I'm feeling discouraged...

because I have fallen significantly behind in my personal challenge of reading "52 Books in 52 Weeks". It is also a group on Ravelry, which I joined, and from whence I got the idea. I thought it would be a fun way to increase my reading level..although I think in a regular year, I probably read 30 or so titles. I am hoping to catch up in the next month or so, now that summer school is coming to an end. Tomorrow is the last day, so I can stay up late and read, which is when I get the majority of my reading done. I also hope to fit in a couple of beach days, if the weather here cooperates, which would also increase my page/book count. So here's hoping that the number on the right side jumps high in the next couple of weeks.

Since school ended, not much has been happening. I had 12 days off before the beginning of summer school, which were not very productive. I've done minimal sewing and some knitting. I have been targeting WIPs that need finishing, so hopefully I will also have some new photos of those items soon.

The plans for our big trip to Niagara and RIT are being finalized. We leave on August 5 and return on the 9th. Not the biggest of vacations, but it will be nice to get away. We haven't gone anywhere as a family in several years, so it will be fun. No one in the family has ever been to Niagara and for my husband, it will be his first trip out of the country! That's right..we are going to Canada! They say that side of the Falls is a must see..so we must see it! I just hope the weather is nice..overcast will be fine...just no more damn rain! (It's raining now as I type this..of course!)

Well...off to read, or at least find the next book that I plan to start reading...

Alright, this is getting ridiculous....

I mean, why can't I manage to keep up with this blog? It's not like I never spend time on the computer! God knows that between Ravelry, Facebook,et al, my spare time is sucked away like crazy! Well, now that school is once again done for the summer, I will try to be more "regular" with the postings. (Famous last words!)

Hmmm..let's see. Since my last post way back in March, I've managed to finish a couple more items in the knitting realm. Here are my finished Sock A Month socks for June.



The pattern is Shur'tugal by Alice Yu. They are knit in Regia 4-fadig in the colorway "Limone". I started another pair using this yarn on my trip to Paris in April, but it just wasn't working for me, so I changed to this pattern, which has lovely stitch detailing, especially in the heel flap. I decided to keep the name, though. They are knit on a US size 1.5 (2.5 mm) circular needle, two at a time.

I also managed to finish my Lace Ribbon Scarf by Veronik Avery.

This photo is when it was a WIP, but other than blocking, which I am not sure if I want to block or not, it is finished. I started this project last April on my trip to Italy and Greece, but didn't finish until this month. I literally ran out of yarn at the very end, using my cast on tail to bind off the other end. I really like the drape on this scarf and I am sure it will soften even more after wearing and washing. The linen was fun to use, although a little splitty.

I've been making washcloth/dishcloths like crazy lately. Our TSG 4 has decided to do another swap with dishcloths and stitch markers. I will post photos of some of my finished ones as soon as they are finished. I have a cute idea for my stitch markers also, but I want to keep it a bit of a secret, should any of my TSG4 friends be lurking about.

DH finally found a job in mid April, just before we left on vacation. I was happy that he wasn't going to be home alone for 10 days with nothing to do. The weather in April wasn't really conducive to outdoor projects, and there really wasn't any funding for some of the indoor ones that need to be done. As it turned out, he received several offers of employment within a week or so of each other, so it was a good thing. His commute has gone from about 10 minutes to a little over half an hour, but still not bad. He seems to like it well enough. We're all just glad that he's employed, unlike some of his other job mates.

After his employement, I received a combo Mother's Day/Birthday gift from DH. It is an Ipod Touch, and I lurves it! It is so much fun finding cool apps for it, most of which have been free. I have purchased a knitting one, "KnitBuddy", which is like a traveling version of Ravelry. I am still uploading photos and stuff to it, but it's really cool. I can keep track of my projects and stash and needles when on the road, so that there won't be any more duplicate purchases or lack of yardage information when visiting LYSes. Of course, I also have some music, videos and other things on my Touch,too. I really enjoy the web browsing feature and I think it will be perfect for keeping in touch with things while traveling. I have to say..it's great fun.

