Smurf Eater

I have only a few episodes left and I am all caught up on Orphan Black.
While I have been feeding my television addiction, I have been working on my cardigan.

I am currently knitting the sleeves.

I have also set aside a bit of painting time.
My helper looks like she slaughtered a smurf.

Good thing tomorrow is bath day!

That is about all that is going on in my little world. When I am more comfortable with the progress of my painting, I will take a picture to show you all.
Stay warm everyone.

There is a Thought Circling in My Brain

I just learned this morning that an acquaintance of Little Man was excused from school to play in a hockey tournament in P.E.I.
I think it's great that the young man is involved in extra curricular activities. My only thought at this point is, is he not a bit young to be taken out of school for this sort of thing? Does this happen a lot with students in elementary school?
I just can't support this act. My thought is education should come first. What happens if the young person is injured. I have read a few news reports of sport injuries occurring in young people that are not able to heal as easily as we would like to think. Could that not create a lifelong problem for the young person.
With the strong focus on sports, are they lacking in other areas of life, reading, writing and arithmetic?
What happens if the parents or guardians have invested all of this time and money and it turns out that the young player is not really that good? If their education is lacking, how will they support themselves later?
Not to mention the time off work with the loss pay.
I just cannot understand that level of commitment to something that takes away from education.
Maybe someone else with experience can explain.

A Few Pairs of Mittens

I have finally completed written and charted patterns for a couple of mittens that I had designed.
My first one are my Super Hero Mittens.


My second pattern, I titled Tied with a Neat Little Bow.


Both of these patterns can be found through Ravelry.

Mother Nature

I have been reading up on various herbs and plants that I could plant next season. I really enjoyed the fact, that for most of the meals I prepared, the herbs were straight from our garden. That is a really cool feeling.
On many of these sites, there are quotes listed about how we should respect our Earth and the lessons that are found within nature. Mother Nature for example trying to teach us of balance and harmony. I am wondering what sort of lesson we are currently experiencing. Last week it was -30. Over the weekend it was +5. Now we are experiencing some very light snowfall, coating all the objects we forgot to put away before winter was upon us.

I took this photo from the back deck. I have not been outside yet this morning. It is one of those lazy mornings where I stay in pj's because I work tonight. It helps trick my brain so I can start my sleep routine sometime this afternoon.

Everyone is in a lazy mood this morning. Even Jackie. She has taken position on the stairs.

From here, she has a good vantage point of all the goings on. It is especially more convenient for her to keep tabs of the cats. This is something I wholehearted support since my bowl of yarn has had to enter the witness protection system.


I keep changing its location to keep Reno guessing.

I have been working on a cardigan for myself.

Trying to keep pet hair off of clothing seems almost an impossible task. That person who invented the lint roller was a genius.

When you think about it, there are a lot of inventions that we have witnessed that at one point seemed impossible. I was watching something on television the other day that was explaining there will be a car available to drive itself. You can be sitting in your home, start the engine and have it drive up to your location, all without you leaving your seat on the couch. Hanna and Barbera were a head of their times.
I imagine when this sort of technology finally hits the streets, we will be quite shocked. Just think! There you are minding your own business and you see this car roll by without a driver. I can't wait to see this thing where I live. I don't think I'd be able to release any control of my vehicle and let a computer drive, but I would be willing to give it a try at least once.
Then again, what if this technology is already other there and that is why we are having all these wars. People just do not want to have all this advanced technology within the grasp of the common people. It would shift the balance of power for a lot of governing bodies and their countries.
Whatever transpires, I'm sure it will be on the stuff that science fiction is based.

Everyone OK?

Did you survive the holidays?
Everyone in your household is accounted for?
We are all doing well over here.
Just a little be tired from all the celebrating but nothing a routine cannot remedy.
We get to start a new year.
How exciting.
A time to create new adventures, try new hobbies. Maybe we can make time to actually practice that hobby we said you were going to start last year. We have all these possibilities. I love it.

We drove to my parents for New Years. It went well. Everyone behaved. There was no judgement or condescension. It was actually enjoyable.
We managed to hook my step father on Dog the Bounty Hunter.
Jackie chased my mother around with her squeaky toy. Jackie is the owner of the squeaky toy, not my mother.
Little man showed my step father how to use his cell phone to take and send pictures to people.
The weather network was not turned on once!! That alone is a small victory.
Jackie even did very well during the six hour drive there and the six hour return trip. I think she was just really excited to have all the humans in the same location for an extended period of time.

