A New Year.....A New Outlook

I have been racking my brain for some original, entertaining ideas for blogging in 2011.  Let's face it, my life is not newsworthy on a daily basis.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  Peace and quiet is what we strive for, however, it does impose some challenges when it comes to blogging material.

I have been discussing a few ideas with a couple of important people in my life and will likely designate a couple of days a week on the blog to specific subject matter.  What I am most excited about is the first challenge will involve the SF.  In the past, I have encouraged him to participate in the craziness that is my blog proposing a 'he said, she said'  format since he always has so much to say offline, but he wouldn't bite.  (He's yelling over my shoulder that it is because he isn't as witty as I am.  I say it's laziness.) We have now come up with something that appeals to both of us.  A photo challenge.  A fun challenge really, but if you know anything about us, we both love a little fun competition.  And if you know the SF intimately, you know he makes a better loser than a winner, so here's hoping he loses.

Weekly we will select a subject for our challenge.  The image will be our own interpretation of the topic.  I'll post each one of our photos anonymously each Monday, and entitle the post MUGSHOT MONDAY.  In the meantime, I'll  attempt to figure out how to work the voting thingamajiggy on the blog (I have a week or so to figure it out - should be plenty of time) so you, the readers, may vote and hopefully we'll garner a few more comments and encouragement.  I will also announce the next week's subject matter at that time.  Hopefully, we can agree on some rules to post by the first submission.

First MUGSHOT MONDAY challenge - RED.  Don't ask me?  The SF picked it.  Apparently he already has a million ideas.  We will alternate choosing subject matter from the numerous ongoing challenges posted at DP Review website.  The first MUGSHOT MONDAY photos will be displayed on 10-January and will continue weekly....or until we get bored.  Look forward to your participation and if you feel like joining in, please feel free to email me a photo and I'll add it to the challenge.  Any and all are welcome.

More Christmas Knitting....

As promised, a few shots of my hubby with his new Christmas toque on....

watching the Canada vs Russia game on Boxing Day.

The pattern, if interested can be found here.

A Happy Man....

With Happy Feet

 

Someone is looking for a toady scrub with those new socks. He figures since knitting them was a team effort, that he should reap some of the glory.

Just In The (St.) Nick Of Time!

With 26 minutest to spare, I have finished the dreaded Christmas bedsocks for my dear husband. Unfortunately the SF is out protecting the people, so he is not able to be home to enjoy them.

Hmmm....these are looking like an awfully good match with my new Christmas jammies. I might have to reconsider gifting these babies....

...or just make a pair in my size.

Merry Christmas to all!

Maybe If All Family Members Had Been Cooperative?

Then I might have got 'er done last night. But someone had their own agenda.

This was where I left off last night. I say A for effort! I have about 2-1/2 inches to go. Turkey is now in the oven. Sweet Potato Pie is just about done. Double-Cooked Mashed Potatoes are done. Stuffing done. Husband & dogs, napping. Time for me to hit the sticks again. Christmas isn't over yet and even if it doesn't get done today, he did get a hand made toque. I'll post a photo of that later.

The Home Stretch

Well.....that might be stretching it because when you wear a size 13 shoe that stretches on for ever and ever....let's just say that I could be up all night long. It's 10:41 pm here right now and I'm not hopeful.

In the knitting world, fingerless mitts are on fire right now. There is currently 4,317 patterns for fingerless mitts on RAVELRY.com and more impressively, 120,764 pairs of fingerless mitten projects completed there. I'm just wondering if toeless socks will catch on with the same zeal or zest? Maybe the SF will start a new trend with his toeless sock. I sure hope so because I need to get some sleep before I have to get up in the morning and see what Big Santa left me under the tree.

You Thought I Was Kidding, Right?

I told you he gets closer and closer.

Seriously?  This knitting is exhausting work.

Take Note....

A knitter covered in loose strands of wool usually indicates some frogging (ripping out your knitting) has taken place.  (Excuse the pornography.  This shot gives new meaning to the term "blue balls".  And, as some of you may know, when Ernie actually did have a set, he only had one visible externally therefore this photo is true to form.

Where was I...Heel Flap done.  Check.  Heel Turn done.  Check.  Gusset...in progress....frogged.....in progress!

Geez....I must have been a really good girl this year because either he's JUST watching TV or I got a lot more presents than he indicated....probably more than I deserve but I was a pretty good girl this year.

Despite My Best Efforts

...this Christmas is becoming reminscent of last. Not because I am knitting the Christmas Sock but because the SF is downstairs wrapping his presents. Apparently I am not the only procrastinator. Thank goodness for gift bags!

Sock progress.  Cuff done.  Check.  Leg done.  Check.  Heel Flap...in progress....

