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Mastering the Hodgepodge

Posted on April 11, 2012 by auburnchick

After taking a week off to Spring-Break it, Joyce has returned with a new set of questions for the Hodgepodge!  Yay!  You know the drill.  Answer the questions on your own blog and link back up at Joyce’s.  Then, visit others!

1.  Have you ever played golf? Any interest in playing? Do you have a significant other who loves to play? Did you watch The Masters this past weekend?

I have played Putt Putt.  Does that count?  Let’s just say that most people beat me at Putt Putt because I did not inherit one itsy bitsy sports-related gene.  And no, I did not watch the Masters although I really don’t mind watching golf on TV.  I really did not watch my daytime television last weekend.

2.  Hats are back in fashion this spring…how do you feel about wearing a hat? (fyi-I’m not talking baseball caps) When was the last time you wore one?

Oh, I love wearing hats!!!  The only time I do, though, is when the weather is cold.  That’s when I pull out the hats I’ve knit over the years.

Brattleboro Hat

Koolhaas Hat

Mini Mochi Fair Isle Hat

3.  On a scale of 1-10 with 10 meaning proficient and 1 meaning “I’d starve“, how adept are you at using chopsticks?

I’d say a 10 if the question allows for using the chopsticks to shovel the food into my mouth.  Otherwise, I’m not coordinated enough to use chopsticks (although I do knit decently…go figure).

4.  Has technology taken over?

For the most part, I think it has.  It takes computers to run nearly everything, including the cars we drive!!

5.  In the course of a day how often do you look in a mirror?

Tough question!  I do frequent booger checks because I am a teacher and do not want to gross out my kids by having boogers hanging out of my nose.

True dat!

6.  Tulip or Daffodil?

I like the shape of tulips the best.

7.  I am proud of myself for __________________.

I am proud of myself for doing what it took to achieve one of my life-long dreams…teaching.  I went back to school, full-time, while working part-time, rearing two children and traveling across the state and country for soccer.  I didn’t give up even after over a dozen interviews and two years of subbing.  I’m proud of myself for never throwing in the table but having faith that the Lord would see through the plans He had for me.

8.  My Random Thought

A few weeks ago, I put out an SOS on KnittingHelp for baby blankets.  Two of my current students and a student who started out the first half of the year with me are expecting babies.  These girls are babies themselves.  Sigh.  I wanted a way to show them that someone cares about them.  Though I don’t really have time to make each of them a blanket, someone else did.  I received a package in the mail yesterday.  It contained these…

These came from one of KH’s Oddball Blanket coordinators.

Each blanket is themed…

Ahhh…Remar-cable…love the play on words.  Here’s the other side of the blanket (I didn’t want to take the ribbon off and mess up the pretty bow…

The next blanket is called Rainbow Connection…

The third blanket is called “Candy Cane.”

Ever since I started knitting in 2007, I’ve learned that yarnies, whether they are knitters or crocheters, are some of the most generous folks around!  I’m blessed to call myself a member of this community.

Filed under: Knitting, This-n-That | Tagged: , , , , , | 7 Comments »

A Thoughtful Friend

Posted on December 29, 2009 by auburnchick

When I walked out my front door this morning, I discovered a package.

Hmmm…I wondered what it was since it was addressed to me.

Was this another free item I had signed up for on the internet?

I had no idea.

When I opened it, I saw this…

I checked the packing slip, unsure if I had accidentally ordered something.

That’s when I discovered the note enclosed…

Oh my!  It appeared as if I had a Secret Santa!

As I tore open the wrapping, I racked my brain…trying to figure out who had sent the package.  Beneath the packaging was this…

Oh my, oh my!

Whoever it was knew that I love chocolate!

The only people I know in California are my knitting friends.  I mused about this as I opened the box…

Oh my, oh my, oh my.

About the time I popped a piece of heaven into my mouth, I was alerted to a Facebook update.

