Well, today is my friend Anne's birthday so we're off to her place this afternoon for a play date. I thought I would bring some brownies and shrimp cocktail.
Clark seems to be in a much better mood today. Yesterday I discovered (well, it wasn't hard to see) a huge lump on his forehead that made it look like a horn was about to pop out. I have no idea how that happened, but the pediatrician said to not worry about it if his mood was ok and he wasn't throwing up. It looks better today and he's not complaining about eating at his high chair...both good signs!
Last night I worked on the heel flap of the sock and I don't know what I was doing wrong but it started to get so tight I could barely work the stitches. I know I'm a tight knitter (though I would prefer not to be) but I really tried to loosen them up and it still was extremely difficult. By the time I was done with 24 short rows my hands were cramped and I couldn't do any more. Ah well. I'm hoping when I start the second one I'll be better at it. That or I would like to learn how to do the socks on circulars. I'm not a big fan of wooden needles.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Set the Fire to the Third Bar
I cannot stop listening to this song:
It's Snow Patrol featuring Martha Wainwright, sister to Rufus Wainwright. She has such a beautiful voice. It's like she's channeling Kate Bush. Couple that voice with the incomparable Snow Patrol and you get this wonderful song.
It's Snow Patrol featuring Martha Wainwright, sister to Rufus Wainwright. She has such a beautiful voice. It's like she's channeling Kate Bush. Couple that voice with the incomparable Snow Patrol and you get this wonderful song.
Knitting
A couple months back my friend Anne asked the rest of us in our playgroup if we would be interested in taking a knitting class with her. I had dabbled in knitting a few years ago, mostly getting the Knitting for Dummies book, some cheap yarn and a couple knitting needles (hell I don't even know what size they are). So I was interested but the most I had ever done was a very poor looking stockinette swatch from the basics in the book.
Well, we thought I would jump right in with this class for making felted Christmas stockings at our local yarn store. And thank goodness we chose this one because felting is very forgiveable. :) Anyway, it wasn't a beginning class so I had to learn a lot, and quickly, along the way but I had a good and patient friend in Anne and an understanding teacher and class.
Well, now I'm hooked.
I've completed three Christmas stockings so far, though I still have a lot of decorating to do. I took a needle felting class for Clark's stocking, so it's the most finished but I'm waiting until I do a few more stockings (presents for friends and family) before I invest in some roving wool and needle felt the rest. I also have a LOT of practice to do in embroidery so that I can put names at the top of the stockings. Anyway, here's a picture of them at Christmas:
I'll have to make them for the cats too!
Clark's is the most complete (the red one) and Dan's (grey and black) is waiting for that roving for a Batman symbol. I'll have a photo of it when it's done. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the blue one. I'm not even sure I'm keeping it for me, but it was the first thing I've ever made with knitting so it's near and dear. It was knit using Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride, which felt very nice to knit, but the other two were knit using Cascade 220 as that line had the colors I wanted. Unfortunately that meant that the blue stocking felted differently and was a different size from the other two. So I might be making a new one out of Cascade 220 for me.
Here's a photo of the blue and red stocking before they were felted. You can already see a difference:
Here's a close up of Clark's stocking:
The needle felting class was a LOT of fun and I'm looking forward to doing more of it.
Right now I'm working on my first pair of socks. I thought it would be a nice transition as it's more or less the same principles I used for the Christmas stocking only smaller. It's a bit of a challenge using only double pointed needles (and size 3 no less), but I figure if I can accomplish this I'll feel a lot more confident in my knitting. I'm making a few mistakes still but I think it's coming along ok.
By the way, that's using Plymouth Encore, 7515. I'm also using the beginning pattern from the Knit Socks! book (it's great book!).
I've also signed up for my next knitting class. It's to make an afghan "square by square". I'm really looking forward to this one. We had the choice of using Manos or Plymouth Encore and I chose the Plymouth Encore. As tempting as it was to use the Manos (because it's just so beautiful!), it was much more expensive considering the amount we needed and I would like to be a much better knitter before I start investing in expensive yarns. Besides, I can't help but think of Manos, the Hands of Fate every time I hear it. :)
Anyway, that class starts at the end of the month and I'm sure I'll have photos as I go along.
For Christmas I got this great knitting bag from Dan...
...as well as the larger sized needles from the Knit Picks Options interchangable needle set from my sister. I'm still waiting anxiously for the starter set to arrive...here's hoping it comes this week!
Enough about knitting for now I think. Sorry to just go on and on about it...I'm sorta obsessed right now. :) Anyway, I'm sure I'll be posting a lot more links and other items about knitting as I come across them. It's a brand new world to me so everything is new!
