Casting On Another Hat

I really seem to be into knitting hats and mitts lately. I just cast on to make Turn A Square. This hat pattern, designed by Jared Flood, can be found here. I'm using a deep green shade of Cascade 220 wool from my stash, and the remnant of Noro Silk Garden left over from my Felicity hat. I also get to use my set of HiyaHiya interchangable needles, Dave bought me for Christmas in 2009. Even though this is technically a man's hat pattern, many women from Ravelry have knit it for themselves, and it looks really nice. I guess if the hat doesn't fit me, I can always let Dave have it. The colors are male friendly, after all.

New Haircut

Last week, I got my hair cut short. I love going to Unique Image, the salon I used to work for, because I get to visit with my friends, then leave with a cute new haircut. Dave took this picture as we were leaving for church, so I could show my readers. Pay no attention to the dark circles, wrinkles and imperfections, please.

Smart Phone Shopping (Part 2)

My goodness, I had no idea how many smart phones were out there. Dave and I have been shopping online, and reading customer reviews, and are just amazed at the sellection. We love the HTC EVO 4G from Sprint, but something happened that has made us a little miffed at Sprint. We went shopping at the store, so we could touch and see the phone in person. We had planned to purchase our new account online, because we could get a deal on this phone, but when we clicked on the button that indicated we already had Sprint, the price of the phone went up fifty dollars. Apparantly the discount is for new customers. Wow! I can definately understand a business wanting to draw new clients, but don't their current ones deserve a break, too? So now we're checking out what the other Cell Phone Service providers have to offer. We can get an iphone for the same price Sprint wants for the EVO, but AT&T's monthly fee is higher. That's no good. The phones will only cost us one time, but the bill will be repeated every month. I did read that, starting February 10th, Verizon will offer the iphone as well. We may have to check that out. Since we're both still under contract, we're in no hurry.

Smart Phone Shopping

Yes, Dave and I have caught the smart phone bug. We used to have one cell phone between us, and the most basic plan Sprint has to offer. Since I'm a housewife, and have access to our land line, Dave always kept the cell phone with him. This arrangement worked just fine for us, and we used to even laugh at people who were so addicted to thier cell phones, you'd think it was an extra limb. Well, guess they're about to have the last laugh...
It all started, when the radio station promoted Dave to Assistant Operations Manager. This meant that he had to be on call to help solve little issues that often come up with equipment, scheduling and such. After several months of going over our prepaid minutes, he decided to buy himself an upgraded verizon account throught the company. I, in turn, inherited his Sprint account and old phone. I never thought I'd say this, but I love having a cell phone. I hardly get any calls (well, except from Dave), but I still love it. I love the sense of security I feel, knowing that if my car breaks down, or even if I fall and injure myself during one of my walks, I can call someone. I even enjoy sending Dave cute little texts. Can you believe it? Me Texting? What is the world coming to?
Ok, fast forward a few months...
It is now the middle of January, 2011. Dave has been paying close attention to our cell phone bills and usage. I haven't a clue. I write out the bills each month, but his verizon bill comes to him at work and he pays it. All I'm aware of is what we owe Sprint (which is climbing in price because of my texting). Dave comes to me a couple of weeks ago, and tells me that we are not paying much less than if we were to purchase an upgraded account (yes, with internet) that includes both of us. We're likely to stay with Sprint, because they're the least expensive, and we've had great service from them. Now comes the fun part...new phones. Even more fun...Smart phones (because of the internet)! Can you believe it? We seem to be on our way to becoming the people we've been making fun of for years.

Walking With The Monkees

I just love music from the 1960's. Yesterday, during my walk, I decided to take some music with me. I have an MP3 Dave bought me from Sears. It's not anyting fancy, but it holds plenty of songs, and sounds just fine to me. It actually reminds me of a flash drive. One end of it slides off to reveal a USB port, so the device can plug directly into my computer. I've downloaded several CD's by The Monkees and The Beatles to it. The music I listened to today was The Monkees. I haven't listened to The Monkees in a long time, and I have to say, that old music is pretty springy to walk to. It brought back memories of my childhood, when I'd sit in front of the TV, and watch reruns of thier show after school. It was kind of fun to reaquaint myself with an old favorite during my daily (well, almost daily) walk. I'm feeling nostalgic just thinking about it...

Saying Hello

Dave is at a city council meeting, and I've got taco soup simmering on the stove. It smells so good, I hope I can wait for him. lol
To distract myself, I thought I'd send out a hello to all my readers. Things have been pretty routine around here, which makes for pretty boring reading, but I don't like to let too much time slip by without checking in. Our church is getting new pews, donated to us from another church. We're supposed to meet tomorrow to go get them. They are already padded and upholstered, and will not require separate cushions. They are a deeper color, which is good, because they should closer match our altar and podium color. I'm actually getting pretty excited. If these new benches fit, and we like them as much as we think we will, we plan to donate our current ones to another small church. Please, God, direct us to the very church who needs them.

