LESSONS LEARNED: KNITTING

Knitting and walking, not done at the same time. Oh, I have knitted while walking, but the knitting needs to be mindless, Arne & Carlos patterns are anything but mindless. I finished the hat and it turned out BIG and the pattern has errors. You can read about the hat here.

The Christmas Card sweater has been a challenge too, it's the charts again.

I emailed Arne & Carlos regarding my concerns, they live in Norway.

I was so frustrated with this pattern and ready to frog the entire project. So I decided to walk!

I walked 3 miles over to my favorite MSK and talked with an amazing knitter who ran the numbers, did more math, read and re-read the directions and could not figure out the charts.

Gathering my knitting I walked again, coming up with one last resource before frogging the project. Enter Jeffrey at Wall Of Yarn in Freeport, Il. Stopping in at a bar, ordered a beer and called Jeffrey.

Jeffrey was wonderful-spending 30 minutes on the phone with me...he and I walked through the 

entire pattern and the charts, just when we were considering failure Jeffrey said:" Oh wait, the Norwegian thing". The back needs to be a "mirror image of the front".

Me: "shouldn't the chart do that for me, I'm knitting in the round as the directions say"?

"Plus, where are my steeking stitches"?

Jeffrey: Knit across the front 85 stitches, turn to back and start at beginning of chart again. Forget those "other" stitches on the chart. And waalaa, there are 2 steeking stitches on each side and the pattern/chart works".

The sleeves Jeffrey walked me through, { I would never have figured these out}. Jeffrey did the math and said it should work, I'm trusting Jeffrey. 

When I returned home, I had an email from a women in Vermont whom Arne & Carlos asked to contact me. She had the chart corrections for the hat, but her corrections were wrong. I emailed her back with the correct-rows to be corrected for the hat and poured out my frustrations regarding the sweater. I am sure I will hear from her again today.

My Christmas Card sweater is taking a village to knit. I am excited to learn new things and hope to finish this sweater soon, very soon.

Join me over at

YARN ALONG

BABY ITS COLD OUT THERE

Oh, it snowed and got really cold....1 degree on Saturday with out wind chill....BRRRRRRR!

I went out to the farmers market and got some goodies then home for a walk in the snow. Only lasted 10 blocks and spent the rest of the weekend trying to warm up.

I LOVE WINTER and COLD!

Eric and I couldn't avoid it any longer, today we started decorating the house, { a little} to look more like Christmas. I cleaned, deep cleaned the living/dining room and kitchen while Eric threw some lights and ornaments on the teeny tree we have. Once done, we looked at each other and said: "maybe next year we should get a real tree".

WAITING FOR THE STORM

See that drain there in the above picture, well that is the drain I dropped the garage opener down. Yup, and Eric climbed down it to retrieve the opener, such a nice guy:-}

Someone has yarn bomb benches in the park-how cute!

Thought I would get in a long walk before the polar vortex arrived with the snow. It was cold today, suppose to be in the 40's but I doubt it was out of the 20's. But I LOVE cold weather...LOVE LOVE LOVE! By Saturday all this brown will be white and cold.

So for dinner I made red beans, rice and sausage. Warmed us up to our very core, even Eric liked it...huh, he doesn't usually care for this dish. I must be getting better at cooking, I do use a whole lot more spices now.

Besides walking and picture taking, I am still knitting the Christmas Sweater { Arne & Carlos} and finished a jumper for baby B. Now I am tucking in for the weekend!

COLD AND BONE BROTH

It's been cold and grey, that steel grey cold around here! And, we are expecting really cold air tonight and to continue through the weekend with some snow. Cold air that has the name of "polar vortex".

Ok, the cold air coming my way is in no way close to the cold air in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois, but still very cold for the front range. What to do when it gets too cold, why make bone broth, chicken/turkey to be precise. Oh, this stuff warms not only body but soul and is the deal breaker in so many soups and stews, the perfect dishes for cold days/nights. 

Eric and I went out yesterday and completed the last of the Christmas shopping...yeah. We had a lovely dinner, planned our attack and were done within two and half hours. The gift buying side of Christmas is done but not the decorating of the house. We will put up a small, really small tree in the dry sink. Putting decorations up for the Christmas season goes fast but taking them down, oh good heavens what a chore.

