Continuing on....

Okay - well as this week is cutoff and I am WAY behind on my quota...I haven't been able to spend as much time knitting as I'd like but I have made a little progress on a couple of items, so I thought I'd share!

First, here is my Mystery Summer Shawl from Wendy Knits.  I'm working on Clue #3 now - which is the big one.  She released this one just before Memorial Day (holiday in the States) so that we'd have all weekend to work on it.  Sadly, there's no holiday here so I'll be behind...but that's okay.  I'm in no rush to keep up with the others anyway!!

The second item I also have on the needles is another mystery shawl.  All four clues to this one have been release and I think I have until the 10th of June to get it finished.  It's called the Mystery Medallion Shawl by Jen Hansen.  Almost through the 3rd clue right now ....and here she is:

This is also the yarn that I had originally dyed that turned out a little too green for my liking (remember that first skein a few posts ago).  I overdyed it with some blue and this was the result.  Still a little bright - but much more tolerable.  I was going for that verigated look, so mission accomplished!! :)  Anyway - this is a really lovely yarn to work with, so I'll be trying some in the dyepots again after the end of the month (cut off) when I'll have a little more time without the pressure of my quota looming over me. 

So yesterday Brayden and I had quite the day.  We started out at soccer in the morning.  The Navy Recruits won AGAIN.....they haven't lost a game yet this year.  My little Pele scored 2 goals - he so anxiously wanted to call Grandpa last night to tell him but alas, he couldn't find the phone.  (Um, it was in the charger - doh!!).  Anyway, I had dropped him off at soccer and ran to do a couple errands.  I had visited the bank and whilst waiting for my transaction to wrap up, I was scratching lottery tickets.  In my excitement of actually scratching a $2 winner....I proceeded to leave the ATM lobby - leaving my bank card in the machine!! What a putz!!!  I discovered the error a few minutes later, but by the time I'd circled back to the bank, alas...my card was gone!!! GRRR!! Anyway, a nice Salmonarmian reported it to my bank, so the card has now been cancelled and I'm screwed until Monday.  Good thing I had taken out some cash or I'd have been really HOOPED!!! So yesterday proved to be a much cheaper day than had originally been anticipated. 

After the soccer game, Brayden and I headed out to the Mt. Ida hall where our local Spinners and Weavers guild were having a Back to Back event.  This is where a team of seven shear a sheep in the morning - the ladies spend all day spinning the fiber and a couple ladies knit...and by the end of the day they have a sweater.  (From the back of the sheep to the back of the human - Back to Back event - get it???) Anyway - we watched that process for a while and then we headed off to Carlin Elementary School for a Farmers Market.  This was a HUGE event - cars were lined up for miles.  I was actually QUITE surprised at the turnout.  My friend Lori (from Kamloops) was there with her Scentsy business and my friend Peggy was there with her scrapbook store.  Peggy also organized the event and was THRILLED with the reception.  It was PACKED!!!  There was a huge playground for the kids with carnival games and bouncy castles, etc.  M & M's was on hand with food - they even ran out of hotdogs if you can believe it.  There were tons of vendors and lots of great stuff to check out....even a HUGE garage sale in the gym.  We stayed for a couple hours visiting with the girls and then came home - spending the afternoon in our jammies hanging at home (well, I worked - Brayden hung out).  Great day overall!!  

Anyway - not much on the agenda this week.  Brayden will head to Sunnybrae Bible Camp for a field trip with the school and I'll be at home working and hoping to get a few things in the dyepots next week.  On a sad note - the store that I just bought my wheel from in Kamloops announced that she is closing at the end of August.  (*sigh).  Too bad as we just lost the yarn store in Vernon too!!  I'm sure it won't be long before another store opens up...I'll keep my ear to the ground. 

Hope you're all having  a great weekend and enjoying the sunshine that FINALLY showed up today.  I'm looking forward to having lunch on the deck!! :)  Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday Nancy!!

