another pattern

another pattern out of necessity....
E is going to the nutcracker ballet with her daddy next weekend. her dress is really pretty, but sleeveless. december nights around here are too chilly for sleeveless.
the color needing to be matched was neither pink nor peach - something between. in other words, not readily found in pre-made shrugs at the store. it is, however, found in lion brand's vanna's choice pink.

so, unable to find a pattern that worked with her dress and in her size, i give you:

The Nutcracker Shrug

size: girls 12
yarn: lion brand vanna's choice
needle: US 10 dpn's & straights

using straight needles, CO 44
k 2 rows, transfer to dpns - 11 ea
join
k in the rnd = 2inches
k2tog 1st 2 sts of ea needle = 40sts
k for 8
k4 k2tog, k4 on ea needle =36sts
k for 4
k2tog 1st 2 sts of ea needle = 32sts
k to desired length.

still working on this.... will post more when i get it worked out

love

for real, how much do you love Ravelry?
oh, the way i can list my stash - what yarn is in which bucket. the love
and the way i can list my projects and the yarn i'm using and linky it all up. love
oh and the groups i can join. *sigh love

i know i keep disappearing, i don't mean to. it's just been a whirlwind of sports and yarn around here! i joined 2 swaps (on ravelry) and am having great fun with that. got one of my pkgs in the mail today. yummy chocolate, coffee and yarn from canada.
really. chocolate. coffee. yarn.
are you kidding me?!? swap from Heaven!!!
i took a few snaps of my goodies. now to convince the littles to let me use the other computer to get the pics off the camera and into our house network so i can use it! i know i can somehow on the laptop, but i don't know how. guess i'll have the hub teach me that. it's just so easy on the pc. little magic slot for the memory card.... there are all kinds of slots on the back of the docking station, but i haven't a clue as to what they are for. i know, pathetic.

also, got my fabulous copy of blueprint crochet in the mail today. straight from Robyn herself. little bonus for making the Christin top that is in it. such fun! okay, that's all i have time for now. promise i'll add the pics later. gotta get. the biggest boy has a baseball game. GO GOLDSOX!

scrappy stripes

just a simple little scarf to use up bits of yarn you have lying around -

LionBrand wool ease - H hook



ch216
sc in 2nd ch from hook and ea across
*change colors
ch2, sc in flo of nxt sc and ea across*
rep * to * twice more
change colors
*ch3, dc in flo of nxt sc and ea across*
rep 3 times more, or more if wider scarf is desired.
add fringe.
matching hat to come...

finished scarf uses 2.75 oz of worsted weight
3.5 inches wide
69 inches long (not including fringe)

i'll make another one to let you know how much of each color was used.
enjoy.

pattern

here is a free pattern for you, from me:

Winter Legs



yarn: Red Heart, Ltd. Strata in Surf
needles: set of 7 dpn's
set of 8 dpn's
gauge: not crucial
size: tween (to fit approx age 9-12 yrs)

make 2.
with sz 7 needles, CO 44. being careful not to twist stitches, join.
k2, p2 ribbing for 2 inches.
k for 2 inches.
switch to sz 8 needles. continue to k in the round until entire piece measures 15 inches.
switch back to sz 7 needles. k2, p2 ribbing for 2 inches. bind off in pattern, loosely.

saturday's sky & macro monday

late in posting my saturday sky.



there is a saying around here, if you don't like the weather, just wait a minute, it'll change. in this case, it took about 20:



i've also heard it said there is no other place in the world where you can look further and see more of nothing than the Texas panhandle. i think these pictures are a testimony to that fact.

saturday was a crazy day. my bro-in-law's mother passed away about 2weeks ago. so this saturday, hubby, myself and the kidlets went with them to her town to help with cleaning her home. well, hubby helped, i went to my grandpa's (lives in the same town). oh man, he is looking so fragile lately. i can hardly take it. it just breaks my heart. i love him so much and seeing him age this way is reallly really difficult. oh yuk, i don't want to talk about this anymore

are you on ravelry yet? i've actually been a member for a while, but just started really looking into it over the past 2 weeks.... wow. i'm in love with this place! so i've been involved in the "ravelympics". i'm doing the WIPs wrestling. challenging myself to get some of my wips completed! 2 done so far and making progress on the next one!
DONE:

fidgety scarf for my dad in moda dea tweedle dee sahara sz 11 needles

DONE:
hush hush project for E


so, i'm learning a little bit with my camera. so i've decided i'm going to start posting "macro monday". you are most welcome to join me. i'm going to get a button made for it. maybe tonight.


this is a wildflower i saw while hiking in the wasatche mts of utah.

