New Post for a New Look

Well..Here we are again...with a brand-spankin' new look. Courtesy of Blogger and my amazing buddy Enid. She created the new header for my blog - is she a ROCKIN' GIRL BLOGGER/ PROGRAMMER or what?? I don't know about you - but she just won that title in my book. She also created another header - bet ya can't wait to see it...but you're gonna have to! hah!

Fiberlicious pics later this week - PROMISE!

These boots are made for Rockin!

WOW! I am pretty close to speechless! Amy bestowed the Rockin Girl Blogger award upon little ole' me!

She showered kudos on me not only for my un-bear-ably cute critters I am knittin now-adays (and no, Buffy is not totally finished yet) but also for my cool demolition / remodeling work and my world famous marriage proposal brownies! [and yes, I am still accepting applications - a proposal from 'Mr Right' has not come my way.... and a lady does not talk about propositions from 'Mr Right-now' or 'Mr Wrong'...but I digress...]. Amy - thanks for the honor....I know the recipe for the meatballs and sauce didn't hurt either!

Now on to my naming 5 gals who are rockin' my socks off with their blogs...

Janna has a great combo of knitting and kitties - and who is a recent transplant from SA to Iowa City - and we miss her terribly! She was here a few weeks ago and it was great to see her in person - but her blog makes it seem like we are sitting at Candlelight talking over coffee and knittin'.

Michelle has a combo of knittin' and non-knittin topics! ..and it is always interesting and fun!

Melanie's blog is always a treat - a mix of sox, spinnin and great causes! I discovered the info on mystery stole 3 a bit too late, but next time..I'm IN! In the meantime, I'm saving my pennies to get her pattern for the beauuuutifu Hanami Stole.... (yes - I am coveting and ready to knit lace again!!!!)

Cara's blog - January One - is always a feast for my eyes..full of color, texture and images. Whether it is looking at the nifty sox she is working on, the gorgeous pictures of yarn or pictures of flowers and nature - it is always one of my favorite stops on the laptop! I am still deciding if I like the countdown of days till 1/1 or not - nice to know how long, but the year is slipping by so quickly - it makes me stop and think....not necessarily a bad thing.

Last, but most certainly not least....Courtney's Yarn Tootin' is a melange of some of my favorite things - Music, yarn, muppets, knitting....travel, yarn, knitting...grey's anatomy, more music and still more yarn.

I would be most remiss if I did not mention that Amy and Susan are in my top blogs...and since they are already rockin' girl bloggers, I decided to tip my hat in their direction and concur with those who already bestowed the honor on them!

Those of you whom I have listed - please go forth and list 5 who are rocking your bloggy world! I look forward to seeing who you pick!

knit on! (pics coming soon of Stitches and his new mom...and progress on clapotis!)

It's Not Easy Being Green....I'm most like Kermit the Frog!

You scored 45% Organization, 61% abstract, and 76% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables.

First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean.

Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type.

Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself.

You are mostly organized, both concrete and abstract, and more extroverted.

Here is why are you Kermit the Frog.

You are both somewhat organized. You have a good idea where you put things and you probably keep your place reasonably clean. You aren't totally obsessed with neatness though. Kermit is also reasonably tidy. He'll even dress up for interviews.

You both are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract thinkers. Kermit spends a lot of his time as a reporter collecting facts, but he is also the author of the dreamy song "The Rainbow Connection." You have a good balance in your life. You know when to be logical at times, but you also aren't afraid to explore your dreams and desires... within limits of course.

You are both extroverts. Kermit gets along with everyone. Sure a few folks annoy him, but that's just because they are annoying. Kermit likes to meet new people when he does his job as a street reporter. You definitely enjoy the company of others, and you don't have problems meeting new people... in fact you probably look forward to it. You are willing to take charge when necessary or work as part of a team.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Kermit starred on Sesame Street years before The Muppet Show.

The other possible characters are
Oscar the Grouch
Big Bird
Snuffleupagus
Ernie
Elmo
Cookie Monster
Grover
The Count
Guy Smiley
Bert

Click this link to determine your Sesame Street Persona. Go for it. It's fun!

