So...

I super suck at blogging as evidenced by how little I actually post. Oh I think about doing it but then I think of all the other things that "need" to get done and all the other things I "want" to do. Also I am not a very talkative person in my everyday life so it really is no surprise that I am not the best at this medium of expression.

I love to read blogs though. I am loving this one. It is so nice to see motherhood expressed in this fashion. I found her blog at the end of Draken's 2 week spring break (that is 16 whole days, days of the never ending "I'm bored" and "Can I have something to eat?"). I started reading the blog from the beginning and I must say it really saved my sanity. Oh, don't get me wrong, I love having my son around. He is a great, funny and sweet kid. The thing is he has this amazing capacity for talking. We are quiet people so I know he did not inherit this talent from Kev or myself. I lay the blame at my mothers feet. The past two weeks have made me think ahead to the three months of summer coming up. I feel fear but then I remember that my mum will be here over the summer months and my son will have someone who loves to chat as much as he.

On the knitting front: I am working on the Textured Tunic from Stephanie Japel's Fitted Knits book (its the one on the cover) out of this lovely silk yarn I got at Artfibers in San Franciso. I actually knitted more than halfway, tried it on and realized it was way too big. I tore it all out and am working on it one size smaller. I get gauge so I know that is not the issue. It is a pleasure to knit though because the yarn is so yummy. I do not think I ever want to knit with anything else.

I am also making the Merino Lace Socks by Anne Woodbury from the new Interweave sock book out of some lovely reddish Orange Koigu. They are fun pretty socks and I have completed one and am working on the cuff of the second. I hope to have them done by the time my 2nd STR club package arrives.

Speaking of the STR club, I finished the first sock pattern out of their lovely monsoon colorway. I adore them. I have never done a toe up sock before and I so love the way they look and the super fit at the toe. I really like that the toe looks rounded and not pointy like some cuff down pattern toes look. It was a fun pattern and I do think I would make it again with a different cuff. Maybe just plain ribbing all the way up. I have not taken a picture of the socks yet (I am lazy) but will get a group photo when the lace socks are completed.

Snow+power outages= no fun

I have been enjoying the snow. Even when we could not get out of our driveway I was still enjoying it. The flush of pleasure evaporated the minute, nay the second, the power went out. I realized at that point that I was wholly unprepared. Now I am used to hurricane preparedness, and I take it semi seriously. Enough water, canned goods, candles and all that jazz. Snow preparedness I am so not familiar with. When the lights went out on Tuesday evening Kevin and I both scrambled around in the dark for a little while (luckily we had a fire in the fireplace) till he found a flashlight. Then I went searching for candles. I have candles, loads of them, they just happen to still be packed away in boxes (somewhere).

Once we had light the evening was nice and quiet. I knit on the clapotis (which I am obsessed with at the moment) and Kev played on his Nintendo DS (of course it has to be a video game ::sigh::). We went to bed a little early. Pulled out extra blankets to cover the kids and piled into bed. I realized at that moment that I can not sleep with utter silence. I MUST have white noise. My evening friend, the electric fan, was silenced due to lack of juice. I lay there awake, in the absolute dark, pining for my airy pal, wishing the power would come on any second. Alas, it did not and I resigned myself to a restless night.

Next morning, Justin (brother in law) was able to come up from town and pick us up at the top of our street and drive us back to his house so we could be warm while we waited for PG&E to restore our electricity. 20 hrs without power is not too shabby, especially when we did not have to spend the whole time in a cold house.

I did not get alot of knitting done. I am working solely on the clapotis right now. Draken's sweater has been pushed to the side right now as I am determined to stay focused on one project at a time. I know that will not last and the clapotis will be thrust aside as soon as my package from Blue Moon comes with my Sock Club yarn. Tonight I will work as fast as I can but I know that the clapotis is doomed to wait, I just hope that it can make it out of the UFO basket one last time.

Snow Day

So, we are semi snowed in. We woke up last Thursday to the whole of our hilltop covered in lovely white snow. It was totally amazing since I have never lived anywhere with snow. Draken ran into our bedroom screaming "It snowed! It snowed!".This was Draken's and of course Keelin's first time seeing snow. We had a pre-breakfast snow ball fight then hot chocolate and a nice fire afterwards. We had a couple days of light snow where it proceeded to melt. A very nice novelty.



