Sarah's Hat and my kitty

Here is Samantha sleeping in bed with me this morning. She loves her mommy so much LOL. She is almost 16 years old now and I do allow her to do things I would not let the others do at any time. She is my baby after all. She sleeps on my pillow with me at night and has to touch my hand at all times. Or she is on my shoulder with her nose stuck in my ear purring. DH can not understand why this doesn't wake me up. Just don't know shes there. She only weighs 9+ pounds so not very heavy at all. Feather likes to sleep on my hip or up against my stomach under the blankets. She is a hoot. Tonto stays at the foot of the bed no matter what you do to him...he thinks he owns that part and makes sure we all know it. No matter what you do to him he stays right there. He is getting old too. Almost 14.



Here is a picture of the brim of the hat I am knitting. I had to take it all out and do it over yesterday. I didn't do the W & T right. So I ripped it out and started over. I stayed up last night until almost midnight to get it done. DC is working on hers also. She had an extra stitch and couldn't find it so I went over this afternoon and took out 6 rows and reknit them for her. Now she is off and running with it. I picked up the stitches around the brim while there. I have a couple of rows done so far..hope to get more done tonight while watching Dancing with the Stars. Will Billy Ray be done this week? LOL Very surprised they booted Heather out. Thought she would be there are few more weeks. Now it's down to Billy Ray and John. It will probably be between Apollo and Tony. They are both very good and would have a hard decision deciding which one if I were a judge. Love them all!

Time for supper and then back to the hat. Hope to have another picture to post tomorrow.

KNIT ON!

Sun Hat for Sarah! Ducks in Spring!

Took a ride to Medway to drop off some old filing cabinets DH got from the mill for a friend and saw these two Mallard ducks sitting on the rocks by a puddle of water in someones front yard. The ice is still on the lakes so they are looking for water! lol too funny! These are a male and female pair so they are ready to be building a nest and get those babies going. AHHH Mother Nature at its best!



I received my yarn on Wednesday. Have it all ready to go and decided to start the hat last night while watching CSI. I think the easy part is going to be knitting the brim. I hate picking up stitches and will have to do that for the top of the hat. I have the brim of the hat last night and have taken a couple of pictures to show you how much I have done. I am using King Tut cotton yarn in Denim. Have it in purple for the second one. I hope that I can get this done soon as I want to put the JOAT together and get the hood started. I have decided that I won't need the Aran Coat until fall now so no big hurry. Take off the pressure and I will want to finish it sooner rather than later. lol I hope this thought process works! Oh well.

Well off to Lincoln to get the Truck fixed...damn engine light came on and need to drive to the main dealer to get it fixed. They don't have the computer that is needed here in Millinocket. Pisses me off. Did not buy out of town cause we didn't want to travel to repair it and now we find out we have to drive to lincoln to fix it. Really really pisses me off. A 45 minute drive, the wait while they put it on the computer and then the drive back. Gas went up to $2.95.9 a gallon yesterday. And that gas hog will cost me about 15-20 bucks for the trip. Really really Pisses me OFF! GGRRRRR.
Oh well enough bitching "Get-R-Done! I am grateful that we have a 3 year bumper to bumper warrantee on this Dodge.

So off to get ready and bring my knitting while I wait. Take care all and
KNIT ON!

Aran Joat Sleeves

 
Here are the sleeves....love the color and all the cat hair that has just magically appeared! Damn Cats! Love 'em, hair and all.

 
Close ups of the cables.

 
 

Finally got a couple of photos to show. They are almost done..just need to bind off and that will take 8 rows. I am hoping not to have to use another skein of yarn. If I don't I may have enough to make baby Sarah a little aran jacket to match Grandmas! Or maybe a hat and scarf for me to match. Will have to wait and see.

Started to clean our bedroom today. Got just a little done and my back just wouldn't take it. So back to bed to rest and do nothing. I try not to feel sorry for myself, but it's spring and I have so much to do before my surgery in May. We can't move to camp yet. The road is still closed. The lake is still froze solid and theres a ton of snow to contend with and I am not going to battle snow any more. So I will try to get things done around here.

Want to have a yard sale before we move to camp. I asked my cousin if is she was still interested in doing one. I know we can do one later this summer..so not biggy. Will just put my stuff in boxes and mark them as I go. That way even DH can do one! LOL Can't you see that! HA! HA! HA! Yeah right. He just wants the money.

I ordered King Tut cotton yarn from Rosemary's Gift and Yarns yesterday. I was hoping I got the order in before the mail service had gone out so I might get it today. But I didn't. I should be here tomorrow. One of the good things about having a LYS in Maine..only takes one day to get it.

