Knitting Knitwit

New Crafting Toy!

2011-11-03T16:51:00.000-04:00

While researching ball/yarn winders, I came across this: http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/yarn-winder-385997/

Since I had no clue how to use it or what it was even called, I asked my fellow crafting friends. My one crafty friend said it was called a Nostepinde, nystepinne and/or nostepinne. The last way is how I have seen it the most lately. I have found youtube videos and links on how to use it. There are even people that have made their own. Apparently there are different styles of nosterpinnes and a few different ways to wind yarn on them. Most people wind yarn cakes on them. Yarn cakes are the flat balls of yarn, sort of like Peaches N Cream balls. I am hoping to learn how to use this in order to get my stash in control. This is one of the youtube videos that will be my guide. How to Wind a ball of yarn on the nostepinne. The lady in the video just says like a fun lady to be around. One of my kids giggled at the beginning of the video because she said some along the of nice flat balls. Enjoy and as always, Happy Knitting!

Please Help Crafting Sunshine Win!!!!!

2011-08-06T15:34:00.000-04:00

Please Help Crafting Sunshine Charity Win!!!!!

Please help Crafting Sunshine win a contest!! Not only does Bev's site offer tons of free patterns for charities to use but they are offering a yarn prize!!!!! Visit their blog, then click Bev's Country Cottage Blog link. The blog that brings the most hits to Bev's website in August wins!! So simple!!!! Thanks!!

Craft Talk

2011-06-04T08:18:00.000-04:00

Craft Talk is an funny video by Leslie Hall, about getting a little out of control when it comes to crafting. Can you ever get out of control when it comes to crafting? If so, is it really a bad thing?? It's better than going crazy with drugs or other equally addicting habits. A friend shared this on my Facebook profile last year with this lovely comment, "I didn't know you made a video!!" Such love from my friends. Hope you find this amusing & as always, Happy Knitting!

Look what I have learned to do!!

2011-05-29T13:15:00.000-04:00

Look what I learn to do last night!!!!!!!! Yes, it is a crocheted washcloth!!! I have been trying to learn how to crochet for years. People have patiencly tried to teach me, trying learning from many books, VHS tapes, DVDs, crochet related websites, blogs and youtube. Finally, I found a youtube video that helped. My husband is just thrilled I have another hobby that involves yarns! As always, Happy Crocheting, errr... Knitting.

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-05-27T17:12:00.000-04:00

I hope everyone has a safe, enjoyable, and sunny Memorial Day weekend! A special thanks to all of the brave men and women that have served or that are currently serving our country!!

Spring Foward

2011-03-11T17:36:00.000-05:00

I would like to remind you to move your clocks forward 1 hour before you go to bed on Mar. 12 (tomorrow night). It is also a good idea to change the batteries in your smoke detectors when changing your clocks!

I'm back, this time for good! I promise!!

2011-03-06T09:34:00.001-05:00

I had to take from blogging after the move to get everything organized in my new home, in the new school room and the online side of Crafting Sunshine. I am going to jump back in slowly with some knitting humor! Enjoy & as always, Happy Knitting!

My understanding husband can relate to this cartoon.

After being stuck in the house due to all the snow & rain this winter season, I thought about knitting sweaters for odd things around the house. LOL!

Goodness, I have been gone for awhile

2010-11-14T09:46:00.001-05:00

Goodness, I have been gone for awhile. Miss me?? I know you have! lol In the last month or so, my family & I have moved. That is a huge task but thankfully we only have about 5 boxes left to unpacked. Packing, unpacking, cleaning both houses, organizing, and homeschooling the children at the same time was a fun challenge! Knitting kept me sane doing all the fun! I have made a few dishcloths for my kids, worked on two baby blankets, and finished some other projects. The baby blankets are slowing moving along. I really need to crack down on them because one of the babies is already here and the other one is due next week. Sigh.. I wish there were more hours in a day or that I had an extra set of arms. Who I am kidding, the extra set of arms would mean more knitting projects that are half way finished. lol Enjoy the photos of the two dishcloths that I knitted for my kids. The first two photos are the same washcloth, a min pin dog. The true color is seen in the first one, the design is better seen in the second one. The last photo is a Transformer. My son loved it! As always, Happy Knitting!

Pink Saturday

2010-09-11T08:56:00.000-04:00

Today I am going to take a break from the pink to honor all of those that have been touched by 9-11.

I couldnt get this video to upload on here. This is a very touching song/video. Please take a moment to view it. Darryl Worley- Have you forgotten.

Also, here is a photo that my friend has as his facebook profile pic. I liked it & wanted to share it.

No one will ever forget.

I would also like to thank all the soliders out there fighting, standing up for the USA!!

Next Saturday will be pink again. If you want to join in the pink fun, please visit our pink host at: http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/

Fair warning, I am back!

2010-09-08T13:28:00.000-04:00

Fair warning, I am back! Can't wait to start looking thru everyone's blogs. It will take awhile to get all caught up. We took about a 14 road trip (with 2 kids & 2 dogs, yes, we are nuts) to visit my mum and my little brother. I guess I should stop calling him little now that he is 22 yrs old and towers over me. lol Everyone had a nice visit. The kids loved spending time with my mum and their uncle during pool time, roasting marshmellows, and swimming under the stars. I do not have many photos that I can share on here from the trip but here are two of the view from my mum's back yard. She lives on a sound.

The kids have started another school year. They school at home thru a public online charter school. It works for our family & we love it! My son is in 4th grade & my daughter is in Kindergarten! Hopefully this will be an awesome year!!

