It's over with

Hello, hello, hello! How was your Christmas? It was good here. Lots of fun, and then there's always that downer. That part was really ugly. I won't even go into details here except to say one of my relatives will not be invited back. Otherwise, everything else was fun! I enjoyed my children, my grandchildren. We had good food, laughs, fun gifts, and a great big mess in my living room!

I can show you some things now that I couldn't before Christmas. I made my daughter some new jammies, she wanted a "northerny" theme. This is what I made her. Moose jammies! And I ironed a couple cutouts onto the t-shirt sleeves.

And to keep her head nice and warm, I did some stranded knitting and made her an ear flap hat! I really like it and so does she.

And just for fun, I made her one of those funny little hedgehogs . . . in pink! It's so cute and squishy.

She loves all of her stuff. The hedgie will go on a shelf in her dorm room. It will remind her of mom and home and all things good.

I'm really enjoying this time off work. I saved my vacation days and I'm off until January 5. Yay me! I finally got the Spring Forward socks done. Finally.

Now I can move on to a whole new project. Exciting! Not sure what I'll make next. I have that lace weight I bought, but I probably won't start any lace until I have the house to myself again. It needs my full concentration.

So that's about it for now. How was your Christmas? Hope you had a good one!

Christmas cookies!

We've been baking and baking and baking here! Lots of fun with my daughter. Here she is, hard at work making and decorating sugar cookies.

It just tickles me to see her so hard at work. I love that kid to pieces! Here are the finished cookies.

I also made some Chex mix, some call it Chex Muddy Buddies, some call it Puppy Chow. Whatever you call it, it's yummy!

And, I made some rum balls. They are to die for, so good. They just taste like Christmas!

I've also made some fudge, and some cookies called cherry berry bars. So many goodies in the house at the moment!

And let me tell you, I'm so glad to be in the house. More snow today. It just won't stop falling from the sky. But now it has changed to freezing rain, I can hear it hitting out there. Scary. I'm so glad I'm as snug as a bug in a rug in my house! Hope you're all cozy too!

It's freeeeeeeeeeeeeezing

Holy crap it's cold out there. It's like hell has frozen over. And that gusting wind just makes it even worse. I'm so glad I'm inside where it's nice and warm and cozy. I'll worry about the heating bill later. Can't think about that right now.

Still getting ready for Christmas here. My daughter is home for the break and I'm really enjoying having her around. I finally got all the handmade gifts done. Now I can get back to my neglected sock. I made these fingerless mittens for my daughter-in-law. I made them with that Caron Naturals Country yarn I showed you a post or two ago.

See that little pickle ornament by them? My son calls my grandson "Pickle", that's his nickname. I saw that pickle ornament in Target and just HAD to get it. I love buying silly stuff like that at Christmas. It makes it fun!

We had our office lunch the other day. My boss got me this perfume, lotion and candle set. It's really nice.

And another co-worker gave me this candle. Isn't it cute! It's a snowglobe on the bottom and in the top part you can put a tealight. I don't know where she found such a cute thing. I just love it!

I've got my shopping done, the wrapping is done. Can you tell what this is?

I couldn't resist wrapping that hat like that. It's for my son. He got me a T-fal pan one year and wrapped it in the shape of the pan. I can finally do the same in return!

Now it's time to relax and just knit, fun knitting on my sock, no deadline.

I hope you're staying warm where you are!

Christmas Spirit

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! Wow, we got socked with a snowstorm today. Really nasty out there. I had a planned day off so I didn't have to go to work. I did manage to get out and do some Christmas shopping. Had a ton of fun shopping with my daughter. The roads were awful, but we persevered and made it through. I'm getting into the Christmas spirit now. We have a lot of fun at Christmas. Lots of little surprises and memories. I can't wait!

Tomorrow I will bake some cookies. YUM!!!

I wanted to share a picture of my Christmas tree. It's really hard to get a picture of a lit tree. I took this one with the cell phone. It looks so twinkly!

The kitties love to lay under it. And they look real cute laying there.

Have a great weekend! If you get this snowstorm, stay safe in it and take your time digging out.

Just give me a straw

Lots going on lately. My stress level is through the roof. So just give me a straw and pass the bottle.

Want some? If I drank that, even a shot glass full, it would burn and make me choke. But at the moment, I don't care. I need it. But, that's not for me. I got that for my boss for Christmas. Maybe he'll share.

I'm still busy making Christmas gifts. I'm almost done. I bought this yarn the other day.

I'm making some fingerless mittens with it. It's really really splitty. But when knitted, OMG, it's so soft. So I guess I can put up with it for fingerless mittens.

I got a pair of jammie pants sewed for my son. It's OK, he doesn't read this, I can show you.

I love that fabric! Hope he likes them.

Remember my fascination with matroyshka fabric? I still love it. My mom loved the apron I made with that fabric, so I made her one for Christmas.

So I'm just moving right along here. Almost done with the homemade gifts.

We've got a snowstorm moving in, 3 to 5 inches predicted. A good night to stay in and knit. And that's exactly what I'll do. While eyeing that bottle of booze.

I took the day off!

