cut the yarn before the color change & made a smoother transition. It was my first time working with this yarn and I think I always trust the yarn to not have breaks my first time. I don't know WHY I would think that. Silly silly girl.

My Treadmill Afghan is going well. I took a break from my treadmill over the weekend. I pretty much lived in my Pajamas and slept most of the weekend really. But I am back in action today and am looking forward. I started listening to the Sassy Pants Knitter Podcast this morning at work. I am really enjoying this one! She had me laughing out loud at work. When I got home I PM'd Sillyfru on Ravelry to thank her for a fun podcast and she wrote me back right away and friended me on Ravelry! How sweet! :)

Water Tower Crochet Cozy

Temptation everywhere!

Instead of knitting last night I curled up on the couch and looked through my knitting yum that was in the mailbox. Yesterday I received the Lion Brand Yarns catalog and the Holiday 2010 Knit Simple magazine.


The Lion Brand catalog was particularly yummy this time around. I opened the first page and saw that they now have an Ap for the ipod/phone. I downloaded that immediately and then kept it by my side to investigate the patterns I saw a little further.


On page 5 of the catalog they had used yarn to cover containers - literally wrapping the yarn around a vase from top to bottom and gluing it in place. I am in heart with this idea! I just recently picked up a wine gift box thingy (think tube with a cap and pretty gift like paper on the outside) at JoAnn's that I wanted to use for some kind of needle storage. I can't help but think how good a bunch of yarn would look glued all the way around this!


On pages 8-9 they had an article about yarn bombing. The Water Tower Cozy made out of Thick and Quick was most impressive! I have spotted a few yarn bombs around the Twin Cities. Most of the time it's near a knitting shop - but not always. I love the idea. It makes me smile. Some person worked on a project and then attached it somewhere for people to see - to think about - to smile at. Love that.


The felted pillows in Fisherman Wool on page 21 are just AMAZING! They take three or more (one of them 6) skeins of Fisherman wool. That's a LOT of knitting. But man are they cool looking. The one on the front cover caught my eye IMMEDIATELY. I was sure they would not have a pattern for something that cool available - but they did! Maybe I could make a mini version. But I think scale is part of the cool facter here. I just don't see myself spending a year making one pillow. I can't even get myself to finish my shrug I started this past Spring. Seriously. I am actually getting worried that I will have a different tension and it will look weird when I finally do commit to it. Sigh. They also had some amazing felted bags - but again - we are talking around 2000 yards of fisherman's wool in order to make one. I just don't knit that fast - or much - to make them. But man are they cool!


One thing I did not like in the catalog was the felted armwarmer on page 25. It looked like a wool cast! I imagine they are quite warm - but for some reason that is all I could think when I saw this picture. Felted. Wool. Cast.

The Baby Tree of Life Throw looked pretty awesome. It only takes one skein of Pound of Love and it looks like the perfect gift to give someone with a little human in their life.

It looks like they have a bunch of new yarns too. I will be keeping an eye open at the local stores to see if I can cop a feel of these new yarns. Although I suspect the cashmere won't be found at JoAnn's anytime soon. :(

As for the Knit Simple Magazine - My favorite thing in the whole magazine - and the only thing I REALLY want to make ASAP - are the Little Owls by Susan B. Anderson. These are SO adorable. (Ok - all the toys are really cute - but the owls - COME ON! Super Cute!) I need to find out if any stores in my area carry the Worsted Cotton by Blue Sky's Alpacas. They just have to be made!

I also marked the Faux Fair Isle Set - also by Blue Sky Alpacas. Knit in super bulky yarn - it looks fast and warm. LOVE! Another one to research and track down.

There really wasn't that much else in this magazine that I marked and was WOOHOO about. It was heavy with sheer little wraps for holiday parties that look like a pain to make and are SO impractical in Minnesota. Maybe for a July wedding - But you would FREEZE at a holiday party around here in those wispy little things.

So that is pretty much all for those two.

I am still knitting away on my Diagonal Scarf Pattern that I found on the Double Ewe Yarn Shops web site. I am loving it!

I have a lot of WIP's running around right now and I am freaking out about it a little bit. I guess they are more like UFO's that I sort of ran away from. I really need to get going again on my Shrug a Bug. I have pretty much stalled out on it. You would thing mindless ribbing would be great for sitting in front of the TV - but I just can't get myself to keep going on it. I really need to make it a goal to finish it before the end of the year. I had originally wanted it done by fall so I could wear it NOW - but that is not to be.

Time to knit!

Bad Blogger

I have been a very bad blogger! I think I have convinced myself that it is ok that I am not blogging because I have been busy living - but seriously - if I have time to harvest crops on Farmville on Facebook then I think I have time to blog.

So I have made great progress on my Treadmill afghan over the last ... ufdah...7 months. I have stitched on my 6th row and I have enough squares tucked away that I could have my 7th row on the blanket done and am working on my 8th.

I weighed my squares recently so I could use my yarn more wisely. I weighed a single square and then I weighed 10 squares together so I could get a safe average. Each square weights in around 18 grams - so if I have 20 grams of yarn on my ball I know it's safe to knit a square with. I am having a lot less left overs! Nice!

As for my weight loss - I am hovering around 25 lbs lost. I had hoped to do better than that after 9 months of effort - but I can't seem to stick to the good life as well as I had hoped and I seem to bounce a lot. I am trying to look at this as a much more long term thing - and am looking toward what I will knit when I finally finish this afghan one day.

End of February Check in

Well - It's the last day of February and I am still working out on my Wii Fit everyday and hitting my treadmill everyday. My Treadmill afghan is slowly growing. I took a couple of pictures of it yesterday since I haven't taken a picture in awhile. I have almost another row of squares to sew on already. It's kind of time consuming to sew the squares on - I tend to save them up and hit them all in one shot.

I have dropped around 15 lbs and my BMI has dropped almost 3 points. I am down one size in my clothes as well. :) Feels nice to have more of my wardrobe back again!

I have three complete rows on my afghan now. Each square takes around 30 minutes of treadmill time - 16 squares in a row - so three rows is right around 24 hours of tradmill time. Nice!

I'm Back in the saddle again!

Well - I made my first square on my treadmill afghan today. Again. I believe it was March last year that I pooped out on this thing. We got the dog, Tom lost his job, excuses, excuses....

So. We got a Wii and I have been doing the wii fit faithfully for 10 days in a row for 30 minutes a day. And today I dusted off my needles and headed down to the treadmill and made a square for my afghan.

I know it's cliche to start trying to be healthy again at the New Year - but now that the holidays are over and I have months of ice, snow and cold to look forward to, it just seems like a good time to work it out.

I am trying to not obsess over the numbers but facts are facts. I want the numbers to LOWER. One thing that is a blessing and a curse about the Wii is the tracking of the BMI and the Weight. I love it when it does what I want - hate it when it goes up. (guess that is a du.)

I am having a hard time setting goals in terms of numbers. I want to drop a lot of weight. If I do the math - and I set a goal of 2 lbs a week from now until June 1st - that would be a 52 lb weight loss. That would be amazing and wonderful - but it still would be well above an ideal weight for me. I am struggling with what is reasonable. Should I set my goal at a weight I haven't been since high school? As a woman pushing 40 - that seems a little unlikely. I guess that is why I have been silenced in my goal setting. I just know that I am not healthy right now and I know movement and a healthy diet are key to what I need to do going forward. I feel like I should not worry about where I end up so much as just putting my head down on the path toward healthy and just keep trucking up the mountain. I will know when I get there.