Tofu for my Footsies

I'm totally loving the new color for the Tofutsies sock club. It's black mixed with gorgeous tropical colors like turquoise, yellow, pink, and orange. At least that's what I remember it being. You see, I keep forgetting to buy a ball of it every time I stop at the LYS. Why? Because my LYS has crazy amounts of awesome new sock yarn coming in every other day.

Like this new OnLine that Darcie chose the other day.

It screamed "Jaywalker" as soon as I saw it. I love how it's working up and she is too. She can't wait to get them on her feet. I hope to finish them up before school starts. The pattern is so addicting that I don't think it'll be a problem.

I only thought I might have a touch of ADD before but now I'm pretty certain I do. It's so hard to decide which to buy. Anywho, this new color makes me want to sit by the pool and sip a fancy drink with an umbrella in it. Instead I think I'll sit by the pool and start a new pair of socks. Tomorrow. Because again, I forgot to buy a skein of it. Grrr. If you want some for yourself go visit Sue at Adirondack Yarns. Oh, and just so you know, she's got two big baskets full of Cherry Tree Hill Sockitome. I can see why everyone is raving about this stuff. It's silky and soft and just gorgeous. I think a skein of that will be finding it's way home with me soon too. :-)

My So Called Scarf

I knit this with some beautiful hand dyed yarn that Laura sent me some time ago. It worked up perfect with the pattern and I'm so happy with the way it turned out. Thanks again for the great yarn Laura!

Insanity Insured

He parallel parked. He three point turned. Not a point was deducted. He passed. I was so excited and proud. We stopped and had lunch. We came home. I put in a request to add him to our insurance. I'm still proud but I'm a lot less excited. How is it that one little man can raise your insurance by almost $15oo a year in a matter of minutes??? Holy. Shit.

So this is a little hat I whipped up. It's the Fiber Trends Ear Cozies pattern and I really like it. It calls for size 5 needles so I foolishly used them knowing that I would never make gauge. Guess what? I was right. It's too small for anyone here. I'm sending it off to a great girl who's collecting hats for people in her area. I also knit a yellow one with a larger needle to see how it would work up and it's the size it should be. I'll be sending that one in too. I'll be knitting several more of these for this winter. A couple for Dailaesse and a couple for Bran.

Tomorrow? How about a picture of My So Called Scarf I just finished up? You're gonna love it.

Buckle Up

We're off today to take Dan for his road test. I have mixed feelings about this. I'm super excited for him and I hope that he passes (I think he will, he's an excellent driver) but at the same time, the idea of my baby driving out into the world alone scares the hell out of me. I know it's because I'm having such a hard time with the idea of letting go. I hope that it'll be easier when the girls are ready. I can't imagine going through this at this intensity again. I don't think I have enough brown hair left to handle it. So, keep your fingers crossed for my little man and I'll be back later with the results.

Oh, and for my surprise, I was going to tell you all that my Yarn Pirate Booty Club box had arrived. It was very exciting to me. Not as exciting as a new baby would have been of course. I wish I could report a new baby to be but it doesn't look as though it's in the cards for anytime in the near future. You can keep your fingers crossed and say some prayers for that too. I'd love to have another little monkey to add to the zoo.

I have tons of projects to show and can't wait to share them. Maybe I'll have time to show them when I get back this afternoon.

How about this for some exciting news to tide you over until I get back to post...

I GOT MY RAVELRY INVITE THIS MORNING!!!

My user name is kerryknits.

I promise not to neglect the blog. Although I have been dreadfully neglectful of it lately. This summer has really taken it's toll with Dan learning to drive and needing to be brought back and forth to his job. Things are starting to settle so I should have more time soon. :-)

Quick

Things went very well for my little man Tuesday morning. We were in and out in about 5 minutes. The choice to visit his father now belongs to him and for that he is very happy. Unfortunately, this now means that his sister must visit their father alone. This is quite bothersome for everyone concerned and we're praying that she will also be given the right to choose. So once again, thoughts and prayers would be greatly appreciated. :-)

I have other exciting news but it will have to wait for now it is time to get the littlest princess to bed...

wish me luck.

I'm Still Alive

So much has happened in the past few weeks (Yes, I said few weeks. I can't stand to admit it's been a month. There. I said it. Month. I'm such a slacker.) since I last posted.

