With all my love

Cin-Ru's hat is finished and ready to go.

I love this pattern and am seriously considering knitting myself one in purple. That way we have matching hats! We are going to send it in her birthday care package in April. Yes, I know April in Taiwan is not winter hat weather. But I still hope she'll appreciate the gesture that her future mom knit her something special.

Next up - socks!

DTT!

DTT - Dossier to Taiwan!!

All adoption programs have a multitude of acronyms. China has this special one called DTC, or Dossier to China. I am thieving their acronym to say that we are officially DTT! Our dossier is currently en route to Taiwan. It will arrive just as the adoption agency reopens after Chinese New Year.

We are still waiting on a few things. The mayor to sign off on our girl's adoption paperwork. The Taiwan agency to finish writing their analysis of us, our girl, our interactions on Skype, etc. Then we're off to court! I can't wait!

I'm almost done with Cin-Ru's hat. I worked on it while with my knitting group this morning but had to stop because I needed to switch needles and left the DPNs at home. Whoops. All I have left are a few decrease rows and this hat will be complete.

I really like how the hat is turning out. I'm going to knit myself one in purple so that we have matching hats. Like mother, like daughter. Mother. Daughter. Those two words make me want to cry with joy.

New knitting project

When we discovered that Cin-Ru's favorite color is blue, I decided to knit her a hat! We sent her a letter last week, in which I told her that I had started a hat and asked if she would prefer I mail it for her birthday or bring it with me when we meet in Taiwan. I promised that I would show her the hat progress on the next Skype call (this Sunday afternoon!) so I have to knit fast and furious to make sure the hat actually looks like it will be a hat!

This is the lovely yarn I found.

And here is the very beginnings of her hat.

The ribbing is done for the brim and I am over half done with the first of four repeats. I don't aim to finish the hat before Sunday, but I would like to be at least half done. I have a lot of work to do!

2014: The year of UFOs

This year I didn't really make any new years resolutions, other than to finish up the myriad of half completed projects laying around my house. Today I made an inventory of every project that has been started but is incomplete. This list will keep me busy for awhile!

Quilting Projects

Monkey quilt
Christmas tree table runners
Disappearing 9 patch quilt
Hazel's Diary mystery quilt
Rail fence quilt
Denim quilt

Knitting Projects

Mom's book bag
Jeff's secret project
Growing leaves cowl
Baby blanket
Winged scarf

Home organization

Spare bedroom
Living room storage
Pantry
Clothes closet

Digital organization

Digital photos
Cookbook
Blog redesign

I'm excited to tackle some of these projects. I need something to keep me busy while we wait for the adoption to finalize. It'll be a relief not to have half completed projects laying around when our daughter finally comes home. Then I'll be able to start new projects with her! I wonder what her interests will be...

Knitting for Thailand!

Well, I'm not actually knitting for Thailand. I finished a knit project for a specific young lady in Thailand whom I have gotten to know through letters over the past year. I hope she likes what I've knit her.

Getting ready to start

Bruno watching over my knitting efforts

Blocking in progress

Bruno inspecting my blocking

Finished hat and scarf

Lace detail

I will be mailing these off tomorrow, along with a couple of pictures of me knitting them. I'm afraid to say that I'm too shy about being photographed and have not yet sent any pictures of myself to my sponsored kids. I do send them photos of other things, just not of me. But my Thai girl asked for a photo in her last letter so I'm sending her one. I guess it's only fair, as I look forward to her upcoming photo update!

The sponsorship trip is in just a couple of weeks. I am so, so, so grateful to the sponsor who offered to deliver my gift. If it wasn't for her, I'd never be able to send anything more than paper. And while studies have shown that the sponsored kids are most encouraged by the words we write, it's a blessing to be allowed to send something I made and prayed over especially for her.

Snow hat!

I'm so excited! Another Compassion sponsor has offered to hand deliver a small package to our sponsored girl in Thailand. I'm knitting her a hat and scarf!

My project so far has gone from this:

To this:

The hat is almost complete, other than seaming up the back side. I wish it had been written to knit in the round, but the pattern said knit flat and seam. All that's left is the seaming! I've also started on the scarf but there isn't really enough to show yet. I've been praying while knitting for her. I know our girl's favorite color is green; I hope she likes the hat and scarf!

Baseball and knitting!

Stitch 'n Pitch! Every year, the Seattle Mariners host a section of knitters. I was feeling rather exhausted from the busy-ness of the week but I'm really glad I went. The game was so much fun!

Driving up to the field

Chandelier in the lobby

We had great seats!

Knitting while watching a game!

The field at night

The evening's bonus? Our entire row won a knitting goodie bag! Free pattern books, yarn, and some new needles. Hurray for free knitting supplies!

Hat Progress

I was late to my knitting group this morning because I was asking tons of questions to a local home study agency. Adoption is overwhelming! And we are still miles away from the parenting aspect of it...

At the Eastisde Stitchers meeting, I worked on my Twisted Trellis hat. I'm not fond of the yarn color but it's a practice hat. I'm learning how to make twisted stitches and several new stitch abbreviations. It's really good practice. I can't wait to cast on a project with smaller needles, though!