Susan, one of my internet/knitting friends welcomed me home and asked if I had found a package.

Woo Hoo!  Mystery solved.

I wasn’t surprised to find out she was the generous gifter.

I met Susan on KnittingHelp.com.  One day, she found out I had never seen Malabrigo, and she insisted on sending me a skein.  She actually sent two, I think.  I was shocked that one person would send another person such a lovely gift…simply because that person had not had the pleasure of experiencing the joy of owning a particular item (should have told her I’d never driven a convertible!).  heehee

Coincidentally, when I read Susan’s blog today, I discovered just how generous she can be.  Hop on over there and give it a read.  It will touch your heart.

This is a gal who has been through a lot in the last couple of years.  That she can be so thoughtful is both inspiring and humbling.

Thanks, Susan, for making my day.  Huge hugs to you, my Friend.

Filed under: Knitting, This-n-That | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Cabled Napkin Rings

Posted on March 1, 2009 by auburnchick

Ok…I’m finally getting around to posting details about the cabled napkin rings I made for the banquet.

If you didn’t see the picture in my previous post, here it is again.

Cabled Napkin Rings

Cabled Napkin Rings

I used Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece.  The color is Cotton Ball.  This yarn is leftover from my second knitting project.  I was thrilled to find it in my stash.  The color is more of a cream.  Lovely, in my opinion.

I used size 4 needles.

Yeah, I know.  Kind of small, eh?  However, I’ve discovered that smaller needles make the stitches tighter and, hence, the cables “pop.”  You want the cables to stand out.  All of that hard work shouldn’t go unnoticed!

Now, for the fun part.  The pattern.

For such a small project, this proved to be one huge challenge.  I cast on this pattern first.  After completing a couple of repeats, I found myself unhappy with the pattern.  Maybe it was the size of the cable…just too big for my liking.

So, I went back to the drawing board and began the hunt for another pattern.  I eventually landed on this.  I cast on eagerly.

I completed one pattern repeat and made an interesting discovery.  The pattern was riddled with mistakes.

If you work the pattern as is, you’ll come up with a garter-style cable.  I also realized that I had to go down several needle sizes to obtain a tighter cable.

So, I sat down and rewrote part of the pattern.

A brief explanation of how the pattern works.  The rows begin and end with K1, P1, K1 so that you are knitting a pretty Moss Stitch border.  It’s the eight center stitches that you need to pay closer attention to.  The cable is worked on only one row…the last of every pattern repeat.

One other tricky thing was figuring out how I was going to seam the thing.  It’s not worked in the round.  I hate seaming but gave it a valiant effort on my first napkin ring.  The result was hideous.

So, I tried Plan B.

I used a Provisional Cast on, following Amy’s video on KnittingHelp.com.   After working the pattern, I tried a three needle bind off. Once again, the seam was not to my liking.

On to Plan C.

Once again, I cast on using Amy’s Provisional Cast On.  After working the pattern, I seamed it up using the Kitchener Stitch.

Voila!  Success!  You could hardly discern where the ends met.  This is, ultimately, how I completed the rest of my rings.  I had it down to a science, completing each ring in under an hour (per ring, I mean).

Here is the pattern as it should have been written:

Cast on 14 stitches, either using a provisional cast on or a regular one.

1.  K1, P1, K1, P2, K4, P2, K1, P1, K1

2.  K1, P1, K3, P4, K3, P1, K1

3 and 4:  Repeat Rows 1 and 2

5. K1, P1, K1, P2, C2F, P2, K1, P1, K1

Because you’re ending on a RS row, your next series of pattern repeats will actually total six rows.

1.  K1, P1, K3, P4, K3, P1, K1

2. K1, P1, K1, P2, K4, P2, K1, P1, K1

3 and 4.  Repeat Rows 1 and 2

5.  Repeat Row 1

6. K1, P1, K1, P2, C2F, P2, K1, P1, K1

Work the above six rows until you reach the length you want.  I worked a total of six pattern repeats in addition to the first five rows.

