Unwinding..............

Sorry for the MIA status.  Just as I was going to work on my computer a week ago Friday I realized my internet was down yet again.  After two hours on the phone with my server I got all items back online but my computer.  This did not make me happy especially as the call got dropped after two hours and then I had to call back and deal with someone new.  I actually had to have my computer guy come to my house to get back on and well we all know that takes a bit of time to get him here.  But here I am, behind reading blogs, behind with paperwork and well as the photo above looks, just behind.  

It has finally cooled off here and Little Buddy has been wearing jeans!  Okay I might be a bit of a nutter but I just love this little hiney in jeans.

Last weekend I was not unwinding in the relaxing sense but unwinding The Longline Cardigan I started way back in the beginning of the year.  I also unwound the Brunch Cardigan I attempted to make for one week.  I would get to a certain point and the joins would look terrible, plus my stitch count was off and it was a mess.  Now what to make?  See having about 5 days where you can't be on the computer gives you all sorts of time to think about projects.

 

I thought and thought and this is what I came up with for my beautiful purple bulky yarn by Malabrigo, Happy Harvest a really beautiful sweater vest.  There are those short rows at the top I am a bit afraid of but for now I am off to a good start.  But I forget how SLOOOOOOOW knitting is compared to crochet.  This might take me forever.

And much to my dismay another major unwinding yesterday.  This was my car project for the last few weeks.  I decided to make two of these fun projects for Little Buddy's teachers for Christmas, the Queen Anne Lace Scarf.  I was steam blocking them when I realized I had an extra bump in both of them, actually near the beginning in almost identical places.  What are the chances of that?  So this is where I am at, down to 1/3 of one done with a whole other scarf to redo.

And who could be cuter in warm fluffy pajamas?   I could just eat him up!  I'll be catching up with you all as soon as I can.  Have a wonderful week.

Happy Halloween a bit late..............

A big hello from George and Mama Pig from the wonderful Peppa Pig show.  We had a great time trick or treating last night in the 92 degree heat.  I have to say George did a great job walking until we were almost home, Mama Pig had to carry him the last three houses.  There were not many other children around so George got a lot of candy as people were giving him a handful at each house.  Still for this little one it is about the magic of dressing up to be one of your favorite characters not so much the candy.  He is still very innocent, well innocent for a typical eight year old.  He had a whole bunch of people to walk with him, Mama Pig, Dad, his friend Chuck, the Aunts and big brother and his girlfriend.  Everyone had to wear a pig nose to make it more fun.  Even though we were sweating like crazy this little pig had a good time.

And a special shout out to a wonderful big brother who shared his 26 birthday by walking a little pig around the neighborhood.  Mr. 26 is really a wonderful young man and I am so, so proud of him.

Hope you all had a wonderful Halloween.

Look who is two, pumpkin patch and a lot to catch up on.......................

Look who is two?  These darling boys had a birthday yesterday they are now two!  Of course you would not know that by their energy levels or ability to listen.  They still act like crazy puppies, I am sure it is because there is two of them to feed off each other.  They are such a delight, well most of the time anyway.

We finally made it to the pumpkin patch yesterday and this is the best photo I could get.  For some reason a little boy who will not be named could not open his eyes.  The sun was not in back of me making it hard to see, it was just an eight year old not cooperating.  You can see he recently lost another tooth. 

We have started this little one on medication for his inability to focus and it has been very hard on him.  That and his regular Botox shots for his legs last week have left both of us pretty exhausted.  This medication is not going to work, he is struggling too much and so that means we all are also.  So we will start weaning him off of it and try plan B.  

Last weekend was all about taking care of Little Buddy as he recovered from the shots and the meds he has to take to keep them as pain free as possible.  And just as I was going to post even a brief blog post our internet stopped working as the lovely man we hired to fix our sprinklers cut the line to the house.  So that took a few days to fix which is not easy in this house or any other I imagine.  With work to be done and of course blog reading it is hard to not have your computer working.

No internet means more time for creating.  Although this scarf has been my car project and really has nothing to do with all that tech stuff.  I always have a project in my car for times I get to work a bit early, times a patient cancels and I have an hour to fill, and so on.  This yarn has been in my stash for a year.  I bought it to create a striped scarf and here it is.  Made with Berroco Corsica yarn and US size 7 needles.  I made this in the round using two skeins of each color, changing colors every two rows.  It was a fun project and now I am glad it is done.  The yarn is very soft, a cotton cashmere blend, 600 yards of yarn used in all.  I think this will be for me as some of the joins where you switch needles are not the smoothest.

