THe Mega bag....

Before felting...... (excuse Nan's attire, or lack thereof)After felting!!!

Purses, spinning and lace oh my!

OK so it's been much busier than I thought, lately. Below is the lace trim for the bottom of the skirt I'm working on which I should just go ahead and make smaller because my the time I'm finished with it it will fit Em. Next up is the behemoth bag I've been working on for MIL. It will be felted later on, I'm just using good old, reliable Lion Brand Wool for this bag. If it works out ok and doesn't look too retarded then I'll do another one in black, red and white (BIL's kids' school colors) in the Cascade 220 that I have.
THe last picture here is of my first attempt at hand spinning. Linda a friend of my ILs took me under her wing this afternoon and taught be the beginnings of handspinning. It was GREAT! I was so excited!It's a little harder than I thought but I still LOVE it!
UPdate on the house situation. Current move out date for the current occupants of the house is Saturday July1st. Which means that we will be hopefully moving the 2nd. I'm not going to get my hopes up by any means, however it's nice to hopefully have a date in site because I'm on day 24 here and B is on 1 month and 1 week.

I'm home....

and I found the Mother Ship! I have been working harder than I'm pretty sure I've ever physically worked, out in the heat, and learning that this manual labor thing is much harder than it looks. I've been working with B and FIL in the wonderful world of Custom Home Building. I did that yesterday and then came pack to the refugee camp and mowed the 3 acre yard and then weed-eated and I was ready for the ICU I was so tired. Then I remembered that there was a Knit-in across town and finally got the wherewithall to go. I'm SO glad that I did. It was a fabulous time and I met a bunch of great ladies! I can hardly wait for the next one on Monday. I came home smiling and B laughed at me and said, "I can tell you finally found your Mother Ship"

THe Procrastiknitter's Weekend Update....

This weekend started with a trip to my new LYS Loops. The girls love it because of their playroom and I love it because it is perfectly yummy there. I picked up some Cascade to continue making some felted purses. I also decided to be adventurous and to make the skirt below, but in black and hot pink. It would be great for late summer as that is when it will probably be done. I then picked up the July 2006 edition of Creative Knitting and found these little tops that are made out of Sugar and Cream.
and found that they take about th esame time to knit as a dishcloth and made one for Nan.
The color in the picture is tres crappy but this is obviously before felting. It was a great color with blues, greens and purples. I hope that it will be a gift for a friend for her birthday (said friend reads the blog so I won't devulge who).
After the LYS we went to see our bestest little boy Booter (my best friend's son). He loves the girls and they love him. He just turned 2 on June 10th and loves to tell a joke LOL.
We capped off the weekend with Father's Day dinner at the IL's house with B, FIL, MIL, BIL, his wife and two kids, and B's grandfather and grandmother. It was nice, relaxed and fun. This week starts hell week. I will be cleaning houses for my FIL this week and hopefully by Sunday we will be ready to move out of the refugee camp and into our own home!

Happy Father's Day to B!

Wanna know a secret.....

The YARN HARLOT is coming....the YARN HARLOT is coming to OKlahoma City on July 25th. I'm so excited I almost peed my pants....almost! LOL.

A plethora of purses.....

THis is my sock knitting bag. It needs a little reforming, but it's smaller than the button whole bag below and just the right size to fit over my wrist and to carry a ball of sock yarn and needles. After seeing my button hole bag, my SIL decided that she wanted a larger one made and with a larger arm hole. This is right after felting.
My very first felted bag. It's the Mason Dixon Button Hole bag and it knit up very very quickly. I used Lambs Pride Worsted Weight for the pink and cream bags and cascade for the black and red bag.

Progress...

Well I have felted not one but two bags, and I'm about ready to finish the 3rd. I just mailed out my SP8 1st goodie bag and am feeling rather confident in the knitting area of my life. THe rest is in complete disarray. The June 25th deadline is now nonexistent and we are looking more towards July 1st if we are lucky. It's been a really good money saver for us. but has been taking a toll on us mentally. THe girls and I are starting to crack. Em is very much a quiet little bug who likes her alone time. Having all 4 of us in a room together plus not getting to play much without her sister is making her act out quite a bit. Nan is doing ok, just a little confused and playing the Mommy vs. Grammy game. We have officially been displaced as a family for 1 month tomorrow. I just retreat to my area of the pit group in the living room where I tune all else out and knit. However, last night and today were the only real times that I"ve been able to do that anyway. We are just going to keep up with Em going to Vacation Bible Schools, Nan going to preschool playgroup, and doing a craft at home each day. TOmorrow we should get to go to the library again and check out some different books. I'm so tired of whining or at least sounding like it. I'm really not a whiny type of person...as anyone....except my grandmother! LOL.