Seam up in your preferred method.

Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

A Pile of Finished Blankets

Posted on January 23, 2009 by auburnchick

As many of you know, I head up the West Coast Oddball Baby Blanket project.  We’ve got a group of gals here on Ravelry and one here Knittinghelp.com (where the project originated) involved.  I’ve mentioned this project before but thought it would be fun to share some pictures of finished blankets.  The gals have been sending them to me after the border has been added.  I’m going to wash them all and get them ready to ship to the members who will be delivering them to hospitals in their cities.

As you will see, we’ve been quite busy!

Autumn Reds

Autumn Reds

Blueberry Bliss

Blueberry Bliss

Candy Cane

Candy Cane

Carousel

Carousel

Desert Sand

Desert Sand

Disney Land

Disney Land

Grand Canyon Sunset

Grand Canyon Sunset

Lemonade Stand

Lemonade Stand

Lime Sherbert

Lime Sherbert

Pacific Blues

Pacific Blues

Puppy Love

Puppy Love

Purple Mountains Majesty

Purple Mountains Majesty

Rain Forest

Rain Forest

Rainbow Sherbert

Rainbow Sherbert

Tropical Plantation

Tropical Plantation

Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: , , , , | 2 Comments »

AuburnChick Succumbs to Temptation

Posted on July 25, 2008 by auburnchick

BRIEF INTERRUPTION…

Littlest Chick will henceforth be referred to as Rockin Rooster. Thanks, Megan, from the Stitch-It Ravelry forum, for this suggestion! We mulled over each idea very carefully and decided that this name fit the bill nicely, being something he will not outgrow as he ages.

AND NOW, BACK TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAM…

AuburnChick has hit the road again. Soccer Chick’s team is playing in a national tournament in Virginia Beach, so we loaded up the car and headed out Thursday afternoon.

Packing for this almost week-long, 13-hour each way trip proved challenging. As fellow knitters, I’m sure you can identify with the following scene.

I arrived home from taking the kids to youth group and decided to get busy preparing for the trip. What’s the first thing a knitter packs when going on a trip? Clothes? Um, no. Toiletries? Wrong-o. Of course, it’s the knitting that goes into the bag first. Clothes and other stuff go in last, and if there’s no room, my motto is that you buy them when you get to your destination.

I currently have three works in progress. This is way more than the one I usually have, but into the bag they went, along with all possibly-needed accessories and patterns.

Next, I decided to pack yarn and needles for the charity blankets I hope to cast on this week. I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before, but I am heading up the West Coast Oddball Baby Blanket project that’s based over on KnittingHelp.com. You’ve seen the other blankets I’ve worked on. Well, wonderful Shandeh, brave leader of the entire project, decided to split the country into regions to make the project more manageable. I was asked to coordinate one region. I’m very excited about this. I created a blog for the project, found here. My region covers the states of California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, and Hawaii. If you live in one of these states and want to participate, please let me know. We have a thread going over on Ravelry in case you’re not on KH, so you can stay connected there as well. Or, you don’t have to be a part of either site. Just drop me a line, and I’ll explain how the project works. It’s a fabulous way to use your talents to benefit others…without having to make a humongous time commitment to knit an entire blanket.

Within 30 minutes, I had filled up two bags with knitting supplies. My family was not amused that half of our trunk is devoted to my hobby addiction.

Now, being the techie that I am, I also cannot leave home without my gadets. Enter in my laptop, with its 17″ screen (aka a LARGE computer bag), and my new camera.

Oh, I didn’t tell you about that yet? Well, remember that my old camera was kicking the bucket. It finally quit sputtering and completely died. I just cannot be without a camera. My blog requires the frequent posting of pictures, plus I want to capture every drop of sweat that Soccer Chick works up on the field.