The second picture is closer to the true color.

Have a great weekend!

On My Needles

I can't remember if I mentioned it, but I've started attending a knitting group on Friday mornings. It's such a wonderful break from being at home! The ladies are really nice and they are very helpful. I'm one of the newest knitters in the group and people keep volunteering to help me. Last week they encouraged me to branch out of flat knitted items so I started a hat!





This is the Welldigger pattern on Ravelry. So far it's been a lot of fun to knit! This Friday I need to buy DPNs so that I can start the crown of the hat. Fun!

A finish!

I finished knitting my kitty blanket! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to catch a photo of the cats actually laying on it.

Close up of the knitting
Here is Fiona checking it out right after I weaved in the ends.

Next up on the knitting queue - a Christmas present for my mom. I will be visiting Joann Fabric this weekend to purchase the needles I need. Thankfully I already ordered and have received the yarn!

New colors!

I learned something new and I am really excited about it.

I learned how to add a second color of yarn! Way back when I used to crochet, I didn't know how to add a new skein or a new color of yarn. I just tied the two colors together and continued crocheting. This resulted in color changes in the middle of a row.

Thanks to the Mighty YouTube, I discovered a tutorial showing how to add a new color.


This opens up so many more options in my knitting. I can't wait to learn more!

Organization and frugality - groceries

Today has been a fairly productive day. I ran out of yarn on my kitty blanket so I'm again without a knitting project! If hubby is able to get off work at five, we'll be visiting Joann's to buy more yarn and some knitting needles for a baby hat.

Kitty blanket - in progress

This morning, I went grocery shopping at Safeway and picked up most of our groceries for the week. We literally eat week to week at our house, running out of groceries at the end of each week. It's crazy!

I've been collecting receipts for the past six weeks and today I started my spreadsheet. We shop at Whole Foods, Safeway, the Asian market, the farmer's market, and occasionally, at Target and Trader Joe's. I'm compiling a list of all the staples - things like refried beans, pasta, jarred tomatoes for our pizza sauce, coconut milk, etc. Most of these stores carry the same products, so I'm recording which store has the lowest regular price for each item.

My plan is to take this list with me each week. When I see that something is on sale, I'm going to stock up. It's frustrating writing down the same basic shopping list. Since most of our meals are the same from week to week, I'd like to have two months of pantry ingredients on hand. And I'd much rather pay sale prices!

Barely Sick Day #4

Today I feel almost normal! My biggest problem is exhaustion. I am so tired and have no staying power. But at least my headache is almost gone and my sinuses are clearing up! Hurray!

I had a few books due soon at the library so we made a quick jaunt last night. I was able to pick up two of my Fall Into Reading books but couldn't locate the third. The catalog said it was available but it wasn't on the shelf.

In addition to the challenge books, I picked up several other Christian novels that are on my to-read list. Every month, when the Nightstand link up is posted, my to-read list grows. I am determined that it will shrink this month!

I also dug around in my craft bins and found some leftover pink yarn. I started the kitty blanket! After all, every cat needs a hot pink blanket, right?

Of course, the real reason we left the house last night is that we ran out of cat food. Our cats are demanding eaters and I know they would be crying if they didn't get dinner. So we picked out a new cat food per vet's orders. Do you know how hard it is to find a cat food with no fish? We exhausted almost their entire shelf before finding a natural food with no grains and no fish. What a difficult combination!

We couldn't help but bring home a new cat toy. Is this creepy or just realistic?

If I catch a glimpse of this toy out of the corner of my eye, I wonder what the cat dragged in and left in the middle of the living room floor. It's a catnip toy and our older cat seems to love it. Our cats are so spoiled!

Hubby got paid today so we're off to the yarn store to pick up some supplies for a couple Christmas presents. I sure hope my family likes handmade gifts!

Thursday's Homemaking

Today I had some additional incentive to finish with my house cleaning early: the library! I thought I had some books due back today and knew that hubby wouldn't be able to go with me after work. Today there is no "after work" as it's after seven and he's still working...

Thursday Cleaning - Stairs and Downstairs Sinks

Sweep and mop stairs

Sweep and mop downstairs hallway

Sweep bedroom floors

Scrub both bathroom sinks (one in master bedroom, one across from washer/dryer in hallway)

Wipe off top of washer and dryer

Tomorrow's cleaning - the shower and toilet in the downstairs bath.

I am so happy that I have a checklist now. I love lists. Next week I will have a printed list for each day and that will provide its own incentive, getting to check things off the list.

As it turns out, I had nothing due back at the library but I was dying to go regardless. So, come 2:30 this afternoon, I finished my cleaning, took a shower, and then hopped in the car. Library, here I come!

When I left for the library, I had 66 items checked out and took a bag of books with me to return. Now that I'm home again, I have 76 items checked out. Oops. That number is supposed to be going down, not up! I spent an hour browsing the shelves, mostly in the quilting section. I am looking for inspiration for my brother's new baby (due in December).