The Wedding.....

5 generations above. THe girls, B, his dad, grandparents, and his great-grandmother.
THe 4 of ous! We haven't had one of those since almost a year and a half ago. I look severely underdressed, but you can't see the beads on the tank top OR the ruffled long skirt I'm wearing either.

It was hot, hot, hot. B's cousin had his wedding outdoors at a place called Prairie Song. It was beatufiul but at 4pm on a Oklahoma June afternoon, it was hot and humid and just YUCK! All of B's dad's side of teh family was there and it was wonderful to see everyone...but it was HOT!

Button-hole bag....

This is the button-hole bag from MD. I'm working on this for myself. It is the first project that I've ever made for myself. Well, I intend to keep it for myself, but I'm sure I'll end up giving it to someone else. It isn't felted yet because I'm making a smaller one for a sock- knitting purse. We are still living at the in-laws. THis is day 6 for me. Actually only day 4 because I went to my grandparents' house for a few days. It sounds like 2 weeks from today we will be moving in our house...hopefully. I miss sleeping in the same bed as my husband and not in the same room as my children! LOL. (We all sleep in the same room, sleeping buddies differ with each night) Tomorrow is the big wedding! B's cousin Cody is getting married. Both Cody and his fiance are but just wee babies (21 and 20). It is going to be an outside country wedding at 4pm in the afternoon with a forecasted temperature of over 100 degrees. Pictures later!

Dishcloths galore....

I have been on a ballband wash cloth frenzy as of late. All due to that lovely blue book I think I have made about 20-25 of these and find them very useful while in a pinch for time or knitting inspiration. They also have been fabulous gifts for my ex-coworkers, MIL, grandmother and the like. I took the pattern a bit further and am still trying to figure out how I want to make the "stars" for the flag. Fran at the LYS in Grove told me that I need to do french knots, I thought about buttons, but can't find 50 small white star buttons that would look decent. Any ideas? I'm open to suggestions.

Lilee Ann and Em!

The Eagle has landed....

Well we are here! We are in OKlahoma. E, the dog and I made it in just under 8 hours. I'm glad to finally be here, however, I feel like we are in a family-type refugee camp. It's hard to live at someone else's house especially for 2 weeks or more. With the girls and the dog I feel like a constant intruder in the IL's routine and have tried to be quite helpful, but it ends up being much more like resentment. *sigh*. This is just a process that we are going to have to get through and it's not forever. I hope to get some time to knit in the next few days. Tomorrow is a trip to Tulsa to my new job and to sign some paperwork.

Ten...nine....eight...seven....

The countdown has been continuing and now it's time for blast off! Em will be home late tonight from Orlando, and then we will set off for Oklahoma tomorrow to finally be a family. Well, an update to the whole "travel trailer" situation. It's been sold by B's grandparents, so instead we will be living with his parents for hopefully just 2 weeks. I'm not necessarily sure if the girls and I will be there the entire time. We might take off to my grandparents' house at the lake for some of those days. ILs are not too happy about the new member of our family. I received Lilee Ann as a going away present from a lady at work yesterday. She is a 3 month old Jack Russell Terrier puppy. Em and B know about the dog, but Nan will be completely suprised. It will be interesting traveling 600 miles with a 6.5 y/o, a puppy, and a van full of crap!

On the knitting front, I have been doing quite a bit. However, with no way to upload pictures (I'm using the public library computers) until tomorrow you'll just have to take my word for it. I found a super easy pattern at Lion Brand Yarn's website and made the Royal Pet Afghan for her. I'll probably finish it sometime today. I also have been making a TON of the Mason Dixon Warsh Rags. In fact, there were 13 of them. I only have one left however because I wrapped them up and put soap in them and gave them as presents to staff members that I'll miss. I ahve a list of things I need to do for gifts this summer:

• More warshrags
• a few more chemo caps (I finished one before the moving fiasco started)
• a pair of socks for my friend Barb (my best girlfriend here in Nebraska)
• a pair of socks for my friend Mary Lou (the lady who gave me an AKC puppy for FREE)
• a baby kimono
• some fun things for the girls

Well that is all until tomorrow night. I'll probably get some online time depending on how late I get in to town. Could my spoiler from SP8 drop me a line on my gmail? I have some updated information to send you!

