So Long 2007...

I guess this is the last post for 2007. What a year. It was certainly a big one for our family. In good ways and bad ways. A lot has changed. My dad died, my kids moved out, then moved back in, and one has since moved away. My mother is doing well living on her own which still boggles my mind. Mr. C is not much of a baby anymore with an ever increasing vocabulary. Our niece had twins over the weekend in San Diego. And two more babies in the family due this year. Wow. A lot of change.

I've been knitting. And here is proof:

I just did the decrease for the arms. This is fun knitting but it's difficult to knit and watch TV with this pattern. It require a lot of concentration. I was knitting and trying to watch The Sound Of Music for the 900th time last night and it wasn't going well. It's hard to concentrate on serious knitting and a young Christopher Plummer at the same time. The knitting lost that one let me tell you.

I went to see my first movie at the theater IN A LONG TIME. I highly recommend P.S. I Love You. It was slow in a couple parts, but overall it was really good. And great scenery of Ireland.

Have a happy New Year's Eve. We're babysitting Mr. C. tonight. As long as my DH and I stay as exciting as we are, our kids will never have to worry about a babysitter on New Year's Eve!

Happy (almost) New Year!!

I usually review my finished projects for the year at the end of December. I was sitting here thinking that I didn't knit much at all this year compared to other years. I made some soap and I did some sewing. But after reviewing my blog archives, I realize that I did more than I thought. Not as much as previous years, but still more than I thought. FO's are as follows:

Koigu brown socks for me

Michael's neck gaitor in Kraemer washable wool

Fetching fingerless mitts for me

Emily's hand dyed socks (Shelley's sock yarn I think)

Misty Garden scarf for me out of Shelley's hand spun green wool

Opal socks for my mother

Blue hand dyed socks for Kelly

Dream Swatch headband for Kelly

4 cork people

Colin's blue socks

Kelly's Manos scarf and hat

Clementine Shawlette from Maryland Sheep and Wool hand dyed (for me)

Prayer scarf (requested by a sweet nun at a local nursing home)

Purple socks for Cate

Felted bag (that ended up in the Salvation Army bin... I hated that thing)

Vintage shawl (for me) Kraemer Alpaca

Sock Monkey hat for Colin (which he refuses to wear for some reason... my husband says he is smarter than we give him credit for :-P )

Socks for new baby

Spa Socks for my aunt

Lady Eleanor for me ( Best of The Year Award :-)

Giorgio's socks

Charity scarf and hat (which I still have... yikes)

Dashing Mitts (intended for Michael... for me in the end)

Not bad for not much knitting, huh?

Unfinished objects include one pair of adult socks, Meghan's lace sweater (hopeless), the pink lace shawl, and Colin's Aran pullover sweater which I am currently working on.

We went to Barnes and Noble last night and I got his book:

For those of you who like to knit the classics.... this book is for you. There is only one sweater (vest) in this book that I wouldn't knit. Everything else I love. Especially this one..

The scallops at the bottom are knit separately and then sewn on. It's so different. And yet still pretty classy looking. There is another turtle neck pullover that I love with a cabled edge at the bottom and on the sleeves but I don't like how the sleeves are set in. They create some pointy edges at the shoulders which reminds of something Dr. Spock would wear on Star Trek. Check it out:

Am I crazy or is that weird?

Almost out of time....

Yes, I realize he's eyeless. I can't believe I got this far. I figured out the whip stitch thing for the mouth, ears, and arms. Now I just have to decide what kind of eyes to give him. I hope he ends up loved. You never know about these things. It could go either way.

I hope everyone has a safe, happy and healthy Christmas and New Year. From our house to yours.... enjoy your family and friends. That's what it's all about.

And don't forget to EAT the gingerbread house. That's really what it's for.

Christmas Craziness

Is it just me, or does Christmas get crazier every year? I've been out every night for 10 days straight and it isn't going to stop any time soon. I'm either going to pull a few all-nighters or there isn't going to be a Christmas at our house. I'm doing everything but what I should be doing.

I have three Erin bags to block, line, and sew handles on for daughter #1. She did the knitting and left the rest to me. I'm just so glad she's knitting that I don't even care. I'm happy to do that for her ... I just need to find the time.

I thought I might get this finished for Mr. C... but it's not looking good.

I have to say that these things are not quite as easy to do as they look. The cutting and machine sewing isn't a problem, but I'm having trouble visualizing hand sewing the (stuffed) mouth and ears onto the sock with a whip stitch. This could be a job for... I don't know... someone who knows how to sew or something. Ugh.

