For some reason, the link did not work for The Ships Project. So here it is again...

http://www.theshipsproject.com/Home.htm Please go and check it out.

Have a great Saturday!

Here is a picture my son drew (oil pastels) from a photo he took down at City Dock, Annapolis.

The infamous Pomatomus SOCK! I had to frog it several times but here it is and I am going quickly now. I allowed myself a few "liberties" with the pattern. After all, a pattern is only a guide right....creativity is the key---or maybe for me its just plain laziness....who knows. All I know is that this looks really cool. Seriously, the knit throught the back loop gives it that twisty look and I love this sock yarn. I purchased this in Germany almost two years ago! The colors are pretty cool and vibrant...just the kind of thing I like peeking out from under my cuff. Here is quick birthday gift I am knitting for our friend, Caitlin. She is pictured with my daughter Mary at Christmas with their matching hats. Her 18th birthday was yesterday so the party is tomorrow...I can finish, I know I can. The yarn is gorgeous.....
Silk and wool. It feels like a dream and worth every penny it costs. Of course the pattern calls for 75 yards and the yardage of the skein is.....yep, only 72 yards. So, I had to buy TWO skiens. I am already thinking wrist warmers for myself with the extra. It is gorgeous I tell ya.

Just got an important email from fellow USNA mom. Check out this link The Ships Project for knitting for our troops. I know that I will be bringing this idea to BOTH of my knitting circles. Thank you so much Elaine for sending this along. Also, if you are ever in the area...please call...let's get together and knit awhile!

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AN INEXPERIENCED SKIIER MEETS CANADA... Yep, here is my 17 year old son, just back from beautiful Mont Tremblant Canada.
On his very first run, on his very first day....this is what happened.... Can you see the bone splits on the left side of the X-ray. Can you see the way the bone appears to be protruding outward. That is his left tibia and fibula done near the ankle. Apparently, the bone actually "bent" before it broke. The good news is that it is not in his ankle joint and he will not require surgery. Whew. However, he is off of it for about 10 weeks. He will most probably have physical therapy when he's done. The cast is actually removable but the doctor "strongly cautioned" John about taking it off ONLY for bathing. He is resting comfortably--of course it doesn't help that he has a cold on top of everything else.

All I have to do is knit him a little "toe cozy" for the left foot.

A picture of my lovely ladies who took me out to dinner for my birthday. There's Cathy, me, and Patricia. Sadly, Sherie couldn't make it--but she was missed and we left an empty seat for her. I picked up the pomatomus sock again and am almost finished one...I will post that picture tomorrow. In the meantime, I am busy knitting my Debbie Bliss ruffled sweater. I wish that she included schematics and measurements in her instructions...that way I know I am right on the money in terms of length, etc. I should surf the net, see if any are out there.

ANOTHER NEPHEW HAS ARRIVED!!!!

Welcome to the world, Stephen Clarke Kolb. Born on January 2, 2007 and weighing in at a very respectable 7lbs. 10ozs. I held him today for a long time...what is it about holding a sleeping baby that seems to make you feel better. Its like prozac without the pill....there is just something so peaceful and angelic and you feel like with all the other stuff going on and all the things that have to get done, that none of it matters, because this is EXACTLY what you are supposed to be doing at this very moment. I am so blessed to have all these babies in my family. I think this is #19 of the Clarke grandchildren: let's count 'em up: Joe, Sean, Michael, PJ, Andrew, Mary, John, Delia, Mickey, Caleb, Chelsea, Molly, Nora, William, Walter, Stephen, Paul, Jamie, Shannon--yep 19. Ok, guys, someone's gotta go for another--we need an even 20! Any volunteers?Baby booties! These were the ones I started making a while ago--you know the ones with the tiny needles and the cable. They were very tedious and time consuming...but just look at the result. Kinda makes me want to knit a whole batch of them--maybe even a pair in cashmere for the precious boy's little tootsies....Awful picture of me....great picture of Walter and his new baby brother. He is very proud of his new sibling and wants to touch his head all the time. What is it with kids and always wanting to touch baby's head??!! Mine were always like that as well. It was always the head. There's some psychology in there somewhere.

On the knitting front, the ribbon cardi is going great. I am plugging along and giving myself little deadlines. Hope everyone is well. Now, go hold a baby...it'll make your day!

HEY everyone!

Ok, so its been a whole week. Where has all the time gone? I sent the kids back to school on January 2nd. Now, I know that there are times when its ok to send them back...when the whole "mommy--what's for breakfast, or mommy, what's for lunch, or mommy, what's for dinner" thing gets old, but honestly, I felt like it was still the holiday when they went back. I did not let on to them, that I thought it unfair and way to early to go back---are you crazy man?! I couldn't let them see my weakness....I would forever be the wounded gazzelle, and they would be the victorious pumas! No way man. So I gave them a hearty breakfast, told them to buck up and sent them on their merry way. I am proud to say that there were no tears...just some wistful looking kids.

