Second sock syndrome begone!

Well, I finally managed to get going on my jaywalker socks, determined to make myself a pair of socks, I found a pattern I like, and even more determinedly started both at the same time, cuff for cuff, ankle for ankle, heel for heel, and now turned both heels. It is actually far less tedious this way, and it looks like I will finally complete a pair of socks.
Zellers has been selling off their sock yarn for $1 a ball, so I naturally bought up lots, I think I got 7 or 9 balls, I got some single balls, they will do to make sockies for Baby Doll, she still has wee enough feet to get two socks from one ball, Eliz has monster feet though, she is a size 4 already, she is still 7! I think her feet may end up being biggerer than my boats.




I succumbed to peer pressure, and today signed up for team Canada! My plan is to knit the Peacock shawl by Fiddlesticks. One major problemo though, I only ordered my yarn on sunday, I can't see it arriving in time. My way round this though, is one of two ideas. I don't think I will decide until cast on day though.
First stupid idea, carry on knitting flirty ruffles which I obviously won't have finished before the big day. Cast on as soon as the yarn arrives.
Second stupid idea, I have some singles on the wheel right now, not fine enough if I ply, so would have to stay as singles, and use that for peacock, I think it is do-able with this yarn, only problem with this stupid idea is that there is some very thin spots, and this yarn was destined to finish my Pi shawl.

I have a lot of thinking to do before Friday.

There is one other option, but this is so not going to happen (probably will end being what does happen) I have lots of this acrylic yarn, very fine, that I plied to make the ruffles shawl, very nice blue, but really I don't want to make two from the same stuff, the only reason ruffles is being made of it is because I want something to throw into the car, a carry around shawl, and with two little girls that love to dress up in my shawls, that usually climb all over my poor car in messy shoes, that eat and spill a lot of food in my car, I figured something that could get thrown into the machine was OK! Can't say I am loving the process so much with this yarn, but I love Ruffles so much I have about three other yarns and colourways picked out for it that I will (not) end up doing it in.

Yesterday we got snow, Wierton willy has a lot to answer for. Early spring my bum!





And doesn't baby Doll look happy!!!!!!!!!

She had actually been outside for a long time at that point. Her face was bright red and she just couldn't keep her mitts on anymore.


We actually got about 8 inches of snow, this is the first snow we have had really stay for more than a day since december, in Ontario, that's just freaky.
We of course went out and played in the snow for about two hours, it was fun, alas it wasn't sticky, so no snowmen.

Here are some more pictures from the big event!





This is a picture of the creek at the side of our property. I could hear the water rushing, but could barely see where the water was.






This is the swing set that Daddy built for his two little girls last year, boy was that ever a good build. We already have plans for an extension in the spring.








This is the deck that Daddy built. Isn't he a genius~~~~~~

It just looked so lovely covered in snow.








And finally for today, here is a picture of our latest pet, Maggie, the monster cat!
She came to us the week before christmas, she is 12-14 years old, her previous owner was an elderly lady that had passed on. Maggie is huge, she weighed 21 pounds when she arrived here, and is now at 18-19 pounds. Katherine is only 38 pounds!

As you can see in the picture Maggie is almost the same size as Katherine. Poor baby doll couldn't even pick her up! She is still trying.

A sad weekend

Ty lost his battle on Friday. Elizabeth had gone to see him in the afternoon, I checked in on them, and found what I thought was my baby girl holding a dead hamster, but he choked out another few breathes, and passed peacefully in my hands.

My sister in law also lost a bird on Friday.

Rest in peace little ones, I hope that the rainbow bridge is all they say it is.

Knitting news, Pi is almost done, and I still haven't figured out how to put up the button! Duh..... I am so dense, I tried once, and got it, then screwed something up and lost it all, then tried again, didn't even get close!

LOL.... one day I will manage it, maybe within the time frame of the KAL.

I started a pair of jaywalker socks yesterday, I am not a sock lover, or a sock knitter, so these bright red socks are definitely for me. I don't mind low ankle socks so much so that is what they will be.

I ordered some yarn from knit picks today, yarn for the peacock, and some sock yarn, I am determined to get into sock knitting, god knows why, maybe to distract me from lace? Won't work, but I will try, and if it fails, well I will have to add it to the stash.

The family have all come down with a lousy cold this weekend, mine is finally starting to clear up, hopefully back to normal tomorrow, but this just capped off what started as a crap weekend!

Balmoral Lives!!!!!!!!

Balmoral lives!!!!!!!
I took Balmoral off the blocking bed, and it truly is gorgeous, I couldn't be prouder!




And there, look at that, beautiful. Is that not a wonderously beatiful piece of art. I just love the work of Marianne Kinzel. We have been talking about her work on the EZasPi list, and now I have itchy fingers to do another. The daffodil is next up. First though I want to finish my EZ skirt, the Ariel sweater and get to the edging on the Unst stole. I did well finishing up my ufo's and wips before the KAL for EZ started, but I still have quite a way to go before I start many more new ones. Like that will last long........... Maybe tomorrow I will start the Daffodil!

Here is a picture of Ty the hammie, he is such a sweet dude, I feel like I should talk more about him while he is still with us.
He is very young in this picture, maybe 4 months old.





Here is a picture of him from last night, he has changed so much since we first got him. He is very long haired now, but isn't grooming himself much at all now, I have never seen such a long haired hamster.





He fell asleep in my hands a few minutes after I had taken the picture.

