This is the stack of work I brought home. Phew! They aren't pulling any punches with the newbie!
Friday, February 29, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
058/366
I realized there has been a dearth of knitting on this knitting blog, so here is my attempt to spice it up. This hand warmer is done using the Pinnacles stitch pattern, and my standard hand warmer setup.
I used the leftovers of the Wool Bam Boo I used for the scarf, and I really like the way the smaller gauge yarn knits up. It fits my hand very well - no looseness or sliding around here. I also really like how light the yarn feels - it will definitely work well in all seasons.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
056/366
Firestarter's progress - looking good! Too bad the needle placement makes it next to impossible to try on!
First day of work went well, but the commute - ugh. Good thing this will be a weekly thing instead of a daily thing.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
052/366
A continuance of a close look at the little knick=knacks that make me happy. This one is perfectly situated on our bookshelf near our christianity books.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
051/366
One of the husband's sculpture projects from our college days. He's kinda cute, and keeps me company on these long work days.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
049/366
In her previous life, she was a florist. Happy Monday to you all!
Just 4 more days to go before I get to embark on the adventure of a new job! Thank you all for the good wishes. I'm so far behind on the email responses, I'm sorry, so I'll just say thank you all here.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
048/366
Still life.
It's a quiet Sunday. I'm preparing for our Stewardship of the Environment service tonight. I've put together 2 powerpoints already, one more to go. I can't tell you how excited I am to get to share this passion with my church community. And we have the absolute best line-up of speakers. They are all passionate, gracious, well-prepared and well-spoken. Hopefully, my piece will not distract from their pieces. Well, I must run back to finishing.
May you have a peaceful day.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
047/366 - Fiery Rainbow
After a very rainy day, and lots of thunder, we are rewarded with the most gorgeous rainbow. The storm has moved off to the north, the sun is setting, and the red just sets off the rainbow so beautifully.
Hope you have a good weekend.
Friday, February 15, 2008
046/366 - It's too quiet
As a parent, I have learned to recognize those quiet times, as times to go find the little bit. This time, she'd sneaked off to our room to listen to NPR on the alarm clock and was trying to get the lid off my water bottle. Good thing it's still Little Bit proof. Wonder how long that will last?
Happy Friday! One week down, one week to go! Woo!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
044/366 - Firestarter
I have cast on the Firestarter sock. It's my second pair. Perhaps a bit ambitious, but this yarn (Paca-Peds) spoke to me, it wanted to be a Firestarter. I had no choice but to listen.
Thanks to Ravelry, I was able to translate the euro-chart into something I could understand (even after a glass of wine!), and I'm moving along swimmingly.
Doesn't the stitch marker look beautiful? Plans are to knit 4 repeats of the cable, then to start the gusset as my foot is nearly 9 inches long (which according to my trusty google calculator is 22.86 cm), whereas the pattern calls for a total of 24 cm. Four repeats instead of five should do the trick nicely, I hope.
And I'm loving this yarn. It's soft and gorgeous. And knitting up nicely on my 2.5mm KnitPicks dpns... although I'm drooling after the Harmony wood ones. Perhaps when our refund comes in? (although the husband has said that I don't get to buy anything else knitting related until I finish his sweater... so, add the frogging to the to-do list)
I can't wait to wear these socks!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
043/366
Guess what came in the mail?!! My swap package!!!! Deadlines weren't until 2/25, so imagine my surprise when I had a delightful package waiting for me when I got home.
The lovelyThanh of dogyarnfun was my swap partner, and wow, did she outdo herself! She made me 3 gorgeous washcloths,
stitch markers (now I don't have to use paperclips!!), 
and included some yummy soap and some absolutely delish sock yarn (more on that later). 
Oh, wait, there's more! She even sent some yummy Rooibos tea! Oh yeah, I'm definitely spoiled.
Monday, February 11, 2008
042/366
Guess what the mail-lady brought? My new interweave! And there are lots of fun projects in there... not that I have a dearth of knitting projects, but still, it's fun to add to the queue :) Happy Monday to you!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Saturday, February 9, 2008
40/366
There is something beautiful about the way the winter light washes out the color of things. It's been unseasonably warm here, so we've been taking advantage of it and playing outside every chance we can get!
The time of secrecy is over... I got the job! I can't tell you how excited I am. I get to work in a new industry, in a green industry, for a company that really seems dedicated to its employees. I'm a bit nervous as I've been working at my current job for nearly 4 years, so it's tough to leave the familiar. It is time though, and I can't be more excited about this opportunity! Now I just have to get through these next two weeks :)
Here's a bit of Defeat the Winter Doldrums minutia:
Some of us get the doldrums and others don't. For the ones who get doldrums what helps you get rid of them? For the ones who don't get the doldrums, what helps you keep them away?