I had placed an order with another shop in Washington state and I am still waiting for it. It took a week before the even acknowledged they got it..and that was after I emailed them to see if they had. PayPal paid them the very day I placed the order so I knew that wasn't what was holding it up. Now to see how many days it takes to get to me. It is mostly sock yarn for DC. She is going to learn to make herself some nice socks to wear all the time. Not just winter ones. She will be using metal needles as she knits very tight and I'm afraid she might break bamboo ones. LOL She has done so good with her knitting. She really has good tension and is better at that then I am...!!! She has no ladders in her ribbing like I do. I have been trying to figure out how she does that, and I think it's because she pulls each stitch before and after she drops it off the needle. ????

DC and I are going to be knitting sun hats as soon as my yarn gets here. The pattern is from Fiber Trends CH-18. I think??? Can't remember the number right now. That is what the King Tut is for. I ordered a bright purple and denim and white for the flower. I will have enough to make two of them for her. Going to make the 18" around one for her. Will post pictures when we get started.

Well, need my beauty rest so it's off to bed. Take care all and

KNIT ON!!

4-Wheeling into camp! Just a little snow!!!!

There was so much snow on the road. It was a good ride in, but the ride out wasn't. The snow had softened up a lot and tons of mud where there wasn't any snow. I had a hard time keeping my bike in the trail. So glad I didn't go alone.

The mice had decided to have a feast with the sunflower seeds for my bird feeders. It's been a month or so since Ive been to camp and no one was there to disturb them eating. Had a lot of shells to clean up. Brought all the curtains down, some paper trash we had left last fall and left for later. Will do all the bedding when we move in. I want to sleep in them before the mice do. Had 5 traps with dead mice in them. I hate to kill them, but they do not belong in my home..they belong outside where mother nature intended them to be. I emptied them and reset for the next bunch who think they live there. LOL

Have only about an inch left on my sleeves to knit. I knit a lot a the Cedar Lake Association meeting Saturday evening. Ordered 3 skeins of King Tut from Rosemary/s Gift Shop. Was good to talk to Rosemary again. Hope DH and I will get to take a ride down her way to see her lovely yarn shop in person. To touch and feel is the best of it for me! LOL I am NOT a yarnaholic!! I am NOT a yarnaholic!! I hope I'm NOT a yarnaholic....but I know I am!! YIPPEE

Well, time to run to the transfer site with my garbage...the weather feels like mid summer today. Almost 80 degrees right now and its not even 3 o'clock. Rain tonight and tomorrow and back to the 50's for the rest of the week. The rain will help to melt the ice on the lake. Can't move in until the ice goes out. No water until it does. DH took the line out last fall because of all the problems he had when he left it in the winter before. Oh well. As long as we get moved before May 21.

KNIT ON!!

Spring is here!!

Yesterday was just so unbelievable...the weatherman deserves a gold star right in the middle of his forehead for this day! He was right on!!! It as almost 70F and the snow is melting like crazy! So much so, I think we are going to camp today on the 4-wheelers. I cleaned the seats off really good yesterday and now to see if they will start today for us. They should, Louie got them ready for us to use a couple of weeks ago and then we got more snow and more snow. Today it supposed to be a repeat of yesterday so I pray my back and leg don't act up too much that I don't get to go to camp. The road is closed so 4-wheeler is the only way in. Alan and I plan on leaving after noon time..when the Kenduskeag River race is no longer broadcast on Channel 5. I wish we could go watch it live one of these years, but it sure isn't going to be this one. This little river is a raging river for a few weeks each spring from run off. And of course we got a 4-8 inches of rain this week too! It depends on what end of the state you live at to determine how much rain you got. The coast got hit really bad and has been declared a disaster area by the governor. People lost their homes because of the astronomical waves at high tide those days the Nor'easter tore through our state.

Snow, snow and more snow. On Monday we got a little snow and then rain. Tuesday we got snow! And more snow!! I didn't even bother to go out and plow hoping it would melt the next day....and it did! So that was a good thing! lol

At SugarLoaf USA at Carrabasset Valley they received over 95" of snow these last couple of storms. One day alone was over 45". Our son is not able to work because the house that he is working at had so much snow that they couldn't open the roads on the mountain. A lot of people were stranded for a few days...no power either!! DS said he had a call from his boss that they were going to have to wait a few days until the front end loaders could remove the snow off the roads up there for them to return to work...wow UNBELIEVABLE!!! SugarLoaf is staying open a couple extra weeks because of all the new snow. The best skiing they have had this season....bet there are a lot of bikini skiers out there! LOL The news showed a man shoveling under the pods so they could move....buried under the heavy wet snow and unable to move them...and people could not get on them either. The man shoveling was standing in the snow and it was about 3 feet taller then he was. WOW that's a lot of snow in any mans language.

I have been plugging away at my sleeves. I wish this would go faster. It seems the more I knit the less there is done. LOL Can you tell Im getting tired of this project. I am only knitting at night so not really that much progress. I have been itchin' to get started on the little cotton hat for DGD. It is Fiber Trends CH-18. I do not have any cotton yarn in my stash so I have been shopping the net for some. Think I am going to use King Tut in a purple. Wanted to do a yellow one too, but at $9.95 a skein, I think one hat will be enough for now. Next year I can knit the second size for her in the yellow. I also want to get going on the cotton dress and jumper I have already bought the yarn for. And Cassandra wants a sweater too! I will be busy while laid up this summer won't I?? Love it!