Labor Day 2010 was fun for us. We went to our city's parade. Huge hit! Then off to visit with my grandparents. The kids love going to their house. I helped my grandma scan some photos & burn them onto a disk. It was nice looking thru black and white photos!! I do have a photo to share from the visit. My grandpa made this little gnome door & windows! Isnt it cute?? He is pretty talented when it comes to woodwork.

On the knitting front~ I have been working on baby bibs(I know shocking) for all my friends having babies. Also on a few items for Crafting Sunshine. A group on Ravelry featured Crafting Sunshine for their Sept. charity. Keep out this post for more information! As always, Happy Knitting!

Will be back in full force on the 1st!

2010-08-19T12:34:00.000-04:00

Sorry everyone for not posting lately. We are very busy with getting things ready for the school year, end of summer yard work & housework, prepping for the ALS Walk, running Crafting Sunshine, and tons of other events and chores. I miss looking at everyone's blogs, blogging, and down time right now! Everything will calm down around the 1st of Sept. Can't wait to get back in touch with all of you in the blog world around then!! Knitting is the only thing keeping me sane right now. As always, Happy Knitting!

New GEICO Piggy Commercial

2010-08-11T08:55:00.000-04:00

Okay, I know this has nothing to do with knitting but I had to share anyway. My kids are amused by this commercial. It's cute. Well, it's cute the first time but after your kids try to reenact it while in the van or around the house, repeatly, it is no longer amusing to this mummy. LOL!!

I guess you would love a knitting update. I know you will just not be able to go on with the rest of your day without knowing what I am woring on. On the needles is a shawl for Crafting Sunshine, that should be finished this evening. Then working on blocks, and a lap blanket. All of this is done with donated yarn! Thanks to everyone for supporting Crafting Sunshine!! It warms my heart & as always, Happy Knitting!!

2010-08-07T10:58:00.000-04:00

Sorry ladies. It has been awhile since I have posted. I have been busy getting my charity up and running. It is going very well!! People are showing an interest & helping! It warms my heart to know others care about others and want to help!! If you have a minute, please check out my charity's blog, Crafting Sunshine.

IT'S PINK SATURDAY!!! My pink today isn't truely mine. It's pink yarn that was donated to Crafting Sunshine. It's just so pretty that I had to share it. This photo doesn't show the lovely pink and how awesome it looks against the brown in the yarn. Trust me, it's drool worthy! Please visit Pink Saturday's host at http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/!!

Another part of Pink Saturday is to pick another PS blog that you enjoy reading. Today, my pick is Maison Mutt. Her post today is about the World's Longest Yard Sale and her awesome finds! Please look at you other dog related post!!

On the knitting front: I have made my first chemo cap!!! Currently working on a second one. Click here to see two pics of the first one. The local children's hospital is in need of chemo hats. So, if you feel like making one, please do. More information here.

I am off to catch up & read about weeks worth of everyone else's blog posts! Happy Pink Saturday's Ladies & as always, Happy Knitting!!

Happy Pink Saturday, I'm a Winner, & Knitting Update.

2010-07-30T12:37:00.000-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday, Ladies!!! Pink Saturdays are hosted by How Sweet the Sound. My pink for today is something I won! Happy dance time! The blog contest was held at Fishing and Wishing. The blog has daily contest. Check it out sometime. The prize was three custom homemade soaps from SassySoaps1184. She has a Etsy store at SassySoaps1184. Her prices are pretty reasonable, I think anyway. Two of the soaps were pink!!! They were a Pink Strapless Corset Dress Soap and a Pink Rose Soap. The third soap is huge! It's a water lily!! All three smell lovely and came in cute little bags. I'm sharing blurry pics because I couldnt get them to turn out correctly. Grrrrr.... at the camera because it couldn't be the user's fault! lol SassySoaps1184 has way better pics on her page.
Thanks to Fishing & Wishing & SassySoaps for the prize!

On the knitting front- I have finished a few more bibs. So hooked on the bibs right now, that my husband said he is starting to get worried. hehehehe No more babies for us. I think he forgot that we have tons of pregnant friends. At last count, we have about 42 babies coming into this world this year thru friends and family. That might be why my husband makes sure I drink bottle water instead of the local tap water. LOL!!! Also working on a cat blanket for Crafting Sunshine. The yarn was donated to them as well. As always, Happy Knitting!!

Opinion on background & knitting update

2010-07-22T14:49:00.000-04:00

Ladies,
Thanks for all the links for backgrounds!!! I actually went thru all of them and didnt fall in love with any background, yet. What do you think of this one? Is it to bright? I would love your opinion since you will see the background more than me.

On the knitting front. I have finished a baby hat for Crafting Sunshine. I also made one baby boy bib last night. Hopefully will finish another on tonight. The bibs are going to a friend from highschool that is having their second boy soon. It seems like everyone around here is having babies. I refuse to drink the water right now. LOL!! Will post pics soon of the hat & bibs. Happy Knitting or whatever you do :)

2010-07-21T13:26:00.000-04:00

I found this note on my blog today. Booooo!!!!! I love my background. Oh well, there are worst things in life. The link isnt working correctly, so I cant pick new design from them. This blog may be naked for a few days intil a new background can be found. Of course it will have to be something that involves pink. Maybe I will one of the blogger preset backgrounds instead of letting my poor blogs just sit here, naked for the whole world to point and laugh at. :)

My Charity, Pink Saturday, Knitting Update!

