Excuses

Why I haven't been blogging...

been knitting-lace leaf socks, an Elizabeth Zimmerman percentage system sweater (raglan-style) of Patons *washable* red tweed yarn, the body is knit to the armhole, and one sleeve is up to my elbow, and swatching for my Aunt's cable Araucania nature Wool Cable cardigan

finishing- the blue sweater- finally done a few wednesdays ago

cleaning- the linen closet with all my bath, body etc. products, let me tell ya' I have a stash full, just where do they all come from?

planting- three kinds of basil, sage, rosemary, oregano, osteospermum, coral bells,

digging- to put a rain garden in our front yard

recovering- from a nasty virus/cold/cough that nearly kicked my butt, I even went to the Dr. to confirm it was a virus

watching- Season one of Gray's Anatomy (I hadn't seen it before), the new version of Pride and Prejudice

drinking- Sierra Mist, tea, water, more tea, more water

researching- cable-system deck railing, oh, the kitchen on this page is quite like ours, even has the same wall paint color the text just kept highlighting so I left it this way

planning- to build a new deck this summer to replace our existing/rotting/too old deck, dog park date with friend and Golden Retriever, Sydney

composting- compostable stuff

exercising- on our new elliptical machine (this one is way better than the last)

working- on paperwork, it never ends

painting- my toenails red

going- to church and Jimmy John's- that was all the energy I had due to aforementioned *virus*

frustrating- that I had to write this post in words instead of pics as I'd planned, due to the fact that my computer e-mail sending program is refusing to send pics to my blog!

Shepherd's Harvest Sheep and Wool

Is today! This will be the nicest day that I have seen for the S &W Fest, on the Lake Elmo Fairgrounds. The last two years it has been rainy, and quite mushy and wet in the grass, which is where most of the knitters trample as there are few gravelly paths.

Last night while watching Gray's (what a cliffhanger BTW), I completed sock number 2, just in time for a typical cold sheep day. But it looks quite pleasant out there. Like all socks that I make I feel like they have stretched longer than my foot, the longer I wear them the longer they get. Does that happen to everyone?

My sweater is done, minus the sleeve border, and the buttons. I have to find a suitable button-sewing on acrylic yarn to sew them on to the button band. Then, it will be done. It is wearable now, though. At long last. Next project will be my Aunt's cable cardigan. I have a pattern this time, and I want to sit down my my TI-85 and block out all the measurements on graph paper first, so I can make it best fit my Aunt. She gave me another sweater she likes to use its measurements, but I am trying to encourage her to make it a little more fitted to fit her better.

Well, it is time for me to go, I have to get to the ATM and get spending money for all the yarn and roving I'll buy. I plan to get colors to coordinate with my dogs, and do some type of needle felting of them, whether it is 2d or 3d I am not sure yet.

Oh- the Segways were great, and so were the Anniversary lunch and dinner out. Lunch was at Jax Cafe on their garden patio surrounded in tulips and a small stream, dinner was in a glass-blocked and White cement walled restaurant, JP Bistro. For dessert we had chai tea creme brulee. Yummoliscious is my new word- and it was for sure.

The Corgi Masters are four today!

The posts have been few and far between. I mostly finished my blue sweater, it fits pretty well, better than before. I have to sew on the buttons, and do a little knit trim on the sleeve hems, then it will be done. While I was weaving in the tails I was already thinking aboug what sweater to do next.
I am still working on my second sock, but that is nearly done too, just a few inches of the top ribbing left.
This week is the Shepherd's Harvest Sheep and Wool fest. My mom came last year and enjoyed it, and she wanted to go again- so we'll be going to that Sat. Perhaps it will be the best weather for it in the last 2 years that I have gone.
Work is pretty crazy as far as intensity of the people's experiences that I am working with. That is pretty much all I can say, but most of it makes the Dr. Phil show people look like a walk in the park. Especially when Dr. Phil can hook them up with their own therapists, and just follow up on them until he decides to give them a free vacation, or a diamond ring, or whatever. I just work with what I have, and it can be quite stressful. I want my kids to do well!

Last but not least- DH and I are celebrating our four year anniversary. We are going on a Segway tour in St. Anthony. He hurt his ankle Tuesday, so I hope it won't be bothering him much. It looks like a beautiful day. A great day to work for the morning only, and have fun in the afternoon which is what we will be doing.

Hi from HI/MN

HI,
I am no longer in HI, Hawaii, but I was. But not before I got sick. It was a little bit of a whirlwind trying to get my work done before I left on a Wed. while I was battling a virus. But I did it. It just meant that there wasn't much blogging.

I have been back from HI since a week ago Monday, and it was a great trip. I will have lots of pics to share.

Some highlights:
-visiting Aloha Yarn and meeting Nanea, and getting materials to crochet a lei
-eating at Todai, and eating too much sushi after hiking and doing some swimming to get extra hungry before the huge buffet
-Finding the secluded Polihale Beach in Kauaii by driving down a narrow visciously pot-holed road surrounded by 12ft high sugar cane
-Watching the "Spouting Horn" dragon sounding blowhole shoot water 20 ft up in the air
-Hiking on one of the few active volcanos of the world, Mt. Kilauea, and seeing steam vents surrounding me and feeling the heat of the ground change as we hiked closer and closer to the lava

This is my first full week being back. I did some sock knitting while I was gone, and have been working on sock #2 to match the other toe-up sock. I am not sure if I will like how they feel on my feet, since I am used to cuff-down socks. They might grow on me though once I finish the second one, and can wear the whole pair at the same time.

Also, I am still, yes, still knitting on the blue sweater, it must be invincible to keep surviving all this time and energy. I pinned the first sleeve into the armhole, and it fit great. Then I compared sleeve two to it, and found that sleeve two was 2 inches longer than sleeve one (the one that fit really well). So there was frogging in order, and I ripped back 2 inches before the sleeve decreases, so I could add the 2 st increase that the other sleeve had, and documented all the pattern for the good sleeve. I am either 12 or 16 rows away from the end. Then, I will actually have 2 sleeves to set in, and then sew on the buttons, weave in the tails, and I will have a new sweater, ready early for fall. Next fall that is, or one of these cold evenings.