Home Alone

Joe's annual conference in Vegas was this week, so Rocco & I were left to our own devices for the last few days. Typically I have a sewing marathon or a knitting marathon or just plain girly time, but this year I am on a home improvement kick. Just before he left, I saw a commercial for Lowes Creative Ideas magazine, so I went to their website to subscribe (it's free, so why not). One of the ideas on the site was to update your kitchen cabinet hardware & paint your cabinets for an updated look. My cabinets are already painted, but the hardware was definitely questionable (I didn't remember to take a before shot until I was a little bit into the project, but you get the idea):

So, $100 later, I came home to install my new hardware. OF COURSE the holes from the new hardware didn't line up with the holes from the old hardware, so I had to drill new holes, spackle & paint the old holes, and while I was at it, touch up paint the nicks & scrapes that suddenly became painfully obvious. But since I had nothing else to do all weekend, I didn't mind too much. I think it looks WAY better this way:

These pics were taken with my cell phone at night, so sorry if they're blurry. A shot of my prized jade-ite chicken:

Rocco was pretty pissed that my lap wasn't as available as usual, and my knitting productivity was nil this week, but I think it's worth it. I can't wait to see Joe's reaction when he comes home tonight!

Holy Crap, I Finished Something

So after I finished the lace edged hat, my knitting mojo completely left me. I had no desire to finish CPH and even less desire to start something else. My sewing mojo left around the same time as well. The only thing I've been doing really is reading cholesterol books. Fun! So, this weekend I got the cleaning bug & I've been wanting to get the serger off the dining room table for a while because it really bothers me when it's there & I'm not using it. Before I could do that, I had to finish Joe's robe. All I had left were the stupid pockets, so I went for it.

I was even distracted enough to embroider his monogram like he wanted:

I figure it's close enough to Valentine's day to count as a present, and since he sent me this very yummy, very expensive fruit arrangement, I figured I owed him:

After I finished the robe, the cleaning bug totally left & I actually felt like knitting again! I started the back of CPH & got about an inch or so done last night. I'm so glad the mojo's back!

Progress Report

It's been a rough few weeks, but i am ALMOST caught up on blogs. I had them down to 18 unread, but then I worked on the house all weekend last week, and it went back up to over 100. Sigh.

On the weight loss front, I lost 4lbs! I was doing OK on the diet part, but not so great on the exercise part. But all that changed this past Monday. Joe got a bad report card from his Dr. on his cholesterol. It's 282, which isn't horrible, but his good cholesterol is way too low, and his bad cholesterol is way too high. So major changes are going on in our house. He & I re-joined the gym & have been going every night, I am cooking or preparing everything that goes into his mouth, and eating out is back to every two weeks. The restaurants we like cook pretty healthy food, but I just don't want to chance it. I have him on 300mg or less of cholesterol per day and 16-20g of saturated fat. So one tablespoon of accidental butter could throw off his whole day. He's also having to take his coffee black now and he is NOT happy about it.

But it's not all doom and gloom at our house; we got a new TV!

It's a samsung 52" 650 something. Obviously, we haven't upgraded our sound system yet (I guess it says a lot about Sony sound systems though, as that's my old stereo from 1990 & it still works), but we're working on picking one out.

In knitting news, I'm done with CPH's sleeves & fronts & plan to start the back this weekend. I also made a chemo cap for a friend's MIL:

It's Lace Edged Women's Hat (free Ravelry download!). I used one ball of Zara that I had in the stash & I think it came out pretty cute!

In sewing news, I made a new cover for the ottoman at the foot of our bed, but the fabric was really floppy & slippery, so it didn't come out so perfect. I'm done with Joe's robe except for his monogram, but I need to whip out the manual for that. After that's done, I'll tackle the mending pile, and I don't really have any solid plans after that. Well, that's all for now!