Well, the races are just starting so I am off to the couch to watch and do a little knitting while I watch the people fall into the icy cold (38F) rushing waters!! Some people will do anything to get on TV!!

Take care and I hope to have some pics to post of our ride to camp later today!

KNIT ON!!

Sunday!

Well, here we go again...more snow! Yuck! Mother Nature is having fun again! This time they are predicting up to 3 feet of snow! OH MY !!! Where will we put it???

I am knitting on my sleeves finally. Today I hope to add a few more rows. Been trying to find some yarn to knit the summer hat for Sarah with. It calls for worsted weight cotton yarn, so dishcloth cotton will work good. Now to find what color I want to use.

Well, going to head out to get a few things done before the snow gets here. I am hoping we don't get ice...that is very dangerous for all.

Oh, DH is going back to work tomorrow with all those stitches in his back/shoulder area. Just told him to be careful he doesn't pull them and make them bleed. They are healing so good right now.

Joat and more snow!

Tom's truck is done plowing...
sorry these pics always run backwards...so the top is the end of the plowing and the bottom pics are when I first took pics out the window this morning.


Looking out the back door at the back yard...the 4wheelers are covered with about a foot of snow and so are the trees.








AS you can see by the pictures, we got a little bit of snow again! lol I remember when I was 10 I was going to have an outdoor birthday party...yeah right! Woke up on that April 14 th morning to over 2 feet of snow..and no electricity. Last night a little after 10, the lights went out in our neighborhood. Checked out the window and the rest of the town had lights. Called Bangor Hydro Electric Co to let them know what was happening and they had already sent a couple of trucks to take care of it. Hubby was downstairs watching TV and I was in bed knitting and watching tv too. He couldn't find the flashlight so wanted me to get the one on his side of the bed and come down so he could find his. Well it was right there on the end table..but it was so dark he didn't dare to move...didn't want to break my lamp. He is claustrophobic and this was so sudden he was in a panic. Once he saw the light I had he was fine. He went and filled the wood stove and came to bed with me. We were just about asleep when the lights came on. All the lights were still on so we got up and took care of them...and then turned the TV on to watch the end of my show, the news and then OCC. I checked out the window after 1 am and very little snow..but when I got up at 8:30 it looked like someone took a snow gun to the place!! WOW it was wet and heavy. DH got dressed and went out and cleaned the truck off. He decided he felt good enough to plow so I stayed in and went back to bed. lol He and our neighbor Tom plowed the yards. Tom said it was like plowing heavy wet cement! Alan did some and then Tom would push it the other way and then they would swap...Glad I was asleep. LOL

Alan had his surgery Monday afternoon. The doctor removed a very large area off his back. I hope this is the last time he will have to have this done. But they only remove the skin by layers and said they test and then will know if there are any "feelers" in this layer. The first one indicated the cancer and this second surgery will detect if the cancer is deeper into the layers. The thing is really gross and I have to clean it!! YUCK at least I didn't get sick like I did with the stitches he had from his gall bladder surgery a couple of years ago. I was unable to clean that for him...almost passed out it was so funny... Told him that if its still this swollen and sore on Monday he is to call in to work and take a weeks vacation. The mill was down this week for repairs so he was able to have this week off without pay...which is NOT nice! We will get by..we always do.

Finally got the two fronts finished on my Joat and have the cuffs on the sleeves started. One more row of cuff then I will start the design. My hands hurt so bad I find it hard to knit lately...and my mind has not been with it either...just been so worried about Hubby and this cancer scare. Hopefully now that this surgery is over I can start knitting and getting things done around here.




I went to my cousins at lunch time to sit with her mom while she was at work. They live by the river and have had the sea gulls there on the banks for a few weeks now. I tried to get some pictures yesterday, but they weren't there. Today there was just too much snow for them to be landing so I got a picture of this one sitting on the pole next to their home. He is a smart one...no snow for him today to lay in...I got the pole...the others have tried to make him move but he hasn't...lol noisy birds too!

Supposed to be a nice tomorrow...hope to get out of the house for a while...nice drive around the area?? We'll see what the weather brings first. Sunday is supposed to be a very bad day...for the next three days according to the weatherman. I hope we don't get hit too hard again. He said up to 4 inches of rain but with high chances of heavy wet snow in the mountains for this big storm. That means us again! HOPE NOT!! NO MORE SNOW PLEASE...want it to go away so we can get moved to the lake the end of the month. Oh well. Have to wait until the ice goes out on the lake anyway. We get our water from the lake. Don't drink it but use it to bath and do dishes with. Oh well...we will be there sooner or later.

On that note, I am going to go start our supper...take care all and KNIT ON!

