The Knitters Coffee Swap asked if we would post pictures of our mugs as well as their stories. Because I have no idea how to post multiple photos in one post, I am posting here (ahem in multiple posts).
This mug was purchased in Atlantic City during a quick break last year. The mug carries my husband's last name which we thought was so funny. The coordinated potholder also made itself to our house to DH's folks last Christmas. This is a decent sized mug.
This mug was bought at the Tate Gallery which also shares my last name. We have two mugs (orange and green). I bought these mugs the same day I met my husband. This mug is considerably smaller probably because it is a mug from the UK and American sizes tend to run large (a la SuperSize Me).
This mug was a gift from Val a friend of mine who runs a local non-profit assisting local animal shelters. I think once we acquired three cats she gave this to me as a Thank you gift for some work I did for her. This mug is so huge I may use it more for a vase. Actually, this is the perfect size for chili.
DH and I love Starbucks mugs. We have a little collection growing. Here I made a small stack of some of ours which covers Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Easter. We especially love that the mugs are very large and thus can accommodate large amounts of coffee. In fact, today we stopped off for a coffee and picked up their holiday mug which looks like the holiday cups. We have five more which are not present here. As I mentioned, we pretty much love the size of the mugs.
The CPH. Both fronts are complete. I am now starting the rib pattern on the sleeves. Ah, hopefully this will be done by Christmas. I am going to suffer a delay in all my knitting for the next two weeks as I have 25 page proposal due for class and a presentation. As well more packing for the house.
I so want to finish a sweater!
Voila, just when you thought no knitting is posted here. That is the lift and separate sweater. All pieces are knitted, and some are even sewn together. Actually, I am on the last page of the instructions and on the finishing. Sadly, my fear that I am quickly running out of yarn is becoming a reality. I even used the emergency kitty litter skein-oh yes, I did. I am now working on the left side tie. Ah, I can't wait to finish this project. Seriously, can't wait.
Tonight, I will be reading articles for the proposal than meeting with my group at 9am tomorrow, then packing and dropping boxes off, then maybe I can get to some knitting. Just maybe.
Here's a meme I saw over at Chappys Mom, and I thought while I have some time to hang out before the meal why not answer some questions.
1. Which do you like better: Cooking at your house, or going elsewhere?
DH and I love and prefer to cook dinner. We are extremely meticulous about the meals from appetizers to dessert. We have special leaf plates and we print menus and organize games. We tend to cook traditional stuff with a twist.
2. Do you buy a fresh or frozen bird?
We did fresh last year and it was our first turkey. It went very well. So, I don't know about us trying the frozen bird.
3. What kind of stuffing?
We have not made stuffing yet. We have been very careful about choosing the sides and researching and testing recipes, so stuffing should be our next thing to conquer.
4. Sweet potato or pumpkin pie?
Pumpkin Pie. That's because we do Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Chipotle as a side dish and Curried Butternut Squash Soup.
5. Do you believe that turkey leftovers are a curse, or the point of the whole thing?
We found a recipe for turkey tortillas that you use brie cheese and cranberry jam. It is delicious so that solved that dilemma. I am beginning to think about the English tradition of curried turkey for the next day as well.
6. Which side dish would provoke a riot if you left it off the menu?
Hmmm, this year we are not hosting and I am seriously missing roasted vegetables.
7. Do you save the carcass to make soup or stock?
Nope.
8. What do you wish you had that would make preparing Thanksgiving dinner easier?
Hmmm, more time. Actually, larger kitchen.
9. Do you get up at the crack of dawn to have dinner ready in the early afternoon, or do you eat at your normal dinner hour?
We don't get up too early because we have a small family which allows us the luxury of a late start.
10. If you go to somebody else's house, what's your favorite dish to bring?
We brought the curried butternut squash soup and bruschetta with peppadew peppers with goat cheese. That was pretty good.
11. What do you wish one of your guests wouldn't bring to your house?
Every year, my father loves the stuffed mushrooms I made when I was 15. It is okay but I am tired of the dish so he makes them every year.
12. Does your usual mix of guests result in drama, or is it a group you're happy to see?
No drama.
13. What's your absolute favorite thing on the menu?
Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Chipotles, Roasted Vegetables with Herbs de Pronvence, Curried Butternut Squash Soup, Brie with Cranberry Jam on crackers, hmmm..... there's a lot.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Well, catching up on my bloglines, I noticed a nice post on K is for Krista's blog asking for people to share what they are thankful. So, after packing a stack of boxes and my DH delivered the most delicious and yummy Thai meal (penang curry)I am sitting down and carefully typing away.
- I am thankful for my family. While I do agree we all have our idiosyncracies, we are relatively sane.
- I am thankful for my DH. He is so incredibly sweet, generous, caring, and a big teddy bear.
- I am thankful for my kitties. When I get stressed my cats are affectionate.
- I am thankful for knitting. I am much more patient and relaxed person. I love this art and I have met such cool people.
- I am thankful for going back to school. Despite pulling my hair out and stress, I am very happy to be a student again.
- I am thankful for my job which has been stressful lately, but I work in a great place and I work for the community.
