September already?

Can you believe that it is almost September? Holy moly! This summer flew by and I feel like I didn't get to do half of what I had hoped to. No Cedar Point, no weekend trip to Chicago, not enough ice cream cones or BBQs, not enough of a sun tan or time spent lazing around on the lounge chair in the backyard. Sigh. Hopefully summer will last well into September and allow me to do some of these wonderful things before fall arrives.

Don't get me wrong ... I love fall too. Fall in Michigan is great! I love the changing leaves and cider mills and carving pumpkins and celebrating my birthday.

Knit-wise, I am working on another Sophie ... this time for my sister. Her birthday was yesterday, so it is going to be belated. (oops)

Marching bands & yarn surprises

Went to Interlochen on Sunday with the fam. Good weather, good music, good times. My nephew is going to be a senior this year, so it was a big deal to see him perform with the marching band. There is so much tradition and hard work happening there. It is quite moving!

Lydia & me @ Interlochen - Go Ferndale!!

I got my yarn from elann yesterday. I was very excited to get it & they are always so speedy!

Teal? Or grey?

The Gatsby yarn gave me a bit of a shock. I know you take a risk colorwise, when you order yarn online, but GEEZ! Based on the elann photo, I was expecting something a little more Tiffany blue and a lot less grey. Hmmm. I like it and I will still find a use for it, but it was definitely NOT what I was expecting.

Yarn binge

I just bought $60.00 in yarn on elann. Got an email announcing new stock and the next thing I knew I had picked out and purchased 15 balls of PCHW and 2 hanks of Gatsby! Probably shouldn't have done that, but I didn't get to go to the Michigan Fiber Festival, so ...

I am up north this weekend, visiting my parents. It has been fun. Got a pedicure this morning and my feet are so happy (and lovely). Saw Wedding Crashers this evening and then went out for burgers. I thought the movie was pretty good ... not as great as I had been hearing, but Vince Vaughn & Owen Wilson make me laugh. Tomorrow, we are headed to Interlochen to see my nephew's concert. We have to leave @ 7am (which is way to early too be up on a Sunday). So, time for bed! Good night.

A pair of mittens & a pattern

The mittens are complete (at long last)! I like them a lot and I am actually (kind of) starting to look forward to a time when the weather will require that I wear them.

Please keep in mind that these were made to fit my hand, so it may require some tweaking. They are roomy on me ... I probably could have gotten away with casting on a few less stitches.

Materials:
2 balls of Landscapes yarn
Size US 15 needles
Size US 10.5 needles
Stitch holder

Instructions:

• Row 1: CO 25 st (on US 15 needles)
• Row 2 - 7: K1, p1 ribbing
• Row 8 - 14: Stockinette st
• Row 15: K10, K f&b (5x), K10 (30 st)
• Row 16: P
• Row 17: K12, K f&b (5x), K13 (35 st)
• Row 18: P12, place 10 st on holder, P13
• Row 19: K (25 st)
• Row 20 - 32: Stockinette st
• Row 33: K2, ssk, K2, ssk, K2, ssk, K1, ssk, K2, ssk, K2, ssk, K2 (19st)
• Row 34: P
• Row 35: K2, ssk, K2, ssk, K3, ssk, K2, ssk, K2 (15 st)
• Row 36: P
• Row 37: ssk (3x), K3, ssk (3x) (9 st)
• Row 38: P (on US 10.5 needles)
• Row 39: k2tog (2x), K1, k2tog (2x) (5 st)
• Row 40: use needle to pull yarn thru stitches ( pull tight)
• Seam from top to bottom

And the thumb ...

• Put 10 st from holder on US 15 needle
• Thumb 1: P
• Thumb 2: K
• Thumb 3: P
• Thumb 4: K (on US 10.5 needles)
• Thumb 5: P
• Thumb 6: K2, k2tog, K2, k2tog, K2 (8 st)
• Thumb 7: P
• Thumb 8: k2tog (4 x) (4 st)
• Thumb 9: use needle to pull yarn thru stitches ( pull tight)
• Seam from top to bottom

Hot fun in the summertime

Fun with friends, fun with the BF and fun with knitting!

Fun with friends 1.) went to Ann Arbor w/ Todd, Kristin, Goldie & Pat, ate lunch at Zingerman's (YUM!), walked around town, went to Urban Outfitters and had Ben & Jerry's ice cream 2.) visited Ruby & Jeff's beautiful new home in Ferndale and wished them a happy one year anniversary.

Fun with the BF 1.) saw Charlie & the Chocolate Factory in the theatre and liked it (even though I LOVE the original) 2.) finally saw Sideways and liked that too! 3.) ate a delicious breakfast at Toast in Ferndale

Fun knitting 1.) had time to knit while I watched Sideways 2.) had time to knit while I watched Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 3.) finally finished the darn mittens (just moments ago! pictures & pattern coming soon)

Detroit Swing City

Went to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy this weekend. They played with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra at Meadowbrook Music Festival. It was a lot of fun and it brought back memories of my swing dance days. (I sound like I am 80!) But it actually made me miss swing dancing a lot!

So, I have been talking about these damn mittens for a month. I think that I finally got the pattern right! Maybe it wasn't too bright (of me) to make up my own pattern when I have only been knitting for 6 months. But hey! I finished one mitten and hopefully will finish a second one soon. Photos and the pattern will be posted soon ...

I WON!!!! I was driving home from work, listening to the radio and they annouced that the 9th caller would win concert tickets to see the English Beat. I usually wouldn't bother, but something possessed me to pick up my cell phone and give it a try. : )

Headin' home

I am so happy - I get to go back home today. No more dog sitting. I cannot wait! It is only a 45 minute drive ... you would think that I was going back home from Nebraska or something. Ha.

Speaking of Nebraska ... I have never been there. I have also not been to 67% of the United States. Pretty pathetic, huh?

create your own visited states map

Hmmmm - looks like I need to plan a trip. My top 5 states to visit (that I haven't already visited) are:

1. Hawaii
2. Massachusetts
3. Washington / Oregon
4. Alaska
5. Maine (mmm ... lobster)

Dog sitting & knitting

I have been busy, busy, busy! In addition to starting a new job, I have been dog sitting for my old boss. I don't know why I volunteered to do this ... except that he was the most wonderful and flexible boss (ever) and I felt like I should be nice and do him a favor.

In the process, I have added 45 minutes to my commute (each way), I am not spending much time with my boyfriend and I have to sleep in a strange bed. But I have been able to squeeze in knitting time! This is definitely a good thing. However, come Saturday, I will be happy to be back in my own bed with my own pillow and my own dog ... even if that means that I may have difficulty finding time to knit!