Thanks to Courtney! Great quiz - and her blog ain't bad either!!

In Honor of Harry

The sorting hat says that I belong in Hufflepuff!

Said Hufflepuff, "I'll teach the lot, and treat them just the same."

Hufflepuff students are friendly, fair-minded, modest, and hard-working. A well-known member was Cedric Digory, who represented Hogwarts in the most recent Triwizard Tournament.

Take the most scientific Harry Potter
Quiz ever created.

Get Sorted Now!

Thanks Enid!

Road Trip and Ravelry

Today a bunch of us decided that it was time to have a knit and bitch gathering outside of town. Two of our group's members live quite a distance away - Betsy and Enid...so if they couldn't come to us, we went to them....and a great time had by all! For those who were there with us in spirit, here is the group pic!



A shout out of thanks to Wendy, who drove all of us (Michelle, Chris, Amy, Claudine and me) up in her van! We all were wowed by how spacious and comfy it was!

Once we got to their town, we stopped at Betsy's coffee shop - where everyone had yummy drinks, snacks and pannini's! We took over the back room and sat, chatted and knitted (of course!). Many thanks to Betsy for staying open for the group! Everyone loved the cafe!!

We had a special guest - Janna!!!

She recently moved to Iowa City (boo hoo) but was in town visiting this weekend (Yea!!). See that pink think in the lower right corner? That is my knitting needle cord. I was using my old camera and Michelle's KnitPick's options - and well, they were not cooperating.

We all wished that Susan, Kim and Eileen could have been sitting next to us knitting, but they were there with us in spirit! (And Eileen - we were bummed to hear you were waiting for us at Candlelight - I wish you had called - we would have gone by to see you!!)

Every single one of us was either working on circulars or on a project that was circular....Michelle had her sumptuous cashmere long gloves; Wendy was working on her moebius; Amy was working on a blanket; Enid, Janna, Claude and Chris were working on socks. Me?

Well.

I decided to take a short break from knitting bears to do something I have been dreading for a year...well, not dreading. I was really nervous to try the clapotis from Knitty. And after some badgering, teasing and double dog dares from Michelle, I decided to cast on and do it. Yeah, I know it is not much yet - but it is on the needles!!!

Needles - Michelle's Knitpics convertibles US8
Yarn - Lorna's Laces Lion & Lamb, Color: Watercolors
(yeah - pricey yarn, I bought it over a year ago when I did not know too much about
substituting yarns and ignoring what yarns a pattern calls for....hey - I was a new
knitter, not savvy to the world of yarn... but boy is it yummy yarn!)


I also did a bit of work on the market bag too.



Needless to say, a great time was had by all... and not too many coughs were had by me!

OH!... I almost forgot. Here is where I am on Ravelry....

• You signed up on July 8, 2007
• You are #14975 on the list.
• 9156 people are ahead of you in line.
• 1756 people are behind you in line.
• 33% of the list has been invited so far

Photo by squirrel cottage

Have a super week!

Just get your mind out of the gutter - is yours any better?

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Her Royal Highness Mary the Undamaged of Old Throcking in the Hole Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

Bear Nekkid....

No - no nudie pics...but there are pics of a nekkid (that is how we say naked in the south...nekkid) bear.

That's right - while I have been trying to stave off Whooping Cough...or asthma, or whatever it is...I have been knittin' away..when not napping.

So here is where my second bear is....all the pieces are done...and I blocked - my first time blocking ANYTHING. But I had to since all the pieces were curling uncontrollably. I was surprised that acrylic curled.....

so here are parts...(dig my cool ironing board cover)


I hope to stitch her up tomorrow....

I started her overalls....this will end up being one of the legs....



And through all the coughs, inhalation treatments etc...there was my little own real-live teddy bear - Tigger - playing the role of a 'velcro puppy'. No matter what I am doing, she could be totally asleep in her bed, and if I get up from the couch to go get some juice - she is right behind me - nails clicking on the floor...she is sooo sweet!!

