Sometimes the Truth Hurts

I was at the doctor last week since I was feeling poorly.  I had a kidney infection, this I knew since I have suffered from these things before.  So, I ventured forth into the doctor's office to get the pee test done.  Well, bad news...they suspected I had diabetes.  Oh shit! 

I found out yesterday, yep, it is true and I have type 2, which unfortunately, runs in my family.  So, I now have the drugs, the blood glucose test meter, strips, and the lancets with the pain giving device to poke my finger or body parts.  I asked for one that wouldn't hurt my finger tips since I do knit professionally.  I need my finger tips for my needles. 

I also have a round of prednisone for the asthma that is once again out of control.  My right lower lung has been hurting badly.  My doctor decided to do the prednisone to stop any pneumonia from taking hold.  Great.  This raises blood sugar but, it has to be done.  I am finding out slowly what spikes my blood sugar and right now, it isn't great.  I took my fasting sugar this morning and it isn't pretty.  I guess after I get it all under control, life will be better. 

Today I have to wash clothes, which sucks.  I have no more clean clothes, they are all on the pile in the hamper.  It is like the leaning tower of clothes. 

I need Gary to fill my bicycle tires up since I have plans to go riding today as my form of exercise.  I get to do that now as well.  I wish I had a heated pool because I would be in that sucker swimming laps.  Wouldn't that be great?  I would rather swim than anything else.  If I lose enough weight, I can get back into my wetsuit and go swimming in cooler temps.  :) 

Right now though, I am just tired.  Maybe as I get the hang of this disease, life will be better.  Hopefully.  The only thing we have left when the chips are down is hope. 

Happy New Year. 

Knitting Into the Wee Hours

Yesterday, I sat down and cast on for a hat for my sister, Melinda.  I had promised her this hat for a while.  My first attempt at it resulted in a small hat which I gave to Maribeth, it is really cute.  This time I decided to go ahead and knit the one for her again.  I finished it at 2 am this morning but, it is really sweet looking.  The yarn is a custom paint and it is called Drop Dead Gorgeous.  It turned out really well.  Pictures will follow later when I get my camera out and snap pics. 

Today I have plans to cast on and knit myself a hat.  I need one to match my cape.  :)  I was working on the sock but, put it down.  I am in the middle of the heel flap and I was bored.  I put it down with my count listed on a sticky note. 

Yeah, it is that kind of week over here.  I have to bake cookies at some point and head off to the grocery store for cheese, salad, and other things.  We are going to be hopping from house to house this year.  I have cupcakes for Maribeth since she loves chocolate, they were supposed to be for our play date, I am a good Auntie and I come bearing gifts.  Not my problem if she is sugared up when I leave, that is her Mom's problem.  :D

I have to dig out the marble board and get it ready with my tin of marbles for Saturday.  This game has been in the family since we were kids and I have the original board.  We do some serious marble playing in my family.  We play cut throat marbles.  We play UNO pretty much the same way.  We are all pretty competitive when it comes to games and we still to this day can't play Risk, a right hook or two have been known to come across the table and the board goes flying.  This is from the women in the family, the men aren't as bad. 

I thought of taking my dominoes as well.  I love playing 42 and it is time to teach my nieces and nephews how to play.  We learned to play the game from my Aunt Cecilia.  I have no idea how she had so much patience.  She did and she taught all of her nieces how to play.  I still play recklessly and I have had people threaten me with a spoon or two.  Oh well...not much you can do if you are stuck with the last draw and no two tiles match. 

It is fun though and we also need to teach them how to play Tarok.  I have my deck and I know I gave my sister, Cheryl and deck a couple of years ago.  The last time we played, we were in the game for 8 hours.  It was incredible. 

We do have fun together which is what my parents wanted.  We also look out for one another.  I guess most people don't realize how much if they don't come from a big family.  Being the youngest of 8, I sit and watch it all go down.  You never know what is going to happen between us. 

I hope your memories are as wonderful as mine are in this great time of year.  I hope you all have a very festive Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays for everyone else.  Be safe.  Happy New Year. 

Knitting on Something I Love

I am finished with the Joe socks.  Yay!  I never want to see those things on my needles again.  I am sending what is left fo the skein with the socks so, my niece, can darn them when the time comes.  He is her hubby, she can darn his socks or learn to do it.  I am not doing it for him.  I have my own husband's socks to contend with if he doesn't lose them. 

I have yarn galore sitting on my desk right now.  I need to knit socks with it all.  I just have to find the time.  I admit, I am taking my time around here lately. 

What is left in the shop is it for this year and until I get my sales tax and rendition in for the new year, I am not painting until this is taken care of.  I had to pay out the wazoo for last year and I have learned my lesson big time, I am not going to go through that one again. 

I have plans for today to paint two skeins of yarn for hats.  I am knitting two hats for two special people.  I have one hat that needs to be started for my sister, Melinda.  She wants a beanie flap hat.  Can't say that I blame her since I need to make one for me. Great thing, the beanie flap, it is a nice hat pattern that will be keeping my ears warm this year. 

Saturday was the chapter Christmas party and we had a great time.  We went to Brookwood Center in Brookshire, Texas and had lunch at the cafe.  It was fabulous.  Then we went shopping afterwards, I spent some money but, it goes to a great cause, everything they sell goes to the people who need it.  It is for people with disabilities.  It is a neat place.  I highly recommend it.  Make your reservations and head out to the cafe if you are in Texas and near Brookshire.  You won't regret it.  I have seen the reviews and they are 5 stars across the boards and I know why...yummy. 

I am working on another pair of socks right now in the circle sock pattern, yes, I have knit if before but, I do enjoy this pattern very much, it always shows off the yarn I am working with. The yarn I am using right now is Elann's  Dankai.  I chose to use the one with purples, blues, pinks and browns.  It is gorgeous and I can't wait to take pictures of it to show it off.  :) 

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. 

Avoidance Syndrome

I am avoiding the Yeti sock right now.  I turned on the tv and started watching QVC.  This place can sell a starving man anything at all.  I had to leave because I nearly added that Junior's dream cake to my cart.  I had to stop myself.  No cake, I must be good.  Cake is my downfall. 

Yesterday, I kettle dyed a skein of yarn for myself in a gorgeous red.  It is a custom color that I don't think I can repeat.  I am totally out of the base dye and the accent dye is plentiful around here.  I have plans to knit myself a beanie flap hat.  I need one for my cape.  I have a red cape that screams the need for a hat.  I thought a tam would have been great with it or a beret but, those two items leave my ears exposed and me being 41, I need my ears covered since the last time it was cold, my ears were exposed and I managed to get an ear ache.  Yes, I feel like a child.  You would think with my long hair, I would have been warm...nope, I had my hair up in a pony tail. 

Hubby took me out for lunch today since I am feeling so much better although, I get tired, really easily.  I need a nap.  I haven't taken one yet since I was watching the tv.  I did cut out a pattern for another zippy pouch but, I misplaced my interface pattern.  I need to find it and cut out my interface and get moving on this thing.  It is going to be a Christmas present for a friend. 

I think it will be well received. 

I was digging through my fat quarter stash and found some very nice fabrics.  I need more zippers though to do what I want to do.  Isn't that always the way?  I never have what I need around here.  I have plenty of thread but, not enough zippers.  I have to make a trip out for zippers at the fabric store.  I love the nylon zippers, I hate the invisible ones, they blow. 

I had to put Bootsy back into the cone of shame since he kept licking his paws.  He licks them bloody.  It drives me insane when he starts chewing and licking them.  He will have to have the ointment put on them again.  The stuff is completely nasty but, it works.  We are on our second tub of it. 

I hope Gary is almost ready for dinner because I am hungry. 

Knitting for a Baby Yeti and Other Things of Interest

This is the Joe sock, or the baby Yeti socks, huge freaking feet. 

This is my icy water shawl in progress.  It is sitting by the wayside while I finish the Joe sock. 

Gary has spent time making preserved lemons with all of the lemons around here.  We have more on the tree.  So many more. 

As you can see, we have been busy over here.  I was still feeling gross so, I sat down and started knitting and I managed to turn the heel of the Joe sock, and I am now on the leg portion of the sock.  I can't wait to see the end of these things. 