I got the Dashing fingerless gloves finished. They are definitely too small for my son so they will be mine. I love them. Merry Christmas to me. :-)

Cate informs me that she is probably coming home early. I've been using her room as a catch-all. In fact half of my summer clothes are still laying across her bed. So I guess tonight would be a good night to start with the first all-nighter.

Yawn.

Here's a photo of Mr. C's latest encounter with Santa. He was not impressed. We may try again tonight at the mall.

Then again, we may not. (click on to see the terror!)

Blind Sided....

I've been blind sided by Christmas. It snuck up on me. I'm not ready. But, really, are we ever? I think we just keep preparing until we finally have to stop.

I saw this little guy at Barnes and Noble last night. Isn't he adorable? I have to have one. With the maiden name of Barnes, I have a few people (my husband among them) who still call me "Barnsie" from time to time. Gotta get Barnsie.

I started "Dashing" from Knitty Spring 2006. I shortened it. The pattern really made it too long and uncomfortable. Who needs that clear up your arm? But I like it. It won't fit the intended (my son) so I'm sure I'll end up with them. I'm having trouble with mittens these days. The charity mitten would have fit the jolly green giant and I can tell this one is too small for Michael. I'm sure you're wondering about gauge. Hmmn.... gauge. She who does not check gauge gets exactly what she deserves. (In this case, a great new pair of fingerless mitts.)

Musings on the new Winter Knitty

So far today, I've managed to lose my gloves, spill coffee in my keyboard (no ill effects so far thank God), and take a chunk of skin off the knuckle on my right pinky finger. Things can only get better. Right?

I'm really impressed with the new Knitty. (Winter knitty.com) There are patterns on there that I will definitely add to my "someday" list. Some of my thoughts are as follows:

Ice Queen - I love the look of this as a scarf. I'd never wear it on my head. I might try this someday. I'm not a great lace knitter. (I'm not really even a mediocre lace knitter come to think of it)

Quant - How could I not make one of these to match Lady Eleanor with my leftover yarn? It's adorable.

3 Tams - These are really cute. I'd never take the time though. I don't like Fair Isle knitting.

Tudora - I really love this. What a great quick gift for someone. Super for leftover yarn.

Halcyon - I like a lace scarf. And this pattern is pretty. I just don't get the ribbon thing. I wouldn't mess up a pretty scarf with ribbon like that.

Justify - This one I will put on my "to do" list. I want to make this. For sure. It's different and interesting.

Dahlia - For some reason, this sweater reminds me of my son's former girlfriend. She would look adorable in this. If she was still around, I'd make this for her. I have to say that the sweater doesn't fit the girl in the photo very well, but it's pretty darn good for a ninth grade designer. You go girl.

Aoife - She had me until the sleeves. I'm not a fan of bell sleeves.... and these are pretty..um.. belly. I'd lengthen the sleeve and end with the braid.

Abotanicity - How cute would this be on someone with a baby bump? It looks like an adorable maternity sweater. I don't think I'd wear it unless I was pregnant. (and we can safely say that ain't gonna happen)

Stardust - Very cute. Perfect for that dressy occasion.

Laughing Carrots - This is so cute. And it looks so warm. What a perfect Fall and Early Spring Jacket-type sweater for kids. My only problem with this is (and I'm sure it's just me being weird) that I don't like it for a boy. I'd love to see it in pink or light blue on a girl. There is something about that design that looks a little girly to me. Actually, I think I've just lived with my husband too long. That sounds like something he would say.

Fair Isle Rapids - This is the kind of scarf you want someone to make you. It's awesome. But I'd never take the time to knit it. Check out his other stuff on his blog. He's good. Real good.

Jeanie - I LOVE this. I'm all about wraps these days. I'll make this.

The other patterns: If I havent' mentioned it, it's because I don't like to knit patterned socks (I'll take my sock patterns totally mindless please), I don't get knitting for pets when you can knit for humans, I'm not into knitting toys, I'm extremely picky about purse patterns, and glove and mitten knitting is cool but I'd rather do socks. They are all nice patterns though.

All in all, a really good issue of Knitty. Check it out.

In other news...

This is the new, heated floor mat that I bought for my office. It is AWESOME. After finally realizing that what I go through with my feet every winter might not be normal, I've come to the conclusion that I have Raynaud's Disease. And this little bugger has made all the difference. Since my doctor has just completely fluffed off every conversation I've ever tried to have with her about how cold, numb, and painful my feet get in the winter, I decided to google it and got my answers online. My symptoms were NOT normal. So if you have that problem, you probably have Raynauds.. and you need one of these mats! (this has been a public service announcement for those of you who's doctors don't take you seriously :-)

Ok.. it's time to work. Have a great day.