Where have I been?

Where have I been? . . . for the past month and a half? Well I have been sick every day all day, moody, tired all the time, irrational to the point of scaring my husband I think . . .yes I am pregnant. . .not going off the deep end . . there is a legitimate excuse for my behavior. I am ten weeks along and due May 13th . . our plan worked too. . .just after tax season and back for College audit season! Woohoo!

Although I am still quite early everything seems to be going well I have all the symptoms in the book. We were able to hear the baby's heartbeat on Friday which was very exciting! He literally touched the device to my stomach and there the heartbeat was. . .no search involved at all. . .and it sounded very strong! Everything looks great! We are thrilled since we have been a little nervous since it is quite early but after hearing a heartbeat it really feels real.

I have also been stewing . . .trying to decide where to deliver. The two runners are Dartmouth or Bennington. Rutland is so out. I just don't feel safe there for various reasons and I want to feel safe and happy and I want the best. My plan is to tour both facilities, I like the idea of water birth and or water labor which to me seem relaxing for both the mom and the baby. Both hospitals have these options so I am going to tour both sites before making my decision. Unfortunately I have to switch from my obgyn which I have had for years but I if that is what I have to do so be it.



Now my crafting. . .

this is it. . .I haven't knitted in weeks. . .haven't sewn, haven't scrapped, haven't stamped. Just haven't had the desire . . .I have been glued to the couch with my preggie pops and water.

Thankfully the first trimester is almost over and I am starting to feel more ambitious these days. I actually put all the laundry away this weekend and did some much needed cleaning. Good thing there is only two of us and we don't generate that much dirt.

Itunes users . . .just beware to make sure your account is not set up to your bank account. I have had my account for years. . and i love itunes but someone hacked into my e-mail, got itunes to send an e-mail to change my password, changed my password and my e-mail notification and charged $420 in songs to my account. Thankfully I noticed it and shut them down before they drained our checking and savings. . .but now I am out $420 for a while. Make sure you have your account set to a credit card since these are monitored more heavily by the credit card companies and if it does happen you don't get stuck waiting to get your money back. Its a pain . . trust me!

Well that's all for now. . .off to make my little sweet pea some lunch and maybe just knit something today . . . .can't wait until I have a sex to knit for. I am very board with unisex stuff!

Keep the vision

of mustard yellow with cream cabinets. . .don't get caught up in the blue. . .really . . .follow it through. Now I know Joel isn't impressed but it will come together in the end. . .I can see it.

now I personally love the color but then I love sunflowers and it reminds me of the 18th century. What can I say. . it is just me. But then again. . some people like the baby blue and it makes me want to vomit.

I did sneak in the start of the cabinet buts I haven't finished one yet. . .will work at night this week for a preview.

Never know what you will find . .

in old houses . . . although stripping wallpaper is never fun. . .seeing what's underneath is always interesting.

Now that the porch is painted we shifted gears to the kitchen. Remember the ugly yellow and blue striped wallpaper with flowers? Well now we get to spend a week looking at this . . .

Doesn't that just look smashing with the baby blue! Don't worry. . .those are going soon. My favorite home improvement store Nail It Down is mixing me up a very nice mustard yellow and once that is done those cabinets are turning butter cream. The kitchen will make you hungry just by looking at it.

I also think the yellow will bring out the stainless steel appliances that we are acquiring one by one. Like the refrigerator. . .sorry stove. . you'll have to wait a little while :( But I love this refrigerator. . having the freezer on the bottom is really the way to go. . .and the double doors and all the temp controls. . .just amazing.

So we accomplished this all this morning. Yesterday I spent the day entertaining friends with a Stampin' up workshop . . .lots of fun. . .I even got out my kits to go from Trena and worked on them last night and early this morning (up at 4 am. . .couldn't sleep).

So cute! Just a few more to go. Well that is all. . .I am wiped! ttfn.

The right buttons?

Top-down Raglan (used pattern adjustments from sixoneseven blog)

Size: Newborn

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

Ribbon: by Stampin Up

Happy to say I finished this latest number is less than a week. However, I am still unable to find the right buttons. They must be unisex and can not be too heavy . . . so my favorite Danforth pewter are out. Any ideas?