Yesterday as I was driving Draken home from school I noticed a light white dusting on our way up the hillside. As we pulled into the drive we had a nice little pile up. Not too bad though. Not this morning. We awoke to complete white everywhere. School was cancelled and all. Still we tried to get Kevin to work, so we piled the kids and ourselves in the van, and proceeded to get stuck in the driveway. Kevin kicked snow from beneath our tires and away we went, till we got stuck in the middle of our road at the end of our driveway. The only thing we could do at that point was clear snow from the drive and pull back in off the road as much as we could. Luckily our brother in law was able to come get Kev and all was well.
I find it odd to look out the window and not see green (or brown). I have always lived where it is warm for a good part of the year. The only time I lived where it snowed was when I was a toddler in Texas and I certainly don't remeber that. It will take a little getting used to. Also, I know the snow won't last long here. Soon, the rain that is usual at this time of year will take over again. We will be taking advantage of pelting each other with very cold snow and making little snow people as long as we possibly can.

All the more reason for me to have a sweater for each of us knitted up. The yoke on Draken's sweater is peeving me off. I really don't think I am doing anything wrong this time with the honeycomb motif, I think maybe it is just the way it looks with the dark yarn (ok, I am lying to myself, I know this so it is ok). Kevin's Aran is next, well after I finish the clapotis that was buried in my UFO pile. Hey at least I am finally working on something from that basket (the SSS [or the shawl of doom]calls out to me everytime I pass it, lol).

Kidnapped!

That is my excuse for not having blogged in so long. The kids they napped me! Would not let me near the computer, let alone the knitting needles. They tied me to the stove and submitted me to countless horrors of cleaning and drudgery.

Ok, so it really hasn't been quite like that but it sometimes seems that way. It is amazing how one can get so busy that the months just seem to fly by. Not to mention that I just have not found my everyday life to be "blogworthy". Knitting has been on the back burner, not to mention spinning or crafting of any kind (a new baby can do that to you).

Things are settling down here though. Keelin is growing fast (almost walking) and Draken is fully adjusted to life with school. Knitting has resumed (finished a couple of sweaters for the babe and am halfway done with one for Draken, not to mention a couple pairs of socks). I have also just started to attend the local spinning guild meetings and am meeting some very lovely women (most of them own whole flocks of sheep. Sweet!!!).

My new motivation for blogging is my recent obsession with podcasts. I just can not get enough of them. They have motivated me to really make time for my crafting. Also it is nice to hear about others adventures and dilemmas in the crafting community. I miss my Knitting Bitches so much but finding the online world of blogs and podcasts has really helped me ease my loneliness. Listening to Lime and Violet is like having Ruthee and the other KB's with me as I knit and laugh :)

The Slacker and The Harlot

Ok, ok, so I know I have been super slacking in the blogging department. I could use the excuse that I have an almost 6 month old babe and a pretty wild five year old to contend with, and that at the end of the day I am just too tired, but that really is just a part of it. I just have not wanted to. I really feel like my life and knitting (or lack thereof) are just not that exciting. Who wants to read about how I got to knit one row on the sock I started when I was in the hospital having Keelin? Which is about 3/4 finished (1st sock) and it has only taken me over 5 months. If I took pics you would not even be able to see a difference. So, why should I blog then I ask myself. The answer is for my lovely Ruthee and my Kniting Bitches. I can not promise them everyday blogging (you would be bored to tears) but they can hope to look forward to at least once a week blogging :)
So, here are some highlights from the last few weeks:




















Draken and Keelin at the Renn Faire












Our new dog Swirl- She is kind of a pain in the butt. Draken loves having a dog though. Hopefully with some training we get her on the right track.

Draken's First Day of School- My little boy has gotten so big. I was sad when I took him into the classroom and he was reluctant to give me a hug. He is so enjoying himself though. He says he does not like soup day though. He does not like the smell and says that only freaky people like soup. Haha!

We have been going to all the various farmer's markets in the area. They are all so nice and it is such a treat to have one in our little town. There are also certain things that can not be conveyed in pictures. Things like the crisp coolness in the mornings as I take Draken to school, the subtle awareness of the transition of the seasons, and the tranquility of living in such a beautiful place.

Well, now that I have caught you all up we shall get to current events. My sis, Sara, talked me into going to see The Yarn Harlot, Stephanie, this weekend. We made our decision Thursday, I booked our hotel on Friday, and I drove the 3 1/2 hours to Los Altos on Saturday (Sara had a 6 hour drive). I have to say it was so totally worth it. My sweet and loving husband watched the kids this whole weekend and I enjoyed a whole day and night without any responsibility!

Sara and I had lunch while we waited to check in at the yarn store, Full Thread Ahead. This is a very nice store in a very swanky shopping area. They carried alot of the Cherry Tree Hill and Lobster Pot yarns. I bought some Cascade Quatro, Plymouth Virgin Wool, and Rios de la Plata for some daiper covers for Keelin. 10% of the stores profits for the day went to Knitters without Borders which I thought was super awesome. There were 300 knitters that showed up for the evening and the store was busting at the seems with all of us fondling wool, silk, alpaca, cashmere, pashmina, mohair and even the synthetics. We all took our seats outside around 4pm and the sun sure was bright and warm. It was great to sit and be surrounded by so many knitters, young and old.