Christmas Vacation

I took a little internet break this holiday season in addition to my work vacation. I still get email and facebook updates on the Blackberry, but I have been blog and ravelry free since the 23rd or so. As punishment, I have 432 unread blog posts, but I'll tackle them during this afternoon's playoff game and tomorrow's down time at work. I have a LOT to show and tell you guys though! I got Joe to model his Anniversary sweater (Don't feel sorry for him; It only snowed 12 inches that day!):

I made some Christmas presents:


I got some Christmas presents:


And I started a couple new projects:
Central Park Hoodie for me:

McCall's 4244 for Joe:

I'm still working on my pirate themed socks, but my size 2's got splinters, so I'm contemplating which needles to try next. The finalists are Darn Pretty Needles and Knitpicks harmony's. I got a gift card to Creative Fibers in the office Secret Santa, so I might see if they can get the Darn Pretty's as a special order. My criteria for dpn's are flexible, slippery, and short (under 6"). My absolute favorites are Bryspuns, but I've yet to find the size 2's in the short length.

One project that is a priority this year is my increasing ass size. I gained TEN pounds since our Aruba trip in November (I currently think it's funny; we'll see how long that lasts), so I'm on grilled chicken salad for lunch and one hour of exercise every day until it's gone. In my defense, I was on light duty/no workouts for 2 weeks due to surgery on my legs, but that's really no excuse. I just fell off the wagon big time.

Our annual trip to VA on Christmas day went well as usual. We were able to stop in Arlington this year since Aimee is a new mom & stayed home this year, which suited us perfectly. This allowed us to avoid the family for a good 3 hours! And with all the in fighting going on this year, that was a GOOD thing. My mom was crazy as usual & I forgot to photograph it, but I did manage to finish her annual knitted giftie (Socks made with Spunky Eclectic yarn). As some of you know, if she had it her way, I would knit exclusively for her 24/7. But, sadly, I have a JOB so I am unable to do so, and she "only" gets a couple things a year. She actually said she had been cursing Aimee's baby thinking that he was getting all the knitted goodness this year. Who the eff would curse a little baby? My mother, that's who. Although, Hewen DID get the best gift this year:

So cute. Hee hee.

Back In NYC

Joe & I took our annual trip to NYC last week, but work's been so crazy, I haven't had time to tell you guys about it! We always stalk the Waldorf Astoria in hopes of spotting Nascar drivers walking around before their annual ceremony, but this year we only saw some executives and the Sprint Cup trophy:

Then we headed over to Bloomingdale's and Serendipity 3. This is the first year ever we have been able to get a table at Serendipity (yes, I know it's probably because of the bad health department scores). We had the famous frrrrozen hot chocolate & Joe had some seriously rich apple pie. His pie was only $7 or something, and they have a $8.50 minimum per person, so he had to get some over the top coffee thing to bump up his bill. Conclusion: Probably never going back. While pretty, it was way overpriced & so sweet we couldn't eat/drink hardly any of it.

Next stop, ToysRUs. I love all the Lego sculptures. Here's King Kong attacking the Empire State building in Lego:

Then, we were off to the garment district! I was tempted to do a "stupefy" pose with this guy, but there was too much foot traffic near him & I didn't have my wand handy. hee hee.

I got some purple corduroy from Mood, and a couple zippers from one of the trimming stores (not MJ).

I was hoping to find some awesome knit prints at either Mood or Spandex World, but everything seemed to be neon pink or green. WTF? Is Broadway putting on some 80s play that I don't know about?

Houston, we have a baby!

Aimee had her baby! It's a beautiful little boy named Hewen Joseph, and he is so cute! He's not really named after my Joe, but he's telling everyone that he is. lol. Check him out:

Recognize a certain monkey in that picture? Don't they look like best buds already? Too cute! I must admit, I got a little weepy when I saw the picture of the monkey with the baby. It's a huge honor to make it into the hospital bag!

So, tomorrow's my birthday, and being the spoiled brat that I am, I already know what I'm getting. My parents always send money, so I bought some yarn for a Central Park Hoodie from Elann with their check:

I have recently been accused of buying yarn based on the color name, and this time it's absolutely true. It's Twilight Blue. Yes, my name is Jenny and I'm a Twilight-aholic. Or a Twi-hard if you prefer that term. hee hee.

