vacation

I'm off...

Going to pick up the RV around 3:00 today! I'll be on the road for the next two weeks, but I should have some internet access to post pics along the way. Check in if you want to see where I am and what awesome things I am doing (i.e. sitting in the RV playing video games, knitting, etc. =). Nahhh... we are going to be out in the mountians and caves in three different states, and then we are ending with a NASCAR race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Brickyard 400). I've got a lot of pictures to post, but I don't really have time now, so I will try to get them up in the next few days.

home

Home, but not for long

I'm back. Boston was great, the weather was beautiful, and the coast was amazing. Here is a picture of me on Castle Rock in Marblehead, MA:



I actually worked on my toe up sock while I was gone! Here is the progress:



I went to two yarn shops while I was gone (hehe) and my parents bought me these super cool yarns:


from Henniker, New Hampshire


from Salem, Mass.

I am leaving for a two week RV trip next week, so I have a ton of stuff to do for that. No knitting time until I am on the road! Gotta cut this short tonight, and get busy with real life stuff (ick...)

vacation

I'm in Boston, Baby!

...so there will be no new posts until tuesday, after I return. I am bringing my toe-up sock to work on at night in the hotel. I've got a really really early flight tomorrow (today?) and I need to leave for the airport (Midway) at 3:30 am. Gak. I better try to get a few hours sleep...

Help wanted!

Help Wanted!

request #1: looking for a sock pattern

I'm looking for a sock pattern that forms a little "cup" around the toe with short rows, so the seam is on the top across the bottom of the toes like on store-bought athletic socks. Anyone ever seen something like that? Anyone even know what I mean?

request #2: Boston, anyone?

I am leaving for my very first trip to Boston friday morning, and am looking for some input on things to do/see/eat while I am there. I'm going for four days, and have no idea what we are doing yet. Suggestions?

Thanks for your help!

(btw, I am bringing a sock to work on in the hotel, but not on the plane as it will make me woozy. Yes I am a big wuss.)

new cousin

A new family member!



This is my baby cousin Ainslee, born June 14, 2003.

She weighed only four pounds when she was born, but apparently has gotten chunkier since then. (side note: chunkier on her=good. chunkier on me=not so good. my summer clothes don't fit. I should really put this ice cream down...)

I haven't met her yet, since she lives in Tennessee, but hopefully I will get a chance to soon.

I have been doing a little knitting lately, on the Tasha bag from Summer Knitty. I decided to be daring, and designed a little color pattern to go across the bottom. I am pretty impressed with myself for figuring out the number/placement of the stitches on a graph (math is not my stront point) and for how well my first two-color knitting attempt is turning out. Its certianly not perfect -kinda puckery from my weird tension on the floats. But hey! Gotta start somewhere...
If anyone is interested I'll scan and post the graph I drew; its 47 stitches across, the entire width of the bag.

July Fourth

Holiday Weekend

I hope everyone had a happy and safe 4th of July. I went to see the Kane County Cougars (a seven-plus year tradition) play baseball. They didn't win, probably because we were there. My family seems to have the effect on sports teams. But the food and the fireworks were great as usual even if I was about 1000 degrees in the sun.

Here is a little leftover holiday fun for you to enjoy:

Breakthough

A Knitting Breakthrough!

OK, so its pretty dumb now that I realize what I have been doing wrong. I learned from Annie Modesitt's site, which I found while browsing Knitty, that to pick up stitches you do not just slip your needle into the existing stitches and keep them, but you pull a loop of yarn through... OH..... Hello. No wonder I never got it to work! (There are some great stitch animations on this site btw.) Also, I love her little Howard Dean for president button:



which I will be adding to the menu permanently, along with this one:



next time I update.