OPA!

Another weekend gone, but well spent. We gorged on moussaka and baklava at the Greek Festival. This is the face one makes when one finds out there are no hamburgers or ice cream - except she says 'hangleburgars'.

And knitting was accomplished - this is an early shot of the future February Lady Sweater in Malabrigo. I'm actually at the pits and ready to separate the sleeves on some scrap yarn. When it was time to throw in 41 yarn-overs evenly over one row, I checked in with the FLS KAL group on Ravelry, and I came along this fantastic calculator! It was GOLD!

And because I got tagged by sweet Kata, here is a meme in which the rule is you must answer the questions with only one word.

1. Where is your cell phone? car.

2. Your significant other? bed.

3. Your hair? bun.

4. Your mother? clean.

5. Your father? dancer.

6. Your favourite thing? family.

7. Your dream last night? forget.

8 Your favourite drink? latte.

9. Your dream/goal? cottage.

10. The room you’re in? office.

11. Your hobby? crafts.

12. Your fear? sharks.

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? university.

14. What you’re not? athletic.

15. Muffins? bran.

16. One of your wish list items? vacation.

17. Where you grew up? Woodstock.

18. The last thing you did? sleep.

19. What are you wearing? skirt.

20. Favourite gadget? camera.

21. Your pets? hungry.

22. Your computer? running.

23. Your mood? fresh.

24. Missing someone? Thien.

25. Your car? minty.

26. Something you’re not wearing? cosmetics.

27. Favourite store? goodwill.

28. Like someone? yis.

29. Your favourite color? orange.

30. When is the last time you laughed? 9am.

31. Last time you cried? Shadowlands.

By the words of the red Staples button, "That was easy."

N

How My Heart Behaves

Welcome back, T! I am pleased about the green card if only it means you can return to southwestern Ontario to see me with the knowledge that you won't get stuck in some mangy motel and your lawyer's number on speed dial when you try to go back over the border. I truly didn't mean to laugh in your ear.

Well, it's official, I am hooked on Feist, and I can’t help but blast My Moon My Man and make jerky dance movements while driving. I blame it on the video.

I’ve got some new –to-me craft books out from the library, and I am itching to make empire-waisted dresses and shirts out of pillowcases for El. I’d make them for myself, but I don’t quite think I could pull it off as well as a pre-teen. And I may have just caught the Tomten bug. It’s probably the dang February Lady Sweater giving me a bad case of Zimmermania, but I’ve been bitten, and the stash is being rooted through to find the perfect wool to knit this bad boy up ASAP. I’ve read the pattern, and it looks simple enough to be right up my alley.

Last night we took the girls to the circus to cross that off our parenting to-do list. Neither J or I were too excited, and to say the oldest was dragged there would be putting it nicely. On the other hand, B was thrilled! Thrilled all the way there, and thrilled during the entire show. At one point in the show, a scantily-clad, somewhat skanky, and very sparkly princess fairy lady led six stunning white horses with little wings attached to their backs into the ring, and they seemed to be gliding and magical all at once. The stadium went silent in awe, and B gasped, “Unicorns!” I looked over at her, and she had went completely still, and her eyes were as big and round as saucers. My heart swelled with love for that little girl. She is so flippin’ cool.

N

Back with a rant and some knitting

Oh it's good to be back! And look what I have to show for my long absence...

Yes, it's official. I've been approved for a Green Card! The epic beginning in the summer of 2007 has ended and I'm proud to say that I am now a lawful permanent resident of the good 'ol U.S. of A. No longer an Alien, I will have my Green Card in my wallet right next to my much loved Canadian Citizenship Card.

After finally completing this ordeal, T and I have realized that we've learned much along the way. One thing we learned is that the bureaucratic system in this country is in dire need of improvements. For anyone who has ever been in a Social Security office knows what I'm talking about. Another thing we learned is that even as native English speakers with a fairly solid financial background (and by that I mean our ever loving parents!) we faced a lot of challenges. The system is difficult enough to navigate for two college grads from Canada, let alone a family of five seeking asylum from their home country, which they probably didn't want to leave in the first place but had to. I'm just saying that we should not be afraid of a little integration.

