To-Knit List

Items on my to-knit list:

• Clapotis
• Cozy
• Bedjackets
• Reversible Afghan from "Easy Afghans for Knitters"
• Diamond pattern afghan from "Easy Afghans for Knitters"
• Knitted prayer shawl
• Einstein Coat from Sally Melville's "The Knit Experience"
• Sally's Favorite Sweater from "The Knit Experience"
• Best Friend Jacket from "The Knit Experience"
• Your Basic Bag from TKE
• Not-So-Warm Coat from TKE
• Knit Down sweater from TKE
• Tricia's Shawl from "The Purl Experience"
• Simple Cardigan from TPE
• Vision Coat from TPE
• Not Your Mother's Suit Coat from TPE
• Not Your Mother's Suit Dress from TPE
• Two Tone Top - TPE
• Kangaroo Duo - TPE
• Classic Ribbed Pullovers - TPE
• Simple Socks - TPE
• Collared Wrap - TPE
• To the Cottage Pullovers - TPE
• Another CoCo Jacket - TPE
• Luscious Pullover - TPE
• Absorba - Mason Dixon Knitting
• Log Cabin Blanket - MDK
• Moss Grid Hand Towel - MDK
• Bubbly Curtain - MDK
• After Dark Nightie and Robe - MDK
• MDK Washcloth - MDK
• Felted boxes - MDK
• Snazzy Bath Rug - MDK
• Moderne Log Cabin Blanket - MDK
• Flying Geese Blanket - MDK
• Circle of Fun Rug- MDK
• Mitered Square Rug
• Blanket Jacket - Book 3: Color - Knit Experience
• Nancy's Shirt - Book 3: Color
• Skinny Stripes - B3C
• Broad Stripes - B3C
• Wobbly Stripes - B3C
• Graduated Stripes - B3C
• Cynthia's Scarf/Afghan - B3C
• Nod to Mod Pullover - B3C
• Slip into Color pullover - B3C
• Little Squares - B3C
• Wrong Side Sweater - B3C
• Kiss Purse - B3C
• North Inspired Cardigan - B3C
• Not Mrs D's Suit - B3C
• Funnel Neck Pullover - B3C
• Boyfriend Sweater - B3C
• Panel Party Tunic/Pullover/Dress - B3C
• Knitting Bag Jacket - B3C
• Simple Plaid Scarf/Afghan - B3C
• Simple Plaid Top - B3C

Items on my to-crochet list:

• Crocheted prayer shawl

Can I Trade This Body In?

Anyone know where I can trade this body in for a newer, healthier model?

I'm struggling with yet another kidney stone. I've lost count of how many I've had, as I've been a certified stone factory since I was 16 - for those counting, that was 15 years ago. I've had lithotripsy more times than I can count, also...three times the first year alone, and multiple times back in 2001 when I had 10 stones in both kidneys. The most recent shock treatment was in 2004 and the procedure had been improved enough to allow them to get all stones in just one session. I think there were 7 stones total at that time.

Sometimes I pass them, which I think will happen with this one, but its one heckuva painful matter of time. I should have known this was probably going to happen since I had a UTI last week, but I get those often enough too that it didn't send up any red flags.

Anyway, two days and counting. I'm praying its gone by the weekend. I stayed home from work yesterday but was so doped up on pain meds that I didn't get to knit as much as I'd like to. I'm also going to go out on a limb and say that the meds, and not my newbie knitter status, were responsible for having to frog the bedjacket I've started not once, but three times yesterday. For whatever reason, I just can't keep count with what row I'm on, and that's with a row counter. The stitches are all the same, so I should be able to just count rows, but I haven't quite figured that out yet. I was successful enough to get to the fun part of the pattern and actually do more than knit and purl - had some yo's and some ssk's, a few k2tog's thrown in there - and while the one row I completed was fun, I had to frog it because I didn't read the part in the instructions that told me to knit the first stitch for selvedge edge.

Oh well, I'm learning, right?

Oh yeah, about the weekend...

I wonder how long I can claim to be new to blogging and let that be the catch-all excuse for my mistakes...

I did get the Dynasty yarn for the Clap, and was so excited to start it this weekend, but after I sat down with my yarn, needles, row counter, pattern, four different spreadsheets from my Clap KAL yahoo group, "Gilmore Girls" on DVD and a nice glass of sweet iced tea, I figured out that I had no idea how to pfb. Not one clue.