The Icy water yarn is being knit up into a shawl, I can't remember which one right now, I have put it down while I finish the big sock.  I love this yarn, it is so amazing, it is a pure merino wool and it knits up like a dream.  So incredibly soft.  I am using Susan Bates Silvalume needles on this one because I could find them in my needle bucket and the points are sharp which is perfect for lace.  They were cheap, too. 

The preserved lemons are Gary's work.  He is a pro at this already.  This jar has cinnamon sticks, crystallized ginger, and bay leaf if I am not mistaken.  I have quite the gourmet living with me.  He is a great husband.  I wouldn't trade him in. 

Enjoy my pics this might be it for a while.  I am completely worn out since I didn't have a nap at all today.  That nap makes me feel so much better. 

Knitting Slowly

Right now I am working on the Joe sock, if you are thinking this sounds familiar, yep it is.  This is the second sock for my nephew, Joe.  He wears a size 14 shoe.  I have learned a few things about myself with this particular pair of socks, I am never going to knit another pair of these in fingering weight yarn.  It is just taking me forever.  I am bored out of my mind right now and my eye keeps wandering to other gorgeous yarns that I could be using to knit myself socks. 

I have to admit it...I am thinking if people want socks from me, they are in for a serious disappointment.  I am not knitting socks for anyone other than myself for a while.  I am going to be selfish and use this talent for me.  I washed my merino/silk butterfly fields socks and oh my...they are so comfy.  I reblocked them after I washed them and I am seriously in love with this yarn all over again.  No wonder why I adore knitting with it.  I come back to it time and again. 

I had ordered in some sewing patterns, I belong to a pattern club where I get a nice discount on patterns.  I have several patterns I want to do for myself.  I will need a trip to the fabric store when I am feeling better. 

I learned something new yesterday...did you know that lavender was at one point in time used to disinfect hospital surgeries?  It has amazing properties that I never knew about until I read an article about it.  It can cure many things.  I never knew this.  I have a bar of lavender soap that I adore and well, it is helping my poor old asthmatic skin.  I have the dry skin that most asthmatics have unfortunately.  My lavender soap is helping get it back on to a decent track.  Cold weather has serious effects on my skin, making it far worse than normal.  Lotions don't work on this skin.  I hate feeling greasy and sticky from them. 

I also learned that pleather has to be sewn with a teflon presser foot and a fine point needle.  The article I read basically said do not use the leather needle since it will leave great big holes in the fabric.  I had to order in the presser foot so, I can sew my rain poncho.  The presser foot was cheap but the shipping was completely outrageous since it cost more than the foot.  I have plans to zing the seller on that one.  What they fail to realize is that I ship things and I know how much it costs.  I don't like being screwed on postage, it just ticks me off.  I don't over charge on postage for my packages, I charge what the post office charges. 

I am also ticked off at family members who don't tell people they have moved until a Christmas card shows up with the new address on it.  I point blank shared my displeasure with my brother in law on this.  If he doesn't want us to know where he lives, then he damn well doesn't deserve a Christmas present and from now on he won't be receiving one from us.  Neither will his kids.  Think about that and put that in your pipe and smoke it. 

Now, I am going to go sit and knit.  Maybe it will cheer me up, I need something to do that.  Maybe Ody will decide he needs me to snuggle with him. 

Why?

What a day...I went and dealt with a chapter function which was a huge success.  I am so proud of the ladies in my chapter.  Way to go! 

I was driving home and I couldn't figure out why the person in front of me on the feeder road was going so damn slow.  I creeped up on the bumper and realized it was Gary in front of me.  I passed him as soon as he moved over to the other lane.  He was driving like an old lady.  I was going home and doing it in my usual fashion, fast. 

I came home, I made myself a sandwich with some incredible soft cheese, I found at the grocery store last night...it was expensive but, so worth it.  I made it with a peppered ham that we had bought.  I picked two fresh lettuce leaves out of the garden for my sandwich and toasted my French country bread.  It was incredible.  We are going to have to go buy more of that cheese.  :) 

I also made myself a cup of hot cocoa, it is peppermint flavored with bits of candy cane in the mix.  I found it at Wally world and it wasn't cheap but, it is so damn good that I plan to go buy more of it.  I put in a soft mint stick, add whipped cream to the top and have at it.  It is killer good.  It is by Stephens.  I looked on line and it isn't cheap, I will go back to Wally world to get more of it on Monday.  I have to mail 12 boxes of packed items for our military.  Yay! 


I have a recipe for all of you turkey lovers out there...when you have so much leftover turkey that you can't eat another sandwich, try this out.  It is Turkey Verde Enchiladas. 

This recipe works best if you have fresh flour tortillas, I buy mine at my local HEB. 

Take your turkey and make sure it is off of the bones, cut it into small pieces or shred it.  Set aside. 

You will need a can of cream of chicken, do not add water, a tub of sour cream, the 8 ounce size works well for a small batch, double your cream of chicken and sour cream if you have a big family.  One bag of shredded Mexican cheese, and two cans of verde enchilada sauce. 

Mix your cream of chicken soup, with your sour cream, the shredded cheese, save some of the cheese for sprinkling on top of the enchiladas, add 1 can of verde enchilada sauce, and your turkey, mix it together, well. 
Take a baking pan, and grease it.  Turn your oven on to 350F and preheat it. 
Grab those flour tortillas and start spooning the mixture into the tortilla, wrap it around the mixture, and place the seam of the tortilla on the bottom of the pan, grab another tortilla and do the same, when you go to add it to the pan, gently push it against the first one, and continue adding filled tortillas to the pan and gently pushing the previous one until your pan is full.  When you have the desired amount, take the second can of verde sauce and pour over the enchiladas, then top with cheese.  You can also save some sour cream and put it on top of the enchiladas, then add the sauce, and the cheese is always last. 

Bake in your 350F oven for 45 minutes covered with aluminum foil. 

We made these and the recipe made enough for 4 people easily.  It works well with cooked  chicken breast instead of turkey.  If you are using chicken breast, you will have to boil the breasts in salted and seasoned water before adding to the mixture. 

We had to do something with all of our leftover turkey and this is a great recipe for just that. 

Enjoy!  Have a safe and wonderful weekend. 

Shopped Out

Today I was sent a sale for a cricut cake machine mini for $29.95.  Just so you know where to go, when the time comes.  They area also offering free shipping.  This machine normally sells for $179.95.  This is a steal for this particular machine.  It is the smaller machine than the big boy, I own.  I haven't had time to play with my machine as of yet.  It was on sale for the past couple of weeks for $49.95.  It normally sells for $449.95.  Yeah, that kind of sale. 

Yesterday, I went with my sister to get the last Christmas presents for the nephews and my feet when we were done, were tired.  I managed to get what I needed and then some.  I was on a peppermint kick yesterday.  I managed to get some peppermint hot cocoa, burned my mouth on a free cup of coffee, they were trying to sell the Keurig machine and well, it works nicely and quickly, I just had to realize that the smell of that coffee was so amazing and incredibly hot.  I asked for one of those machines for Christmas.  :)  I can't wait to play with it. 

Last night, I wasn't cooking dinner since I was worn out.  We were going for Mexican but changed to Vietnamese at the last minute and hit the Pho place.  They have the best pan fried dumplings as an appetizer, I had the bun.  Gary had the fried rice.  Lately, we have been having a lot of Cuban.  I love this one place that sells it over here....amazing food. 

Yarn is still on sale in the shop but, will be ending at the end of December or when I completely sell out of what is in the shop.  No more yarn will be coming into the shop.  I don't have time with the Christmas season and I can't afford to pay for new yarns in the shop, tax time is around the corner and the least amount of painted yarn I have, the better. 

Time for a nice sandwich with fresh lettuce out of my garden.  Yummy! 

I Turn to Yarn For Solace

I am bad, I admit it.  I am also an enabler for people who need yarn and they don't know it.  I am on an email list for yarn companies that have quality yarn for cheap.  Yep, I am one of those knitters.  I also crochet for those of you who don't know it.  I spin, and weave as well.  I am busy.  Now to find the time to work with all of this luscious yarn.  There is the problem.  I never seem to have enough time in my day to do what needs to be done. My hubby tells me that I don't know how to manage my time.  I guess he is right, I am not sure though. 