Well, we thought I would jump right in with this class for making felted Christmas stockings at our local yarn store. And thank goodness we chose this one because felting is very forgiveable. :) Anyway, it wasn't a beginning class so I had to learn a lot, and quickly, along the way but I had a good and patient friend in Anne and an understanding teacher and class.
Well, now I'm hooked.
I've completed three Christmas stockings so far, though I still have a lot of decorating to do. I took a needle felting class for Clark's stocking, so it's the most finished but I'm waiting until I do a few more stockings (presents for friends and family) before I invest in some roving wool and needle felt the rest. I also have a LOT of practice to do in embroidery so that I can put names at the top of the stockings. Anyway, here's a picture of them at Christmas:
I'll have to make them for the cats too!Clark's is the most complete (the red one) and Dan's (grey and black) is waiting for that roving for a Batman symbol. I'll have a photo of it when it's done. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the blue one. I'm not even sure I'm keeping it for me, but it was the first thing I've ever made with knitting so it's near and dear. It was knit using Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride, which felt very nice to knit, but the other two were knit using Cascade 220 as that line had the colors I wanted. Unfortunately that meant that the blue stocking felted differently and was a different size from the other two. So I might be making a new one out of Cascade 220 for me.
Here's a photo of the blue and red stocking before they were felted. You can already see a difference:
Here's a close up of Clark's stocking:
The needle felting class was a LOT of fun and I'm looking forward to doing more of it.Right now I'm working on my first pair of socks. I thought it would be a nice transition as it's more or less the same principles I used for the Christmas stocking only smaller. It's a bit of a challenge using only double pointed needles (and size 3 no less), but I figure if I can accomplish this I'll feel a lot more confident in my knitting. I'm making a few mistakes still but I think it's coming along ok.
By the way, that's using Plymouth Encore, 7515. I'm also using the beginning pattern from the Knit Socks! book (it's great book!).I've also signed up for my next knitting class. It's to make an afghan "square by square". I'm really looking forward to this one. We had the choice of using Manos or Plymouth Encore and I chose the Plymouth Encore. As tempting as it was to use the Manos (because it's just so beautiful!), it was much more expensive considering the amount we needed and I would like to be a much better knitter before I start investing in expensive yarns. Besides, I can't help but think of Manos, the Hands of Fate every time I hear it. :)
Anyway, that class starts at the end of the month and I'm sure I'll have photos as I go along.
For Christmas I got this great knitting bag from Dan...
...as well as the larger sized needles from the Knit Picks Options interchangable needle set from my sister. I'm still waiting anxiously for the starter set to arrive...here's hoping it comes this week!Enough about knitting for now I think. Sorry to just go on and on about it...I'm sorta obsessed right now. :) Anyway, I'm sure I'll be posting a lot more links and other items about knitting as I come across them. It's a brand new world to me so everything is new!
Updates continued...
Dan and the cats are doing well. Dan and I are working on a sibling for Clark, so keep your fingers crossed!
Dan and I just signed up for Netflix which we LOVE. We were able to drop a couple cable channels that we just weren't really watching, pick up Netflix and still save a little money. Today we should be getting Resident Evil: Extinction and while zombie movies and I don't mix, I have a girl crush on Milla Jovovich, which balances it out.
We're back to playing a lot of World of Warcraft again, which I'm happy about. My rogue is getting nicely outfitted and I've started a warlock and they just rock. I'm also happy to be hanging out with my guildmates again...I had been missing my friends.
Here's a picture of my rogue celebrating New Years in game:
Geeky? Absolutely
Sad? Maybe a little, but when you have a 16 month old and need to be in bed about 10 minutes after midnight, you celebrate the best you can. Besides, it was fun!
Wow, there's so much more I can talk about, especially my new hobby. More on that in the next post I think.
Dan and I just signed up for Netflix which we LOVE. We were able to drop a couple cable channels that we just weren't really watching, pick up Netflix and still save a little money. Today we should be getting Resident Evil: Extinction and while zombie movies and I don't mix, I have a girl crush on Milla Jovovich, which balances it out.
We're back to playing a lot of World of Warcraft again, which I'm happy about. My rogue is getting nicely outfitted and I've started a warlock and they just rock. I'm also happy to be hanging out with my guildmates again...I had been missing my friends.
Here's a picture of my rogue celebrating New Years in game:
Geeky? AbsolutelySad? Maybe a little, but when you have a 16 month old and need to be in bed about 10 minutes after midnight, you celebrate the best you can. Besides, it was fun!
Wow, there's so much more I can talk about, especially my new hobby. More on that in the next post I think.
Some updates
Just a few things going on right now...