My sweet little man turned 16 on July 11th! It was a very emotional day. I took him to DMV to take his permit test (which he passed on the first try) and we went driving for over 2 hours in the afternoon. It rained in the afternoon just as it had the day he was born. It seemed as though just yesterday the nurse put him in my arms for the first time. So tiny and sweet. And cuddly. So cuddly. I miss those days. He's still just as sweet though and I'm so proud of the young man he's grown to be. Caring. Thoughtful. Considerate. Polite. Amazing sense of humor. I'm very much looking forward to the years ahead. Even though I wish they would slow down. ;-)

Signups have opened for Secret Pal 11. Click the link to be taken to the signup page. It'll be lots of fun.

I have been knitting. Honest. I finished a little hat last night that almost fits the littlest princess. Since I knit tight I wasn't quite knitting to gauge and I wasn't worried about it because I was really just doing it to see how the pattern knit up. My friend was trying to knit it and was having a little trouble so I tried it to see what the deal was. I really love the pattern (Fiber Trends Ear Cozies) and plan to knit another with larger needles so it'll actually fit an adult head.

I signed up for the Mystery Stole 3 project. I started my stole the day I joined and made it to row 41 before screwing up so badly that I couldn't fix my own mistake and had to rip the entire thing. I will start it over really soon though because I absolutely love it. I've got ebony Zephyr sitting here on my desk calling my name.

I've almost completed the last cabled sweater I was working on. All it needs is some seaming and the collar. I just might do that this afternoon.

I finished a sock for Bran and started it's mate.

I ripped my Aunt Noreen's sock out and am back to the heel again. I totally didn't need to rip the entire sock but I was having a bad day. It's STR so it gave me a good excuse to knit with it a little longer. Yeah. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I started a My So Called Scarf in some great hand dyed yarn that Laura (thanks again so very much!!!) shared with me some time ago. It's perfect for the pattern and is working up so nicely.

There's more but I can't seem to think of them right now. I'll be sharing pictures really soon. Like maybe tomorrow or Wednesday. Most likely Wednesday. Tomorrow is court for Dan (hopefully for Darcie too) and I'm a wreck like usual. If you could all please say a prayer or keep us in your thoughts it will be greatly appreciated. I'll check in quickly tomorrow to let you know how they make out.

Thanks for the kick in the pants Leslie! ;-)

It's No Secret

Not anymore. My pal for SP10 was Melissa and she was wonderful. I've really enjoyed the emails we've shared and am now looking forward to getting to know her a little better through her blog. Just look at the great reveal package that arrived from her today:

How awesome is this? She covered lots of ground with some great Rowan all seasons cotton for 4th of July summer knitting, Gudona Soap & Spa (I've just recently discovered this company myself and they are fantastic!) Tangerine Dreams Whipped Clean and Cupcake Soap for helping me relax the first day of school, Rowan yorkshire tweed chunky for a hat or scarf for Christmas, a cute wooden pumpkin for Halloween because it's my favorite holiday, 50 baby bootees to knit book that I've been craving just because, and some bubbles and chalk for the kiddos!

Thank you so very much Melissa for being such a super pal!!! I've really enjoyed chatting with you and hope to continue doing so. :-)

Tea Swap Sweep

My amazing partner Kelli (who just got in to Ravelry, BTW) sent me the most awesome goodies. In addition to the teas she sent, she also sent this gorgeous handpainted-just-for-me cup.




Have you ever seen a more beautiful piece of art? Gorgeous.


Then a huge, heavy boxed arrived in the mail today.

Can you believe this??? That's a cool checker game that we'll all use, Amish popcorn that I can't wait to try (we have popcorn almost every night so Kelli was right on the money with this), Mint Julep lotion and Sunset Mango soap/shampoo/bubble bath that both smell incredible, Panda sock yarn, Apple Laine Apple Pie sock yarn in Royal Blue that I have so been dying to try, chocolates that are so sinfully delicious they had to be put way in the back of the cupboard so as to limit my contact with them, elegant pearl stitch markers, hard candie and FRUIT STRIPE GUM!!! The kids were all over that. In fact, you can see the knee of the littlest monkey in the far right of the picture. I left the goodies on the counter while I went in to get the camera and when I came back there she was. Sitting on the counter.

Does that face scream "I'm up to no good" or what??? LOL She's trying to be cute and innocent to make up for the fact that she climbed up on the counter to get the "candy canes" and gum she saw sitting there calling her name.

Thank you ever so much Kelli for all the wonderful goodies you sent and for going out of your way to send the special gum the kids love so much. You truly are special!!!

Wild About Socks

Have you guys seen this yet???

It's the new Tofutsies sock club sock and I really like it. I had Sue set one aside for me and have been so busy that I still haven't had a chance to get over to pick it up. It's killing me to know it's just sitting there waiting. I really love the colors and I can't wait to see it in person. I'm going to try to make my way over to the store tomorrow. If anyone else is interested Sue is always more than happy to ship. You can find her at Adirondack Yarns.