Slow improvements

Slowly we are making our way to completing those summer home improvement projects. I finished the trim in the living room this weekend. Joel got the porch primed and we started painting. Unfortunately the weather has intervened with that today but it looks great so far.When we first bought this house I really wished the porch was bigger . . but now that I am painting it. . .I am really glad that it doesn't wrap around the house. Painting it yourself can really change your perspective. Barley isn't much help with painting but she is great at scraping . . . .

And now that the living room trim is complete. . .the next project is the kitchen. The wallpaper is so not me. I have picked out a nice mustard seed yellow to replace this. . .

and for now I am painting the cabinets a cream color until we can save enough money to replace them all. I might change the hardware to a polished nickel too. At least that will give them a face lift.

We are suppose to buy a new stove next month (I have been holding out until the tax holiday - which is the 22nd for purchases under $2000). But now the refrigerator is giving us a hard time so we might be replacing that instead. We shall see. .it is kind of on life support right now and things are not looking good :( Either way one by one. . .they will all be replaced to stainless steel to someday go with the cherry cabinet plans I have.

On the knitting front. I am almost finished with the top down raglan that I started last week. . .very quick and mindless. I just need to find buttons, block it, and take photos. I also started a seed stitch hoodie out of superwash cascade 220. . need to take some photos of that also. Love the color! Well off to have lunch, clean up, then work for a little while. ttfn

I'm Back!

for real this time. I have been slacking for several reasons. . .studying. . .sewing. . . .painting. . .but mostly just being lazy and not wanting to be on the computer.

I am really going to try to post something once a week. How else to people know I am alive. . .they never see me :)

So here it is Rita-roo. . .a post . . . and a completed project. I started the sweet pea right before I left for a short vacation in Maine. It is out of Queensland Bebe Cotton/Soy. Great yarn . . very soft and fabulous to work with. I would use it again for sure.

I did make some additional changes this time. I added an eyelet row and threaded some green ribbon to give it unique touch. I really wanted that pea pod look for my little sweet pea to be some day.

and a matching hat of course:)

ooooh maybe tomorrow I will post the Green Mountain Fiber Event photos from today. . .very exciting. . spinning. . dyeing yarn. . .lots of cool things.

ttfn

New Hobbies

With all of the hobbies and responsibilities I currently have. . .why add another?

Well. . . I have wanted to sew for a while now. Purchasing a machine has really been the only thing standing in my way. Do I make the initial investment or borrow one? Or get a used one? I was also really scared because I know how I can get sucked in so fast!

I have so much yarn that I could literally not leave my house for an entire year and still not open the last bin.

This is getting a little over whelming . . .not to mention ridiculous . . . so I have made a promise to myself to take one sewing project at a time. . . .not to mention a yarn diet.

With that agreement in my head I went to Williston last Saturday for my regulation exam (CPA) . . .after 3 hours of mental strain plus being finger printed and monitored like I was a criminal! Seriously people. . .so not worth the effort to cheat. . .just learn the material! I drove over to Strawberry & Rhubarb to pick up my new Bernina sewing machine.

Great shop, the owner is fabulous and the store is very inspiring! Very big on my list . . .if I don't want to buy everything. . .then something is wrong. . .very wrong. I basically wanted everything!

Project #1 - Pillows for the couch

Joel has been complaining for months about couch pillow. . .this is mostly because I threw out the pillows we had at the apartment before we moved. They were way past their expiration date!

So with that in mind I purchased some Moda fabric - called "twiggy" (so us) and some chocolate brown fabric for the back.

and I spent all day Sunday creating these

Project #2 - Baby Quilt

Here is the pattern. . . .but I am using the "twiggy" collection. This is free on http://www.modabakeshop.com/ really great site with some very useful tips.

I ordered a Jelly Roll from fat quarter shop online which will give me enough to do the squares plus I have all the left over from the pillows. This is going to be so cute! I can't wait.

Hope to have some progress soon! ttfn

Post tax season has arrived!!!!!

I am free at last! . . . .and don't know what to do first. Oh my goodness! There is so much to get caught up on that I don't know where to start. eeek!