- I am thankful for the people I have met over the past year through my knitting, blogland, job, and school. I have met some wonderful people who have renewed my belief in the best of humanity.
- I am thankful we are moving into a home where we can relax and express ourselves without infringing on the space of others. I am thankful for this step because I feel like we are moving in the right direction when last year I felt stuck.
- Lastly, I am thankful my cousin, Wandy, is visiting from Florida. I love this cousin so much and she is incredibly caring and a warm soul.
Well, I and Mr. Bean (pictured above) wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!
Well, the panic attack is slightly delayed. I will reveal the information when all has calmed down. THANK YOU SO MUCH! DH is recuperating, re-assessing, and addressing the dilemma (just slightly delayed).
On knitting front news, I went to stix last night for some knitting. Yes, I braved the weather as it seems I was completely ignorant of the impending inches of rain. It was a small and quiet crowd and the conversation was wonderful. I did a little more on my sleeve of the wrap and started the arm shaping on the CPH.
I have been in communication with my coffee swap partner, Kim of Adventures of a Busy Mama, who is so nice and friendly. We both agree that Hazelnut coffee is yummy, and floral scents are best in someone else's home. She has some adorable children. I am beginning to collect some ideas for the swap. I already made some initial minor accessory purchases but nothing like the big kahuna items or should I call it the big kona items (a dash of coffee humor or my version of it).
oh! stix got Blue Heron yarns which I love. I had to search through my earlier posts to find a picture of the raspberry yarn in rayon metallic which I bought in 2005 at Seaport Yarns. I was so excited stix got this yarn because I love it! I did pack my skein up as I never did officially decide on a pattern. What I did find was that some people made the clapotis out of this yarn and my favorite so far was a poncho.
I just received some most likely bad news. Nothing dealing with health, but other stuff, which I can't even vocalize right now. So, if you can just send some good vibes in the direction of my husband. He is under a lot of pressure and needs all the positive psychic energy.
Thanks!
Not really. I think we did really well at the bazaar. We had a ton of volunteers for setting up Saturday at 7am and we had a good amount for clean up on Sunday at 4pm. All the tables were filled with new stuff and we had a ton of donated knitted goodies thanks to Sheila and Deborah from stix (and they also donated a beautiful blanket basket).
Due to the whole weekend volunteering, I was not able to make progress on my knitting. In fact, I left the bazaar early on Saturday to do school work and couldn't even achieve that as the neighbors above us had two kids visiting and I am under the impression it was body slamming 101. I went downhill after two hours of banging and stomping so we went for cuban in Montclair's Cuban Pete's for ok appetizers but yummy dinner and un cafe con leche that was fantastico! When we returned the noise remained, so I went to sleep, while DH asked the non-considerate neighbors to lower the noise. They were very nice they lowered the noise two hours later (do you detect sarcasm?).
Anyways, I am now relaxing in my bedroom avoiding the noise. Oh yes, they are still noisy on a Sunday night. Sadly, it's not the owner of the unit it is her boyfriend that is the cause of the noise. So, I am sitting on the bed with my knitting bags ready to work on the right hand front of the CPH.
Well, another four hours helping the folks unpack, then the rest of the day working on preparing stuff for the bazaar, and now at almost 10pm I am still working on the bazaar. I am so beat. B-e-a-t. On the bright side, we do have some nice stuff for the bazaar so hopefully all goes well.
Oh-here are the answers to the Coffee Knitters SWAP. I am sleepy. I go to sleep now.
QUESTIONS
1. Whole bean or ground?
We have a grind and brew machine so whole bean. I can't even express how good coffee tastes when it is freshly brewed.
2. Fully-loaded or decaf?
FULLY LOADED.
3. Regular or flavored?
I do enjoy flavored. Hazelnut, Hawaiian Hazelnut, Coconut, Pumpkin Spice, but no raspberry.
4. How do you drink your coffee?
Light and sweet.
5. Favorite coffee ever?
Hawaiian Hazelnut and Puerto Rico Yauco Selecto.
6. Are you fussy about your coffee or will any old bean do?
I am pretty open, except I agree that instant coffee is evil.
7. Favorite treats to have with your coffee?
Baked goods.
8. Anything else about your coffee preferences?
Nothing I can think of.
9. What treats do you enjoy with your coffee?
#7.
10. Yarn/fiber you love?
Malabrigo. I could knit with it forever. Love it! I have recently felt up the Fibre Company yarns and those are decadent. Did I mention I love Malabrigo?
11. Yarn/fiber you hate?
Itchy or scratchy yarn.
12. What's on your needles?
I am knitting the lift and separate sweater in Zara and the stitch definition is amazing. I am also knitting the Central Parko Hoodie in Elzabeth Lavold. I still need to sew the pockets on the library shawl in Malabrigo and finish Gracie's sweater which is in Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora.
13. Favorite colors?
Earth tone colors. I am all about the sage green, warm reds like burgundy, love purples, certain shades of pink, and chocolate browns.
14. Allergies?
Nope. Not one.