The last week has been nuts and the following week or 2 will be more of the same. The kids are at the end of the school year and I've just enrolled the littlest princess in pre-K. It's very hard for me to admit they're growing up. I had a little meltdown on the way home from the bank the other day after taking the prince to open his first ever checking account to deposit his first ever paycheck. He looked over at me and said, "Seriously? You're crying?." I tried to explain how the past few days had been very emotional what with getting ready for pre-K in the fall, him turning 16 in just a few more incredibly short weeks, and his sister starting middle school in the fall. His response? "You're such a dork." I get no sympathy.

Kiss My

sock goodbye...

She's off to the frog pond for the second time. I really wanted to do a short row heel because I love the way the colors are striping but I can't seem to make it work without getting some awful holes in the corners. This is the second heel I've used and while I'm much happier with the way my wraps worked out I still hate the corners. Colin uses a Sherman Heel which looks really great. I want to try it so badly but I just don't know that I have the heart to do it on this sock. If it doesn't work out the way I want it to I'm going to be really pissed when I have to rip it out and do the damn heel flap that I've been trying to avoid. I hate picking up the stitches on the flap and I hate that it totally screws up the pretty striping pattern you sometimes have going. Like on this sock. And this sock is really special because it will be part of a pair going to my Aunt Noreen. I love her to pieces. She's an amazing woman and she totally deserves a pair of hand knit socks. The yarn is lightweight STR Scottish Highlands. We are Scottish. My Uncle Frank (Aunt Noreen's late husband) was so Scottish that he owned a kilt which he proudly wore to all the tattoos. He was so Scottish that he owned bagpipes. (I'd like to tell you all what a wonderful player he was but he really wasn't. He sure did try though and I loved him for that.) Aunt Noreen misses Uncle Frank alot. I hope these socks remind her of him and that they feel like a nice big warm hug every time she puts them on. Of course that's never going to happen if I can't find a heel that is worthy of being part of these special socks.

Here a cable, there a cable,

everywhere a cable...



This is the second sweater in the Bow Wow pattern that was commissioned. I like the blue much better but must admit that the yellow really grew on me. Especially once it was finished. This one is knit in Cascade 220 The Heathers. It's still worsted but this one feels thinner than the yellow so it has a softer drape which I really like. Surprisingly enough, I got the same gauge with the same needles as I did with the yellow. I took this with me to the NYS Track Sectionals yesterday. My little man did really well. He beat his best distances in both shotput and discus. Very cool. Anywho, the back is almost complete now. The cables are awesome!

Tea 4 Me

I have a confession to make. I'm like a little kid when the mail comes. I wait all day long for the familiar sound the mail truck makes. I get excited when I hear it on its way back from the lake because I know it will be coming to MY house next. It doesn't matter if I'm not expecting anything in particular because there's always the chance that there could be a surprise. That being said, imagine how thrilling it is for me when the UPS or FedEx dude pulls up to my house. You know it's got to be something good when they show up because they never bring bills or junk mail. No Sir E. Bob. No junk for them. Just the good stuff.

So when I heard the UPS dude pull up the other day I ran for the door. I threw it open and found a brown box gracing my porch. Hmmm. I didn't remember ordering anything from Republic of Tea. Maybe it was for the neighbor. Nope. It's got my name on it. Hmmm. Then I saw it. The fine print on the bottom of the label telling me this wonderful package was from my KTS3 pal. Whoopee!!! I ran back into the house with Duder hot on my heels. She wanted to know what was in the box and if it was for her. Nope. Not for you this time littlest princess. This one's for me.

Holy crap that's a lot of tea! Lots and lots of yummy tea. Just for me. (Oh, there was Passion Fruit Papaya too but I opened it yesterday to brew a pot.)

Thank you so very much Kelli for the awesome package!!! I can't wait to try the rest of them. :-)

Dose of Duder

So the littlest princess (also known as Duder) begged to go to Wendy's after the track meet tonight. Anyone who's ever had the pleasure of dealing with a tired toddler will surely tell you to take the choice they're offering instead of taking them to the dining establishment of your choice. So we went to Wendy's where she ate her entire chicken kid's meal (this is HUGE for her since she eats like a little bird) and then requested ice cream. I decided to get everyone settled in the van and then get the Frosty's at the drive-thru. I presented the options to Duder...ice cream in the van or no ice cream at all. I'm sure I don't have to tell you which she chose. So we cleaned up our table and headed towards the door. I stopped to dump the garbage while everyone else headed to the foyer to hold the door for us. At the beginning of the line was a large group of kids from Canada. Since I don't speak French I can only assume they were discussing amongst themselves what they were going to order. We had to part our way through the crowd to make it to the doors and as we did I heard my littlest princess say in her biggest most confident voice ever, "BUENOS DIAS!" I laughed so hard my shoulders hurt and I saw stars. When your world is limited to 2 languages and you know it's not one you must assume it's the other. Now if we could just get Nick Jr. to come up with a cartoon that teaches French.

