Purchases

Okay - first I just have to comment on So You Think You Can Dance, which I'm going to need to start calling SYTYCD with that long ass name. Anyway - how great was that?! And it was only the first week! The tango was pretty lame, but I think poor Ricky is in trouble with such a tall partner. I looooved the contemporary dance with Lacey - loved it!

Anyway - I received some yarn goodness in the mail today. (No, this isn't on my yarn diet. Yes, I fell off the wagon again.)



This is a clearance buyout from Webs. I learned of them from their podcast, Ready Set Knit. Although they have great closeout bargains on line, I was a bit dismayed after I was contacted twice by their customer service. The first time they had to give me the news that they, in fact, only had 10 of the 12 balls I ordered of a cotton-merino blend. I decided 10 would work, but then they e-mailed with the note that they were two different dye lots. Bummer. It just wasn't meant to be. Anyway, I got some great Debbie Bliss yarn for a baby project (<$3/ball) and Regia sock yarn.

Brian and I also made a Target sale purchase.



We purchase most of our furniture from Target and have never been disappointed. We saw this Hudson collection in the Sunday flyer and just knew it was perfect for our style. We picked up the desk/hutch and file cabinet for a song. Now I'm listening to Brian cuss like a sailor as he tries to assemble it.

It's sad that it will replace the little desk that Brian bought for me during PA school. He wanted me to have a place to study while I was on rotation in Chicago. So he picked up a little desk from Ikea and put it in the corner of his little bedroom for me. What a nice guy.

Summer Programs

You've all heard me talk about it before....So You Think You Can Dance is one of my ultimate favorite reality contests. This show is much more like American Idol than Dancing with the Stars because each of these dancers is truly talented and most have been dancing for their whole life. Unlike American Idol, the judges are more involved and far less insulting. The show has narrowed down to the top 20. The dancers will now get paired off and put with choreographers to learn various routines - including all sorts of genres, hip hop, lyrical, ballroom, African, you name it!

I especially love watching the results show because famous choreographers will put together a group dance that is always impressive. I still vividly remember a few of the dances from last season.

I can't say I've picked a favorite dancer yet. Ricky makes me laugh, so he's at the top of my list. I find it interesting that there are two sisters of previous contestants and an adopted brother. Seems like someone may be playing favorites. However, they are good dancers, so it might be their talent that took them through.

So, Watch! The next episode is Thursday at 8 pm on FOX, results Thursday at 9.

Princess Fiona

Some people have been asking for an update on our friends' baby, Fiona. She was born full term last week, taken by c-section. Her diaphragmatic hernia caused some expected complications with her breathing. Therefore, she is on a lung bypass machine to give her lungs and heart rest and time to grow in size and strength. Her parents hope that soon she will be healthy enough to be taken off of the bypass machine and then plan for surgery to correct the hernia. They ask us all to pray that her lungs continue to develop. Thank you for your concerns and prayers.

The Fruits of my Labor

I came home from work tonight and found this! Can you see the pepper?



Yeah for the miracle of plant growth. I can't wait until I see my first tomato.

I also wanted to share my "something different" Tuesday project. I spent some time with my scrappng supplies and restocked with miscellaneous cards. I always struggle with the manly cards, though. Father's Day just doesn't seem to call for daisy stamps.



The Waterfront Film Festival was fun, but the movie went a bit late for a "school" night (12:45). The weather was quite appropriate for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It was very windy so empty beer cups skidded across the pavement and the blow-up movie screen was rocking. It was fitting when the items on screen were all moving and jumping due to the powerful alien force. I was too tired to worry that there may really be some alien force coming to get me. Perhaps I was pooped out from all of my knitting.



Or all of the rockin' out to the various bands - The Damnwells and Craic Wisely. There was a third band that was mighty cute, but I can't remember their name so well. Maybe Green Room??







And lastly - so you know I wasn't the nerdiest crafter there....this lady actually brought her spinning wheel. I was jealous of her ability to produce usable yarn from fluff.



Have a great weekend!

Waterfront Film Festival

Anyone in the area should head to Saugatuck for the film festival tonight! They're showing Close Encounters of the Third Kind on an outdoor screen at dusk. Brian and I will be their with our camp chairs and Subway (and my knitting). Be there or be talked about!

Comic things being common

First I just want to ask everyone to say a prayer for TOK and his wife. She is getting induced today and their baby, Fiona, will need some excellent medical care as soon as she enters this world. They are both very brave and strong and I pray Fiona takes after them that way. Thanks.