Everyone needs a trusty knitting companion like mine.  He gets closer and closer until he has me pinned into the corner of the couch and I can't move without crushing him.  What would I do without him.

How To Get Out Of Making Dinner.



Lonesome Sock

How to get out of making dinner.....threaten that his sock won't be done for Christmas and endure the guilt trip associated with him making dinner after working a full day.



One hour down....cuff done.

Dinner's calling.  Must eat!

Bah! Humbug!

As a majority of the population does, at least I'm hoping, I have procrastinated on one of my gifts.  If I recall, I was in the same position last year?!  This time around I thought I would have a little fun with it.  Of course it is a knitting gift.  I think last Christmas Eve the SF and I were in separate ends of the house while I knitted away and he sat by his lonesome.  Actually, I think he was wrapping presents.  This year, I started knitting them in front of him.  They were, in actuality, a last minute request on his part.  He wanted a pair of ankle socks to wear around the house.  Our friend T refers to these as bed socks.   I searched my patterns and extremely large stash, made my selections, gained approval and cast-on.  One sock down.  One to go.

I currently have 7 hours until Christmas arrives...... let the countdown begin.  Did I mention I still have dinner to make, dishes to do, dogs to play with......

Regardless, casting on...  updating soon.

It's a Boy!

Ernie would like you all to meet his little brother, Oliver Angus MacDuff.  Born July 2, 2010.

  Ollie, for short. 

 He is a mixed breed, Yorkie & Affenpinscher. 

  Really, he is just a devil in a 4lb package and has kept us all on our toes.

 

Ernie has nicknamed him "the little black bastard" and speaking for both the SF and myself, we might have to agree!  Just look at that face! 

He arrived this past Saturday....really? Has it only been 6 days. I think we both feel as if we've run a marathon. From the minute he hits the floor in the morning, until he FINALLY crashes in the evening, it is Go...Go....Go!  That is, IF he crashes because there have been a couple of nights that he has woken us up every hour on the hour.

While Ernie was not, and occasionally remains, unimpressed, he seems to have found a playmate at his own level.  There have been much ping-pong battles, theft of squeaky stuffed animals, bone munching, tug-o-wars on a fox tail and tag games happening in the household. 

 And needless to say, with ALL of that exercise, there have been many naps.  

 

  

(Look at sweet Ernie sharing his bed with his little bro. Now he knows what it feels like to sleep with a bed hog.)  There have also been first car rides, first visits to the vet who instantly poked him with needles and stuck Q-tips in his ears.  Ollie has indicated he's not too sure about that place.  He also went for a walk on the beach with Ernie and his new buddy from down the road, Cabby.  That was a bit of a gong show.  Between balancing three dogs, a shoe lace that wouldn't stay tied, over dressed dogs who wanted to shed their Macintosh coats so they could be set free, too many gloves, scarves, cameras and an attempt to outrun a fellow dog walker and his three rather large looking boxers.  Well, let's just say that our first foray to the park turn a usually stress relieving walk into a stress inducing one.  It'll get better, right Itchy?

There have also been a few reported incidents of spooning.....I'm just sayin'

I wonder if this means that I have to change the name of the blog?

Taters

I know, I know.  I haven't written in what seems like months, but I have been.....hmmm...I have been many things.  1) I was a little wiped out after company for about a month straight.  I was almost comatose for several days.  2) I. then, was going through the blues and serious withdrawal from my Mum and Dad.  Still missing them like crazy.  3) We were putting the house back together after having company.  Okay, okay.  I was watching the SF do the work while I lounged on the couch.  4) I was trying to get a little end of the season  gardening done.  Not much success there either.  5)  I had a million emails to catch up on and I'm still working on catching up on some personal bookkeeping.  6)  I have had multiple appointments to make and attend.  7) I have been stitch n bitching with two of my favourite bitches (sorry for the language Mum) and other than that, 8) Life has been sorta dull.  In order to get back in the swing of things, I thought I would start off small here and share some Summer memories with you.  So here goes....

Only in PEI can you have potatoes pop up in your flowerbeds unexpectedly.  Do you remember the Lasagna Garden that was on my springtime list of things to do (I should really revisit that)?  Well, it didn't turn out as well as I hoped.  I set it up on a slope and, made the bed too deep which made it difficult to get into.  At some spots the material is close to two feet deep and is quite unstable to stand upon.  That, and the garden was infested with earwigs so that I had visions of the little critters getting inside my shoes and socks while I was standing within/upon the flower bed.  Anyway, the bed was somewhat abandoned.  I did put some flowers in it, and a few eggplants as well.  But, somewhere along the way a new plant started growing.  One that I hadn't planted.  I decided to let it grow and grow it did.  It got bigger and bigger.  In fact, it ended up growing larger than anything else in the flowerbed.

This is the bed at the beginning of the Summer.  The plant in question is just poking out here in the front right hand corner.

