And the Sock Challenge Is..... Oh-Vah!

In the words of the commentator for Iron Chef.... the sock challenge is Oh-Vah! I finished them last night, rubbing my eyes to stay awake at 1:00 during another night of insomnia. After much ripping and redoing - they look great! I can't wait to send them off in a cute little package to their new owner. As soon as I know that she has received them I will post a photo.

On to other knitting:
The other day I became "cleanly" and went through the things I had completed for Level II of TKGA Masters Hand Knitting. Wow! I was a little work machine and didn't even know it. Here I had 14 swatches done (but some I have to redo because I can't find the pattern I used) and I had answered 6 questions! COOL! I have reknit two swatches today, and have to pack up for a day of BBall and knitting tomorrow.

Kid News
Youngest daughter has improved in her swimming. She used to take 20th of 20 and 18th of 18. Yesterday was the final meet for the season and she got 3rd of 8, 3rd of 4, and 4th of 8. Big improvement! She absolutely loves swimming, and I'm happy because she needs something in her life that makes her happy. I think she feels like she lives in the shadow of her bigger sister a lot.

tomorrow is the Gus-Macker 3 on 3 BBall tournament for the oldest daughter. I am nervous for her. A lot of the parents are expecting great things, and my daughter plays better when she is angry instead of afraid. I may have to start a fight with her on the way there to get her more angry than afraid of disappointing the team.

Gotta go pack my knitting bag for the day!

Sittin Poolside

Just got home from an outdoor swim meet. The youngest daughter swims on the local team and this outdoor meet was a real treat. How beautiful to sit out in the sun and watch the kids swim. But as I sat, I saw a woman standing and waiting for the meet to be over so that she could swim. I instantly hated her. She was wearing a nice bikini, and she had the body to go in it. A tan-goddess, she smiled as the kids swam their events. The green monster of jealousy flared up and I wanted to beat her up, until I noticed that she was about 65 years old! Man, I hated her even more because at about half of her age I don't look even half as good in a swimming suit! Way to go lady!

I've been cooking on the final sock, there is only about 2 inches to go until I begin the toe decreases. I have worked on it at night as we watch movies I rented from the library. We have been watching one every night. Last night's was a little lame, but Pay It Forward was really good. Yes, it was the first time we had seen it (we don't get out much). After I finish the sock (probably on Wednesday or Thursday) I may start my new knit-a-long. The Rug Along - sponsored by Natalie. We cleaned up in our family room to prepare for a 5 foot by 7 foot rug. Hmm.... I may have gotten myself in too deep on this one!

I also organized my TKGA Master's Knitting materials for Level II. I want to get this completed before Christmas. We'll see if we can make it.

Now go knit your socks off!

Whoa.....cancel the camping trip

I had posted a nice vacation photo of the pop-up camper and said I would be gone until July 27th. Well, my sister-in-law (a different one from the art fair) called to tell me that her 4 month old granddaughter would be baptized on Sunday and we were invited! I'm so pleased because this side of the family hasn't been all that close, and I'm happy to do things with them again.

But, BIG PROBLEM! What can I make by Sunday? At first my head was reeling with ideas. Blanket, fruit caps, pushies (this is my family's language for slippers), a sweater set? But, oh.... the pressure of trying to knit it up by Sunday. I finally decided I don't need that added pressure in my life right now. I will purchase a nice gift this time. While they always expect hand crafted items as gifts, and my gifts are always talked about by everyone there, I'm sure they won't be disappointed.

Also.... we aren't leaving for camping today because my car has to go in the shop for the second time. It won't stay started. The engine will start up, then die, and then it won't start up after that. They fixed it once, and now it's a problem again. I'm worried that it might be fatal and we can't afford a second car right now. YIKES!

Also, oldest daughter was called yesterday to be in a last minute horse show. There is a horse that needs the experience (the adult owner can't control her) and my daughter can't wait to ride her on Friday. So, if we had gone camping today we would have had to come back Friday for the horse show and Sunday for the baptism. That isn't worth it. Maybe we will leave on Sunday instead.

 

Odds 'N Ends

 
Every mother's nightmare dream happened this morning. The two darling children awoke and said that they would make breakfast. Yes they would make it alone. I shudder just remembering my fear excitement at eating what an 8 year-old and an 11 year-old could make by themselves, and shudder with the thought of what the kitchen would look like when they were done.
 