My next project to take care of has to deal with my Sprigg's triangle loom.  7 feet of pure wonderment.  I fell in love with the thing when I saw a friend had bought one.  I had to have it.  It is a nifty item, just be aware that it takes up some space when it is all together.  It has a huge stand to go with it.  Although, from what I remember, it is not included in the loom price, it is extra.  Of course, you can always make your own if you are nifty with a saw and lumber, sadly, I am not.  I am not allowed around saws, with my luck, I would cut off my arm.  I like my arm, thank you.  I pulled out the yarn that I am going to need to weave with, it just has to make it's way downstairs and then the fun will start, I have to wind each ball of yarn into a center pull ball.  I get to spit splice it together for convenience.  I know some of you are asking...what is spit splicing.  It sounds gross and I guess it is but, it works.  Wool has scales on the shaft of the hair and if you apply the right amount of spit and friction, it will stick together.  The process is simple, take the end of the yarn, spread out the individual strands and do the same with the other end of the new ball.  Place both spread ends together in the palm of your hand and spit on them.  Now rub furiously together, making sure both ends are placed together, add more spit until they are together and won't pull apart.  Ta da, you have yarn that is now joined.  It only works with wool. 

Every year about this time, I get interested in lace and shawls.  I guess the cold makes me want to knit one.  I get part of the way through and I get bored.  Yep, I have that problem with sweaters, too.  I need excitement in my knitting.  Then of course, there is lace shawls via crochet.  Crochet is quick.  If you are ADD, this is the best thing, it goes fast and you can still use gorgeous yarns, it just takes more of it. 

I was perusing that free knitting/crochet site, the one that starts with an R, and found some gorgeous free crochet lace shawl projects, ooh, I can do these, I thought to myself.  Now, I just have to find my crochet hooks.  There is the problem.  I used to have gorgeous Brittany birch crochet hooks...notice, I said used to...you see the problem is Ody.  He thought they were his chew toys and ate them, along with several pairs of new shoes.  He even ate a pair of 20 year old leather shoes that were my favorites.  I wasn't happy.  I bought them in college and they were on sale and so comfy, they were my dancing shoes, I always wore them out dancing at the bars.  My party girl shoes are now dead.  Grrr! 

So, I have to dig around and see if I can find a crochet hook or two to make something wonderful.  If you want to know if I have finished the Joe sock...Nope.  I am procrastinating on those and I do need to find his yarn and start the second sock.  It is just so big and boring.  I wanted him to try the sock on before I continued with the second one but, I don't think it will happen.  He lives on the other side of town and I am not going that way anytime soon. 

Anyway, today I found myself reading an email about crochet hooks, books, and yarns for cheap.  I even contemplated purchasing Addi clicks lace needles and cords...after looking at the price, nope, it wasn't going to happen and besides which, I have some Susan Bates silvalume knitting needles that have some killer points on them, they are cheap and they will work great for lace.  I have to use a nice bandage on my finger for those since I have holes in my skin from the points.  I get lazy when I knit sometimes and push with my finger.  We all do it.  I just have to put something on my skin to protect the finger from that point in the second layer of skin...painful. 

Back to my story, I found new steel crochet hooks, a book about crocheting lace, and some yarn.  The yarn is for knitting since it is a mohair blend in the most gorgeous blue.  I have plans for it for me.  No one else will be benefitting from that yarn. 

I admit, I keep the really good stuff for myself.  I pet it, and let it sit.  Now, I do work with nice yarns for hats, mittens, etc.  My sock yarn is primo stuff and I use it as well.  If you are going to knit socks, use the best yarn you can afford, it makes a complete difference.  Seriously.  If it is icky, it isn't worth knitting with and wearing it is a bad experience.  Really bad experience. 

Now off to the races, I have so much to do today, the worst being I have to finally finish laundry.  I have been dealing with it for 3 days now.  Sigh.  I don't want to deal with it anymore than this. 

Get Your Hands Off Of Me

I experienced something on Black Friday that I really don't ever want to happen again.  I was at the Wally world sale and let me tell you first of all those people are complete idiots and should have done it differently.  I have never had to defend myself in a damn store against people trying to get at Wii games.  I managed to get three games, one for Melinda and two for myself at the sale price.  I had to help the small lady next to me, when a woman picked her up and tried to forcefully move her and then myself when some dude tried to move me out of the way.  I am no light weight and when someone is trying to force me away from my spot, I am not a happy camper.  I told him to back off and when he didn't, I gave him the backwards thrusting elbow and told him to unhand me or I would drop his ass.  When I finally got out of the mess, I gave him a nice parting gift, a nice stomp and grind on his foot.  He deserved it and so much more.  The jerk. 

After the hell of Wally world, we went back to Melinda's to unload her vehicle and then head to our third stop, we had hit the local craft store to get my 1/2 off Christmas tree, I purchased a pre-lit tree for a nice sum.  It was about 60% off when all was said and done.  I was completely happy about that one. 

My last stop was the Kohl's sale.  Melinda had to be at two others stores at 5 am and 6 am.  I was going home.  I wasn't going to buy anything at Kohl's.  I came home with a birthday present, some jewelry for me and some presents for my sisters.  I even came home with a straw basket since I had to use it to put my stuff in.  It worked out quite nicely.  That basket will be going on future jaunts when I need it.  I got it for half off.  I came home and went to bed.  I will say this, it was so freaking hot in all of those stores.  Melinda was almost throwing up in the parking lot after we got out of the store, I had some sweet tea in her van and I promptly emptied the cup, I was thankful that I brought it with me.  I needed it.  I was pouring sweat in the store, it was completely awful.  I made it home and was so exhausted, I dropped into bed, I had to get up earlier than planned and take a much needed shower, I couldn't stand myself.  I was rank.  At one point, I told Gary not to move or I would throw up on him. 

This past week was not a good one over here, I had the stomach virus that is going around.  It starts off with a killer headache, then comes the vomiting, after you puke, the diarrhea starts.  Poor little Maribeth has it.  It took me three days to get over it.  It was completely awful and extremely draining.  I felt so bad.  I even had fever with it.  I spent my week sleeping under a quilt on the couch.  I couldn't stand to sleep in our bed. 

Last night was not a good night over here, come to find out our dogs are covered in ticks.  The backyard is loaded with them.  So, when  the yard dries out, Gary will be spraying the whole thing.  We had to run to the store and get tick solution for the dogs.  Ody and Boots had it applied to them.  We have to go get some for Napoleon today since he weighs more than either one of them.  The stuff isn't cheap, either. 

I will also be purchasing oranament hooks. We don't have enough of the things and I need some.  I am doing my tree in reds this year and bought the cutest cardinals for my tree.  I even found more ornaments in my office and the guest bedroom along with the angel.  She is so pretty.  I can't wait to top the tree with her.  Gary will be the one taking care of that. 

Poor Melinda has cat troubles, her Siamese kitten loves the tree and spends her time in the middle of it.  Now, she knows why I believe in plastic ornaments, I know, glass ornaments and cats don't mix. 

Right now, I am tired and I have a sore throat.  Ugh.  The weather is the culprit, one day it is hot and the next, we have ice.  Who wouldn't get a sore throat from that? 

I haven't had time to knit.  I have been busy cleaning my home.  I have to get something going already since I have to make my Christmas present for the family.  I know what I want to do, I just have to find the time to take care of it.  I will be the one making it before we have to leave for the party.  Yep, that is pretty much going to happen if I don't deal with it. 

Zippy Pouches

I have been sewing zippy pouches lately.  I love this pattern because it is so verstile and the best part, I can use fat quarters and scrap material to make them.  The only thing I have to go buy is the zippers and thread in the right shades.  I am getting quite the line up of thread. 

I made these two for my niece, Maribeth.  She had chosen a pretty pink daisy fabric but, I was in the fabric store and came across this fabric and some others so, I bought them just for her.  The bottom pic has butterflies in a darker color than the fabric.  I was hoping it would show up better than it did. 

I Missed that Sale

I just realized something, I missed a sale by a bath and body company that I used to love.  I loved her products until I realized that she is so popular that I can't even buy her products.  So, I stopped creeping her shop.  Now, I received an email asking me why I have left purchasing items from her.  Well, if there are no products to purchase, how can I purchase them?  I moved on to other things anyway and since I bought that book on how to make my own body scrub, I decided to forgo buying her stuff...not that I could anyway, since it is sold out all of the time. 

