Eighteen blankets…
Laundered…
Folded and packed…
Worsted Weight Blankets
Nine worsted (above) and nine preemie (below)…
Preemie Blankets
Boxed up and ready to go…
Boxed Up!
Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: Charity, Knitting, Oddball Baby Blankets | Leave a comment »
I started off the long weekend down in the dumps. With Soccer Chick down in Orlando playing in a tournament (they lost in PKs in the semi-finals), and Rockin’ Rooster cheering on the Tigers (they won…WAR EAGLE), it’s been quiet.
I was very lucky with Hurricane Gustav. Had I been located one hour west, I would have been in the area that had tornadoes. This was the worst weather that my city saw (the date on my camera is wrong too…I need to fix that…this picture was taken today, 9/1/08):
A Little Rain
The dogs didn’t seem too concerned about the weather either…
Hurricane Who?
I managed to cast on two new baby blankets for the West Coast Oddball Baby Blanket Project.
This one is called California Coast. We’re going to knit this blanket in blue and gold, which are California’s state colors. I did a simple garter stitch. The Rainbow blankets that I’ve worked on in the past have been so pretty using garter that I thought it might be a good choice for this blanket too.
California Coast
I also cast on Disney Land. I used I Love This Yarn (Red) and adapted this pattern for the blanket. I cast on 90 stitches and knit a 25-stitch garter border on each end. I worked the pattern on the 40 stitches in the center of the blanket. If you look closely, you can just make out the hearts.
Disney Land
I slept in a bit this morning and then busted my behind cleaning the house. I didn’t want the kids to think I had sat around twiddling my thumbs all weekend.
After cleaning, I resigned myself to completing the online driving course that will keep the points from my recent speeding ticket off of my record. In case you’re new to my blog, I received my first ticket a couple of weeks ago. I’m still mortified but have learned my lesson. The class took a little over four hours. I’m really glad I took it. The information presented was quite sobering and reminded me how much of a privilege driving truly is, and the potential that exists to cause harm (both to myself and others) when I’m sitting behind the wheel. I think that adults should be required to take this exam every few years. We tend to take this privilege for granted.
After finishing (I passed, by the way), I decided that I had better take a shower. Even I couldn’t stand the smell of myself. I have to tell you that I am loving the new dishcloths/washcloths that I recently made. The I Love This Cotton is incredibly soft!
Once clean (and presentable to others), I decided to go shopping. I still had a $50 gift card from Kohl’s, which is located a couple of miles from my house. I figured that there would be good sales today, and boy was I right!
When I got there, I headed straight for the clearance racks. I like sales, but I like clearance racks even better, except that you have to dig through 1,000 things to find one thing that’s the right size and style. Some people might cite this as part of the “experience.” I cite it as a royal pain in the behind. I am not a shopper. In fact, when I want something, I want to grab it quickly and leave. But I gritted my teeth, reminding myself that I wasn’t under any pressure. Usually I have Soccer Chick yapping unpleasant things in my ear, “Mama, you don’t need that…Mama, you’re a Mom now — you can’t wear THAT.”
Sometimes silence is bliss.
I found a couple pairs of shorts that were 70% off. Because I live in Florida, I’ll be able to wear these for a couple more months. Next, I headed off to look at the shoes. I don’t know of many women who go to a clothing store and don’t look at shoes. Unable to find flip flops on sale, I took a peek at the sneakers. I last purchased a pair when Rooster was in the first or second grade. Pretty sad, huh? I told you I’m not much of a shopper. The shoes were on sale for $19.99.
New Shoes for AuburnChick
New Shorts Too!
The Tags Don't Lie
I wound up spending $42.xx. I still had a few dollars left and was determined to spend them too, heading back into the store to look at the jewelry. The things that appealed to me weren’t on sale, of course. I wound up leaving with my $7 still on the card. I’ll save it for next time.
Did anyone else take advantage of Labor Day sales?
Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: dogs, i love this yarn, Knitting, kohl's, Oddball Baby Blankets, shopping | 4 Comments »
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…
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: best buy, blanket, camera, Charity, coolpix, Knitting, knittinghelp.com, lace leaf scarf, little slip of a thing, nikon, Oddball Baby Blankets, Pets, ravelry, scarf, soccer, stitch it, travel, virginia | 2 Comments »
Do you hear that?
What? Can’t hear anything? Neither can I. Ahhhh…the blessed sound of silence (except for the tapping of keys on the computer).
