i must be feeling hopeful - or delusional

the boy and i visited walden's at our mall.  20% off everything in the store.  in addition to buying more magic treehouse books for the boy (he'll be getting those books for the next dozen years) i got these:



i must be feeling very brave and hopeful.  or else i'm just stupid and delusional.

my mind is completely blown

i splurged on the new EZ book.  my mind is completely blown.



EZ is a genius.  the patterns are all garter, not a lick of purl.  the construction of the pieces are intriguing.

i can't wait to clear out some WIPs and work on this:



i'm not sure i have enough yarn to knit that, but i can try...



petunia would look adorable in this little jacket...



perhaps these are for fair exhibition next year?

and i did start a little something...




like i said.  genius!!

a yarn diet splurge

nothing cheers better than finding this on your porch during a particular craptacious week:

i've been sticking to my yarn diet,  but as i couldn't find the proper yarn for petunia's sweater, i ordered some knit picks swish worsted in lotus. 

and knit picks dishie in melon becos i like to road test new yarn.  

and nickel tips in 5, 9 and 10 becos i'm tired of my harmony tips coming apart mid knit.  

extra cables as i threw away a couple 32" becos the couplings were loose, and i can always use extra 24" ones.  

and the Big Book Knitted Monsters.  becos knitted monsters would be an awesome way to stash bust, right?

look at that box full of happy!!!

book review - skein of the crime

maggie sefton is one of my favorite knit lit writers.  the heroine in her mystery series is kelly flynn, a 30 something CPA who relocated to her hometown after the murder of her aunt.  kelly has a knack for sleuthing and not only discovers who murdered her aunt, but also solves other crimes as well.  Kelly juggles her career, the small fortune that fell into her lap following the death of her aunt's cousin, a love life, and her friends at the house of lambspun, the yarn shop across the street from her house.  kelly must live in heaven, to have a sumptuous yarn shop so close by!

sefton's recent writing, skein of the crime, starts with kelly finding an intruder in her back yard.  frightened by the girl who does not communicate with her, kelly calls the cops, only to find out that the girl is whacked out on drugs and taken to the hospital.  the girl, holly, is an acquaintance of mimi, owner of house of lambspun, as the girlfriend of a shop's patron's son.  several weeks later, holly seems to be on a straight path, staying away from drugs and alcohol, only to be found one morning near kelly's home again, on the river path, dead.

the cause of death was overdose.  however kelly has a nagging feeling that holly just didn't OD.  with the aid of holly's classmate, she is introduced to the party scene of the college town.  she also talks to acquaintances, the boyfriend's mom, and roommate, and discovers that the "dirt" she is being fed by the classmate is often conflicting, which leads kelly to holly's killer.

this mystery seemed easy to solve midway through the book.  i had 3 suspects in mind, and i'm proud to say that i guessed the right one!  i won't say who it is...that's for you to discover!

this book takes into account the recent economic downturn.  kelly's boyfriend, steve, is struggling financially as his architectural dreams slowly crumble due to foreclosure and he takes on extra work to stay above water.  kelly, whose oil drilling on her aunt's land is picking up, offers financial support to steve.  other friends offer financial assistance as well.  steve, weary and frustrated, refuses help.  the economic twist plus some relationship gaffes on kelly's part put a strain on the couple's relationship.

megan and marty, two of kelly's friends, become engaged in the book, and their wedding plans add another story line to the plot.  i enjoyed this storyline, and it added a much bounce to an otherwise somber novel.

the book ends with a bit of a shocker, which i hope is resolved in the next book (pretty please?  another book please!)

i love sefton's books, and i always marvel how a character can become involved in so many murders!  kelly shouldn't be a CPA but a detective!  she's a bit like brenda leigh johnson from the closer, innocently digging for dirt but always talks the suspect into confessing!