I'm not really a winter doldrums sufferer. TX has really short winters, and they are rather mild. And this year, we haven't seen any winter weather at all. There's still a little bit of time for that, but it's looking like we're going to have an early summer. How to stay out of the doldrums? I plan my spring garden. Enjoy the birds who visit our bird-feeder. I sit snuggled up with my husband, a blanket and a hot cup of tea. Not a bad way to pass a cold winter's night.
Friday, February 8, 2008
039/366
Here's another bright spot in our yard - the compost bin corner. I love the unruly vibrancy of the volunteers, and our cats love all the extra catnip.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
038/366
A dandelion brightens up its spot in our backyard. Even weeds can be beautiful in the right context.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Monday, February 4, 2008
Green Clean
Head on over to Natural Family Living blog for a great product review of safe (and to all appearances) effective household cleaners. You can even win some for yourself - check it out!
I especially think this is great reasoning on why switching to green products, even if you have to sacrifice some performance is important:
"It is important to me that I only clean my home with products that are safe, natural, and green. Conventional cleaners might be effective in cutting through dirt and grime but they do so at the expense of our health and the environment. While many might use cleaning products like Windex or 409 with very little prior thought or concern….I actually like to know what I am spraying all over my home. These cleaners contain many chemicals that can be toxic, reactive, corrosive, or flammable. There is also the potential that they can cause serious health issues and environmental damage. Technological advances allow us to do things faster, easier and more efficient than ever before but those advances and products have to be safe!"
I especially think this is great reasoning on why switching to green products, even if you have to sacrifice some performance is important:
"It is important to me that I only clean my home with products that are safe, natural, and green. Conventional cleaners might be effective in cutting through dirt and grime but they do so at the expense of our health and the environment. While many might use cleaning products like Windex or 409 with very little prior thought or concern….I actually like to know what I am spraying all over my home. These cleaners contain many chemicals that can be toxic, reactive, corrosive, or flammable. There is also the potential that they can cause serious health issues and environmental damage. Technological advances allow us to do things faster, easier and more efficient than ever before but those advances and products have to be safe!"
Sunday, February 3, 2008
34/366
Oh, how I love Sunday mornings. A fresh cup of coffee, some toasted cinnamon-raisin bread, and a napping baby. What a great way to start the week!
Hope your Sunday is relaxing!
Saturday, February 2, 2008
I've been tagged!
Wow. It's been one humdinger of a week. And it looks like I'm going to have another one ahead of me. Hopefully, this will be it for now. Hopefully, we'll get some good news this week :) I promise I'll be much less vague soon.
Well, for blogging interest, KT has tagged me for a meme. Before I move on to that, I must rave about her Pinnacles pattern, though. I love it. It's moving along quickly (I'm already onto the second half) and the pattern doesn't get boring, but it's easy enough to follow while watching TV/movies. Everyone should knit this scarf. I cannot wait to show mine off :)
Ok, on to the meme. I guess I'm supposed to post seven random things about myself. Do you know how hard it is to come up with that many random things? They all seem perfectly normal and coherant to me... but I shall try.
1. I speak Spanish... fluently. At the age of fifteen, I somehow managed to convince my parents to let me participate in a year-long, foreign exchange program in Ecuador. (How I did this completely escapes me, but I can guarantee you that my 15-year old daughter won't get the same opportunity.) I spent a year immersed in the culture and language and managed to pick it up well enough that I was mistaken for Ecuadorian on the plane home. Sweet.
2. I am a political junkie. I love this stuff. I know I hardly ever post about it here. Politics can be rather divisive, so I'd rather have that kind of conversation face to face so I can see your reaction. But in RL, you'd be surprised about how many conversations end up involving politics. And this year in particular?! I'm loving it!
3. I love art, making art, viewing art, the creative process, etc., but until recently, I wouldn't have described myself as being artistic or creative. It's really only been through involvement at my church that I've realized that all of us have a bit of the Creative in us. (Whew! 4 more to go!! gah!)
4. I am a tea-a-holic. I love tea... specifically hot tea. One of my (many) college jobs was working at the Elmwood Inn first as a tea server, then as their weekend office assistant. When I got the job, I avoided tea at all costs. However, it's hard to resist a warm pot of tea after a hard afternoon's work. It wasn't long until I had learned the ins-and-outs of green tea vs. black tea vs. herbal infusions. And I was bringing home samples... and well, now, let's just say that tea makes me happy :)
5. I am dark kind of girl. I like dark chocolate, dark beer, dark wine, dark bread, dark humor, dark music (minor keys), dark colors,dark coffee roasts...
