You gotta love the mailman

Yesterday the mailman brought me this:



Yeah, no bills, no junk mail just a box with two skeins of Patons Decor, a pretty grayish blue wool/acrylic blend, some hand cream, mints and a couple of pirate pencils. It was a prize that I won in a drawing at Do Something New KAL

It doesn't suck being me!

My goodness, I have done a little shopping

I guess that vacation got me in the habit of spending money, 'cause that seems to be all I have done this week.

I went to the LYS and I got this:



It is Trekking XXL #188 "Shades of Gray" in the LYS and in my sister's house it looks like grays and black, in my house and most definitely in this picture it looks like grays and blues. It is too rainy to go outside and check it in the natural light, it is very pretty either way. It is on it's way to becoming a pair of socks for Robert. That is if I don't get too tired of knitting before I get them done, he has big-ass feet...size 12.

And while I was there I bought two of these, which will be a pair of socks for me.



It is Panda Cotton in the "Choclate Almonds" colorway. I sure do like the "Rosewater" colorway, may have to go back and get some of that too, since I am in the mood to spend money. I'm just sayin'.

Then I picked up this:



This one is Berocco Love It Colors in the Hotel California colorway. This one is going into the mail with a handful of other treats to SP11 spoilee. She said that she likes pinks and greens and what's not pink on this ball of yarn is most certainly green. Seems to be just what she asked for.

Yeah, and that's not all. I got on the innanets and ordered two back issues of Interweave Knits that I didn't have and just couldn't possibly live without...AND...a skein of
This! AAAAAAAHHHH! I am so excited to get this, I can't wait. I got this in the "Ocean" colorway.

Since I am now in the mood to add pics to this post I will add another vacation pic. Robert took this one standing on the beach in Progreso, Yucatan, Mexico. the water there was green, but it was a very pretty green. When the sun hit it is seemed like it was glowing.



We sat at a bar on this beach and drank Coronas (we needed a break from the Margaritas). It sure was hard to leave, I don't know what paradise is like, but it's gotta be something close to this.

Oh, what a time we had

We are back from our vacation and it was unbelievable. We had such a wonderful time. I took this picture as I stood on the deck last Saturday afternoon.



I was unable to get a picture that accurately depicted the color of the water. I cannot think of a word to describe the shade of blue. It was so beautiful. As far as I could see was this beautiful blue water and I remember wondering when I took this picture, how deep it was. That evening the Captain made an announcement about the weather and told us that we were about 355 miles out to sea. He told us blah, blah, blah we are traveling at 19 nautical miles blah blah and the ocean depth is 10,400 feet. Ten thousand four hundred feet. As far as you can see X 10,400 feet deep = a lot of water. I don't even know how to figure out how much water that is. I wish I could describe that shade of blue, it was beyond gorgeous.

During our vacation we got a lot of sun, had a lot of margaritas, got a lot of rest, had a lot of margaritas, and did a little knitting, had a lot of margaritas. I finished my first pair of socks. And had a lot of margaritas.



I wish I could say that I will get a lot of use out of them, but my daughter absconded with them as soon I got them finished and laundered. I only hope she gets a lot of enjoyment out of them. Maybe I will get to keep the next pair.

SP11 questionaire and another opportunity to help

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? The only thing that I am not that fond of is acrylic. And I am not totally against it, some forms are fun to knit with, just don't care for the stiff scratchy stuff.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I keep my needles and hooks in a disorganized pile.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? My mom taught me the basics when I was a kid, I didn't have a long enough attention span for anything more than that at the time. I picked it back up about 2 or 3 years ago. I would say my skill level is intermediate, maybe remedial intermediate, intermediate minus??

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No

5. What's your favorite scent? I seem to like scents that have names like Rain, Fresh Linen, you know, stuff that smells clean, I guess

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? CHOCOLATE

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I have done a lot of things, knitting seems to be the one that stuck. I have done that longer than anything else and I don't seem to be getting bored with it.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) Yes, I can play MP3s. I like Classic Rock, Southern Rock, Country, 80s/90s hits

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? I like them all.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? Husband, dog, me

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? Scarves, mittens

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? I am having fun with my first pair of socks right now, I will definitely be making more, I like felting/fulling, I am going to try lace in the near future.

13. What are you knitting right now? My first pair of socks.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? More than anything.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
It depends on what I am knitting, some projects need bamboo, some require straight needles, etc. I have used them all(well, maybe not plastic).

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? No.

17. How old is your oldest UFO? A couple of months

18. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas. Specifically Christmas Eve, it is a very special tradition in our family.