Now we recover.

That blue monster is the squeaky toy in question.

With the holidaysover, I can show some of the presents I knitted for people.
Frosted Pine:

Wrapped in Bows. A knitting pattern that I designed for which I am currently working on the pattern. If only my Word program would cooperate.



Do you remember the wool that a friend mailed to me the other month?
Here are the finished products:
Estonian Leaf Cowl


A slouch toque for which I have forgotten the name and I am terribly sorry because I mailed the pattern back to the recipient for her records.....

It is a very simple pattern that knits up quickly.

Now that the stressful holiday knitting is over, I can knit whatever I want in whatever time I want to allot!
I have started with these socks:
Simple Skyp Socks


I like the braided look of the skyp stitch.


I am using Patons Kroy Socks yarn and am really enjoying it as it moves across the needles.
Reno likes it as well as he keeps trying to steal it when my head is turned


While I am being all crafty, Jackie has tried her paw to be crafty in her own right.
I am finding these little stickers everywhere.

I must have picked up a few dozen of these little sticker. Their original intent was for Little Man to mark special days on the calender.
Now Jackie has created a massive search game that has lasted a few days. I would like to know how they were placed on the ceiling....

Right now we are debating whether it is worth the effort to go for our morning walk. It is currently -25 C where we live.I just do not want anyone to freeze to the sidewalk. On the other hand, it will make us move faster and make for a calmer afternoon.

Whatever you all decide to do with this day, I hope you enjoy it!
See you later.

'Tis The Season

....and I would really love to just phone it in.
I am not truly feeling any Christmas spirit whatsoever.
We managed to erect our Christmas tree. It does look lovely. I am so proud of the fuzzy children because they seem to be behaving themselves.
Unless of course, they are lulling me into a false sense of security and the proverbial shit will hit the fan any day now.

A few items have been purchased and a few have been made to show my appreciation for family and friends.
This is a toque I am currently working on called Frosted Pine.

I am really enjoying this pattern. There are a few different cables and twists that give me a sense of awe when I see them emerge in the product.

We are also debating about whether we will be visiting my parents for the holidays. There has just been so much drama over absolutely nothing and I just do not have the energy to deal with it. If I really think the situation through, I would love to just stay home. Spend time with my little family and just enjoy doing normal stuff. We could have a nice meal. Watch a movie or two. Find a use for the mountain of snow that has fallen in our little world. In the end, it will most likely be guilt that takes me across six hours of actually pretty scenic roads. I think that this is the reason behind my melancholy. It will pass. I try to remember that I am really fortunate that I have everything I could possibly need. There are many people out there who would feel blessed with even a third of everything that we possess.

Thank you for letting me vent a bit. Jackie and I are going to catch up on Supernatural and call it a day!
Night everyone.

Winter is Here

We had our first snow fall the other day. Compared to other parts of the world, it barely snowed. I enjoyed looking at the photos of Buffalo. There is something magical, awe inspiring, terrifying and beautiful about Winter. It takes a strong person to like this season.
With the little snow we acquired, Little Man and Jackie had a great time outside. Especially Jackie as it was her first experience with snow.

I am very thankful I no longer live in a place that has the possibility of double lake snow effect.

I've found my drawing mojo. I was so inspired when Hubs took this pictures at work, it actually motivated me to sharpen my pencils.


This is my version:

I'm happy so far with my progress and I am looking forward to continuing.

I have also been knitting. I finished a pair of Socks on a Plane


I have also been speeding through a pair of mittens called Cabobble.

I just need to add thumbs.

A friend has requested I knit her friend a hat. I said ok as long the materials are sent my way.
This is the material I will be working with:

The tag says the colour is Crimson. I cannot tell if it is red or a dark pink to be honest. I do know that I am looking forward to this little project.

Well, it has been a busy day for us.
Jackie is starting to shut down,

and I am recovering from a cold that has knocked me on my butt.
We are going to settle in for some serious cuddle time and call it a day.
Have a good night everyone. :)