Two FO's

Check...and double check! I finished the two cotton baby sweaters last night...and delivered them to the "new" mom (my doctor) today. Her twin boys were born (prematurely) on Easter Sunday, so they are just now arriving at a 6-12 month size...and she assured me she thought the sweaters would fit just fine. I hope, I hope...

I used Plymouth Yarns Jeannee yarn, which is 51% cotton, 49% acrylic...and 100% soft to the touch, a delight to knit! I bought the yarn at Island Knits in Pawleys Island, SC, while we were there on vacation last May. I found a pattern for the Baby Teddy Bear Sweaters from Crystal Palace, to which I made few, if any, alterations (for once...:). And, I put into practice some of the things I learned at my recent "Finishing Techniques" class.

I believe that Dr. R. was genuinely surprised by the gift, and I was overwhelmed by the kind responses from many of her office staff. When I was checking out (after Dr. R. had shown the sweaters to one-and-all), several came up to tell me "how cute," and "great job!" Of course, such remarks always make one feel good, don't they? Ooh, yeah.

Still working on the Top Down, Design Your Own Sweater. Had class on Tuesday night. We're in the home stretch, as next week is our last class. I really want to have this sweater finished then. Really, really, really. I've been knitting the body, practicing my Continental knitting...and actually am beginning to like it. After the initial pain and stiffness in my right hand, from training those muscles to do something different, I think it may be less strain on my right hand. Possibly. Will continue to practice. Knit, knit, knit. Finish, finish, finish.

Meanwhile, we made a mad dash tonight to get some Halloween decorations on the front porch: the two lighted pumpkins, the door decals we've had since Maredith was a child, and...of course...the ghost wind socks, which we hang from the flower-basket chains on either side of the porch (we used to hang them over the two coachlights at the door, but this house only has one porch light). We also got out the Spooky Songs cassette (you see how old that is) and finally found the cassette player (even older, if possible)...it has the Addams Family Theme song, the Twilight Zone theme music, etc. Oh, and I found a Princess headband with attached veil, which I'm currently wearing...and may not remove. (I think it may have originally have belonged to Duchess, but she's not dressing up this year...so there...:) I think I hear some little goblins headed our way, so I'd better get ready to answer the doorbell...and hand out the candy!

Happy Halloween!

Fire On

Fall has arrived! It has finally turned cooler around here, with wind and rains bringing us temps in the mid-50's during the day and low 40's at night...enough to turn the heat on yesterday. Although I hate to have to use the heat (why is that, I wonder?), I do so enjoy our gas-log fireplace (photo, right): fire on, oooh; fire off, aaahh. So, the past couple of mornings have meant hot tea in front of the fire. Ummmmm...such a gentle start to the day ahead.

Then, fortified with my Earl Grey (or, even better, some Lady Grey, which has lemon flavoring instead of the bergamot), I once again take up my knitting. Last weekend, I nearly went blind while working on a sock (one single sock, mind you) of a pair that I am knitting for Mr. T, made out of black Panda Cotton (which is 55% bamboo, 24% cotton, 21% elastic nylon). Sunday night, I had to cast on the second sock just as soon as I had finally finished Sock #1...as I feared I would not want to revisit working on black yarn on tiny US2 needles, ever. This pair of socks sports a sturdy, yet simple K2P2 rib, over 56 stitches, cast on US2's, with a change to US3's for some calf shaping...then back to the 2's for the heel-through-toe portion. It will take most of 4 balls of yarn to complete the size 12's with long, long legs...but that's what he prefers in a sock, so be it. I have a little idea (sounding like H. Poirot, there...:) for a special touch for Sock #2, but I won't give it away here. Tee hee.

Of course, since attending class on Tuesday night, my knitting has been entirely single-minded. We got the directions on how to taper the sleeves on our Design Your Own Top Down Sweater, so I have been knitting, knitting, knitting rounds and rounds and more rounds of cobalt blue stockingette. I finished Sleeve #1, at least to putting the final cuff stitches on waste yarn until I get to the same length on Sleeve #2...just to make sure they match, I hope, I hope, I hope. The sweater is getting sorta heavy and awkward, with all that's been worked flopping around my lap and spilling onto the floor on occasion. Had to do something about that, as it was worrying me to no end...and as I began to feel like I'd wear the sweater out before I had even had a chance to wear it! To the rescue came the Extra Large Hefty Zip Bag, which now contains & protects the completed portion. I just rotate the bag o' sweater a half turn this way and back again, while working on Sleeve #2. Ah.