boxing

years ago, i attempted to make a felted backpack for E. it didn't work. i put it away in a box. well, we're trying to get the garage somewhat cleaned out and i came across a 'crochet' box during the weekend. i didn't want to just throw it all out... so i stared at the backpack for a bit trying to decide what to do. then i remembered a pair of fingerless mitts i had seen somewhere that someone made out of an old felted sweater.
a-ha! perfect.
so a little cuff as trial...



with a litle surface crochet E
and a cool button for closing:

another project years in the making:



this is hemp flowers necklace (ravelry) by norah gaughan from interweave crochet fall 2005. with a few minor changes. some of the assembly had already been done. not sure what my plan was when i started doing it, because some of the rings/flowers were not in the right place. so i just took the remaining pieces and placed them where i thought they looked best and most similar to the original pattern.
started in oct 2005. finished july 2008
hook: C
unknown gifted wool from elizabeth.
i'm pretty sure it was some sort of a yarn swap...but it was almost 3 years ago...
out of one box and into another. this little baby is on it's way to NYC, where it is a slightly belated bday gift! (okay, 3ish years! lol )good thing she loves me

monday??

what? how is it monday already?

today is my anniversary. 13 years. wow. amazing. how lucky i am. i don't know what i did. everyday i thank God for the life he has given me with my husband and 4 kidlets. everyday.
okay, enough mushy.



satuday night was great fun. we took the kidlets to see Texas. this was their first time to see it - so the lightning storm and all the gunfire had them jumping out of their seats! it was pretty funny.

there was a scene where a new family came to settle... the girls in the family got off the wagon with needles and yarn! but the funny part about this- i didn't notice... my 5yo did! (okay, so he'll be 6 tomorrow--- i've got one more day!) they sat it down to do a little dance number.



as for fiber stuff: i skirted my new fleece. although now i'm wondering how i'm going to scour this one. i've always used my washing machine to soak/spin. but now i have a front loading machine. i'm going to have to do it all in my kitchen sink. it's going to take forever! ugh...



here it is all cleaned and rolled - ready for washing.

around my house

the sky above the Texas Panhandle today



kinda gloomy, but nice enough for the birds!

did a bit of cleaning around the house. hubby pulled out the vaccuum... poor sally!
she hates it!



hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

back on monday!

smell this

if you could smell the deliciousness from my kitchen right now...
mmmmmm. you'd be so jealous!



but no need. you can make your very own batch of peanut butter perfection:
shauna of glutenfreegirl has the best recipe for peanut butter cookies on this planet. they are flourless. so the peanut butter is not all diluted and dried-up tasting. just rich and delicious.

another FO!



are you proud or what!?!
this is the "mind's eye hat" from shannon okey's spin to knit. i kool-aid dyed the corriedale ages ago. i spun about half of it last weekend and made this hat. it was supposed to have been for me. *sigh. it looks much better on the girl. this style of hat is just not right. i definitely need more of a bucket-type. some sort of a brim. boohooo. it's just such a beautiful blue with a teeny hint of pink just every wee bit.

shocking

so, what's a girl to do when she spends an entire week of fun filled days on vacation? coming home and returning to the daily routine can be a bit drab...
so - brighten it up!


i took the girl to the salon and let her add a highlight.



this was her first time to get foiled and heated. she was pretty funny.

i've been really busy on some secret stuff. i wish i could show it all off and tell you all about it, because i'm very excited.

i'm not even sure yet how far it all will go, but let's just say: i've got a collection of patterns i've been working on. that'll have to do for now.

i've been spinning a lot lately. i've got several pounds of this camel colored superwash. i'm spinning it to a worsted weight and plan to make someone a sweater from it. and that's about as far as i can go with that, too.

man, i'm just no fun today.

here is a bit of the motherlode all spun up



isn't it just gorgeous!?! i'm so in love with this colorway - i don't know what it is going to be, but i'm pretty sure it's going to be mine! not giving this one away...

oh, and a picture of E with her hair done



no, your screen is not out of whack - her hair is hot pink.
i know, it's shocking!

stop the presses!

i'm updating - again!

wait... i'm updating - again - with a photo!

wait... i'm updating - again - with a photo - of an FO!



because everyone needs a scarf in the middle of the summer! it's a gift for my sherry. i don't remember when she asked me for a baby blue scarf... or wait - i don't think she ever did? she asked for a baby blue coffee cup cozy. which i did and didn't take pics of. i think i just found this yarn and liked it for a scarf for her. it's a joann's sensations yarn - that i can't find the label for and it's not on the site.. but it's really really soft. wool/cotton blend maybe? the pattern is fidget. i love it! i added an extra button to the inside of it to help with the rolling and keep it closed a little better for her NYC winters.

today is my J's bday. 11 years old - i just can't believe it.