Joe got me one of those new Blackberry's from Verizon, but they apparently don't care that it's my birthday tomorrow because it didn't get here yet. :( Oh well, looking at the picture of it is ALMOST as good:

NOT.

Back from Aruba!

We got back Sunday from our annual Aruba trip. What a huge bummer it was to come back to 35 degree weather! The 50 degree climate change has done my sinuses no good, I tell you. Before we left, we exchanged our anniversary gifts. Since this is our second, or 'cotton' anniversary, we gave each other cotton gifts. He got the sweater & he got me all this:

The Sew U knits book! Also, this awesome apron pattern from Sew liberated:

And, the (cotton) fabric to make the apron with:

That is one side, this will be the other, the plain brown will be the straps:

I love that it's reversible! That way, I can switch it around to match what I'm wearing.

Aruba was so great. We mostly relaxed at the beach and went shopping, except for one day of atv-ing in the desert and one early morning fishing trip. The week went by too fast, as usual. Now it's back to reality, Blah.

I think the mojo's back

Hi there! Sorry for the radio silence, but I haven't finished anything in a while, so I didn't feel like I had anything "blogworthy." But I do now! I finished Joe's anniversary sweater! And our anniversary isn't until next week!

And by finished, I mean finished knitting. It still needs blocking & some of the ends woven in, but I'm counting it as done. What a beast this thing was. All those cables! Joe's commute has been particulary brutal the last few days because of daylight savings (people forgetting how to drive in the dark), so I've actually had a bit of sewing time for a change! Last night I got started on a bikini bottom (FYI, that's the waistband and the bottoms that need to be sewn together, not the top & bottom of the suit):

And the night before that, I got the better part of the top to match these done:

Our annual Aruba trip is coming up, so these will definitely come in handy if I can get them done in time. In other news, I finished my first pair of Socks that Rock a few weeks ago:

These are the ones I started on the flight down to Aruba last year, then lost for a while, then pretty much forgot about. To celebrate their completion (and to give myself a little head start on my airplane knitting), I started two more socks:

The left ones are STR Silkie in Pirate's Booty, and the ones on the right are Lorna's Laces Black Purl. I guess I'm feeling piratey lately!

Rhinebeck 08

I'm sure there's a zillion blog posts titled that, or some variation of that, today. Joe & I had planned on going to the festival on the Harley, but after doing a last minute weather check, voted against it. What a good call that was because it was COLD on Saturday! We were chilly just walking around the fairgrounds! It would have been a beautiful ride on the bike, but it was just as beautiful from my heated seat. ;) Case in point:

Is that not gorgeous? The yarn was just as awesome, but I stuck to an old favorite, Socks that Rock:
That one is the new Lenore colorway. It's really a deep purpley black, but it's impossible to photograph inside & get those good purple bits. The next one is Puck's Mischief. Love the name; love the colors; there was no way I wasn't getting this one:

I saw this little sock monkey hanging around the yarn and got the pattern to make him:

Joe turned out to be especially handy at the Fold. There was a longer line to pay than to peek at the time I hit the booth, so he got in line to pay while I peeked.
Then I got some Addi sock needles & some ebony sock needles (only $16! what a deal!) and a shawl pin in the barns:

I have no clue where I got the needles, but the shawl pin is from Moving Mud. It's holding my Clapotis on my shoulders as I type. It was such a great day, and the chilly weather finally gave me a chance to wear my Hermione sweater among 'my people'. And, since I have no where else to wear it this fall, I was happy to get it out of the house for a while.

Baby Shower Time Already?

I had a nice pace going for Aimee's shower gifts. I worked on them a few at a time over the last few months, and had most of them done by last week. I finished her little monkey:

More pics here, here, and here.
Then I made the mistake of peeking around on Ravelry at baby sacks. I saw this adorable one from Boho Baby Knits and HAD to make it. I only had 4 days left, so I had to hustle. Of course, time got away from me & I was still weaving in ends on the plane ride down to DC, but I got it done:

I love the insides:

Her MIL is a knitter and sewer too & we had a little friendly competition going on over who would make the most things. I conceded when she whipped out this quilt:

The fabric is mostly monkey themed & it is really nice. She also made everything knitting related out of her own handspun, hand dyed yarn, so I was toast. I think I did pretty good anyway! The nursing aprons went over really well for sure.