On a lighter note, today I wanted to post about a funny commonality that Brian and I have. Most married people go in to their commitment knowing they share common interests like camping, sports, travel, etc. Beyond that, Brian and I have something else that you don't often find...a mutual love for Calvin & Hobbes. Enough so that we both kept our childhood collection of comicbook with out boxed up memorabilia. I'm not sure I can explain why I was so intrigued by this comic, but it still intrigues me as an adult. It's very clever - and Hobbes is just so darn cute.

This weekend we decided to divide and conquer. I thought I had the entire collection, but apparently Brian had a few more. Our duplicates will get donated/sold. We'll save the best for our children. If they don't like Calvin & Hobbes, then something went wrong with genetics.


Does anyone else have something unusual in common with their spouse?

I wish they were all like this.

After a quiet weekend around home, I think about how pleasant it can be to enjoy simplicity.
My favorite moments of the weekend:

Beating Brian in checkers.
Eating homemade guacamole.
Chasing down squirrels with the hose.
Running through a thunderstorm huddled under an umbrella with Brian.
Falling asleep with the window's breeze on my face.
Sipping a mint mojito - with home grown mint....while knitting.

What were yours?

FOs

or better known in the knitting world as finished objects.

Monkey socks
Pattern: Free at Knitty.com
Level: MUCH easier than it looks
Yarn: Socks that Rock Lightweight Superwash Merino in Lemongrass colorway





Notes: When you have enormous feet like me, think about shortening the leg length a little. What should have been plenty o'yarn turned up a few feet (ha ha, it's a pun) short at the end of the second sock, so I ripped it back and made it one pattern repeat shorter, then disassembled the toe of the first sock so that I could shorten it to the same length...not a big deal, but still a pain in the arse.

Baby Kimono Sweater #2
Pattern: Mason Dixon Knitting Book (from Amber :) )
Level: So easy and only a couple seams for finishing
Yarn: Two balls of Ella rae Madison (wool/acrylic/nylon) in color #101 (in my Easter basket from Patty!)





Notes: This was the first time I knit with nubby yarn and it turned out very cute! Only a baby could get away with this look, though. This sweater will actually go in a hope chest for my future children. And if I only have boys, I guess some boy will have to wear a very girly sweater! I had a little knitting mishap along the way - I wasn't paying attention to the pattern and realized I was only increasing for the sleeve on one side. I thought - no way is a baby going to have an arm this long....then I looked down to the pattern diagram and realized it was the length of both sleeves combined. I sure hope I never have a baby that disproportionate - but who knows with my genes?!

Here is the yarn for my next project. But this one has to stay secret for a while.

Jitter Bug

First I have to say a special thank you to Amber! She fed my yarn diet with a belated birthday present of sock yarn.



I have heard the infamous Brenda Dayne mention Colinette yarn many a time, but have never seen it in person. This is JitterBug 100% merino sock yarn in the Duck colorway. It's beautiful Amber! I will find a great use for it, and until I do, I will just fondle it.

I am also proud to give the first peek at our vegetable garden. Brian and I came home yesterday and shrieked when we saw how so many seedlings had popped out in our absence! All of the lettuces, beans, broccoli, squash, and cucumber are sprouting. The peas still remain to be seen. The tomatoes and peppers are still thriving. The manuer compost seems to be doing it's job! So far, the chicken wire has been efficient at keeping the squirrels away. At some point we'll have to remove it from the tomatoes to give them room to grow, but we'll wait as long as possible.





I'm dreaming of fresh tomatoes and basil with sliced mozarella and olive oil drizzled over top. What could be more delicious on a hot summer day?

Memorial Day Extravaganza

This weekend was full of festivities - a beautiful Chicago wedding, brunches/BBQ's with friends, and a rousing game of kickball.

I won't provide you with ALL of the details, but for those who want to know, here are a few highlights.

Carrie and Matt went all out for their wedding day. The weather didn't fully cooperate, but they made the best of it. The wedding was in downtown Chicago, with the ceremony at Old St. Pat's and reception at the Chicago City Centre hotel. Carrie put a special touch in to each detail. The girls wore Ann Taylor's strapless celadon dresses with champagne colored sashes. The groom's sisters stood as groomswoman and wore black with celadon sashes. Carrie's dress was very elegant in it's simplicity - a tiered strapless gown with thick white horizontal bands of satin. The ceremony was filled with beautiful music. They surprised everyone with a gospel choir at the end to sing "Oh Happy Day" and "This Little Light of Mine" as they exited the church. The reception was beautiful with towering flower arrangements and taper candles. The flowers reminded me of the classic bouqets that are featured on Martha Stewarts Wedding magazines. The kids (and adults) couldn't wait to get their hands on the wedding favors - a candy bar featuring a jar of each of the bridal party member's favorite type of candy.