Family wise, everyone is well. Oldest child is home from college...perhaps permanently, although I am not privy to much information from her these days. Tomorrow, the youngest one and I are visiting an art school in Boston..the first of several college visits planned for the summer. She will be a senior in the fall..I can't believe my baby will be graduating and going off to college a year from now. I guess it had to happen sometime, and the bright side is, I don't think I will have an empty nest with the oldest back in it now!

OK..I guess that's enough rambling for one session..if I plan on keeping this blog up at a regular interval, I have to save some ramblings for another time.

I'm exhausted...

and probably deservedly so. It's been a crazy week and I am so glad it is Friday. I managed to survive costuming our drama festival show, which was held last weekend. Nineteen bodies clothed, wigged and accessorized. Sadly, our school did not advance to the semi-final level, as we have the past two consecutive years. But that's ok..it just wasn't our year. The show looked great,though, and the students did an awesome job with their performances. There's always next year!

Besides costumes, I haven't really had too much time for anything else. I managed to make a little pair of baby socks with a matching beanie hat for a co-worker who is expecting a baby boy in May. We had a snow day on Monday, so it was dedicated to knitting, knitting, and more knitting. It had literally been over a week since I had picked up the needles, and I physically had a need to knit. I will post photos of the baby set soon. I also managed to cast on another pair of socks, my Green Monkeys. I think I am the last sock knitter on the planet to make a pair, but they are finally on the needles. The incentive to work on them now came from the Sock A Month 7 group that I belong to. Usually, one can work on any style of socks that you choose, as long as they are finished during the month and posted by the end of the month. Now there is a little twist. Although it is not mandatory to knit the specially chosen pattern, there will be an additional prize drawing for anyone that completes a pair of Monkeys during the month of March. So..no time like the present!

It seems I have fallen behind in my "52 books in 52 weeks" challenge. I have been plugging away at three books at a time. Today I finished "Chicks with Sticks (It's a Purl Thing) by Elizabeth Lenhard. A very cute read about one of my favorite subjects. There are a couple more in the series which I plan to read also. Definitely not deep thinking..just a lot of fun. And patterns are included! Yipee!

DH is still unemployed, but several calls have come in this week. Keeping our fingers crossed that something happens for him soon! Well, off to finish prepping for a "Radio Flyer" quilt class that I am taking tomorrow. Typically last minute, as always.

Thank goodness it's vacation week...

Because it couldn't have come at a better time! I used to think that the week off in February was a waste of time. We were just off for the twelve day holiday break only seven weeks ago. There was also MLK day and a professional developement day as well, although we still had to attend school, minus students. But between all of the colds, the snow, the cold, and my own personal stress levels, I needed this week off! It isn't just a luxury..it is a downright necessity!

So, what am I doing on this wonderful vacation week? Sewing. Tons and tons of sewing. As the production assistant/costume designer/drama mama of our school's drama club, I volunteer my time and expertise, to create costumes when needed for the productions. Every year we are involved in our state drama festival. Our school is a host school for the preliminary level of the festival. We have six other schools from the state arriving on Saturday, the 28th, to participate. Our production this year is a Japanese folk tale, "Dragon of the Winds". Therefore, I have to transform 19 high schoolers into traditional Japanese townspeople, head to toe. Many kimonos, obis, hatamis, happis, and other assorted garments are being created. Thankfully, the construction of everything is fairly simple..it's a quantity issue. And I stress over the littlest details, wanting everything to be perfect. I am sure, once they are all put together in their wigs, kimonos and zoris, they will look wonderful, but right now I am only seeing piles of fabric in various stages of doneness. So, that is what I will be doing this week. I will post photos of finished garments when they become available.

On the reading front, I have finished "The Eyre Affair" by Jasper Fforde. Quite enjoyable, I must say. I really liked the mix of mystery, sci-fi,and classic literature that Fforde creates. I definitely plan to read the other titles in the series. For now, I went with super light.."Chicks with Sticks (It's a Purl Thing)" by Elizabeth Lenhard and "Eclipse" by Stephenie Meyer.

