Knitiosynchrasies

Weekend Wrap-up the Third

2013-01-27T19:41:00.002-06:00

It's been a good weekend. My husband had to go to work just as I was set free from my work week, but we still managed to have a date night Friday night -- the first one in about a month. I had to get up much earlier than I wanted to Saturday in order to pick up my daughter from a sleepover, and she has since developed a nasty cold with a low-grade fever, but otherwise, I have no real complaints

You Dropped a Bomb on Me

2013-01-20T14:08:00.003-06:00

I've made toys for my husband in the past; things that represent his personality and likes which he could use to decorate his cubicle at work. However, with his new position, he no longer has a space to call his own. All of the guys who work this position share a work space, and they work in shifts. I think his new work space resembles 1960s NASA Mission Control. Nonetheless, I still want him

Well, I'll Be...

2013-01-17T20:11:00.001-06:00

A few days ago, our local weather forecasters mentioned that there might be a chance for snow on Thursday -- today. Snow is a rarity here in the Deep South, so I responded with a heartfelt, "Pfffffffft!" Lo and behold, though, it happened! I woke up at 5:30 this morning to see big, fat flakes floating down from the sky! I had no desire to build a snowman... my snowman flag was sufficient.

Long-Winded Weekend Wrap-up

2013-01-13T20:17:00.003-06:00

I didn't get to do any sewing this weekend; I had hoped to, but I've run out of weekend much too quickly. Instead, I... took lunch to my husband at his new work cave (which resembles 1960s NASA mission control), got a new inspection sticker and an oil change (after I was stopped at a license check point and somehow got very lucky when the officer did not look in my window), fried chicken for

Difficult Yet Satisfying

2013-01-10T20:31:00.000-06:00

These first few days back to work after a mostly relaxing two-week break have been tough! Add to my trying to get back into the school groove the fact that my husband started a new schedule at his job in which he now works twelve-hour days, thus leaving the house at 5:30 A.M. either two or three days a week... the routine which we spent years perfecting has been thrown into a tailspin. What's

Weekend Wrap-up

2013-01-06T18:08:00.001-06:00

My weekend, and the last two days before back to work in the new year, was not as crafty as I'd hoped it would be. Mainly, that's because my husband's clingy family ruined my Saturday. I was hoping to get in some knitting time, but more than that, I wanted to practice my newest hobby -- using the sewing machine I got for Christmas. However, my in-laws planned a birthday "party" for my husband

Disheartening

2013-01-04T18:32:00.004-06:00

I've seen this "epic text" going around FB the past few days, largely among friends who, like me, are teachers. Most of the comments about it have read like the following: "Parents should know better!", "If I need to reach my kids in an emergency, I'm going to call the office", "This reaction from the parent is why kids have no respect", and "Caitlyn's mom is setting a really horrible

One Word

2013-01-03T15:13:00.000-06:00

I'm always looking for good devotional/inspirational books to read, and I've been fortunate recently to have found One Perfect Word by Debbie Macomber, an author I often turn to when I want to read something that is guaranteed to lift my spirits. I haven't finished the book yet, but the basic premise is this: At the beginning of each new year, she chooses one word to focus on for the entire year

"When You Believe in Things That You Don't Understand"

2013-01-02T07:48:00.003-06:00

I've always told myself that I'm not a superstitious person, and I've enjoyed many a laugh at the expense of those who wear the same pair of socks to every baseball game because "we've won every time I've worn them," for instance. There's even a beer commercial on the air now which shows a row of football fans all turning their beer bottles the same way, with the labels facing out, so that their

New Year, New Blogger

2013-01-01T11:11:00.003-06:00

...Which is to say that I have plans to actually DO some blogging this year. I convinced myself all last year that I just didn't have time, but really, I have plenty of opportunity to write, once I eliminate some of my unnecessary and frivolous computer time. And so, that is my resolution for this new year, 2013: I'm going to spend less time on Facebook and games, and more time writing, reading

How to Make Enemies

2012-06-20T20:32:00.001-05:00

I've not felt as though I've had anything important enough to write about, knitting or otherwise, lately. However, something happened today which made me livid, which in turn has brought me out of hiding... One of the creators of Ravelry received this letter from the U.S. Olympic Committee: Dear Mr. Forbes, In March 14, 2011, my colleague, Carol Gross, corresponded with your attorney, Craig

Knitting to Soothe a Troubled Soul

2012-02-12T19:29:00.002-06:00

I've been *a bit* on edge lately (my husband would scoff at the "a bit" part), so any knitting I've done has been rather simple, not requiring a whole lot of attention. Fine... it was mindless knitting. I started and completed this dishcloth this week: Wish I could take credit for creating the stripes, but the yarn did that all by itself; still, I'm quite pleased with how it turned out. I'll

Can't Rub My Belly and Pat My Head, Either

2012-02-05T20:28:00.000-06:00

No knitting happening tonight. There is only this: I can't knit and scream at the TV at the same time! Any stitches created tonight would only end up having to be frogged later, and quite frankly, I don't have the patience for that.

