Knitting Round-up

The readers have spoken (okay, just Melinda) and they have determined my next blog shall be about the knitting projects that were accomplished this year!

In January I was finishing a project that I started on the way home from Cannon Beach in September of 2012.

It is the Lintilla shawl by Martina Behm.  I used Malabrigo Arroyo in the colorway Azules.  I really loved the pattern, which was easy and interesting enough to get me through to the end.  The shawl is warm and fun to wear as a scarf wrapped around my neck all poofy.

The next project was an infinity scarf for my cousin Katey.  Unfortunately, though it's been finished since February, I haven't gotten it to her yet.  I need to give it a bath and pin it out, and I'm afraid it's too small to be wrapped around twice.  It is a modified version of the Summer Wind scarf by Irish Girlie Knits.  I used Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label yarns in Stormy.

After that I decided to knit a pair of fingerless gloves for Mom for her birthday.  Around Christmas last year I got a Molly Makes magazine with these Owl Mitts in it.  I had to modify the size, as they were very small, but I think the product was worth the effort.

For those I used Mochi Plus in Caramel Latte, which I thought looked like owl-y colors.  I have another yarn to make a set for myself...but they haven't made it to the top of the pile yet.

After that I decided I wanted a pair of mitts for myself.  I had started the Eureka Valley Mitts in April and then abandoned them as the twisted stitch technique is a bit taxing.  I managed to finish the first mitt when we went to Cannon Beach in September this year, but the second is hanging out there in limbo.  Maybe I'll finish them up this next year.  They are Mochi Plus again, but this time I used the Seaview colorway.

Then before we went to the cabin I thought that having a hat for the cool nights would be lovely.  I knit up a Subtly Cabled hat using Mini Mochi in the colorway Neptune Rainbow.  Unfortunately it was too small for my head.  Not around, just in length.  So it's up for being gifted to anyone who gets this far into my blog post and has a small-ish head.  I can measure it, if you want to know how long it is.

After that summer and gardening took over my time and all knitting projects were set aside.  Before we went down to Melinda's baby shower I did manage to knock out an adorable baby hat called the Upside-Down Daisy hat and a pair of booties to match, both knit in Knit Picks Comfy Worsted.

I took a picture of the hat, but not the booties, so here is a borrowed photo of Melinda's little girl rocking the outfit.

Then while we were down in Arizona I picked up some beautiful yarn and knit myself a pair of fingerless mitts in the pattern Raw Honey using Mochi Plus in Red Zone, which reminded me of the colors of Arizona.

I got on a mitt kick then and continued with Fetching knit in Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton for myself as well.

But I needed to make one more baby hat for a friend that is due in January, so in a week I knocked out the Little Pumpkin hat in Knit Picks Comfy Worsted again.  I need to make a pair of booties to match still, but I've got one more month...

And most recently I've been working on some Susie Rogers' Reading Mitts for myself.  These are in  an alpaca yarn that I have misplaced the tag for.  But it's beautiful and has a lovely halo to it.  The first mitt is done and I'm thinking about casting on the second right now.

So that was the year in knitting for me.  I'm hoping to tackle some more projects for myself (I've been dreaming of shawls lately) and some for others (Emily's cloak is high on my list.  Sometimes I just go through my bags of yarns and patterns and think...damn! I buy nice stuff!

...Arizona, The Beach (again), and Another Visit From Nicole!

So when I last left off, Cindy and Carrie were running from one vacation to another, working hard in between and trying to stay on top of the garden and lawn maintenance as well.  At one point during all these planned vacations, I got the great idea to add another!  My cousin Melinda was busy during this time growing her second baby and I asked her if she was going to have another baby shower.  She said she'd talked about it with some friends and it seemed like it wasn't taboo to have a second shower, especially since she was having a girl this time.  I asked her when it would be, she gave me an estimated date, and I said that I had that weekend off.  She told me if I was going to come she'd make sure it happened that weekend.  So I booked a trip.  I convinced Mom to go with me by telling her the hotel we were staying at had a water-park attached and I'd pay for the hotel and airfare.  So the second to last weekend of August we flew out of Pasco down to Phoenix.  Now Mom and I have always said that our best trips are often:  1.)  Planned at the last minute, and 2.)  Contained within a 3 day weekend.  Well this trip did not break that record.  We had a blast!  We got down to Phoenix late on Friday (also part of our M.O. - arrive very late at night at your destination and then try to drive somewhere) and on Saturday morning we met up with Melinda.  Actually I think it was more like Saturday afternoon, because we went to the water-park for about an hour that morning, got all gussied up for the shower and then hit up a yarn store (because that's a requirement whenever we go someplace new).  We visited with Melinda, Eric and Camden for a little while and then gathered the packages that had been mailed and Mom, Melinda and I all headed to the party.  It was lovely!  We got to meet all of Melinda's friends and co-workers, ate delicious food and cake, and played a few party games.  Melinda opened her presents and she got plenty of adorable clothes, blankets and toys for Baby Girl.  I really enjoyed meeting all the people I hear about in blog or on Facebook, especially Kelly - Baker and Cake Decorator Extraordinare.  She made the amazing cake that looked like a teapot for the shower.  Plus she has a wicked (as in awesome) sense of humor, because when we met she said it's like meeting a celebrity; you know a lot about them, but you don't know what to say.  Kelly - "I really like your raised beds."  Me - "I'm a big fan of your work."