I also have my exam next Saturday so I am studying but at the same time trying to give myself a little break. A change in attitude has really helped there. . .instead of getting frustrated when I can't remember everything. . . I am instead opening my mind to try and embrace the information that hasn't stuck. It seems to be helping.

It will be what it will be. . .I can't force it. I have at least taken on some more complex clients at work which has really sharpened my skills. . .I need to do it hands on to get it to sink in or it doesn't mean anything.

Reading:

Finished the twilight series. . . . .what a great series and a fabulous love story. I still liked the 1st book the best but I was glad to see the ending in the 4th and to finally figure out some lingering questions I had about how things worked. The author did do it in a very tasteful manner for those who get all bashful at the idea. Me. . I am very open about everything so it would take a lot to make me blush.

Got the movie too. . the actor who plays Edward Cullen. . .can you say yum? ah. . .more details please!

Knitting projects:





Finished the sweet pea for my cousin . . it was so cute. .I hated to part with it but i can make another one.

I also started the Monkey sock since I am teaching a class starting May 1st at Green Mountain Fibers. . .only one is done since I will be knitting the other for the class itself. This is out of jitterbug. . .this yarn is amazing. . . .done on size 1 1/2 dpn. . 2's are a little too big for me and 1's are too small so 1 1/2 are just right.

It was a blast. . so easy!

I will also be teaching 3 other sock classes during the summer out of the sock innovation book.(which is fabulous . . so run out and get a copy . . . but if you take the classes at GMF you get a discount. . .check the website http://www.greenmountainfibers.com/ details to be posted soon.)

Sweater project. . .must have one of those going in the back ground. I started Vaila out of Malabrigo . . .which is like knitting butter. . but unfortunately pills when you just look at it.

Doesn't it look yummy!

I also gave myself a much needed reward this year. Instead of going away after tax season like we always do. . .mostly because there is so much to do with the house and I have an exam coming up. . .instead I purchased something I have been drooling over FOREVER!

Now is isn't the exact model I wanted but it is a very solid foundation for sure.

oh ya! I have wanted a sewing machine for a long long time. A good one. . .not one of those machines with plastic parts. . .no. . . a REAL sewing machine. My goal is to make some pillows for the living room, a baby quilt, and maybe some curtains this summer. Yes I said baby quilt. . but I am not pregnant . . .yet. We will start trying this fall. Yes, I am a planner . . it is what keeps me sane.

ttfn -off to study. . .

Katie's Socks and Sweet Pea

Not much to talk about. I pretty much do tax returns in my sleep at this point. Only 4 more weeks. . then life can go back to normal. . .thank goodness. . .I am so exhausted!

I did finish Katie's birthday socks! Which came out fabulous! . . .and I just could not wait until April 7th to give them to her . . .so I did!

And they were so much fun that I started a pair in green for Me! Only one skein is needed too! Woohoo!

I also started the Sweet Pea for my cousin who's baby shower is at the end of this month. . .so I have a few more Sunday's to get this done. But I love it! I so want one for my baby. . .my hypothetical one that is. I got the idea off from the sixoneseven blog because the original pattern. . .not so cute. But look how it is turning out. . . .

some little brown booties and a hat. . . its just too cute!

A smidge of progress

A smidge of progress but not much. I have been in the full force blur of tax season along with having several audits going on at the same time. By Sunday, my one and only day off . . .I am lucky to know who I am let alone follow a pattern.

I did get a nice break two nights this week when Julie came to visit. I really wish I could have taken a day off to spend with her but I just can't this time of year. . . it is impossible. It was so good to laugh. . .we knitted and laughed for two evenings which helped to lift my spirits to get through the next 6 weeks. I didn't make it to the gym at all this week but hey. . .laughter is good for the heart too.

I was able to complete one of the socks which does have a April deadline since it is a birthday gift. The pattern is free online:

http://bellaknitting.typepad.com/bella_knitting/2007/09/synesthesia-soc.html

Hopefully I can finish it with one skein of jitterbug but it made me nervous and I bought another just incase. Will let you know.

The furniture is out of the box! Yippee!

Only 3 hours later but the rug is down. . .table and chairs are up. . .whew. . .and I am tired! But I just love it. . .I am soooooooooooooo happy!!!

