Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Ten on Tuesday: the winter blah edition


Well, the mittens are done...and this second pair (malabrigo) are also done. And two hats and a baby sweater. Yes, I've been busy. I've also been not working, so there you have it. 

Carole is not a huge fan of winter, but I am. I will admit that after the third 6+ inch snowstorm, I can admit defeat as well. So, here are ten things I dont love about winter:
  1. Freezing rain. I hate damp, cold pant legs.
  2. Ice. I'm tired of clinging to railings on stairs.
  3. Slush. Snow or rain, pick one.
  4. Dry skin...eczema is my BFF and I kinda want to break up with her.
  5. Booger-y children. I love kids, I do!, but I don't love YOUR booger smearing little snowflake rubbing the apples in the grocery store. Yep. Yesterday. Made me buy different apples. And wash them eight times when I got home.
  6. Static hair. I electrocute the cat at least twice a day!
  7. Heating bills...we, blessedly, have natural gas, but even our chilly home (67 when people are home, 60 at night....put on a sweater!), the bill climbs.
  8. Reduced sunlight...I NEED light to function. I HATE dark rooms, so our electric bill escalates as well.
  9. Comfort food. Sounds good until you are trying to lift those extra pounds off your yoga mat.
  10. Less "outside" time....I love me some deck sitting. 
Countdown to camping began this month!  And to kick it off, PC and I are heading north for a mini vacation to our favorite place on earth: North Conway! 
  

Thursday, February 14, 2013

A street I know...

  What can you do with one night at a guild meeting and an episode of Moonshiners? 95% of a mitten. I am loving this pattern: Thames Street ( rav link).  It's knitting up quickly, on US 5 dpns with Ella Rae classic ( color 10). 
One thing you should know about the pattern is to keep your even rows loose in order to  work the 3Y3 stitch ( k3tog, leave stitches on needle, yo, k3tog) which can be a little tricky. 
The book in the image above? New detective novel that I'm loving...can barely put it down to knit....good thing these mittens are quick! Sometimes the discount bin at BN is worth a good long look. 


Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Ten on Tuesday: hearts edition


Ten ways to celebrate Valentines Day? 
  1. Cards. PC is the bomb when it comes to cards...always one sweet, one sassy, and one silly. Keeps me on my toes, card-wise.
  2. Dinner...we never go out on Valentine's Day, so I will make something yummy for us that night, light some candles, and pour some drinks.
  3. Handmade. I make PC a gift each year that speaks to who we are and what he means to me.
  4. Candy/treats. I do this via a yummy dessert.
  5. Snuggle up!
  6. Hugs. Kisses are great, but PC hugs me when he gets home each day and I love his hugs.
  7. Saying I love you, to my mom, my dad, my cat....it's a day of love!
  8. Saying why you llove someone....this is important to me. Why do I love you? I love you because you are... Kind, thoughtful, insightful, inspiring, pragmatic. Use your words!
  9. Write a love letter. To your honey. To your cat. To yourself. I have a friend who writes herself a letter every birthday....so why not Valentine's Day?
  10. Smooch. Make out. When was the last time you just smooched for the sake of smooching? Unleash your inner teenager and make the best of the couch. :) 

  

Monday, February 11, 2013

Snow...



When this is the view out your front window for three days, you would think more knitting would be done, but you would be wrong. A blizzard hit the Boston area on Friday and we have been snowbound all weekend, surrounded by over two feet of snow. Hours of shoveling, scraping, salting and sanding left this knitter too tired to knit. A rare opportunity to meet up with a friend yesterday let me dive right back into a sock project that I started at SPA last weekend.

More this week on the sock pair and then some. 

Enough wool would melt some of this right? ...right? Because we kind of ran out places to put it....
  

Tuesday, February 05, 2013

Ten on Tuesday: memories addition

  
Rand Pond Campground, Goshen, NH

Ten things I miss from childhood...

  1. Camping at the pond...all summer long. We never came back to Boston unless school was about to start.
  2. Riding bikes. I was a great bike rider and I miss the freedom of it. Good thing I bought a new bike last year.
  3. Spending all day in your swimsuit. And not caring who saw you in it! I was the picture of fashion in my one piece and dirty Keds. 
  4. Driving ATVs. So.much.fun. As kids, my dad got us these and we loved them, especially my brother Jonathan and I. We would take off for hours on them....straight down logging roads and into the woods.
  5. Fishing. I never kept quiet enough and I always wanted to drive the boat, but as the only girl, it was a rare treat to go fishing by myself with my dad. 
  6. Walking to the library. We had a great public library in my hometown, and a great librarian... I used to walk down a few times a week to swap books.
  7. Fruit cocktail for dessert. In the little bowls... Mom always made sure we each got a cherry. 
  8. Feeding the birds at Nanas...It was my job to break up the bread,put it into the tin foil pie dish and feed them by the laundry line. 
  9. Hearing my grampy sing my name.... ka-Ka- Katie! Its an old song, and he used to sing it whenever he saw me.
  10. My godmother's hugs.i can still smell her perfume and feel the softness of her skin.