That's right people!  That's a cake!!

After the party, Mom and I were still a bit hungry so Melinda joined us at one of their favorite places to eat, Smoothie Cafe.  I'd heard about these amazing smoothies for so long and I needed to get one before we left.  They also had delicious sandwiches so we had a well rounded meal.  On Sunday everyone piled into Eric and Melinda's SUV and we went and visited her office as ASU and then went to the zoo.  Camden was the real star of this point in the trip because he was wildly entertaining.  He was going to turn, in his words, "3 candles" that Friday and told us all the things he was going to do for his birthday.  He also told me how he really liked the ocean and could make the sound of waves breaking on a beach.  I told him we had a lot in common.  We all enjoyed walking around the zoo (except for maybe Eric, his knee was pretty swollen at the end) and Camden played for quite a while in the splash pad they have at the zoo.

Afterwards we all went to Sweet Tomatoes, a delicious buffet-style restaurant, and ate Arizona style - outside under the misters.  Since I hadn't sent anything down for Camden's birthday, I had the bright idea that we'd take him to Toys R Us and let him pick out something.  Melinda said this could go one of two ways, sweet and pleasant or tantrum and crying.  I was up for either option.  After lunch we went to the toy store and Melinda told Camden he could pick out something he wanted.  The first thing he sees is the fart gun from Despicable Me.  We said that it was a good toy, but maybe he wanted to look around a little more than just inside the door.  We walked through the Legos (not interested), the Barbies (picked up a pink Mini Cooper) and then we made it to the Cars section.  Here all former items were forgotten.  Camden chose some single Cars and a pack of 10 (maybe?  I can't really remember how many) that included ones he didn't have in his collection.  He deemed these good and we were ready to go.  Before we left, however, I walked over to the puzzles section to get a couple of those too.  He's recently become interested in them and when we had arrived that was the first thing he showed me was his puzzles and we put one together.  So obviously he needs more.  We picked out two puzzles, an ocean one and a 3-D image one.  Happy as a clam we all headed back home and I untied the cars while he played with puzzles and we watched a movie.  Later Melinda, Mom and I all went to the Babies R Us so that she could look at the swings in person.  Part of her shower presents was money towards one and she wanted to see them in person before she went and ordered one online.  Wow.  I didn't know there were ever so many options for baby swings.  Or how pricey and high tech they can get!  After that we went back, had some dinner, listened to Camden's nighttime stories and talked to Melinda and Eric for as long as we could.  The next day we packed up, drove to the airport and flew home.

Some views from our hotel

Downtown Phoenix in the distance

Those hills look fake…like you're in an amusement park...

The Columbia river welcoming us home

I had told Melinda that I wanted to see a haboob (giant sand/dust storm) while we were there.  They had promised thunderstorms all weekend, which what the storms usually precede, but no luck.  When I got home, however, I found on my Facebook a picture of one with the tag that I'd just missed it.  They had one about an hour after I took off on my plane!  So close....


So about a week after coming back from Arizona we headed down to Cannon Beach.  It was our usual 5 day summer stay and it was fabulous.  We relaxed, knitted, ate good food, watched 3 weddings on the beach, knitted, drove down to the Tillamook Creamery, and walked the beach a lot!  Mom and I both took our Fitbits with us and on one day I clocked over 16,000 steps!  Woo hoo!  I got to eat things I'm not usually allowed anymore, like donuts, ice cream, pizza and beer.  We tried the crepe place and really liked them!  I didn't overspend on yarn, but I did manage to buy some more fabric for making bags, which means I have about twelve sets waiting around for me to feel like sewing (which is a rare occasion indeed).  I have been playing around with nail art lately and decided to try and put starfish on my toes in honor of the beach.  They don't look much like the Pinterest picture, but they were cute nonetheless.  It was a good time had by all.