So, on to the knitting front. I took my mother in law up to a yarn shop in Columbia..called All About Yarn. It was a bit difficult to find in that it was located in a sort of industrial park--you know, lots of long, one-storied buildings housing such various businesses as car parts, sheet metal supply and well, yarn. (which reminds me of a really funny shop in my husband's home town of Canon City Colorado, where there was a shop that was a 1. taxidermy shop 2. car cleaning service and 3. hair salon; the name of this magical place (and I am NOT KIDDING) is "Fluff 'em, Buff 'em and Stuff 'em --yeah, I have a picture too) But I digress...so I walked around for a while and ended up buying some beautiful Debbie Bliss cashmerino yarn to make this ruffled cardi. The yarn is incredible to work with--I have to admit, I LOVE Debbie Bliss yarn. It just feels like butter.

So, something I learned from my trip to the yarn store with my mother in law is this 1. NEVER take a non-knitter or non-crocheter to a yarn store! Because this would be like taking me to an automotive store--to a non-knitter it all looks the same. God bless her, she was very sweet and walked around with me until a lovely knitter sitting on the couch encouraged her to sit while I shopped. My mom in law politely inquired as to what the other women were knitting. They responded and were very nice..but you know us knitters when we get in a yarn store....watch out! I hunker down....I touch EVERYTHING, I ask questions, I will look at EVERY yarn in the sale bin, I will not worry about time, I will not worry about money (I had a coupon!), I will enjoy every guilt free minute, knowing that my husband and family are all at home watching football and that for these couple of hours I am completely free to do what I want....so that's what is going on in my head. So the upshot is that I did not stay as long as I wanted...I left some yarn untouched...such is life. It was more important to be kind to my mother in law at that moment then it was for me to fufill my yarn's desires. We had a lovely late lunch and went home to a peaceful home and I cast on immediately. All in all, a good day.

So, here is quick baby hat that I made. My girlfriend just had her first grand-baby. They always referred to the baby as "the bean". She asked me if I could make some kind of bean hat. I wracked my brain, searched the internet and googled it four ways to Sunday. The best I came up with was a pattern from Yarniverse for a pumpkin hat. I tweaked it a bit and here is the hat modeled on a friends' baby. I think its pretty cute. I just have to give the owner of Yarniverse a big shout out as she tried to email me this pattern so that I could start right away. We probably worked on this thing for 3 hours trying to get the emailing thing down. In the end, I told her just to mail it to me and I would wait. She was awesome--go check out her store online. I can personally vouch for their top notch customer service.

I hope everyone's New Year is going well. My personal resolution was to get into shape and so that extent, my husband and I started a running program. I am proud to say that it is going well and we are enjoying it so far. It is so hard to get started but once you do, man do you feel great.

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me....so you know the rest of the song. Actually this picture is from the day after Christmas (my birthday is January ONE). We took the fam, that's Mickey, Dane, John, Delia, Gran (Dane's mom), me and Mary out to Sakura for dinner. Actually Gran treated which was great. It was crowded. Everybody had the same idea...tired of cooking all that holiday food---let's get out! It was great. The chefs are wonderful and very entertaining and my daughter Delia was able to catch several pieces of shrimp when he threw them in her mouth! My wonderful mother in law, has had quite the ordeal getting back home to Albuquerque, New Mexico. First her flight was delayed on Friday, then cancelled all together. Then we were able to re-schedule her for New Year's Eve. We got her on the plane and all was well when my sister in law called to say that a rare fog had enveloped Albuquerque and that her plane was being re-routed to Phoenix. Luckily for us, Gran's best friend lives in Phoenix and was able to pick her up. Unfortunately, Jeanie suffers from early Alzheimer's, and I can only imagine the stress she was feeling when the pilot announced that they would not be landing in Albuquerque. She is a wonderful lady and we are lucky to have her! Hopefully she will make it home soon--I know she was anxious to be home and missed her beautiful hacienda! Star Hats: In a galaxy very near, there lived a loving mother and her beautiful daughter. Her daughter had a wonderful friend, who was much like a daughter to the mother! A pattern was found for star hats, colors chosen, hats knitted, and even lined with fleece so their ears would not get itchy. All was right with the world and the galaxy was safe once again.
Aren't they beautiful....the hats AND the girls. Pattern from Knitting Central, Yarn is Reynold's Lopi, some modifications were made...and about a half yard of polar fleece basted to the inside brim. HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!