OMG(oodness), has it really been 6+ months?

Sure has, damn I'm a lazy SOB.

Lets see: knitting: A cardigan for me, which was kinda my own design, well I took the lace part from the tank I made last year, and knitted it up sort of like a cardigan pattern I got from Lion Brand's website. A knit/sewn combo dress for Bella, a scarf for me and another on the needles. My first pair of socks (another on the needles), a sweater for Gavin (needs to be sewn up), about 50% of a sweater for Bella - both Christmas presents. Re knitted my knitting bag, the acrylic I first made it out of didn't hold up. Got to make: hat for DH, baby sweater for co-worker who's preggers, another set of baby uggs for another coworker who practically begged, scarf for my train mate (another asked for project, how can I turn someone down who asks me to knit?)

Sewing: Made DH a bath robe, out of valour(sp?). Man that stuff is hard to work with. Thank you Lord, that I have a serger. Made it WAAAAYYY too big, but he's a trooper and is living with it. Made some table toppers and runners, some craft panel vests (which I'm not that crazy about now that they're done, but they look good on the hanger). Made a calendar quilt I'm rather proud of, and a baby quilt - but both need the binding finished up. Made a table runner for a co-worker who just bought a house. She's enamoured with the Amish, and I immediately thought of her for the pattern "Almost Amish".

I either have a fiber addiction or a shopping addiction, cause I have entirely too much fabric and yarn. And yes, I keep buying more. I see something that's so neat/cute/adorable and MUST BUY THE YARN NOW, cause you know, they'll discontinue it before I get to knitting it. I recently bought a used Ultimate Sweater Machine from a Raveler, hopefully it'll help with the stockinette projects.

I spent the last two weekends cataloging all the damn fabric I bought - cheap, but still - for when I lose the weight and need a whole new wardrobe, donchaknow. Yeah, don't hold your breath. But my living/dining room almost look like living and dining rooms again, you can see the furniture at least, and we can vacuum it again.

Got me one of dem dere Kindles this summer. Way too easy to buy books now, but also way too easy to read 'em. I've been, the last couple years or so, reading multiple books at a time, one by the TV, one at the kitchen table, one on the train... This makes it so simple to switcharoo. It keeps track of where you're at too, no more lost little pieces of paper (even though I own like a dozen bookmarks). I've read about 40 books since I bought the Kindle, some of them freebies and cheapies (yeah, I still read Harlequin types, so sue me). A co-worker loaned me Twilight last week. Brace yourselves, I wasn't crazy about it. I know, I'm a traiter to my gender or something, but just didn't get what all the hoopla was about. Read it in about 3 hours too, geez the typeset was at 5th grade level or something.

Oh, and the family did get together, albiet a week or two later (long story).

... paved with good intentions

keep meaning to post, but never actually do. If H-E-double toothpicks should freeze over this weekend, it isn't because the Cubs won the World Series (seriously, that's a strong possibility). But due to my father, brother and I being in the same room for the first time since 1978. Like most families we had some disfunctional times, drifted apart, rarely spoke, then little by little we joined up again. I don't think my father and I have the typical father-daughter relationship, but it's good. Trouble free anyway. He and my stepmom are coming up for a long weekend visit, and we're all meeting at our Michigan place on Saturday. Cool 'n groovy.

Knitting: did lots with very little to show for it. Made another checkerboard baby blanket . Made a baby hat and baby socks (my first, and not nearly as scary as I thought). Never finished the niece's (3) cardigans, or the nephew's pullover. Got selfish knitting for everybody else so now have 2 sweaters on the needles for me, and another planned. Seriously in the MYTICKIML (more yarn than I can knit in my lifetime) category, but there's so many cool things to knit! Just ordered some sinfully expensive (but on sale - clearance, only one color left) cashmere. Cashmere! Enough for a sweater! As I write this I'm eyeing a stole on sundayknits.com -- reminds me of the mexican stripes shawls.

Working on which is an embroidered cardigan. I'm using Elann Bamboo fusion which is super splitty but super soft and drapey. Bought enough of the embroidery colors to make a striped tank to go underneath the cardigan.