Then at the end of September, Nicole thought she'd come up for a visit.  It was the beginning of the fair up here and I told her we'd take Emily and her along for the ride, since we had decided our day to go was that Saturday.  Nicole and Emily drove up on Friday and spent the long weekend with us, leaving on Monday to go to visit her parents for the rest of the week.  Saturday was a lovely day and we did all the fair things you're supposed to do.

We visited the petting zoo…

Mom was thrilled with the goats.  You can bet we'll be getting those next...

And got some cotton candy (and an elephant ear for the adults)…

Took a tour through the kids' barn…

And found a pumpkin with Nicole's nickname on it…

And lastly found a house full of hops for Nicole.  

She'd been saying that she missed the smell that signals the start of fall here in the valley.  And it's true.  Every morning on my way into work we pass the hop processing plants and when you get that good wiff of hops, then you know fall has arrived.  Emily said they smelled "funny".  Guess you have to grow up with that kind of thing.  I also asked Nicole to help me make the messenger bag she had sent me material for.  We cut it out and I gave it my best effort on Sunday to get it done, but I ended up having to finish it the next weekend I was off and mail it to her.  At least she got to put her input in on what material she wanted where and I think she was happy with the final result.  Poor thing didn't know that sewing is not my favorite thing.  I like the item I get at the end, but the process is hell to get through.  Especially cutting.  I hate cutting the thing out.  But those are the things we do for people we love.  ;)

The Beach, Cabin and Medford...

To catch up anyone who cares on where we've been so far this summer, here is the first part of our summer trips!

In April we went to Cannon Beach for our typical spring getaway.  We stayed at a different hotel than usual, due to extenuating circumstances, but we really enjoyed it!  It was a block away from the beach, but there is a little bakery at the corner of the street we'd walk down to get to the shore, so on our way back we'd pick up fresh brewed coffee and pastries.  We had excellent weather and I took many photos, as usual...

Don't worry!  We didn't touch it.

Beach Reflections

Starfish on the beach with surfers in the distance...in April!

Mount Rainer on the way home

It was a nice little vacation.  Another perk to staying at the hotel we did was that they own the timeshares next door and gave us a card for an open house.  We stopped by and really loved the timeshare!!  It has everything we've been looking for since Surfsand remodeled their rooms and removed the kitchenettes.  It has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a fully stocked kitchen, dining room and living room and they also have washers and dryers!!  Not all the units are sold, so they rent them out nightly still.  We booked a weekend in early November to give them a try out :D



Then at the beginning of June we went to the cabin.  It was an excellent time and a good reminder of why I live where there is electricity and a shower.  Mom and I arrived on Friday afternoon and cleaned out the cabin, made all the beds, got the camp mostly set up and were sitting by a good fire when David, Leslie, Justin and Tayla showed up late that night.  On Saturday everyone else helped us set up the dining tent and got the tarps over the kitchen area.  Leslie ran into town to get some major groceries we forgot (#1 being BUTTER).  Uncle Fred, Aunt Carla, Patrick and Jonathan showed up around noontime and we all went out to the Bryan Boru discovery hole.  David and Tayla drove some of us up there and then went on up to Captain Mabbutt's cabin and a few of us followed slowly walking with the dogs.  We watched David's dog Shelby play in her own little water hole that she found, watched Uncle Fred and the boys pickup and chip away at rocks and generally talked and caught up with each other.

Shelby and her swimming hole

Fred and Carla

Toby wishing for a couch to lay on

Justin and Mom discussing serious things (mostly geology)

Jon and Fred

Patrick

Later that day Uncle Fred, Aunt Carla and the boys went back to their much more modern rental cabin and the rest of us lounged around, David and Justin cut wood, and we ate dinner and sat at the fire for approximately 5 minutes before it started to rain.  Sunday everyone convened again at camp and this time we went up to the Madonna tree, a tree that has a Madonna statue sunk into the bark in honor of my grandfather.  We made another one not too far from that for my grandma after she died.  We walked up the road that goes past the trees and I wanted to see how far it went.  I'd been perusing Google Earth and it looked like on there it may go all the way around the mountain.  We tromped through the brush some and found an old roadbed that looks like it went around the mountain at one time.  We decided that we'd have to try and see how far we could go on it next year.  David and Justin continued to cut and load wood onto his trailer that afternoon and a few of us took showers in the new shower tent Mom bought.  We ate dinner early enough that day that we roasted marshmallows that evening around the fire and ended our trip on a perfect note.