S....O...S...plase someone help me....

OK, this whole computer, new email address and such is not helping matters. ATTENTION TO MY SECRET PAL AND HOSTESS (I emailed the hostess), I have a new email RachelHough@gmail.com and I need you to send the emails there. I STILL haven't received my info for my pal, whom I would LOVE to contact. HELP ME!!! I'm currently going to be online for a little while (until Friday).

And she's off....

This morning at 4:10 am Em left to go to Florida with her aunt, uncle, and cousins. She stayed with us last night so i had to wake her up at 3:30! YIKES! She was getting a little nervous last night about being away from us so much and then this morning she was ready to go! I'm so worried that she'll end up getting homesick, but she'll have to make it through. I went to the dr. again yesterday and on top of the foot thing, and the root canals I now have walking pneumonia. Oh well! They gave me some great meds yesterday so, so far today I'm feeling rather human. Knitting is on the backburner until Monday. Tonight I am packing up everything we own, including the computer and putting it in the living room. Nan and I will be spending the rest of our time at my aunt and uncle's housesitting. I'll be able to clean the house up and such after B comes to get Nan this weekend. I'm not going to stress about it because it doesn't do any good.

That being said, as of today I won't be on the computer anymore. I'm going to pack everything up and be done with it. Hopefully I'll be able to use MIL's computer when I get there on the 3rd. We shall see!

Knittying? What's that?

OK, so no knitting has occurred at this house in over 3 days. What in the hell is wrong with me? Well, I have been packing, loading, chasing kids, gone to a graduation and 3 different parties, had a root canal, wearing Das Boot on my gimp foot, and sniffing, coughing and hacking with a sinus and ear infection. Grrrr....could the universe please hear my plea and help me get back to NORMAL???? Nan, seems to think so. However, all it takes for this kid to calm down is a trip to a Runza to get a frozen Mountain Dew Code Red and she's ready to chill!

La has finally graduated. This whole process has been drug out long enough. I'm so proud of her and just think she's a doll!

B and some friends loaded the UH*ul on Saturday. He left this morning and has already unpacked our stuff in the storage unit. He starts his new job tomorrow.

ON an even more pleasant note, La's brother T has decided that him and girlfriend J will be getting married July 21st of next year. Nan is the flower girl, Em a junior bridesmaid, B an usher and me a bridesmaid????? YIKES! I have about 6 months to drop about 50 pounds so I'm on a mission...once I get Das Boot off of my foot and settled into my new house. Calgon, where the F*ck are you to take me away??

YIKES!

OK, survived the graduation parties just fine. My grandparents' visit went wonderfully (yes, Sharon that is my grandmother and she has just turned 70). We had a very quiet Mother's Day brunch with my aunt/uncle and cousins. This week I've had a root canal, 2 fillings, and a knee high boot put on for my plantar faciitis. I've been working on another pair of F&F socks for a friend of mine before I leave as well as working on some Mason Dixon projects for a wedding in a few weeks. This week has been insane at work and I'm sure only will get worse as the end approaches! May 26th is the last day with kids, WOO HOO! As part of my going away present a dear friend of mine (the one I'm knitting the socks for) is GIVING (as in free) me one of her AKC Jack Russell Terrier puppies, which is the dog the girls and I have always wanted. The girls don't know yet and they want a dog named, "Daisy Mae", but this little baby looks more like a "pepper" or something like that. B knows and is NOT happy about it, but I don't care! LOL. Knitting has taken a back burner and it's very possible that in the next few weeks, this blog could too. The moving van comes on Saturday. B will be leaving with everything but a mattress, the couch, a TV and the computer on Sunday morning. Then he'll come back on the 28th and take my computer away...NOOOOOO! I'll try hard to post some pics really soon!

Mothers and Friends..

