The continuing drama...

Long overdue - project updates!

2008-06-26T16:15:00.004-05:00

This is my second Lace Ribbon Scarf from Knitty.com. The yarn is Numma Numma Toasty in Red Raspberry Jam. And of course now that I have a beautiful new scarf it's 90 degrees...

And here is my Yosemite sweater also from Knitty. It just needs the collar and sleeves. And it looks beautiful with my pj bottoms!

Tomatoes and a hot tomato...

2007-08-01T21:40:00.000-05:00

We have tomatoes! Here is our plant and pictures of the first 2 grape tomatoes and the first 3 cherry tomatoes.

And a hot one wearing my new Tomato scoop-neck tee from the book No Sheep for You by Knitty.com goddess Amy Singer and knit in Shine Worsted Bachelor Button and Wisteria. Hot!

Bird yoga lesson

2007-08-01T21:35:00.000-05:00

Here is Cory demonstrating some yoga moves.

Happy Museum Friday

2007-04-28T12:46:00.000-05:00

I had yesterday off and S. left work early and we went to the Field Museum. We saw the new Dinosaurs exhibit that talks about all the new research and what they have learned about dinosaurs recently. There was a lot about the proof that birds are dinosaurs, but we already knew that. Then we saw the Ancient Americas exhibit and Evolving Planet. It was a great day to be downtown and pretty quiet at the museum.

Here is S. getting attacked by a Pterodactyl and a picture of the "Terror Bird".

Spring has sprung! (Finally...)

2007-04-15T16:56:00.000-05:00

We went to the Morton Arboretum today on the second day of my April weekend off! What a beautiful day. There is nothing I can say that can't be said in pictures, so without further ado...

Shoe woes

2007-03-28T09:48:00.000-05:00

Wow, it's been awhile since I posted. Happy birthday eve to me! This week has been murder - 6 days in a row - but I'm doubly looking forward to my 4 days in a row off. I need to get a side job as a shoe tester, is there such a thing? I bought hideously expensive Danskos which were great working in an office but hell for an 8 hour shift. Is there anything that's comfortable for 8 hours except gym shoes and flip flops (neither of which I can wear to work, or course)? Yesterday I wore these cute sandals because the straps worked around all the millions of blisters on my feet, but then they gave me blisters on my pinkies. It also got so cold yesterday in the afternoon so my feet were freezing going home. I'm only wearing my ugly cork clogs all weekend in Galena, I swear.

Change is in the air

2007-03-01T11:27:00.000-06:00

Happy first day of meteorological (it's okay to fix my spelling) Spring! Today is my last day of work - a big Hallelujah! And this morning I saw my first robin pulling into the driveway at work, and then when I parked my car there is a big tree in front of it and it was full of robins. Amazing!

I just don't know...

2007-02-27T11:59:00.000-06:00

I put up the ticker for Harry Potter book 7 on the sidebar and it links to itrustsnape.com, but I'm just not sure. I'm trying to not overthink it and let the book speak for itself. I do think, though, that Dumbledore is really dead no matter what certain person that lives in my house thinks and that both Harry and Voldemort find their end in the final chapter. Neither one can survive without the other. Mark my words. We will revisit this topic mid-August.

I'm trying to fix the ticker - it keeps spazzing out. Really, I'm not trying to direct your attention to it, I swear.

Day after the Oscars

2007-02-26T11:27:00.000-06:00

Overall, a disappointing show. I thought most of the awards went to the right people (except Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine" instead of Eddie Murphy in "Dreamgirls"?!) but the show overall was pretty uninvolving. Ellen DeGeneres did a good job of hosting - definitely more interested in moving the show along than her own political agenda, but there were some odd choices. The gospel choir at the beginning? - just weird. And the shadow dancers? - interesting, but it didn't work. The couple of audience interactions Ellen had (with Marty Scorcese & Clint Eastwood) were pretty funny, but the vacuum cleaner bit was odd - and what if she had sucked up the bottom of Penelope Cruz's dress?!

I was really happy to see Jennifer Hudson win and Martin Scorcese to finally get the recognition he has deserved for so long. Forest Whitaker had the best acceptance speech. And I really liked the 3-song number from "Dreamgirls".

And here's what I did while I was watching:

It's Clocky!

2007-02-23T14:40:00.000-06:00

This might actually get me out of bed...

If the video won't play for you, use my YouTube link on the sidebar to see Clocky in action.