2010-07-16T17:24:00.002-04:00

There has not been any new posts on here last week because things have been a little busy here.Why you ask? Well, because I started a crafting charity called Crafting Sunshine!! It's brand spanking new!!! Please take a minute to visit it's blog at http://craftingsunshine.blogspot.com/ to learn more about it. Show some love by leaving a comment and/or become a follower!! Plese let me know if you would like to feature the charity on your blog! Enough shameless plugging, for now. lol

Happy Pink Saturday fellow Pinkies!!!!!!!!! Today my pink is really my daughter's pink. It's a pink football that my husband bought when we found out we were having a girl. On the back of the football, there are places to fill in all the birth information, like name, weight, length, etc..... To me, this seemed like a very weird keepsake when we saw it in the store but my husband LOVE it. This is the only photo I could get to turn out. I will try to take a better pic to replace it later. Can't wait to see everyone else's pink!! Want to join in the pink fun, head over to How Sweet The Sound's Blog.

On the knitting front, still working on the new pink/purple blanket that I mentioned in my last post.Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. And as always, Happy Knitting!!

Pink Saturday & Knitting Update

2010-07-09T13:48:00.000-04:00

Pink Saturday is tomorrow!!! I had so much fun visiting other blogs and seeing them get their pink on!!! (My 9 yr old told me to type that. lol) Want to join in the pink fun, head over to How Sweet The Sound's Blog! My pink is this sign that was a gift from my anti pink friend, Teri. I love the saying!!!! You can say it to so many different people for so many different reasons! I have received some strange looks and funny answers from my male friends when saying this to them. My husband included. lol Happy Pink Saturday!

Now for the knitting update:

The kids and dogs haven't been able to play outside for the last few days due to a small heat wave here in southwest Ohio. Which means more knitting time inside.!!! I have finished a few items. I made a hat for a Christmas gift, from this pattern, using Lion Boucle yarn. Easy pattern but the yarn & I didn't really like one another. It was a little hard to knit with at times and kept breaking while I was stitching up the seams. Another item off the needles was a shawl to match the suntop that I made for my daughter. Any excuse to use one of my favorite cotton yarns, Peaches & Creme. Lastly, I sadly report the death of the horrible purple baby blanket. It just wasn't turning out correctly. I am now using the yarn in a new baby blanket pattern. This one will be half pink and half purple. Please keep your fingers & toes crossed that this one turns out because the sweet baby girl this is for will join the world in early November and I have other items that I would love to knit for her. As always, Happy Knitting!

Roll brim hat style

The matching shawl

The start of the pink half of the blanket. Just realized that it looks like the shawl in this picture but it doesn't in real life.

Pink Saturday!!

2010-07-03T00:01:00.000-04:00

Ok Ladies, guess what I came across?? A lady that started an event called Pink Saturdays on her blog. Here is the link to her blog post explaining Pink Saturdays!
Pretty simple, you post something pink. This is so perfect for me!!! I sooo love pink!!! Any shade and pretty much on everything! You will be surprised to know that there are no pink walls in my house or anything big for that matter. My husband *gasp* really isn't into pink. My best friend is into purple & cant stand pink. Really, how can anyone not like the love and happiness that just seems to seep out of pink??? My daughter is thankfully okay with pink now, but said best friend has tried to take her to the dark side of purple! lol My pink is a doll that my auntie in England had made for me while I was visiting her one summer. The photo isn't showing how pretty it really is. In the third photo, the doll is standing with a gnome. The lady of Pink Saturdays suggested we might want to add some red, white, and blue to our post because it's America's Independence Day this weekend. My little guy is my red, white, and blue. lol If you enjoy pink, why not join in the fun?? You could click on the link above or the button on my right side bar. And as always, Happy Knitting!!

Just A Peachy Day!

2010-06-30T21:39:00.000-04:00

Nothing special went on today which means it was just a peachy day!! The weather took a break from raining, the grass & ground dried out, the temps drop to the high 60's/low 70's, there was a slight breeze, and a tons of sun!!! I helped the kids make a play tent in the backyard. The boy claim his side a clubhouse for his tribe of airbenders. The girl said her side was a science lab with a loo and a kitty house. They really amuse me! After a few hours of quiet play, all heck broke lose when the boy's tribe decided to declare war, with a hose, on the head kitty & take over her lab for evil experiments. It ended with two kids, sitting in their rooms, one soaked mummy who became a human shield for the head kitty (sort of not by choice) and the dismantlement of their tent. Honestly, I almost enjoyed taking down the tent. Thought of Momzilla came to mind. lol The worst part of all, I swear my dogs were laughing during this from the other, safe, side of the yard. Traitors. During those few precious hours of peaceful, well now looking back at it, more like the eye of the storm. So peaceful & calm, then BAM!! lol I was able to finish knitting this pretty round dishcloth that I started last night and take a few photos of the cool clouds that were above my house. Really today was a very good day. My kids & I were able to just hang out, relax, and be silly with one another. That makes for a peachy day! Enjoy the photos and as always, Happy Knitting!!

Summer Top is finished!!!!!

2010-06-29T12:00:00.002-04:00

I am so excited to share this with all of you! The summer top is finished & it turned out wearable!!! My daughter loves it!! She has already asked that I make another one, just longer, to make it a dress. Here is the Ravelry link to the pattern Child's Sun Top. My daughter picked out the pattern, type of yarn, and of course the color. The yarn was Peaches & Creme,Shades of Denim. I was a little surprised by her color choice because normally "blue is a yucky boy color". She really likes the feel of Peaches & Creme. That might be because that is my favorite current yarn to knit with. lol I had to made the back come up a little higher for her comfort and add a few more rows to the straps because they were to short to be able to tie. I think the pattern is awesome but some people will need to change the rows for the straps to match the child's body. No biggie really. I also had trouble with decrease the yoke on the back but was able to figure it out for the front. I did a little happy dance over that! Now I have learned how to sort of decrease & increase, cast on with just one needle & yarn, what should

how to do next? What would be the most useful to learn? I might have to look around on Raverly, some other blogs, and youtube to figure that out. As always, Happy Knitting!!

