Happy New Year!

My 2009 Knits

2010 New Years Knitting Resolutions:

1. Knit a pair of socks in every Shaded Solid Socks That Rock Colorway.
2. Participate in the 52 pair (of socks) plunge.
3. Participate in NaKniSweMoDo (knit 12 adult sweaters in a year)
4. Participate in Ravelympics.
5. Go to all of the Sheep & Wool Festivals on the east coast.
6. Spin enough yarn to knit a sweater
7. Learn how to spin

OK... so these aren't my real New Years Knitting Resolutions... but wishful thinking!

Here are some realistic goals...

1. Have fun with my knitting
2. Try new things
3. Buy local
4. Knit local
5. Knit from my stash more often
6. No pressure! See #1.

May we all knit happily through another year. Happy 2010!

Adios, 2009...

I'm so glad this year is coming to an end. I'm so glad that we've made it through this far. When I think about the past year, I think of family and our many adventures and that always warms my heart. But I also think of depression. Of struggle. Of hurting. Of so many tears. 2009 was hard.

I'm so hungry to move forward once again in 2010. To crawl out of this dark hole I've been in. To get back to life. Not limbo.

Adios, 2009.

Bring on the New Year!

Adios, 2009...

I'm so glad this year is coming to an end. I'm so glad that we've made it through this far. When I think about the past year, I think of family and our many adventures and that always warms my heart. But I also think of depression. Of struggle. Of hurting. Of so many tears. 2009 was hard.

I'm so hungry to move forward once again in 2010. To crawl out of this dark hole I've been in. To get back to life. Not limbo.

Adios, 2009.

Bring on the New Year!

Blue New Year

Don't forget! This Thursday night is the Blue Moon (or Full Long Night Moon via space.com) -- or the second full moon in December.

Via Farmers' Almanac: The blue moon happens on average every 32 months. Last time we saw a full blue New Year’s Eve Moon was in 1990, and the next one after 2009 won’t be until 2028.

PS. The Farmers' Almanac is published in Lewiston, Maine which is about 20 miles from my house!

Blue New Year

Don't forget! This Thursday night is the Blue Moon (or Full Long Night Moon via space.com) -- or the second full moon in December.

Via Farmers' Almanac: The blue moon happens on average every 32 months. Last time we saw a full blue New Year’s Eve Moon was in 1990, and the next one after 2009 won’t be until 2028.

PS. The Farmers' Almanac is published in Lewiston, Maine which is about 20 miles from my house!

For Sara

What are the chances we'd have the same 32 year old ornament?? Maybe it isn't as rare as I think, but it still gave me a thrill to see this exact ornament on your blog this morning. I had to dig mine out of the ornament box to show you. :) Now it will mean a just a little more to me knowing that a good friend of mine has the exact same ornament and it means so much to you, too.

For Sara

What are the chances we'd have the same 32 year old ornament?? Maybe it isn't as rare as I think, but it still gave me a thrill to see this exact ornament on your blog this morning. I had to dig mine out of the ornament box to show you. :) Now it will mean a just a little more to me knowing that a good friend of mine has the exact same ornament and it means so much to you, too.

Time to Clean it Up!

Every year I get the overwhelming urge to take down all of the Christmas decorations on the morning of the 26th. Usually I do and have the house back to normal by 10 AM.

This year I decided that I'd relax a little bit and let the decorations stay up a little longer.

It's the 27th and I've got the twitch. It's all coming down today. LOL The tree is getting crispy and the decorations are starting to gather dust. It's time.

I do always feel like it's sort of a shame though, so for next year I'm going to leave myself this note...

I've always wanted to put up the tree closer to Christmas... even Christmas Eve. We don't really have any traditions yet for Christmas Eve... it'd be nice to do it then. The anticipation would be fun. We could have more focus on Advent and Winter Solstice before the Christmas frenzy begins.

Winter Solstice doesn't even come until a few days before Christmas. Fall always gets preempted by snow so it immediately feels like winter and Christmas even though the calendar and the moon phases don't agree. I'd be nice to truly keep celebrating fall and truly enjoy the longest night and observe Winter Solstice.

Then we can put the tree up on Christmas Eve and leave it up until Three Kings Day.

It seems like that would correct the timing of it all. We simply don't need to decorate so early.

PS. Knit this tree skirt!

Time to Clean it Up!

Every year I get the overwhelming urge to take down all of the Christmas decorations on the morning of the 26th. Usually I do and have the house back to normal by 10 AM.