and.... we're back!

whew! the family had crazy fun in utah this past week!
there are SOOO many pictures (ummm 1700 - is that excessive?)! i'm trying to decide which to post - it's not easy!

we left late in the day (J had to have a cast change on his arm) and then drove about 10 hrs and stayed the night in monticello, ut. then finished the drive the next day around lunch. leaving the rest of the day to play at "Boondocks". loads of fun. especially the laser tag and bumper boats!



this is the 'holding room' where everyone gets vested and learns how the controls work before being released into the game room - where i was having too much fun shooting and running from my children to remember to take pictures.

drove to the wasatch mountains park where we camped for several days.
hiked around



and did some High Country River Rafting - which i have no pictures of, because i didn't have the forethought to pick up one of those waterproof disposables. but trust me, it was beautiful and we had a blast. V fell out, hubby tossed X out, E and J jumped out! and our wonderful guide thought it very funny to turn our raft so that everytime we would hit a little bump, the water came in... all over me! we were all soaked. it was great!

i got to do a little shopping at Heindselman's (no website) in downtown Provo and picked up a great souvenir.



Lorna's Laces, 'motherlode' roving and a 3" schacht hi-lo spindle
i also picked up a ball of lime green, sugar'Ncream and a Ghook. i made E a carrier for her water bottle. they boys' coul all fit theirs in pockets. "no fair" that she had to actually carry hers!

the ladies there were lovely and the gentleman was a hit with the kids - he did magic tricks and pulled various items from their ears! it's so wonderful to find a lys that is kid-friendly!! they all got quite the kick out of my Texan accent - all the while i was laughing at theirs, too. so funny how we can sound so different just a few states away.

the next day we visited the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum. it was pretty fun, too. the kids had a good time looking at all the different animal specimens and doing a scavenger hunt. you just don't realize how big a moose is until you're standing next to one! and no, it was not on any kind of platform - crazy!



we also visited the Museum of Ancient Life. yeah, the moose was big - but this turtle!!!



then, we ate at the brick oven. oh.my.gosh. the absolute best pizza i've ever had!



oh, and they make their own rootbeer! which, we bought a 2 liter of, so i'm still enjoying it :D

next up: train ride


the pictures i'm not showing you of this, is me knitting, X sleeping, and everyone else about to jump the railing to get off. pretty cool for the kids for the first 10 minutes to get to ride on a real train.... and then it lost it's magic. so that left 80 minutes of total boredom in 105 degree heat. i'll just say we were glad for it to be over. happy to have had the experience to ride a train, which they will probably never want to do again. not knocking the Heber Valley RailRoad, by any means. they have a murder mystery and polar express event that i'm sure is quite fun....

and then, the spark that started this whole escapade:
the stadium of fire



yes, that's him. glenn beck himself. while listening on april 1st, he made the announcement that he would be the mc for this event and had 1,000 tickets to sell. one of the largest fireworks displays in the nation, the blue man group, glenn beck live.... sounds great, but the real sell:



Miley Cyrus!!
we got lucky and scored 6 tickets! so we sat (or stood and danced)



along with 73,494 other people and enjoyed the show. -- that number does not include the thousands of military family members that were on the field. the whole shibang was broadcast live all over the world on the Armed Forces Network. several local wives were able to see their husbands via satelite (proveded by Beck). it was fabulous. and the fireworks - amazing

next day, went to the Hogle Zoo
isn't this little red panda just precious!?!


and the Living Planet Aquarium



the aquarium was pretty small. but still had lots of really cool saltwater tanks and everyone got to touch stingrays.



turns out, it's a "preview". a ninety-thousand sq ft park is being built. the preview helps to fund it. so that's good enough reason to pay the entrance fee (which wasn't bad, by the way) and see all that we did.

we then drove and stayed the night in moab. i woke up fairly early while everyone else slept. i made some coffee and went outside to spin in the cool of the morning. this is where i sat



this was my view



went to the arches park and walked and climbed around a bit there



and of course, made sand angels



saw the arches



and then, drove home.

a day in my life

a little while back, Robyn asked me to join in the series of Day in the Life
(click for list of others - you'll be glad you did! lots of great crochet designers and insiders!)


wait no more, here's mine:

