Where does time go?

Can someone please tell me where the last 14 days have actually gone? Seriously....., I got back from Spring Break and on March 24th I sent out a little resume to in response to an opening that I heard about that was right up my alley. Office Manager for a woman owned business that had a need for my skills. The entire process took only a week and I was hired.

Then, I started the meltdown process where I had to core dump all of my knowledge of the current job into Policies and Procedures and train the "replacement", the boss's stepson. Don't even go there, trust me. My last day with the "old" company was April 11th. No rest for the weary....., I started the new job on Monday the 14th.

The first week has been a blur. I had to learn all of the accounting from the temp that had been there for the last two months....., and learn about what we actually do. I also had to assist the owner and her personal assistant with a huge presentation to a client by merging bios and other documents into special stationary. It is amazing sometimes at what the old brain actually stores up there.....This week has been a little less stressful, even though I just ran payroll for the first time.....

And lest you think that I have not been knitting, I have. I am almost done with Cherie Amour. I need to post some pictures ASAP. The baby alpaca is SO amazing! I have made some modifications to the front, and I'll record them in Ravelry for posterity. I have also been working on two Pay It Forward gifts......, they will be done after the Munckin's graduation!

I have also been gathering up my goodies for the Saucy Knitters Hot Sauce Swap and the Four Seasons Spring Swap. They will go out this week, maybe even today! I also have an Angel package that will be mailed this week, but I can't tell you anything else so that I can remain a secret until the package is received. I promise to post about it when I can.

Bear with me....I do have more pictures of the renovations to the back yard to share too....I will try to get another post in before Friday....and you will also see me lurking around your blogs again and posting comments. Watch for me on Ravelry...I have some delicious martini recipes to post as well....

Have a Look/See at what we've been having done

Here at the humble abode, we are in full swing getting ready for Munchkin's graduation. In case I haven't mentioned it, it is 32 days away, on Saturday, May 10th! We decided that we needed to spruce up the back yard, so we took some of Wifey's bonus monies and a portion of our tax refunds to overhaul some areas. I will share some of the pictures below and later I'll dig up some of the original "before" pictures and share them.

Yes, that is a toilet you see in the background. Just wait till the flowers in it begin to bloom. Trust Me.

Yes, that is a tub you see. It will be transformed in to a pond. Trust me.

Excavation in progress....

Original 10' x 10' patio has been enlarged with two rows of 18" x 18" pavers giving us three more feet on the front and left edge.

Two rows of the 18" x 18" pavers were laid against the edge of the house to extend the surface for the grill, the pool box, and my potting bench and crushed granite was laid between the pool patio stones and the new stones.

A transition area between the side fence and the side of the house.

The side of the house with the 18" x 18" stones and the crushed granite. There is a 10" green edging strip against the neighbor's chain link fence to keep the stones in our yard and his grass out.

See the two flowers in the start of the new patio?

The tub transformation almost complete.....

The transformation from a different angle....

We have to re-pot all of the terra cotta pots and then freshen up the hibiscus bed with new plants and mulch and this view is complete. There are three other beds that you cannot see yet that need to be weeded and overhauled before the graduation party. I have a spreadsheet created with every possible task outlined so hopefully we don't miss anything. Tell me what you think so far.....

Sock It To Me Twice Update

I have been dying to post the socks that I made for my secret partner but I wanted to make sure that she had gotten them before I spoiled the surprise. I had never used Jitterbug, and boy was it yummy! I used the colorway called Castagna and EVERYONE now wants a pair of socks made with it. Here are a few pictures.







I'm not sure that my pitiful photographer skills actually show off the colors as well as they deserve to be represented. The yarn had yummy greens, browns, pinks, and touches of yellow/cream. I used the Stansfield 304 pattern from Charlene Schurch's More Sensational Knitted Socks. I started them on February 22nd and Finished them on March 22nd. I discovered that I cannot knit and watch NCAA basketball. I twisted the second sock four times.....YUK!

Their new owner has plenty of yarn left over to make herself some footies or a pair of socks for her three year old son.

Now, back to my Pay-It-Forward gifts in progress....

All About Spring Break 2008

Spring Break is always a wonderful event for Wifey and I. We pack up the mommy van and head to Florida! We go to Spring Training Games (affectionately known as the Grapefruit League), we eat excellent seafood, we drink from time to time, we golf, and we lounge on the beach. Instead of a long and boring entry, I'll just share a few of the pictorial highlights.....

Tampa Ray's Left Fielder - Carl Crawford (one of Wifey's ex-students)

Tampa Ray's Left Fielder - Carl Crawford (one of Wifey's ex-students)

Wifey's Dad golfing with us

Me enjoying a lobster roll lunch and a rum runner. Yes I was looking right into the sun....

The perfect chair for a vacation resort!

Madeira Beach where we were staying. This view is from the cabana our last day there.