Friday was Em's 1st grade Mother's Day Tea. I took the afternoon off so that I could attend. My grandmother was able to go with me so that made it extra special. We had a fabulous time, and there were quite a few precious tears shed. I'm just so lucky to have a sweetie for a daughter. While at the tea one of Em's friends asked if she could come over to her house for a playdate on Saturday. Em was excited and I took her over there to find out that it was a Suprise going away party for her (because of our move). I was so touched that they woudl do that for her. There is just a few of the girls that were there (14 total) who all signed an autograph book, had snacks, played and made friendship bracelets. Knitting has been put on the backburner this weekend. I'll get to it later this week.
t

Thanks...

Thanks to you all who commented as well as my yahoo group girls, and those who emailed me. I have tons of ideas for chemo caps. I came across this one that I'm going to do first. I found it at Head Huggers.org It seems like a great cause that collects tons of patterns too in knit, crochet, and sewn chemo caps. I have a feeling that I'll be making quite a few of these, not just for R, but just to give away as well. Cancer has taken a hold of several female members of B's family at one time or another. I think some of my other projects might have to be on hold for a little while.

Ideas?

OK, I know what people need here in Nebraska because the climate is very typical of the 4 seasons. However, I'm not sure what to do about a friend that lives in Oklahoma. Recently my friend R has been diagnosed with breast cancer and now it is in her lymph nodes as well. She is the mother of a beautiful 14 y/o girl who I just adore as well. I got a call from my grandmother last night that said that the chemo is going poorly and the R finally allowed her daughter to shave her head since the hair was coming out so bad. I would love to find a lacey, lightweight chemo cap pattern or an idea of a shawl or wrap that she could use even this summer. Any ideas? I'm just not sure for a warm, humid climate what would be something I could make for her. She loves anything that is handmade, but I'm not sure how much time I have to make anything. Suggestions?

Home again....

OK, so I'm home today. I'm technically "Burning" off one of my personal days that I need to use before the end of the school year and technically Friday is the last day you can use one of said days. I "chose" today because our daycare is closed. My daycare provider likes taking days off and apparently 5 in the last 2 weeks is not enough so she had to take 2 more this week. I mean I realize that she is doing it to be with her youngest at her track meets (she'sin 11th grade), and she knows that since the girls only have 3 weeks left I'm not going to cause a big fuss....however, it does piss me off just a tad. I'm very thankful to have a day off though, we are down to 10 days before B gets the moving van and 90% of my stuff gets packed up and moved to Oklahoma. I have TONS of packing and moving and rearranging today and with Nan as my sidekick we should get quite a bit completed. My cousin La's graduation party is this weekend and my grandparents plus numerous relatives will be coming to town so this weeken is pretty much crap as far as all of that goes. Well Nan is bugging me to go clean up the garage. MAYBE I'll get the baby kimono done at some point today.

SP8...

I joined Secret Pal 8. I'm not exactly how sane I am for doing this with all the moving nonsense and such, but I'm rather excited about it all and I always like doing something to make other people happy! I'm such a stinkin' pleaser! LOL. I made my own button, but if you want it, just save it to your own computer. It's not great, but it's one of my favorite colors and well....it's all I've seen so far. As far as KAL's and all go, I've also joined the Mason Dixon Knit-a-long. Looks like a grand time.

Pictures....

OK, so I'm in a MUCH happier mood today. I've decided that I need to let go of all of my hostility and just enjoy the time I have left here in Nebraska rather than worrying about things I just can't control. Here are some pictures from yesterday's outing. Ann and Kay showing off the Log Cabin technique! You can see all the yummy yarns at Stringof Purls

While waiting for Ann and Kay to arrive I met some great people but I spied Elsbeth with her great sock bag. She made and designed it herself from odds and ends she had "Laying around". It's not just a purse but also a fanny pack to put your favorite sock and yarn in! It was fabulous! When I came home, and was irritated with B I spied a FEDEX bag from Atlanta! Lisa H sent me this fabulous socks for the exchange! I LOVE THEM and wore them for a full 24 hours! Thanks so much!

)(@$#(*&@#(*)& MOVING!