So out came the knitting instruction books.

Not one of them had instructions on how to pfb.

So I got online (wonderful dialup connection) and went to knittinghelp.com. Found the abbreviations page and looked for pfb. There it was...but alas, no video.

So next I tried the Knitty Coffeeshop board, where I found a great post on the Clap pattern and links to posts discussing how to pfb. Most of them suggested looking at knittinghelp.com.

I gave up.

After all, it's not like I was lacking other projects to work on. I currently have the following on my needles:

• sand stitch dishtowel and dishcloths (housewarming gift, which I've frogged two times each - third times the charm, right?)
• dishcloth with a house pattern purled into it
• prayer shawl
• afghan from "Easy Afghans for Knitters"
• the same sand stitch dishtowel and dishcloth for me in a different colorway

So what did I do?

Started the bedjacket, of course. :-)

Is it Just Me?

Am I the only one who has to spend inordinate amounts of time trying to find blogging tutorials on the web...especially when Blogger doesn't have the info I'm looking for? Or they might have it, but its not called what I thought it was called...

I just spent WAY too much time trying to figure out how to post that one solitary little button you see on the right...the one that says "Mason Dixon Knitalong." Not that I'm a member of that KAL yet, still have to email Christina, but honestly, should it take THAT LONG to figure it out?

It does at least explain my current knitting addiction. I'm knitting my first ballband warshcloth (yes, that's what MAK knitters call them) and purchased enough yarn yesterday at Hobby Lobby's sale to make plenty more, along with some Caron Simply Soft to make the nightie and robe. I don't know if it will work, but I'm going to try...I sure can't afford the Euroflax the pattern calls for and I haven't seen an appropriate substitute anywhere online yet.

Now if I can just figure out if our videocamera at home will take photos that are clear enough to be published, I'll be able to show you guys what I have planned. I love that my cell phone will take the photos, but I can't download them to my computer with a bluetooth...and I don't have the $$ for that either right now.

So Many Projects, So Little Time...

Today was payday, and I think I've gone a little overboard buying yarn this week. Overboard by my standards, anyway. I have this guilt issue every time I spend money on myself, while by DH can spend hundreds of dollars in the blink of an eye and feel no remorse. I guess it comes from having to be so frugal the past few years, but I do wish that I could purchase something and not feel so darn guilty about it!

So far this week I've purchased:

• Enough Caron Simply Soft to make four of these bedjackets
• Red Heart yarn to make the knit or crochet version (haven't decided yet) for this afghan
• Brooks Farm Four Play yarn to make a Clapotis (I bought the Poppies colorway, and must have gotten the last few skeins as they don't list it any longer)
• And last, enough Knit Picks yarn in the Shimmer, Gossamer, and Memories lines to make four more Clapotis - all but one single strand lace weight, I think I'll make one of them double-stranded. This is my first Clap, so I want to play around and see what works. Here in the South I think the single strand will be just fine, especially since I'm hot natured anyway.

And I'm not finished yet...I'm planning to make a stop at Hancock Fabrics on my way home, or tomorrow, to buy some of this Dynasty yarn, and play around with the Clap pattern. It's cheap and looks like it would work for the pattern. I figure I can give some of these away as gifts.

I also plan to make a stop at my LYS this weekend, first time ever, and look thru their books and clearance yarn. They seem to have great prices on their website, but I've never actually gotten to their shop...DH and I attempted to go two weekends ago but got lost and then didnt' have time to browse before they would have closed.

The rest of the weekend is reserved for laundry, a possible visit to see my mom who lives an hour away, and KNITTING. In copious amounts of time. :-)

Is it Saturday YET?

I am tired. The kind of tired where you are falling asleep as you leaf thru knitting books. The kind of tired where you fall asleep in 2 seconds flat, have a dream during the 30 seconds or so you are asleep, then wake up talking to your DH as though you were still in the dream and he has no earthly idea what you are talking about. The kind of tired where the alarm goes off and you turn it off, never realizing you did it, and wake up having overslept by 30 minutes.

Did I say I am tired?