Also working on "Frida's Sunshine". Using TLC Cotton plus and knitting in size medium. Having the hardest time with the 12 row zigzag pattern, keep finding mistakes 2 or 3 rows back. Knitted the same darn rows 5 times already.

Work's been crazy busy lately. We changed to a new quote system in my department, between that and the layoffs (less workers, but not less work) I've been hopping.

Baby Uggs

I'm just finishing the second set of Baby Uggs - they're so cute! Anyway, on the second set instead of knitting stockinette and seaming the bottom and back, after the toe section is knitted I decided to knit the ankle section on DPNs in the round. Only my second time knitting with DPNs but since I want to knit socks, I needed the practice. Went pretty well. Used the KnitPicks 6" size 3, separated the 35 stitches between 3 needles. Did something today that I hope everyone has done at least once on DPNs; when I went to take the empty needle and start the next section, I grabbed the wrong needle and pulled it out of all the stitches. PANIC! but it was ok, I did drop one stitch, but picked it up again pretty easily. That's one part of my knitting that is improving - recognizing when I screw up and being able to fix it without starting over!

great day

this was one of those "I'm so happy I married this man" days. We decided to drive up to michigan to make sure the cottage was ok. OK, he had to make sure - he's weird like that - and I went along for the ride. Knitted almost the entire car ride up and back, finished one baby ugg, and halfway through the other. Anyways, it was just a cool day. We got along all day, laughed a lot, ate dinner out on the way home (Texas Roadhouse, I had the pulled pork dinner with their absolutely wonderful mashed potatoes. I'd go there for the mashed potatoes and dinner rolls alone.) We walked across the ice, snow on the lake was mostly 2-4", it's about a 4 block walk to the island. Drifts on the island were pretty big, over my knees in places. You get pretty darn tired walking in drifts over your knees pretty darn quick! This was one of those keeper days, wish they were all like this. Baby Uggs picture is the first set that I already gifted to one mom-to-be, working on the second for obviously the second mom-to-be.

Ya gotta get one of these!

Today DH drove me out to Bolingbrook to Bass Pro Shops. Ho boy, ain't that a big place. It's like a small town. I don't fish, hunt, or camp and only boat under extreme circumstances (nobody else around to drive). I can fish or camp but choose not to. So why would I ask DH to chauffeur me to a fish, camp, boat, hunt store? For this:

It's a worm binder - made to hold plastic and even live fishing bait and lures. Read somewhere that it makes a great knitting needle organizer. Know what? It totally does. Totally ROCKS. Worth every penny. I bought the double, it's two sided. Multiple clear plastic zippered pockets and 10 Ziploc like pockets in each zippered compartment.

I used the label maker to make labels for the Ziploc-y bags(ex: 5mm sz 8) and put the labels on the inside of them. I knew that label maker would come in handy for more than labeling Video/Audio cables!

I went from this: Knit Picks interchangeable needle set, Knit Picks DPNs and a couple circulars, a few Addi Turbos, all the needles I inherited from my MIL - DPNs and circulars (thanks Mom), a Boye interchangeable set, stitch holders, stitch markers, point protectors, bobbins, a measuring tape,: two needle gauges, and tapestry needles. That purple and white monstrosity on the top right was my attempt at creating (copying) the "Circular Solution" where there's a strip of fabric that hangs from a clothes hanger, with labeled pockets that you slip the circulars through. The actual one is made from cotton duck, I used plain ole quilting cotton -- without interfacing or batting -- cause I'm stupid. It ended up as you see, a mass of wires and needles that managed to tangle, even with their respective rather droopy pockets.

To this and it ALL FIT:

I even got my 17, 19 and 35 sized circulars in there! I have no idea how I ended up with so many row counters. Didn't even know I had that many until I emptied out all my various knitting paraphernalia.

Still haven't finished the nieces and nephew x-mas sweaters, guess they're going to be Easter sweaters! Right now finishing up a pair of baby uggs for a shower at work Thursday. The yarn, Berroco Suede really feels and looks like suede, and with the Berroco Plush mimicking sheep fleece, well they're just the cutest things, really look like Uggs.

DH's hours got cut to 32 (4 days a week). We're happy he still has a job. Course this is after I went on a major yarn buying spree. Gotta stay out of the online yarn shops when I'm in a funk. Out of the funk, but now I have to pay for it all (and sneak it in to the house). Good thing DH doesn't read the blog. Don't tell him, ok? Marital discourse would surely transpire.