Stephanie took the stage around 5:30 and she was amazing. She is so funny and so personable. She had us all in stitches. We all enjoyed it immensely. I think she talked for a little over an hour and during that time the sun that was once so bright sunk behind the buildings. Once the whole lot was in shade the temperature dropped drastically. Of course I was totally unprepared. I sat there shivering in my short sleeves and capris while I had nothing to keep me warm but one of Keelin's slings and a skein or two of wool in my bag. After Stephanie's talk she moved inside to do the meet and greet and book signings. Sara and I were in the 3rd group so we had to wait an hour or so. Even though there were so many people she had to see and so many books she had to sign, our lovely Harlot took the time to say something nice and sign something special for everyone. We even had picture ops.


Sara opted to have her picture taken with Stephanie,

but I opted for something a little more special. I wanted a special shout out for all my Bitches and The Harlot was happy to oblige.
The sign was autographed and will be sent to Ruthee. We had a great time and it was so worth the drive. Any time The Harlot is within driving distance I will so be there (plus I got to visit a new yarn store which was totally worth it).

Next weeks adventures :California Wool and Fiber Festival

My new Crib

So, this is my new house. Since we are on the side of a hill (although it seems like a mountain to a flatlander like myself) I was not able to get the best shot ever. Hard to take a straight picture on an incline :) We have a neighbor to the side of us and one behind us but since we are pretty much surrounded by trees you do not even notice. Right across the street it is completely wooded. The nice thing is that it will stay that way since the city will not permit any more building up here due to water restrictions. With all the wooded area up here it is really no suprise that the wildlife around this area is so plentiful. We have a very cute family of quail that come out of the woods across the street for a walk with the kids every evening. It is so neat to see the Mom and Pop quail and their five little ones walking in our yard or along the road. We have tried numerous times to take pictures of them but they seem to be camera shy and they run whenever we bring out the camera.

We had another vistor to our front yard the other day. I went out to water the front lawn when I startled this sweet little doe. I really need to keep the camera attached to my wrist from now on cause after running into the house to get it I was only able to get a pic of the deer running away. The deer are every where up here. The saying around here is that it is not a matter of "if" you will hit a deer it is a matter of "when" you will hit a deer. Both Kevin and I are trying to be very careful when we drive into town but the deer just don't care. Kevin had one jump out in front of him the other day, luckily it was a little ways up and he was able to slow down. We were told that during the full moon you have to be very careful driving since all the animals, not just deer, are likely to be hanging out on or around the roads. Deer, bobcats and bears are just some of the animals drivers have been startled by.

This is the view out of our front living room window. I put my glider in front of this window so that when I sit and feed Keelin I can look out at this beautiful view. The whole family really enjoys our new enviroment. It is hot here, but without all the humidity we are used to, we are able to go outside and appreciate it. We have a nice back deck and that is usually where we take our meals at night. There is something so peaceful being able to enjoy a meal surrounded by birdsong and fresh air. We still have not made it to any of the many state parks around here, but once we finish settling in we plan to explore a new one every weekend or so.

There has not really been any knitting to speak of around here. I have been so busy unpacking and wrangling the kids that it has really fallen by the wayside. I did finish all the major knitting on Keelin's Debbie Bliss sweater. Just need to set aside the time to block it and sew it. It is Thursday today and I am still so used to this being my Knitting Bitches night. I miss them all. I am sure that I will eventually find another knitting group to go to but I know that I will never find another group as unique and awesome as they are. I hope you guys have fun tonight, I will be knitting and thinking of you this evening :)

Our Big Trek

Well, we did it. We trekked our way across the whole United States, from Florida to California, in 5 grueling days. Kevin and I have promised that we will never ever move across country again. It is the most insane thing to do with children and a moving truck towing a car. Looking back I should have paid the $6k to have movers haul the junk out for us. Stupid me trying to save money.

I should have known that things would not run smoothly from the moment we picked up the truck. What idiots we were for thinking all our crap could fit into a 16' truck. Dorks! All my wonderful friends and their lovely spouses came over to help us load up the truck. They were awesome and kept to themselves how disorganzed we were and they never once mentioned that I looked like I was going to just freak out :) I was too much in a shambles to take pics of all of them hauling my stuff like I had planned. You will just have to use your imagination. Ruthee's baby daddy, Chuck, is the packing God. He crammed that truck so tight with stuff. I really could not believe how much he fit in it. I really just want to thank all of my friends for being such a help and supporting me even though you didn't want me to leave.