this book includes a pattern for a braided knit scarf, which sounds very interesting and simple to knit, but knitting 60"X3 of garter stitch would be much like a lobotomy!  the book's recipe is for a killer carrot cake which sounds yummy.  i love when sefton describes food in her books.  they always make me hungry!

i liked skein of the crime.  i give it 5 out of *****

death by cashmere - a book review

i bought this book last year when i was greatly preggo with the kiddos.  i thought it would make a nice summer read.  what i didn't know was that gestating twins seriously saps your energy, and instead of reading or knitting i spent my idle time watching tv and playing solitaire on my new iPod touch.  death by cashmere sat on my bookshelf for over a year before i noticed it while changing one of the kiddos, thinking, it's time to read that book.  i like knit lit - what's there to lose?  so about a month ago i sat down and read it.

death by cashmere, by sally goldenbaum, is a book about a group of knitters on cape cod and the murder that occurs in their small fishing community.  a beautiful woman is found dead amongst lobster traps one morning, and the townsfolk are shocked and saddened to learn that this happened in their small community, where everyone knows everyone else and their business.  initially the death is ruled an accident but quickly turns into a murder investigation.


izzy is a woman whose career did a 180 when she decides to leave the law profession and open a yarn shop in her old hometown.  family and friends known as "the seaside knitters" gather in her shop to knit and gossip, and naturally the murder is top on their list.  the woman who was murdered lived above the yarn shop, and the ladies wonder who could harm the woman, who, while a nice person, did have friction amongst members of the town.


after someone breaks into the woman's apartment, the ladies take it upon themselves to do a little investigating of their own.  was the woman having an affair with a prestigious member of the community?  did she discover something that she shouldn't have?  after digging around, the seaside knitters discover a shocking secret, one that will bring fortune and joy to one member of the community while bringing ruin and dishonor to another.  the murderer is apprehended, and the townsfolk of cape ann breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that their community is safe again.

it took me several days to finish this book.  not that it is a big book - it's your average length mystery.  i'm not sure why, but the story just didn't grab me, like other knit lit murders have.  it was entertaining though and i was still stumped on who the murderer was until the end.  the book offers a lovely scarf pattern in the back, but when i inquired about it on ravelry, it wasn't in the pattern data base. no recipes either, but that's okay.  i probably won't keep this book in my library - i'll donate it to my local one instead, so someone else can enjoy it.

on a scale of *****, i give death by cashmere a **1/2

the tunie bug and the bee

took a bit of a break from the kiddos' log cabins to make these:

a lady bug for my little tunie bug.

and hot off the needles...

a sweet little bumble bee for my little fredster.

these are my first alan dart projects. he is a prolific designer of knitty toy goodness.  his patterns are featured in simply knitting, a british knitting publication.  the subscription costs and arm and a leg (roughly $150 per year, in american dollars), but i split the subscription with my knitting/yoga teacher.  i am downsizing a lot of my magazine subscriptions, but i refuse to drop this one, simply becos they have many beautiful and unique patterns, pages devoted to showing off FOs and answering knitting or crocheting questions, and coolest of all, they send a goodie gratis every month.  i've gotten measuring tapes, counters, knitting needles, stitch markers and project bags from them.  their patterns are pretty user friendly too;  this is no vogue knitting.  

the bug project had 3 patterns:  the lady bug (or as they called it, a ladybird), the bumble bee, and a sweet green and yellow caterpillar.  the project called for sirdar snowflake, which i couldn't find stateside, but i found a good alternative in red hearts' moon and stars.  i'm not a red hearts fan, but this yarn was pretty easy to work with, much to my surprise.  i started the lady bug earlier in the week and finished it yesterday;  started the bee yesterday afternoon and finished up this afternoon.  i have the green yarn to make the caterpillar - maybe someday. while the patterns aren't tricky, i found assembling the bugs a bit of a challenge.  first, i can't sew to save my soul, and b, i can't embroider features either.  the assembly instructions were a bit confusing to me, but i winged it, and they came out pretty cute!  i have tons of yarn left over - i could always make a set of toys for a baby shower gift or something.  

