Bad Bad Blogger

I am still kicking....these are pics of the wee ones birthday party!! Hmmm just a day under a week ago andI am just posting pics.
He was so clean eating his cake....the other 2 literally dove in face first which is why they get thier own mini cake........the photos of this guy aren't quite as entertaining, nor are will they have the blackmailing strength as Miss S and Big B's

He was really into sharing with Grammie. Great big fist fuls for her, in the end I think she got more of his cake than he did. He was very insistent!!
Grandma and grandpa bought him his very own cement truck....he was thrilled. Grmmie gave him 2 really cute summer outfits, and a tow bihind caterpille with these nifty spinny balls...too cute. Mommy and Daddy got him a musical bus, he got a book and $5, from hus other grammie, and $5 from his aunt and uncle. He had a great day and baskd in all the attention.




This is the book from our adopted grammie.....he really stopped to look at it too, it has animals in it and he loves anything farm animal!












Here we are playing peek a boo with my package!!! He knew exactly what he was doing.

Where is Little B??????


Here I am Hehehehehehehehehe!!!




There are more pics to come......I have some extras this time around woohooo!!!! And I will update my knitting in the next one!

Proud/Sad/Bittersweet Parenting Moments

Disclaimer: This post lacks knitting content so if you are here for yarny stuff, today you are outta luck (sorry!!)

Ok so fot those of you with kids, you know that you get to a certain point and you realize that they are growing up right before your eyes..........and you choose to ignore it, pretned it isn't happening and certainly you don't admit toanyone else that they are doing such horrid things.

Then it slaps you in the face that the cat is outta the bag........................................................................heres my weekend in a nut shell, Little B turned 1 yesterday, and he is already to walk......he stands up from the the middle of the floor now without help and then can gently lower himself to a kneeling or squatting position, he just hasn't figured out how to move his feet yet. Sad, bittersweet parenting moment.

Big B is really seriously into the potty training thing, he even told us today on the mainland when he had to go....before he went in his pants. Wooohoooo that is an awesome happy positive proud thing.

The last item I will leave to your savvy interpretation. Miss S had to have certain items added to her wardrobe. We had "the" discussion and she was fine with it. Oh my god was this a slap me in the face wholly CRUD what the heck is going on, where the heck did my baby girl go!!!!!!!!!!!! UGH............what next..........don't even go there I don't want to talk about it, on that note I will be in denial for at least another 5 years (HOPEFULLY!!)

So thats it a weekend full of memories of time slipping by and memories being made. For mom and dad, mostly mom it was a weekend of high emotions!!!

Happy Birthday little guy!!

happy birthday wee one!!!!!! time really does go fast. Little B is 1 today, in about another hour he had joined our family a year ago. He was a surprise baby, and I am so happy he surprised us, he is a very happy go lucky kinda kid, and now you can tell he tries to make us laugh. Happy Birthday Little Man, glad you joined our zoo/family!


These socks are now off the needles but took this picture early in the day to show you all that I really do knit 2 socks at once oncircular needles. I
really sweat by this method. There is never any second sock syndrom, and the socks are always the same. I tend to tweak patterns as I go in my head and then when I go to knit the 2nd I have forgotten exactly what I do. These socks were done in peace fleece, and I really like them. There is no pattern, it all just went from my head to the needles.



So I have caught the stitch marker
bug too. They are so fun,nd quick to mke and I love the fact that they
are inexpensive. The only problem I have is that Wal-mart here doesn't have much of a selection and when you buy on line wih beads you really don't know what you are getting. I do't know what size 6mm is.....I mean I suppose I could break outa ruler, but that would be too smart!




Finished Peace Fleece Socks WOOHOO.

And here is my new project! It is the Lily of the Valley Smoke Ring. It is very enjoyable. I love it!

Knitting and newness

So I discovered this nest perched rather low in a lilac bush. It is right outside of the front door to a house my husband caretakes for. It is quite a deep nest. Little Miss S actually saw it first but decided there were no eggs....I believed her and bypassed it for a few days, and then I took a peek in it. Now I don't know i the eggs were there to begi with or if they were laid after S. peeked. but anyway there are













3 Beautiful bright blue, robins eggs in that nest. and since spying them we have seen momma bird sitting on the nest and gathering food for herself. I am anxiously awaiting the baby birds, I have never been able to peek in on a nest like this before. The kids have been told to stay away and that if they touch the nest or the eggs that momma bird won't take care of her babies, and that if we are creful we just may be able to watch them as they grow and get ready to learn to fly.