On the knitting front, I finished the soy wool hat, although it hasn't been felted yet. Here it is in it's ginormous, uncooked state:




The photo on the left of me wearing it is the truer color of the actual hat. I really need to felt that puppy, as who knows how many more cold days of winter we have left here in New England. What am I saying..it can snow well into April here!

On the personal front, DH is still job hunting after being laid off over a month ago. Finances are still holding, thanks to a small severance package he received. He was only at this facility for a little over four years. Previously, the company he worked for for over 17 years, was closed and outsourced to China. But the world is a different place economically than it was four years ago. Hopefully something will come along soon, if only for the normalcy of a routine again. It's just really odd leaving for work myself and having him home. But it is even stranger, and more depressing, for him, when I leave and he is left behind.

Well..off to sew. Kimonos await!

In Keeping with My Resolutions...

here is my second post for the month. For me, that is saying something. Although I really don't have all that much to say today.

My progress on the "52 Books in 52 Weeks" has been slow and steady. I finished New Moon last night. It was an enjoyable read, but I think I liked Twilight better. Really hard to say. I do plan to read the other two books in the series, but for now, I am starting The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde.

I am also making slow and steady progress on the knitting front. I am almost done with the cabled yoke portion of the Cable Luxe Tunic. I am using Woolease in the colorway "Seaspray".



I really should be working on other UFO's rather than starting something for myself, but after all of the holiday knitting, I thought it would be fun to work on a longer term project just for me. So far, so good.

It looks like I will be forced to uphold my resolution to only work from the stash for both knitting and quilting. Goodness knows I wouldn't need to buy another piece of fabric or skein of yarn in order to keep quilting and knitting well into the next several years. The incentive to keep this resolution came in the way of my DH becoming another statistic of this lousy economy. He came home Friday and told me he had been laid off from his job. Ugh! We had been cutting back on many things all along in order to maintain..but now with this new developement, I am forced to bite the abstention bullet. Hopefully something will come along for him soon..but in the meantime, belts must be tightened. Thank goodness knitting relieves stress...be prepared for tons of finished objects!!

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Originally uploaded by n_tella

First Post of the New Year...

at last! Belated Happy New Year wishes! Better late than never, as they say. Just wanted to post an update regarding my 52 Books in 52 Weeks group. I've finished book numero uno: Twilight by Stephanie Meyers. I had resisted the need to read it for someime now, although after witnessing several co-workers, friends and students consume it with relish, I decided to jump in. I must say, I think Stephanie Meyers had some sort of spell placed on the pages, because, despite my best effort, I could not put this title down. It was an easy, yet compelling read, that, dare I say, I enjoyed. I have already started my second book of the year..you guessed it: New Moon by Stephanie Meyers. I might as well go nuts with the entire series in one fell swoop, as it were.

On the knitting front, some progress has been made; I started and completed a pair of socks. They are my December contribution to the Sock A Month group. I made Hedgerow Socks by Jane Cochran. Yarn used was Paton's Kroy on US size 1 needles.

Whoah..it's been HOW long???

I can't believe it's been four months since my last post. I missed Autumn entirely! As one of my many resolutions for the new year, which is literally only days away, I pledge to post more often and with some regularity..not just when guilt goads me into it. In keeping with that resolution, as a member of Ravelry I joined a new group that is reading 52 books in 52 weeks. Therefore, I plan to post at least weekly on my book progress (or lack thereof). This is the plan at least. It will also keep me somewhat accountable for my other hobbies, such as knitting and quilting and hopefully I will be posting my progress in those areas as well.

I did manage to get a few projects done for the holidays..a pair of fingerless gloves for my friend Patty and a scarf for Amy. I also made an illusion scarf in a dragonfly pattern for my DD's roomate at college, who is an entymology major. I have almost completed a pair of fingerless gloves for my youngest DD, and I have managed to make at least one pair of socks per month to go along with the Sock A Month Knitalong. I will post a few photos soon.

Well..off to try to organize my books for next week and to finish off a pair of Hedgerow Socks for this month's SAM pair.