Something Special

I recently ordered three medals from my dear friend Rob at SaintsforSinners.com, and I wanted to share one of them with you.

Rob is one of my friends from the "married to the man" phase of my life. He was one of the Ex's fraternity brothers from college life that I have managed to keep in contact with. There are others, but he is in NOLA, and that is close to home.

This medal is of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, the Patroness of bakers, chefs and seamstresses. I also received two Saint Agatha medals, one for my mother and one for a close friend. She is invoked against breast cancer and all cancers, patroness of nurses/caregivers.

I encourage everyone to go and look around Rob's site. Even if you are not Catholic or a practicing religious person, these medals are wonderful. Look at all of the famous and infamous people that have made their way to Rob's doorsteps. I myself am not one to spout off religious doctrine, after having spent ten plus years in the Catholic School System; however, I do love the fact that somehow, there might be some spirit that can help when I get in a jam in the kitchen or on a project.

Finally Finished!

As promised last week, here are some pictures of the finished blanket for my neice. My sister-in-law has also been kind enough to let us all know that the next addition to the clan will be a boy.

As you can tell from the first picture, it is a long blanket. I wanted it to be able to wrap up a new baby but also be utilized in a crib, as my niece and her husband are in the Air Force and who knows what base they will be stationed at during the winter months. The border is a 2x2 rib. I love the double moss stitch in the white. The blanket is heavy and looks so elegant. I hope that they get many years of use from it, as I am the only knitting Aunt in the family. (Not the actual only one, but the only active knitter at the moment.)

What a way to Stay

For those of you that have never stayed in a Bed and Breakfast, let me tell you, there is no other place like one. On our recent trip to see the Munchkin, we stayed at one of the local B&B's, The Jones House. The house hostess was gracious and made us feel like family, and the owner was equally as charming. The porch with the three white rocking chairs was the perfect place to sip wine, knit, and chat with the locals as well as the Munchkin.

Over the last four years, we have had the honor of staying at three of the eleven B&B's located in and around Nacogdoches.

If you have never chosen to stay at at a B&B, please take a small leap off the main stream and stay once. You will find that they are a delightful way to travel.

Our Recent Visit with the Munchkin

Wow. What a whirlwind trip to Nacogdoches.

We got to see the new University Center and Chief Caddo and even had a photo op.

The Munchkin had the crazy idea that they needed to pose like the chief, and it was hard to keep a straight face and take the picture.

For those of you that have never been to SFASU, it is a small college with a very big heart. The town pulls you in with the warmth and once you have been there, it is embedded in your senses. As a parent, I know that it has a "party" school reputation, but what college doesn't? Come on now, be real, kids away from parents....some party can be on every night and that's reality.

Anyhoo, the brief campus tour of the new facility was most impressive and it was sad to think that there is only one more year before she will be a full fledged college grad. But until then, she is still the Munchkin.

Who'd of Thunk It?!

What a week. First, let me thank all of you that participated in Earth Day. As promised (or threatened) I planted more stuff for the butterflies and cleaned up my elderly neighbor's yard. After that, I set up my Intex pool and filled it up. I started on Saturday at 10:00 AM and the hose was finally turned off at 7:00 PM. Of course, the sun was not able to heat the water up enough for me to swim on Sunday, but all in good time.

The crazy weather here on Wednesday made me glad that I have the mommyvan most days. The sky was actually green at one point and was realy ugly. Say some extra prayers (to which ever deity you chose) for all of those that were tragically affected.

More good news. I finished the blanket for my neice on Friday (04/20/2007). The ends have been woven and I even washed it in Dreft. It is wonderful. I will be taking pictures this weekend and will post them too. I also found out that she is having a boy, so the Monet was a great choice. This will be my mom's first great-grandchild. I'm happy for my brother and just glad that it isn't one of my daughters with that honor. They are both her first grandchildren. They will also be her first two to graduate from college. An honor that I am glad to see them obtain.

More knitting has been taking place. I am almost to the join point for the Sahara and I'm glad that Ruby posted some better instructions for the join. Hopefully I'll get that done tomorrow. I will be taking another WIP on a road trip to Nacogdoches to see the Munchkin this weekend, so hopefully I'll have another FO when I get home.

I have been adding more blogs to the favorites list and I am proud to say that the Knitting Troll has mentioned me in her latest posting. Thank you for the shout out (as the kids would say).