Well, we set out early on Sunday, July 9th, and we made it to Baton Rouge around 10 or so that night. Monday we made our way into Texas (the state that never ends) and ended the day in Sonora. Nice little town, very isolated though. They had mohair goats in that region, which I of course wanted to steal. Tuesday saw us out of Texas and through New Mexico and into Arizona.
This is the western part of Texas. Very pretty but very hot and desolate.
As we passed Tuscon, AZ and got closer to Phoenix the Sun was setting over the desert and it looked so pretty. This pic does not do it justice.

Everthing was going well as we headed into Phoenix, kids were behaving (Draken watched the portable DVD player the whole way), we were making great time and had already travelled 150 more miles than we had planned that 3rd day. It was late and all we wanted to do was get through Phoenix so we were out of morning traffic and get a hotel. Well, as we got to the outskirts our travelling luck had run out. The tire on our car carrier decided that it was a great time to start shredding itself to pieces. We pull over into an evil Walmart parking lot at 11pm and wait for an hour to get someone to change our tire. It was about 12am central time before we get into a hotel. Next morning we decide that since our next destination of Los Angeles is only 7 hours away that we will sleep in a little. Boy did we pay for that.

The drive out of Arizona the next morning went well. Made it over the California border on Wednsday with no problems. At a gas break Kevin and I decide that instead of getting a hotel outstide of LA we would just stop in and visit with my sis for a few hours then get back on the road for a few more hours so that our last day of driving on Thursday would be nice and short. We were about 60 miles outside of LA (and already in the middle of heavy traffic) when Draken tells us he needs to go the bathroom. Now keep in mind this is the first time in over 2000 miles that this kid has asked to go to the bathroom. I could not freakin believe that he needed to go now in the middle of packed traffic. So of course I let Kevin know and I follow the moving truck off the next exit. As the truck rounds a corner I hear a pop and a hissing sound. The car carrier in front of us has blown another damned tire. We pull into a Taco Bell parking lot and I am out of the car in a flash and shouting expletives at Kevin and the tire. So now we have to wait in the 110 degree weather for another hour to have the tire changed. Our plans have changed again and I have Sara locate a hotel outside of LA for us. We finally get to our hotel around 6:30 pm and we go out to dinner with Sara and her husband Sean. It was a nice evening even if our plans did not turn out as expected.

Next morning, day 5, we set out at 8 am the next morning. We are in the hills (mountains is what they seem like) outside of LA and we are coming out of them around 9 am. But there is this super steep hill you have to go down till you reach the plains around Bakersfield. It is so steep that big Semis have to go like 20 mph. As we were reaching the bottom I see this ramp over to the side that says "Runaway Trucks". It is essential a long ramp up with bumpers at the top so that if a truck goes out of control they ride up it to stop themselves from slamming into any of the cars. I was so freaked out by the time we made it to the bottom. I could not believe we had not been crushed to death. We make it out to the farm plain outside of Bakersfield when I start to notice little puffs of smoke coming from the bck tire of the trucks car carrier. Call Kevin and ask him to pull over so we can check. We pull into a little patch of dirt on a side road. I kick the very back tire and it just sinks in. At this point I just can not believe that this is the third tire on the carrier that has gone. We drive the truck to a little gas station in the middle of nowhere and Kevin calls Penske again about the tire. They are upset that this is the 3rd tire we are calling about (first 2 times it was the front tire on the right side of the carrier, this time it is the back tire on the right side). They send someone out to repair the tire. They take the tire off to fix it but they notice that the tire drum will not turn. The man decided to take it apart thinking maybe he could fix it, this is what he found:
The whole tire drum was completely rusted and locked together. We had to wait 4 hours in the scorching heat of S. California waiting for a new car carrier. Needless to say I wanted to throw myself in front of an oncoming semi truck, but instead I sat in the van, exhausted and pissed. At this point we had given up on making it to Willits that evening and all we wanted was to make it to Santa Rosa by dusk. Next morning we would only have an hour and a half trek to look forward to. By some combination of exhaustion and determination Kevin decided when we made it passed the San Fran/Oakland area that we just needed to push on to Willits that evening. I was far too tired to argue. That night is a total blur, but I know that by the time we were past Santa Rosa and in the hills I was pretty giddy with exhaustion and was staring to loose it. Was joking with my mom about seeing creatures coming out of the darkness. We pulled in to Kevin's sisters house around 10pm pst, and we gratefully crawled into beds that had been lovingly prepared for us.

Well, that is the tale of our long journey. Sure it is not as exciting as the tale of the Donner party coming to California but it felt as excuciating to me. Later I will tell you all about the fun I have been having settling into our new house :)