A Little of This and That...

I've got a lot of things swimming around in the great beyond, known as my brain. So here's a random post full of, well, randomness.

------------------------------

Lawyer got a new toy the other day from Jason. I'm pretty sure that most 4 year olds don't technically need one of these but Lawyer sure does love it.

It's this scuba underwater propeller thingy (not certain what the technical name is). It's actually used by scuba divers in the ocean and it can go down to 60 feet but we decided it would be super fun in the pool.

See? He loves it! I can't wait to buy some disposable underwater cameras...I'm going to get some ultra-rad shots in the water!

------------------------------

I've got one sleeve on the circulars for my nephew's sweater I'm knitting. The other sleeve is started so hopefully I can finish this by sometime in this millennium.

------------------------------

Did I mention I tried my hand at embroidery recently?

There's this super-cool website that has fun embroidery patterns you can purchase. I actually bought the owner's little book from Barnes and Noble. That's where the unicorn came from.

------------------------------

Oh and I found the coolest thing for when Lawyer starts losing his teeth. It's called the Official Tooth Fairy Kit. It's got a letterpress (LETTERPRESS, I say!!) form that has what looks like an old-timey dentist chart of teeth that you fill out each time. Here's what the website says about it:

The Official Tooth Fairy Kit contains one letterpress Certificate
of Record for filing with your local Tooth Fairy and one reusable silk screened cloth deposit bag for your first and all subsequent transactions. The official certificate keeps record of name, age, tooth lost, method of extraction and compensation information.

How hilarious is that? I purchased one today and can't wait to get it next week. Lawyer is going to LOVE it when I pull this one out at the appropriate time. You can buy one at the Office of the Tooth Fairy.

-----------------------------

I looked out the window the other day and saw Lawyer creating hopscotch squares. Where, pray tell, did he learn this? I have never done such a thing with him!

-----------------------------

Oh, and running still sucks. No matter how much you want to convince me.

Love, Me

PS: Two nights ago, Jason, Lawyer and I went to see Land of the Lost (don't take your kids, I hear EVERY SINGLE CUSS word in the first five minutes and there was plenty of boobs - on cups, grabbing, etc - and this was supposed to be a movie I could take my 4 year old too!) and we showed up just in time for the tornadoes (although I don't think it was much more than funnel clouds) to be ripping through our 'hood. Good times.

Not So Good...

This dress has been done for a while now but I haven't really had it at the top of my list because it's, as my 4 year old would say, "Not so good."

I won't give up on this knitting pattern because I have quite a few changes that I would make the next go 'round to possibly make it "good" or possibly even "great".

But for now? "Not so good".

The BEST Mother's Day...EVER

Wow, what a great weekend! My boys showered me with love and presents to honor me for Mother's Day. They got me a beautiful bouquet of flowers in the most wonderful colors and I got a grill tools set (now, I know that there are so many mother's that dread the whole "kitchen gifts" thing but seeing as I love to cook and I'm the grill master in our house, I was overjoyed!). They took me to my favorite restaurant where I stuffed myself silly with fried green tomatoes, grilled halibut, margaritas and the best apple crisp.

And this is what I've been waiting for all these Mother's Days...Lawyer's first handwritten messages to me.

Ah, be still my heart.

And the gift he made at school was precious...a framed picture that he created. (There's a story on the shaved head...it deserves its own post so I'll wait)

I think Lawyer took the "kick back, relax, it's your day" personally for himself.

And for my mom? I gave her this:

I got her a One Year Bible (wrapped in the green leaf napkins), a delicious gardenia scented soy candle, a yummy chunky green verbena soap bar (wrapped in tissue paper), a tub of aloe vera sugar scrub, two knitted wash clothes (that I gave a sneak peak of last week) and the knitted gift bag everything is sitting on? It became a pillow.

I got the idea for the wash clothes from the Purl Bee. I didn't even bother to look at their instructions...I just knit a seed stitch border around one with just knitting in the center and the other one is 2 strands of yarn knit in only seed stitch. It's my favorite one. It's all lumpy bumpy and has a massaging quality to it. I've got plans to knit myself a whole set for us to have.