While out shopping -saw this adorable buggy for a toddler { guess who}? Well my son is amazing with wood and saws, so am thinking to send this picture to him and see if he can make this for{guess who again}. That wee buggy just makes me smile!

Keep warm and carry on through this busy season! Only one more week before it all turns back to normal;-}

YARN ALONG

I knitted the hat Dobbellue, a pattern by Arne and Carlos, I even used the same colors that they had chosen and I must say: the pattern was awful! The 2 color pattern in the book is wrong on 2 lines and the lining is WAY too small if the outside is knitted as instructed and finally the pattern states it's a medium, but it is large, large and large,( yes my gauge was right on for stitches and rows, that was a first too). Having stated the worse, I must admit I love the hat. My people have LARGE heads and I was worried the medium sizing would be way too small. The yarn knits into a beautiful fabric and the colors are, well, just happy colors for winter. Oh, and the hat is soo warm, something my daughter will enjoy in Minnesota where the temps are going down to -30 degrees. How I remember that cold when I was in college up at ST. Norbert's in the Greenbay area. Now that was a life time ago!

I'm reading Farmer Boy, I have read this book so many times and I never tire of it. The discriptions

of the food...yum-and that farm! But the best is reading about his mother spinning and weaving all their clothing yardage, WOW!

Baby B likes to sit with me and machine quilt! How great is that? - start them early, we do around here.

Please join me over at Small Things

for 

YARN ALONG

YARN ALONG-WEDNESDAY

It's Yarn Along Wednesday and it's snowing out there. I woke to the beautiful word of white and silence. Why and how is that, that a fresh snow makes the world quiet. Perhaps if it snowed all over the world at the same time the quietness would give people a chance to pause , think and reflect. Sometimes I believe to just pause,  is what we all need a little more of in this world.

::Baby B is wearing the hat from the latest Making magazine

:: sweater Little Coffee Bean Cardigan- sweater buttons are from BB's great-grand grandmothers button jar....so cool!

::Book-A Quilt for Christmas

The book was OK, an easy read and interesting story, however, I have read most of Sandra Dallas's books and have enjoyed  all her early books but the later ones, I don't know, it's the writing. 

Wishing you all a peaceful Wednesday.

Join me over at Ginny's &

YARN ALONG

WAITING FOR THE STORM

Waiting, with much anticipation, for the first snow {measurable snow}of the season. I love a good snow storm and better yet, one that I do not need to make my way to work. This morning I spent cleaning the upstairs, tiding the downstairs and cooking a roast with all the trimming and a pumpkin pie straight from the hubbard pumpkin-so when the snow starts to fly, I will be tucked in and watching the magic happen. I have also casted on a new hat, color knitting using YOTH worsted weight yarn. I am riding on the shirt tails of Soulemama with this hat...thanks Amanda!

I was up in the foothills today (before the storm blows in), went to Eden Farm for some spices and sea salt, it was rather empty of people. Once inside the only soul there said "so and so went to town to get some shopping done before the storm hit", funny, I drove up there to get some things before the storm hit. Love this little community store run by the Seventh Adventist, nothing fancy, in fact real un-fancy as you can see by the door to the shop;-} Once in the valley I could see the storm building up over the mountains and that wind-ououeee-it was cold. Tonights temps will be in the low single digits. Get those knits out ladies and gents! My husband just informed me -11 tonight....more quilts on the bed;-). And the wind, hang on, it's blowing out there now at 49 mhr. (I think that is the end of my weather report).

Last week I spent making chicken broth, chicken and rice soup, bread and cut out cookies{for my youngest girl now living out of state}. Well of course it didn't take me all week, but I do move at a rather slow pace now, I have no need to rush. The rest of the week was spent knitting and quilting on my mammoth size quilt, what was I thinking?

My baby GD loves bacon, { much to her dismay she had it taken away from her, soon BB, soon, you will be eating bacon}. I completed her pink hat for the Women's March in DC and we tested out walking on a cold, cold day, [she loved it, until we had to turn into the wind].
Hope you all are tucked in for what ever weather is heading your way...gotta go. update weather report on radio.