Oh well...moving on.  I am currently sewing zipper bags.  My sister, Melinda gave me a huge amount of scrap fabric to make the bags with.  They are simple bags and very cute with just the right fabric.  My only problem, I need more interfacing and zippers.  So, I am off to the fabric store today to get those zippers and interfacing. 

I have discovered something, I hate the invisible zippers.  They are a pain for me.  Maybe as I get better at sewing I will discover a like for them or still an intense hate.  We shall see.  Why the sewing bug you ask?  I have a machine, I normally use my fat quarters to make sachets to keep the moths at bay, if you own wool and lots of it, invest in good quality lavender...it does make a difference.  Do not use the stuff that has lavender oil in it, it will ruin your wools, use the good natural lavender flower heads, they are the best.  I found a lavender farm outside of Austin, Texas that does mail order.  She sells the flower heads in bulk.  I used to order from the UK but, that wasn't cheap.  Besides I like the idea of keeping American's employed. 

The yarn sale will end on December 31, 2011.  My shop has yarn in it, what you see is it.  No more will be coming to the shop.  I have no more to sell.  After the new year, more will appear as I get back to work painting. 

Sharing Time

I am grumpy.  I will admit it.  I have no idea why...could be I am just sick of all the bullshit going on right now.  Driving home the other night from a trip for chicken fingers from the spicy chicken joint, I was appalled at the driving going on.  For once, I wasn't zipping around in my car like an idiot.  I was actually doing the speed limit because I was tired.  I noticed things I normally don't notice like the crazy damn fools driving like they were all hopped up on crack.  I started to look around. 

This looking around has continued for a while now courtesy of this night of driving.  What the hell is wrong with people?  Do the holidays cause this or is this permanent?  People are driving like they have no sense whatsoever in their brains.  Weaving in and out of traffic, cutting people off, and just being really obnoxious. 

SIGH!!!

We hit the grocery store last night to pick up our items for Thanksgiving.  We are staying home this year and we aren't headed out to someone's house.  I am rather looking forward to staying home with my hubby.  We are going to do a normal sized meal, nothing huge and the main goal was to use what we have around here.  Our Thanksgiving meal that we bought the last items for cost a whole whopping $56.  Not bad, I say.  The most expensive thing was the hamburger meat for the dressing.  I have a unique recipe I use, it was given to me by my Daddy.  He told me I could cook which was a shocker to me since I pretty much can throw anything together and to be told by the man who made the best food in the world, that I could cook was high honors indeed. 

Melinda wants me to go shopping with her for the deals of the year, I said yes, I will be wearing my tennis shoes for this one.  I already know.  I have one more gift to buy and that is it.  No more.  I am making the family Christmas gift for the women in the family, Gary is on his own as to what he is taking.  I want to make something unique and truly original.  You see, I have plans.  I am not sharing those plans because I think some of them read this blog. 

I also broke out the sewing machine.  I have a pattern for small zippered pouches and after trying to figure out how in the world they wanted me to work the gusset into the actual pattern...after three attempts, I threw the gusset out and made it my way, it worked out like I knew it would.  So, I showed off my work to Melinda yesterday and the first time I had ever sewn in a zipper, it looks great.  I had asked her if she wanted one, on the phone Saturday night, no, was the answer.  When she saw the bags, she sent me home with loads of material.  I am now making Maribeth several.  I will have to go buy some more zippers for my bags but, they are pretty cheap. 

I also have done so much charity lately.  One of those charity items helped someone complete their bucket list.  I wasn't going to do it but, I decided to go ahead and do it since for some weird reason God brought her to us.  I have no idea why but, she is meant to be here.  My other 5 acts of charity are done, and I have no more to give.  I have had to turn away two people already because I can't do anymore.  It has been a really bad year for the business.  I was seriously considering getting out of the yarn business because it has been so bad.  Then I received an email telling me how gorgeous my yarn is.  That really made me feel great.  I am still doing a good thing, it seems. 

I guess with the economy being so bad and so many people out of work, it is hard to justify buying yarn.  I know, I am the same way.  I have a load of yarn in my stash courtesy of all those sales years ago when I first started knitting.  I am using my yarn stash. 

I am also dealing with a sprained right hand.  I was trying to open a jar of spaghetti sauce and something popped in the hand.  It hurt like the blazes.  I have been wearing my splint and I can't pick up anything heavy with it.  It makes me scream in agony.  I had to give up my golf membership to the local range because I can't even pick up a club with it.  I can't hold the grip.  Trying to knit with it, is another story...for anyone who wants me to knit for them...no, it isn't happening at all.  I can't physically do it. 

I am learning to say, NO this year. 

Enough of my babbling...I hope everyone has a very safe and blessed Thanksgiving.  I am thankful, I have a roof over my head, a hubby who adores me most of the time, except when I am being difficult, which is a lot lately, and 6 wonderful 4 legged kids, even though this past week was a new experience in hell with them and for my huge family. 

From Bad to Worse and it isn't Getting Any Better

I woke up this morning with the most horrible headache.  I wasn't feeling myself at all.  So, I had to run some errands and while I was out, decided to pick up a quick lunch.  First off, the fast food place got my drink order wrong, I wanted a plain sweet tea, what did I get?  A Peach sweet tea.  Just to tell you how bad I feel, I didn't tell them a word.  I have no fight left in me today. 

I picked up milk and a dosing syringe for Ody, he doesn't think a teaspoon is a good idea and neither do I.  I wanted to get the dosing syringe so, I can just squirt the antihistamine down his little maw.  He was cooperative for about 4 seconds and it went downhill from there.  He wasn't a happy corgi.  Nope, not at all but, I did get most of it in him.  He was spitting and trying to get his mouth away from the faux bubblegum flavor.  He hates the stuff but, he is getting it since his eyes are running with goo. 

I was getting ready to mail off my box tops to the DAR school and I had the things sitting on my desk, I went to the restroom, came back and they are completely gone.  I would like to know where they are because I can't find the things.  How do I manage to lose something within 5 minutes of setting it down?  I need some help with this one. 

When I was on my errand run, I felt like my eye balls were going to pop out of their sockets, so, I realized what was happening.  I have fever along with the headache.  Apparently, I just found out, something is going around and I managed to get it, like usual.  This sucks. 

I am working on another beanie flap hat.  This one is a custom paint order and it is awesome looking.  When it is finished, I will go ahead and take pics and send it off to it's owner.  I am thinking of using that same colorway for a pair of socks, it is the most drop dead gorgeous color I have seen.  I think I will name it Drop Dead Gorgeous because it is. 

Here...Let Me Get That For You

This weekend was something else.  I think I slept most of it away.  Saturday we went and bought our Christmas lights, LED's this year and they were on sale.  I used my rewards card and managed to get 20% off of the lights.  We saved a whole $14, which is nice. 

Gary started the light hanging process.  So far, looks good.  I spoke with one of my nieces and she said that she wanted to get the light hanging process started as well, she plans to start it this weekend coming up.  We both agreed that it just feels like it should be time.  I told Gary I needed some cheer. 

Sunday we went to lunch and boy was that disappointing.  I won't be going back to that restaurant, it wasn't good at all.  We came home and sat down on the couch, I fell asleep.  I had a bad headache.  I woke up 3 hours later with a worse headache.  It was just headache day. 

I did pick lemons off of the tree, and some of them fell off as soon as I disturbed them.  I took a huge bag to Melinda.  She was happy to get them.  I told her if she needs more, to come on by and she can have some.  The tree is completely loaded with fruit this year.  I have no idea what we are going to do with it all.  I have told family members to bring their bags to come picking.  I think this coming weekend, I am going to call them all and tell them to head over, the lemons are ready.  They can have a lemon picking party. 

My sister, Cheryl said that she juiced her batch and it is sitting in her fridge.  I let her know that the lemon juice is zingy.  It is a meyer lemon.  She loved how thin skinned they are.  Yep, easy to work with and very juicy. 

My okra is still producing and Gary informed me he is sick of okra.  We have eaten a bunch of okra this year courtesy of those 5 plants.  I think for my summer garden I am going to only plant two plants.  I am working out my plans for my garden for the summer.  I have my seed order ready to go.  I think we decided to only plant two kinds of tomatoes this next year.  We had tomato issues.  One of them was a massive vine that took up space and didn't produce a damn thing.  Total waste of my time.  Come to find out, it likes really cool weather...GRRRR!!!!  We are in a drought down here and cool was not the weather we had.  It was very disappointing. 