As I've mentioned before, this sweater project is giving me ample opportunity -- over the miles of stockingette stitching -- to practice my Continental knitting technique, such as it is. Can definitely state, without reservation, that I'm not knitting faster (as promised by all The Knitting Books)...at least, not yet. Must continue to practice. Must practice. Knit. Knit. Knit. Cobalt blue Cash Vero. Beautiful blue. I hope I don't hate my beautiful blue sweater before I finish it. Sigh. Of course, the one thing that will keep me knitting on the Blue is to remember that the alternative is knitting on the Black. Yikes! Blue is good!!

Good weekend ahead: M's coming for a visit. Along with Charley Dog. Woo hoo, all the way around!

Progress Report: Makin' a Moebius; Separatin' the Sleeves; Pickin' the Peppers; and Greetin' Our Guests

It's been a productive week for my UFO's. I took a class while in ATL last week, at my new *favorite* yarn store in GA, The Yarn Garden. Yvonne taught me how to make a Felted Moebius Basket, using Cat Bordhi's book "A Second Treasury of Magical Knitting," page 28-29. What an interesting technique, this so-called Magical Knitting! You start here, go 'round there, and end up back where you started...but with a twist that you actually meant to be there. I learned how to knit socks on two circular needles by reading Cat's "Socks Soar on Two Circs" book, which I checked out of our local library, and I've been knitting on two circs ever since. Admittedly, I would never have purchased this book, as some of the most prominent photos on the front look just plain silly to me (really, would you spend the time to make a Jester Tentacles Bag or Hat when there are so many sweaters that need knitting and baby blankets that need crocheting?) Ah, it would have been my loss, for sure. Check out my photo (above, left) to see the felted and finished Basket in a variegated red wool yarn (of which I don't know the name, since I failed to collect the wrapper after Y. rolled the hank for me before the class)! I even used almost all of my left-over in knitting an I-Cord to use as a decorate tie. I've got to get another one on my needles soon! Ooh, ooh...and a Moebius Scarf, too...I need one of those, like the one on page 14.


[BTW, the instructions in the book say to use a balloon to shape the basket after felting. Well, I didn't have a balloon, so I created a 'tower' of various sized bowls, topped with a wide-lipped cereal bowl...which is why my basket has a rather prominent rim, and the picture on the front of the book does not. We must add our own personal touches when we can, right?]


Meanwhile, back at my *favorite* yarn shop here at home, Knit n Caboodle in St. Charles, my Design Your Own Top-Down Sweater class continues. I am so very excited to announce that I've completed something on this project! I finished the collar (see photo, above), so now this mass of cobalt blue yarn is beginning to look like a sweater...finally. This is my problem with this whole "top-down" deal: when you knit a sweater 'normally,' you knit for a while...and have a finished back; then, you knit for a while longer...and have a finished front, or a finished sleeve. OK, to be truthful, you don't actually have a finished anything, because you are going to have to seam the 'finished' pieces together to complete the sweater (and that's supposedly the ta-da moment of a Top-Down, when you realize that you don't have to seam anything...and it's truly finished!). Oh well, it'll all reveal itself in due time, right? We got instructions on how to separate the sleeves from the main body in our last class, slipping those stitches onto some waste yarn. Check! Got that done yesterday. I've been knitting on the main body a little bit, using the expanse of stockinette to practice knitting in the Continental method. I'm told that is much faster than the English method (which I've been using for 45 years now), but you couldn't prove it by me. Faster knitting, especially on the boring bits like plain ol' stockinette (POS?), really appeals to me, but I'm so awkward...I get frustrated (surprised?) and switch to what I know for a row, then I calm down and switch back to practicing the Con. What does that say about my personality? That I love learning new things, but I hate learning new things? Oh well...there's probably something hidden in there about 'old dog(s) and new tricks,' too...but I digress. Stay tuned for more progress and pics on the Top Down Sweater project.