OK, so I had a grand time at String of Purls and seeing Anna and Kay! It was an intimate gathering and we had a fabulous time. I took some pictures...including of this great sock fanny pack/purse that Elsbeth (lady I met while waiting) made. I was so thrilled to come home and post the pics.....and then my camera battery went dead making uploading impossible. No biggie, just get the charger right? WRONG! Apparently while I was gone my kids went to my aunt's house and my husband decided to make up all "nonessentials" while also included giving away my 2 matching bookcases (albeit from Wally World) to some people who came by to look at the house. Not only did he give them the bookcases but also other furniture that he was ready to get rid of but I was not. nothing major, but still he was "cleaning". Amidst all the "cleaning" my charger to my camera has been packed....however where? is another question. Grrrrrrr...... I'm half tempted to walk out of the house and go get another one! LOL.

The story....

OK, I've been depressed, angry, frustrated and all those toher emotions that go along with stark raving pissed off. Apparently we are going to be "homeless" for about a month when we go to Oklahoma. Our house is not going to be ready any time soon and it's all due to a stupid crook that decides that he doesn't want me husband to come down and be his boss and the way to get back at us for ......doing absolutely NOTHING to him is to not build the cabinets for the people that are moving out of the house we are going to move into. I mean I can understand if materials aren't coming in or whatever but this guy is just doing it on purpose and said he was. FIL doesn't want to fire him yet because he needs him until B gets there. So we won't be able to move into our house until at least June 18th, possibly July1st. What are we going to do in the meantime? FIL and B came up with awesome idea about how the 4 of us (me, B and the girls) are going to live in a 400 sq ft travel trailer while we wait. I was not asked, I was not consulted, it was decided. I would LOVE to be reasonable, but I am probably one of the most claustrophobic people that you will ever meet and a month in a travel trailer in my ILs backyard with no TV, cable, internet, anything is more than I can handle. Alas, that is what I'm going to have to do. So I'll be making lots of trips to see my grandparents and outings for the girls and I. I'm slowly becoming more and more accepting of this idea it just added WAY too much stress to the moving situation....it'll be an adventure....right? It'll be ......fun?

I Love Amazon!!!

I ordered two books last week.

I was so happy to see that there was a deal if I bought them both together AND there would be FREE shipping! So of course I went ahead and bought my own Mother's Day present! LOL. I needed my own copy of MD for this Saturday's book signing. According to the tracking my package was in town on Monday.....however it had not yet been delivered. I was getting a bit antsy for them both I decided to knit myself a dishcloth....btw I LOVE this pattern and it's super easy and it's easy to remember. I came home so discouraged because I knew that they wouldn't be here...but they were! YAY!!!! Also I was thrilled to learn that my sock pal got her socks and LOVES them! So happy! I'm looking forward to Saturday so much and I'm even going by myself, but that's cool, I need some time away. Later, if I have time I'll have to relay the story of why I've been in a very very grumpy mood for the past few days and now that I've stopped crying incessantly for the 1st time in 48 hours I might be ready....might be!

Secret Pal 8 Questionnaire...

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? Rowan or any kind of great sock yarn. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Fun fur or anything flashy and hairy! LOL. 2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I have a generic Hobby Lobby case for them, but it's way too full already! 3. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I've been knitting since September 2005 so I'm relatively new to it, but I would say I'm bordlerline advanced beginning or close to intermediate. 4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No not at the moment but hopefully I will soon. 5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) fresh smells like orange lemon or lavender 6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? CHOCOLATE!!!! 7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Crochet a little, and cross-stitch Do you spin? Nope, but I really want to learn. 8. What kind of music do you like? Anything lively like rap, hip hop and dance Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? YEP! (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) 9. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer?Orange, and light, pale pink. Any colors you just can't stand? Green and Burgundy. 10. What is your family situation? Me, husband, two daughters Em (6.5) and Nan (almost 3.5) Do you have any pets? Not yet, but hope to get a puppy before the summer is over. 11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? All of the above, although I'll be living in a warmer climate soon (Oklahoma) and I won't need the heavy stuff. 12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Socks, and just gifts in general. I honestly have never made anything for myself yet. 13. What are you knitting right now? Moderne Log Cabin blanket from Mason Dixon book for my oldest daughter. 14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Yep! 15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Don't really have a preference Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Bamboo of course. 16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? Nope, but would love to. 17. How did you learn to knit? I was taught by a colleage to help reduce my stress and helped along by about 30, 11-14 y/o girls at my middle school's knitting club. 18. How old is your oldest UFO? About 3 months old. 19. What is your favorite holiday? THe 4th of July. 20. Is there anything that you collect? Music boxes in the shape of pianos and books. Lots of books. 21. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? I'm up for any book with great patterns. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? None, I just pick up the ones with the patterns I like from the bookstore. 22. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? Cabeling, spinning 23. Are you a sock knitter?ABSOLUTELY What are your foot measurements? Women's size 10 shoe, about 10 inches in length from heel to toe. 24. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) September 25

I LUV Magknits!