Hopefully, as we go along our little garden will keep producing what we like to eat.  I do enjoy working out there, it is very relaxing.  I just hope we no longer have a milk weed problem like this year.  It was awful.  The weeds were everywhere and I was weeding them out.  I couldn't keep up. 

Today I get to work on my pool...I am not very excited about that prospect but, it has to be taken care of already.  sigh!  I need to add water and figure out what is going on with it.  I know I have to load my chlorinator...ugh.  I hate dealing with chlorine, the stuff is completely awful.  sigh!  Just the story of my life. 

Some of my Pretties

Here are some of my roses in the backyard in bloom.  The Kennedy, top photo, hasn't bloomed this well in a long time.  Mr. Lincoln is the red one, which always produces the most beautiful blooms and they are generally massive, it is one of my favorite roses. 

The Noisette, Madame du Alfred Carriere is dead.  The drought killed it.  Poor rose.  I miss it terribly but, there was nothing I could do to save it.  I watered it and the amount of heat did it in.  I guess Texas weather was just too much for it. 

These two roses are hybrid teas.  I don't spray them, I just water them occasionally and give them some plant food every now and then.  They are fine. 

Introducing Bad Girl

This is bad girl, a new yarn of mine.  I hand painted the yarn, and now I am making a beanie flap out of it.  I can't decide if I should sell it or if I should give it as a Christmas gift.  It reminds me of a certain pastel licorice candy, I was going to name it that but, I really don't want to infringe on someone's licensing, I don't roll that way. 

The yarn is a Peruvian Highland wool, which I love, it is not scratchy, it is soft.  It knits up like a dream.  I am using size US 8 circs for this and I will switch to US 8 dpns when the time comes for crown shaping. 

Charity Knitting and Me

Lately, I have had more and more people needing charity knitting and then there was yesterday.  I felt really awful that I wasn't able to help the lady out.  I have given to several groups this year and the really sad thing is that this lady has a noble cause, unfortunately with the economy sucking on so many levels, I had to refuse her.  Yep, I can't do anymore this year.

I donated the hats that didn't sell at RHF to a chemo group.  They were the last ones I had.  I hope they will help out poor souls who need them. 

The lady who begged me for assistance wanted cash.  I don't have any cash to spare.  I am on a tight budget and I was giving the one thing I had, yarn knit up into something.  I have yarn galore in my stash and I can help out that way....you see it all started when I first learned to knit, I started buying yarn when we had money.  If I saw a sale, I bought yarn, good quality wool.  Now that we are in the lean years courtesy of the economy, I have something to fall back on.  Like Mom and Daddy always said, you put aside for lean times.  Well, they taught me well, I did just that.  Now, I have yarn.  I would make her something for her to sell but, right now, I am worn out.  Completely worn out. 

My right hand is sprained and I am working slowly on the Joe sock.  I am still on the first one which should give you a clue.  I am usually very fast knitting socks.  Not with this one.  I am going to have to find a way to make my hand work better.  Right now, it isn't happy.  I have been dropping stuff courtesy of that hand.  I can't stand for Gary to hold my hand, it hurts too damn much.  The fingers are swollen and it hurts.  I may have to find a mitt for it and wear that to help it out.  I have some single mitts running around here some place.  Yes, I am a one mitt knitter syndromer.  It used to be socks but, I have worked past that.  My next goal is to become a two mitt knitter and get past that syndrome. 

As a knitter, I refuse to stop but, when do I stop before I completely damage the hand or screw it all and blow the hand out completely.  I know that the hubby is reading this and telling me to not be stupid and stop working and let the hand rest.  I have to agree with him.  I am going to slow down and give the hand a nice time out and let it rest.  If I owe you custom knitting, sorry, I need a time out. 

Once the hand heals satisfactorily, then I will continue on my yarn journey.  Each project I knit up is a journey through life.  What people do not realize is that knitting does take time and yes, each piece is a part of time.  It is a relaxing journey and there is that section of "what the hell is this pattern talking about?", and having to rework it many times.  It mimics life.  The section of frogging evil when I am screaming in frustration and throwing it across the room, only to pick it up when I am looking for another skein of yarn in just the right shade...what do you know, I am going to work on this again and realizing how stupid I was to chuck it.  Or looking at it and deciding the yarn can be put to better use with a different pattern.  So, I wind it back up into a ball and move on to another pattern. 

For the time being, no charity knitting will be done, talk to me after the New Year and  I will think about it.  There are plenty of other knitters who have yarn to spare and the time, please seek them out. 

Happy Thanksgiving and I hope everyone stays safe. 

The Joe Sock, a Work in Progress

Here is the freaking huge Joe sock.  As you can see, I used a normal sized ball point pen as my scale object.  Not only is the sock wide but, it is very long.  I am working on the leg right now and then the cuff will be last.  I am going to have to bind off really loosely for this one.  This by far is the biggest sock I have ever knit.  The biggest, I can't stress that enough.  I would be lost without my sock wizard software, it has more than paid for itself over the years. 

The yarn is from Elann.  It is more conservative than Joe but, I thought it was a nice manly yarn.  From what my gauge is, I thought I would use more yarn on this ball than I have.  I guess the US 2 needles make all of the difference.  This yarn is comparable to Opal.  It will hold up to carpet quite nicely.  Gary loves the pair of socks I made for him.  I will get pics of his socks when I can get him to wear them and I have my camera handy. 

This yarn is a superwash wool and nylon blend.  My niece, Meagan said that is great since she can just throw them into the washer and not have to worry about shrinking them. 

Knitting Along...ONE Project at a Time

This hat is 50% wool and 50% llama.  It was fabulous to knit.  I added hot fix jewels to it for a little added sparkle.  It went to my niece, Carol for her birthday. 

The little pink hat made out of 50% wool and 50% llama that has pink hot fix jewels.  This hat will be having two ear flaps added on plus some pom poms.  Maribeth insisted.  There is also a pair of matching mittens to go with this hat. 

This hat was a lot of fun to knit.  I used a bulky weight wool with some of my hand spun yarn.  I love how nice it turned out. 

A pair of much needed socks for me.  The yarn is from Elann and it is a dream to knit with.  It is cotton/wool/nylon/and elite.  I ordered several more skeins of this yarn.  One skein made a pair of size 8.5 women's socks.  I used US 2 needles for this project. 

Pictures of the huge sock will follow when I get a chance to snap a picture. 

Sometimes Life Just Intervenes

Lately, I haven't had time to post a thing...life has been hectic around here.  The month of October was fully packed with obligations between DAR and family.  Hopefully, the month of November will slow down for me.  I am ready for some quiet knitting time.  Time to just sit and work on the sock of the month. 

The sock of the month for me this time around is a size 14 man sock for my nephew, Joe.  I may have posted about it earlier.  Frankly, I can't remember.  Joe has been wanting hand knit socks for, well forever but, his mom a knitter, refused to knit them for him.  Since I just finished two pairs of socks, one for me and one pair for the hubby, who insisted they be knit in size 12, what is two more inches of knitting?  So far the sock is coming along nicely, when I have time to sit and knit on it. 

We have been discussing razor blades or the price of the cartridges...did you know the brand the hubby uses wants $13.70 for 4 of the things, and the really exasperating thing is the older razor that the company has is more expensive!  I refuse to drop $15+ on razor blades, just for 4 of the things.  He even suggested he buy a straight razor.  No, those things scare the hell out of me.  I don't want one in this house.  So, I was toodling through wally world today when I saw it....Wilkinson Sword Razor Tech 3 for $5 and the blades for 4 of them are the same price...$5.  That was a sold deal.  I even noticed a woman's version and threw that in the cart as well.  Same price as the men's and same price on the refills.  I brought them home and I tried out the women's version...works just the same as that expensive brand...it starts with a G.  The only place to get them is Wally world.  Oh well, I go to the one by Melinda since it is cleaner and less crowded than the one by me.  It is a smaller store, too but, that is okay.  I don't like being pushed, prodded or run over by a moron pushing a cart.  That usually happens in the one over here and I manage to always catch something in that store. 

