Monday, April 27, 2009

Holy Cow, Batman--We Have A Raised Bed!






Kevin and Jamie built it in four hours, and I planted it in another five minutes. It is SO cool.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

The Easter Eggs

 

 

 
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The Easter Cupcakes

 

 

 

 

For the basketball team
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Friday, April 3, 2009

The Simple Woman's Daybook for Friday, April 3, 2009

Outside my window
It is cool and grey, but beautiful. All the trees are blooming, and the cool weather means that the early blooms have held on while the later ones bloom, too. It is supposed to be 70 degrees by Sunday!

I am thinking
That there is a lot of bumping and bruising that goes on in this job, and I never remember this fact from session to session.

I am thankful for
The fact that we are all doing fine, and have a roof over our heads and jobs to support ourselves. Also, I'm thankful that Aidan has started swimming lessons, and has a good teacher. I think he might actually learn something.

From the kitchen
Dick. As in, nothing. Unless Kevin makes it.

I am wearing
I have worn those Cole Haan heels every single day since the last time I posted a daybook, but today, it seemed like I should give them a break. So, heels, but not as awesome. I need to get my spring clothes out of storage this weekend.

I am creating
Master Knitter swatch #3--the seed stitch! So far, I am not what you'd call an expert seed stitcher.

I am going
To get my toes done, unless I get one of those Jay e-mails that starts out "hey Betsy . . ." In which case, I will be going back to my office.

I am reading
School's Out

I am hoping
That people will LEAVE ME ALONE for the rest of the day, and not heckle me about the provider tax.

I am hearing
Quiet office sounds, including the staff chatting about their weekend plans.

Around the house
We are going to work on the raspberries this weekend, and maybe plant a blueberry bush or two. And pull some weeds. And mulch.

One of my favorite things
I'll get back to you on that one.

A few plans for the rest of the week
If I can just get a real dinner on the table a few times, with us sitting down and eating it together, it'll be a good week.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

TKGA Master Knitter Program Level 1

Well, it had to happen. I've fallen prey to the Knitting Guild of America's Master Knitter program. Hopefully, the mental exercise involved in completing the projects will stave off Alzheimer's. If the first swatch is any indication, I may end up in the loony bin, instead. The first swatch is 2.5 inches of k2p2 rib, followed by an INVISIBLE increase of 5 stitches, followed by 4 inches of garter stitch. With the exception of the rib, I screwed up every part of this swatch, and ripped it apart so many times that the yarn is grubby. Too bad, though. I'm not doing it again just to get it clean.

What did I learn on Swatch 1?

The little stitch legs:
At least one thing that illustrates the reason beginning knitters should learn the basics before taking on this program: I learned which way the legs on a stitch go on the needle. Guess how I learned that? Yep--from ripping out and re-threading the needle through the stitches.

The invisible (or not) increase:
I also learned (again) how to do a m1 increase, and that if I place it on the second knit stitch of a k2p2 rib, it becomes mostly invisible. I learned this after discovering that my favorite increase (knitting into the front and back of a stitch) makes little purl bumps that are most definitely not invisible.

The holes:
In attempting the m1 increase the first time, I grasped the truth of the statement that "you have to twist the bar in the middle as you knit into it, or else there will be a hole under the increase". Another thing that is not invisible--a row of little holes under the invisible increases.

The wrong stitch:
And finally (three days and approximately 6 hours of work after beginning) I learned that when the directions say "garter stitch", you should remember that, and not do 3.5 inches of stockinette. If you do, you'll be back to lesson #1--figuring out which way the little stitch legs go on the needle. I feel like the mouse in Laura Numeroff's If You Take A Mouse To School.