Aunt Ellens 93rd Birthday

Yesterday was my Aunt Ellen's birthday. She is quite a character. Last aunt that I have. She is my fathers sister. Her granddaughter Mary Ellen called me the night before to invite me to the Terrace. Told her I would take some pictures for her. This picture is of me and her! What a beautiful lady she is. Her family and friends were there and we had a great time. Got to see family I haven't seen in a while. Got some email Addy's too!! And the cake was so good! LOL

Knitting is going slow...had to take out about 12 rows...had started the decreases for the neck too soon and not happy....hate to take out rows because I counted wrong! I am so numb most of the time!! Got to be an age thing...55 and officially a senior citizen now! Almost.... a few more days before my birthday...ha ha ha

Time for bed..and some much needed beauty sleep as if that will help!

KNIT ON!!

T-SHIRTS arrived today!

DH came home from work with my package that I was waiting for from UPS. I tracked it and it read that it had been delivered...WHERE THE HECK IS IT!! Not at my house. Damn that UPS again. Well, DH saw the guy and he gave DH my package! LOL I am glad he let me open it today..not make me wait for my birthday in a couple of weeks. LOL




I ordered them from CafePress.com last week. I asked if he would get me one for my birthday and he said to order two if I wanted...and I did! I opened them and then went outside and draped them over the seat in the truck so daylight would show the pink color. I have wanted a Knitster shirt for ages and now I have one. I think I will ask for the baseball cap for Mother's Day in May. They have a lot of really neat clothing at their site. A few years ago I bought a couple of bumper stickers that are knit related too!

Well, the two fronts are just 15 rows from completion. I should be in the living room knitting on them and watching Medium, but here I am on the computer blogging and watching Medium. As soon as the dishwasher stops I will be heading to bed. Decided to go for a walk today. My poor back just isn't up to a long walk yet. I had told DH that I would be walking the route he takes on his drive home and to keep an eye out for me. He saved me!! My hero again! I thought my left knee was going to explode! The injection is wearing off. So bone on bone again. Knee replacement for the left side is on the horizon. I am going to be the 6 million dollar grammy! ha ha It was very windy today and not very warm...only 35 F with wind-chill in the 20's. I had to keep my eyes covered so I didn't get sand and dirt in them while walking. I am very glad I decided to wear my winter coat and the hood and my mittens. The wind will make the snow melt faster so keep them blowing Mother Nature. I am in a hurry to move to the lake in April. Want to be there before May and get to enjoy birds and little critters. The hummers will be heading in then too.

Well, time for me to shut of the water to the dishwasher and go work on the sweater...night all!

KNIT ON!!

Aran fronts are working up fast!

After a few blunders along the way, I have the two pockets in the fronts. I knit some more at my cousins house last night while she is still knitting away on her short rib socks for herself. I took these two pictures of my progress. I am on ball 6 of the 13 I purchased...hope there is enough. If there is any left over, I want to make some socks out of this cascade 220. Color # is 2401. Used a flash this time as it was around 9 pm causing the color to look light again. Oh well, I am a knitter not an expert in photography. Though I have been paid a few times for some of the photos I have taken when I worked at the local newspaper. And I have a few of baby pictures I have taken of our granddaughter hanging around too!

My husband had a patch of skin taken off at the doctors last week...and the thought was it was cancer. Yesterday his nurse called to say it was cancer and wanted to know what we wanted to do next. Told her she had to get him in to the surgeon ASAP as I would be having back surgery the first week in May..do not have the exact date yet. So she said they would get him in to the specialist and call me today or tomorrow. So now to wait for that. No one was in a hurry to do this, but I need him to be healed before my surgery. LOL As I won't be driving for a while and will need help with a lot of things as I will not be able to do anything but stand up and walk or lay down. What a wonderful pair we make! lol....37 years of wedded bliss this June and want at least that many more again with this wonderful man. So keep him in your prayers my dear friends and family...because it will be God that has the final say in all this.





Here is a photo of the inside of my work with the pockets.






Hopefully we will be heading to our sons this weekend for a visit...Grand baby is now screeching at the top of her lungs..she is 7 months old now. She found her voice and she will be heard...ha ha!!! My son said she wants to be standing up now by the coffee table..so she rolls until she gets to it and then pulls herself up with a look of triumph and be big squeal from her to boot. We can't wait to see her..been a month since the last visit so it's time. And I need to stop at Unicel and get my cell phone replaced...it keeps shutting itself off all the time...pisses me off when I'm talking to someone and this happens...time to replace it.

Well, I have supper done and time to go watch the local evening news and knit on the Joat! NCIS is on this evening and I will be able to watch it and knit.

God Bless You All.

Take care all and..........

KNIT ON!!