You can get your own Clocky here .

Catching up

2007-02-20T21:31:00.000-06:00

Well, I took some pictures tonight so we have the mid-month sock update!

First of all, I finally finished the Jaywalker socks and I must say that I'm disappointed. I should have known when it was taking me so long to finish them. The pattern is cute, and I really like how the top cuff is wavy, but the heel construction is funny and I don't think the gusset increases & decreases are right. They really don't fit well around the ankle and in the heel. You may be able to tell in the pictures. I also really don't like knitting top-down socks - I just don't think you can customize the fit as easily. Anyway, without further ado, here they are:

Right after I finished the Jaywalker socks, I cast on my Macaw socks. These are made with the Valley Yarns "Franklin" from Webs. I found a feather lace pattern and I think they're coming along very cute. They're maybe a little brighter than my usual taste but they really have all the colors of a Catalina Macaw which is my favorite.

And I finally got pictures of Scott's already well-worn Christmas/New Years socks.

And the most important news of all is that on March 5th I will become an Assistant Manager for Ann Taylor Loft! I am so excited!

Happy Birthday, Zen!

2007-02-15T20:56:00.000-06:00

Happy 6th birthday to our Valentine! (It was actually yesterday.)

Top Five Records

2007-02-05T12:58:00.000-06:00

So I watched High Fidelity yesterday which always re-sparks my interest in top five record lists, so you have that to look forward to now.
So here's my dreary list today, but I have only come up with 3 for now because this is serious.

The Top Five Songs that must be played at my funeral/memorial service:

1. "Hells Bells" by AC/DC, because that's just funny.

2. "Angel" by Jimi Hendrix. No explanation needed.

3. "Many Rivers to Cross" by Jimmy Cliff, which I stole from the movie but it's completely appropriate and I love Jimmy Cliff.

Now I need 2 more. I'll keep you posted.

Now I need some help. What are the top 5 records to listen to the Monday morning after your team has lost the Super Bowl? I'm completely stumped on this one. Maybe "I'm a Loser" by The Beatles?

Two week update

2007-02-01T13:40:00.000-06:00

And now Phase 1 ends.
Seven pounds and two inches.
Now I need a drink.

This one's for you, Christine.

2007-01-31T14:37:00.000-06:00

Of course I want to win a contest, but more importantly I want to talk about SOCKS!

I actually started knitting socks shortly after I learned to knit at all because the construction is fascinating. I think if you understand how a sock pattern works you can figure out just about anything else. This past year I discovered toe-up sock knitting - what a revelation. I love the seamless toe that a figure 8 cast on gives you. (Check out the instructions by Wendy. And if you have some beautiful yarn you're working with, you can just keep knitting until you run out!

Speaking of beautiful yarn, I just can't get enough of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock. Beautiful colors and knits up really easily. I noticed the other night working on my Jaywalker Socks that the yarn is kind of tight and stringy-feeling (? - I know what I mean...) while knitting with it, but it blooms so nicely in the wash and makes for a really soft sock. I'm so in love with Lorna's Laces that I have to have some ready to go at all times. When I cast on the Jaywalkers I had to quick make an order for my next color. The problem with that is now I'm kind of tired of the greys of Mineshaft

and want to finish up and work on my more Spring-y looking pink, sage, and brown of Vera.

I have yet to meet a sock pattern I don't like, but I have 2 particular favorites. I made the Widdershins socks last Summer(?) and it was the best-fitting sock I ever made. I actually re-wrote the pattern for my own use with just the construction and I use it with other stitch patterns because it fits my foot so perfectly. I made the Almost Argyle socks last fall and really liked those, too, although when I resized the pattern I lost one repeat and the argyle pattern didn't come out even, but they are still terrific. I've thought of resizing the pattern for a man's sock - I think it's perfect for a man. I also really liked the Latvian Twist cast-on edge. This pattern was the first time I'd seen it and it makes a really lovely top if you're doing top-down.

Now, Christine wasn't specific about what to say about socks, but one thing she offered was that if you are not a sock knitter you might talk about how you don't get why people want to knit socks. I say, what's not to get? You have almost instant satisfaction while being more involved than making a scarf; you can buy the most lovely yarn in small quanities and don't have to invest hundreds of dollars to make a sweater that you may or may not like when it's done; you can make socks that fit your feet perfectly in the colors that you want to buy; and you can stash a sock project in a Ziploc bag and hardly take up any room in your carry-on bag. My only caveat with sock knitting is to be careful if you're knitting while watching football - that's when I'm most likely to drop stitches!