It's finally beginning to hint of Fall around here with cooler temps both day and night. The trees are turning...slowly...but I'm afraid that the main 'color' in the leaves will be brown. The Japanese Maple out front is really a strange brown-yellow-rust color, when we usually see lots more deep maroon-y red. The Oaks in the back are dropping brown leaves along with massive amounts of acorns...but haven't really 'turned' in color yet. Truly, about the only tree that is showing any color is the sassafras, where there is a bit of the usual red and gold visible.


The change in season signals the winding-down of both the roses and the kitchen garden. Mr. T spent a good deal of time last weekend tending each one, trimming the gangly growth back on the roses and picking the last of the peppers in the garden. The hot peppers will be good in vegetables (like green beans and turnip greens, just to name a couple) and chili in the coming months, so Mom put them up in jars of hot vinegar (see the photo, right). Mr. T also spread 25 bags of mulch to dress up the flower beds in front and fill out the garden paths in back. That means several check marks on his To Do list: (1) remove the pallet of mulch from the driveway; (2) dress the front beds; and (3) fill out the back yard pathways. Woo-hoo!

And, saving the best for last, we may have welcomed our final house guests for the season last week. Cousin Cyndee and fiance Ken from AZ stopped by for a short visit as they connected the dots from Memphis to Kansas City. Although I was a poor host (heading to my knitting class right after they arrived, then off to the airport before they even arose the next morning), we were thrilled to get a call that they wanted to include us in their itinerary. Mom introduced them to O'Charley's in O'Fallon, and then to St. Charles Old Town. Don't they take a great picture (left)?

Is It Wednesday Already?

I was finally able to get a video of the bright red (male) Cardinal that has been visiting our fountain on the deck outside our breakfast room door. I was too afraid to speak while filming, lest I scare him off, but you will hear the soundtrack of the AMC movie "Christopher Columbus" on in the background. Odd choice of music, I know...but I couldn't exactly ask Mr. Cardinal to "wait a minute while I mute the TV."

Where has this week gone? It's hard to believe that we've already arrived at Hump Day. Wasn't it just yesterday when I was leaving for Atlanta? No...it was last Wednesday!

I had a good trip to ATL last week. I took this picture (right) from my exit row window seat on my Delta flight home on Saturday. It's the first time in the four years we've been here that I've actually seen the Arch from the air...woo-hoo!

It hasn't exactly been the greatest week (so far, of course...it could get better any minute now). Mom's got some health issues, including a new medication that caused her not to be able to sleep for 48 hours. Hopefully, we've got that part under control. Hopefully.

Speaking of lack of sleep...last night around 2:00, I was awakened from a lovely, deep sleep to the chirpy, squeeky beeping of the smoke detector in our bedroom. Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep! Every 30 seconds. Chirp-beep! Sounded like a bad battery, but how could that be, as Mr. T had changed all 9 of them mid-summer? And, there's a really good reason that he gets the chore of changing them...I'm too short. Even using the step-ladder we keep inside the house, I can't reach the dang things. So last night...or rather, early this morning, I tried everything I could do from my 5'2" height. Was a sensor covered in dust? Tried "sweeping" the detector with a towel-covered broom. No luck. Thought maybe the test button had gotten stuck, so I used the broom handle to activate it...this only made ALL of the smoke detectors in the house go off. Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep!

Then, Duchess got into the act. She did exactly what you would hope a loyal pet would do when the smoke alarm is raised. She tried to get me out of the house. She wouldn't get back on the bed while the beeping was going on...just whined and whined and whined for me to leave the room. Then, she went to Nana's room and "herded" her out by jumping on her bed, circling up around her head, and then sitting on her pillow...all while whining, mightily. Nana, who you will recall hasn't had much sleep this week, was baffled at the commotion. What's going on with Duchess?
I know, I know...but I just want to get some sleep!

I finally stuffed cotton in my ears (didn't really help), turned my floor fan on "high" (which sounded like a jet engine...in addition to the beeping), and told myself to pretend I was in the hospital with a heart monitor by my side. Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep! Chirp-beep!

