A BAD package arrived

Lookey, lookey at what arrived in the mail today!!! I ordered this purse and wallet from the talented Autum and today the beautiful set arrived! I am so thrilled with it! AND she is such a sweetheart that she also made me a matching keychain and tissue holder, which are adorable. And her little personalized tag is so cute.

If you've never checked out Miss Autum's beautiful workmanship, check out her purse gallery . She will make you something of your own design and she also has an Etsy shop.

Autum, they are absolutely perfect and I can't thank you enough. I will likely be placing an order for bags for my daughters soon (for Christmas presents.) They love my set!

Chilly Chili Day

Yesterday, I made a big pot of chili to donate to my daughter's school for a teacher luncheon. We were given the recipe so everyone who was cooking would make the same thing and to be honest, I was a bit skeptical because it didn't sound very good. Well, I was wrong. It was excellent and I'll make it again! (I made some itty bitty changes to the original recipe because I thought it would be too salty.)

2 lb ground beef or turkey, browned
1 onion, chopped and sautéed
2 pkg taco seasoning (use the low sodium kind)
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can corn
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can beef broth

Combine all ingredients in crockpot and cook for 6 hours or so.

Nice to get away

My husband and I went away last weekend to spend a relaxing weekend sans children. He planned the triap and I didn't know where we were headed. We ended up at a B&B called Maple Hill Manor about two hours south of Cincinnati in a small town called Springfield, KY. The B&B was fabulous but the best part .... IT'S ALSO AN ALPACA FARM! My husband didn't even know that part when he booked it; it was a coincidence. I fell asleep before we got to the place and woke up as we were driving up the lane. My eyes got real big and I said "OMG, is that an alpaca?" My husband looked at me like I was crazy because 1) he didn't know what an alpaca was; and 2) he had no idea that yarn is made from them. Oh and another coincidence, I was knitting a scarf from alpaca yarn (the pink aran one) before I fell asleep.

What's especially cool is that the owners, Tyler and Todd, sent their first load of fiber off to a spinner this season and had JUST received the yarn back in. Ummmm..... do you think I bought any????? See the lovely hanks above. Notice how nicely they match the photos of the alpacas themselves? Yup, the yarn was spun from their fiber. Isn't that so cool?! Each "colorway" is named after the alpaca it came from.

The baby you see was just born 4 days before the photo was taken and she was adorable. We got to hold her.

I highly recommend this B&B. Very comfortable accomodations, very friendly, helpful owners and the food was excellent.

Knitting News

I haven't blogged in awhile but I have been knitting. I completed my Tote for the Tote Exchange II and received my Tote, too! The Pink Carpetbag was sent to Jane and the multi colored one was my treat from Judy.

I have not yet received my scarf yet from ISE III nor have I sent mine - you can see the WIP above. I'm just under 30" and it's due in a week. YIKES!!! I'm gonna be late.

And still more Goodies!!!

OMG, when it rains it pours! Yesterday, I arrived home to ANOTHER package!!! LO and BEHOLD, when I opened it, out pops an AUTOGRAPHED copy of the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Rules!!! My dear friend Allison was lucky enough to hear the Yarn Harlot speak recently and she picked up a copy of the book and had it autographed for me.

I feel so blessed to have met such kind people through our shared knitting interests.

Where's the Knitting

I haven't picked up any knitting in almost a week. I am in two exchanges and keep reading about all the people who are DONE (done people! in the first week, no less) and it's making me feel inept. LOL!

Why no knitting, you ask? Just busy with the kids. Nothing exciting.

But on the plus side, look at what the knitting fairy brought me today! A brand new copy of The Yarn Harlot's Knitting Rules. Excellent!!! The knitting fairy is really Becky co-hostess of Caps for a Cure and she sent it to me as a thank you for knitting some chemo caps in August. Isn't that so sweet?!!

Thank you, Becky. I promise that I'm going to start knitting again and will send more caps.

Fun Surprise from Allison

Look what I received yesterday! My friend Allison and I have been admiring the Modular Back pack pattern but it's been hard to find lately. Well, she picked one up and sent it to me as a surprise along with some gorgeous note cards that have my initial on them. Allison and I met as co-hostesses of the International Tote Exchange I (and now II) and have discovered that we have a lot in common. We waste much of our employers’ time everyday sending multiple emails back and forth on very important knitting issues occasionally use our lunch hours to keep in touch via email.

This little package was quite a surprise as I was expecting it to be a pattern she was sending so that we can make the same scarf out of some very cool yarn that she pointed me to (she is a bad bad influence on me.) The yarn is shown here and is called Marjaana in the Jane Addams colorway. The colorways are all named after strong women in history. To be honest, I wasn't familiar with Jane Addams but she was one Rocking Gal!!