19. Is there anything that you collect? Yarn, needles, patterns, if you can call that a collection.

20. 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 a subscription to Interweave Knits and Creative Knitting. Someone was telling me about a book called Knitting Sensational Socks (I think that is the title) they said that there were some very handsome men's sock patterns in that book.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? Lace is next.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Sort of, I have knitted one and a half socks. My foot is 9.25" long.

23. When is your birthday? May 19

24. Are you on Ravelry? Not as far as I know...what is Ravelry?

As I mentioned in the title, another opportunity to help has been brought to my attention. Florence Knitingale has organized a blankie project for the families of the miners and rescuers that lost their lives in Utah. There is a button for the Miner Blanket Project on her sidebar. If you have a little time and a few yards of yarn to spare it seems like a very simple, painless way to show them that they have been in the thoughts and prayers of people everywhere.

We are leaving on vacation Friday morning and I have not packed one thing, haven't even done any laundry. Our big suitcase is somewhere between here and Balad, Iraq. Tomorrow after I get my nephew off to school I have to get my haircut, my new driver's license, get a suitcase, pick up prescriptions, do laundry, pack everything. I sure do hope that I work well under pressure 'cause tomorrow is not going to go well if I don't.

I have managed to knit a little bit

Even though I have had my hands full this last few days trying to get Robert settled back in and getting things ready for our vacation next week I have managed to make a little progress on my second sock. I was kinda disappointed at first because there was NO WAY to make the stripe pattern on these two socks even look like they were pretending to match. I knew I wouldn't be able to make it match exactly, but I wanted them to match somewhat. The more I knit on this second one, the less it matters. I am falling in love with the little mismatched buggers.



I am not sure why it was so important to me that they match, I guess since it was my first pair I wanted them to look like I knew what I was doing. That in itself kinda cracks me up. It is the rare occassion that I look like I know what I am doing.

Now for the "tug at your heart/purse strings" portion of this post:
Light the Night Walk is an effort to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Julie is walking to raise money in her friend Betty's name. If you feel moved to help her I know she would appreciate it. Just click the Light the Night button on her blog to donate.

Another quick update

He's baaaaaack!!

Quick update

Robert's not home yet, but he is OUT of Iraq which makes me very happy. He should be home sometime in the next 36 hours.

Four cousins on the beach

Is this cute or what?

If only I were one-legged

A recap of last weeks very uninteresting details

Monday - On the way to the library the alternator went out on my car. It was hot, I had kids with me. Good times. A tow truck picked up the car and my father picked the kids and me. Before Robert left we put four new tires on the car so that I wouldn't have to deal with that while he was gone. So the car is sitting in the shop with four brand new tires. Remember that point, it will become important later. So anyhooo, my dad takes me out to get Robert's car, and the rest of the afternoon is spent messing with the details of fixing the car. We didn't make it to the library.

Tuesday - Pretty uneventful, best I can recall.

Wednesday - We finally make it to the library. We read a couple of books while we were there and checked some more out to bring home. So we're walking out of the library and I notice that I have a flat tire (Robert's car, mine is still sitting in the mecahnic's shop with 4 brand-damm-gawd-new tires on it). UGH. Once again, it's hot and I have kids with me. More good times. Three hours, $165, and two new tires later, the kids and I are on our way home when my cell phone rings. It was my daughter, calling to report that she had been sitting at 66th and Lewis waiting to turn left when a car ran into the back of her truck. Thankfully it was just a minor fender-bender. The lady driving the other car was 87 years old.

Thursday - Pretty uneventful, best I can recall.

Friday - The insurance adjuster calls to inform my daughter that there is "some question of coverage" that needs to be cleared up before he can proceed with her claim. He said that the lady that hit her had recently lost her husband, who was the primary driver of the car that hit Kaytee and when the husband was removed from the policy the car was removed also. He had to find out of the car was supposed to be removed or if it was just inadvertantly removed when the driver was. Whatever...I don't know why we thought for even one second that dealing with an insurance company would be easy.

Saturday - Pretty uneventful, best I can recall.

Sunday - This was a good day, we went to dinner at Senor Tequila's for my dad's birthday.

I got involved with Do Something New KAL and I have already gotten started on my something new for August. SOCKS! Can you believe it? Me...knitting socks??? Well, I'm doing it. I don't have any pictures right now, and would be embarrassed to post them if I did because it is such a plain, simple pattern, but it's going pretty well. I have turned the heel and have done the gussett already. I am following Knitting Pure and Simple's Beginner's sock pattern #216 using Trekking XXL #84 in shades of green, brown and yellow. They are nothing compared to the socks I have seen all of you do, but it's a start. My September Do Something New project just might be lace, that is if Marianne is all moved and has time to help me get started. That might have to wait until October.

Happy Monday everyone, I hope your week sucks less than mine did last week.