Today is "RUSH DAY" !!

2010-06-25T13:10:00.001-04:00

Today is "Rush Day" for the Sisters in the Bloggerette Sorority! Karen from Some Days Are Diamonds is the host of the sorority!! The Rush project was to do something with the sorority photo below. Only rule was to include a photo of ourself! Since my printer is working agaisnt me right now, I did my project on the computer with photos from my backyard. Hopefully the printer will decide to like me again and I can print and share another rush project soon. I cant wait to start looking thru all the other sisters's projects! And as always, Happy Knitting!!

Dairy Farm, Yarn & Teapot find, and Knitting Update

2010-06-22T18:04:00.000-04:00

Since it was been a week since my last posting, (I know all of you are having withdrawal from my blog lol) here are a few tidbits. This could be a little long, grab a cup of tea, coffee, hot cocoa, or whatever floats your boat.

My friend, Teri, and I decided to be brave & take 6 kids on little field trip. 4 of the kids were ones that she watches during the day, the other 2 were mine own offspring. The fun filled field trip (ha, say that 5x fast) included a trip to a muddy playground, that we quickly changed into a mini nature hike to keep the kids from turning into MudMonsters, which ended up on a muddy trail. The two younger kids, 2 & 3 yrs old, had to be half dragged thru the mud so they wouldn't stink & never be heard from again. Okay, it wasn't that bad. That hike was my idea, I have had been ones. lol After the relaxing walk, we had a little picnic. For some unknown reason there was a horrible funky odor in the air. Made for a sweet eating eviroment. lol The littlest boy kept saying, almost half asking, "We eat outside." He was very amusing by this! In order to escape the mystery odor, we visited the local dairy farm to visit the cows & goats. Yes, we are normally bright people & yes, we know we were really just trading smells but the animal aroma was tons better than the repulsive picnic scent . The kids enjoy visiting the animals and eating yummy fresh icecream. If you are ever in Southwest Ohio, you should check Young's Dairy There are other things to do there, batting cages, putt-putt, driving range, and the list could go on and on. There were only a few faceless pics that I could share.

Next thing to share is an impressive thrift store find! We stopped at this thrift store because they always have great deals on children's books. My little book junkies needed their fix. Guess what I saw hanging on hooks above the shelves? Yarn!!! Little bags of yarn! These bags had different groups of yarn in them for AWESOME prices! One bag just had one skein of chenille yarn in it for $.49. How cool is that?? One of the bags had two sets of knitting needles and some buttons mixed in with the yarn. Score!! Oh it gets better, the mega bonus was that everything in the store was 25% off the marked price. Here are some pics of the all yarn that came home with me for $6.00.

My husband found a little tea pot at the thrift store as well. A monkey in a clown outfit. It is ugly, not painted correctly, heck slightly scary even but I LOVE it!! lol It fits right into my small collection of tea pots. . Of course you are going to be subjected to some pics of my collection. Here are my favorites. All but one have been found at yard sale, church sale, etc... Nothing is better than finding a great deal!

Ok, last thing. Yes, the end of this long blog post is coming!! It's an update on the summer top that I spoke about in my last post, Our Sunday& Monday. The back is finished. I sort of messed up the decreasing in the yoke but it hard to notice. Since it's the back and my daughter doesn't ever sit still, no one else will be able to notice!! Here are two more pics. I am off to work on the front of the top. Happy Knitting!!

Our Sunday & Monday.

2010-06-15T16:21:00.000-04:00

Just a few little things to share with you. Sunday was a lazy family day. We really needed a day just to spend together. We watched the movie, Avatar. The movie was ok, would have been better if they had used less potty words. My husband & I watched, Drag Me to Hell, after the kids went to bed. Honestly, it was a horrible waste of time. Do bother to rent it, even if you have netflix. :)

Monday was a great day. My son had an occupational therapy session for his hands. He hit an AWESOME milestone while there & we couldn't be prouder of him. I couldn't stop praising him the rest of the day!! We ran some errands after his session. One of those was stopping to pick up some flowers for a family friend's birthday. My husband decided it would be better to get a big tomato plant that came in pot, that didn't need to be replanted, instead of flowers. He felt that the tomato plant would be more practical that flowers that would die after a week or so. I try to disagree, saying that our female friend would rather have flowers. I was wrong & my husband was correct. This. never. happens. Mark it down now. lol Our family friend was thrilled with the tomato plant. Our kids were so happy that she was happy!! They love visiting with her, her husband, their dogs, and the fish & frogs that live in their backyard pond. Plus, she spoils them with attention and love. Our friend made a big deal out of my son's milestone from his session. That made him feel so special! Even tho it was her birthday, she treated the kids to ice cream. The kids love ice cream from this little Mama and Pop shop, call Dixie Dairy Dreem. Here is a pic of it. Pretty yummy stuff.

Here is a pic of the flower that bloomed in our friend's pond. My daughter was loved that it was pink! My son said it had bloomed because it was our friend's birthday. He gets the nice mushy side from his loving dad. :)

On the knitting front, I have learned how to cast on with just one needle. I always thought it would be hard to learn, so I never tried it. Boy was I wrong, okay second time in one day. lol It was pretty easy. Also learn out to increase without leaving a hole!!! To celebrate I took my daughter to pick out some yarn to make this shirt for her.Summer Top I was a little shocked by her choice in color. It was blue. She never picks blue because it's a "super gross boy color". Her choices usually involve any shade of pink( esp. hot pink), purple, pink/brown combo, anything that shimmers or has glitter mixed in. Side note- knitting with glitter covered yarn that your daughter made just for you is brutal on the hands, needles, and the wearer of the knitted item. lol I hope the shirt turns out correctly. Heck as long as it turns out some what wearable around the house, she will be happy. Wish me luck & Happy Knitting!!