When the real morning arrived, I managed to get a tall-enough ladder from the disaster area AKA the garage and replaced the almost-new battery with a brand new battery. No more beeping. Ever the optimist, I've kept the taller ladder inside...just in case.

Goodbye to the Red Scarf and the Red Birds

Time to send the Red Scarf on its way, as the scarves are due at HQ by October 15th this year! I knitted up some Berroco's Comfort in "Wild Cherry" in a 2x2 rib pattern (photo, right) and attached a label, using these neat wash tags created and shared by The Crazy Cat Lady Mel. I hope that whoever receives this scarf will wear it in good health, knowing that someone "out there" cares. As Norma (she of Now Norma Knits) says:

The Red Scarf Project, a project of the Orphan Foundation of America, or Orphan.org, collects red (and other unisex-colored) scarves to send in Valentine's Day care packages to college students who have aged out of foster care. These brave young people are going it on their own and trying to improve their lives and the community by attending college. The care packages are welcome tokens of encouragement to young people who otherwise receive little to no mail.

In other knitting news, I think I may have solved my DesignYourOwnSweater dilemma. Recall that I'm worried that I have cast on way too many stitches at the back neck of this thing...and the success or failure of the sweater is in the neck cast on edge (since it is a Top Down project). Well, using another ball of my beautiful blue 009 Cash Vero yarn and a spare pair of US 10.5's, I re-cast on the same number of stitches, using the RECOMMENDED cast on method (long-tail cast on) instead of the one I used (backward loop cast on)...and that may have solved the problem. It looks like the long-tail method provided a tighter base for the subsequent stitches and increases, thereby coming much closer to the neck measurement necessary. Of course, I did this little experiment at 3:00 this morning, while I was waiting for my second muscle relaxer pill of the night to kick in and relieve my back of pain...so, I probably should re-measure before I declare that the problem is sol-ved, right? Lesson here, though, might be...just might be, I say...DO WHAT THE INSTRUCTOR SAYS, YOU TWIT before doing it any old way you like. Stay tuned.

And, as we say the eulogies for the end of a most disappointing season for the Cardinals (no more games...no play-offs...no chance to repeat as the champions of the World Series), here is a photo (left) that Mr. T took with his phone at the last game we attended on September 20th. It was a real heart-breaker, with Houston scoring a record number of runs against the home team Red Birds (18-1). We left at the end of 7, when the score was "only" 10-0 and were floored when we got home to hear the news that H. had scored 8 more runs in two more at-bats. Oh well. It'll be our last look until April '08...which is only a little over 6 months away, right? There are already changes afoot in the administrative offices, so there may be some welcome changes in the coaching staff by then. One can only hope...

Birthday Weekend...and Projects Galore

A busy weekend...

Mr. T and I visited M. over her Birthday Weekend, helping her celebrate the occasion...and finish some house projects (painting the guest bedroom, repairing the broken basement window/installing a new pane of glass, and installing a new storm door on the back door). I tried to keep my mind off my aching back (it's that l-o-n-g car ride that does me in every time) by finishing my Tam o' Swatch (seen on Ted E. Bear, left) and starting a crocheted baby blanket with some yarn M. had in her stash. The shell pattern uses three colors of yarn to create the rows and will be edged in the white with a scalloped edge. This is the first crochet "pattern" I taught myself to do after the 9/11 security rules forbade taking knitting needles on planes (since eased, thank goodness)...but fortunately allowed crochet hooks in your carry-on. I've been making these Shell Baby Blankets ever since! Yes, it's made of acrylic yarn from Michael's...and the purists out there will have a mild heart attack...but I've yet to have a new Mom say "euw, yuk...I don't want a washable baby blanket that's almost indestructible. " As a matter of fact, I still have a darling crocheted shell baby blanket in yellow and white (acrylic) that a wonderful woman in our church in Cordova made for M. when she was born. It's been well-used, oft-washed and much-loved for over 28 years, and I think fondly of Mrs. Opal Mc. every time I touch it.