Thanks, Allison! You're a great friend!!

Asian Purse

I love this purse. It's a pattern from the book Bag Boutique by Amy Barickman. I believe the name of the pattern is Rachel. I made it to send to someone in Tote Exchange I who appears to have been stiffed. It's not exactly a felted bag like she was probaby expecting but I hope she likes it. I hope to make another one for myself because I like the design so much. The flap is a fake opening. The bag actually has a zipper in the back. Neato, huh?

I found this fabric about a year ago as well as the bead trim to match. I just love it and hope I have enough left to make a little evening bag or something for myself.

I am truly a dog person!!!

OMG!!! I can't believe I said yes. Look what we got today!!! You may remember that a few months ago I broke down and let my daughter get a puppy. She has been the love of our life. Well, a week or two ago, a friend received a puppy but it isn't working out in their household. So today, we agreed to take him!!! He is a 7 week old chihuahua - dachshund mix and is adorable. He came with the name Hershel (I need to find out the background of the name) and I think the name will stick. Our other puppy, Martini, loves him!

Little Hershel reminds me a bit of Autum's adorable dog who has had one heck of a week! Read about it here.

Dishcloth fun

Why oh why, when I have so many sweaters and other projects in the works am I distracting myself with dishcloths? BECAUSE THEY'RE QUICK AND FUN!! The yellow one I have pictured here is my oldest unfinished item. I started it in December 2004! right after I learned how to knit. You can see how the bottom white sections are wrong. I wasn't slipping stitches correctly. I decided to pick it back up recently to finish it. I'm not going to bother to fix it cuz... well.... cuz I'm going to wash dishes with it! I found this in a Leisure Arts Booklet that my mom bought me when I was learning to knit. It is called something like "I can't believe I'm knitting." The second cloth in neon green with accents in yellow, turquoise is the famous Mason Dison warshrag which I've also read was a pattern originally on the Sugar 'n Cream (or maybe Peaches 'n Cream) label. It is really a clever design and I can see why people like it so much.

If you like dishcloths too, perhaps you'll join this blog or this group. Meet other people who find making dishcloths addictive.

You're it - Fabulous Fives

Tag, you're it!! I saw this at Lisa's blog Yes, I should be working....

Five items in my freezer:
1. Bananas for smoothies

2. Huge box of Smucker's Uncrustables that the kids no longer like

3. 3 boxes of puff pastry (why???)

4. large box of veggie burgers

5. chicken breasts

Five items in the coat closet:

1. box of boots

2. vacuum cleaner

3. kids' backpacks for school

4. lots of coats (duh)

5. hats, gloves & scarves

Five items in the car:
1. knitting project - dishcloth

2. paperback book - in case I get stuck in traffic

3. my golf clubs (taking lessons, need to hit the driving range frequently)

4. clips to pull back my hair (it's a convertible after all!)

5. my daughter's temporary license pack.

Five items in my purse:
1. 3 lipsticks

2. tissues

3. hand lotion that I need to remove before I try to board a plane tomorrow

4. credit cards

5. business cards

Weekend Crafting

As we wrap up the Tote Exchange, I am disappointed that several participants have still not received their bags. Some appear to be delayed due to international shipping but nonetheless, it's disappointing for those people to be left with nothing. For those that are still waiting, I decided to send them a hand crafted bag. I am a slow knitter and don't have time to knit bags, however, I can sew pretty darn quick. So I dove into my fabric stash yesterday and planned out a few bags. The bag in the picture is one that I made from a wool sweater purchased from a thrift store. I sewed it first then felted it. I still need to line it and add a flower embellishment and then I'll ship it off. I'll post a picture of the bags I am sewing when I get further along.

I leave you with a picture of a pineapple upside down cake that I baked for my new neighbors. I made one for us, too, and have already devoured a piece. (I'm a firm believer in eating dessert first!!) Yum yum. One of my favorite cakes.

International Tote Exchange II

It's time to kickoff International Tote Exchange II. This exchange
will include the exchange of a hand-knit or crocheted bag which may be
felted or not. If you're interested in joining, read the rules at
International Tote Exchange II ( http://toteexchange2.blogspot.com/ )
and if still interested, send an email to toteexchangehostesses @
gmail . com (no spaces, of course!) that includes:

your name
online nickname (if applicable, i.e. Kim in NJ)
e-mail address
street address
phone number
blog address (if applicable)

This information will only be available to the Hostesses and your
Secret Pal. We will then send you an invitation to join the blog. Once
you have joined, you need to complete the questionnaire and post it on
the blog. Signups will close on August 25, 2006 and all totes must be
delivered by October 31, 2006.

Let me know if you have any questions and I hope you will join in the
fun. TOTE ON!