Clark is 16 months old, which is almost impossible to believe. I was looking at the photo I had of him on the blog and I couldn't believe it. They say time passes quickly and they're right! Here's a photo of him from Christmas.
...he loves his new harmonica.
Right now we're going through some weird food phases with him. He hasn't let us feed him for ages, but wants to eat all the stuff he has always eaten (like yogurt). It makes a big mess (which I don't mind), but trying to reinforce the use of a spoon gets a little tedious. He prefers to switch to dunking his hand into the yogurt and then sucking it off his fingers.
He's also wanting to walk around with his food and more than once over the last couple of days has thrown a fit when I put him in his highchair. So I'm trying to nip that in the bud, it was my fault he got that way in the first place.
His vocabulary is going through a spurt right now. Dan and I were a bit nervous at his 15 month appointment as he wasn't saying much (kitty, mommy, daddy, bye, shoes) and only a couple of those words clearly. Well, right now he has added cheese, hi, Elmo, "gogo" (GoGurt), banana, eye, please, and a couple more. Again, a lot of these aren't exactly clear...we know what they mean but others may not. But we're working on correcting him.
He is awesome with the cats. I have honestly never seen a kid behave so well at that age around animals. He kisses them every chance he can and still uses their toys to play with them. They're still not really excited about him but we've hit a good tolerance level.
He has also discovered television over this past week, which is sorta ok. I'm fine with it as long as it's limited, but he's not obsessed with it yet. In the morning we put on Sprout and he watches a bit of Sesame Street and the Sunny Side Up Show (I think that's what it's called). He digs on Elmo and Barney mostly. Yes, I have released the purple dinosaur in this house. But Clark really gets into it when they're singing and dancing and after watching him imitating their dance moves, I figured Barney can't be that bad. :) Still, he just gets a little in the morning and we balance it out with lots of toy playing and reading.
He's very, very kissey lately too, which I can't help but love love love. First thing in the morning...kiss. Right before bed, kiss. Many times throughout the days, kiss. The cats get them constantly as does his Elmo doll and stuffed puppy. It's awesome and so sweet.
More updates in a new post I think...
Clark is 16 months old, which is almost impossible to believe. I was looking at the photo I had of him on the blog and I couldn't believe it. They say time passes quickly and they're right! Here's a photo of him from Christmas.
...he loves his new harmonica.
Right now we're going through some weird food phases with him. He hasn't let us feed him for ages, but wants to eat all the stuff he has always eaten (like yogurt). It makes a big mess (which I don't mind), but trying to reinforce the use of a spoon gets a little tedious. He prefers to switch to dunking his hand into the yogurt and then sucking it off his fingers.
He's also wanting to walk around with his food and more than once over the last couple of days has thrown a fit when I put him in his highchair. So I'm trying to nip that in the bud, it was my fault he got that way in the first place.
His vocabulary is going through a spurt right now. Dan and I were a bit nervous at his 15 month appointment as he wasn't saying much (kitty, mommy, daddy, bye, shoes) and only a couple of those words clearly. Well, right now he has added cheese, hi, Elmo, "gogo" (GoGurt), banana, eye, please, and a couple more. Again, a lot of these aren't exactly clear...we know what they mean but others may not. But we're working on correcting him.
He is awesome with the cats. I have honestly never seen a kid behave so well at that age around animals. He kisses them every chance he can and still uses their toys to play with them. They're still not really excited about him but we've hit a good tolerance level.
He has also discovered television over this past week, which is sorta ok. I'm fine with it as long as it's limited, but he's not obsessed with it yet. In the morning we put on Sprout and he watches a bit of Sesame Street and the Sunny Side Up Show (I think that's what it's called). He digs on Elmo and Barney mostly. Yes, I have released the purple dinosaur in this house. But Clark really gets into it when they're singing and dancing and after watching him imitating their dance moves, I figured Barney can't be that bad. :) Still, he just gets a little in the morning and we balance it out with lots of toy playing and reading.
He's very, very kissey lately too, which I can't help but love love love. First thing in the morning...kiss. Right before bed, kiss. Many times throughout the days, kiss. The cats get them constantly as does his Elmo doll and stuffed puppy. It's awesome and so sweet.
More updates in a new post I think...
Monday, January 7, 2008
I'm back!
Well, I realize no one but me and my husband look at this, but I'm finally returning to my blog now that I have the time and some things to post about. :)
Right now I'm in the middle of flying from Undercity to Arathi for my Warlock quest (WoW) so I don't really have the time to post much...but more later!
Right now I'm in the middle of flying from Undercity to Arathi for my Warlock quest (WoW) so I don't really have the time to post much...but more later!
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