This year I decided that I'd relax a little bit and let the decorations stay up a little longer.

It's the 27th and I've got the twitch. It's all coming down today. LOL The tree is getting crispy and the decorations are starting to gather dust. It's time.

I do always feel like it's sort of a shame though, so for next year I'm going to leave myself this note...

I've always wanted to put up the tree closer to Christmas... even Christmas Eve. We don't really have any traditions yet for Christmas Eve... it'd be nice to do it then. The anticipation would be fun. We could have more focus on Advent and Winter Solstice before the Christmas frenzy begins.

Winter Solstice doesn't even come until a few days before Christmas. Fall always gets preempted by snow so it immediately feels like winter and Christmas even though the calendar and the moon phases don't agree. I'd be nice to truly keep celebrating fall and truly enjoy the longest night and observe Winter Solstice.

Then we can put the tree up on Christmas Eve and leave it up until Three Kings Day.

It seems like that would correct the timing of it all. We simply don't need to decorate so early.

PS. Knit this tree skirt!

A drive through a black and white photograph...

(click to enlarge)

This is a photo of the Mt. Washington Resort in Bretton Woods, NH taken this afternoon. In the background is the Presidential Range. We had just driven out of Crawford Notch and I caught a glimpse of the mountains in my rear view mirror. We quickly turned around and took in the view. AMAZING! They're just so big and commanding... like looming giants!

Mt. Washington Resort looks like a FUN place. We drove up and around it... they have dogsled and sleigh rides, a huge beautiful hotel, and lots of other outdoor family activities. I can just imagine a huge fireplace and plenty of hot chocolate inside to enjoy, too. We're definitely going to stay there one day.

I snapped this photo of the top of Mt. Washington! It's hard to believe that just a few months ago we stood up there.

(click to enlarge)

Crawford Notch was amazing. Everything was coated with a layer of frost from the frozen clouds zipping in and out of the valleys. It sort of looked like a negative image... all of the dark trees coated with frosting.

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

On our way home I got out at a scenic overlook to snap some photos of the valley... these four trees out in the distance caught my eye. Don't they look odd up there among all of the shorter woods around them? Like four giants overseeing the things going on beneath them.

(click to enlarge)

Yesterday we got out and in to the woods as well. We drove up Rte. 16 on the other side of Mt. Washington. It was spectacular as ever. Of course I didn't have my camera. ... and of course that is the one and only time I've seen a moose!! It was incredible. He was just standing on the side of the road eating the top off of a fir tree. We doubled back and parked about 20 feet from him... he literally made eye contact with me! Christmas of 2009 will forever be known to me as the year I made eye contact with a moose.

A drive through a black and white photograph...

(click to enlarge)

This is a photo of the Mt. Washington Resort in Bretton Woods, NH taken this afternoon. In the background is the Presidential Range. We had just driven out of Crawford Notch and I caught a glimpse of the mountains in my rear view mirror. We quickly turned around and took in the view. AMAZING! They're just so big and commanding... like looming giants!

Mt. Washington Resort looks like a FUN place. We drove up and around it... they have dogsled and sleigh rides, a huge beautiful hotel, and lots of other outdoor family activities. I can just imagine a huge fireplace and plenty of hot chocolate inside to enjoy, too. We're definitely going to stay there one day.

I snapped this photo of the top of Mt. Washington! It's hard to believe that just a few months ago we stood up there.

(click to enlarge)

Crawford Notch was amazing. Everything was coated with a layer of frost from the frozen clouds zipping in and out of the valleys. It sort of looked like a negative image... all of the dark trees coated with frosting.

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

On our way home I got out at a scenic overlook to snap some photos of the valley... these four trees out in the distance caught my eye. Don't they look odd up there among all of the shorter woods around them? Like four giants overseeing the things going on beneath them.

(click to enlarge)

Yesterday we got out and in to the woods as well. We drove up Rte. 16 on the other side of Mt. Washington. It was spectacular as ever. Of course I didn't have my camera. ... and of course that is the one and only time I've seen a moose!! It was incredible. He was just standing on the side of the road eating the top off of a fir tree. We doubled back and parked about 20 feet from him... he literally made eye contact with me! Christmas of 2009 will forever be known to me as the year I made eye contact with a moose.

Sock Innovation KAL

Wow, it's been a while since I actually posted about my knitting! I thought I'd chronicle a few of my most recent projects...