Yesterday I finished Falling Blossoms Shawl number 4.   I know you are probably super sick of this pattern and while I am looking forward to making something else I still really love making these.  This is for Little Buddy's babysitter for Christmas.  She loves Blues and purple so I though this yarn from stash was perfect.    My husband bought me this yarn for Christmas a few years back to make a shawl with progressively changing colors.  I did not like the pattern it came with and really was not terribly fond of the yarn.  Still I think it made a beautiful shawl and I hope she likes it.  Made with Mountain Colors Hand Painted Yarn Twizzle, in the colors Harmony Iris and Harmony Iris medium.  I used a size I hook and about 480 yards of yarn to make this shawl.  I have one skein left which I think I will use to make a scarf or two for extra presents. 

I did have time last week to pop by my local yarn shop as I had two kids get sick and I was in the area.  I bought this lovely yarn while I was there.  I still had some gift certificate money left over from a Christmas present so I thought I would give myself a treat.  I used all the other gift certificate money to make baby blankets for gifts so this is just for me!

I have to leave you with this photo.  Somebody has been taking about a hundred pictures on his iPad which in turn go onto my account.  Even though he has been told not to.............  I wonder who it is?  I could show you the 500 other photos of my ceiling but that would bore you to tears.

Have a great week.

Falling Blossoms Shawl #3 and a spooky visitor.......

Can you stand another Falling Blossoms Shawl?  This is number three for me and I have to say I still love the pattern.  It is a quick project that will make a nice Christmas present.  Made with Malabrigo Solis dark.  I am guessing about 520 yards went into this shawl as I still have some yarn left and the skeins are 310 yards each.  I also used a size H hook but should have gone up a size.  Regardless after a good steaming with the iron it looks lovely.  This was stash yarn so I am happy that it has been made into a nice gift.

This was another busy week at work and appears to be getting even busier as I am picking up a one month old darling girl with Downs Syndrome this week.  I can't wait to get started helping her with her muscles and development.  I also went to a workshop yesterday on essential oils for the healthcare professional.  It was very informative and I hope to help myself with my headaches and Little Buddy with some of his issues.  As I get more confident I may recommend a few for some of the kids I work with.  It is always exciting to learn something new and something you can use.  As for Little Buddy I wonder if you have seen him around anywhere?  All I can see is this spooky visitor.  After all it is almost Halloween!

Have a great week my friends.

Little Buddy overload, the Fall Festival.................

It is October so it must be time again for the Fall Festival at our local horse and animal farm.  This is our fifth year attending.  The festival is on weekends the whole month of October so there is still time for more fun.  

We saw all sorts of animals again this year.  There were giant tortoises, a llama, a camel, zorse, a huge dairy cow and Elizabeth the 600 pound pig.  There were goats, donkeys, peacocks, turkeys, lemurs and a rare white fox.  There were also two sheep but I could not get a good photo of them.  All of the animals are rescues and live in nice enclosures.  I am not a huge fan of zoos and such but an animal rescue facility is something I gladly support.

Of course the train ride is the biggest hit.  We get to the festival early and get on Thomas the train as fast as we can because the line for waiting gets long quickly.  We went on it four times only having to wait a few minutes between the third and fourth ride.  The man driving Thomas was exceptionally nice to Little Buddy.

It was not that long ago this little boy was scared to go on the cow train.  He rode it four times in a row and could have gone some more but decided to go to the playground instead.  We had a chance to talk to the young man driving the cow train.  He is in the middle of a six month course to teach kids with special needs how to ride horses, he was just lovely.

Look how little Little Buddy was the first time we went to the Fall Festival.  So tiny!  There were no pony rides for us today as Little Buddy is still attending therapeutic riding on Friday's and thought that was enough for the week. 

 The playground is an interesting place for Little Buddy.  Where other children can run, jump, swing and climb with abandon he can't.  He likes stability and the little wooden house is a favorite of his.  He can get in and out all by himself.  He loves it.  I helped him climb a ladder and he went down a pretty big slide.  He is fine sliding it is just getting down into sitting and getting his legs in front of him that is a challenge.  But we did it and he was very pleased with himself.  This was also the first time we went to the farm with his forearm crutches and not his walker, that is a big deal!

We even met a wonderful boy named Aiden who helped make Little Buddy a roasted marshmallow.  He was so kind and considerate, I told his grandparents they should be very proud of him.

The surprise adventure to the farm was a huge success until the very end when we got caught in the rain and I had to carry a wet and heavy boy all the way back to the car.  It was a long walk, longer because he now weighs 48 pounds.  I can already feel my headache coming on from the stress of carrying him on my right hip.  Still it was great fun and I hope to return with him in a couple of weeks.

Yesterday I decorated for Halloween.  I am down to three bins to hold all my decorations and I donated some more this year.  Halloween is my favorite holiday but this year I was not really into decorating.  Still Little Buddy deserves to have a Halloween filled house to make the holiday fun just like his older brothers had.  After getting decorations up I ran around getting things ready to donate, we have way too much stuff and putting up decorations made me feel so cramped and stuffy.  There are now three bags ready for donation in the garage.  

This headless dog was getting a big belly rub from me last night.  Can you guess who it is?  I love the black paw so cute!