i have one more strip to knit on the log cabins, then the cream and blue/pink squares, then the border!  i finished a gold strip last night at the movies (alice in wonderland, it was okay).  i would love to get these blankets finished so i can start working on this beauty:

i fell in love with the this beautiful knitted quilt.  actually, i fell in love with the baby afghan version, but since i'm tired of knitting baby blankets (it's not very practical, it's made with wool of the andes and not kid friendly).  this kit was cheaper, and i think it will look beautiful in the living room.  knitpicks also had a book sale happening, so i got knitted socks east and west and amigurumi animal friends.  not that i'll be knitting socks any time soon, but i admired the patterns and i love sock books.  and someday i will knit an amigurumi.  it's hard to find knit patterns - most are crochet.

today is my wedding anniversary.  hubby and i have been married for 11 years, and together for more than 13.  where did that time go?  it seemed to fly in the blink of an eye.

feelin' the love in philly, 2 years ago.  a homeless guy took our picture with the iconic love sculpture on our anniversary.  we gave him $5.  hope he spent it well.  we're taking a delayed mini honeymoon later this spring, to cooperstown new york.  yes, we are getting away and leaving the kids with the grandparents!  hubby and i earned a well earned vacay, don't you think?

off my feed

a bout of the grippe has sidelined me for the past few days.  hubby and i were so sick.  thank goodness the children weren't sick.  hubby was so sick he took a day off from work - he never does that.  we don't know what made us so sick, but hubby thinks it's the popeye's we ate saturday night.  we're feeling a lot better, but eating isn't up to par.

on saturday we went south to visit hubby's GM.  we aren't going down for thanksgiving and since GM wouldn't see the babies until next summer, we wanted visit sooner.  she really enjoyed seeing the kiddos and we took her out to lunch at a really good buffet place.

we also made our quarterly pilgrimage to bRu, to look for new bottles (the avents leak and therefore suck), sippy cups, feeding supplies (since we need doubles) and a couple of other odds and ends.

i also made my jaunt to borders.  it yielded me loads of mags and books.  to wit:

november's yarn forward

issue 11 of the knitter

interweave knits accessories

interweave knits holiday knitting

november's knitting

december's knit 'n style (and anniversary issue!)

fall/winter debbie bliss magazine


i also got some books.  a couple of winter books for the kids for christmas.  and books for mommy!

itty bitty toys by susan b. anderson

naturally healthy first foods for baby by jacqueline rubin

what to expect the first year


i got this book a couple of weeks ago:

sock innovations by cookie a


thanksgiving is tomorrow.  we are spending it at home, just the five of us, eating very untraditionally (slow cooker hot sausage and peppers sandwiches, mac and cheese).  and i actually baked:

crustless pumpkin pie.  it's basically pie guts baked into ramekins.  when they cool, i'll top with cool whip and pie spice.  grams makes the best pumpkin pie, and for the longest time i thought it was a very special recipe, but she uses the recipe on the back of the canned pumpkin label!  i love her pie, but 'm not so much a crust person.  i'd rather eat the guts and leave the crust.

the kiddos are cooing now and smile more.  now they smile at the sight of me and return smiles when i give them!  and i swear i heard monkey ears say/coo "hello" a couple of times, and the pixie mouth "hi" to the boy.  the boy got an iguana eraser for having a month of no misbehaving at school.

this is the time of year that we count our blessings and give thanks for everything we have.  we should do this every day, not just one day a year.  not a day goes by that i don't thank God for my beautiful, healthy children, my wonderful, patient, kind and funny husband, my understanding and loving parents and grandmothers.  friends, both in person and in spirit.  i'm grateful that hubby still has a job and although things are tight financially, we are able to take care of our children and meet their needs.  grateful for a warm dry house.  grateful for a car that the five of us fit into.  grateful for my health.  grateful for my family's health.  just grateful.

