Starting Over

I got my computer back this week and I would have posted sooner BUT all of the programs had been wiped off my computer. Ahhhh! In order to get rid of the particularly nasty virus that was on my computer, Windows had to be completely wiped out and started over. I did save my files but all of my programs like my Kodak camera picture software and iTunes and everything else I had on here at one point were wiped away. I think after several days of working with it, I finally have everything back to almost normal....Which means I have pictures again!

Here is the Yoda Baby sweater I finished and got all stitched up before it was time for me to go back to school. It was such an easy pattern but the worst part was stitching up all it's little seams. I am really pleased with how it turned out! Now hopefully it will fit a baby!!



The sweater wraps kimono-style around the baby so you don't have to deal with trying to fit it over a wiggly baby's head - a neat concept!

I am about 70% finished with the next sweater of my new favorite yarn - Paton's Chunky Tweed in Earthy Brown. It is so soft and snuggly. I made this in a bigger size and all I have left to do is the raglan sleeves. The yarn isn't nearly as shiny as the picture shows it to be.



Other than knitting, school is back to being my life! I miss summer already but I do have a FUN weekend ahead of me next weekend when I get to meet up with old camp buddies at the Holston Camp Staff reunion! Now THAT I will take pictures of :) If you recall, that is the camp where Logan and I met and a lot of my best friends were made (City Mouse!). I can not wait and hopefully this week will fly by with students starting back on Wednesday.

Oh - one more fun thought - we have a ton of drawings for things at our Countywide Conference for school starting back and I won a $25 gift card to Starbucks! Now THAT will help me start back to school!!!!

Last Day of Freedom

Before I get on with what I was originally going to post I just saw something intriguing on tv - a woman that 'sleep ate' and gained 60 pounds - I swear I think I have the same problem!! That could explain a LOT of why I can't seem to lose any weight despite strong (could be a lot stronger!) efforts. I need to watch that tonight - haha

Today is my last day of summer break freedom. If I got as much done this summer as I have in the past 2 days, Logan might let me stay home permanently (if we won the lotto of course). I have peeled, cut, and cored a jillion apples, made apple pie filling for this winter and canned that, got up way earlier than I should have and went to the cannery this morning and made and canned a jillion cans of applesauce, cleaned out my closet and made a 'skinny clothes' box that will sit in a corner until I shed some pounds, and would really like to finish stitching up the Brea Bag and Yoda sweater today. Whew - I should sleep good tonight although the looming thoughts of going to back to work tomorrow will keep me up!

Our pantry that we usually keep our canned goods in is busting its seems this year! It has been such a good growing and canning season and we'll definitely eat good this winter (the skinny clothes box might not see the light of day for a long while). We have green beans, cherries, peaches, applesauce, and hopefully soon my garden full of tomatoes will start to ripen. We have been getting a few red ones to eat on in the mean time. I am not a HUGE fan of raw tomatoes and never have been BUT I ate a tomato sandwich last night for dinner with a slice of cheese and a sprinkle of Greek seasoning and I could have eaten 5 more! It was sooooooo good!!! That might be what I have for lunch today - yum!

I still have a full list of things I want to accomplish today including getting caught up laundry, making an apple pie (because I am not TOTALLY sick of apples yet and only have 2 blisters from peeling and slicing and coring) and maybe shampoo the carpet. Yes I am going to need some more caffeine before this day is over. Whew - should sleep good tonight!

(I promise I will have my computer back soon and pictures to complement - I am still on Logan's computer)

Lazy Friday

This is my last Friday to myself. Next Friday at this time I will be sitting in our County-wide conference to 'open up' the new school year. hooray. I still have next Monday and Tuesday too BUT this is my last FRIDAY. So....I have declared this my 'Lazy Friday'

On Lazy Friday I WILL:
-Stay in my pajamas as long as possible
-Watch Olympic games, no matter how trivial (table tennis anyone?)
-Knit, knit, and knit
-Only leave the couch to get something to eat, go to the bathroom, or let the dogs out
-Possibly take a nap (even though I slept in)

On Lazy Friday I WILL NOT:
-Feel guilty about anything on the above list
-Do any amount of housework that can't be put off until Monday
-Get mad at my husband when he asks 'didn't you do anything today?'
-Think about school, lesson plans, students or anything education related

So, there it is. Lazy Friday A new national holiday - in my house anyway. I still have Logan's laptop - which drives me crazy blogging (it has a weird 'tic' where I will be typing and all of a sudden it skips up lines so I am typing in the middle of a random word. I then have to stop, erase, and find my spot again - annoying)

Tomorrow I am off for a girls-day adventure in Winston-Salem with my 'City Mouse' friend! I am REQUIRED to rest up today to be ready for a FULL DAY of shopping, talking, and having general fun! Hopefully by next week I will have my computer back and we'll be back with pictures!