The floor. . .not so pretty. . .but nothing a rug can't fix. . .for now. See what I mean. . .right around the rug that was there at one point. . .weird? It will be beautiful once we have it finished though.

After the second coat of red.

Habitat hat complete . . .putting up furniture soon. . .just in time for tax season to kick off. . .whew!

Such a long two weeks since my last post. I finished the habitat hat which came out nice. I did how ever change the needle size since my husband has a small head. I knitted the entire hat in a size 7 instead of a size 8. I don't have photos of it actually on his head because it is on display at Green Mountain Fibers right now in Rutland. So stop by and check it out. It was knitted in Debbie Bliss luxury tweed in gray. I really wanted chocolate but that was on back order. . .

So then when that came in last week. . .I started the central park hoodie. The chocolate is very yummy. . .I am going through my chocolate phase right now. Haven't gotten very far on this sweater yer . . . .but that happens this time of year for me.

Open house for Green Mountain Fibers is on Saturday, January 31st. . . .lots of sales and prizes . . please stop by. It is going to be great! I was there yesterday afternoon helping out with bookkeeping and getting prepared. I think I talked Kathleen into doing a chicks, sticks, and flicks night at some point . . ..like we use to do at Stitchy Women when my friends owned it. It was so much fun! I really miss it. Especially Sue and Marlee :(

On the house front. . . we have the dining room primed. . .

and the first coat of red on. . ..

. . .got the second coat too but I didn't have the energy to even pick up the camera. Joel pulled the carpet up on Monday . . . . .but they finished the floors around the rug that was apparently there at one point. . .who does that? So I am off today to target to get a rug to put down to cover the unfinished floor . . . for now. Then the furniture comes out of the box! Woohoo!

I can't wait to be done with this. . then it is no more painting until after tax season . . .I can not do anymore . . .I just can't. Even as I look into my kitchen from my newly painted dinning room to baby blue cabinets and yellow and blue flowered and striped wallpaper. . .and a stove from 1970. . .spring. . .it has to wait until spring.

I did get to see Julie this weekend and finally give her and her family their xmas gift which I refused to put on my blog until I had given it to her. I not only knit but I stamp and scrapbook so . . . .

Everyone got a bag of reindeer poop, a jar of cocoa, a mug. . . and they all got this years Danforth ornament.

Now don't think I came up with this idea all on my own . . . the master mind behind the stamped items would be my extremely talented stampin up rep Trena. . .I took a class and then used her ideas to put a basket together. . .Trena is brilliant!

ok. . .off to Target!

Some progress this week. . .but not as much as I would like

Well I have some progress this week. . .but really not as much as I would have liked to have done. If I only didn't have to sleep! I could get so much done. I am studying for my CPA exam . . .which I booked over xmas for February 28th (so it is final now) and I just went back to the gym. Two things that are very important but yet another thing to my massive list of duties. If I didn't go back to the gym. . .I will never make it through tax season. . the stress would build up so bad I would burst.

Cambridge vest. . ..

This came out very nice and I am really happy with it. Looks great with a dress shirt and pants. I wore it to work and got many complements . . .and most people think it is store bought. That is always a nice complement.

Then after an hour of deliberating on what to start next I decided to try the Habitat hat by Jared Flood.

Note, I placed markers at the end of each pattern repeat. . .there is 5 of them. This just makes it easier to focus when you are trying to multi-task . . .something I do all the time. There are many cables in this pattern . . .which I love but it does require a little mental attention. This is made using Debbie Bliss luxury tweed purchased at Green Mountain Fibers in Rutland.

Katie came over and I finally took a couple quick snap shots of her in the sifting sands scarf that I made for her for xmas. This pattern is available for free. . . check it out on ravelry. Made from malabrigo which I purchased at webs (www.yarn.com). Green Mountain Fibers just purchased some punta yarn that is very similar and I am dieing to know how that will look in this pattern.

Katie loves it. . .it is soft and purple. . .what more could she ask for.

The dining room is coming together. . .Joel just finished the sanding yesterday (8 hours worth). I will spend a few hours today washing the dust from the walls so we can prime next weekend. Dining room table. . .ya that is still in the box. Grrrrrr. . .I so wanted to paint this weekend. . .again the time thing.