I'm not sure if it's the great patterns, or the fact that they come out with monthly issues or both! Yes it is May 1st and the new MagKnits patterns are out! I'm thinking of tackling the Milanese Lack Sock eventually, however I just LOVE the Laura Jane Bears! Too Cute! I know some little kidlets that would enjoy this. I might just have to attempt these for the girls new rooms. It might be a nice housewarming present for the divas. Now with the socks finished for the exchange I feel able to do as a please. I'm still working on rectangle #3 of Em's afghan. It's coming along but the garter stitch has me BORED OUT OF MY MIND! I guess that's ok though since we are in the throws of moving. I've been working on trying to get everything that we aren't using packed up. The VIRUS is finally out of our house and thankfully things are going much better. B got it this weekend but hopefully all the Oust and Lysol will kill any lingering germs. I had a work day at work today and packed up my classroom (everything that is mine) and then decided to take off as soon as I could. I needed to get home to do some laundry (which I haven't done yet) and pack up the storage room. I am just so damn ready to move it isn't even funny. Apparently though we might be homeless for a little while as there has been a snag with the new house. Hopefully my FIL can get it all straightened out and soon. I'm so hyped up about this weekend and seeing Ann and Kay at String of Purls! I ordered my own copy of their book as well as the Harlot's new book as well. HOpefully they'll be her before Saturday!

Finito!!!

I finished the socks yesterday morning since it was rainy and wet! Got them washed, blocked, dried and took them to the post office this morning and mailed them with the automated system so they will go out first thing in the morning! WOO HOO! No more deadlines until I move. It was nice to get that off of my shoulders.

Must...carrry....on....

need.... to....focus...need....to...finish ....socks........ and I need to find some more boxes and I need to pull out my hair and scream and I think I just need a beer and a night off! LOL. I've been knitting so much the past 48 hours that my finger is doing this weird thing of spasms so I'm taking a break for a few hours. I'm ALMOST DONE!!! Hopefully tomorrow the rainy and cold weather will continue and I can finish up the sock as I'm just about an inch from the toe decrease! YAY! Then it's back to packing...yeah right! B has moved up the 1st moving date (the day in which he will pack a medium uHaul and take off and leave me with the divas for 2.5 weeks. YIKES! The original date was like May 25th , but now it's the 19th! WTF? I just want to be moved already!

New email...

I've decided that since I'm joining some Knitting groups online that I should have a more generic email that will stay with me while I move so the new email for me is theprocrastiknitter@yahoo.com I know, how creative! LOL

3 for 4....

Well as of last night the nasty virus that invaded our house has maimed 3 out of 4 family members. The girls and I have been attacked with the vomitting and diarrhea while B is waiting his turn. YUCK! He was home with Nan yesterday and I'm home with the girls today which is infuriating as I wanted to go to the booksigning with Debbie Stoeller today but can't (Pout). However, I am getting more knitting done and trying to look forward to the MD signing at String of Purls on the 6th. I'm still working on the 2nd rectangle of Em's afghan and my Socks for my Pal are going nicely. Actually this pic is not really all that recent. It's from Sunday night. I've already turned the heel and hope to be finished sometime today or tomorrow.Hope all is well with everyone. We are officially in countdown mode for our move. Em leaves for D!sney W*rld a month from today and we are into the less than 4 weeks of B and Nan moving to Oklahoma. Tomorrow will make 1 month of school left for me so it's all coming rather quickly! I'm ready though.

Virus...

Whatever this horrednous virus is that's been going around I got it and am feeling superbly crappy. I was in bed for our 24 hours. Hopefully I"ll get to do some knitting fore the weekend it out! YUCK!