Next Hat Victim

2010-06-11T13:55:00.000-04:00

Some of you might remember my candle hat from Candle "Hat" . In that post I said that there might be other special hats for random things in the house to annoy my husband for the crazy remark. One of his dogs became the next hat victim. hehehe I found this pattern on ravelry a-hat-for-a-cat, it's also on this blog for those not on raverly ( not sure why you haven't joined yet, you are missing out on the fun) http://miss-sara-ann.blogspot.com/2010/02/hat-for-cat.html.. It's a pattern for a cat but the victimize min pin, Rocky, wouldn't know the difference. He actually fell asleep shortly after I place it on his little head Rocky seem to actually enjoy wearing it. My husband was not amused that his male dog was wearing something that almost looked like a bonnet. Do you think that will teach the husband not to make crazy remarks about my weird special knitting project ideas?? Probably not, so what will be hatted next??? Happy Knitting!

1 Month Anniversary Giveaway Winner is.....

2010-06-11T12:24:00.000-04:00

Fabric Strips Winner is...

Min: 1

Max: 9

Result: 2

Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Number 2 was Sara from http://www.lazyknitsandpurls.com/

Congrats Sara!!! Please send your mailing information to aezoey on ravelry. Thanks to everyone that entered!! Happy Knitting!

Plants from a 5yr old point of view.

2010-06-10T17:36:00.001-04:00

Here are some pics of the starter plants I mentioned a couple post back. These came from a high school friend of mine, Becca, who is very into her garden. She put some quick labels on them. The label pics are a little blurry but I have to share them with you. Here are the pics and what my 5 yr old daughter thought they really meant.

Label: Burger Stood for: a type of tomato

Daughter Thoughts :real hamburgers were going to grow.

Label: Banana Stood for: Banana Peppers

Daughter Thoughts: excited to grow real bananas & thought she might be able to talk daddy into getting a monkey, because after all, we could feed it our own bananas!

Label: 4th of July Stood for: type of tomato & when they would be ready.

Daughter Thoughts: FIREWORKS!!!! She was actually dancing around & cheering. When I informed her of the truth, she just said, "That would have been so cool, Mummy, right?" lol

Label: Pumpkins

Daughter thought: "What does this label really mean?", she said it with a little disgust, like she couldn't trust those mean, misleading labels anymore.LOL! I wish I could have got a video of her talking to share with all of you. Pretty funny. I told her that these would actually grow pumpkins. She just looked at me. I told her that Ms.Becca thought it would neat for her and her brother to grow their own pumpkins for Halloween. Another little happy dance for her! Now the daughter wakes me up very, very early to check on her plants. She was claimed them as all hers because she looks more like a farmer in overalls than her brother. lol He just rolls his eyes at her. Such love can only exist between siblings. I am sure there will be tons of pics to share as these grow. I will try to get one with her sporting her "farmer" overalls. Thanks again to Becca for sharing with the kids!!

On the knitting front, working on finishing up a few small projects. Even the horrible purple-ish blanket. Happy Knitting!

Beautiful Blogger Award----Thanks a bunch!

2010-06-08T22:00:00.001-04:00

Thank you for the nomination, Sarah from http://studentknitter.blogspot.com/2010/06/i-was-given-beautiful-blogger-award.html & http://graceysgoodies.blogspot.com/2010/06/and-id-like-to-thank-academy.html.

Once you receive the award, you must share 10 things your blogger readers probably do not know about you. (That should be easy since I just started this blog last month.) Then pass the award onto 10 other bloggers. That is going to be hard since a lot of the awesome blogs that I read have already received the award.

Top Ten Countdown Of Semi Interesting about me (love Letterman)

10. My first word was Duck. Which is pretty funny considering that I am now scared to death of birds. My poor mum wasn't happy with that being my first word. She was so hoping it would be some form of mum. Here is a pic of my special duck & I.

9. I am English but raised in the United States. My mum was born & raised in England. Even has the sexy English accent as one of my husband's friends said. I now look at the friend differently. My mum & sexy shouldnt be used in the same sentence. LOL! My kids call me mum as well, which I am proud of.

8. I lost my father on Jan 5th, 2009 because of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. It is a horrible disease that shuts down your body slowly & painful and basically traps your health mind in a useless body. This was one of the most heartbreaking times of my life. I now help out the local chapter of the ALS charity with their facebook page. We are just trying to raise awareness of the disease and help other families that are dealing with ALS.

7. I love to read. We have 10 bookcases in out house filled with books of all kind. We actually do read them, sell/give away, and then restock. I refer to my kids as little book junkies.

6. I love animals. Well except evil birds. lol I have had dogs as small as a Min Pin to as large as an English Mastiff. I really love cats but the husband & the son are allegric to them. They are a little demanding about liking to breathe. The nerve of them. lol When I moved in with my husband, my cat stayed with my parents. Some of the other normal pets that have lived with us are, hamsters, hermit crabs, and fish. I even had a bird when I was younger. It probably died from my fearfull screams, poor bird.

5. I first met my husband when I was 15 yrs old at a new job in '96. I hated him and he clearly felt the same way towards me. To make a long & boring story short, he switched stores, came back to the store,(still hated one another), I went to England for 6 weeks to visit family, came back, we hit it off. We have been together since then.

4. I love to talk in horrible painfully sounding accents for my dogs or to my kids. My husband does the same. It's embarrassing to admit but I am running out of things to share. lol

3. I do not like to be touched, especially hugged. I can handle hugs from little kids, my own kids, and my husband but that is about it. Sort of sad that I cant get past it.