i'm toying with going offline for a few days.  i have a lot to do - decorating for christmas, "spring" cleaning the house, spending time with my family.  knitting,  catching up on reading.  it's a challenge that's due.  wish me luck.

new books

one bright spot during my week of flu agony was that i got 3 knitting books from the amazon fairy.  i originally planned to order these from knit picks, but one book was backordered to early november, and after waiting nearly a month to order them, i got them from amazon instead.

the first book was vickie howell and adrienne armstrong's AwareKnits.  i followed this book through vickie's blog and was really excited when it was finally released.  vickie and adrienne discuss green lifestyle not only through living but also crafting as well.  i am most coveting the "green wrapping" baby sleep sack.   of course by the time i get it knit the babies will have outgrown it, but the projects in this book are pretty amazing, as are the yarns.  there is a project that uses spun newspaper.  who knew!


the second book i ordered (and the reason i ordered from amazon) is Amigurumi Knits by hansi singh.  i love looking at amigurumi - tiny animals and figures, usually crochet.  since i don't crochet, i'm out of luck.  but i discovered this book and now i can knit amigurumi!  apparently there aren't many knit patterns for amigurumi, but it's a good start.  the book intimidates me somewhat but i can't wait to try a pattern.  i love the vegetables and the loch ness monster patterns best.


the last book i ordered was Reversable Knits by iris schreier.  i love this woman's work!  i learned double knitting at KDO last month and wanted a book of patterns.  there aren't very many books on the market - most double knitting books include mosaic knitting - but this had a great array of double knitting and reversable patterns.  most of the double knitting patterns are for scarves, but there is a really neat mobius scarf i want to try.  there are also some beautiful shawls.  a beautiful book.


i may have been misleading with my stroller blanket in the previous post.  it is done!  i knit 8 inches of it at the doctor's office and then finished it at home.  seriously, i don't know why it took me so bloody long to knit it.  it's chunky boucle, a small blanket, a fast knit.  maybe becos it was boring stockinette (not that stockinette is boring...)  anyways, the blanket is finished and i'm a green wedge and a dozen flowers away from finishing the tree skirt.

i'm cleaning off the dvr.  currently watching the monty python documentary - starting with hour one, see if i can last to hour 6.  i have a day's worth of V the 1984 tv series.  tonight is the series opener for the new V.  i hope it lives up to the old series.  i loved this show when i was a kid.  so did hubby.  i don't know what the appeal of aliens is, but i had it.  funnier still, the boy likes the show too!


sick watch is still on.  hubby is keeping well as are the babies.  mom has bronchitis.  dad has 2 funerals this week and is exhausted.  still soldiering on, we are.

i'm a survivor

i managed to survive the boy's birthday party with a shred of my sanity. i will never do a party that big ever again!

after a month of no rain, naturally it rains on the day when we want to have the party outside. we used the parish hall, which we really weren't authorized to use but the party was quick and we were out of there by noon for the party who actually rented it. 12 kids showed up which was pretty amazing. half of them were totally bashful and barely left their parents' sides. but the kids enjoyed the games and the treasure chest and the balloons and the food (i hope).

my cakes were disasters. the icing melted off of the cupcakes and pooled on the containers. the pirate ship split in two, and the icing puddled there as well. i think it's becos i covered the cakes after i iced them, maybe if i left them sit out a while, the icing would have hardened and not melted.

the boy got beau coup gifties. i think he got 4 remote control cars, a pirate cove set, batman stuff, cars and trucks. NOT cheap stuff. it made me feel bad when i send craft stuff to parties for him (altho i spend about $20 on crafting stuff). the boy LOVES his bat cave. also LOVES the automoblox we got him. 2 gifts that drive me nuts - the bat belt, with its shooting foam rubber bullets (wtf? for a kid?) and the toy reciprocal saw that the kid thought the boy just HAD to have. well, the bullets will go amongst the missing over the next few weeks, and the saw will be dealt with too.