Nom Fest!

I absolutely love this time of year. There is a fair or festival every weekend straight through to Halloween up here in charming New England. The kickoff for us is the Big E. It's basically a state fair, but all of the New England states participate, so it is HUGE. Joe and I love to go & look at all the crazy gadgets, wonder mops, window washer tool kits, and this year's biggest gimmick, the Sham Wow:

We didn't get one, in case you're wondering. I was hoping to meet the guy with the wonky eye that's in the commercial, but he wasn't around. Oh, well. Then we headed to what we call "Nom Row." We pigged OUT on corn dogs, london broil sandwich, sausage sandwich, boneless chicken wings, apple fritters, and my favorite thing there, the millenium chips:

We had turkey leg and fried pickle envy, but were too stuffed to get any. Hopefully the Apple Harvest Festival will have some this weekend. As we were just licking the powdered sugar off our fingers from the apple fritters, we heard a guy on a loud speaker saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, please give it up for TIFFANY!!"

OMG, I freaked out. I LOVED her when I was in middle school and would always stick up for her in a Debbie Gibson/Tiffany argument among my friends. Us redheads have to stick together, you know. I only made Joe stay for a couple songs, but we could hear her from the street while we were stuck in traffic on the way home. So awesome.

In Which I Blatantly Copy Karen

I saw some yummy looking home made salsa on Karen's blog the other day & figured I'd give it a try. The company I work for leases some of our undeveloped land to farmers each year and we employees have been tomato "poaching" all summer. (We don't really steal them, we ask the farmers nicely if we can have some and they always say yes.) So Friday I went out for the last chance tomatoes of the season & found a whole section of romas that I swear hadn't been there before. Maybe they just weren't ripe yet. Anyway! I turned this:

Into this:

And this:

I did extensive research on the subject of canning tomatoes on the internet & boy, it is serious business. You have to follow strict guidelines & safety precautions or you could get very sick or even DIE from eating bad canning. I was nervous to try it, but I sucked it up & went for it. Turns out, it is really easy and the 'precautions' are basically to add lemon juice to each jar of tomatoes. So for the tomatoes I just did tomatoes, a little water, one tablespoon of lemon juice and a half teaspoon of salt and boiled the jars for 40 minutes. For the salsa, I followed the same recipe Karen did, but I made a couple mods. Now, making mods of canning recipes is strictly forbidden unless you follow a few simple rules (see page 3 of this pdf), which I did. I used 1.5 cups of jalapenos and 1 cup of green pepper to make it a little hotter, omitted the sugar, and added 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to each jar. I also added 1/2 cup of cilantro near the end of the cooking. I wasn't sure what kind of vinegar to use since it doesn't specify, so I used white. Next time I'll use cider vinegar though because I like the flavor of it better in general. It was a lot of work, but when you hear those jar lids seal one by one, there is no greater feeling of satisfaction.

In other Karen-like news, I too saw a turtle on my daily walk (she saw hers on her run, but I don't go that speed). I have to say my turtle sighting was a little scarier than hers because this thing is A. huge, B. covered in pond scum, and C. I think it's a snapping turtle. I thought it was a dinosaur or something at first. It scared the CRAP out of me because I see it every night swimming in the pond at the park, but it suddenly decided to cross the street to get to the creek right when I was walking that way. I don't know if you can tell from the picture but this thing is almost the size of a car tire!

OK, I'm done ripping off Karen's blog fodder. I'll try to be original next time! ;)

Monkey Parts

I'm not sure if I mentioned that Aimee's nursery theme is monkeys. Ever since I saw her registry, I have been obsessed with all things monkey. I saw the crocheted one on Pam's website, and knew it must be made. The website that the pattern is on has all kinds of copywright warnings, and I'm not sure if I am even allowed to link to it, so here is the Ravelry link.
My progress:

So, most of the easy part is done. Now comes the stuffing. Ugh.