I participated in the Sock Innovation KAL on Ravelry (link) during the month of October. The two patterns that were chosen for November were Monkey (link) and Eunice (link).

I've knit half a dozen pairs of Monkey socks. I can pretty much knit the pattern from memory now. It is definitely one of my absolute favorite sock patterns. I like it because the length of the pattern repeat isn't too short or too long. I can usually get through one repeat in one sitting. That makes them move along pretty quickly. I also love the mixed knits and purls texture. It makes for extra comfy socks.

My most recent pair of Monkeys are knit with Dream in Color Smooshy - Ruby River colorway. I used 2.25mm needles. (Ravelry Link)

The other pattern that was chosen for the KAL was Eunice. (Ravelry Link) I was excited to knit these because it's a pattern that I haven't knit before and it was pretty challenging, too. For these I used Foxfire Fibers Fox Sox sock yarn in the Sweet Potato colorway. I bought this yarn at the New Hampshire Sheep & Wool festival this past spring. The yarn itself is a quite scratchy, even after washing. That scratchiness just translates to 'rustic' in my mind... and it was still pleasant to knit with.

I loved knitting these socks. I added a pattern repeat to the leg. I love how the pattern continues down on to the back of the heel and how Cookie always incorporates the ribbing at the top of the leg to flow in to the pattern so nicely. She truly thinks out her patterns so thoroughly that no detail is spared.... even still though, make sure you follow the errata on this pattern.

So I really enjoyed participating in the Sock Innovation KAL during the month of October. The icing on the cake is that since I posted a picture of my finished socks, I was entered in to a drawing for a prize. I won a gorgeous skein of teal blue sock yarn from Violet Green. How lucky!

Sock Innovation KAL

Wow, it's been a while since I actually posted about my knitting! I thought I'd chronicle a few of my most recent projects...

I participated in the Sock Innovation KAL on Ravelry (link) during the month of October. The two patterns that were chosen for November were Monkey (link) and Eunice (link).

I've knit half a dozen pairs of Monkey socks. I can pretty much knit the pattern from memory now. It is definitely one of my absolute favorite sock patterns. I like it because the length of the pattern repeat isn't too short or too long. I can usually get through one repeat in one sitting. That makes them move along pretty quickly. I also love the mixed knits and purls texture. It makes for extra comfy socks.

My most recent pair of Monkeys are knit with Dream in Color Smooshy - Ruby River colorway. I used 2.25mm needles. (Ravelry Link)

The other pattern that was chosen for the KAL was Eunice. (Ravelry Link) I was excited to knit these because it's a pattern that I haven't knit before and it was pretty challenging, too. For these I used Foxfire Fibers Fox Sox sock yarn in the Sweet Potato colorway. I bought this yarn at the New Hampshire Sheep & Wool festival this past spring. The yarn itself is a quite scratchy, even after washing. That scratchiness just translates to 'rustic' in my mind... and it was still pleasant to knit with.

I loved knitting these socks. I added a pattern repeat to the leg. I love how the pattern continues down on to the back of the heel and how Cookie always incorporates the ribbing at the top of the leg to flow in to the pattern so nicely. She truly thinks out her patterns so thoroughly that no detail is spared.... even still though, make sure you follow the errata on this pattern.

So I really enjoyed participating in the Sock Innovation KAL during the month of October. The icing on the cake is that since I posted a picture of my finished socks, I was entered in to a drawing for a prize. I won a gorgeous skein of teal blue sock yarn from Violet Green. How lucky!

Height of Land

(click to enlarge)

One of my many favorite places in Maine... Height of Land. We went up today... it's about an hour north of us now. It was bitterly cold and stunningly beautiful.

Height of Land

(click to enlarge)

One of my many favorite places in Maine... Height of Land. We went up today... it's about an hour north of us now. It was bitterly cold and stunningly beautiful.

the halls are decked!

the halls are decked!

First Snow

Almost on cue, we got our first measurable snow here in Maine last night. It is as magical as you might guess. I couldn't wait to get outside and just take a couple photos this morning. Nothing is prettier than snow on the trees before it shakes off in the breeze. Soo... in my nightgown, bathrobe, knitted hat (of course) and my son's snow boots, I tromped around our new house and snapped some quick photos. Might as well let my new neighbors know early on that I'm crazy! I can't wait until later when we can get out and see a wider view of the snowfall on the hills.

not sure why this photo didn't rotate... i edited it to do so.
oh well. i kind of like it like this so i'm going to leave it.

happy snow!

