Cable Crazy

I started a new pair of socks for the January KAL of the SKA group... this month, I choose from Cookie A. patterns. Seeing as I'm a bit partial to cables lately, I choose the BFF socks. And... I also happened to have the exact same yarn in the stash. So out came the Koigu! I had only planned to start these just to make sure they were on the needles in January so they would count. I was going to do a quick DK weight pair from Christmas yarn and then return to the BFF's. However, these socks have enchanted me and kept me working on them the past few days. I just couldn't stop! They are turning out lovely!

And... I slogged through a bit of Moms Scarf as well. I'm not really enjoying this one. Scarves are hard to enjoy for me. But it is turning out great and is probably almost halfway done.


There will be more knitting in the days to come. We've got frigid temp's and blowing snow. Lovely! I'll be indoors with my wool and a cup of tea!

I have an FO...

But I'm not showing it to you today. Nah! I need dh home in daylight hours willing to model for me first. Soon, soon. It's not earth shattering. I think you can wait.

Instead... here's a couple of WIP's.


The Seahawks Socks... well friends, unfortunately, Green Bay got it's magic on Saturday... snow... and LOTS of it. It's like magic for those Packers. So they sent the Seahawks packing for home. And now... I have a nearly finished sock in progress. What to do? I am thinking I'll finish this sock off if only to retrieve my needle for other projects... but what about that second sock? So far this one was knit (with the exception of the heel) during games. But there are no more games to knit for this season. Hmm... I would like to say I'm going to put it away until next season, but I don't think it's in my person to leave a single sock laying around like that for that long. Ah... revealing more of the neurotic mind!

And... I think I finally came upon a solution to Moms Scarf Dilemma. It's not the most fabulous thing on the planet, but it matches her mitts within reason and the stitch count is good with the yarn. I did find one pattern that I really liked, alas... there was hideous pooling with the yarn. Figures eh? I took this this morning but I've worked it several turns more since then.


So that's all the knitting news I have for you. I've been busy with the kids lately, so progress has slowed.

A little funny... Miss E is rather loud lately. She doesn't have an inside voice. Nope. And especially not when shopping. Most of what comes out of her mouth is pure jibber jabber, but she has a few words. While in Costco this morning in an attempt to get her to quiet down a wee bit (I don't need every person in the store to stare at me!) I started singing 'Johnny Appleseed' quietly. So then... she just started yelling "AAAA-MEN!" over and over... there's just no sneaking around when you have toddlers!

Enchanting

No, I don't mean my feet in Birk's. They are certainly anything BUT enchanting. But if you were to come to my house any old day, this is what you would see. We don't wear shoes in the house, and seeing as I am home most of the time and we have hardwood floors I have to wear something. These are my "house shoes". They work great and save my back and legs.



The light in these photos is all different. Winter is so hard to get consistent lighting! I took these outside in hopes of getting better light as anything I took indoors was way too dark. I think the first and last pictures are probably closest to the real thing although still not great.

Pattern: Basic Sock Recipe, 72 stitches 1x1 twisted rib cuff
Needles: 2.0mm, 2.25mm
Yarn: Superwash Merino Sock by Radiant Twist, Enchanted Colorway

Notes: These are my December Sockdown entry for the SKA group on Ravelry

To be perfectly honest, this was one of those delayed gratification projects. I didn't really enjoy working this this yarn base. It seemed a little bit sticky. But when I put it on my foot... oh my. Love the feeling of it on my foot. This was the case with my current favorite to wear pair of socks as well. So if these follow suit, they will be favorites too!

I have really square toes. All these patterns with pointy toes freak me out. My feet are long and square. Best to keep the Birks on for curves eh? lol!


On my last post Danielle mentioned in the comments that ripping out mistakes is relaxing. I totally agree! I am glad to hear someone else say it. Looking at things that are "not right" or have mistakes just drives me up the wall. It makes me stressed. Ripping out something that is not working is just relief! And it's perfect to mention Danielle in a post about my socks because they always come out of pretty bags she made me. :)

My next pairs... I have two coming up for myself. One is a quick pair in a dk weight with yarn Hub bought me for Christmas. I want to knit these up for two reasons... one, to show Hub that I like and appreciate the yarn, and two, to get another pair in my drawer quick! Last year Hub went yarn shopping... and well, lets just say that yarn might never make it's way out of the stash. It's the thought right? But I want to make sure the message is sent that he did well this year!

The other pair is for the January Sockdown of SKA. It's Cookie A. month. I'm really loving cables lately, so I'm going to do a pair of BFF socks. They happen to be done in Koigu and I happen to have some in a lovely natural cream color. With the cables and the color they'll have a traditional look. I think this picture is much better for showing off the classic pattern.

New projects! Fun fun! I have some hats coming up too. Will tell you about those soon.

I'm skipping my workout today... I think shoveling 6 inches of snow out of this driveway is plenty of workout for me today! Hub is out of town for the day and I really want to leave the house later... so... shovel it was.

Uninspired

That sums up how I'm feeling of late. My blog posts are bo-ring! The knitting is a wee bit frustrating or boring at the moment. Lets just say I am neurotic. I mean, we might as well because I know you're all thinking it! That red scarf and I are going a few rounds. Despite Miss T and Hub both telling me maybe this should be the time I 'let it go and keep on knitting'. I couldn't do it. I have a sickness. There is nothing to show... there have been four versions and all were ripped out. I have yarn now and a new plotted out idea. We'll see how it goes.

The Enchanted socks are almost done, probably within a day or so. Report soon.

