Purling Sprite

Destash Fundraiser for a zoomer!

A bitter-sweet moment today. I am really close to finally getting my license, I have been practicing every chance I get. I still can't park straight but I don't feel so afraid going from one side of town to the other. The time has come for me to get my first little zoomer!!! So excited! Anyways, I am parting with most of my stash--a lot of my ultimate favorite in the collection to fund my little zoomer. I hope you can find something in my stash for your stash. I will be adding stash all during the weekend. First up....my beloved sock yarn: think Yarntini, Vesper, SweetGeorgia, Blue Moon, Koigu...and lots more. The slide shows some of the yarn in the Sock Destash. Come to my Destash blog to see more.

Racing to the end

One of my road-biking friends is expecting, she has about a week left til the little bundle of joy comes home. I wanted to give her something needle knitted and at first I wanted to make her a baby blanket--especifically this baby blanket by Dawn Brocco. I had great intentions of knitting it, I even got the yarn and the needles for it but then I realized that I didn't have enough time to make it. Still, I wanted to make something and with Fall approaching I settled on making a few baby hats for her baby girl.

The first one is done and I am in love with how cute and adorable it looks . It is so tiny and I just hope that they like it as much as I do. I especially like the top of the hat. The crown has a swirl decrease design and to finish it off a little I-cord top knot.

I am thinking of creating 2 more little hats, 1 with a lace edging and another with baby cables.

The little swirl-crown design hat took only a couple of hours to make. I think I spent more time working out the math and the swatch than actually knitting the little cuteness.

If you are interested, here is the Bundle of Joy pattern. If you make it, let me know, I would love to see it :). In the mean time, I will be racing the clock and trying to knit the other 2 little hats...and if I am lucky I would love to make her matching bootees. Racing my needles to the end. Just like my hubby raced his little legs to the end of the marathon last week.

I should have shared these pictures last week but I have been a bum and been slacking on my blogging duties. Here is hubby giving it all his heart on last week's marathon. His arches gave out during the race and he could barely walk for a few days. One of the arches gave out at mile 10 and the other at mile 14. Despite the pain, he was a sport and finished the race. The kids and I met him at mile 21 and I walked and chatted with him for a couple of miles...I was trying to get his mind away from the pain and his heart back on the race. He had a crazy idea of quitting at mile 21...you just don't quit after you have ran 21 miles, so instead we walked for a few minutes while he rested his legs and gave his arches a little break. After a little break, he took off again and he finished the marathon. What an accomplishment! We are so very proud of him. Wonderboy took the medal they gave Dad and it is hanging in his bedroom along with the poster from the event. The example he sets for the children is just amazing! His feet are almost back to their full health and he is already planning on starting his training again...and I think he is thinking of dragging me into it. Maybe I can tuck and roll for 26miles ;).

About a pidge...this has been a popular topic over at the loom knitting yahoo groups lately. The particular  scarflet at the above website appears to be knitted on a knitting board with a simple stitch known as the figure 8. I made something similar to this item a couple of years back, it is nothing fancy but quite similar. The pattern can be found in the LKP book; the scarflet in the book uses a brooch rather than buttons to close it but the idea is pretty similar, done on a knitting board with the stockinette stitch. Maybe I should crank some of these out for the upcoming holidays to give to my biking girlfriends.

Huge Destash Sale

Yarns looking for a new home! Come check it out at my De-stash blog.

Sock yarns

Soy yarns

Cascade yarns

Acrylics (Lion Brand, Caron, Landscapes).

Contest winner!

The week went by like a flash! Zooom! I have been a bit preoccupied with a project...okay, more like 30 projects. My house is drowning in yarn and papers are flying around and my hubby is picking up my slack and helping me cook and clean. Sorry for being so late in announcing the winner. We had a gazillion entries and I have already picked up two books that were suggested: Bear Snores On and the Diary of a Worm.

But who is the winner of this great contest.....ready...Jessica. Jessica suggested 14 books. We have put a few in our list...a must that we are going to get from her list: Princess Bride.

Jessica, drop me a note whenever you get a chance.

Thank you everyone for helping me build a better library for my children.

Sad day for Fantasy readers

Robert Jordan, grand author/creator of the Wheel of Times series has left us. His stories are some of my favorites in this genre. I am currently reading/listening to the 11th book in this series. He was writing the 12th book.

