Only bitty bits today...

I have some progress, disgustingly small progress though. The busyness around here is astounding lately. I am totally sick of it. Anyhoo......



I finished the other front, and started the sleeves.



I don't think the sleeves will take long, IF I EVER GET A CHANCE TO KNIT! Can ya tell I'm a little grumbly about the lack of knitting time? Yeah, I thought so.

Socks are in the future too. Started a couple of new ones. Very little progress on either of them. (insert yet another grumble here)



I cannot wait until school, sports and church activities slow down. My knitting is suffering. I actually love going to all that stuff, I just get a little frustrated when there is so much of it at once. Spring is bad that way around here.

I will try to be back to my cheerful, silly self soon. Promise! If you need to be cheered up after reading this depressing post, go here. She is hilarious. I almost peed my pants laughing at her posts yesterday. If you haven't been there before, read some of the archives. They are worth it, trust me.

Distractions....

Wow, I have so many of them lately! This morning I was distracted by a post on Karen's blog and really wanted to do it myself, so here it is....

I am....really silly a lot of the time.
I want....a housekeeper. (heck I might as well go for the big guns right?)
I wish....that I could design my own knitting.
I hate....a messy house. (Yet somehow mine is really not cooperating with me lately which resulted in a mini melt down yesterday. Yeah we won't talk about it anymore.)
I miss....my grandma.
I fear....my children getting hurt.
I hear....way too much noise around here. (Can't a girl just have some peace and quiet?!)
I wonder....if I will ever get a job again and what it will be.
I regret....not going to college.
I am not...patient. (AT ALL!)
I dance....really well in my mind and I stink in real life.
I sing....a lot. I love music. I especially love to hear Lauren sing though. She has a very nice voice. Mucho better than mine.
I cry....rarely, and mostly when I feel overwhelmed.
I am not always....focused. (The proof is in the post girls!)
I make with my hands....socks mostly, other knitterly things, occasional sewing projects, baked goods and food for my family, wow this list could go on too long.
I write....mostly on this blog, occasional poetry, very amateur knitting patterns and notes to myself constantly. (I am super forgetful.)
I confuse....easily and frequently? (Not gonna go there!)
I need....more time to knit or an extra set of hands.
I should....stop reading blogs and either get cleaning or knitting.
I start...too many new projects.
I finish....as many as I can.
I tag....whoever likes these things.

I love doing these. They are fun and make you think about yourself a little more. I will have some knitting progress tomorrow. Really!

OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!

Um, that is my credit card you hearing screaming in pain. It was apparently overused at IKEA yesterday. Wow did I have fun though! Now the poor hubby has some MAJOR assembling to do. Poor guy. I am staying VERY far away. (We don't assemble well together at all!)

I have boxes stashed all over the house. The carpet is being cleaned in couple of weeks and then we can put the furniture in here. It will probably take him that long to do the assembly anyway. Wow, we are talking a lot of boxes!

No knitting progress. Didn't knit at all yesterday. (Unless you count the 3 rows I did while stuck in an hour-long traffic jam on the way home last night.) I was not a happy camper! Way too stressful. I don't know how you big city dwellers do it. That traffic drives me batty! But at least I have lots of new storage for my stash. Yeehah!

IKEA here I come!!!!!!!!

Yay! Tomorrow I get to go to IKEA to get that new office furniture. I am so excited! I am so sick of the cheap, mismatched stuff we have in here right now! It is definitely UGLY! The new pieces will conveniently have extra storage for yarn, needles and patterns too. (any good knitter would plan ahead like that right?)

Making a little progress on the cardi.



After this front, just the sleeves to go. Wow, maybe I will actually finish this thing! (Confession: I have a seaming phobia! You guys will have to cheer me on!)

The pattern for the lace socks is up at the Townsend Socks KAL. If you want the pattern, you can get it there. That Jeanie is a whiz at designing. She's inspiring me. The wheels are turning, that's all I'm gonna say.

It's a pair!

Okay, I will try this again! Blogger just ate my first attempt at this post.

I finally finished the lace socks. I really like them! Love the pattern, love the colors! My sweet friend Jeanie actually named this sock pattern after little ole me. How cool is that!



