Wee Tiny Sock Swap 2008 And A Few Good Weeds!

My Wee Tiny Sock is completed and will be leaving Alabama today.....headed for a LONG trip!!!! (Gee....if I could take HALF the trips that my knitting takes I would be one happy gal)!! LOL!!!!









Wee Tiny Sock

Cherry Blossoms Yarn by Sunshine Yarns , knit with size 0 Knit Picks circular needle.


I LOVE Sunshine Yarns....the colors are great and they knit into the softest socks!!!










Have a good trip Wee Tiny Sock!!!!





Inspired by Bibby's Post (who has THE most gorgeous, enviable yard).......I decided to take a walk around MY yard.....keeping in mind that my yard is a JOKE.....NOTHING grows but WEEDS!!! But, I guess beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder....too bad most of these flowers are only appreciated when lying on your stomach and using a Macro lens!!



I bring you......WEEDS!!!!!!!!

(Wendy, help me on this one.....Trillium????)

I usually have 3 in the same spot, this year only one came up!!

If you should find yourself driving by my house one sunny Spring Day and see me prostrate in my yard, no need to panic.......I'm just enjoying my WEEDS!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!!

The Letter F

F is for Flowers!! (Original I know)!

These were grown by Bibby, who has THE most beautiful yard!!! Lot's of old trees!!! Straight out of a Southern Living Magazine!!!! I am SOOO envious of her yard!!!

Is this not THE cutest sock bag????

My sweet friend and her ADORABLE offspring came by the other day and brought me this bag!!! The sun was shining so bright that is you look hard you can see the lining which is tiny little coordinating flowers!! These little dogs look just like Max......only more colorful!!! LOL!!! This is the PERFECT sock bag size!!!!

Also included, but not pictured, was a loaf of THE BEST banana nut bread.....which lasted....oh....just a few hours!!! LOL!!! YUMMY!!!! YUMMY!!!

Thank you so much for thinking of me!!!!

I am so very lucky to have such wonderful friends!!!

Out With The New, In With The NEWER New!!!!

WARNING: Woman On A Mission/Rant/Public Service Announcement, WHATEVER...... Long Post!!!!




This is what I bought 17 months ago,..........and was quite happy with until:



I stupidly moved the passenger seat back and everything in the car shorted out, had to be towed to the dealership......



Even after the oil plug came out (cross-threaded incorrectly by that friendly "electronic" robot that builds cars)...while driving down the interstate, but with the built in safety feature that holds a bit of oil in reserve so you don't burn up the motor (thank you very much)......but prevented me from realizing anything was wrong until I pulled into my basement and smoke comes pouring...and I DO mean pouring from the car, causing much stress as I was afraid I had another "short" in the electrical system and my car was on fire!



Then there was the time I got out of the car and the dash and dome lights stayed on for...well I'm not exactly sure how long.....I finally went to bed....but the battery was dead the next day.



But the love stopped when I pulled into the basement Thursday night and the ENTIRE electrical system went bonkers, even turning off the car and removing the key didn't slow it down a bit!! It would have been an AWESOME scene in some poltergeist movie, all the inside and outside blinking lights was quite impressive!! LOL!!



My husband decided to disconnet the battery but the battery was sizzling and oozing the contents of itself all over the place so we slammed the hood and hoped for the best.



After a sleepness night Thursday night (I was afraid something would spark and burn my house to the ground....oh...forgot to mention the car wouldn't go in gear so we COULD get it out of the house in case of fire either). I decided the love affair was over.....NO more chances........you had your 3 chances and it is SOOOO OVER!!!!!!!



After two full days of "discussions", the Dealership saw things my way, paid off my car, will have it towed (where by their own admission will repair and put on their lot to sell or trade with another dealership....... ultimately selling to some unsuspecting person which is SOOOOOO wrong).....sold me a new car for pretty much the same price I paid for the old one....got more for my money this time around....pays to do your homework and go in with documentation to back it up ladies....these guys just THINK we ladies are an easy sell!!!! Could be the knitting throws them off!! Hee! Hee!




I do like this car, but I don't like change....I like things simple and this car is SOOOO not simple.



I feel as though a training class should have been included just to operate it!! LOL!!!

I reached up to adjust the mirror to night driving and no little thingy to flip the mirror.......it just "knows" when it is night and when a car gets within a certain range something changes and the back windshield will turn green......reminds me of a story I had to read in 2nd year English/Lit....about a futuristic house that was all "electronic" and could sustain itself on it's own.... Come to think of it.....the end of the story wasn't a good one......GULP!!!! And now the cars can do all this stuff without your input at all!!!