After much inquiring and research, I finally went to Best Buy, where I totally disregarded everything I had previously read and fell into the tech trap that frequently engulfs me the moment I step foot into that place. To be fair, I passed by the $899 cameras. There’s a line I won’t cross, and that was it. Stepping over to the cheaper aisle, I was quickly overwhelmed by all of the shiny gadgets. I was like a kid in a candy store…I wanted everything!

Timing is everything. At that very moment, Mr. Young Salesman appeared at my elbow.

“Hello, you look like you’re confused and thus willing to spend an exorbitant amount of money right now. Allow me to lead you down the path to debt.”

Yeah, that was me alright. And boy did he lead me astray. It was almost like he had chocolate in his pocket, and my sniffers knew that and followed blindly behind him.

Sure, I’ll take that expensive camera that happens to be on sale this week (of course).

4gb memory card, that’s also on sale this week? Of course. Why not. I’m gullible today.

Extra warranty? In case I drop my camera in the toilet? Sure thing! You go boy. Ring it up!

To my credit, I bought the generic camera bag.

I walked out of there the proud new owner of a Nikon Coolpix P80. It’s got 10.1 megapixels and 18x optical zoom. No longer will I have to wait until the second half of the game when Soccer Chick is on my side of the field. I can photograph ever hair of her unshaven leg from across the park, if I want. I’m sure she’ll appreciate this comment, but since she doesn’t read my blog (thinks it’s stupid, but what does she know), who cares.

Here are a few of the pictures I’ve taken so far…

My Leaf Lace Scarf…

A Little Slip of a Thing…

Pele (Soccer Chick’s dog)…

Molly…

Aubie…

This is Ziggy, Soccer Chick’s teammate’s dog…

I plan on posting more pictures from Virginia. I can’t wait! The scenery is beautiful up there, which should give me ample opportunity to play with my new toy.

Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Goodies for Ms. Jean

Posted on July 10, 2008 by auburnchick

Over the last few weeks, I’ve mentioned a project I’m involved with. A group of knitters on KnittingHelp (and a couple from Ravelry) banded together to produce home-crafted items for a fellow KH’er. Mason’s (Knitting_Guy) mom, Ms. Jean, underwent surgery to remove her larynx and is supposed to be undergoing a second round of chemo.

We wanted to something nice for a member of our “family.” The items have been trickling in over the last couple of months.

I wanted to post pictures of all of the items so everyone could take one quick look at everything.

Before I start posting pictures, I wanted to say thank you to every person who participated. You know who you are. As I’ve said before, crafters are a special group of people…overly generous and quick to respond to needs. I have been touched as I’ve opened each package and seen the creativity and care given. Thank you for allowing me to organize this.

Y’all rock!

And now, on to the photos…posted in the order I received them.

One knitter had a bump in her plans when her dog tried to help her knit.

She sent me a non-doggified hat later (picture is posted a little further down).

Here are items that were completed without the…er…”assistance” of furry friends…

A washcloth…

A bath mitt…

More hats…

A couple more washcloths…

In addition to the above items, the group wanted to make Ms. Jean a blanket. Our original hope was to get at least 14 squares. I think we wound up with 28 or 30! One of our knitters is seaming them together, and another knitter will crochet a border. Here are the squares that we received. I don’t think I have photos of all of them. I do apologize if you don’t see your’s. Send me a picture, and I’ll post it!

The blanket will be sent separately. I wish I could see Ms. Jean’s face when she opens her packages.

This is why I started knitting…for the joy of making something practical yet loved.

Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: , , , , , , | 7 Comments »

AuburnChick is a Juicing Fiend

Posted on June 3, 2008 by auburnchick

I apologize for the delay in posts, but I’m still under the weather. This bug is doing a number on me, I tell you.

Unfortunately, Monday came upon me and duty called. Must work or I can’t pay the bills. With Tuesday on it’s way out the door, I’m starting to feel a teeny bit better, so I thought I would take a few minutes to blog.