My house has been without the presence of teenagers since early Wednesday morning. Usually, when the chicklets go out of town, I can hear the audible longing of my heart wishing for them to be home. Not this time. After what happened on Tuesday, it was almost a relief to have them gone for a few days.
Let the record show that it was NOT my decision to let them go. Mr. AuburnChick said yes. His reasoning was sort-of sound. I have to tell you that I’m really glad he did. The last few days have been a pleasant respite. To be quite honest, I had not even thought of the disciplining that we will have to do when the kiddos come back home. We have some heavy-duty things going on…since a bit more happened after the kids ganged up on me (which I really don’t want to go into detail about here). This stuff will require a heavy hand, unfortunately. My mind didn’t even go there until yesterday, giving me three whole days of bliss.
Ahhhh…so refreshing.
Do I sound mean? I hope not. For the last 16 years (not counting the time I was pregnant with Soccer Chick), my life has been centered around those kids. Yeah, yeah, I know. You’re not really supposed to do that. However, my own upbringing was lacking in many areas. I have always been determined to be a better parent. That is one reason why I stayed home for several years and only work part-time now. That has been fine and dandy up to this point.
Having teenagers makes you realize that there is life out there…life that doesn’t always revolve around children. There’s light at the end of the tunnel of this long, long journey. You begin catching glimpses of it every time your child wants you to just “drop me off” at the movies or a friend’s house.
So, this week has been good for me.
On Thursday, my friend (Soccer Chick’s friend’s mom…who just started chemotherapy) came over to watch me juice and taste the finished product. We had a wonderful time! We talked a lot about our girls, with me confiding in what Soccer Chick did after the phone thing. She empathized, drank her juice, which she found delicious (told you so, but I didn’t say it), and we visited for a little while afterward. I gave her the hat I made her, along with a knit pair of slippers. Someone gave them to me, but they were a tad too small. They are the same color as the blanket I made her. She was almost in tears, wondering why I was spoiling her. Um, because I love you and want you to know I care. This is a friendship in the making, and I’m enjoying every minute of it.
Yes, this week has been good for me.
I haven’t been a very good housekeeper though. I thought I would be able to get caught up on cleaning. But you know what? I didn’t want to! Every day, I came home from work, caught up on blogs and online forums, and after juicing, I just wanted to sit and knit. So I did.
Ahhhh…how refreshing…
My free time gave me the opportunity to finish up two Oddball Baby Blankets.
This one is called Beach Party. I used Lion Brand Microspun. The color is Mango. The pattern is Dotted Chevron, from the pattern book knit & purl.
This one is Jewelry Box. I used Carons Simply Soft, and the color is Mango. The pattern is the Caterpillar Stitch, again from the knit & purl book that I own. I was the last knitter, so I cast off. I’ll be sending it to another gal who will crochet a border on it.
I’m going to knit an Embossed Daisy Washcloth from the Creative Knitting magazine (May 2008 issue). I tried to find a link to a picture of it, but I couldn’t.
After that, I’m going to start on the Greenaway Fingerless Gloves for my friend.
Two more days of quiet…I better get knitting!
Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: caterpillar stitch, childrearing, creative knitting, dotted chevron, embossed daisy washcloth, Knitting, knitting help, Oddball Baby Blankets, teenagers | Leave a comment »
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: carrot juice, hallelujah acres, juicing, Knitting, knittinghelp.com, Oddball Baby Blankets, recipes for life from God's garden | 3 Comments »
Whew! This was a busy week!
When I got home from my trip last weekend, I found I had two blankets to work on. Here is a picture of Melon Medley. I decided to continue the moss stitch that the previous knitter had used. I dug into my stash and opted for the Caron’s Simply Soft “Limelight” that I’m so fond of. I just LOVE the way it looks up against the pink watermelon color!
The next blanket to get attention was Ocean Blues. Shandeh, from KnittingHelp.com, sent me the yarn and needles to get this blanket started. I used the Ripple pattern I had posted about before. The yarn is Bernat Softee Baby, and the color is “Bongo Blue.” The blanket turned out quite lovely, if I do say so myself.
Next in line was Pretty Princess. I really wanted to use my white I Love This Yarn stuff, but I decided to keep with the pink theme and used Caron’s Simply Soft “Pink” instead. The stitch is called Moss Stitch Diamonds from my knit & purl book.
And last, but not least, was the Easter Basket blanket. Look at the goodies I received with the blanket! The purple yarn was hand-spun by one of my chat buddies, who got started on the Oddball project after I talked it up in the chat one evening.