The bag was kind of a last minute project that I adapted from Joelle Hoverson's (owner of Purl) Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I used two different strands and knit it all in the round. It was supposed to be this dainty gift bag and before I knew it, I had knit a 11"x20" bag that an 11.5"x21 pillow form just happened to fit perfectly in. So once I gave my mom this "bag" full of the goodies, I slipped the pillow form in and sewed it shut. I love 2-for-1 gifts. I'll get a pic of the finished pillow so I can share!

It was truly a wonderful weekend! I hope your's was too!

How to create your own sunshine...

When the clouds won't go away and you are in some serious need of sunshine,

what should one do?

Brighten up some body's day!

Lawyer and I made some cookies and picked some flowers to take as a special delivery to Granny. It brightened up all of our days for sure!

---------------------------------------------------------

Okay, I've still made dinner every night, I've just been absent from this little blog of mine. Oh and to set the record straight (not that anybody has asked) the reason I've been posting pics of my dinners is not because I feel the need to document every mundane detail of my life. It's because I feel accountable when I can post a pic of our dinner...it forces (well, force may be a tad too harsh) me to make dinner every night and so far it's worked!

Here's what you've missed (I can hear the tears, people...or is that crickets?):

Monday-

Tortilla Soup
Cheese Quesadillas
(the pic above were of the accompaniments to the soup...the soup wasn't all that beautiful to picture, but it was very delicious)

Tuesday-

Thai-Style Steak Salad

Wednesday-

Turkey Cobb Salad (minus the turkey...I went for store-bought rotisserie chicken instead)
Also, I find the blue cheese to be a tad too overwhelming for me. I mean I like blue cheese and all but sheesh!

----------------------------------------------------------

And a secret knitting mission is under way...I'll share at a later date!

What's Been Up...

A little T-Ball...

and a little knitting...

I Feel Yucky...

My year-round allergies have returned from their usual 6 week break around this time of year and I'm wiped out. I think I might have a sinus infection too. Oh poor me.

The good news is that I finished my green bolero that I've been knitting!! This is my first wearable piece and I'm really happy with how it turned out.

I made Jason photographer this evening and he did pretty darn well after a crash course on aperture, exposure and film speed.

Excuse my silly pictures. We were cracking up the whole time saying dumb things like "Okay, you're a tiger now, out prowling, searching for your prey"...I think they do something like that in Zoolander. Anyhow, despite how sickly I felt, I had a good time.

The slouchy pouch in the back has been remedied so it it lays flat against my back now. I've got big plans for a fall-inspired one next so I best be getting at it. Alright, enough with the pictures of me! I just wanted to share my fabulous little bolero!

Knit Picky

A few new things I have begun knitting that have stretched my knitting abilities...

Socks!! We'll see how it goes with the heel-turning and toe knitting but this has been fun! Knitting with 4 needles has been an extreme challenge but I love how the ankle portion of the sock is turning out and this yarn is amazing so far to knit with.

Ribbed Lace Bolero!!

The color? Fabulous. The pattern? Folksy, vintage and modern, all in one. I, so far, "heart" this bolero pattern. I can not wait to finish it up so that I can slip it on over a cute sundress or a tank. I have a feeling that I'll need to make several for myself. Knitting "lace" has been so challenging but hey, that's why I like knitting...you have to try something new and what do you have to lose? Just some yarn and your time, although I believe that your time is NOT lost since you are practicing to get better.

I've frogged two knitting projects...one was the cabled scarf since the yarn was hideous to touch. It felt like a goat was wrapped around my neck. Yuck. The other project will re-commence, I just messed up the pattern and had to completely frog it. I need to get the socks, baby sundress and my bolero finished up before I start on the secret project.

Anyhow, I would say that's all but I have some FAB things to show and share this week that has been going on around here....BUT here's a sneak peak...

Progress Report

Do you remember THIS POST from earlier in the week when I showed you pictures of the baby knit dress I was attempting? I started on Sunday and last night I finished the back of the dress!