I bought sock looms for the two older nieces, the ones who always want hand knit socks...I don't have time to knit for them anymore.  I have no time to knit for me.  So, I am hoping it will inspire a need to knit in both of them.  I can try to get them to learn the art of knitting and to better themselves with it. 

Now, I am going to find a huge glass of ice water and go knit on the sock.  Happy Fall to everyone. 

New for November

In November, I will be listing everything that I have in stock for the shop.  I am having a 50% off sale.  All the yarn must go.  What I have in the shop currently is small compared to what is in my plastic bin. 

Right now I am having a 25% off sale.  It ends at the end of October. 

As for knitting...I am working on a pair of size 14 men's socks for my nephew, Joe.  He has never had hand knit socks before and his mom is a knitter.  So, for his birthday, I decided to go ahead and knit him a pair.  He is so excited. 

I am using Elann's Sock it to Me Soft Focus in color 63 which is a tan, charcoal grey and black medley of colors.  I am knitting the socks on two Addi turbos size 24 inch cord US 2 needles.  I am on the first sock and I have about 4 inches of foot done so far, these are being knit from the toe to the cuff.  They move much quicker than cuff to toe. 

I am cleaning my home as well.  Just the amount of junk I have acquired the 9 years we have been living here is amazing.  It must go, I don't want to take it with me when we finally do decide to move out of this home. 

Now to prepare dinner and to continue working on the sock. 

Friday is a State of Mind

I love Friday...it is my favorite day of the week.  I was born on a Friday.  I guess that is why it is my happiest day.  I love the weekends.  It is sharing time with my family and my hubby.  I love my hubby. 

I am currently working on a pair of socks for myself.  I have a line up going and the sock yarns for it.  I went and bought commercial sock yarns because the yarn I chose is hard wearing yarns and if you have carpet, you will understand.  It is for the most part machine washable which is another plus. 

My line up is two deep right now and I have even purchased sock looms for my most demanding of relatives, I no longer have time to knit them socks.  Face it, my time is very limited. 

I just emailed a dear friend who was worried about me since my blog has changed.  Yep, it has changed a lot.  I am now pretty much in a new blog.  Don't even ask...you don't want to know.  Just leave it alone is what I am saying right now. 

I hadn't realized that I haven't blogged in a while.  Well...here goes...I have been shopping for fabrics and other goodies, this is the year that I actually make something with a pattern.  Holy smoke!  Yep, I am going to put the fabric out and cut it out with my pattern pieces since I have been doing this at my sister's house lately, I thought...why not, I can do this.  I am going to sew myself something that I have made on my own, no help from my sister.  I can do it. 

I will do well at it.  That is my mantra. 

I would love to finish my maternal grandmother's crazy quilt top.  I have it in my closet and it would be awesome to put batting to it and get it done.  Can you imagine how neat it would be considering it has vintage fabrics on it.  Oh it would be so amazing! 

I have been dealing with health issues and well, I am so tired of them.  I started a new vitamin regimen and it seems to be working on the issues at hand.  The foot with it's issue is dormant right now, I think because of the new probiotics I am on.  I am going to keep taking them if it keeps it at bay. 

The one problem I have right now is that my asthma is out of control.  I am on several meds for it.  I honestly think the wild fires that were down the road were the cause and I am still dealing with the issues from it.  I have two nebulizer solutions I have been using, a corticosteroid inhaler, and my usual albuterol rescue inhaler plus my singulair.  I don't spend much time outside because of the asthma issues.  I was outside the other night and I was gasping for air.  It is awful. 

I had to go to the dentist yesterday because one of my crowns was bothering me badly.  I went ahead and went in so, he fixed my bite for me.  I have been grinding my teeth at night and making it worse.  He said it is a natural reaction.  I would wake up with my teeth clenched in the morning.  Last night was the first really good night of sleep in a long time.  I actually feel good.  I didn't clench my teeth or grind them. 

I am slowly getting my health back on track.  I need to start exercising when I get my asthma under control. 

Today I am helping my nieces decorate a hall.  It is my BIL's 75th birthday tomorrow and they are having a huge party for him.  It should be nice.  I will get to see my family members that I haven't seen in a while. 

Now to let my doggies back in and go find lunch.  :) 

S-O-C-K-S

I am in sock knitting mode over here.  I finished the hubby's size 12 gigantic socks and I have moved on to socks for myself.  Yes, I know I have several pairs of hand knit socks but, I am the knitter, it is my perogative to knit for myself.  I am being selfish right now and doing something for me.  I usually knit for everyone under the sun but, now it is me time. 

I chose to use a Elann sock yarn, it is cotton, wool, nylon and elite.  The color is the turquoise, light gray, blue and light turquoise.  It is really pretty so far.  This time around, I am knitting from the toe to the cuff.  I just have to say how much quicker they seem to go doing this method.  I am not one of those people who knit two socks at a time, that just takes the joy out of the whole project. 

I am still researching my sweater pattern.  I have been thinking about it and I need to install the software for it.  I have so much going on in my life that working on my sweater is going to take some time. 

I started working on the sock for myself last night, I was able to knit about 4 inches of toe and today I am going to work on it in between doing laundry and whatever else needs my attention today.  If I can turn the heel, I will be so ecstatic about it.  I have been trying the sock on and it feels so wonderful.  I love this yarn.  It is so soft and silky feeling.  After this pair of socks, it will be time for Maribeth socks.  I am going to rip out the cuff I have started and start them from the toe as well.  I am back to knitting socks from the toe to the cuff.  I had stopped because my bind off always was too tight.  I have now learned to be patient and take my time with my bind off. 

Patience makes it all work out.  I just have to keep this on my mind and not be stressing when I am binding off. 

In a Foul Mood

Well Rice Harvest Fest was a total bust.  I sold one item and then it poured on Sunday so, we were forced to pack it in.  My sister sold 5 small items and one of her aprons.  Needless to say, the economy sucks and it is hurting small businesses.  Now I saw the news last night and they said small businesses are doing better...Fing liars!  It isn't good at all. 

I am having to rethink my business strategy and whether or not Drooling Over Yarn will continue.  I love my job but, it is getting harder and harder to sit and watch it not make a dime. 

I had several people ask me over the weekend where I get my yarns from...my answer...my wholesaler.  How do they expect me to answer?  I am telling them the truth, my yarns come from my wholesaler.  No one else.  I guess they wanted the name but, that is none of their business. 

I am battling a nasty stomach virus that seems to be going around.  Yep, it is just me, I get all the crap over here.  I am trying to remedy that situation...I have a whole new vitamin regimen I am taking.  Gary looks at me while I pull all of my pills out of my pill case.  I am out of two of them right now and I am waiting for them to make it here.  I ordered them and they aren't cheap but, it is helping out my niece, Meagan.  She now sells Amway.  My niece, Sabrina sells Avon so, I buy my makeup from her.  I wish someone would buy yarn from me. 

I had bought my niece, Kate a sock loom I found at JoAnn's last week.  I gave her some hand painted yarn to go with it.  I will be buying another sock loom for Meagan since she looked like she was interested in it.  :)  If it will help them get interested in knitting, I will do whatever I have to to make it work.  Knitting saves. 

After I finish my mitts for the charity, and send them off, I will be finishing up Gary's socks.  I am on the second one and in my misery, I knitted on it yesterday and managed to get really far.  I am so shocked about this.  I looked at it last night and honestly I don't remember working on the thing at all.  Call me crazy but, I guess I did do it since I am the only one who knits around here. 

I am going to knit myself a sweater this year.  There I said it...that is my plan.  I have to go find a pattern that I like and I will be working on the thing.  I want something nice.  I have to find my software for sweaters.  I have it and I will plug in my measurements to figure out how much I will need to cast on and how much yarn I will need.  I want to pick a design I actually like for the body of the sweater that won't make me look bigger than I am.  I plan to knit it in my favorite color of purple.  :) 

When I dig my camera out of my purse, I will take a picture of Gary's gigantic socks.  They are freaking huge. 

Knitting Socks

I am currently in a project of sock knitting.  This is for the hubby.  I had him try the sock on last night just to see where I really am in the leg portion of the sock.  These are toe up socks which I haven't done for a couple of years.  It is a challenge to change up my sock making these days. 

