the other kid~

meet jesse

jess is our 9 year old border collie 

and the reason i run the sweeper

every.   single.   day.

she was found in a box with her sisters, dumped at the dog pound

 she was then saved by the border collie rescue in ohio

she spent 6 weeks in a mens prison where she was taught manors & obedience
i find it humorous that she was sent to a place to learn manors & obedience from
someone who was sent to the same place for not having manors or obedience...ha

her next stop was to a foster home to see how she played with others, both people & pets
she did well on both accounts
we filled out the adoption papers for her & waited

(the application to adopt her was 6 pages & they called every reference!)
and we were fortunate to become her forever parents

she is the protector of our home

nothing....and i do mean nothing comes into our yard

she runs everything into the woods or the field behind us
people are the exception....
she loves the ups & fed ex guys...and if they leave the door to their truck open..
she's in!

she loves to visit the neighbors pond

she loves this boy

she will even wear silly hats & bandanna's

and most of all, she loves this guy...can you tell?

we are lucky to share our couch with her

~*~

a million bucks~

the hubs & i did the grocery shopping today

 having to trudge around in 0 degree weather

in snow & ice & wind

then .....

put it in the cart

 take it out of the cart & put it on the checkout belt,pay for it

 put it back in the cart, put it in the car, take it out of the car

haul it all in the house

put it all away

cook it, eat it, clean it up

and then.....

 do it all again next week

 makes me stomp my feet, cross my arms & huff like a 8 year old child

it's my least favorite chore!

but this week involved two treats...

 the hubs going with me

and these.....

~springtime in a vase~

sometimes $6.00 can make you feel like a million bucks

(and make you act a little less like a 8 year old)

~*~

a little merry christmas on his noggin~

merry christmas hubs!!!!...albeit late

he loves it & it's a perfect fit

his wife just underestimated her ability to complete the project on time

pattern: eliots ass kicking hat

yarn: quince & co

needle: addi turbo size 0

started: december 1st, 2013

completed: january 15, 2014   yeah!!!!!

ravelry page & notes:  katieb663

thanks to megan ellinger for the help along the way!

~*~

knitting progress & what's in my shoe box...

eliots kick ass hat is coming along nicely!

i have a few more rows before starting the crown decrease

the quince & co yarn has some stretch to it &

with it being 100% american wool

it will be nice & warm

i love the color & the texture of the quince & co yarn

when it's completed (this week for sure!)

hopefully it will have been worth the wait for the hubs

awwww......the notions box....

i believe it's an old tupperware container

i glued a cut off straw in the corner to hold the appropriate hook or dpn

makes for a quick find when trying to fix something

the contents...

the usual gauge thingy, markers in all shapes & sizes

notepad, a few quarters for snacks or coffee, shop cards & the bands of currents projects,

a eraser, crochet hooks, (stored in a travel case for a toothbrush), tape measure, finger cots, 

 row/stitch counter, sticky flags, lotions, dental floss (i use floss for life lines)

 little container of various needles,

cable needle, scissors, band-aid, pens, pencils, highlighter, back scratcher, (my littles love this!)

yarn of my current project

 i love seeing what's in notion boxes, sewing boxes and peoples purses...

does this make me weird????

my knitting basket....reminds me of the basket my granny had

it folds up so you can carry it by the handles

it has a little zippered pocket inside that i stick a few notions in when on the go

care to share the contents of your  knitting bag, box or tin?

~*~

albums, cassettes, cd's....oh my!

i have stacks & stacks of cds
before that it was stacks & stacks of albums

it's only been a few years ago that i parted with all my albums, yes albums

(except the Jackson Browne albums....just couldn't let them go)

 i have a hard time making the transition from one media to another, do you?
there have been so many media transitions......
45's
33's
8 tracks
cassettes
cd's

and now itunes & the like
i can only imagine how my littles will listen to music when they are my age
both amazing and sad all these changes we see
do you embrace change or shudder at the thought?

i have decided to rip all my cd's to itunes & back everything up to an external drive
i googled and that's what lots of folks suggested

how are you storing collections of music?

~~*~~

what to do, what to do...

works in progress or frogs

wip #1

the lala shawl

i love the pattern 

the yarn.....mmmmm, not so sure just yet

i really like the colors which was the deciding factor that lead to my purchase

the yarns are souk' by cascade and mohair

i like the pattern, i like the color, i like the two together

it's the feel i'm not so sure about

it's a bit scratchy

given that it's something that will be close to my neck and makes me a little itchy,
i'm now wondering if i made a good choice?

i really want to use the mohair because i like the color and it was expensive!

wip #2

nutkin hand warmer

this project started out as a sock

i did not check my gauge

(oh how many times have i said that before?)

as a sock, it was too small to go over my thick ankle

rather than frog, i decided to make it a handwarmer

i like it as a handwarmer....i don't love it

the nutkin pattern tends to twist

not sure why? i do magic loop...could that be the reason for the twist?

it is malabrigo yarn which i like and i love the wine color 

( i like wine...maybe this is the reason i like the color????)

i'm just not crazy about the outcome

and it's a lot of work to not really care for it in the end

boo

wip #3

my favorite scarf

turns out....it's not really my favorite 

this yarn started out to be socks

the pattern & the yarn were not a good match

i liked the pattern, i like this yarn

but they did not make a happy pair

i divided the yarn into two balls to do 2 at a time socks, changed my mind about the socks

decided to go with a scarf

i knit the first half of the scarf with one ball and it looks great

the second half, i knit with the other ball & the color pooled?

someone suggested that i frog it and re-ball it starting with the opposite end?

i'm going to give it a go...

wip #4

eliots kick ass hat

i like both the yarn (quince & co) & the pattern

i started this dec. 1st in hopes of stuffing the hat in the hubs stocking

had i read the pattern before starting (how many times have i said that before!)

i would have seen "cast on 180 stitches using a size 0 needle"

i did not finish by christmas...the hubs was gifted an IOU instead

i hope to finish it this week

i'm not working on any other project until i finish this hat!

if you have any suggestions about any of my wip's, i would love to hear from ya!

hope you are all staying warm..

we are -8 degrees today with 20 mph winds

brrrrrrrrr

~~*~~

old project......new deadline

i have been knitting a hat for the hubs

i started it december 1st with every intention of stuffing it in his stocking

deadline missed   : (

rather than a hat, he was gifted a IOU.. awwww poor hubs

my first mistake...

 choosing a pattern that begins with

cast on 180 stitches using a size 0 needle

my second mistake...

using a fingerling yarn in a very dark brown given i have oldish eyes

AND

trying to shop, bake, wrap & well you know all the christmas goodness

you try to cram into a period of a few weeks!

but...

i do love the pattern & the quince yarn....pure heaven!

and i am fond of the hubs

pattern....eliots ass kicking hat

yarn....quince finch in bark

needle... size 0

motivation....andi's january kal/cal

we would love for you to join us!

~*~