Sunshine Cables

I just finished this little yellow cabled sweater yesterday. (Please note the kid is in her bathing suit and not her underpants. LOL) Actually, to be honest, I finished knitting it almost a month ago but didn't sew the seams until yesterday. I'm so bad about seaming. I always put it off and I really don't know why. Because it's really not that bad. I guess it's just that I much prefer the knitting part.

I really loved this pattern. It's Bow Wow #152 QK by Minnowknits. I knit the size 2 (which is why it's so small on the littlest princess) for the lovely lady who commissioned me to knit sweaters for her grandsons. I will be knitting a size 6 in navy (I think it was navy) really soon. This one was knit in Cascade 220 and was so much fun. The cables keep it interesting enough and it goes really fast. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the 3 needle bind off for the shoulders and the way the sleeves are picked up. I think the sleeves would have looked much better had they been sewn in instead of picked up. What do you think?

Pure

as Milk & Honey.




I finished these socks for Bran made from Lisa Souza's Sock! yarn in Milk & Honey on Sunday and he wore them to work Monday and yesterday. They fit him perfectly (7" cuff with the foot knit 'til it measured 9.5" before starting the toe) and he loves them. The yarn was an absolute dream to work with and I'm looking forward to using it again. Bran's looking forward to me using it again too. So long as it gets knit into socks for him. ;-)

I made some awesome oat bars at the beginning of the week that everyone (including the pickiest kid in the house) liked. Here's the recipe:

1 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup honey
3 cups old fashioned oats
2 cups slivered almonds

Heat the peanut butter and honey in a large non stick pot over medium heat until runny. Add in oats and almonds and stir until oats and nuts are completely covered. Press into a 9"x13" pan. Cool. Cut into bars and wrap in tin foil. Store in a plastic zip lock bag.

You're not supposed to have to store them in the fridge since the ingredients are all natural but I like them when they're cold. Plus, the peanut butter I used needs to be put in the fridge after it's opened so I'm assuming the bars should be too. I love these in the morning because they're very filling. In the afternoon when I want something sweet these totally satisfy the craving.

Mommy Survey

I found this survey over at Knit and Purl Mama and thought it was fun...

1. WAS YOUR FIRST PREGNANCY PLANNED? No
2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME? Yes
3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS? I was so excited but I was afraid my now ex husband was going to be mad. We had only been married a month and hadn't planned to start a family for several years.
4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU? No
5. HOW OLD WERE YOU? 18
6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT? I took a pregnancy test.
7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST? My parents.
8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX? No, I wanted to be surprised.
9. DUE DATE? June 23, 1991
10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? Not morning sickness, night sickness.
11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? Macaroni and cheese (the blue box please) and hot dogs.
12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST? Nothing that I remember.
13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX? Male
14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING? I had wanted a little girl but was thrilled with my little man. I love having had my son first. No matter how many other children we have they'll be blessed with a big brother.
15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY? 22
16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER? I had 2. One here in our town for friends and family and one out of town for my ex's side of the family.
17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW? They were both a surprise.
18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? No.
19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake, NY. Same hospital I was born at although it was called Saranac Lake General Hospital when I was born.
20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR? 10
21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL? The ex.
22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH? The ex.
23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION? C-Section
24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN? Not until I had to be knocked out for my section. I went through labor (most of which was hard) without drugs. I was very proud of myself for that.
25. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH? 9lbs
26. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN? July 11, 1991
27. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER? Daniel Joseph
28. HOW OLD IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY? He'll turn 16 this July 11th. Seems like only yesterday when I held my sweet baby boy in my arms for the first time and in less than 2 months he'll be DRIVING. Sigh.

Coffee Swap Queen

I received the most awesome package from Laura for Knitter's Coffee Swap 2! Just look at all the incredible goodies she sent...

