Knitiot Savant

Change

Change has come hard and fast around here.  My baby finished Kindergarden and we're enjoying a mellow and groovy summer.  I've been doing a lot of reading, though not as much as I'd like.  I look at the list of books I've read this year and find myself thinking, "Damn.  I don't read all that fast, do I?"  I've managed to finish some knitting and, though I've updated on Ravelry I completely failed to update here.  But it's all about blogging without obligation, right?  Even if no one reads, right?  LOL

So how's your summer going?  Well, I hope!  Drop me a line and share!

Nostalgia

It creeps up on you.  One minute you're trolling around Facebook and a name pops into your head.  You wonder, "What ever happened to what's his face?" and so you search.  And you find him.  Then you find another one, and another one.  Before you know it, your friends list starts to grow and you're looking at photos.  First you look at the photos people post on their walls.  When that's not good enough, you start to dig through your own albums.  And the memories flood back.  Stuff you thought you'd put behind you.  People you never thought you'd hear from again...that surprised you by accepting your offer of friendship on that stupid Facebook site.

Does it suddenly make you friends?  Can it bridge years of silence?  Maybe.  But you don't know unless the silence is broken by a simple comment.  It has to start somewhere.  Why not let it start with me?

Mellow

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving day.  Ate too much, caught movies and really loved being together.  Friday I braved Black Friday to pick up fabric I needed for Christmas sewing.  I don't think folks who sew are as scary as people who are willing to crush each other for televisions.  Everyone at the fabric store was mellow and groovy; swapping bolts when they'd gotten what they wanted cut and talking about what they were going to make with what they'd chosen.

Today the plan is to head out for a nice lunch of Mexican food, (I can only take so much turkey) then dive head-first into my Christmas sewing.  Maybe even drag out the Christmas decorations.  Wow.  I can tell I'm really out of the habit of blogging.  All this writing and not one pic!  Hm...I'll have to make up for that by sharing pics of the newest member of our family.  You'll just have to wait to see how truly handsome he is.

A look ahead

I like the seeing a new year coming in, pushing out the old.  It's kinda like a worldwide do-over.  You get to reinvent yourself; all squeaky clean and ready to be the best person you know how to be.  I really love that feeling.

Like a lot of folks, I see my life as a work in progress.  Making resolutions or goals to change myself happens monthly...hell weekly sometimes.  So, I don't always make resolutions for myself when the new year rolls around.  But this year I've got 4 things I want to address.  I've tried to work on them throughout the year but I want to accomplish all 4 before the end of 2009. 

1.  Be a better friend.  I don't feel that I've been the best friend I can be to the few people who call me friend.  (It's a short list, folks.  I'm not looking for pity here; just statin' a fact.)  I don't call as often as I should, don't get together with them, let them know I'm thinking about them.  Are you wondering if they do the same for me?  Psh, I'm not gonna answer that 'cause really, this bears on the kind of friend I want to be, not the kind of friend they are.  So I want to be better at friendship.  Renew old ones and make some new ones along the way.  It's really easy to get sucked into your own life and be blind to the needs of those around you.  I feel like I was a little blind in '08.  Time to see.

2.  Finish the unfinished.  Y'all, I have a lot of unfinished projects, knitting and otherwise, lying around.  I've gone through them over the Christmas break and ditched a great many as things I won't touch even if they were the last projects on earth.  I've narrowed it down to some really important ones.  Projects that have meaning and that deserve to be finished.  This goal is gonna be a toughie.  I just got the new Mason-Dixon book and there are so many yummy things I wanna make.  Must.  Stay.  Focused.

3.  Learn a new knitting technique.  I'm really excited about this goal.  I was in a real knitting rut for all of '08.  It's time to break out and learn something new!  So, in January I'm taking a class on knitting socks on circular needles.  Then, I want to learn Fair Isle knitting.  I only picked 2 new things to learn 'cause I didn't want to get nuts...plus learning new techniques means starting new projects and I don't want to totally jack up goal number 2.  I can't wait to share the results of what I learn with all of you.  Hopefully it'll look much better than my crochet.

4.  Get healthy.  This is a big one.  My riding got sidelined first when Big B had to go out of town for awhile then illness, weather, and I just gave up I suppose.  But I have a big ride I want to do in the Spring.  Plus I just don't feel good when I'm not up and moving.  I'm getting a trainer for my bike, gonna alter my eating habits some and get as healthy as I can. 

So that's it!  Those are the things I'm shooting for in 2009.  What are you goals?  Share!

Have a wonderful and safe New Year celebration.  See ya in '09!

Crafty Goodness

Next week, in addition to her class field trip to a tree farm, Lili's Pre-K class is having it's Christmas party.  I figured I'd get a jump on the action so I cranked out a ton of these little crackers.  They don't pop like the traditional English crackers but they are filled with goodies. 

I used my shiny new camera to take the pic and....get ready....even shot a little tutorial of how to make these crackers.  But there are directions all over the web and I find myself feeling a bit silly that I made a tutorial.  Must be the fumes from the camera muddling my head.

Tomorrow we're off to score a tree.  Yay!  Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend.

Yes, we can!

Wow.  October was fun, busy and amazing.  Lili had a great Halloween and I loved making her costume.  We visited my parents to help celebrate their 50th anniversary, ate funnel cake at a Fall fair and at least one of us had a head-cold at any given time.  Not a bad month at all.

