Baby Surprise Jacket!!!

Today I finished the Elizabeth Zimmerman baby sweater! This is how it looks while knitting it on circular needles. It was great fun because as it is knit you can see how it will lay as a sweater - okay, maybe YOU can't!








So, if you flop the thing over, maybe you can!

















I left for Jo Anne Fabrics early this morning on a mission for the cutest buttons ever! Well, I had already decided that the cutest buttons ever were going to be Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit buttons since the colors of the sweater are in his outfit! YES, I remember what he was wearing - I did tell all of you about chamomile tea, right? That was thanks to Peter Rabbit's mom! Anyway, I found these! Made for me!


















The sweater is in the process of being blocked - see the pins?


(The buttons are just sitting on the sweater - not sewn in as of yet. LOVE THEM!)



But you can get a good idea from this.










You really can't know how exciting this is...to take yarn, make a fabric, and have it come out SOMETHING!

Way more gratifying than the knitting machine, though I would love to have that out, too!


BTW, my surgery has been rescheduled for August 13th, so more chemo caps, baby hats,







and maybe one more of these?

Mystery Wrist Rash!

Sometime between washing my hands at the hospital and getting my IV put in, I got a rash on the wrist that was to be repaired this morning!

God must have wanted otherwise... Tom was sick for the week at the lake and I did NOT get near him since I did not want to have to cancel due to a cold and sore throat. (I didn't get sick BTW).

The rash was enough! I have to reschedule at a later date.

Update:

Grandpa Reel was in the hospital the same day my surgery was to be done - -and Laura ended up at the hospital for an emergency room visit that was a way to find "BOB!"

So, I was not meant to be the one getting all the love and attention! Glad you all are OKAY!!!

God is good!

Guess I can make more chemo caps and baby hats for the end of July!

Reel Girls!

Caroline, Molly, and Shannon came up for a Fourth of July visit.


"REELy" great girls! It was wonderful to see them and to get to know them a bit better.


How time flies - thought you would want to see how lovely they are!

Steven's togue...Do you want one, Ashley?

I made the togue for Steven - the same pattern as my first one. This one is a finer strand wool on smaller needles. I have plenty of wool to make another one - if you would want a matching one, Ashley.

Just let me know!

BTW, it is was great to work with - it heated up nicely on my lap, and then it gave off a slight fragrance... Tom thought it was the scent of the store, and it could well be! Very nice!

SQUARE KNITTING NEEDLES!

When Tom and I were in Boulder, I asked the man at the information desk on Pearl Street where the yarn shop was. I thought that I remembered reading in one of the knitting books that there was one in Boulder, so on a fluke, I thought it was worth a try. Well, he knew! He said that the shop used to be on Pearl Street but had moved farther down Broadway.

To my surprise, dad said that we would go find it. We did! WOW, that was a knit shop... It was called Shuttles, Spindles, and Skeins, Inc. The shop was about 25 times the size of Yarnia (the local shop that just opened in our neighborhood). They had everything! If I knew more about yarn, I could have probably come away with a wish list - or enough yarn to make eating for the rest of the week impossible!

I asked to see their needles, I figured that is a more permanent piece of a knitter's collection than yarn would be, so she showed me these! Let me tell you, they are great, although a bit costly. I checked the internet and found the price I paid to be the same as the online price at other stores.

I used them on our trip to make this scarf... there is no difference in the shape of the stitches as yarn will not hold a square shape after being dropped off the needle, but there is ONE huge difference that makes the cost balance out. I am always dropping my needles. NO, not stitches, NEEDLES! But, with these, you can grasp them better - less dropping. On this scarf, I think I only dropped the needles twice, quite amazing for knitting in the car, at the pool, and with the girls jumping around! So, even though the owner of Yarnia said that she thought they were a gimmick, I don't think so!

BTW, they are BEAUTIFUL! And, being a kinesthetic person, I love how they feel in my hands!

Denver Zoo and Ashley's Friends (Part 2)

I didn't know that the blogger limits the pictures and description sizes. I did the post below first, then realized that the more I wrote, the more pictures were being deleted from the page. So, if you start with Part 1 below, this will be Part 2!

While Steven was doing a 26 mile hike with some buddies from Ohio, Ashley, Leif, Rhonda, Tom, and I went to the Denver Zoo. It is a must see, the layout of the zoo is amazing, more animals for the mile than the Cleveland or Cincinnati Zoos! Rhonda volunteers once a week and was able to give us information only an insider would know! This added to the wonder of the day.Ashley and Rhonda got close and personal with the animals... and then a little boy got personal with Ashley. The little guy must have sensed her sweet spirit because he did not hesitate to stake out his territory! This one thought that maybe Ashley's beauty would rub off! Seemed to be pretty happy to have her come over to visit!It was a great day to meander through the zoo with friends! Even the men did a great job sticking with the girls! (Found out later that Leif wanted Tom to ditch the zoo and go golfing with him... he put two sets of clubs in the trunk just in case!) Thanks, guys for being the troopers that you were - -five hours worth!

Ashley bought nectar for the larakeets...
this one would not let Ashley put the nectar in her other hand when her arm got tired of holding it! It grabbed onto the cup and would not let go!


Thank you, once again, Steven and Ashley for having us! We really had a good time, and it was so good to see you both again! Know that you are always in our hearts and in our prayers... we love you both tons and tons!

Ashley and Steven, the Girls, and Colorado! Part 1

We were able to spend some time with Ashley and Steven this past week. We had a great time with the four of them. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING US! The girls got to go out and play at Cherry Creek Park, needless to say, they were beat for days!

The dandelions were SO BIG that I wanted to get a picture of a perfect one. I had been looking for about a half hour, when I finally found one. I set the camera on 'flower,' bent down, and then Nan ran over full blast and stuck her nose right into it before I could get the picture! The funniest thing was Steven's reaction, I thought he was going to wet himself laughing so hard! Just so you know, I did find one!







Dad and I went to the Garden of the Gods while Ashley and Steven were working. The views were spectacular. The skies were changing every half hour. We did get rain but not enough to ruin the day. Quite beautiful!




We also went to Boulder to visit the Celestial Tea Company - a fabulous way to experience the fragrances of cardamom, cinnamon, peppermint, hibiscus, lemon, and anise. Depending on the day, there may even be other fragrances. There is a tasting room that has about ten different teas for sampling. If that isn't enough, they have a menu at the counter of ALL the teas that they make, and you can ask for a sample of each and every one of them if you would so desire! I tried a few from Africa, some Zingers, and a chai that is my absolute new favorite tea! If you get a chance to try Sweet Coconut Thai Chai, I would recommend it! The flavors in the 'front' are delicious, but the 'back' of the tea is the coconut that just settles perfectly on your taste buds! Was able to make it taste even better by sipping it with Ashley!

We went to a couple of really great restaurants: Nick and Jimmy's BBQ (for the best BBQ yet! Hoggy's and Sonny's will never be the same!) and Ted's Montana Grill (for the best bison or beef burgers! I had beef burger with green chili peppers, guacamole, and Monterey Jack cheese, YUMMY!) Later in the week Ashley saw in their Denver magazine that these two restaurants got #1 ratings!


Even though the food was great - the company was "tons better!"