Surprises!

We celebrated the youngest DD's birthday yesterday with family. She turns 17 yrs old on Friday, Aug 1. Where has the time gone?
It is tradition for this child/young adult to bake her own birthday cake. She looks forward to baking her own cake.
This year she made a two layer cake. The bottom layer was chocolate and the top layer was vanilla tinted pink. She put a chocolate filling between the layers and topped it with buttercream frosting and chocolate sprinkles. It was very tasty.




Much to her surprise, she received her CPH off the needles and finished. I had this blocked and ready to be wrapped two days prior to her birthday party. She thought I was making it for her sister and prompted me to cast on for her CPH. So I had to dig out pink wool and appear to be casting on for another CPH.
She loves it.







I also found clear Skechers for her and me. I got a bargain with these. They were on sale for $15.00 and if you typed in a code they were only $10.00 each with free shipping. My kind of shoes. Believe it or not they are very comfy. I was a bit surprised.
They really show off the handknitted socks. I had another pair of socks on the move for her (imagine that?) but they didn't make it off the needles. I knew she liked these so I gave them to her.
She loved them too.
She also received Space books, Planet earth game and some scrapbooking stuff. (she's big into space)

I woke up this morning to a note from her sitting by the coffee maker. The note said, "thank you mom for a wonderful and fun birthday." What a nice surprise!

Hide 'n Seek

What is in the box? Do you think they (my human staff) can see me?










DRATS! They found me! I wonder what gave me away?











Kathy put this in the hallway to make its' way downstairs. I see her husband didn't take it down after she repeatedly asked him to take it to the laundry room. mmmm........Since they found me in the box, I think I'll hide in here. There's nothing like hiding from the human staff then hearing them call for me and of course I don't respond. hee-hee
I'm going to curl up and take a nap.






This cat is too funny for words. We get a chuckle everyday. She is always up to something.







I did a trade with Nicole and look what I got! I wanted these knitting markers and so we did a trade. She sent lots of goodies with it. Bookmarks, cards, magnet, an extra marker and a nice bag to keep my markers inside.














See the knitting theme on the markers? I LOVE them. I have markers but they're all in use so instead of finishing a project I decided I must have more markers. Hey! That logic works for me!



Go check out her site. She has awesome markers.




p.s. Stupid blogger won't cooperate today with my comments to other bloggers.

Peaceful Hair Day

I love Grooming Day. The dogs went to be bathed and groomed. It was a day of peace and quiet around here. Caring for 3 dogs at the ages of 2 yrs and under (Mr. Bettis is exactly 1 yr 8 months, but who's counting?) is quite a daunting task. Getting them there is a job in and of itself. They give report cards for their behavior while being groomed. It has become a joke around here and vet girl gets a kick out it.
Lil' Miss Gypsy posing for the camera after her groom. Her report card reflected a failing F. No improvement.



Little Miss Molly doesn't like to have her picture taken so this picture is a rare one. She recieved an A on her report card.
This does not surprise us as Miss Molly is a laid back kinda gal.





Mr. Bettis refused to sit still for the camera. So I captured this while he was nosing into what his owner (DH) was doing on the DD's laptop. He is a nosey one.
Mr. Bettis received an A+. Now I must ask, how can he possibly receive an A+ at the groomer's and yet cause so much trouble around here? See his nice kerchief? Miss Gypsy had one also but I caught Mr. Bettis dragging her by her kerchief to play. So I had to remove Miss Gypsy's kerchief because "No No Bad Dog" won't leave her alone with the kerchief.


The cats were in heaven while they were at the groomer's. Miss Aurora decided to play with the thread while I was sewing. Although she appears to be doing nothing...........la, la, la I'm not doing anything, I'm only watching.
She grabbed at the thread and made a complete mess while I was trying to sew.





When I finally chased her away from the sewing machine, I found her later, taking a nap on my printer.
Obviously this is a new napping place. She's dreaming, "Such a peaceful house without the dogs today. Can't you make them stay away more often?"


p.s. I'm going to have a conference with Vet Girl on Lil' Miss Gypsy's report card. I just know this is a set-up to make Mr. Bettis appear to be a well-behaved dog and I know better.

