Bittersweet

Well, Spokane was bittersweet. Rachel had a fabulous experience skating at Nationals and enjoyed spending time with her competitors and friends. Then, Kevin ended their partnership. It shocked and devastated Rachel and everyone else. What a lame thing to do. He hurt her so terribly and snubbed everyone else who put so much effort into their partnership. The ice dance community was very excited about their potential and development as a team. I have absolutely no respect for him or his family. We thought this man had some decent upbringing...turns out he is one big irresponsible, excuse waiting to pounce on someone else. I truly hope he does not continue skating as he will no doubt hurt his next partner. It makes me sick.

Rachel is determined to continue skating and is searching for a new partner.

Hope I have better news next time.

Life is Good

WOW...its been a while since I have blogged. Life has been busy. Work is going extremely well. My colleagues are great people. Each of us get along, have fun and work hard.

Biggest news is that on Jan 19, we leave for 2007 State Farm Figure Skating Championships. This is a huge deal! Rachel and Kevin look fabulous for a first year team. Our hope is that they both have a wonderful competitive experience and a good time with their friends.

I have been knittng even though I have less down time. Mostly finishing up projects, perusing through some of the newly published books and magazines.

Pups are still goofy. Stanley has GI troubles and RP's little brain is still off.

Well I should get ready for work. Hope to be better at blogging after we return from Spokane, WA.

Going strong

Starting week three and still having a good time. I come home the good kind of tired. Family life is better too. We all arrive home around the same time, actually sit around, have dinner and talk about our day.

Rachel recently had her 17th birthday. She celebrated with her friends and received beautiful gifts. Its been a good year. Kevin, her skating partner, has brought her tremendous happiness.

Yesterday the weather was perfect for sitting on the deck and knitting. Rachel started a pair of wristlets using hunter green heathered, chunky, alpaca. I'm on the sleeves of her birthday sweater.

Well, off to get my day going. Have to drop some clothes to Good Will

Work is Fun

Lots to learn about the clothing line, transactions, stocking etc. The people I work with are really nice too. Most have poodles and children and are still training their husbands! I do come home tired and my feet are sore but I'm sure after a few days I will adjust. I will be experimenting to find out what are the most comfortable shoes to wear. I have not knit a stitch and will eventually figure out how to balance my day. Working has already helped my sanity!

Off To Work

My new job starts today. I'm a little nervous. Its been almost 17 years since I held a job. I hope I do well. Rachel gave me a refresher course on applying make up and helped me figure out what to wear. That is the tough part..I am a bit chubbier then I was so many years ago and have no fashion sense. I am going to be a challenge!

I am done with the back of Rachel's sweater and have started the front neckline shaping. So far so good. Just two sleeves to go.

OK, I'm off to transform myself into a working woman!

Off To Work

My new job starts today. I'm a little nervous. Its been almost 17 years since I held a job. I hope I do well. Rachel gave me a refresher course on applying make up and helped me figure out what to wear. That is the tough part..I am a bit chubbier then I was so many years ago and have no fashion sense. I am going to be a challenge!

I am done with the back of Rachel's sweater and have started the front neckline shaping. So far so good. Just two sleeves to go.

OK, I'm off to transform myself into a working woman!

Mission still underway

I am making progress on Rachel's sweater. Back is done, front is underway. Garter stitch can be boring, but a switch to addi turbo needles makes the process easier. Gedifra Akona is nice yarn to work with.

Still a few more punchlist items on the house.

Feels like Fall is in the air. I am ready for that.

No word about the job yet. If I hear nothing by the end of the week, I'll look for something else.

On a Mission

I'm working on a birthday present for Rachel, but can't divulge details yet. This is always a risk because she is very sharp when it comes to fashion and style. Hopefully I will get this job and that will help my dilemma of "What Not to Wear."

Its going to start raining sometime today and linger through tomorrow. I've been thoroughly cleaning all the bookshelves. Tossing old stuff, dusting and trying to get some control of the house.

I picked up the new IK Crochet issue and KnitScene, but haven't had a chance to really look through them.

Back to the birthday present.

Somber day

It doesn't seem like its been five years already. 911 feels so recent. The date will always have a powerful tug and an inexplainable emptiness. We have friends who were close by the towers on that fateful day, who survived. Thank God.

My husband is actually in NYC today. Rachel went to classes and is now at the rink. No one will be home until at least 9PM tonight. I'm home cleaning, but its quiet as it should be on this day.

MEDALS!!!!

Yesterday was a spectacular day. Rachel and Kevin won bronze medal in compulsory dances, The Starlight Waltz and Midnight Blues. And THEN, they wowed the field with a fabulous Original Dance to a tango from Vanessa Mae's Choreography CD and won their first GOLD MEDAL as a team. They have worked so hard since their return from Lake Placid... trying to understand and apply the requirements for the new judging system. Its a work in process. But for the next day we are enjoying this feeling. Then they are back to work to make things even better!

Maybe I'll knit today!

Also hoping to have a part time job soon at the local mall. I should know around Sept 18...

Gloom

The weather is plain weird. Mostly rainy and gray, except for Sunday which was a beautiful, sunny day with comfortable temperatures. Today its back to gloom.

The little red vest is done except for the neck, arm bands and side seams. Quite cute. Have to see what to tackle next.