10 minutes of shame....errr....fame...

Currently the school district that I work for Omah@ Public Schools is in the middle of a nasty law that was just passed that would segregate the 1 district into 3 separate districts, one white, one black the other Hispanic. This is just a nightmare that it ever passed. Because of this, the school in which I teach is very famous recently. Tomorrow, if you have cable news FOX look for a piece that will run all day and then on the Shepard Smith show. My school Lewis @nd Clark Middle School will be featured! I hope we make a good showing.

I am officially a knitting "groupie"!

This morning I was reading in the Omaha World Herald that Debbie Stoeller of SnB fame will be visiting a local bookstore next Tuesday in favor of signing her latest book The Happy Hooker as well as any other of her books. I was so thrilled! THEN I found out that my LYS has a new webpage that is totally updated and even has it's own blog. After reading the blog I then found out that Ann and Kay are coming to the store on May 6th! I'm in hog heaven! I have decided that I"ll buy the MD book for myself for Mother's Day so that I can get it signed! Nothing like that ever happens around here in Omaha so I'm so happy! Now if I could just get Stephanie to get her Canadian butt to Nebraska OR to Oklahoma I'd die a happy Knitter! On a side note, I think we will do the dishcloth exchange so look for details in June and tell everyone you know. I think it woudl be something easy and fun. And yes Sharon, I'm sure that you Aussies can participate too! I'd love to send to Austrailia as I'm sure others wouldn't mind either!

Note to Pioggia....

I'm having the darndest time accessing your blog. Any ideas? Please help!

Thoughts???

OK, I have a question. Anyone up for a dishcloth exchange? Maybe not now but this summer? I thought it might be fun. I'd arrange it. Any takers?

New books, new projects....

OK, so I've been really wanting to buy the new M/D book, but have been strapped for cash because the move is going to cost a gazillion dollars. I took my audio book back to the library last night and looking what the librarian pulled out of the office for me. It had just come in and I was the first person to check it out! What joy! I completely agree with what the YH said about it. It's just fantastic and I totally recommend it. So while I was looking at it I decided that I needed a nice easy garter stitch project to work on until the move. So I decided that Em needs a Moderne Log Cabin Blanket (page 78). Instead of the tans and plums I'm going to do hers in fuschia, blue, purple and green. It's a total secret and I hope to suprise her sometime when we move to the new house for her new room. It's on size 6 needles and it's going to end up being 60" x 50" which will be a major PITA but I'm game. So I just HAD to pull some yarn out of my stash to start it. I have also decided that I'm only going to work on that and the socks that I need to finish for my pal until we move...oh and maybe a dishcloth... or two...or ten. LOL.

Portraits....

Click on the picture of my beauties if you want to see more from the weekend. Great buy because each dress was just $8.00 at a local department store!

Sadness....

This is all that remains of my stash....well all that's out anyway. I packed up 6 huge boxes of yarn today and although I knew it was necessary I couldn't help but feel that it was so FINAL. I won't be seeing the lovelys until we are in Oklahoma in June. HMPH!

Well the pink is my attempt at Knitty's Pedicure Socks . I wasn't crazy about the color or the striping so I'm doing my own thing. I still have to make a second sock of my last project to make, but I'm finding that I have "Knitters ADD" and don't want to spend too much time on one project these days. I did however make Em a poncho which is my 1st crochet FO. I know, I know, I've crossed over the "other side" although it was a switch because I was teaching my grandmother to knit on dpns! WOO HOO!

Ok ok ok...