the boy also had a better day at school today. his teacher said he should have turned 5 a long time ago. never mind my kid acts like he's **25**.

i finished my moebius scarf on friday and it looks awesome. it's a bit longer than i wanted, but i can wrap it around my neck three times and it's really warm. i can't wait to try cat bordhi's moebius scarf pattern - that one is lacy.

also finished the second kimono for the fall festival. now all i have to make are burp cloths and some praying hands dishcloths.

i got the new mason dixon book. it has some really neat patterns in it! i can't wait to make some of the projects...if only i had more time (or fewer projects). i also got a new prayer shawl book. there are many beautiful shawls and blankets in there and i'm thinking of buying a copy for at church. i guess i'll see what kind of interest i get for knitting at church tho before i buy it.

a bright spot in an otherwise shitty week

this week hasn't been the greatest for me. the boy has been having trouble in school completing assignments, tasting new foods and from what i gather is becoming the class smart ass. for someone who took pride in being a good model student and getting good grades, it frankly scares the shit out of me. the boy has no interest in learning to write his name, color, draw or do anything remotely educational, except play with his cars and trucks and make up stories as he does so. i realize that play is important to child development, but apparently it's the only thing he likes to do at school. i work with him at home with writing and coloring and cutting and stuff, but i'm afraid of overwhelming him or else turning him off to school forever. he has another **13** years of school to go, and i don't want to ruin it for him. i wish i knew what to do.

then he had the fit about taking snoopy to the fair. we told him no numerous times, afraid that he'd get left somewhere and therefore lost forever and possibly thrown away since he's the skankiest looking dog in the world. absolute nuclear meltdown for this kid. he was quite snotty through much of the trip although he did lighten up. normally we would have turned around and went home, but i submitted knitting for exhibition and wanted to see how i did.

the boy is becoming such a spoiled brat. i spent much of yesterday bawling my head off to the point that i had a migraine and my teeth - all 32 of them - hurt. talk about feeling like the worst mother in the world. that's all i could think about - i'm the worse mother in the world. throw in feeling broad in the beam and that got my thought process saying "not only am i a bad mother, but i'm fat too." to add more insult, my chin is broke out and looks awful, and my hair was lanky becos i put a glaze on it and it looked like it was covered in crisco. so naturally that got me thinking "not only am i the worst mother in the world, but i'm fat and ugly too and maybe the world would be better off if i was gone!" talk about being in a funk. it continued to today, and i hate to admit that it put a pall on the trip to the fair and on what should have been a happy occasion. i still feel badly about everything. well, maybe i'm not the worse mother in the world. that distinction goes to the mom up river who left her 5 kids eat off the floor, live in filth, and gave them flat heads. but still, i feel lousy.

the only bright spot of the day (other than learning that i won awards) was that my new mason-dixon knitting book and prayer shawls book came in the mail today. that cheered me up. now, hopefully the yarn harlot's new book is on it's way to me, and that will at least cheer me up for another day.

the rest of this week is going to be hectic. so far 7 kids are coming to the boy's party. since i don't know if the other 11 are coming, i have to make at least 2 dozen cupcakes PLUS the pirate ship. i still have to make a treasure map, think up rainy day games in case we can't be in the grove, finish the treasure chest, finish the booty bags, and wrap the boy's presents. then sometime this weekend i have to bake brownies. never in my life will i do another party again. never.

i want my needles and yarn NOW!

i ordered long circs and yarn from knitpicks. i wish it was here.

i got the books i ordered from amazon - confessions of a knitting heretic, knitting for anarchists and knitting for therapy. now i have some reads to occupy my mind whilst grams recupes.

the shipment of thomas came, and i gave the boy sir topham hatt's car. i gave it to him for being a good kid (altho impatient) since yesterday.

i still didn't get my clothing returns yet. they were supposed to be here a few days ago.

i wish i was more patient.