Time Flies!

I don't know how it all of a sudden got to be September 7th!  Time is just zipping by!  I have tons to catch up on. 

To the right is a group shot from August 28th.  Everyone was knitting away.

I have been lucky enough to join the TNK group two weeks in a row.  This week was so much more subdued -- school was  in session and it was so much quieter in Barnes & Noble. 

Here on the left, you see Christina.  Please note the pretty bowl that she used to corral her ball of yarn.  She's just too-too! 

Jon showed us his progress on his log cabin afghan.  I love the color combo.  Very nice!

This week, Issy and Jon posed with their county fair entries which all won ribbons!!!  Issy's lovely shawl won first place and Jon won two second place ribbons for his hat and his sweater.  Black on black - it's a little hard to see the sleeves, etc. on the sweater.  He knit the skull on one sleeve but didn't want to repeat it on the other sleeve so designed the diagonal striping pattern.  I like the different designs on the two sleeves - makes it more interesting.  Congrats to both Issy and Jon for entering their pieces in the fair AND winning ribbons!  Way to go!  TNK can now boast Award Winning Knitters!

I made Jon pose again with the Bobbi Bears he's knitting.  Here he holds one that is finished but is awaiting features - nose, eyes, and whatever else he's in store for.  In Jon's left hand, you can see another bear in progress.  He's knitting these for his god-daughters.  Lucky girls!

Well, the Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap has come to a close.  I had fun finding stuff for the person I would be sending on her vacation to the great Commonwealth of Virginia.  I was given Nichole's name as my vacationee.  Nichole lives in New Hampshire and LOVES dogs!!  In fact, her blog is Lapdog Creations and, if you visit, you'll see some great pictures of her furry, four-footed children.

Here, you can see the loot I sent Nichole.  I found just bunches of little stuff from Virginia - a lanyard, a magnet, a 2008 magnetic calendar, snacks made in VA, a CD of songs to celebrate the VA State Parks, etc.  I also sent her some of my soap that I make and the stitch markers shown above.  As soon as I saw these charms at WalMart, I knew I had to make them up for Nichole!  The one on the right can be used as a stitch marker or a scissor fob.

I was in the Charlottesville, VA area one day for a work appointment and stopped by the Visitor's Center and picked up a bag stuffed full of travel brochures and pamphlets for various attractions all over the state.  I really hope she will enjoy looking through all of them.

Nichole is heavy into NASCAR, too.  Living near the hometown of Ward and Jeff Burton, I had to enclose a newspaper insert from our local paper.  I used to teach school with Jeff's wife before she quit to help him full time. 

My vacationer was Vikki.  Her blog is Confessions of a Blonde Sports Fan...Knitting Optional and you can  find her here.  Vikki's box arrived last week and was filled with shredded bright red crinkle paper.  Looked like a party right off the bat!  Inside I found two packs of note cards (one with my name on it), a lighthouse picture frame, a Connecticut magnet, a fragrance diffuser with rattan reeds in the Spice Apple scent (will be great for fall), and a skein of Connecticut hand-spun in my favorite color - GREEN!    There are a lot of places I'd like to visit in Connecticut - Mystic Seaport, Hartford (Mark Twain's home), Litchfield, there's an Art Trail that sounds like fun, etc.  Thanks, Vikki, for my goodies!

I received my new partners for the Fall Stitch Marker Exchange.  This time, I'll be sending two sets of stitch markers to Massachusetts, one set to Indiana, and a set to New York.  This is my third time participating in this swap and I've really gotten some nice markers.  My motto for making and using stitch markers -- "Life is short, Accessorize!"

Things around my house have been a bit ratty ---- literally!  Just a very brief bit of history -- our house was built in 1790 and we bought it in 1984.  We still don't have walls - just insulation except for the kitchen which we finished in 1994 (after living here for eight years with no kitchen - do you wonder how many cuss words you can say while trying to prepare a meal for four when the appliances were in 3 different rooms???).  We have duct tape over holes in the floor where the old radiator pipes used to be and there's a rather impressive crack under the front door now that we've finished jacking the house up and have set it down on a foundation after 20+ years.  My husband, Andy, does it all and he has recently gotten busy working on the house again  I had a meltdown last year and told him that one of us is going to die and leave the other one with this house that will be unsellable because it doesn't have walls OR the one left won't be able to afford to live in it or finish it.  Since that ballistic spell, Andy has finished the basement that he dug by hand (uncovered an old foundation and tons of bottles, etc.), jacked the house up, finished laying the block walls, etc.  Now, he is working on the bath in the upstairs hall.  Then, it will be time to gut the master bedroom (now junk room) and only useable bathroom and redo them.  Once that major project is done, we'll be able to sheetrock the whole house.  YEAH!  The house is listed on the VA and US Historic Registries and will be nice - some day - if we live long enough.  Don't think I haven't considered divorcing Andy and marrying a construction crew, though!  Would get the house finished pronto but that's a lot of men to keep happy -- that would be a lot of trouble. [Photo (dark - taken at night) shows  Gracie playing Queen of the Red Dirt Pile that was delivered to finish backfilling along the basement walls.  Do you see George?  They run up to the top of the pile which knocks little dirt clods loose.  Then, they chase the little clods as they roll down the pile!]

