Teresa, Sick & Router!!

I just received this wonderful package from Teresa! There are some lovely teas that I can't wait to try once I am over being sick:) A macrame bookmark. I wish I knew how to macrame. Guess that will be my next borrow from the library! An adorable note pad. And the cutest red stitch markers!! I had been looking all over for the just right nail scrubber and Teresa found it for me with out even knowing it!! Is that an excellent exchange or what!! Thank you so much Teresa! That sure was a pick me up!!!



OH...I am starting to feel better...WHEW! And the replacement for the busted router I bought came in! So I am sitting on the couch and typeing all this....hehehe No more being stuck in the 'office'!!! This is great!! I have to hand it to BELKIN for finding out my problem and shipping me a new router free of charge! They have my business for life that's for sure!!!

Still Sick

Ok, I'm still sick. I have a case of strep throat and Cunjunctivitis (AKA: pink eye). I have never had pink eye before and I can honestly say that it is misserable! Wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Not sure where I got it from, but there are a couple of possibilities: children, shopping cart, cleaning an apartment or coming in contact with someone who has it. I'm pretty crazy about spraying my hands with anti-bacterial spray when cleaning any of our apartments even though I have on gloves, so have pretty much ruled that one out. My best guess would be the shopping cart theory. Have found out it is highly contagious for about a week...UGH Get it on your hands and touch or itch your eye and there you go. I have always been fanatic about washing my hands (you know scrub with soap while singing 'happy birthday' then rinse well in hot water) and I shower twice a day (AM & PM), so I have no idea. The eye drops they give you to treat it are no walk in the park either! They burn, Burn, BURN!!!! Of course it makes it worse when you mistake your athlete's foot dropper with eye drops! You only make that mistake ONCE! I cried for hours trying to flush that crap out of my eyes. Ok, so not only am I sick, but I am an idiot as well! Will be back to posting when all this clears up.
Maybe I should go back to working on a farm instead of the family business.....hhmmmm Secluded on a farm with horses nickering out my window and all the solitude I could want....hhhmmm Nah....Life is too fun with family and friends surrounding you daily:)

Sick!!! Argh...

Nothing new today. Will be absent for a while as I think I have strep. Yuckie!!! :(

New Beads!

I made new beads last night! Here we have corn on the cob, apples, sweet potatos, dog bones, yellow roses & peas in a pod:) Great way to pass the time while Bill falls asleep on the couch at night... hehehe

Toes Have It!

Finally, I am finished with the toe and the first sock of the pair! I love socks, but they do take me a long long time! But oh the joy of wearing your own socks!!! This has led us to the toe portion of the Pattern! And it is Really simple!










Fin of Pattern

After knitting the desired length (mine is 5").....

Round 1: *Knit 4, Knit 2 together* Repeat to end of round.

Rounds 2-5: Knit all

Round 6: *Knit 3, Knit 2 together* Repeat to end of round.

Rounds 7-9: Knit all

Round 10: *Knit 2, Knit 2 together* Repeat to end of round.

Rounds 11 & 12: Knit all.

Round 13: *Knit 1, Knit 2 together* Repeat to end of round.

Round 14: Knit all

Round 15: *Knit 2 together* Repeat to end of round.

You should now have 10 stitches. Cut your yarn leaving a 9 inch or so tail (I like a long tail as it gives me play room:). Use a darning needle to pull the yarn end through the 10 remaining stitiches and weave in the end! I'm bad here, I tie the yarn with a small knot to one of the adjoining stitches before I weave in my end. After that, weave in the cast on end and then you are ready to knit your second sock! Enjoy!






Here I am trying on my new sock!

Sock Continuation

Okey-Dokily. Now for the next sock step. In this picture, you see how the stitches dispersed on the needles are numbered. Needle numbers One and Three contain the heel flap & picked up stitches. Needle number Two contains the old unworked stitches. Just wanted to explain this because it makes life a lot easier when reading the pattern.

Pattern continued




Round 1: On needle #3 knit to last 3 stitches, Knit 2 together, Knit 1. On needle #2 Knit all. On needle #1 Knit 1, Slip-Slip-Knit slipped stitches together, knit remainder of stitches.

Round 2: Knit all needles


continue rounds 1 & 2 until you have a total of 60 stitches. Second photo is of the end results.



After that, you knit in the round until you have achieved the desired length of your sock minus a half inch. Toe pattern to follow!

Next step

After you have knit up 60 rounds or 5" (hint both are the same:), it is time to start on the heel!


Heel Pattern

Knit 15 stitches. On a new needle knit 30 (this will leave 15 stitches unknitted).

*turn, Slip 1, Purl 29. turn, slip 1, knit 29*. Continue from * to * for a total of 18 rows.