I’m on Day 5 of my juice fast. I had not experienced many hunger pangs until this afternoon when I left work. For some reason, I felt extremely hungry. I hope that’s a good sign that a) I’m starting to get better and b) that detoxing is happening.

Two years ago when I did this, I went through about three days of hunger pangs, and then they subsided. This go-round has been a lot different. I think that the difference is that I am fighting a virus. It’s the kind where you don’t feel like eating much anyway. The other thing I’ve noticed is that my tongue doesn’t feel nasty and isn’t all white, like before. These are signs of detox. My breath was slightly bad this morning, but was probably just my normal self.

So, I’ve got a ways to go. I truly believe I’m going to be on this fast much longer than I originally planned.

I thought I would post my recipes for carrot juice and fruit juice. I took some pictures during the process today.

What you see pictured below is all the fixin’s for two 8oz glasses of juice. When making this juice, always make sure that carrots are your base. Carrots have so much nutritional value…beta carotene, vitamin C…the list goes on and on. The other ingredients are totally optional, but they are the things that, over the years, I’ve found are tried and true (and satisfy the palette of picky children).

Now, remember that these ingredients are for TWO glasses. Adjust your numbers accordingly.

You see ten carrots, one slice of cantaloupe, 1/4 cucumber, 1/2 red apple, one celery stalk, and a handful of spinach. Make sure you peel and de-rind the produce.

Now, let’s start juicing!

The pulp will be deposited in one location while the juice comes out of another. I will usually feed some of the pulp back into the juicer to extract the remaining juice. This stuff costs money, and I don’t want to waste a penny!

When you’re done, you’ll have this…

I like to think of it as Liquid Gold. The stuff at the top is foam. It will get caught in your strainer. Why use a strainer after? Because there is a little bit of pulp that will escape into the juice. For a smoother juice, always strain.

I use the Ball canning jars to measure out 8oz. Many years ago, I went to the grocery store and bought a box of them for a really good price. Why 8oz, though? In the book, Recipes for Life from God’s Garden (Rhonda Malkmus), I read that a body can only efficiently use 8oz at a time, so why waste the effort on more? Did you know that for every 8oz of carrot juice, you’re getting the equivalent of one pound of carrots? Wow! We would never eat that during the course of a day. Allow at least one hour between glasses of juice.

Now, on to the fruit juice. You’re really supposed to “drink your veggies and eat your fruits,” but I like to do fruit juices to clean out the breathing apparatus. I’ve often given it to Soccer Chick when she’s been sick (she’s had a lot of croup and allergy problems over the years), and she’s always gotten better within two days of drinking it.

My recipe for apple/orange juice is 1/2 to 1 whole red apple, two oranges (or one large), one slice of pineapple, and 1/2 lemon. Remember to peel all items.

Feel free to throw in other items, such as grapes. I’ve done this, and it tastes terrific! When done, you’ll have the following:

Strain it to remove the remaining pulp, and you’re good to go.

So, that’s how I’m surviving right now. I’m actually thinking of laying off of the fruit juice and sticking mainly to the carrot juice. Fruit contains a lot of natural sugar, and I don’t want to inhibit my body further.

Oh, and a side benefit to all of this is that I am losing weight. Now, I’m already a small gal, but I do have some flab, and I’ve recently noticed things not fitting like they usually do. Don’t hate me…small bodies are in my genes. I don’t know how much I weighed before I started, but I know that there’s no way I weighed what the scale proudly declared today. The thing about juice fasting is that your body levels out at its optimal weight, given enough time.

Enough about juicing.

I didn’t knit yesterday, but I did the day before, completing Rainbow Joy II, an Oddball Baby Blanket that’s part of the KnittingHelp.com project. This blanket is being done in all garter stitch. I knit the green portion.

I’m going to start on Racecar Alley next. I got a pattern for a car from a knitter who worked on a similar blanket (heavier weight project). You know I’ll post pictures when I’m done.

Filed under: Knitting, This-n-That | Tagged: , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

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