David at the Madonna tree

The camp at twilight

The next morning we packed up and headed home.  It took us twice as long as usual because David's trailer blew a tire and we had to drive into Colville to get new ones before we went home.  David and Tayla stayed at our house overnight and then Mom and David unloaded the wood into our new Tuff shed.  They also left a whole bunch of stumps out to dry, so it looks like we are set for winter.



At the end of June we went to Medford to see my best friend Nicole.  It was a bit of a stressful beginning to the trip, as I am still seeing my reproductive endocrinologist and trying to get pregnant.  It looked like I was going to ovulate that weekend and they said that they didn't do spontaneous procedures, in other words they have to plan for staff and all.  I ended up taking Thursday off to go over for a follicular ultrasound and they said it looked like I was going to be ready for the procedure on Friday.  I got a shot of HCG and Mom and I booked a hotel room in Bellevue for the night.  We ended up going through the Chihuly garden exhibit they have at the Seattle Center and it was awesome!

Friday we got up and got the baby thing done (long story short:  It didn't take.) and then drove the 7 hour drive to Medford.  We got to Portland about 1 and promptly stopped.  We crawled through Portland for 3 hours and then made it out the other side!  It was 103 degrees and the car was just barely keeping up the air conditioning with all the idling and asphalt.  We eventually arrived about 10 pm, checked into our hotel and fell into bed.  The next day we went and found Nicole's place and then her, Emily and my Mom and I all drove to Ashland for the day.  We walked around town, stopped at yarn, candy and toy stores and ate at the Standing Stone Brewing Company for lunch.  The food was very yummy and the beer was awesome too!  (Yes I had a small one.  How many kids do you know that were conceived while their parents were drunk?)  We also stopped in at the Shakespeare Festival's gift shop and got to peak inside their open air theater.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Emily

After that Nicole wanted to go to a local winery.  She had previously gotten a bottle of their wine at the Chocolate Festival and was hoping to get another.  Mom, Nicole and I all got a wine flight and Nicole picked a bottle of their white, while Mom got a couple of bottles of their house red.  As we headed back to Nicole's house she was commenting on how close California was.  It had been forecasted to be near 100 that whole weekend and it's impossible to stop me when we are that close to the ocean.  So we made plans the next day to drive to Crescent City.  Back in January I had bought tickets to see a play at the Shakespeare Festival, and since the Shakespeare they were doing that weekend didn't seem to thrill either of us, we decided to go see their production of My Fair Lady.  I had also mailed the tickets down to Nicole a week ahead of our trip because I was afraid of when I'd be ovulating and we'd lose the tickets.  At least that way she could've dragged Tony along with her and they wouldn't go to waste.  But it all worked out and that evening, all fancied up, Nicole and I went to the play while Mom babysat Emily until Tony got home from work.  The play was fantastic!  The actors were excellent and the way they presented it was informal but intriguing and captivating.

Sunday we met Nicole back at her house and Tony, Emily, Nicole and Mom and I (and the dogs because they had come along for the trip too!) all piled into our van to go to the beach.  We stopped at a Fred Meyer to pick up some extras for a picnic lunch and headed out.  As we drove we all chatted and admired the general scenery and then all of a sudden there were these GIANT trees RIGHT along the side of the road.  Mom and I didn't know how close we'd be to the redwoods but were awed by them just appearing out of nowhere.  They were so beautiful and so big!  We drove into Crescent City and down to the beach and parked ourselves.  We traipsed out to a nice piece of beach under a clear blue sky.  And it was so warm!  It was about 75 to 80 degrees while we were there and even the water felt warm.  Emily played in the sand and splashed in the waves with one or the other or both of her parents.  We ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, apples, pretzels and cookies.  I laid out for about 15 minutes and instantly scalded my legs.  Nicole didn't get sunscreen on fast enough and got her neck and chest.  It was a glorious day.

Nicole and I making lunch

Nicole, Emily and Tony

When we got tired and thought about going home, we headed over to the lighthouse there and took some pictures and used the facilities.  Then we stopped and took some pictures at the redwoods on our way back too.

SO BIG!

When we got back to Medford I promised to make dinner, so Nicole and I headed back out to the store.  I made a ravioli bake with salad and bread and everyone enjoyed a hearty meal after an amazing day.  Then we all sat around and talked, or played with Emily, and tried to get in every last second we could before goodbye.

Wind machines in the gorge outside Goldendale

Monday Mom and I packed up and headed for home.  Toby was so happy to be out of the car and off of a leash that he ran and ran and ran around the garden while Mom and I stood out there and talked.

And that was only the first half of our summer...