Another day and another bad knitting day too

Here is a picture of one of my cats...Samantha. She will be 16 years old the end of April. I came downstairs this morning and caught her on the couch. HD doesn't want them on the furniture, but when he's not looking they all do. I have 4 cats. DH was at work so Samantha just decided to sleep there all day. When he got home at 3 and caught her, she couldn't get down fast enough. LOL And they say you can't teach cats. BS They know when DH is not home. I let them lay with me but they do not get on him unless he calls them over. Hubby doesn't hit them but is firm with his voice and they mind. Me, just like having my son at home again...in one
ear and out the other...haha I have two innies and two outies as I call them. Two that go outside and two that stay in all the time. The two innies, Samantha and Feather, were injured when they were weeks old. Tonto and Penny were older when I found them and do not want to be in. The innies girls were found at the horse hovel we have here outside of our town. Feather was stepped on by a horse and had a broken leg and pelvis. She couldn't eat she was so little. Had to teach her how to from a saucer...her belly dragged in the food for weeks until she grew. She will be 12 in May. Penny is 10 and Tonto is 14. Getting old my babies are.

Got up and starting knitting on my Aran sweater today. I have the two fronts going and thought I was getting a good start..then I noticed I forgot to add the 3 stitches just like on the back! Talk about a Senior Moment !!!!! I need a new and younger brain! tee hee hee Was on row 33 so had to go back to row 14. Hate being so old and stupid at times...haha Oh well. While reading the directions for the fronts, I made note of what row to put the pockets in. HA HA Now to remember to do it on that row! Dang, it sucks to be old... I will be a speed limit on April 14. So I think that is a hint for me to slow down a bit and enjoy life. To me that means more knitting and less of everything else..including eating.

Back to the fronts. Hubby and I watch Pirates of the Carribean Dead Mans Chest this evening. It was a good one again. Enjoyed the first one more. Now to see what Disney does for the next one. Back to knitting...knit while I watched...when the scenes were exciting, I knit faster and faster. HD wanted to know if I thought I was helping them going that fast. tee hee What a guy!

Well, time for bed...need my beauty sleep tonight! Have a lot to do tomorrow if we do get all the snow they are predicting...up to 22"!! Just what we need...more snow to plow! Oh well...Hubby will be getting called in tomorrow morning..overtime!!

HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY to one and all!!

Aran Jacket back is done!

Yesterday I finished knitting the back of the jacket. I then knit the two pockets and put them on stitch holders. Today I have the ribbing done on the two fronts. I will knit them together...that way if I make a mistake on them it will look like it's part of the pattern. lol

Had a wonderful day with DC and DA. We took her to Walmart and looked around. She enjoyed herself tremendously. It was a very pleasant day and only wore the blue cabled hooded sweater I made for DH.

I got a new memory stick for my camera. What a difference a few years make. I bought the last one with 256 MB for about $135.00. The new one is 512 MB and it was $34.95! What a change in price! This one will let me take more pictures without changing the stick.

Time to go knit...had an early supper and this is almost done...so off I go to the couch and TV to relax and add some more rows to my jacket. KNIT ON!

Aran Jacket Progress II

Hubby and I took a ride into camp today to get some more firewood. We have gone through so much this year. We ran out a few weeks ago and had to take the seasoned stuff from the camp to use at our home in town. I got to knit some while he threw wood into the truck bed. I got a few pictures too. I have about 27" so far. I really want to make the coat (33"+ shoulder shaping) but do not know if I will have enough with 13 skeins. When I made the first one for Laura http://picturetrail.com/mainelywoolyns.com I used coned yarn..and I had 4 of them. I didn't have to worry about running out for that one. I think I will finish the back and then do the arms. I always knit them together on the same needle so I will be able to determine how many skeins I will have left to do the two fronts, the hood and the bands...if I remember correctly, that bands took almost a skein of yarn to do.

The more I knit on this the better I like my color. Loved it when I bought it, but wasn't too crazy about it when I started winding it. Now I am in a hurry to get it done, as Spring is just around the corner. Today was the official first day of MUD season for our area. All the rain we got last night and the wonderful warm winds too helped to melt a lot of the snow yesterday. Today it is 43F and cloudy, a little breeze that is heaven after the winds last week. Wore the cabled hooded sweater I knit for DH last summer. It can be seen at www.picturetrail.com/mainelywoolyns...just look for the bright blue one hanging from a tree. lol We had to use 4 wheel drive to get to the camp because of all the mud there where we had snow a few days ago. Hope this means we will have the roads ready to let us move in some time in April. I love being up there, so it will be a good place for me to recoup from the next round of surgery I will have in May on my back. I hope I will be healed enough to go fishing in August...that is my favorite time to go...white perch are jumping and plentiful. I do catch and release unless it is a super size one...and I will keep it alive in water while I fish. If I don't catch a few more to make a nice big meal of them, I release what I have. They are tough fish, not like trout or salmon, so they usually revive and take off quickly when they hit the open water.

Well, I am going to go watch Matlock on Hallmark and knit some more on the aran jacket. Want to get the back done tonight.