I was able to finish these after the solo and ensemble trip yesterday. When I got home, I only had the toe to do and that went quickly. What a long day! We left around noon and didn't get home until around 10pm. Wow, was I tired! Lauren did really well though. She received a 1 rating for her solo and for the girls choir she is in. She was excited! A 1 at state is very nice! I am so relieved! (talk about stressful!)

Now I just have to finish those other socks, and the sweater, while trying not to cast on anything new...... (I'm not at all sure that's gonna happen!)

Bits and pieces....

Bits of knitting progress and pieces of my sweater.



I didn't get much farther on the 2nd front of my sweater. I just finished the gusset decreases on the 2nd lace sock. And finally, I just had to cast on another pair of socks. I have a long car ride and some waiting times tomorrow, so I needed a "just pick up and knit" project. I chose a ball of Regia Silk #186 and a simple modified garter rib pattern. My daughter Lauren has state solo and ensemble for voice tomorrow, so that's where we're going.

Office update......the painter is finished. YAY! I'm so excited. We had a little mishap this morning when I realized the color he was putting on the walls was NOT THE COLOR I PICKED! Thankfully there was one coat to go, so now we have the right color. Wanna see?



It's a really nice brown. I may still do a wool wash on it with some blue/green and soft white to match this fabric I picked out for the valances.



Isn't it cute?!! It's from the Waverly Urban Attitude collection. I LOVE IT! Now to find the furniture I want......I think I see a trip to IKEA in the near future.

I've taken it for granted!

My computer, that is. I have very limited access to my computer this week. My office is being repainted and it is covered up for most of the day with sheets. I can't believe how much I miss it. I have wanted to quick check something, look something up, chat with friends and keep up on email so many times, and can't just do it when I want to. I guess it's one of those things where you don't know how much you will miss it until it's gone.

I have finished the left front of my sweater. Yay! Two pieces down.



I have also started the right front and have about 3 inches done. I have been super busy this week and haven't gotten as much knitting done as I wanted. I am meeting with "the knitting girls" this afternoon, so hope to have more progress tomorrow.

Sorry about the quickie post. I am typing furiously, after taking a really lame pic of the sweater front (not even pinned out) and hoping the painter won't show up before I can post this thing.

Bad Blogger!

I'm sorry. I have been a bad blogger this weekend. Easter was very busy with church, lots of food, hunting eggs and spending time with family. The painter was here today too, working in my computer room, so I haven't had a chance to get on before now.

On to the knitting:

First the bad news.....This.....



Has become.....This....



Yeah. I had to rip out the whole thing. It was the left front of my sweater but the gauge was all wrong. Let's just say, I picked up the wrong needles by accident and it didn't work out well at all. I was not happy. But, I already have it back to where it was before I ripped, so I am okay with it.

The good news.....



The first lacy sock is complete and I already have a few lace repeats of the second one done. Here's a close up of the lacey goodness.



I know, I'm a dork, but I love love love lacey socks. The pattern for this will probably be published soon by my friend. I will let ya all know when that is.

HAPPY EASTER!!!

Haha! Just for fun.





I got a kick of that one. Seriously though, I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Easter. I will be spending mine with my family and hopefully we will attend a beautiful church service tomorrow.

Knitting content: I am almost to the toe of my sock. I finished the back of the cardi and have about 5 inches of the ribbing done on one of the fronts. Hopefully Monday I will have some major progress to show you. Hope the rest of your weekend is great!

Friday progress is good!

Finally I am making a little progress! The first lace sock is coming along nicely.



Excuse the desperate need for a pedicure shot. These are a fun knit!



The stitch pattern actually looks a little better in person. I would love to try this pattern in a solid sometime. I think it would pop more then.

And the cardi:



I love this sweater! Love the yarn, love the pattern, can't wait to wear it! Now I just need to get my butt in gear and finish it! However, because of the office redo project, I won't have as much knitting time as I want. Grrr........

Ho hum.