An Encounter of a Saw Kind

The weekend was hot and humid which of course prompted rain. I'd like to clean my cupboards. I know, you're thinking...........what is wrong with this woman? Have m***s infested her brain instead of wool?

It's just that I have been trying to tackle a job here and there that needs to be done and Mr. CRPS is not cooperating.

While I was busy trying to be busy inside. DH was busy downstairs. Or so I thought. I heard the strange sound of? You guessed it. A SAW!
Did he not learn his lesson with a saw last December? Did he not remember the "round" with the saw? Did he not remember the saw won? If you don't know anything about this saw encounter click on the Dec post. It's there, trust me. I snapped this picture from inside the kitchen. He had dragged the saw up on the deck and that is a belt sander in his hand (what is left of it from the saw "fight" from last year.) MEN!




At that point I decided to call it quits. Put down the camera and grabbed the knitting. I needed something to calm my nerves or what is left of them.
I dyed this BFL flat and cast on socks. The colors are a bit bright for me but the daughter claimed them.
Theyre fun to knit.




I have quite a collection of books but I couldn't resist this one. We were at a Border's Books store out of town last week and I fell in love with this book. I have spun enough yarn for sweaters in the past but I have no intention on spinning enough yarn for another sweater. I like this book because the designs are classic with a bit of modern twist.
The patterns are well written and they give you substitute yarn to be purchased if you don't spin the yarn.
I highly recommend this book. There are sweaters, scarves and socks in this book. Most of them have aran designs but they're well written.

Since I had the new book, I just had to cast on for something. I fell in love with the October Frost sweater. First it is a classic and second because it was called October Frost. My birthday is in October and fall is my favorite time of year. So this sweater is a MUST KNIT!
I went to the stash room and found this green New Zealand 10 ply that has been fermenting like a fine wine for quite awhile. It is perfect for this sweater. I can see myself in it now..........oh wait...........I have to finish it first. LOL
I have also started a shawl but I'll post those pictures later.

p.s. The DH got through the saw encounter without incident......this time. And I got bathroom trim! YEAH! After all, it has been a 2 year wait for the trim.

The Flying What?

At the daughter's school. You see, she is the Marching Band Field Captain. Don't ask. I have no idea what that title actually means. The Band Director (in his infinite wisdom) decided our daughter was "too short" to be the Drum Major despite the fact "she had an excellent interview/audition and is well qualified." Uh? So a new/old concept has been implemented aka Field Captain to "give her a job because the chosen drum major can't handle anything but directing."

In other words, she does the grunt work with no recognition. We have let on to her that it is an important job but she is no dummy and has seen right through that little scenario. She will, however give it everything she's got.

This is the first part of the grunt work. The director built this contraption for the band show. Then called her because he knows she sews and directed her to hand sew all of the fabric onto the very LARGE parts of the flying thing. It was a daunting task for a 16 yr old.

30...... yes, 30 yards of fabric to be hand sewn.
25 hours of hand sewing.


Then he had the nerve to "drop by" and inform her that he wanted the large parts reversed because he changed his mind?! The parts that were already sewn, mind you. Is he nuts? When he left, she called and we could've burned him at the stake with our conversation! LOL




This is the "thing" completely hand sewn. She doesn't want to see a sewing needle for a long time.










While resting on the porch I saw Squirly Squirrel. He was playing and having a ball in the yard. Of course Mr. Bettis and Miss Gypsy went crazy but Squirly Squirrel simply ignored them. Occasionally he would turn and raise his head to peer at them, then he would proceed to scamper about the yard.






This butterfly took rest on our bush in the back yard. It looked so serene that I had to take a picture of the beauty.





p.s. I'm a knitter who gets cranky if I can't knit at least one row in a day.
Does anyone else get cranky when they can't knit at least one row a day?

Over To The Other Side

To keep you posted: Our July 4th holiday was a B-U-S-T! The fireworks were cancelled and we were unable to attend the wedding.
Once again medical issues hindered plans.

I have gone over to the other side.......the crochet side. I think this makes me a h**ker. hee-hee
It's hot and it's muggy. So cotton thread is much nicer to work than wool.
I'm on a doily roll over here.