He'd currently removing the grout from our shower. We retiled it around 10 years ago, but did a lousy job on the grout, removing too much in the sponging off stage, to where the terra cotta sides of the tiles showed in places. And the caulking wasn't very even, ended up with pockets where moisture got in, and mildew started. So today we also went to Home Depot and bought a Dremel tool and grout removing bits. Even with the Dremel it's slow going, we're going to be using the guest bath for awhile! (Counting blessings, thank you Lord, that we even have a guest bath).

I'll never get em done before Christmas

Who am I kidding? Christmas is what, like next week? Wait, ok maybe the week after. Whatever, I'd need to take 3 days off work to get the nieces and nephews knitting done. Where does the time go? Oh, I know where. 2 weekends spent painting bedrooms. Working late many nights. Sleeping instead of knitting on the train. Running around doing errands. Life keeps interferring with knitting, darn it!

The company I work for laid off around 10% last Thursday. I'm still gainfully employed. This is the 5th layoff I've been through, one of which I was part of the 20% let go. The pins and needles are the worst. Waiting for the phone call, the ax to fall. Convincing yourself you'll be one of those laid off, then talking yourself in to why you won't be. Loosing sleep, not to mention productivity. It's kinda hard to be motivated when you think there's a possibility of a pink slip in your future. Then there's the whole We-feel-sorry-for-those-laid-off -- but-thank-God-it-wasn't-us water cooler conversations. Tough times for all I know, but it's my blog and I can b*tch if I want too.

Someone 'sides me is reading this blog! My cousin-in-law mentioned it in her Christmas card. Shoot, Christmas Cards, gotta get to those...

Cableing

I keep screwing up the Truck pullover for Gavin. If you think cableing (sp?) is hard, uncableing (sp?) is twice as bad. Friday I totally skipped the decrease part, so had to ravel 2 rows. Today I missed one lousy purl (I'm blaming Metra, the lights kept going off on the train) and had to ravel back through 5 cables. At this rate, the kids will get their Christmas gifts for Valentines day.

I'm in the middle, actually the start, of new computer rollouts at work. Today 2 things happened that pissed me off. My boss wants me to rollout a computer to the biggest whiner in the department, I wanted to make him last out of principle! And... there's an application update that has to go out now, of course after the majority of the 78 machines I'm rolling out are built. So each one won't be done after plug-in, they'll all have to be updated. (again) What a pain in the butt. I don't have time for this. I can't work late tomorrow or Thursday, tomorrow's haircuts, Thursday I'm having a tooth removed - surgically. Dentist swears I can go back to work Friday, good thing cause I'm out of days for the year, I think. I may have one left, but don't want to waste it on toothy problems! Next week I've scheduled a presentation for the department I support on how to manage your contacts, and I don't have a quarter of the presentation done. Ugh. How do I get in to these messes?

Finally the *%$?# election is over

Didn't think it would ever end. I went in to the booth pretty sure I was voting for Obama, but changed my mind at the last second and voted for 'the other guy'. As I live in Illinois, it's a wasted vote anyway (gotta hate that electoral college thing sometimes). Not crazy about Obama's socialist ideas, but do think he has a better chance at making some changes than McCain had. Whether the changes are good or bad...

And FINALLY finished Emily's sweater (green) a month after her birthday! Started Gavin's (truck pullover w/cables). My first experience with cabling, didn't start out too good, but by the second round I think I got it. Took me about 3 hours to undo a mistake cause I couldn't unravel the cables right. Almost frogged to the ribbing, but I persevered, probably to the detriment of the acrylic yarn!

I'm dying to knit the weekend pullover (Interweave Knits - pic below) for me. Gotta get all the gift stuff done first. 4 little kid sweaters, a pair of mittens as a thank you for a co-worker who did something nice for me (I was b*tching that I couldn't find egg rings anywhere and would have to buy online and pay shipping, she came in the next Monday with a set of 2, wasn't that sweet?). Figuring on a scarf and hat set for Kenny, the 2 baby gifts for the 2 co-workers that are preggers. Plus DH requested a new hat. Crap, I'll be lucky to get to knitting for me by Easter.