As I said, we had a working weekend as well as a birthday celebration. You may recall that M's house is what she calls "A Project House," and her guest bedroom was mid-project. The nasty carpet was stripped off and the floors refinished in a previous trip, and she had worked long and hard to remove the wallpaper and border from the walls and get them spackled and primed. She had decided on a lovely soft blue-green shade called Lamb's Ears (after the gray-green plant of the same name). Here's a photo (right) of her cutting in the paint, preparing for Messy Mommy (that would be moi) to fill in the big areas (no one trusts me with the delicate work, and for good reason). And here's an "after" shot of the bedroom (left), all dressed up! Isn't it lovely? Amazingly, the comforter set she had looks great with the new wall color, blending the blues and greens for an unexpected match. Mom uses this bedroom when she visits M., so there's a comfortable chair, plenty of light, and a small TV. Next up: the Office, which still has carpet to be removed, wood floors to be stripped/finished, and walls to be painted. Ah, another project...

Look what M. harvested from her very productive garden while we were there last weekend! And, believe me when I say that it tasted as good as it looked! She grew her watermelons in an area that allowed the vines to grow up over a trellis, and the melons themselves are such a rich green color...so healthy looking. She's also got world's of Roma tomatoes on the vines, so will have lots of tomato sauce this winter. What a fabulous first garden!



After working for a while on the house projects, we headed to Pleasant Hill, KY, to enjoy dinner at the Shaker Village. We had hoped to make it to the Alpaca Farm festival but decided to put that on the calendar for next year.

Of course, it was M's birthday, so we helped her celebrate with a cake, Chinese take-out from her favorite restaurant (P.F. Chang's), and presents. Since I'm not known for my singing voice, I found this novelty cake decoration that played "Happy Birthday" while lighting up the letters; instead of 28 candles, we fell back on the stand-by 3 for Past, Present, and Future. Deep breath...and make a wish!

On Tuesday, Mr. T. headed north to work in Chi, while I headed home on Southwest. I had my Sweater Design class that night and then made a mad dash back home to tune in to the two programs I've been watching: War (on PBS) and Damages (on Fox FX). Fortunately, both were replayed, so I got to see most of both of them. War is a monumental Ken Burns production...thoroughly researched and thoughfully presented through the eyes and voices of the survivors representing 4 American towns/cities. It has been one of the most difficult programs ever for me to watch, but I think it's necessary, for a number of reasons. As Mr. T. said, if anyone thinks that war is the answer to anything, then he/she should be made to watch War. (Damages is just trash-TV, but I got hooked on it after watching a mini-marathon recently...and I had to keep watching it weekly just to see what the heck happens...:)...now, however, I'm getting worn out with its violence, language, and sexually-explicit scenes, and just want it to reach some kind of conclusion...preferably one where Glenn Close isn't guilty of attempted murder.)

About my sweater from class...hmmm. I'm stretching myself with this class, since I've never knitted a top-down sweater before. And, at this rate, I may not finish the first one! I've followed the instructions to the letter (actually, to the "number" would be a better phrase, since math plays a huge role in this sweater), but something is wrong, wrong, wrong. Getting the correct number of stitches cast on at the neck is crucial to the success of this sweater, so you will understand when I say that I'm worried that I'm not headed in the direction of success with what I have cast on. I even took what I've done so far to the yarn shop this morning for some guidance...and it seems that I've stumped both the owner and the instructor! Well. What next? I'm going to re-measure...re-figure...and probably re-move the work I've done so far and start over. Bummer. Tres bummer.

And, last but certainly not least, Duchess is recovering nicely following her surgery on Wednesday to remove several cysts (and, while she was "under," they cleaned her teeth, too). Dr. Rosen at the Cloud Veterinary Center reported that they were, indeed, just cysts...not tumors...and we were exceedingly thankful. Needless to say, she was quite cranky yesterday, but is much more lively today. She has taken a couple of her pain tablets (chewable, thank goodness!), and the places where her stitches are look pretty good...no infection, so far. Of course, she appears to be wearing a patchwork-quilt coat, since they had to shave her fur at the surgery sites (6 of them, in all). And, she rode home in the back seat of my car with her head facing away from me...back turned...wouldn't look at me the whole ride home, even when I tried to soothe her. Mad at me, for sure. But, getting better, and that's what counts. It is all about the dogs, right?