That is how my day has been. I had to work this morning (cleaning job) and came home to my own messy house. Bummer. I have to clean my office/craft/junk room by next week before the painter comes. I also need to shop for new office furniture and have no clue what I want in here. (and believe me, I need new stuff...right now there is a mish-mash of old and/or cheap stuff in here.....not pretty!) I did get some drawers emptied and stuff sorted, but I have no idea where to go with this stuff until I can put it away again. I hate messes, and this will be a big one.

I found a mistake on my sweater. Well not really a mistake, but I did the increases the way the pattern told me, and frankly, they look like crap. Debating whether to rip back 20 rows or so. I know it will drive me nuts if I don't, but oooh, I hate ripping. Right now I'm just going to ignore it and pretend I didn't screw it up. Knitter's denial. Yupp, I got it bad.

I have made a little progress on my lace socks. I just turned the heel and am picking up the gusset stitches. I think I will carry the lace pattern down the foot. That always looks cute.

I am planning a felted bag project. My wonderful Noro bag just isn't big enough for my knitting projects. I only take it for small stuff like socks. I have a couple of patterns. Trying to decided which one I want to make.

Maggie's Tote?



My Constant Companion?



Or the Southwest Style Bag from Patons?



Too many decisions. I would definitely change the colors on the first two. The last one is more intense and I may save that one for later. I might just make the Maggie's Tote in some Kureyon I have in the stash. I really should finish the other stuff first though. I need more hands.

Okay, down to business.

After being so silly yesterday, today I will get back to some serious knitting business.

I made a little progress on the sweater. This yarn is really nice to work with. A little splitty, but nice and soft, and I just love this color.



I really need to work on this more. Now that the incredibly boring ribbing is done, I might actually pick it up more often. I only did 8 inches of the ribbing. I can't imagine doing 12. Ribbing is worse than stockinette if you ask me.

I also have been working on these lace socks:



A friend of mine gave me the pattern. I really like them. The yarn is Lornas Laces in an unknown colorway if you're wondering. I got it from a lady that was destashing and it was already balled up when I got it. Sorry. I have another pair of Fixation socks going too, but no pic of those yet.

I am one of those people who is always somewhat behind the times. I just signed up for Bloglines this week and WOW do I love it. Bookmarks stink next to Bloglines. I can't believe how much time it saves me. Now I can keep track of even more blogs. If you are even more out of the loop than me, you really need to check it out.

I have this disease.........

I call it Startitis. You might have it too. It's major symptoms usually include more than a few of the following:

1. Starting new projects at random.
2. Starting new projects when you don't really have the time for new projects.
3. Starting new projects when you are bored or discouraged.
4. Starting new projects when your brain is on creativity overload.
5. Starting new projects when you already have too many on the needles.
6. Starting new projects when you have a yarn that is dying to be knit.
7. Starting new projects when you are "just browsing" through your many patterns.
8. Starting new projects while surfing blogs.
9. Starting new projects just because YOU ARE ADDICTED TO IT!!

I think I see a pattern here. Do you have these symptoms or others I have failed to mention? Do you think you may have this disease? (I've also heard it called Knitter's ADD) I've read that it's extremely contagious. By the way, it's symptoms can also transfer to other areas of crafting. I hope I haven't infected any of you just by allowing you to read about it. And no, I am not going to count my projects just to see how bad my case of Startitis is. I will only tell you that I have started 2 new pairs of socks, and am trying to resist the temptation to start some more. Maybe we should start a support group.

Signs of Spring

At our house we know spring is here when the greenhouses start to look beautiful. My husband and his brother are partners in a greenhouse business and they grow annual bedding plants for garden centers and other stores. This time of year is really pretty in the greenhouse. See?

Pansies

Marigolds

Snaps

More Pansies

Impatiens

And my favorite.....

Can you tell I really like pansies?
I love spring in the greenhouse!
Sorry about the lack of knitting content, but I just couldn't resist sharing these.

How embarassing!

I was reading a cute post over at Kate's blog about what is in your cupboard over the fridge. First of all, I barely remember there is a cupboard there, because of this:



Yeah, my cupboard is totally blocked by snacks. I can't reach in that cupboard without a chair either. Why do we even have cupboards up there if nobody can reach them?