First Snow

Almost on cue, we got our first measurable snow here in Maine last night. It is as magical as you might guess. I couldn't wait to get outside and just take a couple photos this morning. Nothing is prettier than snow on the trees before it shakes off in the breeze. Soo... in my nightgown, bathrobe, knitted hat (of course) and my son's snow boots, I tromped around our new house and snapped some quick photos. Might as well let my new neighbors know early on that I'm crazy! I can't wait until later when we can get out and see a wider view of the snowfall on the hills.

not sure why this photo didn't rotate... i edited it to do so.
oh well. i kind of like it like this so i'm going to leave it.

happy snow!

twist love

I really shouldn't be sitting here... but here I am in the middle of moving and all I want to do is cast on about four sweaters! The new Twist Collective is out and I'm in LOVE. There are so many great designs worthy of getting excited about.

First and foremost... I'm going to cast on for Skara Brae just as soon as possible. I have some lavender Ultra Alpaca that would be perfect. This sweater is knit from the top down with some unique construction. It's heavily patterned without being bulky like mega cables.

Kirigami: again, unique construction... afterthought shoulders!? I'm intrigued! tiny stripes = big stashbuster for me. I have enough gray and red Berroco Vintage to knit this one up. I love the button detail... I would definitely wear it unbuttoned. Lovely!

Kelmscott by Carol Sunday is stunning. Knit with an angora blend... what a lovely dressy sweater this would be. This would be a good project to cast on midwinter when the winter daze has really set in.

I really like the lines of Mystere. Although I don't see the need to knit it in pieces. It'd be a cinch to knit this one in one piece. I totally want to use pearl grey Malabrigo for this one.

I also love the mittens by Veronik Avery although I probably wouldn't knit the liners. I have some Classic Elite Fresco in my stash that would work well for the outer mittens, too.

Frost Tapestry is an eye catching set of winter accessories. First of all, I tend to gravitate toward black and white, so the color combo really grabbed me. Secondly, it's stranded which I love to do. Thirdly, the cowl is steeked, which is a technique I haven't done yet and really have wanted a smaller project to do it with.

Ok! I'm outta here!

twist love

I really shouldn't be sitting here... but here I am in the middle of moving and all I want to do is cast on about four sweaters! The new Twist Collective is out and I'm in LOVE. There are so many great designs worthy of getting excited about.

First and foremost... I'm going to cast on for Skara Brae just as soon as possible. I have some lavender Ultra Alpaca that would be perfect. This sweater is knit from the top down with some unique construction. It's heavily patterned without being bulky like mega cables.

Kirigami: again, unique construction... afterthought shoulders!? I'm intrigued! tiny stripes = big stashbuster for me. I have enough gray and red Berroco Vintage to knit this one up. I love the button detail... I would definitely wear it unbuttoned. Lovely!

Kelmscott by Carol Sunday is stunning. Knit with an angora blend... what a lovely dressy sweater this would be. This would be a good project to cast on midwinter when the winter daze has really set in.

I really like the lines of Mystere. Although I don't see the need to knit it in pieces. It'd be a cinch to knit this one in one piece. I totally want to use pearl grey Malabrigo for this one.

I also love the mittens by Veronik Avery although I probably wouldn't knit the liners. I have some Classic Elite Fresco in my stash that would work well for the outer mittens, too.

Frost Tapestry is an eye catching set of winter accessories. First of all, I tend to gravitate toward black and white, so the color combo really grabbed me. Secondly, it's stranded which I love to do. Thirdly, the cowl is steeked, which is a technique I haven't done yet and really have wanted a smaller project to do it with.

Ok! I'm outta here!

good things...

Thank you for making me feel a little better. Thanks for brightening my dark day. I appreciate you all for supporting me even on days when I'm having a major pity party. You are the best.

Now on to things that make me feel happy today...

(click to enlarge)

This sunset photo was taken at about 4:45 in the afternoon over Sebago Lake. The sun goes down so early now!

My little man is doing well. He's cruising along in school and is making progress in all areas. He's turning in to such a little dude... growing up faster than any of us realize. Even he isn't used to how big he's getting. He's a little boy in a big boy body. He's in to comic books, creating powerpoint presentations, all things lego and DS. His feet are also officially bigger than mine.