Weekend Knitting / Crafting

Last night, we celebrated my friends Linda and Paula's birthdays with a grill-out at our house. For my friend Linda who is a fellow knitter (she actually taught me to knit), I made her two dishclothes and a knitting tote. The reason I chose a bee motif may be found here (in the picture on the lower left, Linda is the one on the far right) and the reason for the martini one... well, we both love martinis!

Linda and I painted martini glasses and a martini pitcher with bees on it for our friend Paula. I forgot to take a picture of the glasses and pitcher, darn it! I also gave her the book Marley and Me which you MUST read if you love dogs!

Dinner was fresh tomato bruschetta, Tonga burgers (burgers marinated in a zesty marinade), german potato salad, caesar salad with homemade caesar dressing and anchovies, and carrot cake. And martinis, of course!

In other weekend craftiness, I finished the front of the baby dress for my co-worker. Actually, i stil have to finish embroidering the flowers on the pocket and sew the pockets on. I am knitting this from my Cotton-Ease stash. The pattern is Anouk from Knitty.

Tote Exchange

As we are wrap up Tote Exchange 1, I have been anxiously awaiting my bag. Well, I was THRILLED to receive the coolest package today. Check out my bag and all the goodies in the picture. I think the bag is a Noni pattern - Baguette and it is such a clever design. My partner, Miriam, knit it from Karaeoke and some other yarn i wasn't familiar with.

This bag is so cool that even my 15 year old snooty daughter likes it. How 'bout that!

We are gearing up for Tote Exchange 2 once we make sure everyone was taken care of in Tote Exchange 1. If you're interested in participating in the next one, send an email to: toteexchangehostesses@gmail.com. We hope to kick off in the next week or two.

Knitting Tote

I finished my friend's birthday present. I made her a tote to carry a knitting project or two. The fabric was purchased at Hancock's (the lining is a coordinating fabric with knitting needles all over it) and the pattern is McCall's 5082. I used some of those magnetic snaps (purchased from an ebay vendor for less than $1 each) for a closure; the giant button is just for looks. This is the third bag I've made from this pattern. I like it a lot for a basic pattern.

Speaking of Hancock's and McCall's patterns, I received a Hancock's flyer in the mail today and patterns are on sale at various times in August. The McCall's patterns are less than $1 a piece.

To complete her present, I knit her a dishcloth with a martini glass on it and I'm also going to make one with a bee on it.

Recycled Sweater Purse

I went to the thrift store looking for wool sweaters to felt to turn them into bags. I found this sweater which was not wool but I thought it would make a cool bag. The lining fabric has shoes and glitter on a black background.

I just cut the sweater into a rectangle and made the lining the same size. I used more of the lining to make the little handle holders as well as the "scarf" accent.

The supplies cost:
Sweater: $2.99
Lining: $1.60
Handle: $2.00

Total: $6.59

Pretty cool!

Is It Hot Where You are?

Conversation between the 12 year old mouth and me.

Mom, I am SOOOOOOO hot. Can I PLEASE jump in our pond.

No, you'll scare the fish. How about going to the neighborhood pool?

I can't find the key to the gate.

Mrs. Friendly Neighbor from 5 houses up called and said you can go swim with them.

Nah, I don't feel like walking down there.

How about the City pool?

None of my friends are there.

Sorry, I don't have any other options.

Hey, I have an idea.....


Gee, I'm so proud. Mom of a genius.

[Edited: I believe the temperature hit 94 degrees today. And don't even ask about the humidity. The heat index topped at 99 degrees.]

Craftiness

I don't know what has gotten in to me but I have been all kinds of crafty lately. My friend and I painted some wine glasses for our other friend who recently celebrated her 10th wedding anniversary. Nothing terribly clever but we sure were smitten with ourselves! We purchased a lovely drink tub and put the glasses along with 3 bottles of wine in the tub.

Next, I found this very cool but ever-so-simple idea on someone else's blog. I am not quite finished so I'll only show you the raw ingredients for now. Scrapbook paper... Floral glass marbles... Glue... Adhesive magnet strip... Hole Punch... Whatever will this be? Can ya guess?

Finally, my good friend Linda's birthday is in about a week so I am making her a knitting project tote bag. I have to wait until my magnetic snaps arrive from the ebay seller before I can sew it together but you can get a general idea of what it will look like.

Caps for a Cure - off they go!

I finished the fourth and final hat from my two skeins of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece. This last one is a simple roll brim hat (cast on 90, knit in the round for 6.5", decrease every other row) made from caramel with lavender trim. I will be sending these four hats off to this month's Caps for a Cure recipient.

One of the coordinators was nice enough to send me 6 more skeins of this nice yarn so it looks like I have 12 more hats in the works. I am making Shedir next in Tangerine.