Hope I did not overload you with photos.  Wishing you all a wonderful week.

Two winners, The Falling Blossoms shawl and this and that................

First of all thank you so much for all who entered my yarn and book giveaway, and those who visited but did not want more yarn, I completely understand that!  I have two winners!!!

Happy Hooker won the Ella Rae yarn and Knitting for Peace book.  Mlbowden won the Filigran yarn and the Golden Morning book of beautiful patterns.  Please contact me via the comments section on how to get a hold of you.  I will not publish your personal information on this blog.  Can't wait to hear from you both!

I have another finish my friends.  This is  The Falling Blossoms Shawl by Ana D.  This is my second shawl in this pattern and I have to say I love it.  I am only making four items for Christmas presents this year and this is my second completed shawl.  Made with We Are Knitter's, The Cotton yarn in the color wine and a size I hook.  I used almost two and a half balls of this yarn for the shawl.  I could have done another flower repeat but decided this was a good place to stop as the shawl was getting quite wide.  So approximately 540 yards of yarn from my stash was used to make this.  This was left over yarn from my recent Ete Cardigan.  This will be for Little Buddy's speech therapist for Christmas.  I have already started shawl number 3 with one more to go!

Here is a before photo of two very sad boys who were in my car on the way to the groomer yesterday.  They do not like car rides and drool all over.  Look how pathetic they look!

Here they are six hours later.  They had to be almost shaved as they were getting such deep mats on their legs there was no other option.  I should have scheduled this appointment a few weeks ago.  No matter how much I brush them their hair starts to dreadlock and mat and the mats easily spread.  I can't even look at Hank without laughing, he looks so strange.  Soon they will start to look like mops again and frankly I can't wait.

I had to throw in another photo of Little Buddy at his horse back riding again this week.  He was brave enough to sit on Sassy backwards, not riding just sitting and doing an activity.  When riding he is needing much less physical contact from the therapist and handlers.  He is a very brave boy!

Friday is all about appointments, running errands and getting things done before I pick up Little Buddy from school and go to his riding therapy.  There is a new store near me that a friend suggested I visit.  A home goods store on steroids.  It is called At Home and has about everything you will ever need in your home and many things you don't!  The Christmas decoration isles were incredible, as were their selections of baskets, kitchen stuff and even outdoor furniture.  I walked around for a bit, and bought a few items for my friend for Christmas and two of these cute sheep mugs.  I mean how could I pass these up?   This morning was very delightful while drinking my tea while Little B was coloring in a picture.

Okay, I am off to do more paperwork and prepare myself for next week at work.

Wishing you all a wonderful week.  Happy October!

Beach walk and a giveaway or two...............

This morning a took a walk on the beach all alone.  It was blissful.  The beach is only 25 minutes from my house yet I have not been there for a year and a half.  I am always saying I am so busy and frankly I am.  With working four 12-13 hour days in a row, taking Friday's for appointments and all those errands you have to do, private patients on Saturday and Sunday mornings, well there isn't much time for the beach.  Little Buddy also takes up loads of time as he should.  But today my private patient canceled and I decided to jump in my car and take a walk while I had the chance.  Oh my it was sooooooooooo beautiful.  The water is warm, the sun not to hot.  There were pelicans and all sorts of sea birds, and already at 10:00 way to many people.  Yet I tried to think of the positive, I heard foreign voices so I was happy people from around the world were visiting this beautiful area.  I saw parents lifting their kids out of the water and helping them look for shells.  I saw people of all shapes and sizes taking photos of this trip to remember.  It was really lovely just to listen to the gentle waves and smell the salty air.  Now to get back there again before too long!

Yesterday as I was working on a young woman in my office I felt so crowed and knew I needed to get some things cleared out.  I have a big therapy table right in the middle of everything, but it needs to be there so I decided to remove a small book shelf, consolidate some items, get rid of books and then I looked at my yarn.  I know moving yarn along somewhere new does not sound like much but to me it was.  I donated a few bits and bobs of yarn but thought that one of you might like the following yarns.  They are way too nice to give to the donation store yet I know after all this time I won't use them.  So here we go.

  

#1: Filigran lace yarn, 100% Merino, 1200 meters total and the book Golden Morning a spring collection of knits from 2015.

#2: Ella Rae lace Merino, 460 yards, 100% extra fine merino yarn and the book Knitting for Peace.  I bought this yarn in North Carolina because it reminded me of the mountains.

That is it. You can just tell me which one you are interested in or both if you choose.  No having to like my blog, or mention to a friend or post about this anywhere.  Just make sure I can get a hold of you if you win and that you check back next Sunday when I will post about the winners.  If you are not interested no worries, I completely understand not wanting to add to your stash.

Both yarns are lovely but apparently I will never learn not to buy lace weight yarn because it is not my favorite weight to knit with.  

And now I am seriously going to get back to using the yarn in my stash.  I need to lighten my load!

Hope you all have a great week.