This is a blue doily for a friend of mine. Her birthday is in the fall and blue is her favorite color.














I love roses and I enjoyed making this one. It's a gift but I haven't decided whose gift.








This is another rose doily and although I would like to keep it for myself, my dear daughter reminded me that Christmas is only 6 months away. So a gift it will be.



I have another one in progress only the center rose is yellow.





I haven't blocked them yet as I have no idea where I'm going to store them once they're blocked.




Now before you think I have completely left the knitting scene, I will reassure you that I have not left. I am just on hiatus during the hot muggy days.

I finished these socks and put them on my sock blockers from Wendy. Check out her blog, she has added music and it's very nice.



Thanks again Wendy!

Firecracker

The Grass Is Greener.....

The grass must be greener on the other side of the fence. This (darn) rabbit arrived everyday at 6 am during school season. Mr. Bettis went wild. Barking and barking and barking. So when school was out, I (stupidly) thought, I will not put him out until 7 am. That way he misses the rabbit and he won't go on one of his barking rampages. Guess What? Apparently Mr. Rabbit has an alarm system that alerts him as to what time Mr. Bettis goes outside. He sauntered in our yard at 7 am. What is up with that? He nonchanantly nibbles on dandelion greens totally oblivious to Mr. Bettis and his antics. We have an entire yard of dandelion greens and this rabbit chooses to come here within 4 feet of Mr. Bettis who is in the fenced part of the yard.



Little Miss Gypsy (who weighs in at 9 pounds) chases Mr. Bettis (who officially weighs in at 124 pounds) up and down the steps and around the pool every morning. She yaps at him until he runs 3 laps. Then when he approaches her on the deck she yaps again. And he runs another 3 laps. This goes on for 15-20 minutes every day. She is his personal trainer. Mr. Bettis falls for this every day.
(I never said Mr. Bettis was very bright....LOL)




Mr. Bettis watching Mr. Rabbit or is it Mrs. Rabbit? Time will tell.

My dad called and said the Bear was on his way down as he just went through his yard. My parents live across the road. Sure enough, while I was on the phone with him, the dogs went crazy. Yep! There he was, running through our driveway and behind the neighbor's house.

The DH woke me up this morning to tell me there was a deer in the back yard. Mind you one of the neighbors has one of those plastic shooting deer things and I thought that was what he meant. After all, it was 5 am and I thought he was a bit groggy. Nope. It was a live doe munching away on the grass.



This is Mr. Bettis napping! On my furniture! Thank goodness I put a cover on it.




p.s. I believe we live in an animal sanctuary and as long as they don't move in the house, I'm okay with it.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our wedding anniversary.



The DH was out scouting yard sales and the local farmer's market. He came home with corn on the cob to roast on the grill.






He also scarfed up 4 antique chairs for $5 a piece. They're painted black but when chipped a bit of the paint one can see Oak wood. They will be gorgeous when stripped. I love antiques.
A great anniversary gift.










The child worked very hard this year in her AP classess and received straight "A's" on her report card. She deserved something for her hard work and she's been wanting a bike.
The DH found this while yard shopping and he grabbed it. An American Eagle bike for $25! It is in excellent condition. She was thrilled and promptly went out for a bike ride. Congrats Savannah!



Last but not least I recieved these in the mail from Wendy. I begged and I pleaded for her to make me a set and she did. The socks are a perfect fit on these. They are lightweight and portable. She also included two tea bags as a little gift (ya gotta love knitters).One for night and one for morning. Thank you Wendy. I really enjoy the flower power sock blockers.

(I will consider these to be my anniversary gift to self)


p.s. Thanks to all who offered their advice on the sun poison. Believe me, I tried it all :) and it was appreciated.

It's Dad's Day

This is a tribute to all those dads who stood up to the plate of "parenting."

I give tribute to the men who have been there throughout my life.

To my great-grandfather on my mom's side who cuddled me and told me jokes when I was just a wee one. He made a wooden doll's cradle for me that I still own.