Seeking Lace

Today I went looking for a piece of lace that I knitted a year ago, yesterday I discovered that it wasn't where I thought it was, I ransacked everything looking for it, and had one place left to look, I was very worried, this piece was my Balmoral tea cloth by Marianne Kinzel. I knew I had never blocked it, and thinking I had lost it before I ever saw it's true beauty was disturbing me. So I finally plucked up the courage to look in that one last place. It was there, big sigh of relief!!!!!!!!!! It is now quite happily blocking out on the spare bed.

Ty, one of my Syrian hamsters, is fading slowly, he has very shallow breathing, and he has a clicking noise going on while he breathes, very worrying. He is about 2 years and 3 months old, so quite the old codger. Elizabeth is very attatched to him though, and I know this one going will be very painful for her. I only hope it is quick for him. He is a beautiful tender old man, and always has been a sweet little dude. He was named after Ty the tasmanian tiger, Elizabeth's favourite gamecube game. I took some pictures of him earlier, after I realized that he hadn't had his photo taken in a long time. I had been looking at his baby pictures, I barely recognized him, as a baby his hair was quite short and we never expected his hair to grow to the lengths it did, he now looks like one of those big fuzzy slippers. I have a weakness for sable syrians, and Ty is a banded sable, my only other hamster Woody is also a sable, but not banded so the difference in their colour is quite extreme. Woody is getting quite tufty, but is also getting on to being well past the baby stage, so I don't think he will be a long haired beastie quite like Ty.

I am also finally getting into book 5 of the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. The fiery cross is dragging a little, infact most of the books have a little through the first half of the book, but Claire and Jamie are becoming like family, and I just want to know how their story ends. There is a 6th book but still in hardback only I think, so I will wait for the paperback, I already have Digital fortress by Dan Brown lined up next for me to read, I still have about 700 pages of Fiery cross left to read.

Tomorrow I will make an attempt to post pictures of my knitting and of Ty, maybe even woody and the guinea pigs Smudge and Rosco will make an appearance here sometime, and I am sure Maggie and Mini the cats will appear time to time. For now, it is very late, and I need sleep.

I'm getting there.......

Ok, finally got around to trying some editing on the template of the blog. I was successful to a small degree. Got some blogs I read up. What an achievement! Now I just need to figure out posting buttons, there is a new EZasPi button for the KAL starting tomorrow, and I wanted to add that.

Now, knitting news, well I finished my needle cozy in double knitting, and discovered a major error, about 1/6th into it I must have knitted and purled into one row, and got a solid row, no opening. I think I know how to fix it though, I will be felting the cozy anyway, so any little error won't be too bad, I will just rip out from the bottom and refinish it back from the bottom end. I am going to crochet a chain for a wrap onto it. As usual photo's may follow, but I promise nothing with this one, I am not sure it is going to work out yet.

The Ella shawl is almost finished, just a few more rows to go, and I want to dye it after it is finished. Will post piccie's once it is finished though, pre dying, then post dying.

Right, to photo's, I am going to try posting Piccie's today! Yay!!!!!

I guess I should start with the Lotus blossum shawl. I don't have any fandabidozy pic's yet, but if I get this right I will go outside into the fresh snow, where the sun is shining and try to get some nice pictures, the colours in the shawl only really show in true light.

So here it is, the Lotus Blossum shawl.




Like I said, bad piccie, but it is there non the less, so that is two achievements today!!!! Now to finish my shawl, and I will have a great day.

Got a party to go to tonight, a surprise for a friend, so no knitting tonight, but I will be wearing my sweater girl sweater that I finished last week, it looks great on, and is actually quite warm. The weather is so screwy here in ontario this winter that I never know what to wear if I am going out. Ok, now the sun has gone in, I should have taken the opportunity while it was there. Oh well.

Dear Diary

I suck at blogging, how lame is that, two weeks since my last half hearted effort.
So Ron had a birthday on the 11th, the dear guy turned 33, he got a lovely sweater hand made by moi, of course, it came out perfect, a better fit couldn't have been found.
Since then I have also finished my Lily Chin Sweater girl sweater, a curly scarf, and am almost finished my second attempt sweater, I wanted this big bulky thing for all the bad weather we get here in the winter, only this year we really aren't getting a bad winter, I am determined to finish it though, it's all in acrylic *shrieks* but if it comes out good this time, I may well make a wool one. I love the pattern though and hope it is worth makiing a 3rd time.

So I have looked around the blogger site for info on stuff for the blog, must say I am at a loss as to what to do exactly, I think I have figured out how to post pictures, which I will do later tonight, maybe, but I am not so sure about editing sidebars. I don't really want to change the template, but I think I might have to just to get a links side bar. My goodness, computer idiocy can be a real pain in the bum.

Talking of bums, I just went to the store to get a loaf of bread, on my first attempt to get to the car I started sliding, and yes, fell flat on my arse!!!!

Well, bum is ok, but I grazed the tips of the fingers on my left hand, they are still throbbing.
We had freezing rain earlier, and while it is now 3 degrees C outside, it is raining which only served to make the ground slippier than snot.....

Anyway, must try to get some knitting done today, so will go now, and try to return with photo's later.

Happy New Year!!!!!!

I hope everyone had a fantastic time last night, had fun wherever they were and that this year will be a joy filled year.


On knitting news, I finished the Lotus blossom shawl yesterday and blocked it, it is absolutely gorgeous, when I get around to figuring out how to post pictures here I will do just that.

I have plenty of knitting to get on with now, so that is exactly what I shall do. I have a sweater to make for Ron by the 11th, his birthday, and a sweater for myself, then the Pi KAL starts on 22nd of January. Lots to do......