Did I ever mention that I ripped out the Red Monkey's? Pretty as they were, they were too small for me. I debated over it for quite a while, then one day I found a mistake I'd made and decided that was the sign... riiiiip! I'm not sure if I'll try to alter the pattern to make it fit with this yarn, or just move on.

AND... the Seahawks won! I've got to whip a heel onto sock #1 so I'm ready for the next game on Sunday! I don't think I can watch playoff football AND knit a heel. In all honesty the gusset might be pushing it. Especially since they are playing in Green Bay... oy!

Anyhow, I wanted to tell you about a Christmas gift I got. My mother got me a cookbook. Now, if you knew my mother, you would laugh. She hates cooking. Does it as little as possible. On top of that it's a book about getting your kids to eat more vegetables. Seriously... my mother is NOT concerned with that in her own home. I just laughed. HOWEVER, it is right up my alley and I am loving it!

I am sure some of you have heard of it. It's Deceptively Delicious and written by Jessica Seinfeld. It's got a super user friendly layout and the graphics are really cute too!


So I spent part of New Years day making vegetable purees. While I was steaming the carrots and roasting a sweet potato and squash Miss N said "Mommy, you are cooking something yucky." HA! I had to agree, it didn't smell very good. I chose veggies that are not popular with one or more persons in the house, sweet potatos, squash, and cauliflower. And I threw in carrots because they are easy and they were on sale.


Now I have been meaning to take some tempting pictures of the yummy things I've made from this stuff, but I forgot. Sorry. I will say, there has not been a single flop yet! There are tons of recipes for snacky type foods. Which is perfect because the kids and I snack like mad. So far I think the applesauce muffins (with carrot) and the Oatmeal made with pumpkin (canned) have been my favorites. I called it 'Pumpkin Pie Oats' to Miss N and got her all hyped on them before she even took a bite. I have to say... it was even better than actual Pumpkin Pie. I've also done cauliflower in both mac-n-cheese and lasagna and while you could kind of taste something different in the mac-n-cheese, you could not detect it at all in the lasagna. The sweet potato pancakes were great tasting. The sweet potato makes them sweeter than a regular pancake. The texture is a little heavy though. So if you're into a fluffy pancake, this ain't it. Everyone, including Hub, have eaten everything and really liked it. I am so excited to be getting more veggies into our diets!

I can't wait to try the recipe for doughnuts. I have to buy a new pan first though. So it might be a bit... but don't they look yummy?! I love being able to eat baked goods and not feel guilty about it! The recipes are healthful on top of having the veggies in them. I think it's a great book for anyone interested in boosting their nutrition. It's definitely not just for kids.

I bid you some yummy and healthy eats this week!

WIP's

With finishing the gifts, and the requisite longies for Miss E, I've felt a wee bit of freedom this past few days. I've knit here and there and started something new...

I cranked out the first of this pair. 72 stitches on 2.0mm needle. It's slow. Especially for my big old feet. I just made it with a wee bit of yarn (maybe a thumb sized hunk) leftover after this sock. But I made it and that's all that matters!

My pictures are a little dark, cloudy icky weather... my apologies.

I finished block 8 of this big old looming WIP. The last two blocks are big, and two color. I really like my working yarn 1 ball at a time. This is actually the same size as most baby blankets right now. The final blocks are going to make it big enough to last through many years. This might be finished by her second birthday... I've got 3ish months left.


I started a new sock for Hub. I am LOVING this yarn. It's Hazel Knits Artisan Sock Yarn. This colorway is 'Hometeam Football'. Since Hub and I grew up in Seattle... no matter what, we're fans. I started this during the small bit of the game I got to watch last week. It just flew! The yarn is yummy. It's a nice fat fingering weight. Just yummy. I want some for myself!

And yes, I'll take any excuse to make colorful socks for Hub!

And, my New Years Eve project... I started a scarf for mom to go with her mitt's. The pattern is done in a velvety yarn and I didn't realize that there was so much seed stitch in it. I thought it was just ribbed. I'm mulling over what I think about that. Moms mitt's had no seed stitch... just ribbing. The reversible cable is nice though.


So that's where I'm at... I know... I promised sweaters soon. I am, as usual, distracted by socks. More sock yarn keeps coming to me. I haven't even bought any for myself lately and it's just coming coming! lol! I am gladly knitting it up because after the Holiday crush, my brain needs a rest. Speaking of my brain... I can't think of anything else to say! Terrible. Ah well, I've got some non-knitting explorations in food I have been doing. Will share soon!

Cutest Pants EVER!

The Eden longies are done and oh my... are they not the cutest pants EVER?! I am in love. I followed her all around the house trying to get some really good pictures of them.

Pattern: My Own - soon to be released!
Yarn: Rambouillet Worsted in Eden by ...a time to dye
Needles: US 7, US 4

The Recieving

You've seen all the giving, now it's time for the recieving. Miss T was curious what Hub would pick out. He did a VERY good job. All things I wanted the most! He even found a couple hanks of sock yarn still at Holy Threads. He said he only had two hanks of each type to choose from. They will sadly be out of business very very soon. The baskets, Niddy Noddy and soap came from Paradise Fibers. The man at the store assured him the soap would be a great stocking stuffer. And it was! There was a pair of wool socks in there too, but my feet were cold.

Though we've had plenty of snow already this year, it alwasy seems to be followed by a thaw. But, Christmas night we got our white Christmas... and this morning... Hub had some work to do. He and Miss N have been playing in the snow most of the day and have big plans to go find a good sled hill when she's done with her nap.


I just got done doing one of my new workout videos... whew! I felt like a slug with all the eating going on! Bob and Jillian kicked my butt! I'm off to the showers!