To my granddaddy on my mom's side who told me what life was like when he sold newspapers at the age of 9 yrs for 5 cents on the street corner to help out with finances at home. The stories of WWII and the Great Depression when sugar and gas were rationed and times were tough. He sang songs of this beloved country to me. I remember most, the Betsy Ross song. He told stories of his grandmother who had 19 children and how they lived in the mountains of WVA. He had a gift/talent with carpentry and made me the most beautiful play cupboard and table with chairs for Christmas one year.

To my Pap-Pap on my dad's side who taught me the true value/meaning of life and to appreciate my heritage and the honor of family. He told of hard times when he was forced to mine coal at the age of 12 to help with homelife. He taught me to appreciate our Earth and said, "No man owns the earth and yet they go to war over possession of land. No man will ever actually own land. It belongs to the Great Spirit."

He taught me to whittle with a pen knife and to have respect for others. His famous saying was, " A man is only as good as his word." A saying that I have applied to many people albeit man/woman in my own life.

To my own Dad. You taught me to laugh and have fun. You taught me discipline and manners. I remember you playing baseball and hide and seek with us. I remember you taking all of us to the drive-in theater, The County Fair, little bags of penny candy and the trip into town to see the Magician. You made me feel important by taking me to town at Christmas to help you get that special gift for mom. I was 7 yrs old at the time and mom was really surprised when she opened that new toaster and dress slip (well at least she acted surprised). In spite of the fact you knew it would never work, you still took me deer hunting after I begged to go. I chattered like a magpie (not a good thing for a hunter to have a chattering 8 yr old girl while deer hunting). I finally decided I would have more fun at the farmhouse helping mom-mom & pap-pap with the "Hunters' Dinner."

You read the newspaper funny paper to us every Sunday morning before going to church which helped mom. It kept us out of the kitchen while she cooked breakfast.

You taught me how to fly a kite and weed a garden ( I could do without the latter...ha-ha) There are so many wonderful memories; baling hay, making fudge (when mom wasn't home), snow ice cream, potato candy, sled riding, maintaining my bicycle tires/brakes/chain, teaching me to drive and not yelling when I ran the car through the brand new garage door. How to check the oil in a car (things a girl should know) and the ins and outs of building a house. I could go on and on. Your famous saying (and it is applied many times in my life), "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Thanks Dad, I Love You.

To my own husband who stepped up to the parenting plate to two little boys and then to our own two daughters. You worked two jobs and many long hours to feed, clothe and house this crew, we call a family. Sometimes it was difficult for you to find time to spend with us but somehow you managed.

You played ball and you taught them how to fly kites. You taught them to drive and you were very understanding through the eldest son's "need for speed." You went scouting (in sub zero temps to make "men" out of the boys.....LOL), fishing, band concerts, football games, baseball games, dance recitals, horse shows, church pageants, graduations etc., you managed to attend most of them.

Remember when you dug your good (rusted) saw out of the ground after a long, hard, snowy winter? You looked for that saw for months. The boys "borrowed" it to work on their tree house in the early fall and "forgot" to put it back. You weren't happy about the saw but you secretly told me, "at least they had fun." You never said much but you were sorry to see them "leave the nest when it was time for them to fly." You taught the boys to be "honest men" and the girls to be "independent women." You have supported them in everything they have accomplished and loved them along the way. Job Well Done!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY !!!!!!!

The 7 Day Itch

Remember in the former posts that I was going to get in the pool and have a nice swim and I was going to use suntan lotion? I planned to only be in the pool for 1/2 hour so I didn't bother with the lotion. After all, I tan. I never get a sunburn. Times have changed.
I have sun poison. Not just a little sun poison but A LOT! I am miserable. I burn. I sting. I ITCH! I should mention this is on my upper body. I spend my time sitting in front of the fan. I lay wet towels on it, I have lathered with baby oil and aloe vera and nothing seems to be working. I have even resorted to a concoction of yogurt and cornstarch. I have cut up t-shirts to eliminate sleeves, necks etc. I am now digging in the DH's shirt drawer for over sized loose shirts. The necessary garment (br*) has been eliminated. Desperate measures are in order at the moment.
I finally decided to start something new to take my mind from myself (any excuse will do). I started a wool sweater.