My knitting needles are still clicking furiously. I got the first pair of mittens done.

I've started the second pair which are in a blue by the name of "denim", and they do look like faded blue jeans. I'll post a pic of them next time. I should have a lot more done on them later. I found out yesterday I have more vacation days left than I thought I had, so I took the day off, yay me! Lots of knitting time today. It's rainy and icky outside, a good day to stay inside and be cozy.

My little grandson helped me set up my skater pond the other day. I haven't put this display out in a few years. It's pretty old and the skaters don't glide smoothly anymore. But still fun to look at. I think I may replace the felt on the bottom of the skaters. Maybe that will help.

He was fascinated with this thing. I enjoyed our time together setting it up.

I treated myself and bought some lace yarn. Oh it's so beautiful! And so thin. I've never used lace weight before. I want to make a shawl but I won't start that until after I get all the Christmas knitting off the needles and finish the Spring Forward socks. This will be a real challenge for me during the long winter months.

The yarn is from Yarntopia Treasures on etsy. Beautiful yarn! And very reasonably priced.

So that's it for today. Time to get back to my needles and the sewing machine. I'm going to make my son some jammie pants for Christmas. Gotta get cracking here, no time to waste.

Smokin' Needles

We're getting down to the wire here. Not a lot of gift knitting time left before Christmas. Can you hear my needles clicking? Can you see them smoking? I've been on a roll. I've got a pair of mittens almost done.

After I get those done, I'll be casting on one more pair. I'm so focused on this right now I haven't been doing much else. Just sitting on the couch knitting. With a kitty or two by me.

With Pixie sleeping on my leg like that, I can't get up. You can't disturb a sleeping cozy cat! So I do another row. And she still sleeps. So one more row. She's not awake yet. So I keep going and I get a lot done! Yay for kitties! It's their fault. They hold me hostage to the couch and I keep knitting!

Hope you're having some knitting or crafting fun wherever you are!

Long Weekends Are Great

The turkey is gone. The pie is gone. My daughter is back at school. Back to work tomorrow. How was your Thanksgiving? Did you go somewhere? Do tell! I would love to know what it's like to go to someone's house for a holiday. It gets old having holidays at my house all the time.

So I cheered myself up and went to Joann's and bought some stuff. Here's the yarn I got.

I used some of that Vanna yarn last year and didn't like it. Maybe they changed it, but it's not bad, now I like it. For an acrylic. I just love that dark blue one with the glittery thread running through it! I don't know what I'll make with it yet, but it screamed at me to buy it. So I listened.

I started some mittens with the light brown and will make mittens with the light blue too.

That was a lot of 1 x 1 ribbing on that wrist, but it's done and now I can move onto the hand part. I love making mittens, haven't made any in a long time. I love how they work up quickly.

Back to the old grind tomorrow. Gotta earn that money so I can support my yarn habit. Too bad it doesn't grow on trees.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! This is my most absolute favorite holiday, just fun, food, no gift buying, a day of eating and relaxing with family. Did I mention food and eating? The best part! I'm hosting Thanksgiving dinner at my house. We are going to have so much food. I'll be making a lot and more will be brought by my family. We are going to eat all day. I better wear elastic waist pants, lol!

I do have some things I'm grateful for this year.

1. My mom is not in the hospital this year.
2. I have a job.
3. My daughter made it home safely from school for the holiday.
4. Everyone is in good health.
5. There is plenty of food to eat today.
6. I have lots of yarn to play with!
7. I have made the most wonderful friends in my knitting group.
8. My house is warm.

I could go on and on, but that's enough for today, you get the message. What are you thankful for?

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Gobble Gobble!

Cozy

The snow has been falling already and winter is knocking on the door. Time to batten down the hatches and stay inside where it's cozy and warm. And to knit. And light a candle. There's nothing like the nice warm glow of a candle in a room. Here's my newest one. It smells sooooooooo good!

My daughter bought me that candle at Cabela's. I just love it! Target had flannel sheets on sale. I treated myself to a new set. $15.99 for any size, what a deal! I love these.

Nice and cozy.

I wish I had this view out my front window. So cozy to be warm inside and seeing the snow fall, with nowhere to go.

But that's not the view I get. Someday.

It's been so cold I made a nice pot of minnestrone soup yesterday. So yummy! My sister gave me the recipe. It made a ton. I'm going to have to freeze some.

Very delicious!

I also treated myself and bought another Ravelry t-shirt. The other one I got is so so so comfy, had to get another one out of the new batch they just got in. I just love that dog!

The following is not cozy:

I do not want to wear a partially knitted sock with DPNs sticking out of it. Definitely not comfy cozy!

Time to go hit the couch with the yarn and the knitting needles and cozy up for the night with my kitties surrounding me.

And so the madness begins

It's coming. And it's coming fast. The "C" word. Christmas. I've started making some gifts. The first was this blanket for my grandson. It looks so nice and tidy all folded up into a pillow.

And then . . . TA DAH! You unfold it and it's a blanket!

Very easy to make. I did get quite warm with it on my lap while I did the blanket stitch all around the edge.

I didn't feel like doing all that blanket stitching all over again, so the blanket I made for my granddaughter got the fringed edge that you tie. Also very simple and easy to make.