Now November.  What a way to start a month!  I've always been careful not to discuss politics here.  That's not the point of the blog...when I do blog.  hehe  But, no matter who you voted for, our country made history Tuesday.  It's incredible and amazing and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us all.

And knitting!  Yes, knitting!  I finally finished some socks for Lili.  I posted them in my Ravelry account and didn't get around to doing it here.  Cause I'm lazy and all that.  I'd barely gotten these babies off the needles before Lili was putting them on and running around!  I love knitting socks for her. 

I'm still working on Sitcom Cardi, and I started a sweater for Lili as well.  And, of course, socks for Big B.  Same pair...taking me forever!  I don't want to overload one post with knitting pics, so I'm gonna pace myself. 

Have a great Thursday!

The End of Summer

I'm simply going to say that I had a difficult summer.  But the end is here and it's brought some wonderful changes.  So, as I cop out and leave you with the ever popular bullet comment post, I'll share a picture of my Lili taken her first day of Pre-K:

* I've been doing a lot more knitting.  I shook off my lack of interest in all those UFOs lying about and just hunkered down!  Now if I can just get off my lazy ass long enough to update Ravelry.

* I got a part-time job.  I'm scheduled to start the second week of September.  The hours are perfect and sync up nicely with the hours of Lili's Pre-K program.  I'm looking forward to getting out of the house and back into my profession.

* I've been riding very regularly and love my new bike.  Still planning on riding in the Tour for the Cure but I'm considering some other rides as well now.  I think I like being on my bike more than I like knitting *gasp*!  My total for the month of August is 137.43 miles.  Go me!

* The humble little knitting group I started with a couple of friends is really growing!  Sadly though, it's grown because the only two knitting shops we had in the area closed.  Still, it's been fun meeting new knitters and coming together to knit.

*The Democratic convention was amazing.  We all sat and watched Obama's acceptance speech.  I want Lili to be able to tell her children that she saw history being made.  And she got to see her Mom cry like a big baby.

I hope all of you had a wonderful and fun filled weekend!  Here's to the changes we're all going to face as Summer melts into Fall. Time to shake out those sweaters, pull out those beautiful socks we've all been knitting over the summer and enjoy the colors and cool weather Fall brings.

Slacking....but justified

Big B took time off the week so we've spent the last few days being lazy.  Honestly, when the temps hit 100 or more there just isn't a whole lot more you wanna do besides lay about sipping iced tea and enjoying each other's company.

I took advantage of Big B being home and, on Tuesday, was treated to a "Me" day.  I got a love pedicure, manicure and a styling new haircut.  When I got home, Lili looked at me and said, "Mommy, before you were all ratty lookin' but now that you got groomed you look so much better!  Don't go back to the ratty look again, okay?"  Ah kids...gotta love 'em.

As I seem to be going backward in time let me share with  you the newest addition of our family christened "Red Jersey" by Lili.
I know I''ve mentioned that I'm back on my bike.  My other bike is a hybrid.  As much as I love her and as tough as she is, she's heavy.  That makes it a little tougher to pull up hills when you add the bike and my weight.  (I won't tell you my weight.  That's just none of your beeswax.  :-) )  Big B has been after me to get a decent bike.  So, Saturday, I took the plunge and bought this beauty.  It's a Giant OCR 3; and entry level bike for an entry level rider like me.  I have a spiffy computer on it, toe clips, lots of gears to shift and room for water bottles.  I've been on a couple of rides so far and it's a way faster ride than my hybrid.  It's also bumpier!  No nice shocks in the front fork and seat like my other bike! 

My plan is to do a half century ride before the end of the year.  (50 miles for you non cyclists)   But my real goal..the one I really want, is to ride in the Tour de Cure in honor of my Big B.  Since his diagnosis last year, he's been an inspiration to me.  He's disciplined, strong and works his ass off everyday to stay healthy for himself...for me...and, most importantly, for Lili.  I wanna ride for him, and all my friends who struggle with diabetes everyday.

So, a bike that Lili christened Red Jersey will become Team Red Jersey next spring.  Until then, I'll keep clocking the miles every chance I get, watch what I eat so I'm lighter for the ride and look to Big B for my strength when I falter.  This will be the ride of a lifetime.   

Bad Crayons Gone Good

So what do ya do with all those broken crayons?  Or the really cheap ones that you get in restaurants that don't color worth a darn?  We melt them down in to shapes and make our own crazy crayons.  (This is not an original idea, though I wish I could say it was.  I just can't remember where I stole it from!)

Boogied and I chopped up old crayons, sprinkled them into tiny little muffin pans and baked them at the lowest heat possible until the wax was all melty.  Let me cool and presto!  You have funky colors in a new shape.  The hardest part was trying to convince Boogie that all the crayons didn't need to be chopped!

And speaking of Boogie; I've used that nickname for her since I started this blog but I haven't called her Boogie since she was a baby.  She still likes to dance around but, at 4, it's a whole new ballgame.  So, in honor of my beautiful baby growing and changing, I figure it's time to use at least part of her 'whole big name'. (That's what we call it. ) 

Everyone, this is Lili.  Lili, this is everyone.  Uh, wanna come on outta the sandbox and say hi?  hehe

I could use a haircut but.....

nataliedee.com