Here is a picture I took today of the lake. You can see all the snowmobile tracks in our yard on to the lake. Still enough ice for a while. People were out ice fishing today on the other end of the lake. Here you can see sticks where they had drilled holes. This lets people know where they are so they won't hit them with their sleds. They freeze up quickly at night and the sticks stay until spring thaw.

Aran Jacket Progress

I have about 22" knitted today. I had to go to DC to help her with her socks, so I used her floor again for the backdrop. My couch is the same color Burgundy, so it doesn't show.

DC had noticed a dropped stitch way back on the gusset. So I took it all out and got the needles back in their right places. So now she has to knit it again..then she can start decreasing for the toe.

Weather is horrible again today. wind chills have been bad...making us in the -11F all day. Didn't go out yesterday at all because it was cold, cold, cold! The winds are the worst of it. It has been brutal out there the last couple of days. Tomorrow is supposed to be the worst! The temps will be below zero without wind chills. Sure is making everyone use up their oil! Come on SPRING! Where are you!!!! lol

Well, off to watch Reba and knit. KNIT ON!

Aran book pattern

I had a comment asking what pattern I used to knit my jacket from. I was having a senior moment when I didn't include that with the original post.

It is from Sirdar #295 - Relax in Aran- Design H. I purchased the book 3/4 years ago and I an not sure from where. It sold for $9.95 at that time. I want to say I got it from City Side Yarn in Bangor Me. They have a web site, so you can check with them or go online and check or check with your own local yarn shop.

Hubby just called from work..told me to stay in today. It is -8F right now...with the windchill it is -32F. The wind is so bad today. The cats do not want to go out either. It has to be cold for them to not go out. With the wind blowing, the snow we got last night is getting beat down so it is slippery out. And I don't need to fall again. Last time I fell, I had to have my right knee replaced. (Sept of 2006)
So I am off to the couch to knit and watch Y&R at 12:30.

KNIT ON!

Aran book pattern

One of the comments I had today on my blog was asking me what the pattern was. Sorry...having a senior moment again and didn't' add that to the post with it. I will include it now.

It is Sirdar #295 - Relax in Aran. It is design H. I paid $9.95 for it a few years ago. I think I got it at City Side yarn shop (http://www.citysideyarn.com) don't know if it's still available...you will have to check that out at your local yarn shop or online.

Staying in today! 32 below zero right now with the windchill. -8F is the temp. DH called from work and said not to go out today. Too cold and a lot of ice and blowing show. He doesn't want me to fall and get hurt again. Last time I fell I had to have my right knee replaced. Did that in Sept. 2006. Still recovering from that. Knee is still not 100% but I keep working at it. All I want to do is bend it like I could before the fall.

Well, back to reading email and then to knitting ... and watching Y&R at 12:30.

KNIT ON!!

Aran Jacket

Today I went to Lincoln with my cousin to visit her mother. We had a wonderful time and it was so good to see Auntie. Since she moved to Lincoln I haven't seen her in a while...only when she's at one of her kids visiting and I would bump into her somewhere. I brought my knitting and got a lot done at the visit. DC got a lot done on her third pair of wool socks today too! Great knitting day for all.

The jacket is now on ball 3 as of tonight. I am so pleased that it is finally starting to come together and I am remembering the directions for the rows now so I don't have to look at the pattern all the time. I still have those senior moments and I depend on the pattern, but it is working up at a good pace right now. I hope to have another picture to post tomorrow.

Got a little snow tonight and there have been a ton of accidents on the roads here. No one has been hurt, but the wrecker services are making a mint on pulling people out of the snow and back onto the road.

Well, time for some well needed sleep. Traveling makes me tired and I didn't even drive. All in all I had a marvelous day! Relatives and knitting...always a good combo! Night all and KNIT ON!

March knitting is going good so far!

We got snow again on Thursday. Plowed our yard and then went to camp. The road wasn't plowed to our camp, so did that. Thought I would be a nice person and go to the end...well I got STUCK!!! Had to call someone to come and pull me out. I called my cousin and she and her husband came up to the lake and pulled me out. I was really stuck good too!!!!! It took a couple of tries, but he got me out. So happy to see them!! So glad he had a nice one ton Ford! I love Ford.

Today I finally got to my DC (darling cousin) to help her finish her second pair of socks. She is using Bartlettyarns wool 2 ply to knit this pair. It is yarn I had from my shop. I took a picture of them..one is finished and the other one is almost done...just had a stitch not psso...so she had one stitch too many. Found it and got she finished it. Great Job LAJ!!!



As you can see, her socks are really nice...she did a great job! I waited for her to cast on the next stocking, yes she is going for pair 3, and didn't get the yarn twisted. She is going to make them with a short cuff, about 30 rows. She has written down the pattern so she understands it. Says she can't read a pattern, but is able to follow her own way of writing it down.