Carrie and Matt are now in Costa Rica for their honeymoon. I hope they're having a great adventure.







Here is the flickr group for all photos.

We spend Sunday afternoon with Brian's old Chicago friends. We haven't seen their son Spencer for over a year now. He has gotten so big! Of course, he doesn't remember us at all. That makes Brian sad, but what can we really expect? He's a great kid, though...So cute and polite. If you ask him for something that he doesn't want to give you, instead of saying "no" he says "not quite."



Jeff and Mark built a cornhole/beanbag game for the night. It was more definitely more fun than horseshoes. Brian and I are ready to build our own now. And yes, of course their were many derogatory remarks about the cornhole.



We closed the weekend by joining the 5th Annual Memorial Day Kickball game put on by the Action-Squad. We kicked, we ran, we failed to score any runs...We were the Lazer Beam Team. The Matzoh Ball team was triumphant with wins in large and small kickball. I served more as moral support to my team than anything else, but I still had fun.

New is Fun

Brian and I bought a new camera for our birthdays. It's a beautiful 7 MP Panasonic Lumix. I let him do the picking. My only requirements were that it was within budget, Consumer Reports liked it, and good for close-ups. No, not for self portraits, but for my knitting showcase!

So, here are a few shots I just snapped. I still have some kinks to work out.

I'm proud of this herb garden that I planted this weekend. Amazingly, Lowe's has a great vegetable/herb collection. Now we have cilantro, sage, basil, peppermint and rosemary sitting right at our patio table for your dining delight. I just realized what I'll make with the mint - mojitos!



Our irises are in full bloom, but their blooms are a bit heavy as most of them have already fallen to the ground. Here's one with a mighty stem. The petal that hangs down reminds me of a dog's tongue.



I made some more jewelry today. This set will be worn to Carrie's wedding this Saturday. That's right, only three days away! It's going to be an awesome wedding and we're thrilled to be a part of it.



Now this pic didn't quite turn out. I tried a bunch of different modes and found too much of a glare or else too dark. I'm sure I'll figure it out with more practice.

Now I'm off to finish that glass of wine while watching Dancing with the Stars and American Idol. Go Blake!

In my opinion...

(photo courtesy of Patty Ann)

Many of my t.v. shows are coming to the season's end, which is definitely a good thing. I have to say, I'm disappointed with most of the season finales. Anyone feel free to add your likes or dislikes:

1) Grey's Anatomy - Yes it was a nice twist for Christina to be sobbing, only to find out she's thrilled she's not getting married. But, why does it always have to be minutes before the ceremony? I'm quite sure in real life there are not as many weddings called off last minute as on t.v. I can think of three instantly, The Wedding Singer, Sweet Home Alabama, and Grey's. Who else?

2) Desperate Housewives - Okay, so at least Gabrielle went through with her wedding. If Bree were my friend, I'd definitely call her out on this fake pregnancy. I mean, how long was she gone on this honeymoon? She's so big, that baby would have to be way back from her AA sponsor days. I'm sure it was all meant for dramatic effect. Besides that, what would she do when I reach to feel the baby kick? I hope things go well for Mike and Susan. There needs to be another functional relationship now that Tom and Lynnette are in the dumps.

3) How I Met Your Mother - Too funny. "Tell me what? Tell me what?" If you guys aren't watching this show, you really ought to be. Linda introduced us to it, saying Neil Patrick Harris' character reminded her of Brian. I can't tell you how many one-liners Brian has now stolen from this show.

4) The Office - I really loved it. They could probably make the cliff hanger about Pam and Jim every season and I'd always be on the end of my seat. The highlights included Creed's blog, Andy's interview with Dwight, and Jim's new nickname - "Big Haircut," and Pam being named "Secret Assistant to the Regional Manager." "Jim taught me that when Dwight asks you to do anything in secret, you always respond - Absolutely, I will."
Dwight's blog currently has a funny post about ninjas. BTW, I was doing some research and found out that Oscar, Angela, Phyllis and Creed all go by their real names.

5) I know Dancing with the Stars is not over yet, but just about. I thought the dances were very good for the finale, with the exception of Laila's freestyle. Joey is spot on with all of his gymnastics. I'd like to be flipped and thrown about like that, but I'm sure both partners have to be extremely strong to pull off those stunts. Who votes that Apollo and Juliann are a couple? Patty Ann, I know your vote. At the beginning line-up, he gave her a very loving look. I think they'd be an adorable couple, really.