My baby isn't so baby anymore! All of the sudden he's talking up a storm. He can identify basic colors, he can count to ten, we're about halfway there with potty training. He continues to stop shopping carts and doting ladies in their tracks wherever we go... the curls, the blue eyes... they get them every time. He still sleeps in his crib and doesn't even attempt to get out of it. He sleeps like a champ and is always up for a good snuggle and a pile of books. He still calls himself Baby and tells people that is his name although he can pronounce his name now. Can you believe he'll be 3 in March!?

My Christmas cactus is about to bloom. I love this plant... my husband gave it to me as a birthday gift ten years ago. I can't believe I've kept a house plant alive that long. It makes me think of the plants my parents have had for decades. They have this one ginormous jade plant that they received as a wedding gift 33 years ago. That's crazy!

I've heard that Christmas cacti bloom when they're under stress... isn't that ironic? Mine seems to bloom this time of year and again at the end of the winter right around St. Patrick's Day. I've never transplanted it... I'm too nervous about killing it. I need to get a few starts off of it and get them going before I do that. Also -- I did knit the felted plant cozy that it's in. It was actually a failed attempt at a felted purse. I cut the top off and it fit my plant perfectly. I love it a lot.

good things...

Thank you for making me feel a little better. Thanks for brightening my dark day. I appreciate you all for supporting me even on days when I'm having a major pity party. You are the best.

Now on to things that make me feel happy today...

(click to enlarge)

This sunset photo was taken at about 4:45 in the afternoon over Sebago Lake. The sun goes down so early now!

My little man is doing well. He's cruising along in school and is making progress in all areas. He's turning in to such a little dude... growing up faster than any of us realize. Even he isn't used to how big he's getting. He's a little boy in a big boy body. He's in to comic books, creating powerpoint presentations, all things lego and DS. His feet are also officially bigger than mine.


My baby isn't so baby anymore! All of the sudden he's talking up a storm. He can identify basic colors, he can count to ten, we're about halfway there with potty training. He continues to stop shopping carts and doting ladies in their tracks wherever we go... the curls, the blue eyes... they get them every time. He still sleeps in his crib and doesn't even attempt to get out of it. He sleeps like a champ and is always up for a good snuggle and a pile of books. He still calls himself Baby and tells people that is his name although he can pronounce his name now. Can you believe he'll be 3 in March!?

My Christmas cactus is about to bloom. I love this plant... my husband gave it to me as a birthday gift ten years ago. I can't believe I've kept a house plant alive that long. It makes me think of the plants my parents have had for decades. They have this one ginormous jade plant that they received as a wedding gift 33 years ago. That's crazy!

I've heard that Christmas cacti bloom when they're under stress... isn't that ironic? Mine seems to bloom this time of year and again at the end of the winter right around St. Patrick's Day. I've never transplanted it... I'm too nervous about killing it. I need to get a few starts off of it and get them going before I do that. Also -- I did knit the felted plant cozy that it's in. It was actually a failed attempt at a felted purse. I cut the top off and it fit my plant perfectly. I love it a lot.

Late Fall

(click to enlarge)

The above photo was taken near Buckfield this past Sunday. Beautiful area. Even though most of the leaves are gone, the Oaks have added their russet hue to the landscape. It's still stunning. As the leaves have fallen, the woods have opened up again. No longer do they have a dark canopy that shrouds the hills... All of the sudden you can see deep in to the woods. It's once again, a different landscape.

(click to enlarge)

Today I took the babe down to the Portland Head Light for a walk around... what a treat we were in for! The waves were incredible. Bigger than the hurricane waves that we encountered earlier this year. I didn't do any research, but I'd chalk it up to high tide combined with a full moon. If you want to see a visual example of how the moon phases affect us, just watch the tides.

Late Fall

(click to enlarge)

The above photo was taken near Buckfield this past Sunday. Beautiful area. Even though most of the leaves are gone, the Oaks have added their russet hue to the landscape. It's still stunning. As the leaves have fallen, the woods have opened up again. No longer do they have a dark canopy that shrouds the hills... All of the sudden you can see deep in to the woods. It's once again, a different landscape.

(click to enlarge)

Today I took the babe down to the Portland Head Light for a walk around... what a treat we were in for! The waves were incredible. Bigger than the hurricane waves that we encountered earlier this year. I didn't do any research, but I'd chalk it up to high tide combined with a full moon. If you want to see a visual example of how the moon phases affect us, just watch the tides.