Love that skull fabric! Speaking of skulls, I got these beads not too long ago. Don't know what I'll make with them, but HAD to have them!

That's all I can show you at this time. Still working on the Spring Forward socks. And something else. Hopefully I'll have time to knit this weekend. Once again I'm stuck with Thanksgiving dinner. So I'm going to get my house in order and get some of the food preparation started. And bought. It was so nice last year going to someone's house for a change. But at least this year my mom is not in the hospital, no one is sick. I do have lots to be thankful for.

Have a wonderful weekend!

My Civic Duty

I got summoned for jury duty. Ick. I hate doing it, sitting down there all day waiting to see if you will be put on a jury, waiting and waiting and waiting. The not knowing. The last time I was summoned I got picked for a jury. After that I never wanted to do it again, it was so stressful. But that summons came and today was the day to go. There weren't a lot of us there today. Very strange, usually there are lots of potential jurors waiting around. Found out only one trial was going to be starting today. Finally we got called to the courtroom. And I knew the plaintiff's lawyer. I was dismissed. Yay! What a relief! So I came home and played with yarn all afternoon. Lots more fun than jury duty!

Ah-Choo

I raked the stupid frikkin leaves the other day and now I'm sick. I hate all that stuff mixed in there, mold spores, pollen, yucky stuff. This happens every year. I always have hope that it won't happen. So far, no luck. So here we go again. Pass the tissues please.

My daughter came home again for the weekend. It was a nice relaxing weekend. We didn't do much. We did have fun playing with Sculpey clay! It was such a nice evening. So now we have another crafty hobby to do. See what we made . . .

I made the snowman on the left, the stocking and the mini pumpkin. She made the other snowman and the deer. Lots of fun. I never realized how hard it is to make little teeny things with clay, like those eyes, and the carrot nose. I think we did pretty darn good for our first attempt.

Now it's time to go rest and hopefully get rid of this dumb cold real soon. I've got jury duty on Tuesday and I sure don't want to have to go there carrying a box of tissues.

Veterans Day

It's Veterans Day today. Thank a Veteran if you know one. I didn't get the day off, I'm not one of the lucky ones who gets the day off to go to all the Veterans Day sales. Everything is so commercial.

I made a couple more cat toys over the weekend. These are for my cousin's kitty. They're in the mail to her as a surprise. But no mail today, so hopefully she'll get them tomorrow.

They work up quickly. I need to make some for my kitties.

I had my Katie cremated. This is the urn I will keep her in. I thought it was so cute. A kitty and yarn.

I really miss that cat.

I've been working on the Spring Forward socks. I have the heel turned on one. Yay!

This is the best heel I've done so far. Now it's onto the foot. But I may set it aside for a few days and work on something else. Can't show you yet.

So tell me, what are you working on?

Field Trip

My daughter and her boyfriend came home for the weekend. It was so good to see her! We went on a little field trip yesterday to a great big huge sporting goods store called Cabela's. WOW is that place huge! I had never been there before. You name it, they had it for any kinds of outdoor sportsman, hunting, fishing, camping. Clothes, furniture, tents, food, fishing poles, lures, hunting equipment, it was there. Fun to look at. But what I enjoyed the most were the displays.

They were just beautiful.

They looked so real, but they were replicas.

Those buffalo were huge!

Can you see the moose hiding in the bushes? What a beautiful creature.

Another beautiful moose.

I loved this wild boar.

We were in there for hours. It was so fun. My daughter bought me a candle, and I bought her a top. Her boyfriend was in his glory. He's a real outdoorsman. He bought something for his fishing pole for ice fishing. It was a very fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

But they have left now and are on their way back to school. I guess I'll sit and knit this afternoon waiting for the call that they are back. I'm working on a sock called Spring Forward. I just finished the heel flap and am ready to turn the heel.

This sock is working up pretty fast, I started it about a week ago. I've never made a lacy sock, maybe they work up faster. I am enjoying it so far.

A Heartfelt Thank You

First off, let me say a great big thank you for your kind comments about my Katie. I'm just amazed what a big impact she had on my life and what a void there is now. These little pets sure do make a difference in our lives. She is missed very much.

Isn't it amazing how sometimes things just happen when you really need them? I came home from work the other and my aunt had sent me some homemade ornaments . . . just because! She had no idea about my kitty. These sure brought a smile to my face. I love each and every one and will be so honored to hang them on my Christmas tree.

They came to me at the perfect time.

Now I'll talk about some knitting goodness. I did get my fair isle hat done last week, and finally have a picture to show you. I really like it. It's all blocked and ready to wear.

I love it! What a fun technique to know. I can't wait to make something else with two colors. I did get some yarn for a future project. I can't believe how absolutely soft this yarn is:

I just can't get a good picture of the beautiful pink color with my camera, so that will have to do.

And last but not least, I have a friend who was selling some yarn for her friends. Beautiful alpaca. I just HAD to buy some. OMG, just absolutely heavenly soft. It feels like a cloud. I love just petting the skeins.

I don't know what I'll make with it yet. So until then, I'll just keep petting it.