It's all down hill from here!

Wow, what a week it has been thus far! I have had orchestra concerts to attend, orthodontist appointments to get kids to, haircut appointments to get kids to, laundry to do, laundry to do, meetings at work, web conference calls, did I mention I had laundry to do? It is Wednesday and I have barely had two minutes to knit! A week without knitting makes Kat rather grumpy!!

I am on "floor" at work right now - thus if anyone should happen to call wanting interest rates, payment quotes, etc. there is a "live body" to talk to. My boss sent out an email regarding cell phones ringing in the work place - but he has not yet said anything about knitting! Hmmm, maybe I can sit and knit this afternoon...

I am working on my second "wobbly tote" for the class I am teaching. It is not very "portable" though - socks are so easy to take anywhere - my first choice for what to knit in public. I have the second class for my Wobblers tonight. I am excited to see how their intarsia techniques are coming, and how their bags are looking. They are all new knitters and I hope they are not discouraged - I have not received any phone calls. I will take that as a good sign!

Has anyone made the socks from the spring issue of IK? I think they are so cute and my daughter would love a pair. That might be the next thing I work on!

Hope you are all having a great week - it is a LONG weekend!! And, I think summer is going to arrive this weekend - it is supposed to be in the 80's. I can sit and knit in the sun!!

Later!

Kat

Week 1 completed!

Hello everyone! I have made it through week 1 of my new job, my poor brain is on overload with all the information I have been inundated with!! I also taught 2 knitting classes this week, but outside of that have had little or no time to knit this week! A week without knitting is like a week without sunshine! That must be why it was so grey, gloomy, rainy, cold, and damp here in West Michigan. I will make an effort to get my sticks out and work on knitting this weekend!

I have a couple of bags ready to be felted to take to the Thistle Gallery - I need to get that done this weekend. I also would like to finish my Noni bag - I need to go get some plastic canvas before I line it and put the zipper and handles on. I also need to get at least one side done on the wobbly tote for my class - they have to be to row 103, ready to learn how to bind off mid-row and how to cast back on. They were all so excited last week, but I have some very beginning knitters in class.

I want to thank my SP for her email this week - she made my week with her upbeat personality and she shared some information with me about her. I am really excited to be in SP8!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Happy Mother's Day

Hello everyone!
Hope you all had a great Mom's day. Mine was awesome - I had a great day with my kids and Kyle's family. It was truly a fun day. I need to get a good night's sleep because I start a new job tomorrow!!!! Plus, I am teaching the Wobbly Circles Tote from IK tomorrow night at my LYS. I just wanted to say Happy Mother's Day to all my knitsters out there - hope you all had a fabulous day!

Night, Night.

7x7 Meme

I saw this interesting thing on the blog of a knitter that interested me (here is her weblog http://iwasknittogetherinmymotherswomb.typepad.com/
i_was_knit_together_in_my/)
So, without further ado, here you go!

7 Things to do before I die:
Go to Edinburgh with Kyle
Read the entire Bible
Finish college
Take dance lessons
Go to a weekend Knitting retreat
Loose weight
Sail around the world

7 things I cannot do:
sports - any kind
resist yarn
my hair like the stylist does (grrrr!)
keep a neat house
crochet
speak a foreign language
tolerate intolerance

7 things at attract me to my husband:
His sense of humor
His ability to fix things
His strength
His smile
How he looks in a sweater and jeans
His determination
How he loves me

7 books that I love:
The Bible
The Yarn Harlot
anything by Tami Hoag
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Harry Potter Series
A. A. Milne - Winnie the Pooh
E. B. White - Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little, The Trumpet of the Swans
Are you there God? It's me Margaret.
(okay - there were 8 there, I could go on!)

7 things I say:
Fabulous!
Really?
Can you bring your laundry up?
I love you.
I'll think about it.
How was your day?
What do you want for dinner?

7 movies I have loved:
Star Wars - every one of them.
The Godfather
Indianna Jones
Schindler's List
White Christmas
It's a Beautiful Life
The Divine Secret's of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

7 Ladies to tag:
http://iwasknittogetherinmymotherswomb.typepad.com/
i_was_knit_together_in_my/
http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/
http://knittyd.blogspot.com/
http://knit-whit.blogspot.com/
http://iknitthatsit.blogspot.com/
http://knitandthecity.blogspot.com/
http://www.persistentillusion.com/blogblog/index.php
http://plazajen.blogspot.com/
I am sure that these ladies are not aware that I am reading their blogs, but they are interesting and have a beautiful prespective on life. You should check them out.

