Be gone UFO's!

I was reading Kat's blog yesterday and loved her idea of a UFO challenge. Believe me I need this! I don't even like to count my UFOs. I barely squeaked in by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin. Sign ups end today.


I technically have to work on a UFO today too, in order to qualify for the January challenge. Well believe it or not, I have the perfect thing. I am actually horribly embarassed to even admit I have this UFO. It is a FREAKIN DISHCLOTH! Yes, a dishcloth. And this is all that needs to be done on it:


Ridiculous isn't it? Now why in the world did I not finish this thing? Why let it haunt me as a UFO when I only have a couple rows to do? I don't know. It's just dumb. Dumb. Dumb.

I am so glad that Kat came up with this idea. I have lots of projects that won't have to haunt me anymore! (By the way, not all of them are as dumb as the dishcloth.) Ok. I quick sat down and finished it!!!


And while I was at it, I found another face cloth that just needed the ends weaved in. I finished both of them. Yay two UFOs gone for January! Go me!

Nothing special

I don't really have anything spectacular or even great. I have been knitting on the Koigu socks.


So far I really like the yarn and the pattern. I can't find the ball band for the Koigu, so I have no idea which colorway it is, but the pattern is Hedera from Knitty. It is fun and easy to memorize, even for me. I am totally memory challenged!

I didn't make a lot of progress on my Lopi sweater. I went to The Sporty One's all-day volleyball tournament on Sat. I left at 8:15 am, and didn't get home until 6:15 pm. I was exhausted. I had a little something to eat, fell asleep on the couch at around 7:30 pm and slept until 8:00 am Sun morning. Ya think I was a bit tired hehe? I also had a migraine yesterday. Migraines and knitting do not mix. I couldn't even concentrate. Well, the migraines are a medication side effect, and I don't have to take it anymore, so I hope that will be the last one! I am having outpatient surgery tomorrow morning, and it should take care of a lot of my health issues. Yay!

I'll be back when I'm feeling better!

Knitting! Really...I'm not kidding!

You probably thought you would never see knitting again here. Well today I actually have some to show you. I would have posted this stuff earlier but The Sporty One took my camera to school. Apparently she wanted to take pics with her volleyball team and friends. How rude! Does she not realize I might need it to blog?!!

The other night, I finished the never-ending Trekking Socks. Finally!!! Here they are in all their stockinette glory, not so beautifully displayed on my uber-cheesy, make-your-own, wire hanger sock blockers. Eh, they do the job. I really should invest in a cute pair sometime though.



They did turn out really cute, but honestly I don't think I will wear them. I am not kidding. These socks just left a bad taste in my mouth. Maybe it's that knitting funk thing. Thank goodness that is over! The Sporty One is very willing to wear them, and she will enjoy them much more than I would.

I also started on the Lopi sweater that I have had languishing in the stash for a while. I love the looks of this pattern, I was just really intimidated to try knitting with multiple colors. I just started the first row of the colorwork.



And, big suprise hehe, I already need help. I am going to my LYS shortly for help with the purl side. I cannot figure out how to avoid long floats when purling. Hopefully they will be able to show me what I am doing wrong. The chart doesn't work out right on this pattern either. Not fun for a person who has never done a pattern like this before. I searched for errata, but I couldn't find any. I am not giving up! Any hints for me out there?

I also started some new socks in Koigu! Believe it or not, this is the first time I have used it. I'll have pictures of those next time.

Thanks for all the compliments on my ring. You guys are all so sweet! I wish I could meet all of you someday! I really only have a couple of local knitting friends, so I just love having blogging friends too!

From "Oh No!" to "Woo Hoo!"

I have a sad little story for you. (but it does have a happy ending if you're patient)

I don't remember if I mentioned this on the blog before, and I am too lazy to go back and check, so bear with me if you have already heard it. Last year on New Year's Day I woke up to a horrible discovery. The diamond in my wedding ring was GONE! Yes GONE! I was crying my eyes out. I even vacuumed the entire house so the darling hubby could go through the vac system and filter all the contents through a screen. No luck! It was not to be found. I was devastated. My diamond was gone forever! To top it off, we didn't have it insured, unless it had been lost in a fire or stolen. So for over a year, I was without a wedding ring. That was a very odd feeling for me. I didn't like it much. My hubby HATES buying jewelry, not to mention the fact that diamonds are EXPENSIVE, so we put off buying a new one.