Almost an hour later, after listening to giggling, frantic stirring, questions about where  the baking powder was and if baking soda could be used instead, we sat down to eat. Shock and amazement! It was wonderful! And they made less of a mess than when their father cooks! What a treat! Now, of course they are sorry because I will put them on a regular meal cooking schedule (HA HA!) to alleviate my workload! What did I do while they cooked? Well, knit of course!
 
The first sock is finally done ( I said it would be done last Thursday, shame, shame on me) and I am casting on the second sock. No photos until after my secret pal has received them, so just know that I kicked butt on this pattern! DH said, "I can't wait until you are done with those" after my third trip to the frog pond.
"Why?" I asked.
"Because all you do is rip it out over and over again and it's making me nuts. You don't seem happy with these socks."
Hmmm..... isn't is sweet that he wants me to be happy, but I had to tell him he was all wrong, I am happy knitting these socks. I just want them to be my absolute best ever. I don't want to send out shoddy work!
 
Well, we are off camping again.
 
My favorite place to be. I will finish casting on this sock, do the first couple of rows to get things going, and then it is time to pack up the pop-up. Tomorrow we are going to a state park and plan to canoe around some chains of lakes in the area. DH has to get the fishing lines sorted out since his tipping fiasco a few weeks ago. They are probably still water logged.
 
One more thing......
I think I have invented a new hair removal product. With summer, I enjoy spending leisurely mornings drinking coffee while surfing the Internet. It is painful when I have to get up, not only because I'm getting so damn old, but the chair sticks to the backs of my legs and rips out every single hair. At first this was an inconvenience, but now I'm starting to think of it as an entrepreneurial opportunity.
 
I could schedule times for people to sit on the chair as a hair removal product. They would have to sit in some pretty weird positions to remove hair from certain delicate areas, but rest assured that after about ten minutes, pulling away from the chair will remove darn near all of it - even with the AC on. No, I haven't personally tested this in any position other than the normal sitting position. But the thought has crossed my mind!

New Obsession!

 
Knots! I have always wanted to learn how to tie different knots. It could come in so handy when I need the children to sit still, when I want to bundle up all of their old toys to bring to the dump, or for my retirement profession as a truck driver. Seriously! I have always wanted to drive a truck. You should see me back up a trailer - I have had people stop and watch as I back up the camper between two closely parked cars or drive it in reverse forever down long driveways. I'm such a hee-woman!
 
Anyway, I got a book on knot tying from the library, ok I got four books on knot tying, and now I'm creating my own little reference with pictures. The Knitting Goddess is an artist! Well, as my 11 year-old gifted artist told me, "Momma, you are just doing line drawings".
What an instant ego deflater! My husband thinks I'm nuts (well this wouldn't be the first time he has thought that) and just patiently waits for me to get tired of this new craze, but I plan to buy a bunch of ropes to help us when we canoe camp and I can practice tying knots all of the time! YIPPEE! So far I have learned about ten knots that I can do without looking at the pictures. Three are stoppers, two are hitches, four are bends, and one is a rope storage knot. Only twenty more to go (there are 30 in the book The Book of Camping Knots).

 
 I'll be sure to update you on my progress.
 
Now on to some knitting.
 
I will finish the first sock tonight, and I can't wait to get started on the second one. I have watched almost all of the summer movies I wanted to see, maybe Big Fish or Calendar Girls  tonight. I picked up the gusset stitches perfectly on this sock (did I say that in my last post?) Hmm... the posts are all starting to sound alike in my head - maybe I should get my head examined? I'm sure DH would agree that I need the head checked out! Especially with the new obsession!
 
Tata for now!

Finally Home

Well, the art fair was great! The weather was the best anyone had seen in weeks, and my SIL sold quite a bit of jewerly. Not as much as last year, but the art fair this year was the week after July 4th instead of before, and we think a lot of the tourists had gone home.

The night before we left, my SIL called me to tell me about a fiber tent that would have fiber arts on display. This was something new this year. There would be spinning, weaving, knitting, and one table would be teaching kids how to knit. She told me to bring my "for sale" items and any extra yarn I didn't want to donate to the cause. I was pretty excited.