LAWZY.....what's this world coming to!!!!!!!!!!!!



I know, I know....I'm showing my age!!!



I think some enterprising company should create a car that has doors that must be locked and unlocked with a key INSERTED in the door lock (gasp), windows that roll down with a crank knob (how CRUEL).... mirrors that must be adjusted by hand, (remember that feeling of having to roll down your window while going 60 miles and hour and adjust your side mirror.....while trying to maintain the integrity of your hair "do"??) LOL!!!



A car that requires a MECHANIC to fix anything that goes wrong........NOT ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS and a computer!!!



Such a company would make a KILLING I'm telling you!!!! Every old pooh like me would be lining up to get there name on the list! AND all the investors would be RICH, RICH, RICH I tell ya!!! SIGN ME UP!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!




OH......and if you find yourself contemplating the purchase of a 2006 Honda Accord EXL in the Carbon Bronze Purl color any time in the near future from Precision Honda in Jasper, Alabama, or in ANY STATE (because they trade off with each other).......let me know.....I have the VIN number....might be able to save you some trouble!!

I don't want something for nothing.....I'm like the Dyson commercial.....I just think things should work right!!!!!!

O.K. WHEW....glad I got that off my chest......I feel ALL better now!!!!!!!!!!!!

May Day Sock Update!!

Can you believe it??? I have a sock on the needles for my May Day Sock Swap Pal!!! Wooo Hooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so used to some form of ribbed pattern that this sock looks HUGE to me....but I have tried it on several times and it fits nicely....

I have a couple more rows and the heel flap will be completed!

Monkeys and a Mystery!!

Actually there are TWO Mysteries!!!


One Monkey has Purls....One Monkey Doesn't.......or DOES it????????? Hmmmmmm??????


Socks on the left are the regular Monkey Socks, knit with Cherry Tree Hill from my sweet friend Ginger.


Socks on the right are the NO PURL Monkey Sock, knit with Sunshine yarn, Cherry Blossoms color way. Not enough difference in my opinion to justify purling!!! What do you think???





SECOND MYSTERY!!!




Despite all the deterrents I could think of Bella continues to sit in the kitchen window on a regular basis....pretty much every day at about the same time when the sun is typically shining and the ledge is nice and toasty warm....(today is overcast).

I keep a bottle of Lysol kitchen disinfectant on the counter by the paper towel dispenser as a permanent fixture and give everything a good cleaning once her Highness has finished with her sunbath.

Apparently, Miss Bella decided to be quite the helpfull little kitty today.....see how she pulled all the towels from the dispenser...... I guess she couldn't figure out how to work the spray bottle.!!! LOL!!!!

Looks like I'll have to give an in-service....I'll let you know if she learns to "do windows"!! LOL!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

May Your Yarn Stash Never Run Low

May you always have projects on the needles

And may you ALWAYS have friends to share it all with!!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!!!

*Old Irish Knitting Saying.....well....sort of!!!!

ABC Along.....The Letter E

E is for:

EASTER EGGS!!!

May Day Sock Yarn Decision and SNOW!!

Decision made:

Cherry Tree Hill Supersock

Jewels.

I'm still working on the pattern...I started one yesterday but something about it just didn't sing out to me.....so I'll continue looking this week and hopefully have a decision made by the end of the week so I can start on the socks this weekend.

While the socks may not be going just yet.....I am having fun shopping for my May Day Swap Pal!!! LOL!!!

And....we woke up Saturday morning to SNOW......it was 79 degrees one day last week!!!

What can I say?? It's Spring In Alabama!!!

The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread!!

Can you GUESS what this is???

(The white spots are due to my camera)!























Here is another hint!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Got it figured out now????

It is just THE Most AWESOME sock blockers I have ever seen!!!



See the colored blocks....the numbers??? This is PURE Genius!!

My husband was complaining that he only had one pair of hand knit socks while I had SEVERAL pair!!

I dug through my stash and came up with some Knit Picks Essential sock yarn and cast on that very day!!

The problem with knitting for someone else's foot is that they aren't always conveniently sitting right by your side when you need to try the socks to check for proper fitting!

This was a problem. I decided a pair of sock blockers were in order so I sent an EM to Becky.

After explaining my dilemma to Becky about wanting to be able to make socks for my husband, but not wanting to wait around for him to be available to try them on for sizing purposes she came up with this MOST INGENIOUS idea!!!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the fact that now I know exactly where on the blockers my socks need to be prior to starting the heel and toe decreases!!