Hopefully after I finish knitting the front and can block both pieces, the bottom edging will lay flat. I'm pretty proud of myself...it would probably be way cuter knit on circulars but I've been a tad on the timid side to start working with those...maybe my next knit dress will be done that way.

And guess what I got in the mail today?

A gazillion skeins of BEAUTIFUL yarn...I've never knit with "nice" yarn before and I'm sure it will spoil me enough that I won't ever by yarn at the local chain store but this stuff is SO soft. I have different types and different colors for different projects that I have planned out.

Have I mentioned that I love to knit by the way?

A Knitted Baby Sun Dress

This is my newest knitting adventure.

I'm about 4 inches into the first piece and I love the color...it's called Grape Berry and it's 100% Cotton (so the recipients mother can throw it into the washer and dryer! Yeah!). It makes me want to drink grape Kool-Aid, wear a girly-dress with bloomers and put my hair in pigtails.

Anyhow, I can't wait to get this finished up. I have some beautiful cotton fabric (part of the baby room ensemble that I sewed up for the expectant momma) left over that I plan on making some bloomers to go with the dress and a cute little headband.


For those of you interested, I taught myself to knit last year as a way to stay busy when I need to stay put (ie watching Scooby Doo's Pirates Ahoy movie for the 11,000th time). I found a WONDERFUL online knitting tutorial resource that has basically taught me to knit. It's called KnittingHelp.com and it has been a huge help. I didn't think that I would be knitting baby dresses within a year but the video tutorials are step-by-step. Also, if you want to learn, I think that getting a large pair of knitting needles, like US size 11 or 12, and some bulky weight yarn like Lion's Brand Wool-Ease Thick and Quick, and just doing the basic knit stitch will help you tremendously...then you can ease into knitting a row and then purling a row. Just practicing is what will help you breeze through your first project!

Yeah for March!

I don't know about you but I can not tolerate January or February, although February is even more loathsome to me more-so than January.

Anyhow, today I am feeling just about 100% well and I was really needing something to make me feel somewhat accomplished, especially to celebrate the 1st of March.

Thus enters this ribbed scarf that I was knitting for Lawyer. Since I wanted to do something - ANYTHING - I decided I would just turn this scarf into a headband/ear muff thingy for myself. Besides, what are the chances that Lawyer, a 4 year old boy, is going to wrap his scarf snug around his neck before heading out to recess...that's what I thought.

I'm not a "ooh, take a picture of me" type person but I did want to show this little number I completed and seeing that it's a headband and I'm the only female in this household, I would have to suffice.

The first picture at the top of this post is the closest (according to my screen anyway) in color to the actual headband. It's some Lion's Brand yarn in a colorway that reminded me of peacocks (and I love peacock blue). I knit it in a 2x2 rib pattern that I decided on for Lawyer's scarf but it looks kind of vintage-y as a headband, but perhaps that's just me.

Hope the first day of March was an enjoyable one!

We've Got Cable!!

Well, not of the TV variety...but I am attempting to knit a cable pattern in the form of a scarf!

I even tried my hand at ribbing, which I hadn't done yet either.

I just started this scarf yesterday and I'm 8 inches into the project. It's relatively easy and I like the rhythm of the pattern, very soothing. Luckily for me, since I'm slow at knitting, I have until the fall to get this scarf complete!

Satisfied and Accomplished

That's how I feel about my first shaped knitting project I completed on Thursday...a baby hat for a soon-to-be born baby niece.

I even started a second one that is coming along even faster than the first.

Since I'm an "old soul", I only find it appropriate that I love to knit, read, sew, garden and cook. I am probably a rare breed when I say that I look forward to getting older so that I can have my two white rockers on the front porch, knitting or reading, and watching the sun rise or set. I would even like a porch swing and I would make Jason some sweet sun tea (if you aren't from the South, you probably have NO idea what that is!).

My mom even gave me my "old-timey" name....Gladys. It could not be more fitting, although I really liked the names Pearl, Lucille and Cecille.

Oh and this doofus was named Homer, although I forget that name and then call him Herman:

Hahaha! I guess now I can call Homer's son...

Home-Boy!!!