Finally got a couple of photos of the yarn and pattern I started a little bit ago. Bought this at City Side Yarn Shop in Bangor. It is Cascade 220. It's a reddish brown...or should be. I had a doctors appointment on Feb 28. I went to the shop to get a couple more skeins and they were gone...so will have to keep a close eye on how much I use on the back and fronts. Want to put the hood on it. I need to make some more of the skeins into balls. Used one and almost done with the second one tonight.



This photo shows my knitting and the book photos. I have made it before and it should be easy! DUH my old brain won't work! I almost took my knitting bag with me when I went to camp yesterday. But I didn't. I was close to the camp when I got stuck, so had to walk back to get a signal on my cell. I went in the camp and started a fire..it was colder inside then out. Could see my breathe. I decided to watch TV and knit. Found a skein of sugar and cream and a pair of size 8 needles. I started a dishcloth, but was way too cold so I wrapped up in a blanket, but not enough heat from the woodstove and my feet were getting cold. (didn't have my wool socks on). I walked back to the truck to warm up. I had some water and my Shania Twain CD so I got the knitting started. I was almost done with it when my hero's came to rescue me. lol I promise I will not go to camp alone again to plow!!!!!! I can not believe that not one person came by on a snow sled...nice day and no one out sledding. Oh well. More sledders here in town then out in the woods right now.

Well, time for bed. Been a long day and I need my beauty sleep...hahaha. KNIT ON!!

Where has the time gone??

Well, I haven't posted for a while only because I have not been doing much of anything. DH and I went to visit our son and his family on Sunday it the most excitement in a long time. The baby is getting big! She now stands up and does raspberry's. LOL And she likes hats to chew on. Grampa and I had a wonderful visit with the three of them, even with the long ride to get there and then to drive back! That is the only thing I wish...we or they, lived closer so we could see them more often. Last time over was for Christmas. Took a lot of pictures of everyone and the dogs too!



Here is a picture of Ollie. She is getting old and has a hard time to walk. She has hip displacia. It is starting to take its toll on her. She is still very alert and is able to get up to go outside when she needs to. She was so loving when we were there. She will always be my favorite of their dogs.



Here's a picture of Baxter. He is one wacky dog! He loves to play and chase anything you throw. Snowballs are the funniest of them all. He will look for a long time for it knowing it broke when it landed. He is a wonderful dog. He is such a goofball. He is DGD protector. She is his and no one else. He watched every thing that is done and who is there. I don't want to have to come up against him at any time. He has never growled or shown his teeth to anyone, but this baby is different...she belongs to him and try to do something and watch out!




Knitting has been slow...finished my second pair of socks and have been working on my wool jacket. I have taken it out so many times I don't remember. I finally had to write out the first row to figure out what I was doing wrong. It was me as always. I had too many patterns for my stitches!!! I hate the way the new pattern directions are done today! Just write them out for me...I am too old to send all the time trying to decipher them so I can knit!!!!! lol Sometimes new isn't always best...old ways are a lot better for me any day! Cheaper for the publisher..takes up very little in pages with the graphs instead of all the words to explain it. Oh well...just have to write it out to get it straight I guess.

And my cousin is on her second pair of wool socks. She is a quick study that is for sure! Really enjoy teaching her as she picks it up quick. Her tension is so way better then mine any day! She has NO ladders in her socks at any point! Wish I could say that about me. I always have ladders. I think it;s because my hands hurt so much I don't have my tension as tight I was did when I was younger.

Well, supper is almost ready so I am done for today. I hope to get some pictures of the yarn and my pattern on here soon. Take care and KNIT ON!

Where are we going to put all this snow!!!

Got up early today and started plowing again. Lots of strong winds today so the snow is blowing everywhere.
This picture I took this morning at the top of Penobscot Ave and Katahdin Ave...people were starting to get out and get things done already!



Here a picture of Rt 11. Driving was difficult today with the winds blowing and the snow drifting everywhere. Very glad to have 4 wheel drive!

Socks and Snow again

It has been so cold here the last few days...-35F with the wind-chill. Today is a big snow day! The whole state of Maine is closed down. I went out to my cousins this morning to help her with her second sock. She got the heel turned and the instep done. I had plowed out our yard around 11 am and when I came home at 2:00 it looked like I hadn't done a thing. Put wood in the stove, hubby called to say he was staying over until 11 pm on snow removal. So I went back to my cousins house and we knit some more. I have the second sock of the second pair (same yarn for both pair), almost finished. Came home around 6:00 and had to plow again. I got the snow out of the drive way in our yard and a couple of the neighbors. The plow hasn't been by all day, so lots of snow from the wind blowing. I decided to finish it tomorrow. It is still snowing and wind has picked up so much that it just blows the snow right back. So no use beating my head against a wall!! It will wait until morning. Then I can get it done in day light. Not too crazy about plowing at night. So I will get up with hubby at 6 and head out to plow. He will do all the shoveling, something I can't do any more, so that will take care of the steps and the walkway.