We keep all the open chip bags etc. in this basket on top of the fridge. Hubby has a few boxes of tea up there too and the big ole bucket of pretzels. Frankly I am so embarassed by this. I am not a cluttery person, yet I don't even notice this unsightly mess of clutter. Maybe because it is above my regular line of vision? Hmmm.....

Then the inside is what I am really embarassed about.



My normally quite organized, clean type personage has a disgusting cupboard like this. Ewww, all dusty and jumbled. Totally unused stuff up there.

On the left we have:

1. an apple corer/peeler/slicer thingy that I have only used a couple of times
2. an egg organizer for the fridge (umm...not even our current fridge, yikes)
3. a couple of basket liners (not even sure I have those baskets anymore)
4. two big, really ugly, ancient Tupperware containers filled with the overflow of my out-of-control cookie cutter collection and misc other junk
5. and in front of that was another white tupperware contain (seen in 1st pic) containing more of the same
6. dust (Oh my goodness! YUCK!)

And on the right:

1. ANOTHER big container with, you guessed it, more cookie cutters
2. covers to plastic containers that I don't think exist anymore
3. Christmas cups (no idea why they are up there, I have a different cupboard for out-of-season stuff like this already
4. cake decorating tips (Have I ever decorated a cake with those? Um...NO!)
5. more dust (how humiliating)

Guess what I will be doing soon? Obviously, cleaning this terrible cupboard. I hope the garbage man is ready for this.

Spring break is bad for knitting!

I have found that my knitting time is very minimal during spring break. Having a 7yr old home seriously cuts into the knitting time. I have managed to make a little progress on my sweater.



I'm not really sure how long I want this ribbing to be yet. I will have to study the picture and the pattern, then measure myself to see when I need to stop. I think I would like it to come just below my belt, so it hangs over my pants just a little.

I made a very small amount of progress on my socks. (yes, those super-evil, way-too-dark Bearfoot socks) I swear I will never get these things finished!!!! And so many other sock projects are calling my name! Loudly I might add. (especially that wonderful STR yarn)



Finish, finish, finish, finish. (If I keep chanting, do you think that will work?)

I did work on a secret project for a friend yesterday too. Only a little peek to show you.



I will show the finished project when I'm allowed to.

I'm really excited! Yesterday I finally broke down and bought this:



I could literally look at this book for hours! I love it! I think it is the best sock book I have ever seen. Very inspiring. Well, hopefully I can get a little knitting and reading done today.

Happy Feet!

My feet are happily wearing these:



They were a great pick-me-up project. No more knitting slump for me! YAY!

I even started a new project.



That is the ribbing for this sweater:



Sorry for the bad picture. I quick snapped a photo of the magazine with my camera. It's in the Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer '04 issue. I think it will be nice for throwing on over a tank top this summer. I always freeze whenever I am in air conditioning. This should look summery enough and still keep me just a bit warmer. I don't think I will make it this long and I may shorten the sleeves to 3/4 length too. I hope it turns out. Shh.....don't tell....I have a secret fear of seaming and finishing. Hopefully this project will help me overcome it.

I would really like to make a couple of summery tops, but not tank tops. (because of the freezing issue) If you know of any great patterns for summer sweaters, leave a comment please. (and thanks for all the comments on the last post.....I LOVE reading them!)

I'm so excited!

I just can't hide it! I'm about to lose control and I think I like it! (Sorry, I just slipped off to Pointer Sister's land there for a second.) I really am excited though. My blog was featured on the Opal Chatters April newsletter today, and that means I win a skein of Opal yarn. I can't wait to see what kind they send me! I'm secretly hoping for something springy or a solid, but whatever they send I will love!

Speaking of Opal, my current pair of socks, in Brasil #5001, are coming along nicely. I am now on the heel flap of the second sock. This yarn is so cute! It would make such cute baby stuff! Here they are so far:



I think I got them to match perfectly too. I love it when that happens! I guess I'm a matchy kind of girl. I know a lot of people like it when they don't match, but not me. Nope. I don't like pooling either. It really drives me nuts. So do you like identical or fraternal socks bettter? Pooling or no pooling? Leave me a comment and let me know. Have a wonderful, knitterly weekend everyone!!!!!!!