Good morning all!! Just wanted to take a moment to wish my stepmom, Nancy, a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Looking forward to celebrating with you later today and throughout the rest of the weekend!!!!  Hope this is the bestest birthday EVER!! :)

On another note, here's my Seamless Yoked Baby Sweater...... another finished object to add to the pile! :)  I love how this one turned out.  I thought the yarn might be a little rough when I first started as it is wool, however, it was just fine and softened up nicely once I had given it a good soak.  Isn't it cute??

Oh...and I should add that the yarn I dyed last week turned out just a little too green for my liking, so this morning I have overdyed it with some blue to tone it down a bit.  I am anxious to see how it turned out.  Its cooling right now but looks like I still might have a bit of a varigated effect.  I can't wait to see how it turns out when its dry!! I'll keep you posted.

One of the knitting video podcasts that I watch regularly has a weekly "Quickie Knit".  Every week its a different item and they are usually really quick knits made specifically to be completed within the week.  This week I decided to participate as I've always wanted to make one of these little amigurumi characters to see if I'd like them.  Anyway, I thought this guy turned out kinda cute...he's a hamster.  I am going to give him to my neice this afternoon cuz she's into this stuff and well....I just love her!! :)

Here's his little feet and his tail......tee hee...

Hope you're all having a great weekend!!!   Thanks for stopping by!!

What's this you ask????

Well, this would be my very first skein of dyed yarn...that "I" did myself!!!!  Now, I will say a couple of things here.  I was going for the one color verigated look, which I think this will have in the long run.  I thought it best if I only stick to ONE color for my first attempt and thank goodness I did.  Luckily enough green IS one of my favorite colors and that is a good thing as my kitchen is COVERED in it.  Might I add that this is dye....and I am neither organized nor careful when things are running amok!!  Yep, proceeded to dye right onto my counter....! ACK!! Well, I couldn't find any newspaper as "someone" was on a burning spree and burnt everything we owned that resembled paper.  Regardless, I also discovered that I am one smart cookie and used environmentally friendly dyes (which also may or may not have had something to do with our septic system) and therefore the said dye wiped up nicely with just a bit of bleech! :)  Now in this second picture....

the bit of wonderfulness that is behind the skein is a crocheted sock blank.  Yes, I spent a couple of hours and crocheted up this mass of stitches - then dyed it.  Now I will UNravel it all and then wind it into a ball and it will become a pair of verigated socks.  Somehow, if you use more colors (and probably more uniform stitches) this will turn into self striping sock yarn, but for now...I'm just giving the verigated stuff a whirl.  Once these babies are dry, I'll reskein them and give you some more pics.  For now though - I'm pretty happy with the way things turned out.  I can definitely see more dyeing in my future!! :)

Hope you're having a great day!! :)

Drinkin' the KOOLAID...

Okay - so I'm totally excited!!! I actually WON a little giveaway on the Dramatic Knits Podcast/Ravelry group!!!  Soooooooo FREAKING fun!!!  I won a little Loopy Ewe tote bag which they gave out at Spring Fling this year (I'll post a pic when it arrives) - I'm totally stoked!! Even more so cuz I got an email from Celebrity Knitter Steve (who also added me as his friend on Rav)!!  I'm pure giddy with excitement.  Yes, to all you muggles out there - this may seem trivial...but believe me - to me, this is a BIG deal and soooo terribly exciting!! Now....back to your regular programing .....

Meet Halina....

Say hello to HALINA!  Isn't she a beauty??!!!