So I'm finally ready and have a spare moment to tell you about my trip since I know, Internet, that you have been waiting with baited breath to hear about it...NOT! We left last Tuesday right after B got done with work. He also had to run to the doctor because he's been having some stomach problems recently which we think are now GERD. We got there late on Tuesday night. Wednesday morning I had two interviews out in the country. I got to see some really beautiful country that I'd never seen before (in my home state) as well as the 1st and only Main Street oil well, and a casino that I've heard tons about but I'm thinking good things come in small packages in that particular instance. My camera battery was recharged, but the date wouldn't reset which is why it says 1/1/04. LOL. Needless to say I learned something last Wednesday which was that I am not a good fit for a rural country school anymore...too much time in the "hood" has changed me, not good or bad just different. Thursday was spent with me getting up at the crack of freaking dawn and going to Oklahoma State University for a job fair. I did the browsing in the morning and then interviewed in the afternoon. I ended up having 3 hours of touring and shopping on my hands which was GREAT! Edmond Low Library! The bells were ringing with the fight song as I walked by. It was just even better than when I went there because I didn't have any stress about classes to think about and I was able to enjoy and appreciate the campus again. I had 4 interviews with 4 job offers when I finished. I was really stoked about it all and went ahead and made my mind up that I was going to work for T*lsa Public Schools and took my contract home to look over. On the way back to the ILs my favorite thing about spring in Oklahoma happened. Thunderstorms with tornadoes were dropping everywhere! It was so cool! I had to take lots of sky pictures. We finished up our trip with finding a house to rent (really nice in a fancy neighborhood, but renting from some nice people that just want someone to live in their house) and schools/preschools for Em and Nan. I went to a job fair for people already hired with T*lsa PUblic Schools. I was able to interview principals because my particular expertise are in great demand right now due to grant funding. So I left the job fair with 7 firm job offers to work at certain schools. I had until this Friday to decide but I already did so I'm stoked. I'll be the Science Specialist at an at-risk 100% poverty elementary school in North T*lsa. I'm thrilled because it's a place where I can definitely make a difference because I"ll be teaching PK - 5th grade students science only! WOO HOO! After leaving the job fair I stopped by a park and took some beautiful pictures of the flowers that would have been only better if the girls were with me. Then we went to my grandparent's house for my grandmother's birthday. I was able to get one of the socks finished and I did a little crocheting with the instruction of my grandmother which is something new for me.

Long and winding road...

Just got home a little while ago and am beat. I have lots to share, and will do so in the next few days, but I'm tired, have lots of unpacking to do and I have to go back to work tomorrow....so here it is. F&F afghan was finished, given to my grandmother for her birthday today and she was thrilled! I found a job, was offered 4 jobs, haven't decided what to do yet. We are moving though, and soon (6 weeks or less YIKES). We have a house (YEAH!) and the kids' schools have been situated, however I know that I"ll be walking into some sticky IL situations. More later! THanks for all the good wishes here and on email! It is appreciated!

On the road again...

It seems as though we just went to Oklahoma, however that was in February, yet only 6 weeks ago. We are leaving today after the kidlets are done with school. Probably will put us there around midnight or a little later. We are going to a place called Bartlesville that would be on the right forehead of our little friend above (thanks to Nataliedee). There will be lots of job interviews and hopefully lots of job offers (trying not to get my hopes up). There will probably be even more houses that we will look at and *cross your fingers* one we will decide to choose as our own. I'll be going back to Stillwater to my alma mater so hopefully there will be lots of pictures with my knitting while we are there. I will tell you that before I became a Knitter I HATED the car trips, but now I see them as a great time to knit....unless I have to drive which I'm hoping I don't! Knit on!

Wondering....

When is the new issue of Knitty going to come out? I'm ready for some new patterns! I'm impressed with the new Mag Knits issue, but it's got a lot of little projects for cooler climates. When when when???

Knitta please .....

Leigh Witchel has found this AWESOME rap which is now on my MP3 for good. It's called Knitta Please! by Mike Bryant. It's a free download and totally worth it!

Afghans, orbs and socks oh my!

OK, here it is in all it's kind of glory. I haven't blocked it yet, but that's coming. I'm not sure you can see, but those little white arrows are pointing to orbs that are on the picture around Nan. I'm a bit believer in orbs. This made me feel so good because I like to think that my great grandmother and other deceased relatives were around me at during the knitting of my very first afghan. I will tell you that I'm not really into trying to do another one any time soon. This one measured 66 x 66 unblocked. I'm really excited to see how much my grandmother loves it.

On another note, I'm working on Sharon's Feather and Fan Socks.
For me they are knitting up rather slowly, but that's because I think I have TONS on my mind. I've made them for my big feet, but we will see. I'm not sure what yarn this is other than Bernat Sox. Maybe I"ll work on it some on my way to Oklahoma tomorrow.

This just in.....

The Feather and Fan Afghan is FINISHED! Going to block today! Pictures when Blogger decides to cooperate, which unfortunately is not right now.