Well.....finally he let me get a new one. While I was on my cruise, I visited a jeweler in St. Maarten that was highly recommended by a friend. She has purchased quite a few pieces from him in the past, and every time her jewelry appraised at FAR more than she paid for it. I was so excited to see his stuff, and he had exactly what I wanted. So I brought home this:



Excuse the disgusting looking old lady hands in the picture. Hehe, apparently I have not used any hand lotion for about 2 years. But anyway, I love the ring and I am so happy to be wearing a wedding ring again.

In other news: I actually picked up my knitting today. (Don't laugh! Yes I still knit.) The neverending pink Trekking socks will be finished tonight (I hope). About time huh? Gosh I have never had a pair of socks on the needles for this long. I cannot wait to be done with them. I love that yarn, but I am so sick of seeing it. I think I will definitely give these to the Sporty One. She loves them and I think they will just remind me of the horrible knitting rut I have been in lately. I can't wait to move on to other UFOs or a new project!!!!

Also, I promise I will show ya some cruise pictures, as soon as I get them. I didn't take my own camera along on the trip, because my girls wanted a camera at home. They had their winter dance at school, and wanted pics of everyone dressed up. I can't blame them. So, my sis and my friend both took their cameras. Now I just have to wait for them to make me a cd.

P.S. - Thanks so much for all the comments, even when I have been the worst blogger EVER! I just love hearing from all of you, and I really appreciate you not giving up on me. You really helped pull me out of this funk I have been in. Now I am actually excited about knitting again. Yay! Bring it on!

Anyone still out there?

I am back.

I am exhausted.

But I am tan!!!!

Preparation

Like I said yesterday, I am busy cleaning, organizing and packing. I am going on another cruise. This is by far not a normal occurence. The only reason I was able to go on this one, is because my sis is a travel agent, and she got us a great deal. Her husband couldn't go, so lucky me! A friend of mine is going with us, and it will be a girls week away. Yay! The Sporty Daughter has a volleyball tournament tomorrow, so we will probably leave after that to get to the airport. We will fly out early Sunday morning, and arrive in San Juan late afternoon. Our flights kinda stink, but oh well, we will have fun anyway lol.

I feel so unorganized right now. I really need to kick it in gear here. Seeing I will be at the tournament all day tomorrow, I need to be finished packing by tonight. You see, I have this chronic overpacking problem, so I am trying to reduce the pile! I never know how much knitting to take either. Last trip I didn't do much knitting, but you never know. This trip could be different. I think a few projects should be enough. I will take the three things I mentioned yesterday and call it good.

A couple of you asked about the pink Trekking yarn. It is color #05. I found it at my LYS.

Well I will see you all when I get back! Thanks for all the great comments lately. You guys are the greatest!

P.S. I completely missed my blog's one year anniversary. I will do something fun to celebrate when I get back.

Finally!

Yay, I can post again! The computer was giving me fits, so I finally broke down and brought it in for service. Now it is working great and I can blog, keep up with my bloglines, chat with my friends etc. I have been missing all of them so much!!!! I hope not everyone gave up on me. I actually got a little knitting done too. Haha, don't get excited or anything, I just made some progress on the pink Trekking socks.


I thought working on a simple project might help get me in the right mood again. I was right. I am ready to go!

I think I am going to start a vest (probably one from that book) this weekend, finish up the socks, and I might start a new pair of socks from one of the slip stitch patterns in Sensational Knitted Socks. I have never tried that technique before, so we will see how it goes. I have the perfect yarn for them though. I received this yarn from a secret holiday swap partner (thanks Sharon!!!!!), and I can't wait to use it!


She gave me a skein of each of these colors, and I think they will make a beautiful pair of socks! Wish me luck!

I have been shopping, organizing and packing. Tomorrow I will tell you why. (squeal!)