The last few days have gone by like a whirl. I kind of feel like I have been in a circle going around. But at least the circle wasn't broken. :-) I've had four no five doctors appointments during this time, a housefull of family visiting. And that by the way was much nicer than the doctors appointments. We had a great party for Lucy last Saturday. She was celebrating her 18th birthday here so that was really nice. I have several pictures to post and hopefully I will be able to do that later. I have had some techincal problems with some programs on my computer and I have Liza coming to fix them today. Yea that will be nice. Last week I introduced myself (per daughter Heather's insistance) to an iPod. I think I have the capacity for 70,000 songs. When could a person ever listen to that many songs. So, one of the songs that I have listened to so much is "Don't Worry, Be Happy". It's a fun song. In the knitting world, I have the back and half of the front finished of a new sweater that is made with Artful Yarns. I love the feel of the yarn, but the angora in it sheds everywhere. Especially on black. I started a vest out of some yarn that I bought from my LYS a couple of weeks ago. I've been going to the accupuncturist and I really like those needles. I think it is helping. I have been having the desire to knit some socks now that flip flop weather is coming to an end. Time to keep the feet nice and toastie. We've had our first fire in the woodstove but then it turned right around and was 88 degrees for several days. I will attempt to post pictures after Liza is done.

The month is at a halfway point and the weather is changing and it is going to be knitting by the fire weather very soon. Can't wait. I am posting a picture of myself, Lana and the sock knitting machine. If any of you have a nice name for the machine, let me know. I am glad I went back to Lana's house for a second lesson as I had forgotton a couple of important steps in the beginning stages of making a sock. I'v got some waste yarn on order that she told me would be good and once it arrives I will attempt to do this all over again. It really is an interesting process. But I have discovered that although this can make a sock rather quickly, it is probably more fun to knit one by hand. This has it's cool things about it though. I think when I last blogged I was nearing the end of my sweater. Well, I got it completed as far as the seaming of it together and then I picked up the stitches for the neck and I ran out of yarn before I could complete it. I don't need a lot so I will be picking up another skein on Thursday when I am in Roseville for accupuncture.

Lucy and I took the beaded scarf class at Filati's last Saturday and it was a great class. We really enjoyed it and learned something that will be very useful in future projects. I will post a photo of the scarf as it gets a little further along. My sweater was calling me so it basically took the front seat. Since then, I bought yarn at Knit Wits for a vest that is a Berroco pattern. I have another sweater that I started and will be doing the increases for the back tonight. It is made from Artful yarn which is quite nice to work with. It has some angora in it.



Yesterday we went to a birthday party for Heatherly's oldest and youngest daughters. It was a lot of fun. Tirzah was 11 years old and Tali was 1 year old. The above picture is Heather, Tirzah and Tali. The girls really enjoyed the party as did the rest of the siblings and Grandparents.

SP9 Questionnaire

1. What is your favorite yarn to knit with? I like yarns that feel good in my hands which opens the door for quite a variety. I do not care for some of the acrylics. I love working with cashmere (who wouldn't?) Angora has a super duper feel. But, I love most of the wool blends that are made by Debbie Bliss, Jo Sharp etc. etc.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? Several cases.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? My Mother taught me years ago but I was not that interested at that time. I started knitting again about two years ago...maybe it is three. I would consider myself intermediate.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yes, I have an Amazon wish list.

5. What's your favorite scent? Vanilla is always a safe choice and I like lavendar also.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Sometimes Favorite Candy? I generally stick to sugarless hard candies. I also satisfy my sweet tooth with fruits. Trying to be healthy these days.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I am learning how to make quilts and enjoying that. Some scrapbooking. Knitting is definately at the top of the list but I had to branch out because of my arm. I have a 1922 sock knitting machine and I am trying to master that. I do not spin. At least not yet.