Anyway, I did some in-depth vacuuming over the weekend - the last several times Andy vacummed to help me out (it's been a crappy medical year but that's another blog!).  I was moving right along in the hallway - vacuumed up under the hall table - out of the male vacuum pattern - way up under the hall table and vaccuumed out a rat - large mouse size but with a longer tail.  It was dead, by the way, and heaven only knows how long he'd been there. 

Then, later in the weekend, I was on the backporch with George and Gracie when I heard "EE EE EE!"  I looked and saw Earl Grey coming through the yard with something in his mouth.  Well, it was a rat!  Bigger than my hall rat.  I guess he was bringing it for show and tell.  Well, George and Gracie had to go investigate.  George had a blast!  Earl Grey just dropped it and laid down to watch the show.  At one point, the rat went over and nuzzled against Earl.  That's when I ran for the house and my camera.  (Mind you, if I were blogless, I wouldn't think of taking pictures of my cats with a rat!)  George would try to play with it and it would jump up at him.  The rat would run off and George would chase it, get it, and bring it back.  If you look at the picture closely, you can see the little brown furry thing in front of George's outstretched paw in the bottom photo.  It's a little easier to see in the top photo.

Good times, unfortunatel, don't last forever --- Andy came and squelched the fun with the shovel!

Now for knitty news ------------ I am knitting on the wedding sweater out of the Colinette Giotto.  However, I found a gorgeous shirt that I decided to wear to the wedding instead.  I am still going to work on the wedding sweater and I am loving the colors of the yarn!  I'll post a picture of it when I get a little further along.

When we visited Taylor this past Saturday, I bought him the newest Harry Potter book.  He has read all of the other ones.  He called me yesterday to tell me that he had finished it.  It's like 800+ pages!!  I don't even think he started it until Monday.  He said, in his opinion, it was the best one.  I haven't read any of them and keep saying I will.  One day!  Also, while we were in Charlotte, we met Rachael, a friend of Taylor's.  Had to get them to pose for a photo-op!

Enough for now!!!  I've been working 44/7 it seems and my blog reading and writing has suffered.  I'm headed for vacation next week, though, and will hopefully be doing a lot of both while I'm away!  More on that later!

Comments

[Suz]

Eeeew, on the rat vacuuming! I'd have jumped out of my skin, even is it was dead.

I love the kitty pics, as always.

The doggie stitch markers are too cute.

[isobel]

It was great to see you, as always. We need a "midway" point to meet between your town & ours for a satelite TNK sometimes!!I have entered the shawl in the State Fair, since everyone egged me on to do so! I think Jon will too.

Jackie---Jon & I are not related, except in knitting!!

[Jackie]

Hi Robin!

Welcome back! Sure have missed you this past week...we are so used to reading your blog and seeing your pictures that a week without you is like a week without sunshine!

Loved the TNK pictures, as always...what a great group they are! And, can we all adopt Jon? And, is that a LONGHORN cap he has on! Congrats to mom and son on their county fair ribbons!

Kitties are just getting cuter and Earl is looking more content with them around.

Taylor looking good as always and I agree that last Harry Potter book was the best and very well done... but I hate to see it end...worse than a kid!

[Nikki]

Aw... the kitties are getting so big! And how sweet of Earl to find a mouse for them to play with :)

[Mary]

I'm so glad you got pictures of TNK, since I missed it this week. How great that both Issy & John won ribbons! I love John's sweater and the teddy bears.

Not sure what to think about the rat story, except -- EEK!

[Nichole]

Thank you again for my lovely vacation to VA!!! I absolutely love, love, love everything you sent - it was all so perfect!
That is cool that you used to work with Jeff's wife! She seems so passionate about what her husband does, which is quite nice. One time we had pit passes for a race at NHIS and we were in line behind her for lunch... such a TINY little lady, with such lovely BIG jewels, lol. She seems sweet!
Great pics... I'm enjoying getting to know you now!

[Robin C]

what a nice post to read. I have missed you. Glad the kitties got to play with the mousey. I bet they had fun.

I know you will enjoy your vacation next week after all this activity.

Miss you!