Sizzle

My new top is done! I have to admit I let this sit on my desk for quite a while. There is always procrastination when it comes to finishing, not starting. I think deep down I was also frightened to finish it because I was afraid of a poor fit. Sunday evening, I decided it was time to go for it. We popped in "Pursuit of Happyness" and I got down to business. (BTW, a very good movie.) In a short three evenings I sewed the pieces together and put on the neck and sleeve edging. Here's the finished product.



This was made from four balls of Reynold's Saucey in color #308. This is the same yarn I used for my mother's short sleeved sweater. It's a pleasure to work with. I have referenced the pattern before, one of the sassy designs of Knit and Tonic. The pattern was flawless and simple.

A few close-ups:

The only pattern stitching was seed stitching on the edges. For those who haven't seed stitched, it's a pattern of knit one, purl one. Then on the next row, you purl one, knit one.



Spaced increases and decreases were used on the waistline to give the appearance of darts.



Now I just need to come up with some jewelry...

I win!

I listen to many knitting podcasts, as many of you know. One of the many is CraftBorg. This podcast consists of two moms who have a mutual love of crafting and sci-fi. "This is the craft borg, lower your shields." Anyway, Rosemary and Julie are pleasant to listen to and inspire me to do crafting other than knitting.

This morning I awoke to find an e-mail from Rosemary. Because I commented on their blog during a specified period, I won a book, "Knitting Loves Crochet".



Uh oh. Looks like this knitter is about to cross over to the dark side of crochet! Look out granny squares, here I come.

Project Unveiled

My secret knitting project has now been gifted - so I can give the grand reveal. Some of you all may remember my Christmas gift from Amber, lace weight yarn and a pattern for a triangular diamond shawl. I started this project while on our Mexico trip and finished it after a few late nights this past week. When I started this project, I didn't realize it would be a gift. But you knitters out there know that sometimes a project is meant for someone else. This shawl was meant to be a Mother's Day gift for my mother-in-law, Patty.



She loved the one I gifted my mother and being that I wasn't an avid knitter when she turned 50, we can call this a very belated gift. I'm sure it will get a lot of love and use. And I fully disagree with Chuck (my father-in-law), it does not make her look like an "old lady." If he only knew how popular lace knitting is right now!

Patty was so gracious to let me do an impromptu photo shoot.



It's not flawless, I can definitely look it over and find some areas where I managed to get a stitch out of line. It's only my second lace project, so I expected imperfection. But, looking at "the big picture"...it's pretty cool. Most importantly, it's a proper size to drape over your arms and keep the chill away.



And for the "before" pictures:





On the blocking wires.



I have to say, although deadline knitting is stressful, it was probably a blessing in disguise. By the end of this shawl, it literally took 15 minutes to complete one row. Realizing how much time I had left until completion was a little overwhelming. So, the bottom line is that I enjoyed the pattern and would like to make another, but no time soon! It's time to work on something a little less detailed, like my Sizzle top.

32:55

I did it. And unashamedly, I will tell you I am so proud of myself because I made a personal best by about 12 minutes. The 5/3rd River Bank Run was such a great experience. There were around 15,000 runners for all three races combined and the weather was beautiful. I am not an emotional person, but I felt tearful twice. At the beginning of the race, I just felt so happy to be finally be running the race and to be a part of such a big event. Everyone was so joyful. At the end of the race I had tears on my cheeks, which may have partially been from exhaustion, but also knowing that I had the willpower to push through. So, thanks to you all for your support and for listening to my boast.

Brian, Meagan (my sister), and Jill (Meagan's college friend) were also completely awesome. Meagan ran the race (her first also) in just over 25 minutes. Way to go!



After the race, we enjoyed some free Michelob Ultra and music before heading back for Tulip Time. We visited Veldheer Farms, and payed our entrance fee before we discovered that most of the tulips were past their prime. We still found some nice "late bloomers" to admire.







Before the girls departed, we wanted to drive down to Fenn Valley to stock back up on wine.



Luckily, we arrived just in time for a tour by the owner/winemaker. He taught us so much about the process of winemaking. We've been on tours before, but definitely picked up a lot of new information. For example, did you know that some of the French wine casks cost more than $700? If they're using the barrel to flavor the wine, it will only do that for one season. Now they have discovered a way to add oak "beans", small cubes of wood to the wine, it ages in the large stainless steel tanks. The barrels also impart an oxygenation process, so they supplement this by hooking an oxygenation tank up with a bubbler going in to the wine.

We tasted some fantastic wine out of bottles, out of the tanks, and straight out of the barrel. He had to use a "wine thief," which looked much like a turkey baster, to serve us.





We purchased a case (got to get that case discount!) and headed home. I have to get back to work on our Mother's Day feast...more on that later (and the knitting).