Unfortunately the more I knitted on it the more I thought of the I Love Lucy show where she gets a serious burn and then models a wool outfit. Makes my skin crawl. So I put that wool knitting WIP aside and decided a nice crochet doily would make me happy. I am almost finished with this and then it needs blocked.
I have to wonder though, why does every crochet doily have those teeny weeny picots on the final and very lo-o-o-ong crochet round?







This morning I'm trying to enjoy the cool temps (another desperate measure with the sun poison). I glanced in the window and there was Miss Phoebe. I grabbed the camera. The only thing separating her from the little birdies is the window screen.




Mr. Bettis saw me with the camera. He jumped and carried on like a bad kid wanting his picture taken. I told him to "SIT". It took several times of me yelling the word "SIT" in order for him to actually obey. He cracks me up, I think his one eye is cross-eyed.
He received a treat because he actually sat when told. Yeah, I know it took several times to get him to sit but Mr. Bettis thinks life is a hoot!


p.s. A friend thought I should've been a bit more photogenic and post pictures of my new "designer clothing." LOL Not Happening!

Hot & Getting Hotter

It's hot here. Supposed to get to 100 degrees here. Factor the humidity level and the heat index will be over 110. Whew! On to other news.

This little bunny has been named, Mr. Bunny Foo. He arrives every morning at 6 am to disturb Mr. Bettis. He sits within feet of the fence and grazes on nice fresh clover. I swear this little rabbit does it on purpose. Mr. Bettis then finds it necessary to bark. And bark. And bark. Mind you, it is 6 am. Not-a-good-thing. I am an animal person, so rabbit stew is out of the question. I just wish Mr. Bettis would stop barking and let him graze. Mr. Bunny Foo is unfazed by Mr. Bettis. Smart Rabbit.


Did I mention that it is hot? The afghan is in hibernation. Too hot on my lap to knit. So I'm knitting on little projects. Thank goodness for socks. I have frogged this sock 3 times.
I guess swatching a gauge would have actually helped.





I ordered yarn 2 weeks ago. I received all 5 boxes of goodies. Yes 5. Yarn Goodies from all over the place.
Lo and behold another box arrived. Uh-oh! I don't remember ordering yarn from Webs. I opened the box and it was to die for, 9 skeins of Comfort yarn. In my color. I was in love.
Oh my gosh I thought, maybe I did order it. I was so busy ordering from everywhere that maybe I actually did order from Webs. (what does that tell you about my yarn ordering habit?)
I dug through the box. Nope. Not mine. Belonged to a knitter in NY. So I called Webs. They suggested I send it back. I stammered and asked if I could keep it. The sales lady laughed and said yes and they would give it to me at the sale price and deduct the shipping. Woo-Hoo! This stuff was mine. All mine. I did ask if they had enough to send to the poor knitter -in- waiting. She assured me there was plenty for the other knitter. So I have cast on for a sweater for self.


This is where the DD will be spending this afternoon. She has a half day of school today and tomorrow.

Startitis .....again

Here we go again. Another round of Startits has hit! This is a stash buster of Wool-Ease Worsted. I thought about 100% wool but then I cannot imagine hand washing an afghan.
There's a KAL on Ravelry and the link to the pattern is here.









Little Miss Aurora seems to think I am making this for her so she can sleep on it. Sad thing is? She will probably be found napping on this when it's finished. On second thought I will probably find her on while it's in progress.






This is Savannah's Dream sweater. She wanted a sweater made of all of her favorite colors. I dyed this yarn just for her and it will grow up to be the Apres Hoodie found in the Interweave Knits 2008 issue.




I have no idea what is up with me and shawls in the spring. But I just had to cast on for another shawl. One would think that I should finish a WIP first before casting on but.........the yarn and the needles were begging to be used. So another shawl is in progress. This is alpaca lace that I bought at Stitches East 2007. ( see? I really do use the stuff that I buy:)
This pattern is the Bee Fields.



Ta-Da! I will have you know I finally finished something. The Doghouse dishcloth which is a free pattern. This site has quite a few free patterns.
Once I cast off, I knew this entitled me to start something new. But did that mean finishing a dishcloth to start a laceweight shawl of epic porportions? Well of course it did!
(have I mentioned that I have very little knitting logic in my pea-purl-sized brain?)