We had a conversation when I first started the socks and he tells me he wants the leg to be 9 inches long.  Say what?  Yes, 9 inches long.  So, I am trying to convince the man that 6 inches will be enough for the leg...no, he wants those 9 inches.  I get him to try the sock on last night and I have 6 inches of leg done, he tells me they are perfect.  I wanted to smack the crap out of him over this....we have been arguing over it for the whole time I am knitting this king size sock.  Now, he tells me he wants the 6 inch leg.  Grrr! 

I then asked the important question of if he wants k1, p1 ribbing or k2, p2 ribbing.  Eye roll.  He chose the k2, p2 ribbing.  I haven't made a pair of socks with that particular ribbing in about 5 years.  So, he will get a unique pair of socks with his own custom measurements. 

As for anyone else wanting socks...NO!  I have to make Maribeth a pair and then I am not knitting anyone else socks.  I am closed where socks are concerned.  I have plans to get my niece, Meagan a sock loom.  She can make her own socks.  I have pretty much put my foot down where this is concerned.  I am tired.  My hands are tired.  I don't want to knit anyone anything. 

I have to finish my charity mitts and then I am done with that.  No one else is going to get anything out of me for the rest of the year. 

Killer!

My right hand is killing me.  I have been cutting fabric for my sister to get her ready for this weekend.  As far as I know, she is still working on her aprons.  My feet even hurt from it as well.  I have been standing on them for about 4 days straight and well....they aren't used to that kind of abuse anymore. 

I just finished dealing with patterns and kits.  I am ready to go on that front.  Gary has to pull my mdse tubs down for me.  Everything is stacked in front of the office and ready to go.  Tonight is set up and then I can come home and get my cooler full of food ready to go in the am.  Wish us luck. 

I am raising money for a new set of tires for my car.  I am looking down the barrel of a $1000 price tag for those tires.  Ouch!  It is a big hit for me. 

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Columbus day weekend. 

Taking a Break

I am taking a break today from knitting mitts.  I have to get away from them or I am going to snap.  I have two mitts that need partners.  I have to admit, I threw them down once before and well...that little purple mitt needs a thumb and his partner.  The blue mitt is finished but, he needs his partner.  I was thinking of starting the last mitt color and leaving it there with the other two. So, when this happens, I need a day away from the things. 

I picked up the hubby's sock and I am slowly working on it.  Why slowly...you ask...well, I am using size US 2 needles and they aren't fast with this particular yarn I am working with.  Skinny yarn, skinny needles.  Seriously slow. 

I dropped the bombshell the other day when I mentioned I was going to knit myself a sweater this year.  Hubby's head swiveled around thinking I had lost my mind.  Nope...I am going to do it.  I will get past my hatred of sleeves to make myself something warm and lasting.  Sweaters aren't cheap and they are cheaply made.  Are you sick of paying astronomical prices for crap?  I am. 

I have the yarn stash to pull it off over here so, I can make myself a nice sweater and yes, it will be expensive but, the yarn is already paid for.  :)  That is the wonderful thing about having such an extensive yarn stash. 

Fingerless Mitts...A Dirty Word

As everyone knows, I will knit for charity.  I have come to realize I hate knitting fingerless mitts.  I hate them.  I am tired of the same old pattern.  I started to change up on the needle sizes to make it more interesting.  It has done a little bit of newness but, I am sick of them. 

I am also knitting my hubby a pair of socks for Christmas...he knows about them.  I am using Elann's Sock it To Me Madrid color 67.  It is the blues, greens, blacks and brown sock yarn.  Why this particular yarn?  It has amazing abilities to repel carpet.  If you knit a softer sock yarn then you know what carpet can do to that yarn...it will eat holes into it.  Yep, this is true. 

I asked him if he would love another pair of socks and he said yes.  The man has seriously cold feet in winter and sometimes in summer.  He likes to stick those cold eagles claws on me in the middle of the night.  Makes me crazy.  I get even with him in winter and do the same thing.  :) 


Last night I was working on another pair of charity mitts...I am on my 4th pair. I finished the third pair and started the 4th pair.  I am on the thumb portion of the 4th pair and when I finish it, I can cast on for the last one of the 4th pair and then finish up the thumb on the start of the 5th pair.  I had thrown them down in frustration and started knitting hats.  Now, I need to get them done and out the door next week. 

I let the lady who is expecting them that I should be mailing them out to her next week.  If you too would love to share your talent and would love to volunteer your time, please head on over to Ravelry and check out the Charity Knitting group and click on the link about the fingerless mitts.  She needs 200 pairs to fit girls between the ages of 13 and 18. 

Wool...Why I Love It!

I was about to purchase a store bought cardigan.  Then I saw it, it was 100% acrylic.  Oh hell no!  I am not going to buy that crap.  I love wool because it has several properties which most people have no idea about.  Acrylic traps the sweat next to your skin and you freeze in winter and it is nasty stuff.  It makes my fingers peel and the only time I use it is to teach knitting.  It is cheap and easy to work with for first time knitters.  When they get a feel of the merino wools, most of them are hooked. 

Wool breathes and will keep you nice and warm and cool depending on the circumstances.  For those of you who live in the North and keep telling me that it is too hot to wear in Texas...yeah right...I don't listen because what they fail to realize is that it gets damn cold in Texas in Winter, we have a moist cold that goes right through a body.  Wool is perfect since it does breathe and when it is wet, it still insulates our bodies. 

It won't burn unless a match is placed right next to it.  Why do you think that people in the past, took their wool blankets, soaked them in water and beat out fires with them? 

I know all of the knitters are shaking their heads about now.  Yep, that is the good stuff.  I love wool, in it's many forms.  Why do you think I paint it?  It is a love affair that won't end.  There are so many versions of it.  There are completely harsh wools that need to be seriously combed and then there is the buttery soft merino wool.  It is a dream to knit with and it is beautiful to work with.  It depends on the fiber but, they all take the dye differently. 

I love to spin Wensleydale, it has a natural shine to it.  It makes beautiful yarn.  There is an American fiber called Sweet Grass Targhee that is springy and squishy.  It spins beautifully.  I get looks when I take it with me to craft fairs...most people have never heard of it.  I tell them to pull it out of the bag and play with it.  If you can't touch it, what is the point? 

I am getting ready to go to my usual yearly venue...Katy Rice Harvest Festival.  I am trying to knit as fast as my fingers will let me.  I am burned out on hats right now.  I need to do knit several pairs of mitts for a charity.  I promised several pairs of fingerless mitts.  I will take care of them and send them out to the ladies but, after that, it is time for me.  I am going to finally break down and knit myself a cardigan.  It will be a proper wool one.  I have the yarn in my stash. 

See this post was getting somewhere.  I decided not to spend my money on a cardi in acrylic when I have delectable Peruvian Highland wool here to knit with.  :)  For the niece who told me she wanted to learn to knit so she could make herself a sweater that wouldn't fall apart after the first wash.  I tried to teach her but, she put it down and walked away from it.  If anyone needs to knit, she is the one...she hates her job and is seriously raging and needs to knit to stop the raging.  She has so much stress that it is seriously affecting her health.  I am worried that she is going to have a freaking heart attack from it. 

I knit when I need to resolve a crisis in my life.  If I didn't knit, I would be insane.  Each stitch helps me to work through my problems.  I also knit for the fun of it.  Who doesn't love knitting socks?  I love socks.  I have several pairs of my own hand knit socks.  I am in demand with my family members where socks are concerned and now I have several orders for ear flap hats. 

I have to finish a pair of mittens and a set will be ready for my niece, Maribeth.  The hat and mitts are really girly.  Later on this set.  I will take pics and show them off later.  After RHF, I will be adding things to the shop.  Not only yarn but, actual items people can purchase from me.  I want to test the market with RHF and then I will add them to the shop, should they sell really well. 

Yeehaw...it is Friday!

I am so glad that today is Friday.  I love Fridays, I was even born on a Friday.  That explains so much.  :)  Last night, I came home from my meeting and I was a little short of a voice.  I had talked so much to the ladies of the chapter and with this crap cold...it really does suck, my voice was about gone when I made it home. 