I managed to get to not one, but two libraries last night and came home with more books than I'll be able to read, but that's OK. There's always online renewal. :-) I now have a ton of knitting books to drool over and several books by Gladys Taber, who is a favorite author of a writer who's newsletter I just love (Penny Ann Poundwise). I started one of Taber's books but had to return it before I could really get into it, so that's one of the books I came home with yesterday. Plus about 8 more of her books and some others that were recommended by a woman I work with. The author's name is Kristin Hannah, and I checked out Between Sisters, and The Things We Do For Love. I also got some other knit lit - the first book the Yarn Harlot wrote (can't think of the title - I'm tired, remember?), a novel titled Knitting, and a book of short stories that I think was called Knit Lit book 3.

My newest dilemma with my passion for knitting is how to combine both knitting and reading. I subscribe to Audible books, so I get two books per month that I download and either listen to on my MP3 player or burn CD's...but they don't have every book I want to read, and there's something to be said for holding a book in your hand. I'm thinking if I could come up with some sort of stand to put a book on, like the cookbook stands you can buy for your kitchen. I just don't know how I'd keep the book open...maybe rubber bands? It's something I need to think thru...but I need to come up with something soon, 'cause I can't give up knitting and I REALLY want to get into those books...

Hopefully tonight I won't be so exhausted and I can be home by 6 PM, dinner by 7 PM, and knitting for a good three hours before falling into bed. That's the plan, anyway.

Come back tomorrow for what really happens...

Busy afternoon...

So I've spent most of the afternoon setting up this blog, and if you're wondering why there are so many items in the sidebar with links that don't make sense, its because I'm not finished yet. I've had one other blog in the past, and I gave it up because I couldn't think of anything to say. But I've forgotten how much time it takes to make this thing my own! And HTML is not my thing...its been an experience this afternoon...

Tonight I'm headed to the library to pick up about twenty more books and then home to cook and then knit. I need to make a list of things I need to get accomplished this weekend, but I'm not sure I'm motivated enough to accomplish that...motivation is something I've been lacking quite a bit lately. Anyone seen mine? Guess its on vacation or probably hiding due to the size of the action list I have going right now...

Our Honeymoon

First post...let's see, what do I want to say?

I'm Michele, early thirties, married for seven years to a wonderful DH who I've known since I was ten. We've been together thirteen years next month...can't quite believe I'm typing that. God has been very gracious to us, as we've had some bumpy times but He has and is healing those issues. I work full time in a marriage/family ministry in sunny, hot, humid central Arkansas, and we make our home in a rural suburb of Little Rock. One day we hope to move to Montana, but that will be in the distant future, unfortunately...unless God chooses to move us there sooner than we plan. DH works in construction, installing glass in buildings. He's a great carpenter and can make pretty much anything. I hope someday he can develop that talent and maybe have his own furniture business or something along those lines.

God has not yet blessed us with children, but he has blessed us with furbabies. We have four - Princess, a Corgi-mix who's ten years old and the most gentle dog on the planet; Laverne and Shirley, German Shepherd/Border collie mixes who are eight years old and were found living under the steps of an abandoned country church - both Shirley and Laverne have the ability to smile, which can be very horrifying and scary to an outsider as it looks like they are going to kill you, but really they'd rather lick you to death; and finally Bella, our most recent addition, a six month old yellow lab mix that we adopted from the animal shelter. We have no idea what her mom was, but she was a small breed, so we have in effect our very own miniature lab. She's the most intelligent dog we own, so its been fun to see her outsmart her owners.

As for hobbies and interests, I love to read, and until about six months ago, that's pretty much all I did besides work, housework, errands, and time with DH. But in January, I made a resolution to learn to knit and crochet, and while I began with crochet, I picked up some knitting needles and I haven't put them down yet. I don't think I've ever gone this long without actually reading a book from start to finish, but knitting is quite addictive and I've got quite the addictive personality when I find something I like to do. Other than those three hobbies, I also like to cross-stitch and am also teaching myself to sew something other than curtains, along with quilting. As you can tell, while I LOVE my job, my heart is really at home and I'm praying that someday God will allow me to either work from home or simply be a SAHW.

I'm not sure what I want this blog to be, but I do know that I want a place to be transparent and just share what God is teaching me, what I'm working on, issues I'm dealing with, and like the title says, my plans, dreams and schemes. You've probably also gathered that I can write a lot when I want to...I'm not yet sure if that's a gift or a curse, but there it is. I hope to be a blessing, most of all, in some way to those who choose to spend a few minutes reading this blog, and hopefully God will use it in some way for His glory.