Kitty Bunk Beds?

Last night, I couldn't sleep (again), so I decided to get out of bed, and search Ravelry for new knitting patterns. I stopped by the restroom on my way to the computer, and this is what I saw. Abby and Annie were sharing Annie's Linen closet. I just had to take a picture to share. I wish I could take the credit for the catchy post title, but Dave is the one who said it looked like bunk beds. He's pretty clever that way. :)
I also have some good news to share. Annie has decided to come out and rejoin the family. This is now just another place she likes to sleep.

Repairs Ahead

I love my older home, with it's big back and front yards, full-grown trees, and all the character that comes with it. It's perfect for us. Unfortuately, part of that 'character' occasionally means repairs are in order. We knew the ceiling tiles in the extra bedroom were old. We also noticed they were beginning to buckle, and would eventually have to be replaced. Well, it looks like that day has come. I guess it shouldn't have surprised us, but discovering loose ceiling tiles that could fall any minute is disturbing, no matter how much you think you're prepared.

Dave called Charlie, the contractor who is resposible for our screened in porch, our kitchen remodel, and many of our home repairs. After discussing it, we've opted for a sheet rock and textured ceiling instead of tiles. So next week, I'll have a brand new ceiling in that bedroom.

New Exercise Routine

Well, it's almost the 25th which means the free Three month gym membership I won will soon expire. During the first month, I went regularly. In fact, I was so happy with the routine I'd established, that I had seriously considered continuing my membership when my trial was up. The next month, the holiday season, and some things going on in my family, made my visits more irratic. I was just beginning to reestablish my routine, when I got sick. I tried again when my health mended, only to be thwarted by the snow. I'm a very nervous driver in good conditions, so I don't even try when there is snow on the ground. However, I did realize I had to do some sort of exercise or I'd end up gaining all my weight back. Last week, I began walking the trail Dave and I mapped out for our afternoon walks. I have to walk it twice to equal what I'd been doing at the gym, but I don't mind. The only thing I missed was stopping by the Sonic on my way home for my Happy Hour diet coke. I remedied that today. Dave and I discovered that the light at 24th and Lamar has a crosswalk, and a button to push to change the light. I cross 24th on the last leg of my walk every day, so I took some money with me, and when I reached 24th street on my second lap, I made the jaunt down to Lamar, where I crossed the street, then walked the very short distance from there to the Sonic. It was so easy, that I think I've made the decision not to renew my gym membership, and let this be my new exercise routine. Maybe during the Summer, when the Texas heat is unbearable, I can renew, but for now, I like this new plan.

Busy Day, Sleepless Night

It is almost 7am, and I've had no sleep. Yesterday was a great day. Around noon, we went to feed Max, took some books back to the library, then went over to Tuesday Morning to return a pair of PJ pants that just didn't fit right. While we were in that shopping center, we went over to JC Penney, where they happened to be having a great sale. Dave got a couple of shirts, and I got a pair of boots. Yes! I was finally able to find a pair of boots that fit right.
On our way home, we stopped by the Sonic to pick up lunch (and my happy hour diet coke). I was completely surprised to see a package waiting on our front porch. I had ordered some things, but I wasn't expecting anything this soon. Dave, on the other hand, was not at all surprised. Without my knowledge, he had ordered a cordless keyboard and mouse for my computer. I had mentioned (well, I guess you could say I complained) that I had too many cords hanging from my desk. I guess he listens to me, after all.
Around 5 o'clock, I started getting ready for Church. Every third Saturday of each month, our church has a singing service, and yesterday's was an especially good one. Everyone was in a good mood, and since we're all on the mend, and getting our voices back, we were sounding pretty good, too. Afterward, Dave and I went to Walmart to stock up on some things we needed. I guess being sick, then being snowed in, we'd both been neglecting our household shopping.
Now, you'd think that after such a busy day, I'd have fallen straight to sleep. Wrong. I read until I just knew I was ready to drop. I put my book down, turned off the lamp, then became wide awake. I tossed and turned until almost 7, then finally gave up. I have to start getting ready for church in another hour anyway, and if i fell asleep now, I would only get enough sleep to make me feel worse. So, it looks like an afternoon nap is in today's plans...

New Hat

This hat was knit with Noro Silk Garden. In fact, it's one of the colors of yarn from my ill-fated attempt at knitting the extremely popular Noro Striped Scarf pattern by Jared Flood. I ended up frogging mine because the two colors I'd chosen were both too muted to really do this scarf justice. I still plan to try the scarf again in the future, but, getting back to the subject of the hat...