NOW.....I have a pair of blockers that are CUSTOM made to match my husband's foot, high arch and all!!! I can knit socks when it is convenient for ME and not have to wait around for the "model" to be present!!!

In this "throw away" age it is very comforting to pick up needles, yarn and be able to create something that is uniquely your very own. I find the very rhythm of knitting socks to be very soothing and somehow "centering". There is nothing more comforting to me than wearing a pair of socks that were hand knit....whether they were knit by my own hands or someone else's. I am so tickled to know that with these custome blockers that I can now knit for someone other than myself and be sure that what I am creating will fit PERFECTLY!!!

I think the creativity that Becky demonstrates every time she makes a pair of custom blockers is just incredible!! I can follow a pattern, but I am not creative......there is a HUGE difference!!

I know you can buy sock blockers from a lot of different websites, but they aren't custom made to fit your foot.......or the foot of the one you love to knit for!!!

If you are a sock knitter......you owe it to yourself to get over to Becky's site, let her work with you to create a pair of custom blockers just for you!!!!

Becky, thank you again so very much for coming up with such an awesome idea!!!!!

Winter Doldrums Surprise!!

Talk about someone SPOILING me!!!





Mary has ABSOLUTELY spoiled me!!! I could not believe all that I received.....I feel very grateful and a bit overwhelmed with so much goodness!!!





First off is CHOCOLATE.....and not just ANY Chocolate but TRUFFLES.....oh my.....this is my FAVORITE but one of those that I won't buy for myself!! I haven't seen the Hershey's sticks....but oh my...are they GOOOOD!!! LOL!! CHeck out the KnitPicks yarn in Smores colorway!!! How cute is that??!! There are subtle shades of gray and blue with chocolate brown and cream....good enough to eat!!


The washcloths are AMAZING.....the one on the left looks like an angel and the red one has such detail in the pattern.....I can't bring myself to use either of them for awhile....I'll have to admire them for a bit until I can put them to work!! LOL!!


WEIRD.......I borrowed this VERY book from a friend and YIPPEE....now I have my very own copy!!!!!! (Laura, your book will be in the mail this week)!! (Mary MUST have ESP)!!!


A WONDERFUL bar of VAnilla Bean soap....that will be hitting the shower with me in the morning!!!!


AND......if this weren't MORE THAN ENOUGH????????????




Some BEAUTIFUL roving yarn in the most beautiful shades of purples/lavender!!

Middle is some Blue Sky Alpaca in such a beautiful lilac color...I have not knit with this yarn and I can't WAIT to go through my patterns and decide what to knit!!

OHHHH... another skein of Knit Picks in the Rocky Mountain Dusk colorway......which the mountains are my favorite place to go so how appropriate is this color way???!!!

Mary, you did WAYYY more than you were supposed to have and I feel very spoiled indeed!!!

It is always so nice to find new friends through swaps!! Turns out Mary and I both have dogs with Diabetes....funny how these swaps pair folks isn't it??

A million thanks are not sufficient Mary.....I am so very, very tickled to received the bounty of gifts and appreciate all your thoughtfulness!!!

Anniversary And A FUN Class!!

Hello there Mr. Handsome Hubby Sock.....care to Monkey Around????

On March 1, 1986, I married a wondeful man!!! Neither of us could remember exactly what time we were SUPPOSED to have been at the church....we were LATE!! LOL!!

We spent the day reminiscing on how far we have come in 22 years!!! What a blessed 22 years it has been!!

(Mr. Handsome Hubby Sock does indeed have a mate that is almost completed....as does the Monkey sock)....but until then....these two will hang out together!!

AND...........................................................................................

Teacher Extraordinaire Suzanne taught a MOST wickedly fun class today on the art of Fair Isle Knitting!!

We had a BLAST.....just too much cutting up and laughing going on.....all while learning something new!!!

There are teachers that can teach...all technical and proper....but it isn't fun....and then there are teachers like Suzanne that make ALL the difference in the learning experience.....taking all the technical stuff you need to know and giving it to you in such a way that you never get stressed or feel rushed!!

We were absolutely SHOCKED when three hours had passed and fun/class time was over!!!!

We are SOOOOO tickled that Suzanne joined our knitting group!!!!

OH...and that little white dot between Bibby and Jessi is Cindy.....who was there in spirit!! Hope you feel better soon!!!!!!!!