8. What kind of music do you like? Oldies but Goodies, some Country, Folk Music, Classical
Theme music i.e. The Lion King etc. I dislike hard rock and hip hop. Can your computer/sterio play MP3's? What's an MP3? So, I guess the answer to that in No. I am trying to do research on IPODS etc. and MP3 players, but I'm not there yet. :-)

9. What's your favorite color? Any colors you just can't stand? I enjoy almost all colors and I cannot think of a color that I can't stand.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am married to a wonderful man. I have three step children and several kids that I refer to as mine who were exchange students that lived with us for a year and have all been back to visit. Then there is Jen who works for us and is like a daughter. The exchange students were from Japan, Panama, Honduras, Poland and Costa Rica. Currently Lucy (from Costa Rica) is living with us however she will be going home on December 19th. We have three beautiful cats Clover, Buffy and Sophie and two lovely dogs Blue and Poppy.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? Yes to scarves, hats and mittens and no to ponchos.

12. What is your favorite item to knit? I enjoy sweaters, socks and I wish one of my girls would have a baby so I could make another baby blanket. It was lots of fun.

13. What are you knitting right now? I am working on the second sleeve of a sweater which I hope to finish tonight. I just started a beaded scarf which is interesting. There is a great deal of potential for using this technique on numerous projects. I have a pair of socks on needles and have started a pair of socks on my machine. I have just done the guage for a hooded sweater that I will be making next.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts. Yes, I very much enjoy receiving handmade gifts.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, or plastic? I really prefer circular needles. I like the ease of Addi Turbos, however I find when I am making a sweater that it is better if I use bamboo circulars as I am able to keep my guage more consistent if that makes any sense. Or the other option is to use about two sizes smaller in the Addi Turbo.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and or swift? Yes, both.

17. How old is your oldest UFO? I would guess that the oldest UFO is a lace scarf that I am working on off and on. It is six different patterns, I have completed 4 of them. It takes a bit on concentration when working on it.

18. What is your favorite holiday? I would have to say Thanksgiving. It's a nice time to be with family and friends. I reflect on all that I have to be thankful for and it's a very long list.

19. Is there anything that you collect? I would say yarn and knitting books are my weakness. I do have great consumer resistance for other things. It's not that I don't appreciate many other things, but I can rarely answer yes to the "Do you Need This?" question.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? Yes, I would love to have Jo Sharps number 2 pattern book. My LYS are all sold out. What knitting magazines subscriptions do you have? My subscription to Creative Knitting just expired but I didn't want to renew it. Currently I do not have any subscriptions.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn. I would love to learn how to knit Continental and I would very much like to master this machine I bought.

22. Are you a sock knitter? Oh yes! Love Sock knitting. What are your foot measurments? I wear a size 9 shoe.

23. When is your birthday? March 7th

And last but not least there was one question that had been asked previously and was not on the list this go around, but I am alergic to cigarette smoke.

It's a new month already and the fall colors where I live are beginning to show. We went from some very hot days to some cold ones and now we are having some nice fall weather. Lucy and I got our quilts to a point where we will deliver them to the quilter today and I do not know how long she will have them, but eventually there will be a picture posted of a completed project. I have been working on my Coco sweater a little at a time. Actually I have completed the back and front and one sleeve. I am currently working on the second sleeve now. I am hopeful to have it put together and be wearing it next week. You never know, but I can dream a little. Yesterday we spent the day in Cameron Park with Lana and she was going over the sock knitting machine again. I made the second sock yesterday so now I have a pair, but they are not the same length. :-) The tension was different yesterday so maybe when we moved it from her house to mine and back again we adjusted the tension differently by accident. This machine has a mind of it's own from time to time so you have to be watching it all the time and you cannot take for granted that it will pick up all of the stitches. I think that there are some adjustments that need to be made and eventually I will figure that out. One thing that I did find out yesterday that was of great importance to me was that my machine is not just an 80 needle machine, but it can accomodate 72, 60 and 52 needles. That makes me very happy to say the least.
Tomorrow Lucy and I are headed off to Filate in Rocklin to take a class on knitting with beads so that is going to be lots of fun. We really enjoy the ladies there and know that we will have fun. There was a hat that the instructor made with some beads and it was outstanding. Very classy and I might make an attempt at that some day. I have three sweater patterns ahead of me though and since I am not knitting as fast as I did that will probably take me into 2007. I am also having a craving so to speak for hand knitting another pair of socks. There is just something special about socks. I will post some pictures of my sock knitting maching in a few days and the lace beaded scarf as we start that project.