2. I have two wonderful & perfect kids. Isnt that what every good mum is suppose to say? They really are interesting and amusing kids. I guess, I'll keep them. lol

1. I use to be a vegetarian, with the label of lacto-ovo. Basically means no meat but eat eggs & dairy products. Still can not eat meat on a bone. I am thankful that my husband is very understanding about this. He removes meat off of bones for me. Pretty good guy:)

Here are the 10 new nominations in random order.

1. Eskimimi Knits http://eskimimiknits.com/

2. Nancy's Arts, Crafts & Favorites http://nancymccarroll.blogspot.com/

3. Daily Dose of Deuce http://dailydoseofdeuce.blogspot.com/

4. Lizzie's Loose Ends http://lizzysends.blogspot.com/

5. Some Days are Diamonds http://somedaysarediamonds-karen.blogspot.com/

6. Knit Fiber http://knitfiber.blogspot.com/

7. {A 1/4 TO} Living Loving Listening Learning http://aquarterto.blogspot.com/

8. The Knitting Princess http://theknittingprincess.blogspot.com/

9. It's About Me, Amoena http://its-about-amoena.blogspot.com/

10. That Yarn Store http://thatyarnstore.blogspot.com/

Okay, I'm making it 11.

11. Two Cables and a Frapp http://twocables.blogspot.com/

All lovely & interesting blogs. Enjoy!

Also, Happy Knitting!

June KAL, Book Sweater, Smart Daughter :)

2010-06-07T22:01:00.001-04:00

Here is a pic of the June Dishcloth KAL. The saying on it is, Happy Father's Day. I honestly could not figure out what the pattern was, never thought of turning the dishcloth to see, just kept thinking I messed up the pattern some how. I think it would be easier to see in a darker color, like the group suggested. This color is what I had on hand in my stash. Who doesn't want to use up some of their stash when they can?? Couldn't really get a good pic of it.

I also made this book sweater or pocket thing for my husband. When ever he takes a book to work with him, it gets banged around in the car, on the desk, just being carried, smacked in to walls/door jams, dropped, etc... Love my husband but I think some of my grace, or lack of grace rubbed off on him.

We worked on the yard most of the day. My poor daughter loves to dig in the dirt but I told her no because of her infected finger. It is slowly healing. I'll spare you another nasty finger pic. You can thank me later. lol She was not thrilled by the thought of not digging! This is what she came up with, a plastic glove and a rubber band. How could I tell her no now???

The kids also were given a bunch of starter plants by a family friend today. They were so excited about this! I will tell you about that tomorrow.

I am off to try to knit a baby bootie. First time wasn't pretty. Hopefully it will go better this time. Happy Knitting!

Bloggerette Sorority

2010-06-06T11:12:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite blogsNancy's Arts, Crafts & Favorites posted about a Blog Sisterhood that is going on at this blogSome Days Are Diamonds. It basically a group of ladie getting together because of their love of blogging,crafting, etc... The group is going to be called, Bloggerette Sorority. Isnt that cute?!? Anywoo, please click on the second link to learn more about it. You have to "rush" to be a part of it. The Rush ends with a Sorority party on June 25, 2010 And make sure to click on the first link to visit an interesting blog that I enjoy reading.

1 Month Anniversary Today!!!

2010-06-04T10:00:00.001-04:00

A small giveaway to celebrate a small blog anniversary, 1 month! lol The giveaway is a bag of fabric strips to be used for knitting, or whatever you want. I did open the bag to turn some of the strips for the pic. Like I said, small giveaway. Leave a comment with your email addy or ravelry id. The random drawing will be next week, if you retweet or repost this, let me know and you will be entered in twice. Happy Knitting!

My dogs, Knitting, and Tomorrow

2010-06-03T19:36:00.000-04:00

I was trying to take a few photos of the kids & the dogs yesterday. I swear in every shot they turned their heads. All four of them! Stinkers! Since I do not post face pics of my kids, here are the dogs. Zoey, the bigger dog, is very loving and very, very calm & mellow. The other dog is Rocky. While he is loving, he sure isnt mellow! He ran around the yard for a full 30mins before he realized that no one else was playing the same game that was going on in his head! I know that Zoey just sitting there, laughing at him &shaking her head while saying, "What an idiot!".

I did finish a dishcloth that I was making for a friend that need a little pick me up. Not going to post any pics of it until she receives it in the mail. Also, on day 3 of the KAL dishcloth. Still can not tell what the pattern is yet. Hopefully it will show more tomorrow.

Tomorrow's post will be a little different. Check in to see why. Happy Knitting!

Monthly Dishcloth KAL

2010-06-02T17:59:00.000-04:00

I found the neatest group on yahoo!! It is a group that does a dishcloth mystery KAL twice a month, on the 1st & 15th. (KAL = knit a long). The leader of the group emails about 10 rows of the pattern daily for about 5-6 days. The only shared information about the pattern is what color yarn will work best & needle size. The first one I joined in on was the Mid-May KAL. It turn out to be called Sea Waves. That is the following photo.

Turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself. It was very interesting and fun knitting without knowing what you are actually making. Very different, in a fun way. Right now the group is on Day 2 of the 1st June KAL. I cant wait to see what this one will be & to post a pic for all of you. I am probably going to start turning these into bibs near the end of the patterns. I am so hooked on turn dishcloth patterns into bibs right now!! Here is the link to the yahoo group. MonthlyDishcloths They also have a group on Ravelry.com Ravelry Link Come on and join either group! Happy Knitting!