So in Love

2012-01-29T20:15:00.000-06:00

...with both this vibrant yarn (Noro Kureyon) and with this pattern ("Holding Hands, Feeding Ducks" - find it on Ravelry). There is only one problem which I can foresee with this project: We aren't having a cold enough winter that I'll be able to wear my beautiful scarf once it's finished!!! Stupid Mississippi weather!

You Know You Knit Too Much When...

2012-01-28T19:28:00.001-06:00

My mother-in-law passed out at the dinner table one night not too long ago. Because she's had two non-malignant but fast-growing brain tumors in the past 11 years, her fainting was taken very seriously. She was admitted to the hospital for a few days so that her doctors could run a battery of tests on her brain, her heart, and anything else they could think to check. One of the procedures

A Fitting End

2012-01-16T20:37:00.002-06:00

Beware, I'm feeling rather wistful and a bit tender-hearted tonight... I started the Special Olympics scarf on 9-11, the tenth anniversary of the disaster that stunned our nation, a day which has since become known to many as Patriot Day. As a memorial to those who died in those horrific terrorist attacks, many people volunteer their time in some way; my way was to knit a scarf for a very good

Zombies Are Crap at Knitting

2012-01-07T22:04:00.001-06:00

Wow, the first week back to work after Christmas break kicked my tail. It wasn't enough that I had to get back into a school groove, but it was a hella-busy week, too. Lots of note giving and lecturing, meetings with clubs and parents, after school practices and basketball games, etc., etc. What's more, it was an emotional week as well, with a scare at my husband's job (they fired almost 200

New Year, New Knits, New Blogs, New...

2012-01-01T18:54:00.000-06:00

I never imagined that two months would pass without my having written a single word on my blog. I suppose that happened, however, because these past two months also found me having to force myself to knit. It happens every year: A couple of weeks into my summer break, I start knitting like a fiend. I'm able to keep the pace up (mostly) even after work starts again in August, but then, around

Oooh, Fun! A Giveaway

2011-10-26T17:57:00.000-05:00

No, I'm not giving anything away. Right now, times are tough, and I'm holding onto my stash for dear life. But enough about me... Loves 2 Knit is giving away some gorgeous yarn. If you love to knit, and you love yarn (who doesn't?!), then go enter the contest! First prize is 10 skeins of cashmere -- that's expensive stuff, not to mention it feels so-o-o-o good! See? http://loves2knit.com/

Dragging My Feet

2011-10-16T19:38:00.002-05:00

I've hardly been knitting at all this past week, though I definitely need to be doing so. And therein, I think, lies the problem. Rebecca Danger said it best in her latest post, "I am spending my days dreaming of all the things I would like to be knitting instead of those things I have to be knitting." Granted, she's knitting pieces for her next book, and I'm only knitting pieces that I want to

I Missed It

2011-10-15T19:08:00.003-05:00

Whether you knit, crochet, craft or just adore fiber, October 14th is the day to affirm your passion for yarn. Show it off, tag with it, carry it, gather with friends. Declare your LOVE! Get involved. Create an I Love Yarn Day badgeTeach someone to knit or crochetDo something for charityWear a knitted or crocheted itemGive a gift of yarnTake your yarn to work dayHost a yarn-a-bration partyKnit,

75 Days

2011-10-10T19:12:00.000-05:00

Today I created a Christmas countdown timer for my computer's desktop background, and it told me that there are only 75 days until Christmas!!! I have all these wonderful ideas for projects I want to create and give as Christmas gifts this year (thank you, Pinterest), but 75 days doesn't sound like a whole lot of time. I'm going to have to kick it into high gear. Thank goodness, I did start

Another Monster Made

2011-10-03T08:12:00.002-05:00

It took a little less than a month for me to start and finish knitting my latest monster. That's pretty good for me, but it's not going to be good enough if I'm going to do all the Christmas knitting I want to do. I'm going to have to speed up to finish it all in 83 days! That sounds like a long time now, but I know it will be here before I have time to really think about it. Still, I'm proud

Socktober?

2011-10-02T11:09:00.001-05:00

I'm SO glad to see October arrive. This is the month when the weather in the Deep South finally changes from "instant lip sweat and three showers per day" (and that begins in May, by the way) to weather that resembles what the rest of the United States has during the summer. In October we have daytime highs in the low 80s with low humidity (a miracle!) and nights that are about 55 degrees; it's