I think it is awesomely amazing. The olor of the eggs is incredible!












So I did my first day in the yarn/gift shop here on island, and it really is not conducive to the wallet.









This is one of the first sweaters I ever attempted and I love it. It came out beutfuly, not to toot my own horn.










Look at all that yany goodness it takes a great bit of restraint to cntrol oneself when under extreme circumstances such as these!








If you look really closely in this picture you will see my new spinning wheel.....I am not sure which one, was hoping to get some advice n it, but she has 3 in stock 2 are ashford travellers, one of which is a double treadly with scotch tension, (it may sound like I know what I am talking about..but I really don't I just read the box ) the other is single treadl and the 3rd is a really beautiful looking traditional.........Now if I didn't have kids that were really young and I could display it I would definitely get the traditional because it embodies all you dream of when you think about spinning wheels.




See them in the box at the bottom of the picture, under the table to the left of the empty baskets???? YUMMY!






The smell is delish when you walk in, it smells like balsam fir pillows and candles, and yarn!

Can you see the wheels inthis one too?????? :)

I know I am severly redundant.



Thank you to my mom and others who commented on the blog and privately about my last post. Life certainly has been a lesson these las few years. Lessons that I have learned are:
Not to wait till tomorrow to say things you can say today, because sometimes tomorrow doesn't come. Live life to th fullest, every day, but also take time to indulge yourself with lifes smallest pleasures, as sometimes the simplest things are the most special. Don't wait until someone is gone to remember them, remember and celebrate those you love evertime you see them. It is sort of like if I were rich, which I am not, I would begin giving freely now so I can watch those around me enjoy it, rather than will it to them upon my death....what good does that do??? Gve of yourself now amoung the living and do what makes you hapy, life is to darn short to work hard at something you hate! I know even though things seem tough right now there are many out there who have it worse. I have a beautiful family, 3 healthy kids, my mom is responding wel to her regime thus far, and my dad has a date for his surgery, and so far as we know know it is going to be a fairly simple surgery with no chemo to follow. Itcertaily could be much worse. I am healthy and can hlp out where I am needed, and was able to help a grieving family have a safe place without constant reminders of thier lost loved one. Aaaaah I do have a good life. May yours be peacful and calm!

Fragility.......

I am not even sure that is a real word, but man oh man, am I feeling fragile.

Let me preface this with the fact that I know this all goes on everywhere but, I live on a tiny island and these things just aren't supposed to effect us here!

In the past few days apparently I have had a sign on me that says "tell me what I don't want to know" I have heard things ranging from, people cheating on others, to someone in the school working with our kids is doing coke, to having a friend die of, as of yet unknown causes, to adults seeing pictures of community members in various stages of undress. I feel like I am on overload. You know how when the washing machine is overloaded or unbalanced it makes tha banging noise and walks across the floor? That is what all this stuff is oing in my head! Add 3 young kids and parents with the C word and it really is almost too much! Yikes! I am ready to dig a hole and livein it. This is nuts!

I have been knitting for sanity, although it isn't working very well. I have no pics as of right now maybe tonight!

This is the scarf that never ends!!!

WOOHOOO for me. I have figured out how to resize my pictures, (psssst, do thy seem to take less time to load now???) so now they are tiny files but are still beutiful crystal clear.

I have 2 skeins of this cashmerino yarn from Bartlet Yarns (the color outside on the porch is fairly true) it is yummy, I have knit this scarf up (well half of it anyhow) twice now.....I first knit it up with the middle hearty cable the other way, and from the bottom edge, it also had 2 more k stitch cables as well as 2 more moss edge stitches AND 2 more purls between each adge of the middle cable. Why do I bore you with all the details, well because it was too wide, nd was not even going to be 4 feet long total. I ripped it all out.......then I decided on some decreases in number of stitches, knit about half way through my yarn and decided with all the cables it was going to be quite bulky and inflexable around the neck.....soo.............you guessed it ripppppppppp, sooooooo now I fairly happy with what I have created. Can I call it my own pattern? I borrowed the middle cable from a sweater pattern I love but tweaked it here and
and then used some of the elements from the ARAN hat and threw them in a blender and played till I got a good result. I don't know, at this point I feel like it has probably all been done before, so to post it as my patter or not?????? I dunno!
I love the yarn, I love the look, I get lots of compliments when I work on it. It is beautiful.