Rachel started classes today and then goes directly to the rink. At least she let me pack up some lunch for her and Kevin.
They have to figure out their fall schedules so they can juggle, school, skating, off-ice and work. Busy two kids.

The handyman came to put the blinds back up. Just a few more items to go on the list. Then, the gardener can tidy up the landscaping.

Time for more coffee.

In limbo

Amazing, but the punch list stuff is getting done..especially the gutters and caulking which is kind of necessary with the remnants of Ernesto expected to arrive this weekend.

I lucked out and found a nice outfit for the Bar Mitzvah at Chico's. That saves me from sewing. I wasn't really in the mood.

Tonight I plan to cast on for the little kid's red vest and look through the new issue of "Knit It." The rest of me is in limbo.

Flat

Klaralund sleeves are sewn together. I have to attach them to the body of the sweater. Rachel is on the ice forever, so I may just try it myself.

Back Lopi tote felted beautifully. It is the perfect shape, size and texture.

I started a cute little Yankee Knitter child's, sleeveless vest using some Schaefer, bright red, yummy, aran weight alpaca. The back is done and I have to cast on for the front. Lately I've been watching some old spy movies that are perfect for mindless knitting.

The house stuff is dragging because the weather has not been cooperating. Its been,muggy, stormy and plain yucky.

I have not done any sewing yet but ordered a nice dress and hopefully it will be OK for the Bar Mitzvah. My diet has its ups and downs.

Overall, I am making knitting progress, and just in one of those flat moods. This post is too boring to continue. Bye for now.
Wish for sunshine and blue skies.

Felting

Today is another day of waiting around for a contractor to appear. I just tossed the black lopi tote into the wash for felting. I have to finish seaming the Klaralund sleeves and then will need help with placing them properly on the body of the sweater. The shoulders flow into the V-neck. Clever construction, but I'm feeling spatially challenged. Rachel to the rescue.

Soon I have to start sewing the dress for the Bar Mitzvah. Hopefully my knitting motivation will spill over into my sewing life!

I have to fess up. I snitched a little PB last night. At least it was natural with no preservatives. Its so hard to change behaviors!
Maybe I should decide on a project that I pick up to work on when I get the urge to eat the wrong foods. Sabotaging myself is not a good thing. I'm going to give this some thought.

Elf Cap

I did return to Weight Watchers...one and a half days in. So far so good. Every minute that passes without snitching the Skippy is a good thing. Having the water bottle within reach is helping, as is aerobic gum chewing.

Last night I continued sewing together Klaralund and then scooted to Borders and bought "Simple Chic" by Jil Eaton. There are lots of cute, quick knits. In fact, I just finished the 'Elf Cap" using some purple Gedifra Donatella. Its adorable and took exactly one skein of the yarn using size 13 needles. Good use for stash yarn.

Back to the Black Lopi Tote and a cup of blueberry coffee, with non-fat H&H!

Assembly of the Noros

I did it! Rachel showed me her seaming technique and I completed the "Tista" sweater. She delivered it this morning to Eva's daddy who is also Rachel's coach. He absolutely loved it and could not wait to bring it home. It felt so good to finally complete a garment and have it so well received. My motivation is back. Tonight I've been sewing together my "Klaralund." I am a Noro fanatic.

The pups finally had a good time running around in the backyard. They've been restricted due to all the construction debris in the yard, as well as the horrible heat. They rediscovered all their favorite spots and smelled so good from sunshine and grass.

Tomorrow I hope to do some sewing, run a few errands and maybe consider officially rejoining WW.

Knitting progress

I actually finished knitting a baby sweater yesterday. Rachel offered to sew it together, or at least show me her technique. The "Tista" pattern is from a recent Noro book. I used Noro Blossom and Kureyon in combination. The colors are not typically used for a little person - beiges, browns, oranges, purples and specks of green, but this little girl is one classy child and her parents are very fashion savvy.

I also have a black Lopi tote going that will need to be felted. I comp'eted a Noro Kureyon, "Klaralund" sweater for myself in a pretty, vibrant blue colorway. Again, I need Rachel's assembly assistance.

Off to an afternoon barbecue.

At Peace

Frank is at peace. His funeral was a wonderful celebration of his life. The day was glorious. The church was comfy, family and true friends paid tribute to a beautiful man. He was laid to rest in the church cemetary. Frank is less then a mile from his home so we can easily go visit him anytime....especially when we all need some fixing!

I'm in the mood to knit again.

How ?

How do I adjust to a world without Frank? How does anybody? He passed away last night about 10PM. Frank gave that damn melanoma a brutal fight. Frank has never been weak. I just hope he did not hurt. That would be too unbearable. I'm so glad Stanley my white poodle pup was there for me to cuddle with. Animals know just the right thing to do. Stanley met Frank a few months ago and the two hit it off. This man was so absolutely wonderful in every way. Frank's family too...just amazing people. He really isn't gone and will always be in my heart.

Tough Week

Its been a chaotic, worrisome week. Finishing up the house repairs is always a pain. Everyone is on edge and wants to be done. One of the pups became ill with a severe GI bug which required two nights at the vet. Rachel is flying home from NC tomorrow. Hopefully that will not be too nuts for her. Frank is being kept comfortable.

This world needs to return to a simpler, less chaotic life with no gadgets..except of course knitting needles.