And one more blog to mention. Empty Nest Knitter has a great post about the recent bomb in Austin. All I can say is, "Don't Mess With Texas"!

Have a great weekend and keep knitting across Texas!

Earth Day

Earth Day is coming - April 22nd

What does this mean to me? Well, our house has already been certified as having a Natural Wildlife Preserve (ID# 22473). We already have two recycle bins from the City and we recycle all plastics, cardboard (toilet paper and paper towel rolls too), and cans. We take our newspapers to the local SPCA as well as old towels, sheets, and bath mats. Twice annually, we take all old chemicals, PC's, paint, etc. to a spot designated in the City for collection and then private companies foot the bill to safely collect and dispose of these toxic items. We have a compost bin and we try to landscape as environmentally safe as possible and use very little chemicals. Good old Ivory soap water mix takes care of most "challenges".

Consider this my public service announcement. Please look around your house and see what you can do to start being a little more green. I'm not suggesting anything radical, just common sense. Your planet will thank you.

Which Member of Seattle Grace are You?

Take this quiz

Turns out I'm more like Callie....who knew

Finally a WIP Picture

As Promised or Threatened.....a picture of the baby blanket for my niece's first baby due in June 2007. It is made with Red Heart Super Saver in color 0310 Monet for the border and color 0311 White (as if you couldn't tell the second color). I am using a classic 2x2 rib for the entire border and a double moss stitch for the body. I wanted something that was classic by design and yet user friendly for a new mother. What do you think?


Pattern Info:

Needle Size: 8 (US)

Cast on 180 in Monet and work in Double Rib (K2P2) for 2" (10 Rows); Next row, continue in border for 12 stitches and add White; Work in Double Moss Stitch for 156 stitches and join a new ball of Monet and finish row in Rib; repeat until blanket measures 34 "; finish with 2" (10 Rows) of rib abd bind off.

Double Moss Stitch:

Rows 1&2 *K2P2; Repeat from * to end of Row
Rows 3&4 *P2K2; Repeat from * to end of Row

Taxes Filed and Knitting Resumes

Finally! I have finished my tax return for 2006 and gotten it off in the mail! Now, for fun and excitement, I can start on the two FASFA applications for the girls. It will be the last time I have to complete one for Megan and possibly for Stephanie too.

Best part, once the filing was complete, I was able to get back to my WIP's. I have 22 rows left on the baby blanket for KD and Matt, so I should have it finished, washed, and in their hands well before the estimated arrival in June. That also means that I can get back to work o the Sahara for myself.

Need to get some pictures of the WIP's posted so that everyone can see that I can actually knit, not just talk about knitting....

Stumped over this bit of news

Well, I'll be dipped. I saw on the internet yesterday where Van Chancellor has been selected to replace Pokey Chatman at LSU. I suppose the administration has their reasons, but I'm sure stummped. I guess we'll have to see how it all comes out in the wash.

Happy Easter!

What a whirlwind of a weekend! Both daughters came home for Easter. They wanted to do all the traditional things that we did when they were younger. What a hoot! We dyed eggs, made baskets, and had an Easter egg hunt.

All of that capped of a visit to the ER on Friday that lasted for nine (9), yes nine, hours. What a way to spend quality time with one of your kids.

Here's a picture of them after the hunt ended and they realized that they tied.

March Madness is Officially Over

Well, all good things must come to an end. The NCAA basketball season has concluded another March Madness Tournament and we have two newly crowned number ones.

Men's Winner - Florida Gators
Women's Winner - Tennessee Vols

I am sorry that the run for a win was not so favorable to Ohio State's men or to Rutger's women, but they are both young squads and have wonderful talent. No doubt that they will both be forces to recon with for a few years to come.

On to the Spring and Summer tasks now. The gardens need to be finished (weeding and refreshing) and the rest of the annual maintenance will follow. Soon thereafter, the pool will be ready for that first celebratory dip.

Blue Bonnets!

After a very soggy Saturday, we finally got enough sunshine to be able to take the girls to get their annual pictures in the blue bonnets.

It was a bit bittersweet, as Mitzi's last road-trip was for the exact same reason. We miss her dearly and will have a good old fashioned Irish wake on the 12th to celebrate her memory.