Of course, Bruno demanded that he be included in the photo. I tried to explain to him that they were just books about quilts, not actual quilts, but he insisted.

And two of the books I checked out just for me. My husband was shocked that I dared suggest that I desecrate his precious French press with YARN but finally acquiesed and I said I could knit him a coffee cozy. ;) Ah, true love.

Monday's Homemaking

After yesterday's rather honest confession, I decided that it would be best to try to remedy some of my procrastination/laziness/lack of motivation. It was hard. But I pushed myself and was able to complete all of my housework.

Monday Cleaning - Kitchen

Tidy kitchen

Wipe down front of cupboards

Serious counter scrubbing

Sweep floor

Mop floor

Eliminate junk mail/library book/random pile that accumulates on my counter

Next week I want to add scrubbing the fridge drawers and shelves to my Monday Cleaning.

In addition to this, I swept the entire upstairs and cleaned out the cat boxes. I even washed, dried, and put away all the dishes after dinner! For me, that is a huge accomplishment.

My cleaning is usually finished by lunch. In the afternoon, I study Japanese, read books, read blogs, and knit. Here is today's knitting progress.

I finished the second skein of yarn on my dad's scarf. He wants all three included! The scarf is already almost as tall as I am, about 63 inches so far. Tomorrow I'll be starting the third skein. I hope to have the scarf completed by the end of the month so that I can start working on Christmas presents.

And tomorrow I tackle the living room!

A month of knitting - recap

Whew! I completed an entire month of knitting. Some days I knitted a lot and some days I knitted a little. But I worked on something every single day! I really enjoyed myself.

First, I completed my shawl. That was a major feeling of accomplishment!

The last week of the challenge, I started knitting a scarf for my dad. We had a lot of fun picking out both the pattern and the yarn. I LOVE working on size 13 needles. Such fun!

This scarf should be roughly six feet long by the time I'm done with it. I can't wait to see how it looks!

A Month of Knitting - Week 3

A finish! My first finish in several months. I am so happy!

Sorry for the bad pictures. It's late, I'm still feeling under the weather, and I don't think this shawl is very photogenic. While I am happy to finish it, I kind of wish I had chosen a more distinctive pattern. Ah, well. It's a good starter project. This shawl is very warm and should help keep me toasty this winter. Plus, I love the color!

So what's next? I get to play with this lovely gray, wool yarn.

My dad requested a warm scarf for his birthday. He even picked out the pattern! In July, when I was visiting my grandfather in Wyoming, my dad and I made a quick stop into a local yarn store and he picked out the color and yarn he wanted. The store didn't have enough skeins in one color lot, so I made a special order and it arrived just yesterday. Perfect timing!

I'm really excited to be working with such big needles. What fun!

A Month of Knitting - Week 2

I haven't posted lately because I've been so tired. We are still sleeping on an air mattress and I don't think I'm getting more than 3 or 4 consecutive hours of sleep. We figured out our budgeting and determined that we can order a mattress on September 9th. A little less than four more weeks! Maybe once we have the new bed, I'll be able to get a full night of sleep and have more energy during the day.

Meanwhile, I've been diligent about knitting every day. It's not much but I complete at least two rows each day, roughly 30 minutes of knitting.

I had hoped to complete my shawl this week but fell a bit short. Two inches left to knit!

A Month of Knitting - Week 1

The first week of my knitting challenge is already complete. I knitted every day! Some days were more productive than others, but I knitted at least two rows each day. As the rows keep getting longer, each row takes 10-15 minutes depending on if it is knit or purl.

I had hoped to work on more than one project but my shawl is so close to completion that I'm pushing myself to finish it before starting another.

Bruno supervising my shawl

32" complete

Three inches left to go

I should be able to complete the body of the shawl this week. Then I just have to add the rest of the border. Today was chilly and I could have used my shawl when we visited the mall. I'm excited about being so close to the end!

August - a month of knitting

Because of life happening over the past few months (strange, isn't it?), I haven't had the energy or motivation to commit to a thirty day challenge. Now that we are getting settled in Washington, I'm eager to begin a new challenge. I did not plan ahead at all, just thought of things that I'm already doing but could focus and push myself on. I needed a challenge that does not require any money, thus the need to be creative with what I already own. What better project to tackle than my knitting?

I am going to spend some time every day for next thirty days pushing my knitting knowledge and skills past their current limits. At this point, I do not want to commit to a certain amount of time, but I will pick up my knitting every single day.

Here's what I have on my needles right now:

Moss Shawl
My moss bordered shawl is currently 26 inches long. The goal is to reach 35 inches and then add the rest of the border.

Baby washcloth
I have made this dishcloth pattern before. However, this one is on smaller needles. Hopefully it turns out well!

Upcoming project - fingerless mittens

This is my challenging project for the month - fingerless mittens. Thus far, I have only knitted flat items: a scarf, a partial shawl, and several washclothes/dishclothes. The mittens will stretch my knitting to a new level and I'm excited to try!

I only know three knitters "in real life," but two live in Michigan and one in California. I would love to meet other knitters online! Want to connect with me on Ravelry?