One week update

2007-01-25T14:00:00.000-06:00

One week.
5 pounds.
1-1/2" around my waist.

(Not really a haiku - perhaps next week will be better...)

Catching up

2007-01-18T12:52:00.000-06:00

Boy, I really haven't posted in a while...

In knitting news, I finished Scott's Christmas socks (picture to follow) and he has been happily wearing them around the house. It makes me very happy to see him walking all over my hard work! I've been working on the Portland sweater slowly - I have about 1/2 the first sleeve complete. I ordered size 4 circulars thinking I could knit both sleeves at once to save time, but I like the gauge of the sleeve much better on size 4 DPNs. So even though it will take longer, I think I'll be happier in the long run. Of course, by the time the sweater is done it will be consistently in the 60s here! I also cast on the Jaywalker socks last Sunday during the Bears game (what was I thinking!). But I only dropped 4 stitches. I'm knitting them in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Mineshaft. They're coming out pretty well, but I actually like the color better in the skein than I do knit up. I've found that I have a little bit of pooling with this pattern that I didn't have with other patterns knit in Lorna's Laces. But who can't use more grey socks!

In other news, today is day one of the South Beach Diet, so this blog has now become rants on knitting, parrots, and personal accountability. The day isn't going too bad, except that I have a dull headache, but that's to be expected. My name is Laura and I have a sugar addiction. I was shocked when I took my waist measurement last night. I'm not ready to publicly say what it was, but I'll fess up after Phase 1 when it's a couple of inches smaller. I also decided that I'm not going to stress about exercise right now (I need to deal with my food issues first), but I bought The Bean because it was on sale at Ulta. So if I'm sitting on it watching TV and I happen to get rock hard abs in 7 minutes a day then more power to me!

Happy (belated) Hatchday, Cory!

2007-01-05T11:42:00.000-06:00

Our baby turned 4 on New Year's Day.

Here's Cory the day we brought her home,

and her sassy self now...

Rest in peace, Peter Boyle

2006-12-13T12:18:00.000-06:00

I will always remember Peter Boyle singing "Puttin' on the Ritz" in the funniest movie of all time.

Shoot me

2006-12-11T14:29:00.000-06:00

I swore I would never wear Crocs - they're gardening shoes - but, I think they need to make clear ones and if they do I will buy them and I will wear them in public. They would be so much cuter than the clear clogs.
So, if someone finds clear Crocs anywhere, send them to me!

One night project

2006-12-11T12:19:00.000-06:00

This is the best one night project ever (and perhaps the only one night project ever...)

Friday, I printed out an earflap hat pattern that then I stayed up WAY too late Friday night trying to figure out. Saturday I bought a fleece earflap hat at Dick's, so I decided to use the Lion 100% Wool I bought for the earflap hat for the Calorimetry in the new Knitty. I cast on Saturday night and finished Saturday night and I LOVE LOVE LOVE this! So comfy and really warm in the wool. Mine's not as stretchy as the one in the pattern photo, but I adore it. It's wider than a headband so it covers the top of your head and your ears and you can wear your hair up in back or keep your curls from getting squished. I'm now going to raid my stash and see what I have to make more of these.

Also, my quick review of the Lion 100% Wool. I really like it. It's squishy and soft and great yardage for $4.99 at Michael's. It was really easy to knit with. I swore I'd stay away from cheap yarn, but this is actually really nice and easy to get. My only complaint is that they didn't have a wide color selection at my Michael's. They also had a sample up of it felted and it had almost a slight boucle texture when felted. I think I might try some felted mittens with it some time.

I also haven't given up on an earflap hat, but probably not for this winter. Maybe there is a fair isle earflap hat in next winter's plans.

Zen, the Red-Nosed Reindeer

2006-12-07T13:48:00.001-06:00

Cory, the Red-Nosed Reindeer

2006-12-07T13:35:00.000-06:00

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

2006-12-06T11:58:00.000-06:00

Learn about St. Nicholas.

Saturday snowshoeing

2006-12-04T11:54:00.000-06:00

The good part of a snowstorm (besides having a snow day!) is being able to go play in it!
Here are pictures from snowshoeing the Morton Arboretum on Saturday.

This may be a Cooper's Hawk or a Sharp-Shinned Hawk, I'm just not sure.