Have a great day everyone!

Sunday Night

Hello Everyone,
What a weekend - went to a Derby Party and it was so much fun. GREAT food - just amazing food! Michelle made the most awesome Mint Julips, mmmmm - mmmmmmmmmmm - good! I got my hat finished while helping out at Linda's shop - La Petite Boutique. It turned out sooo cute. I used 2 felted Noni Camellia's and 6-7 flowers from Nicky Epstein's Knitted Flowers - which is a great book! I will post a picture tomorrow!

We had a bit of a scare over the weekend - Copper got his mouth stuck in his crate. Kyle was working on putting up bead board in the kitchen at the cottage - so we put the pups in their crate to keep them out of the way. Copper got his mouth stuck in the wire and if Kyle had not had something to cut through the wire - I do not even want to think about it. Needless to say, the pups have been spoiled for the rest of the weekend.

How could we not spoil him? I worked on Twisty Turns from Wrap Style - I am knitting it in Berroco's Ultra Alpaca. I selected a nice hot pink color - and it is knitting up beautifully! I also put the finishing touches on the instructions for a sock class I am teaching next week and I got some sock yarn - Lorna's Laces - mmmm, it is beautiful. It has a very nice feel - I can hardly wait to knit with it.

Have a great Sunday evening, everyone!

TGIF

Hello everyone! Friday has finally arrived - thank heaven! I had 2 interviews this week - and have a second interview next week. I hope there is a job looming on the horizon, but I am not holding my breath. A local employer has just laid off 600 more people (they laid off 1900 last year) - here in West Michigan, the job market is tough. I am just glad that the week is over, we have a Derby Party on Saturday - that will be fun. I am off to do the grocery run - yippee!

Have a great weekend all!

Kat

SP8 Questionnaire

Hello Everyone! I have joined my first Secret Pal Exchange
http://secretpal8.blogspot.com/! I am excited to begin this adventure!!

Here are my questionnaire answers:

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I love to knit with wool - any wool. I love how it feels as I work with it. I don't think I have a fiber that I don't like!

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I keep my needles in the package they came in.

3. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I have been knitting for about a year and a half and would consider myself an intermediate knitter who is not afraid to learn something new!

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No, I do not.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) I like citrus and cinnamon scents.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? I do have a bit of a sweet tooth and I love dark chocolate!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I like to make my own cards and I do not spin - yet!

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I love jazz! My pc can play music and I have a cd player!

9. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand? I love green's and tend to be drawn to the autumn color palette. I don't care for pastels.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am married to a great guy and I have 3 teenaged kids. I have 2 dogs - Copper and Penny!

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? I love scarves and poncho's/shawls. I like mittens as well when it gets cold here in Michigan - I don't wear hats very much though!

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? I love to knit anything - it is the process for me rather than the item.

13. What are you knitting right now? I am working on finishing a sweater for my husband, a couple of sweaters for myself and a pair of socks for my daughter.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? I love handmade gifts!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? I prefer circular - either in bamboo or addi's!

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? No, I do not.

17. How did you learn to knit? I bought a book from a store with a ball of yarn and taught myself - my first project was a garter stitch scarf. I have been absorbed into this wonderful craft ever since.

18. How old is your oldest UFO? About 3 months old.

19. What is your favorite holiday? Easter.

20. Is there anything that you collect? Antiques.

21. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? I have been eyeing Sally Melville's Color book, and the latest Rowan magazine. I currently receive Kitter's Magazine.

22. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I would love to learn Fair Isle!

23. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? You bet I am ! I took a class and learned how to knit 2 socks on one circular needle. I wear a size 8.5 shoe.

24. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) My birthday is December 27th.

Monday, Monday

Welcome to Monday and another week! I am still trying to determine if this is a good thing or not. I am working on housework - YUCK and getting ready for my knitting classes that I am teaching next week. I am listening to Its a Purlman's podcast (http://www.itsapurlman.com/) - you might want to check him out - He is good and he knits! I need to work on more bags for the gallery and the shrug for the KAL to hang in Lizzie Ann's.

Back to work for me - have a good day all!

Kat