Movies & Gross finger

2010-05-30T20:30:00.001-04:00

Not a lot of knitting took place today. That makes for an unhappy mummy. Hopefully I will be able to get some knitting in tonight while my husband & I watch a movie or two. We are going to watch, "The Men Who Stare as Goats" for ourselves, then screen the movie, "Avatar" for our son. He is only 9 yrs old and has been begging to watch the movie. We will see. We also had a fun little trip to UrgentCare this afternoon for my daughter. Nothing major & she is okay. She has an infection in her pointer finger. It got completely worse overnight. The finger doubled in size and then had two red lines that ran down each side of her finger. Of course this doesn't happen during normal doctor office hours. The spunky 5yr old is on a combination of two antibiotics and now understands why she shouldn't chew on her nail. Gross but true. Here are a few nasty photos of it because I know you are very interested in seeing them. LOL! Off to knit, hopefully. Happy Knitting!!

Bibs again!

2010-05-28T16:50:00.001-04:00

Two more bibs for the triplets that were mentioned in an earlier post. I am really enjoying making bibs right now. It's very addicting!! Here are the links & credits for the patterns, Baby Bib 1 & Baby Bib 2. The second set of photos are of one of the triplets modeling the bibs. I put a smiley face over his face out of respect for his family & of course him. He is a cutie, so are his sisters! As you can see the small infant bib is slightly big on him. Him & his sisters are just 7 weeks old, so they have loads of time to grow into the bibs. The second photo of the little guy cracks me up! I was trying to snap a photo of him with the pug bib(Pug for earlier post) but he kept "hugging" it. I gave up on trying to take photos. If anyone has any simple, fun, or a favorite baby bib pattern, please share! Happy Knitting!

Baby bibs!!

2010-05-22T23:42:00.002-04:00

Some close family friends of ours welcomed into their family, preemie triplets on Easter Day!!! All of them are healthy and home already!! Of course, this just gives me three new wonderful reasons to knit!! It turns out that there are about 35 babies born or to be born this year between family and friends. I am sooooo not drinking the water around here! ;) Since I am trying new knitting projects, I decided not to knit a bunch of baby blanets, but instead bibs. The top photo is the first one I have ever made. Used this pattern Simple Baby Bib Simple Baby Bib. The second one is based on that pattern but instead of knit all rows, it was changed to Row 1:* K1, P1* repeat to the last stitch, K1, Row 2: K across. The last one is of a Pug. The triplets's grandparents have a pug. Maybe I should say, they are owned by a pug and also a minpin. LOL! I used this dishcloth pattern PugPug and added the bib strap to it. I held up the top bib to one of the triplets this past weekend, before the strap was stitched to the bib. The bib was still a little big, but they will grow into them in no time. I'll try to make sure to get a pic of them modeling the bibs this weekend. Happy Knitting!!

Shawl & Cleaning out leftover yarn

2010-05-17T22:17:00.001-04:00

I finished the play shawl for my daughter. It matches a headband that I made( & blogged about) earlier for her. The arrows are to point out the holes that the YO (yarn over increase) made. Not the best job, yet not the worst job on it. My daughter wants to pick out some interesting yarn for her next shawl. She said something pink and super girly. Coming from a 5 yr old tomboy, this could make for an very odd yarn choice. lol

I wanted to use some of my little leftover yarn balls. To my daughter's delight, she received a bunch of bracelets and a new headband. Good day to be her, bad day to be left over yarn. LOL! The last photo is over a candle topper. It's basically a little hat for the glass topper of a Yankee candle. This candle sits on the bottom shelf of my coffee table, that I rest my feet on while knitting. Sick of looking at the boring candle, I made it more appealing to the eye. Now my husband thinks I am a little crazy. I cant believe he is just now figuring that out. ;) Might just have to start knitting little hats for other items in the house to see what he has to say about that. Once he has me committed, I just blog from the funny farm. Happy Knitting!!

Yarn Over Increase

2010-05-14T11:42:00.002-04:00

I am already bored with the horrible purple baby blanket. That didn't take long. lol It was suggested that I finally learn how to do a correct yarn over increase. I found an easy shawl pattern that calls just for that. Here is the pattern from ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/designers/knits-with-cat-fur and the youtube video that she posted with the pattern. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOr0bj1ZQ2Y The video was very helpful!! I finally figured out what was going wrong with my yarn over increase. Instead of knitting the next stitch, I was doing a purl stitch. It has only years of doing it incorrectly. There was a little happy dancing going on here yesterday. lol I am also posting a progress photo of the shawl. Hopefully it will be completed soon. Happy Knitting!!

Baby Blanket-Horrible Purple

2010-05-13T12:03:00.002-04:00

I have been working on this baby blanket off and on for a long time now. I usually love knitting baby blankets, thinking of the new life that will use it but this one has been hard to knit. I really think it's because it's main color is purple. I can't stand looking at that color while knitting. The pattern is called, 19th Century Baby Blanket, that I found online years ago. It's an awesome pattern, very easy, usually very quick to knit, and works with most yarns. Here are two photos of it from last night. You can see how the evil purple hides the lovely pink in the blanket. lol The pink is actually brighter than the photo is showing. I might have to start another project and let this one sit again, just for awhile. Happy Knitting!!

The pink looks white in the photo but it's actually a lot brighter.

Preemie Baby Hat- Hearts

2010-05-11T11:36:00.006-04:00

Here is the first hat that I have actually completed!! I used size US 2 1/2, 3mm circular needles with a circumference of 9". Those are tiny and a bit of a challenge to use. I took a photo of them on a keyboard so you could have a reference of their size. The hat has hearts around the brim. It was made out of very soft, off white/yellowish yarn. This hat is going to be donated to Dayton's Children's Hospital. My goal is to make a bunch of hats for three hospitals in my area that has preemies and full term babies. I really enjoyed receiving a knitted hat for both my children when they went home after their births and would like for someone else to have that joy. Here is the pattern for this hat. http://carissaknits.blogspot.com/2007/07/preemie-hats-for-charity.html There are a few more adorable preemie hat patterns there as well. Thanks to Carissa for sharing her patterns!! Happy Knitting!!