So here is a first, a post withnothing other than knitting news. I didn't know I was capable of it!

I have cast on a pair of socks, I am doing them for sale at the LYS here on island. I have also started making stitch markers to sell there as well.

I will do a roll call. Currntly on the needles, this lushous scarf, a pair of cuff down socks easy cheesy pattern but wool........hey I live in Maine and it even is cold in the summer for summer people!!!
And I just cast off 2 of my mini angels
and they are patiently awaiting finishing off which is a messy time consuming project!

That is it for now.

Hmmmmm

Ok so I hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day. It has always been one of my favorite holidays. Perhaps, because I am a Navy Brat, with both of my parents having served thier time, perhaps because it is not a highly commercialized holiday. Memorial Day is about remembering those who have given,and are giving thier lives to protect our freedoms. Regardless of how you feel about the war itslef, there are men and women over there risking life and limb for you and I. It is about the troops, not the gov't. I appreciate all they have done and will continue to do! Thank You!!!

Freedom at last!!!!!

BIG WHITE BLOB! Free from the needles at last. Now I did not take any close ups of the edge, but the new skein of the yarn that I used maybe 4 feet of to finish her off was kind of funny it had a yellowish tinge. So I spent a day or 2 pondering what to do.













I hung t in several locales hoping that the yellow would BLEACH out.....hmm no doings, didn't work so pondered somemore













and came up with this! I killed it.....I mean dyed it....do you know how much I worried over this bowl. Frightened i was somehow ruining this thing that had taken so mch time to create!!!

I think it came out nice. She is downstairs in the living room drying. Hopefully she will be done first thing! It kinda matches the blanket it is lying on.

I am exhausted and have decided i need better lace blockkng tools before the next project!!!!!

Here are my 4th pair of jaywalokers I love love love them!!!!

And I am flashing my tat.....what are you hiding? Bazaar I know BUT it was a semi challenge and I am always up for a challenge!!!!

I swore I would never do it!!!!!

But here we are! We went for family portraits on Saturday andthese are some of the pictures......do not worry we have the signed copyright waiver.....anyone who feels the needs to see itleave a comment! This is the whole fam damily!!!! We had them don at Sears and they were great!








I plan to update the knitting content too I promise as there has been major headway there as well!!! But first let me introduce myself HDW and my hubby Mr. J. We both HATE having our pictures done BUT feel it is important for ourkids to do it!!!! And as pics go they aren't tooooo bad!










As far as the kids go oh my LOVE the way they came out. Very cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Blogger is burping right now and dong odd things with my script and my pics so I will cut this here for now!!!!

Lace Yarn Anyone?????

Ok so THIS is why I can not go to knitpicks to shop for a lonely skein of bare lace weight yarn for $3.99!!! It's like Lays potato chips, you can't buy just one!!!!! ARGH!!! My knitpicks package came today and I was working. I did not even open thepackage until I had all of my billing letters out, off my desk, then I ripped open the package, glanced at all the goodies andwent back to work. Hbbycame in and since I was not drooling over yarn figured the ackage had not come. I said oh, yeah but I am not allowing myself to have my way with the books and yarn. So what did he do???? e went and got the package of yrn and brought it in to the office and opened it and said feel it, it is soo soft.......he is the knitters equivalent of a drug pusher........he is good too.....:) So I broke I took the skeins out of the bag and sniffed and touched. Good grief how I love yarn!!! So now I can complete the Butterfly Shawl WOOHOO!! But...............................................
I started another project.......it is a matching scarf for the hat I have already made. This was my first stab at creating smething on my own. I sort of looked through books and took elements hat I liked from different things and tweaked them a bit. So far I like it.....I am goin to have fringe and the center (neck) piece wil be ribbed to do away wth some of the bulkiness bt I love the way it is loking!!!!

Oh and for those of you who have not entered yet I have a contest going on and there aren't too many entries....like 2 maybe......come on peeps gimme some ideas PLEASE!!!! It is a very easy one spread the word!!!!!!!!

MEME (If you are reading this consider yourself tagged!)

Here are the rules... Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs the 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog.

1)I can cross my eyes and then literally spin them in all different directions, the kids think this is hysterical.

2) I can not say Worchestchire sauce.......it comes out horse-cest-hire or some other variation.

3) I am double jointed and can bend my pinky so that it is straight across my hand knuckles......bent at a 90 degree angl acrossthe back of my palm.