I went to Bangor to CCOM to get my results on my blood tests. That was last Tuesday. Hubby came home from work early and went with me. I had to drive back down to Bangor the next morning to have another kind of blood test done. So after I got that done, I went to City Side Yarn and bought some Cascade 220 in a burgundy color to make a long hooded jacket with. I have the ribbing done on the back, but have been so busy with teaching sock knitting, I haven't had time for me! Once that second sock is done, I will be making this for me. I still have the other wool that I want to make a cardigan with for my too. That will wait a little bit, as I already have a few things to do for my Granddaughter.

Well, its time to put up hubby's lunch for tomorrow. And then head to bed and knit until he gets home in about half an hour. Will have some pictures to add tomorrow of the snow and the new yarn I bought. I am just thankful that we are not getting 12 feet of snow like in NY. Two feet will be enough for now. LOL

My new Socks!! Something for me!

I started these last night. I hope to finish this one today and hopefully get the other one started before I go to bed tonight. If I would get off this computer and do something I would have had this one finished and the other one already started and probably the cuff would have been done! What if? What if? What if? LOL Oh well, just wanted to post this pic. Off I go to start knitting the toe to this one.
I am using Bartlettyarns wool again. I have so much of this yarn left from my yarn shop days. I will never knit all I have before I die. I hope I can take my yarn with me when I die! LOL
The color of this one is Light Heather 2 ply (worsted weight) wool.

Yarn! Winter! Knitting

I finally have the yarn that I want to knit myself a cardigan with. I have the yarn, now to find the right pattern! I had enough in the old shop to knit with...it is Bartlettyarns 2 ply wool from Harmony Maine.The color is raspberry!!! I have started another pair of wool socks..this time for me. These are in Light Heather from Bartlettyarns wool. It is colder today then it was last week. Its -4 F and -25 F with the windchill. BBRRRRRR And I want my feet warm in the evening while I am knitting. I hate this cold..it makes my bones achy and sore. And I knit no matter how bad they feel. But my new knee and back are very sore from this cold. Had someone ask me the other day if I can feel the cold in my new joint. NO. I had not even thought about it getting cold. I just know when I am cold and its not my knee! lol

So WIPS I have right now, another fun fur hat for charity, a pair of wool socks for me, and Anna's skirt, which I don't think I will ever finish. I just can't get back into this project at all. I am at a loss as to where I stopped, even though I have kept all the rows marked on paper and I have that paper. It just doesn't want to click for me at this time...oh well. I will keep trying to finish this project.


Coming into Millinocket from Rt 11..or as we call it, the Brownville Road. Have been at camp plowing. Alan shoveled the roof and snowblowed the deck.


The Baithole Trail on rt 11. The wind is blowing hard and the snow is blowing all around on the roads.



The Green Bridge on rt 11. They resurfaced the bridge, now it needs a good painting.



South Twin Lake. A snowmobiler is racing across the ice with the snow blowing! A very windy but beautiful day in Maine!



The Snowmobile trail that crosses the highway (RT 11) just above the Turkey Tail road at South Twin Lake. Was hoping that there would be someone on the trail today.

Ground Hog Day 2007

Well, the ground hog didn't see his shadow..so an early spring is expected LOL.
And horrible weather in Fl. Called my niece today to see if she was hurt. She said no, that they had slept through it all. It didn't happen near her. Thank God for that! It is so sad that all the destruction and death! It was a night event, so most of them were sleeping. Latest news I was listening to said 14 are dead. God Bless those poor people.

Got up this morning and couldn't see across the street. FOG! After it lifted the whole town looks like an big ice crystal. Here are some pictures I took while waiting for the truck to warm up and defrost the windows. WOW!! It is sure pretty. We have had 8 or 9 days straight of below 0F temps and today we have fog. Only in the low twenties right now.




The first picture is of the paper mill that is right across the street from us. It has been downsized and a lot of things have been removed or demolished.



This is a picture I took while stopped at the light by McDonald's. It shows the trees in the distance.




This I took while driving down Central Street hill by Peddler's Hill. It is so pretty to look at. I hope you enjoy them.



A little closer then the first one. Still driving (which really isn't too smart is it? lol) I am so glad my camera takes such great pictures.









Knitting at this time: I am working on some fun fur hats that are being given to teens at a hospital in Mass. It is for teens having Chemo treatments. They are easy to make, and there isn't much thought going into this knitting. Have three done and started a fourth one last night.

Waiting for another snowstorm tonight. I don't think we will get much. Hubby is worried he will have to work the graveyard shift if it does snow. Nothing yet. But the cold is coming back in full force late Saturday, Sunday and Monday. I hate below zero weather! Got my shopping done after the doctors this morning so I am all set for 6 days. Love going early morning...get a good choice of the discounted meats. We are having bake-stuffed haddock tonight, tacos tomorrow and beef stew Sunday. Monday is chicken..not sure if it will be a whole one or just two breasts stuffed. I hate shopping for food! Pay to eat it then you pay to flush it away. Got ya coming and going! ha ha ha on that one!