Dalek

2010-05-11T11:21:00.004-04:00

I finally finished the Dalek dish/washcloth for my mum. It turned out ok, not as well as I had hoped. The evil bobbles fought me every step of the way. Sometimes they turned out nicely and other times like a blob of yarn mess than a cute little bobble. Oh well, at least I have now learned how to do them. The first picture is of a Dalek from the show, Doctor Who. The second one is the dish/wash that I made. Here is the link to the pattern. http://www.entropyhouse.com/penwiper/who/dalekcloth.html The lady has picture of how the cloth should have turned out with her pattern. Now, I am encouraged, maybe foolishly encouraged, to try a baby hat. Happy Knitting!

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-08T19:15:00.000-04:00

A little knitting fun for Mother's Day! It's called The Last Knit. It's about when knitting becomes an obsession. Enjoy!

Cheers!

2010-05-08T17:52:00.000-04:00

I finished 2 more dish/washcloths for my mum. Yes, she does enjoy a glass of wine from time to time ;) The first one was neat but the word CHEERS shows up 10x better in the photo than it does in person. . Here is the pattern/credit for that one.( I found it first on Ravelry.com) http://tawniesknits.blogspot.com/2008/09/cheers.html The second one is just of a simple glass. Here is the pattern/credit for it. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wine-glass-cloth I had to cut out a few rows at the end because I was running out of yarn. Weird that they both came out from the same skein but the coloring is different in the pics. Happy Knitting!

Front

Back

First Mini Bobble Attempt

2010-05-07T12:24:00.000-04:00

I decide to be adventurous and attempt a mini bobble. There are so many cute dishcloths/washcloths and baby related patterns that call for mini bobbles. Normally I would skip those patterns and just feel like a knitting knitkwit but that all changed because my mum asked for a Dalek dishcloth. It is a character from a show, Doctor Who. The only pattern that I could find on Ravelry had mini bobbles. http://www.entropyhouse.com/penwiper/who/dalekcloth.html Shudder.. sigh... but as most of you know, you will do pretty much anything for your mum. Even when it come to a scary yarn bobble. lol After many failed attempts of trying to figure out the tricky mini bobble on my own, watching two youtube videos, and a few colourful words later, I had one semi good looking mini bobble!!!

My first mini bobble (Please hold the applause lol) It's hard to see but I am proud of it. The rest of the photos are of a tea cup dishcloth with flowers that are mini bobbles. Next project will be the Dalek. Wish me luck and Happy Knitting!!

Best Knitting Book

2010-05-05T15:37:00.000-04:00

Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book (1989)

By Vogue Knitting Magazine

(This publication is out of print)

I was asked what my favorite knitting book was yesterday. Easy question to answer. The above knitting book, aka My Knitting Bible, is wonderful resource for anything and everything about knitting. I use the stitch dictionary and the correcting errors chapter regularly. My copy was a wonderful gift from my Aunt Sue in 1995. Although the book is out of print, it can be found on ebay and other similar selling sites. Hope you will have the pleasure of reading and using it.

Happy Knitting!

Dishclothes/Washclothes

2010-05-04T17:43:00.000-04:00

I found so many free patterns for some neat dishclothes/washclothes on Ravelry. I decide to be brave and try one. Oh my goodness, fair warning, knitting these are so addicting!! This very slow knitter can complete one in a day. Here are the first few that I made.

Skull for my son Kitty for my daughter

Apple for a teacher

Winnie the Pooh look a like

for my friend.

When I showed this to my husband, he said, "Oh gross, that is a dirty dishcloth." I said, "What? Where?" He laughed and said, "It has poo all over it." He thinks he is oh so funny. lol

Credits for the patterns:

skull: http://www.blackrayne.com/pages/skully.html

Kitty: http://www.blackrayne.com/pages/kitty.html

Apple:http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/knitted-apple-cloth

Bear:http://lilknitofthisandthat.blogspot.com/2008/03/freebie-day.html

Happy Knitting!

Lil Bunny

2010-05-04T17:33:00.000-04:00

Very easy and very quick. Made the first one for my daughter out of left over baby yarn. Still need to add the tail. Since I always have yarn left over from the baby blankets that I make for my friends, going to use it to make a matching bunny. Finally something cute to make out of that left over yarn!! The link to the pattern. http://josoandsew.wordpress.com/tutorials/knitted-bunnies/ This lady even has how to step by step photos! Those photos were very helpful for knitters like me! Happy Knitting!

Headbands

2010-05-04T17:21:00.000-04:00

This is a super simple pattern and super cute!! My daughter loves them, apparently her stuff animals do as well. And of course I used Ohio State colors! Go Bucks!! This pattern is called Pretty Bow Headband by Anna Bushong (found on ravelry.com) Happy Knitting!

My daughter is modeling the first one that was completed!

Sleeping Bags- 1st project

2010-05-04T17:09:00.000-04:00

My first project off of Ravelry.com This was a quick and easy project. My daughter is using the red sleeping bag for her beanie baby animals. My son is using his blue one for a special beanie bear. This would be an easy pattern to change for a larger doll/animal. Here is the link to the pattern. http://www.knitlist.com/01gift/barbie-sleeping-bag.htm Happy Knitting!

2010-05-04T16:34:00.000-04:00

I decided to start a knitting blog. Mainly because it seems like everyone else on Ravelry.com has one and it seems like fun. Hopefully it will be . We will see, wont we? lol Happy Knitting!