4) I can not read for relaxation, I tend to speed read, and get so lost in the book that I literally can not hear what is going around me....not good when you have 3 kids!!!

5) I have gone to 8 schools in my life, and have lived in 6 different states.

6) My youngest sons initials are B.M.W. not intentionaly, my hubby pcked out his names, and I had to approve them, and then a few weeks later I came to that he is our one and only Beamer!!!

7) I have had many jobs in my life, Avon, Babysitting, I was a (dreaded) telemarketer for MBNA, Mary Kay, Pampered Chef, Leaving Prints scrapbooking, I clean for the town and the community center, I run the Interactive Television College Program on the island I live in, I substitute teach, I work at the ferry ticket office in the office selling tickets as well as Homeland Security, I am the Executive Assistant for a low interest loan organization for starting and or improving local businesses..... am the mom of 3 (the biggest job by far) and I clean for the people my husband caretakes for. My dream would be to fa into a full time job so that I could quit all the little ones.......Most of the time I do not know whether I am coming or going!!!

I am apologetically tagging the following Shelly, Karen , Heather, Den of Chaos, Susan, Jill, Chrissy, I have tagged you because I regularly read your blogs an think you are awesome knitting bloggers. I don't regularly comment BUT I check in almost daily!!!!! I will not be offended if you do not partake in the Meme insanity!!!

My first contest entry and my first contest all in one day!!!

Skeins Her Way is having a contest over at her site Shelby's comment in my previous post.

My summer knitting goals....
1) With 3 kids, 2 are under 3years, my biggest one is just to knit!!!!
2) To do the lace smoke ring my hubby got me for our anniversary
3) To finish the butterfly shawl
4) Do at least one christmas stcking
5)knit 3 pairs of socks!!!

Woohoo enter and mention me so I can get some more entries PLEASE!!!!!!

Happy Anniversary to me!!

So this is a contest post of sorts..........but you have to keep reading to get to it :P~~

SO for our anniversary (which is the day before our daughters birthday as I have said before) (oh and NO it was not a shot gun wedding, she has been alive 2 years and a day less than we have been married) we got up and exchanged cards, I bought him a clay thrower and some clay pigeons to go with it (thanks mom and dad for picking them up) he bought me a cross necklace, as he knows I really could use it and I have great intentions every sunday morning of going to church but have yet to make it as the kids are demanding and I feel guilty.....but anyway

I am wondering what other people do for thier anniversary, that isn't hugely costly, and is memorable. Keep in mind that I live on an island dependant on a ferry that only runs 3 times a day and is an hour trip one way. I will give a little somthing, somthing to the idea that I plan to use for next year, and then I will also give a randomly drawn prize and they will not be the same person!!!! So spread the word and post your idea in the comments!!!!

As for plans for the rest of the day...hmmmm well Big J is at work, cutting and burning trees, and I am takig care of the 2 youngest terrors....they have been in moods the last 2 days, perhaps it is the rain, I am also wondering if little B is cutting more teeth!? YUCK though I was ready to pull my hair out by 3 yesterday afternoon!!!

Time off for good behavior

Well the big white blob got time off for good behavior. This picture was taken at noon time and since then I have completed the border and...............................................run out of yarn!!! An excuse to order from Knitpicks the problem is I know I will spend more than just the 3.99 for the lace skein of yarn.








Here it is in all of it's beastly-ness.....I have it on 2 60 inch circular cables and it still doesn't have enough room to relax........but you get the idea...........




Here are the jaywalkers on top of the beast!!! I think that they are almost long enough to get closed in at the toe and finshed off!!!






Hey Miss A, I told you I was gonna put the incriminating evidence on the blog......she stole Big B's plastic John Deere, because the cop took her license away speeding!! HAHA Just kidding!!!


Oh my gravy isn't this one of the cutest pictures you have ever seen.

Thank you for stopping by! And if you have a second leave a comment...I would love to know who is reading it!

Is it Good News???

Well so Dad has to have an MRI, but if th MRI and the CAT scan that he already had agree, then the Dr. in Mass says he is in good shape. So for now we are smiling and the cloud has gone from black to grey. Keep the positive thoughts and prayers coming though.

I am going to try and get some pictures of the big white monster (aka: the Butterfy Garden Shawl from He!!). I think I will probably get the first jaywalker sock done and try to start the second, but I am really pushing to get the monster done so I can cast on something else. I have a few cute pics of the kids I will post too, but am to lazy togo downstairs and get the camera. So you willhave to make due with a pictureless post with the promise of pics to come!!!!!