When I got there, I wasn't quite as enthusiastic. I decided not to try and sell my items, because of the problem in getting them approved without photos. I'm glad I didn't because it really is a day for my SIL and not for me, I would like to keep it that way. The fiber arts tent, while having some fiber that could be spun and a few skeins of yarn, was very small and didn't offer a lot to an experienced knitter. The women who were knitting looked like they had learned only recently, and weren't making any substantial projects. The only project I saw was a knit teddy bear, a rejuvenated project from WWII England where they have quite a history I'm told. They weren't attractive, and other than some crocheted bucket hats (which were "OK"), this was the extent of the exhibit. I did enjoy talking to one woman who needle felts. I have read about it and seen some photos, but it was fun to see someone do it live. It looked much easier than I had imagined, and I liked the look of the finished product, especially the hats.

I worked hard on the sock for my secret pal. I turned the heel and completed all of the gusset decreases only to try the thing on and it wouldn't fit. I am using two colors and I must not have carried my yarn loose enough, I couldn't get my foot into it. So, I ripped the entire thing apart and started over from the end of the ribbing. This time is fits much better and I'm pleased, I wasn't sure if I would be able to make this sock the way I wanted..... I thought about switching to a plain single color... but.... BORING! Right now I am turning the first heel for the second (and hopefully last) time.

Home again from another weekend of camping in the rain and packing a wet camper. We are all happy to be home, and I don't think we will be so quick to leave this weekend. The couch is a lot nicer to sit on than I remembered! After a little vacuuming this morning (Yes, I actually cleaned!) the house feels pretty nice!

It would be great to knit and watch movies..... sounds like a plan. I want to rent Girl With a Pearl Earring, because I haven't seen that Colin Firth movie yet. Some popcorn... yeah, I can definitely do that!

A camping we will go,
A camping we will go...

Hi-Ho the dairy-o
a camping we will go!

The rain falls everyday
The rain falls everyday
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
The rain falls everyday!

It's too cold to go swim
It's too cold to go swim
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
It's too cold to go swim!

The girls will go a-fishing
The girls will go a-fishing
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
The girls will go a-fishing!

Daddy tips the canoe
Daddy tips the canoe
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
Daddy tips the canoe!

Some knitting will get done
some knitting will get done
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
some knitting will get done!

We played lots of games
We played lots of games
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
We played lots of games!

We packed up in the rain
We packed up in the rain
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
We packed up in the rain!

When will we go again
when will we go again
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
When will we go again?

On Friday we will leave
On Friday we will leave
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
On Friday we will leave!

The art fair is this weekend
The art fair is this weekend
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
The art fair is this weekend!

I won't sell anything
I won't sell anything
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
I won't sell anything!

We'll camp in brother's yard
We'll camp in brother's yard
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
We'll camp in brother's yard!

There's lots of laundry to do
There's lots of laundry to do
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
There's lots of laundry to do!

We all had lots of fun
We all had lots of fun
Hi-Ho the dairy-o
We all had lots of fun!

Let’s get started on some knitting

I’m off on a hunt for free sock patterns for my secret sock pal. I don’t want to make a plain Jane set for her, but something kind of funky and cool. Something with attitude!
I thought of going to the LYS today to get some yarn, but I have yard work to do first, and by then it may be too late.

Tomorrow is the last day of summer school, and we can begin camping like maniacs (we normally are maniacs anyway, so I don’t know how much different we will look).

Have I mentioned that the decision is final? We are not moving. We had the movers set up, the apartment, and made up a moving calendar. Then we told our parents. YIKES! That didn’t go well. Last year during our vacation, both DH mother and my mother ended up in the hospital. His mother with a stroke, mine with major depression. Everyone blamed us (Don’t you love being the youngest child who is always the problem? Both DH and I are the youngest). When both sets of parents became angry with us for moving, we felt like selfish little brats. This move is a choice, and if something would happen to any of them, I don’t think we could live with ourselves. We had a tough time dealing with the guilt last year.

Cincinnati will always be there… maybe some day. I now know that it won’t be difficult for me to get a job there. I wrote to the person and backed out of the job yesterday. Our whole family is depressed and relieved at the same time. Now we can try to enjoy our summer.

Happy Knitting!