The pattern is called Felicity. It is designed by Wanett Clyde, and can be found on her blog, Knitology. Since I have a tendancy to knit tight, my hat didn't fit me properly, so I frogged it back, and made a few modifications, which can be found on my Ravelry page. For those of you who are not Ravelry members, here is a quote from my Felicity Project page:

1-10-11: Starting Over- For my second attempt, I cast on 80 stitches with a size 6 needle. I purled the first round, knit the second round, purled the third round to create a thin garter stitch border. Now I’m continuing in stocking stitch for the time being. As you can see, I’m making it up as I go. Update (and mods): Knit to about 2 inches from cast on edge, then changed to size 7 needles. Knit until work measures 4 inches, then changed to size 8 needles, and knit until 5.5 inches. Start the increase section with the second increase round (since I cast on 80 stitches), and knit pattern as written until after the last increase row, where I knit 8 round even instead of 6. This makes up for the 2 knit rows I skipped by starting with the second increase round. Knit decrease section as written.

Just Sharing

I can't get off the computer without sharing this funny picture I took at feeding time. The way the cats are being so careful to stay on the trail Dave and I made with our footprints, so they don't get thier dainty feet wet makes me laugh. I just love my cats...

My Snow Angel

It finally thawed enough for me to go for a walk, without fear of slipping on the ice. During my walk, I saw the cutest snowman in the front yard of the house on the corner. I guess I should have ask if I could take a picture of it for my blog, but I've never been comfortable talking to people unless they talk to me first. If Dave had been with me, he'd have probably asked for me, but he was at work. After I got home, I contemplated making a snowman of my own, but I guess I don't know how to make a snowball bigger than the palms of my hands, so instead I made snow angel. It actually turned out pretty, considering I had to smooth out the imprints of my hands on each side of the "skirt" and my butt print in the middle. It's just not as easy to get up off the ground at 42 as it was when I was in my teens...

Snow Day

We woke this morning to the first snow of the season. Dave had planned to drop me off at church, while he went to the radio station to record some winter advisory announcements. As I was getting ready, Kathy called to let us know they were already getting some accumulation at the church. Since we're a small group, with lots of our members, living out in the country, already having called to say they wouldn't be coming, she told us we were not going to have services today. If anything, the ones who were already there would pray for our prayer requests and eachother, and leave. Since I was already awake, and dressed, I grabbed my knitting, and went to the radio station with Dave. I love watching (or should I say listening to) him work. We then went to eat lunch at our favorite Mexican food restaurant, and came home. We didn't go over to see Max today, because it's doubtful he's outside today. If he is, we'd just end up luring him out of whatever cubby he's snuggled into over there. Boy, I'm going to miss him today, but it's better if we don't cause him to get wet.
So, here we are, already in for the day, so I decided to share some snow pictures. The first one is taken from the front porch, and the second one is taken from the back porch. I think snow is so beautiful, and normally I'd be really excited. Please, pray for me, that my worry about Max will not prevent me from enjoying this snow.

One Row Scarf- Take 2

Well, this is my second attempt at the knitting the One Row Handspun Scarf pattern, written by Stephanie Pearl McPhee. Originally, I planned to use one of the hanks of yarn I'd dyed with Kool-Aid last year. I changed my mind, because I didn't like the way the color was pooling unevenly, so I decided to frog that scarf. I love the pattern, and still wanted to knit it, so back to my stash I went, where I found a hank of yarn I'd forgotten about. Spun and dyed at Brown Farm in Scotland, CT, it was sent to me by a fellow Odd-Ball knitter. The color is plum, and it is 250 yards of 70%corriedale/30% mohair. I love the fact that the color isn't completely solid. The tone on tone is more rugged in appearance, and in my opinion, that makes it perfect for this pattern.
As for my Kool-Aid dyed yarn? I'm sure the perfect pattern is out there, and I'll not stop until I find it.

Two Finished Projects

Today, I'd like to share a couple of photos featuring projects I've recently knit. The first one is a scarf, knit by the Cable and Lace scarf pattern from Debbie Bliss' Pure Cashmere booklet. This quick, yet attractive, scarf has become my go to pattern for an instant gratification knit. I used Noro Silk Garden for this particular scarf, which was my last completed project of 2010. Dave took this picture of me with our new camera, just as we were leaving for the Watch Night Service on New Years Eve. I had just finished blocking it that day.

The second picture, a pair of lacy mitts, was my first finished project of 2011. I used Sirdar Snuggly DK, which is normally used for baby items, but I think it made a beautiful pair of mitts. The pattern was a free Ravelry download called Baby Fan Mitts, designed by Morgan Wolf. It's a smaller version of the Feather and Fan stitch, which I find very easy, and enjoyable to knit.