With rant completed, I have my Hourglass sweater to show.

It's actually completely finished, but I just want to put it through the dryer to see if I can shrink it a tad before modeling it off to y'all. Right now it's a little roomy but as a sweater to throw on when it gets cool in the evening, it'll do just fine. The evenings are about thirty degrees Celsius though, but I'm not complaining!

The Girl with the Thorn in her Side

I picked up some fresh local strawberries last night, and I immediately washed and hulled them. There was some whipping cream in the fridge begging to be whipped up with a generous dash of sugar and a splash of vanilla. It was the perfect treat to end an evening spent hanging out at the park with lots of little friends for a year-end celebration. It didn’t take much convincing to pile up our plates with little sponge cakes topped with whipped cream and strawberries. I can only hope my little family doesn’t go getting too reliant on my sporadic culinary skills. Poor things –it’s like an eclipse. If you blink, you might just miss it.

I would spend more time in the kitchen, but I have an addiction. It’s called knitting. At least it’s now attacking the UFOs. I doubt anyone even remembers me beginning the presto chango baby sweater, but it’s now only about hour away from completion. This is where my projects are guaranteed to stall – seaming, weaving in ends, sewing on buttons, and all that finishing jazz really scares the bejeezus out of me. It’s my final crack at destroying the item be it a sweater, a sock, a bag, a bowl, a pickle . . . maybe later.

Since I had gone to all the trouble of pulling out my camera last night, I thought I would include a little treasure I found thrifting last weekend. I’m always admiring vintage children’s illustrations on other people’s blogs, and I thought I’d get me some of my own to admire. Rather than go with some over-the-top cuteness, I chose rats. Yes – rats. They’re so skittery and cool. Now I wouldn’t be saying that about a real rat. You could probably find me climbing the wall if I was caught in a room with real rat, but a sketchy fake rat? Well, that‘s just super rad.

Toodles,

N

Making an Entrance

The front yard is slowly gobbling up the house. J saw this picture, and he thought it looked sort of 'treehouse-ish'. I suppose so. Will it be enough for him to actually take the trimmer to it? We'll see.
But the reason I took the pictures was the new slap of paint on the front door. Doesn't that just scream 'welcome'? I love it. I love it more that J didn't question my choice at all. He just brought home a handful of yellow paint chips and let me peruse them for hours - all the while standing off to the side with absolutely no opinion. Apparently he doesn't think I am too wacky. I mean, is he crazy? 'Cause for a little while there, even I thought I was insane for wanting a bright yellow door! It's spicy curry. I think it's daffodilicious!
Here I am working on my macro shot in the garden. Everyone needs a little super macro once in a while. Wheee-eee-eee!
And just because J doesn't think the house is being gobbled up quickly enough by the flora, he has attached some trellises to the chimney with some vines. I just shake my head. As long as I can still get in my yellow front door, I could care less.

N

A Day Without Sunshine is Like Night

Introducing the Chickadee Cowl in all of its linen-stitch glory! I used a teensy bit more than one skein of geranium Patons SWS, but one would have been sufficient – I just like to lengthen everything because I have long legs. I know that makes no sense as it is intended strictly for my neck, but I have a complex regarding my long legs, so everything longer in my mind is gravy. Now it makes sense, right?

I really like this cowl. I think my one lonely skein of Noro Silver Thaw might be the perfect yarn for this quick and simple project. I know I proclaimed 2008 the year of the sock, and the year of the frog, but I think the cowl is up there too! That’s not to say that I am throwing scarves to the wind because I am still working madly on my lace ribbon scarf, but cowls will be my go-to for quick, simple gifts this year. Yes, I am already in Christmas mode with my knitting. You have to be – everything takes so darn long to knit! I’m on my game!

N

WWKIP Day

I'm a day late posting, but better late than never! It was a gorgeous day to be sitting in the park knitting, and we spent three glorious hours under the shady trees doing what we love the most. We certainly attracted a lot of attention, but we only had two eager takers. I could definitely handle doing this more than once a year. Thank you, Kata, for posting about it a tad more promptly than I was able!

N