You will be missed. I will cherish your books and read them and re-read them as the years go by. Thank you for making my imagination take flight with your words.

Fall Issue of LKC magazine is live!

It took a little longer than we had thought but we (Denise and I) finally have the Fall issue of LKC magazine ready. We were implementing some changes and in the midst of all the changes, I made a bonehead mistake and I deleted two folders from my files and it messed up all my links! Spent half the night fixing links...eek. Word to the wise: do not work on important files when your kids are throwing things at you.

Hope you enjoy the issue!

Dream Dinners to the Rescue...

What is the hardest part about cooking? For me, it is coming up with the idea of what to cook and then finding all the ingredients. Cooking in itself is not difficult, nor agonazing (despite what I tell hubby). This week, I was invited to a little "party" to go try out a new place in town called DreamDinners.

The place is heaven sent for crazy people like me. They have an entire meal (uncooked) ready for you. You go in and you put together all the ingredients (so if you don't like something, you can keep it out) then you go home and cook it whenever you want. You keep them in the freezer until you are ready to use it. Genious idea!

With my upcoming schedule of work, I was the perfect candidate for this venture! I signed up for a few meal  plans and now I am set for a few days and my kiddos won't be having hot dogs for lunch and dinner.

The entire idea is genious! I wish I had known of something of the kind sooner...especially when I lived in NY and worked all the time. For us right now, it is a perfect way to still provide my kiddos with a healthy meal while I run around with my head cut-off.

Dinnertime in a breeze :)!

Book Wormies Contest

Since munchkin #1 started school, we have had a strong reading regimen around the house. We have devoured book after book after book. We started off with the recommended 15minutes a day but it has gone up considerably! Although picture books are nice, we have moved on to books with more words and just a few pictures. Over the weekend, we decided to start reading the HP books and although I had my doubts at first that they will keep my son's attention, he has really taken to them. We read about 4 to 5 pages a night and although they would take me about five minutes to read, I stop after each paragraph and ask him questions from the paragraph--I figure a little reading comprehension should be okay at his age.

We have been having so much fun with books and outdoor activities that I am about 5minutes away from cancelling our tv cable! I never thought we could live without it but the truth is that in the past week we have probably watched about 20 minutes all week.

In an effort to build a good library collection, here is the question of the day: What are some good books that your children/nieces/nephews/neighbors have enjoyed?

Let's make it a contest: leave me a comment with: a title of a children's book and why you like the book in the comments section. For every title you get 1 entry.

You win: Sock yarn from my stash: SweetGeorgia in Envy (green with little brown spots)

You have until: Sunday (Sept. 16) to leave me a title in the comments section.

Speaking of books, I took a little quiz about books and personality and it came up with this for me. I think it fits me...what say ye?

You're Anne of Green Gables!
by L.M. Montgomery
Bright, chipper, vivid, but with the emotional fortitude of cottage cheese, you make quite an impression on everyone you meet. You're impulsive, rash, honest, and probably don't have a great relationship with your parents. People hurt your feelings constantly, but your brazen honestly doesn't exactly treat others with kid gloves. Ultimately, though, you win the hearts and minds of everyone that matters. You spell your name with an E and you want everyone to know about it.
Take the Book Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

Crafty pursuits

Yarn, needles, and looms were put aside for a few days due to a nasty cold and a little rest was ahead of me to get me back to health. But, I am restless and I can't sit still for too long, so I asked my neighbor next door to show me how to create some little hairbows for my munchkin. The result: fabulous!

I took a trip to the local craft store and got a basketfull of shiny, colourful ribbons. I have made about 8 sets so far and I have enjoyed the new creative outlet. And they look great on my little munchkin--she tends to make anything look good ;).

Little Nyny found the perfect ribbon for her daily adventures: Dora the Explorer ribbon!

ps: I am planning on making a mini-video on how I made these ribbons for any other interested parties out there ;).

Substitute blogger in the house!

Hi,

Some of you know me, some of you haven't seen me before, but I am called NyNy around the house. Momma is unable to blog at the moment. She is busy making the next issue of the loomy e-zine. She spends way too much time on the computer and she screams at it a few times too. She tells it that it is too slow and it is time for a replacement, as you can see she doesn't believe in positive reinforcement, she probably missed that day in her psychology class.

Anyways, she is working and she should be back soon. On the bright side, my brother and I will be having pizza for dinner.