15. Anything you really love, really don't like, or just need to get off your chest?
I am cool.
I don't know how easily you can see this picture, but the front left front is done. In fact, I spent my day off with the first three hours at the service center of the dealership for an oil change, check up, and patch on the tire. It was good I brought with my knitting with me (I felt very prepared). So, I brought the wrap and the hoodie and knit on both of them (not at the same time silly!). Afterwards, I drove to Jefferson and helped the folks unpack in their new home.
After that, I went to snb at stix. Deborah donated some beautiful things for the bazaar this weekend, and I caught with Margaret (who is having a tough week so send her some good vibes). It seems that some of my progress at the car dealership needed to be undone.
Anyways, I finished the front left at stix. I didn't have the yarn on me to start the right front, so once again I busted out the wrap and knitted some rows on the sleeves. I am bored of the sleeves and what's worst is that I am completely under the impression I am going to be short on the yarn I need. So, I need to find more yarn. I feel like I always run short on yarn for large projects, ah the learning process.
Yup, the packing has begun. It is official. We are starting with the books and then moving to the non-essential kitchen items and dishes. I don't know what we will pack after that, possibly dvds and cds. I can't believe how quickly these boxes filled up. I guess it makes sense because we put books in the boxes.
I am creating signs for each box with neon paper that lists the item, the room, and a graphic. The graphic represents the room and then I will make signs for each room in the house with the coordinating graphic so that could help the movers in locating which items go in what rooms.
I have no idea where anything is going. And after seeing the shape of my folks new home today, I want this move organized and quick.
Well, the kitties think this stack is a new cat toy. They are all leaping to see who can get the highest.
I finished the back of the Central Park Hoodie, and I have cast on for the left front. I can't wait to see this sweater finished. I am thinking of adding one button like the Haphazard Knitter and even today while at sns, I was drooling over which buttons could go on the sweater.
Did I mention how easily this sweater knits up? Yarn-A-Go-Go had mentioned that this is a quick and easy knit, which I totally agree.
Did I mention here? Hmmm, it seems one of the Zara balls of yarn slipped out of the armoire into the possession of one of the kitties into the litterbox. Yup. It is not stinky, but it does litter attached and this is the emergency ball I am hoping I will not need. At all.
The goal is to finish this by Thanksgiving. So, if I can finish the sleeves this week, then I can do the finishing over the next two weeks.
Yup, I am a joiner. Super-joiner. Super-Duper Joiner. I joined the Knitters Coffee Swap this week. I couldn't jump on the tea swap because I drink three cups a tea a year (10 if I visit the in-laws in the UK). But, coffee, I drink everyday, one hot steaming cup a day. I was raised in a household that appreciated coffee. On weekends, brewing coffee through the use of a stovetop espresso (cafetera) and warming milk in a pan to cultivate luxurious cafe con leche. It developed in college the promotion of coffeshops and in college I worked as a barista for a local coffeeshop. In this arena, my love of coffee fully grew. I tasted all sorts of gourmet coffees (Puerto Rican Yauco Selecto, Kona, Jamaica Blue Mountain, etc). DH is a huge coffee aficionado as well.
So, how could I resist? I didn't.
So, at Thursdays snb at sns, Remy crocheted a baby cap in a matter of minutes for Warm-Up America. I have heard the women at stix discussing the Warm Up America Cap Initiative, so I thought I would share the sns announcement just in case you haven't heard and would like to participate.
Did you know that your knitting can help save a life?
WARM UP AMERICA/SAVE THE CHILDREN CAP INITIATIVE
stix-n- stitches is urging everyone to participate in Warm Up America’s Baby Cap Drive.
This very worthwhile charity is calling for 250,000 handmade baby caps by January 2, 2006. The hand knitted or crocheted caps will be distributed world wide by Save the Children.
Bring us your baby caps and get a gift from stitx-n-stitches:
1) Go to www.warmupamerica.org for the details and baby cap pattern or stop in to stix-n-stitches for the pattern. There is a downloadable name form that you can use to attach your name to each hat.
2) Knit or crochet 5 baby caps and bring them to stix-n-stitches. They need not be knit in yarn from us, but must be made from soft, machine washable yarn. Attach your name to each one.
3) For each 5 caps you drop off, receive a coupon for %10 off a future purchase. There is no limit to the number of coupons you can receive, but the coupons cannot be combined.
stix-n-stitches will mail all of the baby hats to Warm-Up-America. The caps will be delivered to the White House on January 2, 2006, then distributed world wide by Save the Children as part of an initiative to lower infant mortality.
Go to Warm Up America has more details on the program.
Kerry, my SP9 Host, sent out an email asking everyone to answer, "Tell me a random wacky fact about you, something that nobody would ever guess about you. The wackier the better."
OK, my random fact is I am scared of balloons. I hate the noise of popping balloons and if kids are playing with balloons I will walk away to get some distance in case they might pop. At Rhinebeck I had to leave a stand because a child was playing with one of those balloons shaped like an animal and I was upset because I wanted to go into the booth but I was too anxious. I looked up the word for fear of balloons and found a couple different words.