She had to have a polish name as after all.....she is a "Kromski" (Sonata).  Therefore, I chose Halina, which is polish for "calm" and "tranquil".  This describes exactly how I feel everytime I sit down at her feet! :)  She is a beauty and really LOVELY to spin on.  The gals at the store the other night kept telling me how well I was doing for my first attempt.  Personally, I thought my bobbin looked like a HOT MESS but who am I to judge - these ladies know what they're doing!!  Anyway, I realize these things take time and lots of practice.  I don't expect to knock this one out of the park on my first attempt.  For consolation I just visit the "first handspun" thread on Ravelry and those pictures make me feel a lot better!! LOL!!   I have lots of fiber and I figure if I spin for a minimum of 20 mins a day...I should get the hang of it sooner or later.  After all, there's no shortage of sheep (or alpaca)...they're always growing new fiber so no matter how much of it I screw up...there will always be more!!  I'm sure enjoying it so far!! Might even take in a couple lessons in June...and I have a spindle spinning lesson for sure at the end of July in Portland.  Looking forward to that one too! 

So on another note (since I know the Grandparents like an update)....Brayden is turning out to be quite the little superstar on his soccer team.  I heard one kid say to him.... "WOW Brayden...you're the fastest runner on our team" and then a couple of the parents have commented to me how "good" he is!! (*gush).  He scored two goals this morning and made a couple of AWESOME defensive plays.  We won 6 to 2 this morning and in fact, I don't think his team has lost a game yet so far!! Whooot!!!  I sure am proud of my little goober!!! 

This afternoon, our neighbor came over and helped Wayne survey our property line.  The neighbor is retired, but used to be a surveyor by trade, so he had all the equipment, etcetera.  We're trying to fence our property and so this was a necessity to ensure we knew exactly where the property line was...! You know what they say about good fences making good neighbors...!!  Well, good thing we did it as the line was about 10 feet closer than we thought it was.   Now we have a nice clear boundary but things we thought were on our property ...turns out they aren't!! ACK!!!  Good thing Wayne did the survey BEFORE pruning down some select trees!! Sheesh!! Anyway - he's been working hard today replacing fencing on the bottom half of the property.  Hopefully before too long we'll have a spot all set up for some new cows!  I can hardly wait!  :)   Well thanks for stopping by...more updates soon!! :)

Here we go....

I have the Seamless Yoke Baby Cardigan on the needles.  Started this one a few days ago - playing along with a KAL (knit-a-long) on one of my Ravelry groups.  Has to be done by the end of May, so I'm working on it when I can! :)  I think its kinda cute and it's striping up nicely.  Don't ask me who its for ...cuz I have no idea.  I just like knitting up cute stuff! :) 

Oh...and guess what??? MY WHEEL ARRIVED!!! I picked her up this week.  I'll have a formal introduction for you later ...she'll be coming out of the bag today!! :)

Coincidence????

I think NOT!!!

(Weird eh??)

Blast from the past....

My girlfriend posted these pictures on FB the other day.  I thought I would share them with my blog readers as not all of you could see them on FB.  Just to let you know - yes...I did manage Lady Footlocker at this stage in my life ....AND ...the kid on my lap is now in his mid 20's.  UGH!!!  Isn't that scary!!! Them were some good times!! LOL!!! :)

Finished another test knit....The Mindless Shawl

Here it is...the "Mindless Shawl" test knit.  I'm really happy with the way this turned out.  Not thrilled with the yarn I chose.  It's Noro and really, I have to say...I'm not sure what the hype is all about.  I guess I've just knit with a LOT nicer stuff lately.   Perhaps I'm becoming a yarn snob as this had just a little too much acrylic for my liking.  Oh well, the pattern was nice and that's all that matters.  This would be a real quick knit - perfect for a beginner!  :)  Not sure when the final pattern will be released but I'll be sure to link it when its ready!  Thanks for stopping by!!

I'm a little late....

...but better late than never!!! Happy Mother's Day to all the Mommys out there!!!

Here's what I woke up to on Sunday morning....

Ahhh...my boys really DO love me!! :)  Breakfast and fresh flowers - and they left me alone all day so that I could enjoy the day watching movies (well, the first 4 seasons of Mad Men actually) and knitting.  It was the PERFECT day!!!  Hope you all had a great weekend too!! :)