6. I am a very picky eater. And if I get it into my mind that I don't like something, I'm probably not going to try it. This has led me to be a "convenient vegetarian" as that helps me politely refuse to try some mystery meat. In fact, there are certain members of my family who believe that I am a vegetarian and so don't even offer me meat dishes now. Score!
7. I am a word collector. Well, maybe not words, exactly, but how they are pronounced. So, if I like the way you say a word (or phrase), it's very likely that you'll hear me repeating it to myself, storing it away for future use. Some people have thought that I'm making fun of how they say it, but really, I just like the way it sounds. I think it's amazing that we all speak the same language but have so many different ways of expressing ourselves. Language is so fascinating!
Well, that's seven. Now I have to tag others. Who do I know reads my blog (and didn't tag me)... hmmm. I tag Jo (who's in the process of a destash - check it out!) and Diane.
Project 365 pics will be uploaded shortly, but the babe is awake. I must run! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Well, for blogging interest, KT has tagged me for a meme. Before I move on to that, I must rave about her Pinnacles pattern, though. I love it. It's moving along quickly (I'm already onto the second half) and the pattern doesn't get boring, but it's easy enough to follow while watching TV/movies. Everyone should knit this scarf. I cannot wait to show mine off :)
Ok, on to the meme. I guess I'm supposed to post seven random things about myself. Do you know how hard it is to come up with that many random things? They all seem perfectly normal and coherant to me... but I shall try.
1. I speak Spanish... fluently. At the age of fifteen, I somehow managed to convince my parents to let me participate in a year-long, foreign exchange program in Ecuador. (How I did this completely escapes me, but I can guarantee you that my 15-year old daughter won't get the same opportunity.) I spent a year immersed in the culture and language and managed to pick it up well enough that I was mistaken for Ecuadorian on the plane home. Sweet.
2. I am a political junkie. I love this stuff. I know I hardly ever post about it here. Politics can be rather divisive, so I'd rather have that kind of conversation face to face so I can see your reaction. But in RL, you'd be surprised about how many conversations end up involving politics. And this year in particular?! I'm loving it!
3. I love art, making art, viewing art, the creative process, etc., but until recently, I wouldn't have described myself as being artistic or creative. It's really only been through involvement at my church that I've realized that all of us have a bit of the Creative in us. (Whew! 4 more to go!! gah!)
4. I am a tea-a-holic. I love tea... specifically hot tea. One of my (many) college jobs was working at the Elmwood Inn first as a tea server, then as their weekend office assistant. When I got the job, I avoided tea at all costs. However, it's hard to resist a warm pot of tea after a hard afternoon's work. It wasn't long until I had learned the ins-and-outs of green tea vs. black tea vs. herbal infusions. And I was bringing home samples... and well, now, let's just say that tea makes me happy :)
5. I am dark kind of girl. I like dark chocolate, dark beer, dark wine, dark bread, dark humor, dark music (minor keys), dark colors,dark coffee roasts...
6. I am a very picky eater. And if I get it into my mind that I don't like something, I'm probably not going to try it. This has led me to be a "convenient vegetarian" as that helps me politely refuse to try some mystery meat. In fact, there are certain members of my family who believe that I am a vegetarian and so don't even offer me meat dishes now. Score!
7. I am a word collector. Well, maybe not words, exactly, but how they are pronounced. So, if I like the way you say a word (or phrase), it's very likely that you'll hear me repeating it to myself, storing it away for future use. Some people have thought that I'm making fun of how they say it, but really, I just like the way it sounds. I think it's amazing that we all speak the same language but have so many different ways of expressing ourselves. Language is so fascinating!
Well, that's seven. Now I have to tag others. Who do I know reads my blog (and didn't tag me)... hmmm. I tag Jo (who's in the process of a destash - check it out!) and Diane.
Project 365 pics will be uploaded shortly, but the babe is awake. I must run! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
33/366
Daddy gives Little Bit some loving after she takes a tumble. Look at that red mark on her eye. Babies are recover so quickly from their oopsies. Sometimes I wish I could shake it off that well.
Friday, February 1, 2008
32/366
The monkey's go to work.
I'm casting on soon for my next pair. I've decided on Slippery Socks with Lori's Desert yarn. Yum!
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