For my portion of the blanket, I used Caron’s Simply Soft “Baby Brights Ombre.” Although I really like using Caron’s Simply Soft, this particular color is NOT soft! It feels more like Red Heart. I like the colors though. It looks like fruit loops when you knit it up. The stitch pattern is called Gaston’s Stitch.
Did you happen to notice that the first picture of the blanket shows the blanket on grass? Well, I was at a soccer game when I knit up the last six rows. I finished as the girls were warming up for their game, which was kind of a bummer because, although I do watch the games, knitting during throw-ins and half-time are huge stress relievers. And believe me…I needed a stress reliever during today’s game.
My daughter’s team is currently in the state playoffs. This isn’t high school ball but travel ball…elite stuff. Well, the other team scored immediately off of a corner kick…much to the shock of all of the parents. My stomach started churning at this point.
If I had not completed the blanket, I would have been furiously knitting away. Without those needles in my hands…well, let’s just say that I had a difficult time coping. The game went back and forth. The other team scored with two minutes in the game, putting them up by one. Then, out of the blue, one of our girls boomed it from the center and it went over the other keeper’s head. We tied! The referee blew his whistle.
Overtime.
Grrr…no knitting in my hands…grr…
Two ten-minute overtimes later, and the game was still tied.
Penalty kicks.
Grrr…no knitting in my hands…grrr…
First two kickers on each team get their balls past the keepers. Our third kicker scores. Then, their kicker kicks it, and our goal keeper STOPS it!
Our fourth kicker goes up and makes her goal, getting it in. Their fourth kicker goes up.
Our keeper STOPS it!!
We win!
Relief!
At that point, I literally could not walk…my legs were weak. I was too shaken to do anything but enjoy the moment. At some point, I will relax and start the comfort throw for my friend.
But tomorrow is another test…another game. If we win, we’ll go to Final Four. Another stressful day. I will have a project with me tomorrow.
Filed under: Knitting, soccer | Tagged: Charity, Knitting, Oddball Baby Blankets, soccer | 4 Comments »
Easter Sunday was a good day. Of course, I started the day by attending church with my family. I loved the sermon this morning. It went beyond the traditional Easter message and really challenged believers to heed Jesus’ call to serve Him. Very thought-provoking…
Here is a picture of the flowers I picked up yesterday while grocery shopping. They are so bright and cheery. They reminded me of Easter and God’s promise of new life in Him.
Since Lent was officially over, I treated myself to a small amount of chocolate and a caffeine-free Coke. Yum!
Sundays are, in our family, a day of rest. I try really hard not to make my children do chores and try to refrain from them myself. So, I spent most of the day knitting. I finally finished my 2-at-a-time, Magic Loop socks.
I used Trampoline Stretch yarn by Skacel. The colorway is #229. It is a wool/nylon blend. I chose the color because it reminded me of tigers. Since I’m an Auburn fan, I figured this was appropriate. They are a great fit!
I used the Varsity pattern from the 2-at-a-time socks book (author is Melissa Morgan-Oakes). The pattern is supposed to be for striped socks, but I used it because of the ribbing. It seemed simple for my first pair of magic loop socks. Turns out that AuburnChick can follow directions! It helps that this book has pictures!
The socks really did not take me too long to knit. I had several breaks in this project because I’ve been working on Oddball Baby Blankets with the group on Knitting Help. Here’s a picture of the last couple of blankets I’ve had the privilege of working on:
This is Angel Wings. I used Caron Simply Soft, colorway Baby Bright Ombre. The yarn was rough, which was surprising. I’ve used this brand before and found it a pleasure to work with. I will not knit with this colorway again, if I can help it. I sent it back to the organizer of the project. Since I was the last knitter, all she needs to do is add a border! Then it’s off to the gal who is taking all of our blankets to a certain hospital.
The next picture is the Neon Fun Oddball Blanket. I used Caron Simply Soft. The colorway is Mango. I love this yarn! It’s so soft, and the color is fabulous! I opted for a simple stitch…twisted stockinette.
My next project will be the Greenaway Fingerless Gloves! I am so excited!!!
Filed under: Knitting | Tagged: 2-at-a-time socks, Caron Simply Soft, Greenaway Fingerless Gloves, Knitting, magic loop, Oddball Baby Blankets, skacel, socks, trampoline, trampoline stretch yarn | 4 Comments »
AuburnChick's Adventures 