Happy Mother's Day

I hope everyone is having a wonderful mothers day! My hubby and kidlings bought me a new 30 GB Ipod Video.....do you know how many songs this beauty holds???? I am psyched. I have an older shuffle, which my hubby will use when mowing....I just have to load it with tunes for him. It was great but you can't see what you are listening to.......you just push play and wait and see what you get.

So I got breakfast in bed twice. How many of you can say that??? Lttle Miss S brought me a small bowl of apple cinnamon cheerios with bananas and then Mr. J made bacon, eggs, and home fries. Can I just say yummmmm-o.

I worked on the shawl while I was lamenting about in bed......I was scolded when I came down to pee. (sheesh, I have had 3 kids my old bladder is not as strong as it used to be come on guys!!) I really want to get that thing done!!

I planted my strawberries, and filled my window planters with big ol' Begonias. Hung my fuschia and planted my tomatoes.

Thanks to all of you who commented or e-mailed after my last post. I think it will get better. Life is just filled with lots of uncertainty right now. We will get through it day by day. For those of you who pray, hopefully tomorrow we will have some answers and a path to take. I think as long as the outlook is positive ( and thus far no one has said it won't be, but ten again part of the problem is that no one is saying much of anything, other than the "C" word) and we know what is going to be happening, it will lift a huge weight off of all of our shoulders. I wish I was going with them, but unfortunately no one can watch the kids, and it wold not be a very enjoyable trip with the 3 of them!!! So any how for those of you who believe in the power of prayer or positive thought......keep em' coming please!!!!

This is the week of "special days". Little Miss S. has her week in the spotlight. Monday she has to take in pictures and drawings of her. Tuesday she is taking in her recorder, wednesday she is doing somethingelse and then thursday mom is making ice cream with the class, while they watch a video of her great uncle Billy with his bees, and the whole pollination deal, quite interesting.
Wedneday is also Mr. J and my 9 th wedding anniversary.
Thrsaday is also little Miss S.'s birthday.....and no it is not her ninth....it was not a shot gun wedding thank you very much!!! It will be her 7th birthday!
Friday is her actual party.
And then next tuesday is my mothers birthday!!! YIKES!!! Can you sa busy month?

So my cousin over at This highly entertaining blog said that to get rid of the blues you should inbibe in a bit of yarny goodness.....well, while on the mainland I did not get time to go to a yarn store so I just browsed the net.......and drooled over some yarn....the check bookwon't allow me o buy any but I have decided that I want to buy some lorna's laces next along with some cherry tree hill, I also really want to make some stitch markers.....but I don't know where to start. I have nothing for stitch markers and I don't kknow what to get......and of course when I get to the mainland I don't have time for searching s if nyone knows what I need or has a good one stop shopping website please e-mail me or leave a comment.

It looks lke Spring,

Ok so why can't I feel more springy? I feel so blue and just yucky. Look at these flowers.....they are anything but blue. They are bright and cheery and say spring has sprung. Up until today it was gorgeous here.....warm and sunny and bright. Today it is outside what I feel like inside.....cold, wet, dreary, and just YUCKKKKKK. But anyway, that will get better with time I am sure!!!!



These were taken were my husband works. Shhhhhhh we only stole 2 flowers, I am sure they won't notice.....and on top of that they will be glad someone is enjoying them as they will be all gone by, when they come!

This is little Mrs. S




And as promised to I love Yarn I am updating my knitting content
I have taken the shawl out of time out, but am puttering at it. As it is huge and unpicture worthy at this point, here is a new project. A pair of jaywalkers (i know not stripey yarn so it doesn't show up very well.) I like the waythe knitted fabric of a jaywalker sock is stiff and stays put on your leg.


I will kit this pattern forever.........I lov it. and the yarn is courtesy of my secret pal. It is a yarn that I have never used before, Opal and I love it. Definitely would use it again. See I didn't use my Socks that Rock Yarn.....just couldn't do it/









My Secret Pal 10 sent me this package with these 2 lovely books in it. I loved them. Sorry I did not get around to thanking you sooner. As I mentioned earlier I have just been sort of out of sorts.

I hope to get time this weekend (perhaps Mother's Day) to cast on and start designing the scarf to match the hat. I have also completed 2 more wash cloths.