*Turn, slip 1, purl 2 together, purl to last 3 stitches, purl 2 together, purl 1. Turn, slip 1, knit 2 together, knit to last 3 stitches, knit 2 toghether, knit 1* Continue from * to * until there are 18 stitches remaining on the needle.

You have now made a pretty little flap. If you have done this correctly, you can pick up 13 stitches on one side and 12 on the other. On the side with 12, I pick up an extra stitch to make both sides even:) I then knit round once to properly place all stitches(see picture). The stitches that were not used are all placed on one needle with a stitch marker placed where I started knitting. The heel flap stitches are all placed evenly on the other two needles. When I knit the picked up stitches I like to twist them so that the new fits snuggly up against the old stitches:)

Cooking with Mussels

Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Last night we had mussels & corn on the cob for dinner. This is the best I have ever cooked mussels. I took about a lb of precooked frozen mussels (do not thaw) bought at kroger ($5-6), put a bit of water in a sauce pan with fresh sprigs of rosemary, 2-3 tablespoons of garlic & juice of 1 lemon sliced in 1/2. I put all this together including the used lemon halves in a large saute pan with lid over high heat on the stove top burner. About 1/2 way through I flipped everything around to make sure each mussel got covered with the water on the bottom and to ensure that each got thoroughly cooked. It should only take 5-10 minutes to cook. If the mussels do not open do not eat them! With the corn I simply boil them to desired tenderness with a teaspoon of Mrs. Dash Zesty Blend or the Kroger equivalent. Strain the water out of the cooked mussels and dump on a serving dish. Put the ears of corn around the shellfish. Last but not least take one of the cooked lemon halves and squeeze it over the mussels. Talk about delicious! I really wish I had taken a picture of this last night before it was devoured. It was pretty and yummie to boot. Will definitely take a picture of it next time I serve it. Instead, this morning, I took a pic of the spices I used. Yes, that is fresh from the plant rosemary:)



Update on the sock.............
The darn little thing is taking quite a while I am still knitting in the round (OK, I'm a slooooow knitter:). I intend to do this for 5 inches.

New Socks!

I started this sock yesterday. If anyone wants to knit along with me here is how it started.

What you need:
1 skein 420yds Trekking, size us0 dp needles.

Guage
1" across 9 stitches. 1" down 12 stitches.

Pattern
Double tail Cast On 60 stitches. Join in the round making sure not to twist cast on stitches. Begin with a K3,P3 patter for 10 rounds or desired length of ribbing. Start knitting all rounds..........(to be continued)......

Why knit all rounds? Well I picked a pretty varigated yarn:) And I think (personal preference) that varigated yarn is pretty enough by itself. Why distract from a pretty yarn with a fun design:) Fun designs in my opinion are best displayed with solid yarns.

SOCKS!

Hey I finally figured out how to make a heel! I don't know if this is the proper way to turn a heel, but it's a way I made up. It works for me:) Once I get the chance which means I can't remember where I put my knitty notes, I will post the pattern for the heels. I think it's a fairly easy pattern. At least it is to me:) The yarn shown is Moda Dea 'Sassy Stripes'. I think they turned out OK. Unfortunately, I did not realize that I made the part between the heel and toe a touch on the short side. A touch I say? Honestly about 1 inch short...lol Next pair I will know better!

New Earrings for sale:)

Ok, so I'm a crafter:) For those of you who do not know, I make earrings and sell them in my Mom's shop here in KY. Thought it would be just something fun to add. Enjoy!

Thank you Heidi!!

My! MY! MINE!! This week is begining to look a lot like x-mas .. LOL Look at what Heidi sent me all the way from Canada! WOO HOO Check out that scrumdiddilyuptious purple yarn! Can't wait to felt that! And Lavender my fave of favorite scents! hehehe I'm tickled pink:)

More Stitch Markers!

Oh my goodness! Gail sent me all these lovely goodies! Gail you out did yourself!






Toni sent me this beautiful dish cloth that looks to be entrelac. Aren't the colors so beautifully bright! What a fab swap!

While I was sick last week, I taught myself how to crochet. I was a bit sceptical at first as to weather I would like crochet, but it's pretty darn fun and quick. Definitely do not plan to replace knitting with crochet, but it sure is a neat thing to know how to do for finishing! Here are some doilies that I made:)

WOW! I have received some great stitch markers from my swap partners! Just check these out!! From Jeannie (There was chocolate, but I already ate it all:)






Look at what Gail sent me! I feel like it's Christmas! You really out did yourself!






From Maile I got some fantastic stuff! Yowza, those recipes look scrumptious!!

The Gorge

Well, here I am a few weeks ago hanging on a rope after walking off the edge of a cliff in Red River Gorge (Eastern KY). Someone was kind enough to take a picture of my butt going down:) Was a great way to top off the camping trip.






And Miss Piper my Newfie came along. Here is a picture of us:) Bill took it so it is out of focus...lol