A gorgeous hand stamped card, a super mug from her school to drink the coffee (Green Mountain Breakfast Blend which is my fave and Columbian Supremo from The Candy Basket that is to die for) she spoiled me with, 2 yummy (so yumy that the kids even helped eat them) different kinds of biscotti, and yarn. OMG the yarn! First, Laura hand dyed some awesome sock yarn just for me. Can you believe it? It's so pretty and I can't wait to try it! Then there was Cornucopia (the purple yarn) from Kollage which is 100% corn. 100% corn. It's incredible. I've never heard of it until now and can't wait to try it too. I checked the Kollage website and it has great stitch definition. And last but not least, 3 gorgeous blue hanks of Touche cotton/rayon which will make a great tank for the littlest princess. Or maybe even a bikini. She would love that.

Thanks again so very much for the great package Laura!!! It really was such a pleasure having you as my partner!

Yo Adrienne

I've always wanted to say that! LOL

A little birdy reminded me a few days (or so) ago about the Polar Sol Joy contest I had. I completely forgot about it with all the other things I've had going on. Since I said I would choose my favorite entry I've decided to choose Adrienne for reminding me of the contest and Shelley for saying that she would unravel it all on the floor and roll around in it. I've often thought of doing this myself but as Shelley has pointed out it would take way too long to untangle the mess I would make. So for now my little fantasy of having a romp in the yarn will remain just that, my little fantasy.

A Little Q & A

My hostess with the mostess for the Summer Dishcloth Swap has asked us to post the answers to the following questions...

What is one baked item you love making or buying and why?

This is a really tough one since I don't make or buy baked goodies very often. I guess I'd have to say my favorite would be cinnamon streusel or coffee cake because it tastes good.

What is one item you love to knit and why?

Socks are my favorite because they are so portable and because they can be knit with awesome, expensive yarn more cheaply than a sweater with the same yarn.

Favorite outdoor activity and why?

Totally depends on the season. I love snowmobiling in the winter, swimming in the summer, and walking in the spring and fall.

Favorite way to relax?

On the couch in front of the TV with my knitting. :-)

I don't have time to post like I want to about the coffee swap or the red and blue junkie swaps but do want to send a HUGE thank you to my pals, Laura, Debb, and Sonia. You ladies are absolutely amazing and I love the packages you put together for me! THANK YOU!!! I promise a proper post soon. :-)

Swap Slut

Wonder how many hits I'll get with a title like that.

So I'm really loving the swap deal. They are so much fun. As most of you know, I help hostess the Secret Pal exchanges. They are a blast. But they also last 3 months and sometimes you just need a little instant gratification. So you turn to the great coffee, tea, and dishcloth swaps that are out there. And don't forget Swap-Bot. I signed up to do the first 2 Yarn Junkies Unite swaps. The first was the color purple and was great. The second was red. Before the second started our wonderful hostess Sandy (please keep her and her family, she has kids, in your thoughts and prayers) found out she might have cancer. She assigned partners and we finished out the swap. The swaps were so much fun that I decided to take them over so I listed swaps for the rest of year following the guidelines (more or less) that Sandy had started. We just started the blue swap for this month but you can find the info for next month here. If you're looking for something a little less time consuming that doesn't require the larger dollar committment that Secret Pal does this just might be right up your alley.

In knitting news, I started a pair of socks for Bran in Lisa Souza's Milk & Honey Sock! yarn. I have to tell you that I wasn't sure that I was going to like this yarn since I've fallen madly in love with all the other great sock yarns out there that have a really tight twist. Man am I glad I tried it. This stuff is awesome! I thought it would split because it's not tightly wound but that isn't the case. And it's so silky soft and smooth to knit with. Bran can't wait until they're done and on his feet.

I've also taken on some commission knitting for a super sweet lady. She dropped off yarn and patterns last Wednesday for about 8 little sweaters. I've got the first almost finished and can't wait to get to work on the rest. I've not taken photos yet but promise to soon.

Track season has started once again and Short Man is doing a great job. He does discus and shot put and loves it. His score placed second for shot put in the meet last night and third last Thursday. He volunteered me to score last night and I had a blast. It was so much fun to be right in the middle of the action. I can't wait to do it again. It's hard to believe he's almost 16. We've had a truck for him for almost a year now. Bran has been driving it and the two of them have been working on it getting it ready for him to take over in July. Last Tuesday night Bran was rear ended on his way home from work. The truck isn't as pretty as it was. Once I got to the scene and knew Bran was going to live my heart sank for Short Man. I was so sad that the truck was wrecked. We're now trying to decide if we're going to fix it or sell it and get him something different. He's such a good little man. He never once asked what kind of shape his truck was in(Bran was still at Urgent Care), he only asked how Bran was. It makes me so proud to have such nice kids.