Hospital

DH had his gallbladder removed today. Surgery went fine, he's in hardly any pain (he says on a scale of 1-10, 1/2), but he's real nauseous and gets quite dizzy when ever he does anything but lie there, (when he gets up, sits up, watching TV, holding a conversation). It's better than it was at first though, he isn't vomiting anymore. I left at 5 and he looks tons better than he did at 11, his color is back. They say some people react to anesthesia that way, he's in the some people category. Ain't he lucky!

His biggest problems are nothing fits him! He's 6'4" and around 260. The bed's too short, the gown doesn't fit... They finally made the bed better (there's an adjustment to make it longer -- who knew?) right before I left. And he hates all the tubes!

I left at 5 cause it's getting dark earlier (plus we had one of those dreary, rainy, drizzly days) and I don't see so good in the dark. Total (or almost) dark -- forget it. Not too bad with street lights and car lights, but not great. Anywho, kinda wierd being all alone in the house for this long. We've been apart in our almost 25 years, but usually it's me that leaves him at home!

Finished the sleeves and half of the back of the Eyelet cardigan for Emily at the hospital, one redeeming value to spending the day there! Other than comforting and commiserating with DH of course!

OMG, I really have a lot of yarn

My husband would kill me if he really knew how much. I have it stashed in drawers, closests, plastic bins in the crawl space and plastic bags in the dining room. I didn't really realize it was so bad until I joined Ravelry and started inventorying. I hardly ever buy yarn without a particular project in mind (but there are a couple...) So I have enough for probably 30 sweaters. OMG! Am stopping now! WILL NOT BUY ANYMORE until everything's knitted! (yeah, right). Incentive, anyway. Must get knitting. Problem is I keep knitting for nieces and nephew, or for friends and co-workers who are having babies. Really eats in to the knitting for me time.



On the needles: Just finished Monica for Bella, and started Eyelet Cardigan for Emily. Then wil do the Precious Hearts Cardigans for Bella, Emily and Bethany, and the Truck Pullover for Gavin -- all xmas presents for nieces and nephew. Then the Baby Uggs and Baby Yeti for 2 women (sisters!) at work having babies, February and March respectively. THEN I can knit for me!

What I'm knitting / knit

BTW my ravelry ID is janetcc.

I'm sinfully proud of my first completed adult sweater -- the Lace Trimmed tank from the cover of the Summer 08 Creative Knitting. I've knit lots of baby stuff (gifts), a purse, couple hats, and started adult sweaters. But I always screwed up something and put it aside and never finished. Not this time, Ta-Da! Knit in Rowan Summer Tweed - color is Rush, kinda a sagey green. It's a size M, even though I wear a size 18 store bought. I knit BIG:


It started out as an old tee pattern from the 80's:


But when I got a bit farther than the pic below I discovered it was WAY too big, almost 53" inches. As mentioned above, I knit BIG. So now I'm taking a boxy cardi pattern and improvising, using the lace trim pattern in Rush on the bottom, and Oatmeal for the top. When finished I'll have a Twin Set!










But first I have to finish 3 verisons of Monica for three neices in Florida, ages 5, 3, and 1. Knitting in round with i-cord tie straps and shortening the ruffles width and length, no ruffles under the arms. Using TLC Cotton Plus so their mom's can machine wash 'em.

Then I have to finish this Lion Brand Shawl for a friend who needs it for her Harvest Ball.

THEN I'll finally get to finish a sweater I started when I first learned to knit, like 8 years ago. It's from a Mary Maxim kit "Autumn Leaves Cardigan", acrylic yarn, but I love the yarn, recommend it highly. Very soft, splits like acrylic, but if you're careful it's great, lots better than Red Heart or Caron in my opinion. Teal's my favorite color, fall's my favorite season, should end up a favorite sweater, no? I quit it when I messed up the intarsia leaves, I carried the MC too tightly. But I recently frogged it and ready to start it again.

I have enough yarn for about 25 projects (an addiction, put yarn on sale and I'll buy it). Gonna make this -- A Sirdar Safari pattern, but using Bernat Soft Boucle in Rosewood.