On my way home, I decided to pop Stewie up to 80 on the freeway, I wanted to just drive and do it as fast as possible within legal means when I saw him....Damn damn damn.  I had to hit the breaks because there was a DPS officer sitting on the side of the damn road on the downhill side of the over pass.  Thankfully, the guy in the next lane was a speeder as well and we both hit the brakes at different enough times to interrupt the radar.  So, I was spared, again.  I know my big ass ticket is coming one of these days.  Hopefully, not around the corner any time soon. 

I will have to be careful and do the speed limit.  sigh! 

I woke up early after going to bed at a reasonable time.  No 4 am last night.  So, I woke up at 5:38 am after Gary was fighting someone in his sleep.  He woke me up bouncing around in his quest to kill whatever person he was fighting with.  Scared the crap out of me.  I had to turn on the light to look to make sure he was okay.  He was snoring away over there.  So, I got up and let the dogs out for their early morning constitutional.  They needed it.  I stayed up and made my breakfast, turned on the tv and watched some old movie that was on and Gary came down the stairs around 7 am.  He watched it with me and then came upstairs to start his work day.  He telecommutes. 

I was working on my lust socks and then I started a toddler sock. It will be for the KRHF.  If I can finish it.  I am running out of steam on making stuff for this thing.  Sad but, true. 

Well...Ain't That a Kick in the Pants

I was talking to one of my sisters today and found out that our lovely President has done another one...did you know that he approved FEMA for only the Bastrop, Texas fires but, the rest of the state can go hang?  What about those poor souls down the road from me?  They can't get FEMA even though, they too have lost their homes.  What about them?  If you are going to give relief to some, you need to give relief to the others, it is only right.  I guess that pretty much sums up how this administration is run...half assed. 

Pictures of the smoke as it billows across my view.  Notice what looks like fog in the background...that is smoke from the fires in Waller County. 

Several people were able to get back to see what is left of their homes and the pictures are pretty grim, not much left, just rubble.  One subdivision is still off limits since the fire is still smoldering.  Some of the areas managed to relight themselves from the charcoal because the wind changed directions. 

We were very lucky and did not have to evacuate at all.  One of my nieces had to evacuate her apartment complex in West Houston courtesy of another wild fire that broke out.  She returned home and was lucky, their apartment complex was saved with no damage and no fire around them. 

Please pray that Texas gets rain and soon.  We are in desperate need of it. 

Mr. Air Purifier

Gary went out yesterday and bought me an air purifier.  Oh let me tell you, I love this little machine.  I am happy he bought it for me.  I honestly think it saved me.  I was gagging and barfing yesterday from all of the mucus from the smoke off of the wild fires from down the road.  I was begging him for help because I couldn't breathe.  It was truly awful.  I thought about heading to the ER for oxygen. 

He went and bought me an air purifier and now, I am feeling better even though the crud has moved down to my lungs.  Great...I woke up this morning and felt like I was drowning.  Not a good feeling.  I slept with my air purifier on last night, I actually was able to sleep for the first time in days.  I haven't been sleeping as well as I should have. 

Today I dragged it downstairs with me and slept on the couch with it on.  I had three naps and was able to breathe all because of my air purifier.  It came upstairs with me tonight and it is in the bedroom right now cleaning the air. 

It is a great thing clean air and I have noticed that Bootsy loves sleeping in front of it.  He likes clean air as much as I do.  Pickles was sleeping in front of it last night, she has allergies and the smoke was getting to her, too.  Poor kitty. 

Smoke and Wild Fires!

We have so much smoke rolling through our subdivision right now...I can't go outside since I am an asthmatic.  As it is, I have a hideous sore throat, and I am run down.  Tonight, I had to clean my nebulizer and use it.  It helped some.  I have pics of the smoke moving through the place but, my camera is downstairs and I am not going down there until tomorrow.

Gary tells me he is starting to get congested from the poor air quality around here.  He had to run and get my prescriptions for me today.  He is a very good hubby.  I have been doing a lot of sleeping courtesy of this crap.  My sister woke me up around 11 am and wanted to know what I was up to...uh, sleeping.  I was snoozing on the couch and I haven't even had the energy to knit. 

Melinda is sick as well.  She was telling me her eyes are swollen shut from the crap air and she is also staying indoors, she and Maribeth are both asthmatics like me.  Always fun. 

The wild fires are down the road from me.  I am hoping that we won't have to evacuate because I really do not want to lose my house to flames.  No thank you.  I hope they get the fires under control and I pray that those poor people who have lost their homes and everything they own are able to get help. 

If you want to help us out, please donate to the American Red Cross and specify it for the Texas wild fires.  People have literally lost everything they own.  Some of them don't even have a change of clothes, they only have what they are wearing.  Please pray for rain for us...it is so hot here that it is making it really difficult for the people out there fighting those fires. 

Okra Makes a Mighty Fine Omelette

For those of you who love to cook...let me share a very wonderful ingredient that works well with eggs...Okra.  I love slicing it up and sauteeing it with my fresh spinach and tomatoes for my omelettes.  It works great in fritattas as well.  If you have a chance...grill it.  Coat it lightly with some olive oil, sprinkle on some salt and pepper and grill.  When it has char marks on it and it is soft, pull it off of the grill and enjoy...so heavenly.  My hubby wasn't a fan of okra until I planted 5 plants and now, he loves it.  He is a fan of the grilled okra and okra in the eggs mixture. 

He says he doesn't like it coated in corn meal and fried, it doesn't do it for him.  He isn't a Southern boy at all so, that explains it.  I love fried okra.  Yummy. 

The Opinonated One

Well..I have been crocheting right now.  I am working on the fringe portion of my poncho. Oh thank God for that.  I am bored out of my mind and I can't wait to start working on something else.  It kills me to be constant with one project at a time. I like to start other things and work on them for a bit and go on to other things.  If I don't stick with it, I won't finish the damn thing.  I am to the fringe of this monster. 

The yarn is Lion Brand Homespun, the color is Painted Desert.  Do not ask me the lot number because I don't have the label up here with me.  I am using a size N hook.  This one is a medium/large.  I will be making more of these things in small/medium.  I will have to do a stash dig to see what I can come up with and I want to make some kids sizes as well.  I might make a kids poncho after I knit more mitts. 

I have to stagger it or I will go freaking insane and take my DH with me.  I get really nasty tempered when I have to crochet a lot.  It is like working on cars...do not talk to me when I am under the hood or under my car, I am a mean bitch.  I don't want to be bothered and if someone distracts me, watch out, you are going to get an earful. 

I am slowly painting yarns and listing them into the shop.  Just realize that life is so busy for me between all of my responsibilites around here and dealing with being a Regent.  This is my last year...yippee!  There, I said it.  Ha! 

I am getting things taken care of as fast as I can.  Tonight I counted the last of the flags from the parade and we handed out 850 this year.  I didn't think there were that many people out there but apparently there were.  Go figure. 

"Hey, Phineas...What are We Going to Knit Today?"

Yesterday was knit a potato chip scarf and I am still working on it.  I also did a stash dig since I am looking for homespun yarn by Lion brand, it makes super comfy ponchos.  It takes 3 balls and they are so worth it. I made myself one last year and I love it. 

I have yarn sitting on the desk for mitts.  Those lovely fingerless confections that keep hands nice and toasty and yet, you can still pick up things.  They are great as gifts and so easy to knit.  If you can follow a color chart with your sticky notes than you too can knit them.  They involve stranding instead of two hand weaving via Fair Isle.  I know that several people have told me that I am crazy to knit a chart with two colors of yarn.  It is super simple people, it just takes the time to learn where to start the chart..hint...lower right corner for the left mitt and lower left corner for the right mitt.  Simple and as you move up a row, move your sticky note up with you.  See...simple. 

I noticed several yarn previews and it seems that mohair is back as a favorite for knitters...if you knit with it, a word of advice, it doesn't frog too easily, it likes to tangle and stick.  So, be wary of it.  And for those people who insist on chenille in their patterns, the crap worms like crazy and if you haven't experienced this...imagine being near a cat at the vet when they shed like crazy.  Well, that is how it is working with chenille.  Chenille flying every where.  Makes my nose itch just thinking of it. 

I found two hats that I didn't even know I knitted last night in my stash dig.  I was also searching for my tag gun since I finally got in my tag barbs.  I have to price things over here and write down washing instructions for each piece.  Always fun and exciting.  It takes a lot to get ready for this thing but, it is my one time of the year to shine and show off my hard work in person.