It was the subject of many conversations between the SF and I.  What was it?  On our many trips out into the country (Hell, we live in the country?), we would inspect the farmer's fields for anything similar and then try to determine what they were growing?  We suspected potatoes but just didn't know.  Many times I was tempted to yank it but I fought the urge until it had reached a healthy size.  The nice thing about the Lasagna Garden is that the growing material is quite lightweight so it is simple to pull anything out of it, whether it be plants or weeds. 

I gave a yank and voila!  Ah ha!  Potatoes!  I was right!  PEI potatoes everywhere!

Perhaps it was because they were mutant looking or because we hadn't actually planted these as food, we just kind of left them kicking around the garden.  They were directly in the path of the SF's veg garden, so occasionally you would give one a kick on your way to check out the veggies.  And then one day, we found a use for them.

You see, little Ernie would always pick the most inopportune time to "make compost".  Normally we have a designated spot at the top of our yard for him to lay down a load.  We refer to it as "The Pooh Patch".  It's close to the front door for the simple fact that at nighttime, he won't get eaten by one of the foxies or the gang of three (raccoons) or worse, get skunked.  It's also convenient when the weather is not cooperating.    It's  simple enough, most times, to grab a Pooh Bag to scoop up his little treasures and chuck them in the city compost bin (they are compostable bags, people.  Nothing but the best!). 

All that said, there are times when you have packed your wheelbarrow full of tools, dog cages, keys, extra layers of clothes, sustenance - whatever the case may be and are heading down to the veg garden to put in a good days work.  Ernie is toodling along behind and decides, "Hey!  This path looks like a good place to "bake a brownie".  Of course the one thing you didn't pack in your wheelbarrow is a "fudge bag".  SHIZNIT!  And of course, the next half a dozen times we would pass it, we would holler at one another to "Watch out for the landmine".  Well, one day the SF came up with the stellar idea of using the taters as markers, much like a golfer uses a dime to mark his or her ball placement, we started to use the taters to mark Ernie's "nuggets" thus making the markers....are you ready for it.  POOH-TATOS!  Have you had enough of me yet?

What Are Little Boys Made Of?

What are little boys made of?

Frogs and snails

And puppy-dogs' tails,

 

That's what little boys are made of.

 
Missing you Cabby!  Let's walk soon....Ruvs, Licks, Wags & Wiggles,  Ernie

Say Hello To SOPHIE!

Last week, Itchy, Scratchy and myself went on a road trip. More quality girl time! We headed to Belfast Mini-Mills and were greeted by Sophie.  Meet Sophie! 

Isn't she adorable?!  She's only 5.5 months old.  Actually, she looked like this when we first got there.

Apparently she is a late riser.  But she must have been having great dreams.

I mean, seriously, look at that smile on her face.  Heavenly.  Hog Heaven, actually.

There was a whole petting zoo there....of sorts.  There were goats....

Ernie's personal fave, COWS!

Sheeps...

And....ALPACAS!

 Of course, alpacas.  I almost forgot the purpose of the trip was to buy wool.

 When I was in Baddeck at BAAdeck Yarns, yes that's no typo.  It is called BAAdeck yarns....anywhoo, when I was there chatting with dear sweet Betty, she said that every yarn shop should have a hardware store attached for husbands to visit while their spouses are in wool heaven.  I've changed my mind on that theory.  Every yarn shop should have a hobby farm attached to it.  I might spend less money on wool and more time talking to the animals......NOT!

Perhaps next time I visit, I will take the tour of the mill itself.  This time, we were happier to visit with the animals and shop, shop, shop.  One of the women there showed us a toque that had been knit out of a wool made from the fur of a Samoyed.  If only I had known that you could take your dog's fur and make it into something you could keep forever, I would have saved Rookie's.  What a keepsake!

What I Did On My Summer Vacation. By Ernie.

Making friends at the Wood Island Ferry Terminal

Picking up chicks with my Dad on the ferry to Nova Scotia

Catching Waves at Peggy's Cove.

Okay, so I was a bit of a wimp, but this was the same day Hurricane Igor hit Newfoundland.

At the waterfront in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Eskimo Kisses with some strange beast.

A well needed nap in the car as we drove to our next destination.

I'm sure you might have figured out where I am.

That's Lunenburg, Nova Scotia in the background.

Exhausted at the end of a long day of sight-seeing.  I love Ho-Jo's.  That is Chocolate Lake in Halifax in the background.

TV time with my Grandpa.  We like to watch Westerns together.

Summerside, PEI

Me & Grandma goofing around.

Lifeguard Duty at the Shore.

A picnic at Tignish Shores, PEI



Snuggle Time with my Grandma.  Nothing Better.  Miss you Grandma.xoxox


And those are just the hightlights.  Could life be any grander.