Who Knew?!?

I had no idea I am such a bada**. Guess it comes either from my ex-military expert marksman dad - or all the Buffy episodes....hmmmmm wonder which.

72%

Mingle² - Free Online Dating

Thanks Susan!

BTW - I SCORED 4 seasons of Buffy episodes today at HPBs for under $40! Rockin!

Bear-ly Alive

Well, you would think I would know better than to mow my own lawn...what with all the mold and fungiii.....as I was mowing, I noticed how many mushrooms were growing under the knee high grass as I plowed it down (ok - it was only shin-high in some places...but being only 5'1", on a good day, it is plausible).

Well, needless to say, Sunday night I was starting to get stuffy. Monday I was having a hard time breathing. By Tues, I had to call my dr and see if they could send drugs. Weds - Fri - passed in a drug-enduced stupor. (Granted, I did watch a few fireworks on TV from NY...then spent a few hours in the office today...) but most of the time, I was fighting whooping-cough-like spasms. So bad that I could not knit. Kept dropping stitches.

Speaking of stitches, I had these five pieces of stitched material mocking me every time I crawled into the den. They kept saying, please...put me together.

Well tonight I succumbed to the call of the wild. I put my first bear together. While I was not feeling up to grabbing the camera, my new little guy convinced me to leverage my photo booth.



Ain't he the cutest? I am thinking he needs some clothes...

Tigger, my little one, decided she wanted to get in on the action too.

Your Weekly Dose of Florida

So I am still finishing up my first little bear - hopefully pics later today...

Thought I would give ya some more pics from the land of Disney!

So after we finished at the Magic Kingdom, Bob and I buzzed over to Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure (IOA) . It was a day FILLED with lots and lots of some of the best rollercoasters I have been on in a long time. And I have been on many!!!! (hence the nickname - coaster girl)

We started off at the Hulk...launches you over 150 ft in the air and reaches speeds over 67 mph. Quite the ride. They don't even let you carry anything with you - there are lockers outside the ride you have to use for even a fanny pack.

After a disappointing trip on Dr Dooms Freefall - we headed over to Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls. Yeah - a water flume ride. This is the first one that sends you UNDER the water ....

yup. UNDER. No one warns you of that.

See the log - yeah - it is going under the water - Bob and I were SOAKED when we got off the ride. Good thing it was so hot and sunny that day.

Here we are as we enter the Jurassic Park section of IOA. (we were dripping wet at this point) We jumped onto the River Adventure...yeah - another water ride - we figured - well - might as well get really wet.....

We then buzzed over to ride the Dueling Dragons - Fire and Ice. They are a pair of dragons (rollercoasters) who are in the midst of a fight. During the aerial "combat" between dragons (the suspended coasters) there are three times that you come within 18 inches of the lunatics ..I mean people riding the other rollercoaster. EIGHTEEN INCHES! you can hear them breathing (or not....) Each dragon's 2-minute and 25-second flight includes several inversions, including a zero-g roll, a Cobra roll, two corkscrews, and two vertical loops. I highly recommend that you ride Fire first. A much better ride. They even built in a short cut so after finishing one coaster you can get right back on .... better than drugs or alcohol. Even Bob was a bit woozy after that trip.

Seuss Landing was very cool. Sam I Am gave me a hug, there was a Mary,Thing 1 & Thing 2 sandwich was created at one point - I hope Thing 1 was a boy - he kinda pinched my hiney while we took the picture... - this will most likely be my holiday card picture, and I got to ride the.......

We went ‘round and ‘round and up and down with a menagerie of colorful Seussian creatures, including Dog-alopes, Aqua-Mop Tops, Cowfish, and more. We could even interact with our mounts, causing the heads to turn, ears to waggle, or eyes to blink.

But boy was I worn out at the end of the day.....the last picture of the day said it all.........

The bear is almost done - just sewing up the parts and putting him together.....don't know his name just yet - stay tuned .....