It's Here!

I've been loving my Christmas party gift of philosophy so much, that my interest in all things Philosophy, has been peaked. I went to their website just to browse, and discovered they were having a year-end sale. Of course, I had to place an order, and of course, that order had to be large enough to qualify for free shipping. Right? I also signed up for their email newsletter, and recieved a free gift, which I applied to this order, making it an even better bargain. I love getting packages in the mail, and I've been eagerly awaiting this one. I came home from my walk to see this box, just waiting to be torn into...

Inside was my complete order. I now have 16 oz bottles of thier three-in-one bath/hair product in Melting Marshmellow, Double Chocolate Chip Mint Cookie, and Cookies n' Cream. I also ordered the Trick Or Treat set, which includes 8 oz bottles of three-in-one product in Carmel Apple, and Pumpkin Spice Muffin. I also ordered a regular body lotion, and an ultra rich body lotion in the Melting Marshmellow (this is the scent I seem to love the most). My free gift was a box of trial sized skin products: Purity facial wash, Hope In A Jar moisturizer, and Amazing Grace body wash. All this came just in time for me to shower before prayer meeting tonight! I'm proud to say I went to church smelling like a big melting marshmellow. :)

Getting Back To Normal

When I first won my three month membership to Anytime Fitness, I did so well. I got into the habit of going 4 days a week. This has been good for me, not only because I've been getting some exercise, but also because it had gotten me driving again. I had fallen into a nice routine before the holidays. I wake up when Dave comes home for lunch, eat with him, go visit Max, then head to the gym. I walk on the treadmill for 2 miles, then bicycle for about 15-20 minutes. Sometimes I use a couple of the machines to work out my arms, but not always. Will this make me skinny and toned? Not likely, but I have noticed a difference in my energy level, and the fit of my clothes...and that's just fine with me. After my work out, I stop by the Sonic for a Happy Hour diet coke on my way home.

When the holidays hit, and I noticed a difference in the amount of people out and about, and an aggressiveness in the way they were driving. This made it harder for me, because I'm nervous of driving anyway. Then life got in the way, and my own holiday planning got me out of my good habits. After Thanksgiving, I pushed myself to start going back to the gym, and had just started getting my routine back. I had even gotten myself a new pair of walking shoes, when I became ill. This is the first day, in almost two weeks that I've felt like exercising. Since it's a little late to go to the gym (I don't want to be in there when the after work crowd hits), I'm going to walk the little mile and a half Dave and I mapped out for our neighborhood walks. I'm even going to wear my new shoes for the first time. Please pray it doesn't start raining. I'd hate to have a relapse.

New Plan

I'm going to redo the Kool-aid dyed scarf, because I just don't like the way the color is pooling. Normally, I don't mind color pooling if it creates an attractive pattern, but in this case, it's creating the look of a half striped/half variegated scarf. I still love the One Row scarf pattern, so I'm still going to knit it, only I'm going to use one of my more solid (tonal) yarns. Stay tuned...

Poor Dave :(

Yesterday, the thing I've been fearing happened. Dave started feeling sick. So far it is sitting in his throat, and he can feel it some in his chest. He's been taking Zicam, and doesn't believe it has gotten worse. I hope he's right. Being sick isn't as hard on me because I don't work outside the home. I can do absolutely nothing for a couple of days if I choose, but Dave can't. His normal work schedule resumes tomorrow, and I'm hoping for a complete miracle cure for him. Please, help me pray.

Koolade Dyed Scarf

I started a new scarf today. I don't need a new scarf, and, with all my WIP's going unfinished, I definately didn't need to start another project. I just wanted to knit up one of my Kool-aid dyed yarns, to see what it looked like. This particular yarn is either Patons or Lion brand wool (I lost the label, so I'm not sure which. The pattern is called One Row Handspun Scarf, and it's designed by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, otherwise known as the Yarn Harlot. You can find it on her blog right here. I wanted a pattern that didn't require lots of concentration, so I could mindlessly knit while I watch TV. This scarf is excellant for that purpose, because as the title says, it's only one row, repeated until your scarf is the desired length. In my case, it will be when I run out of yarn. This is exciting. I started my first knitting project of 2011 on New Years Day.

Happy New Year!

One of our church's traditions is a Watch Night singing service. We meet at 7pm, sing until around 9pm, eat, sing until a little before midnight, then we pray the old year out and the new year in. This year's service was a challange, because most of our singers, including myself, are sick. I'm happy to say that, despite the fact we had a small crowd, and just a hand full of singers, we managed to have a great night. Everyone was in a good mood, and eager to help. I thank God for my church, and pray that health will soon be restored to all.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!