A Day in the Life
7:00 wake, coffee- 1 point - move around, start to water the grass, let the dogs out, sit on the back porch before the sun hits 105! Wondering why my herbs keep dying. What am I doing wrong? Can't wait til hubby gets my herb garden fence put up so I can have a better spot for them- and actually have them in the ground instead of in pots.
7:15 breakfast for the kiddos. are they all up? quick head count. one missing. go get the girl.
7:30 break up the fight going on about why someone picked the "hard" track on mario kart for the wii
7:45 get hubby out the door for work.
8:00 another cup of coffee-1 point. you know, i really should have breakfast. start laundry. move sprinkler to the other side of the yard.
8:45 another cup of coffee-1 point. still thinking about how i should have breakfast. i think there is some special K in the pantry. milk? questionable. i'll have to check.
9:00 the fun begins. yippee. Today is bathroom day. I get to scrub the toilet. I know. The glamour is beyond belief.
9:15 break from the bathroom. The dryer went off. Time to reboot.
9:30 back to the bathroom. Okay, ya'll - 2 things about cleaning the bathroom in this house.
Ewwww and Why?
you do remember I have 3 sons, right? So you understand my wondering without further details. Because seriously, you don't want the details.
9:37 on the hunt for the dust-pan. Really--- why does stuff like this disappear? I mean, when it comes to me asking them to sweep up something they act like I'm speaking some foreign language. Dustpan? I'm so sorry, mother, we simply don't understand what you’re trying to say to us. You know, the blue hot wheels ramp.
9:39 dustpan found. In the backyard. Because that makes sense.
10:02 finished with the bathroom. Mental note: linen closet chaos-needs to be reorganized. Later. Dryer is done. Washing, still going. Go fold and put away.
10:05 realized I still haven't eaten breakfast. Taking a break.
10:26 okay, ate some cereal-2 points emptied the dishdrainer. washed all the breakfast dishes.
UH OH!
10:28 remembered the sprinkler was still going. Ummm, it got a good, 'deep' watering today. Back to the laundry. The washing machine is done now. Still more to put away from the dryer.
10:41 crum! Broke a nail. I know. Ridiculous. But still! Make a phone call on the walmart shopping card found in a pocket of hubby's jeans. Darn! $0. Check email.
10:48 hamburger meat out to thaw. Mmmmm burgers 'n dogs on the menu tonight. Read a few blogs. Replied to a few emails. Gotta call the surgeon to schedule check up for X. he had his appendix removed a week ago. Doing fabulous. Just very sad that he is not allowed on the trampoline or his rollerblades for another week. The littles are outside enjoying the weather. The backyard is still shaded. They have about another hour before the thermometer hits 100 and the yard is full sun.
11:01 gonna go work on a spring design I've got going. Well, after I water the animals. The littles feed them, but I don't trust them with the watering. The lizards have to be sprayed down with a squirt bottle several times a day... just not a good thing to let them be in charge of.
12:05 hubby is home! Time for lunch. WW calzone-6 points waterX2
12:55 hubby leaving for work again. Going to empty/refill the dryer.
1:15 kick the littles out. Go sit out on the front porch to observe the bike riding and work on spring design. WaterX2
2:30 it is hot out! Thermometer is reading 103! The wind is like turning out your hairdryer. If you've never been to Amarillo, let me tell you, the wind never stops blowing. So it's constant heat, even in the shade. Increases/decreases in stitch pattern and such figured out. Sample of top portion complete.
2:42 popsicle break! (for the littles) water X2 (for me)
3:15 enough time out for a while. Heading in for some books/rest/air conditioner. Thumb through a real simple mag.
4:00 wii time for the littles, I'm going to ready dinner.
5:05 hubby is home! Talk with him about his day. Work on dinner and just mill about with hubby.
6:30 dinner. Enjoy the slight cool down of evening weather (all the way down to 89) with our burgers on the back parch.
7:30 dinner dishes, kitchen tidy.
9:oo send the bottom 3 littles off to bed. J gets to stay up late because some of the neighborhood boys have dropped in to play wii. Watch wii battles, listen to the laughter littered with 'you punk!' 'cheater' 'what do you think about that?!' 'yes!' 'loser!'. All while working on a throw I've got going for a gift.
11:30 kick the boys out. Send J off to bed. Pick up after the all the stinky boys.
12:00 whew! That's about it. To bed.

new camera!

so, i've been thinking alot, really- quite a lot, about getting back to my wonderful little site.
one thing that has been bugging me is the why? of why am i not updating every day? part of it was the camera thing. the old crappy one just made me angry with crappy pics of really great things. so- we finally got a new one about 3 weeks ago... so now why not every day?
well, 2 weeks of a kidlet in the hospital (more on that in a sec) and the other thing is... i have to mess with 2 computers to get pics up. just bugs me. so i ignore it altogether. i'm going to try and get better. and i'll ask hubby if he'll make my pic files "share" from hp to my laptop via our network.
DAMN IT!

this is why i don't update any more!!!
damn Flickr changed. i can't figure how to post a damn picture.
i'm so frustrated!!!
i'm gonna go until this gets figured out.
damn it!