Bare With Me

It almost always happens this way - one thing goes wrong and a million other things follow. I have been blogging-absent due to my lack of a computer. My computer succumbed to viruses-galore and had to be taken to the computer ER. Hopefully it will be back soon. I just don't understand how I can be so good about where I go online, what I open e-mail-wise, and keep my virus protector updated and I still get slammed with memory-erasing viruses.

Let me take a second to discuss viruses. They honestly tick me off more than anything about computers. Why? Because people are the ones that create them and send them out. These aren't like viruses that we humans get and can't help it - we can help these!! How sad is your life if you want to intentionally destroy people's computers and might not have a lot of SPARE MONEY to get them fixed. Let me warn everyone now - if I ever find out you create and distribute viruses, I will PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE!

Ok, I honestly feel better. I have been working at school all week and I am at a comfortable spot in my classroom where I won't have to go back until we actually start back next Wednesday. That gives me 5 whole days to my self to enjoy the last bit of my summer. I really need to start playing the lottery because I would not complain about being a stay-at-home wife, that's for sure!

Hopefully the next time I post, I will have my computer back - I am on Logan's laptop now and don't have my camera hook up - I guess I could try to figure it out if I don't get mine back soon! In the meantime, I am going to get back to knitting and obsessively watching any Olympic sports that are on TV!

Mystery Project

So did anyone figure out what the knitted pieces went to? If you guessed baby sweater you are right!


I know what 99.9% of you are thinking right now and NO I am not pregnant - haha. I knew that was going to be the response to knitting this but I have an explanation. Because I am not a speed knitter and I want our future children to have some cute knitted goods before they turn 18, I am starting a 'knit-baby hope chest' of sorts. Huge projects tend to bog me down and cause me to start forty-trillion other little projects while I am working on the big project because I like instant gratification with knitting. Baby clothes are a good solution to this problem! If I have to knit for 30 hours straight before I see any progress I tend to get bored.

This pattern is called the 'Baby Yoda Sweater' and it was so easy - it took me just a little over a week to finish! I still need to finish the seaming and then blocking which I should be able to do this afternoon. It also has ties that you wrap kind of kimono-style and I think I am going to buy ribbon for that instead of doing the suggested I-cord. Of course it is in as 'gender neutral' colors as possible. If you are a member of Ravelry, you can find the pattern there for free - I am sure you might be able to find it somewhere else online but I didn't check. My luck I am going to have a behemoth baby that won't be able to fit it this even though it is up to 6 months on the pattern.

My next baby project will likely be another sweater - maybe in a little bigger size - because I just got some yummy brown 'tweed' yarn that is so soft and I love it so much - it is Patons Shetland Chunky Tweeds in Earthy Brown. I have a few possible choices that I like that I just need to narrow down. First thought I REALLY need to seam together the Brea bag and line it before I cast on anything else!

That was about my week - knitting, working in my new classroom, and oh yeah - canning! I canned 6 quarts of peaches by myself on Wednesday then went over to my mother-in-law's house and canned 7 more quarts of peaches and made 9 pints of sweet pickle relish. Busy! I got the peaches from my parents when they came down to visit this past Monday from their fruit tree! I hope our fruit trees produce as much as theirs one day!


Have a good weekend - I have chores awaiting me since Logan will tell you all I did this week was knit :)

Oh Please Not Yet!

I know I have been awful about blogging the past couple of weeks. It's all in a desperate attempt for me to hang on to the little bit left of my summer that is quickly coming to an end. Teachers report back to school the 20th so I have 2 weeks as of today. Depressing. What did I do with the last 2 months of my life? Ack! Not enough! I get this way every single year. I could have run marathons and cured diseases all summer and I would still feel this way! It really hit yesterday when I was able to (finally) get into my new classroom (I am changing grades) and start adjusting. I will be headed there shortly whenever my coffee kicks in and I feel ready to start new projects there.

In knitting news, I have everything I need to complete my Brea bag! I made a trip to Joanne's Fabrics yesterday and came out with a cream and brown patterned fabric for my lining and a unique bone button for my closure. I have to sit down and take the time to piece everything together now. In the mean time, I have started a new 'secret' project. Ok it's not really a secret but I will write about it tomorrow. Here are the current pieces for it - I still have 2 more pieces to make and piece it together before it's finished. Anyone have any guesses about what it is? (Mom you don't get a guess since you already know what it is!)


I wish you all could see our cats playing right now - hysterical! Cleo is rarely in the mood to tolerate playing with poor little Gabby but right now she is initiating it and then teasing her by hiding in the dining room chairs and swatting out the back like it's a jail cell. Too cute. I had better be off to school now :( Can't I have just 1 more month? (Maybe we'll get some snow ;) )