Eastburn Adventures

Well, my baby blog is two days old, and I'm trying to get the word out there.  Thank you to all who told me today that you liked my blog - I appreciate the encouragement!  (Don't forget to leave comments - that's all part of the fun!)

Anyway, this is in response to Deb who requested a few more photos of my recent trip to Alaska.

These were taken at Hatcher Pass:

 . . . and this is a shot of a Tundra Swan taken by my friend Ruthie (my outdoor photography guru):

She takes the most amazing photos, and always seems to be in the right place at the right time!  Enjoy!

Wow!  It's been a crazy few days.  Last Thursday was Robert's birthday (happy birthday, sweetie!) and to celebrate, we went to Kansas City with friends over the weekend.  Steve scored tickets to the Big 12 Championship Game and invited Robert to join him.  Steve's wife, Ginger, and our friend Brenda, decided to crash the party, and hit the Plaza while the boys were freezing at the game.

The girls managed to convince the boys to make a detour to a LYS, The Yarn Shop and More, where I picked up some camel yarn.  (Robert said that he did not want me to make him a coat from the yarn, and that he did not want to eat locusts!  See Matthew 3:4.)  Although I enjoy stopping at every LYS I find, I still think Simply fibers in Springfield is one of the best ever.

We dropped the boys off at the game, bundled in many layers to keep warm.  This is Ginger, Steve, Robert, and me:

Brenda wisely stayed in the truck:

Since Brenda used to live in KC, she was a great tour guide and drove us to the Plaza to see the lights, do a little shopping, and eat at The Cheesecake Factory.

We also went ice skating at Crown Center (and I didn't fall!):

It was a great time with good friends, plus, I had 6 hours of riding in the truck to knit!  I finished the last 2 dishcloths for stocking stuffers, and one more of the Knitty wristlets.  I love this pattern - I've made 5 pair.  They look really impressive, but are really easy to knit.  I also started on my last of the Christmas knitting, but it's a surprise, so no pictures.  (Zarah understands this.)  Hopefully, I'll be able to finish before Christmas!

We got back on Sunday to enjoy a lovely Christmas dinner party with our dear friends, Eddie & Brenda.  This is an annual tradition, and going to their home always puts me in the Christmas spirit.  Their home belongs in Better Homes & Gardens!  It was great to spend time with Scott & Peggy, Mike & Sarah, and Clint & Judy, too!

There's a lot going on this week, too.  Robert and I celebrate our 4th anniversary on Thursday with a trip to Branson (I may have located a LYS in Hollister- Detour!); Friday night is the December Knit In at Simply fibers; and Saturday we'll make our annual pilgramage to Carthage to Precious Moments Chapel (I may have located LYS's in Carthage and Joplin, too!).

I love this time of year, even though the days leading up to Christmas are always busy.  But I'm reminded of how blessed I am with dear friends, old and new, and am thankful for the reminders of the real meaning of the season. 

There's a quotation that says, "You can't know where you're going unless you know where you've been."  I think President Kennedy has been attributed with this quote, but a web search also indicated it was an African proverb.  In any event, there's a lot of truth that's applicable to many parts of our lives.

My favorite (non-biblical) quote is from St. Augustine:

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page."

Maybe this is why I love to travel so much.  I never liked history in school, but it's completely different visiting so many places and learning about the history and culture when you're actually there.

Anyway, Trish had this cool map on her site where you can select which states you've been to:

create your own visited states map or check out these Google Hacks.

Hmmm.  I've got a few (concentrated) gaps.  Good thing we'll get to fill in some this summer.  Robert and I are planning a road trip through Michigan (I've always wanted to go to Mackinac Island ever since I saw "Somewhere in Time"), by way of Cincinnati, so that'll cross two more states off the list (and yes, I've already been mapping out the LYS' on the way).  I'd love to take a trip to New England in the fall, but not this year.  For our fifth anniversaries, our friends Steve and Ginger and we are planning a trip to Hawaii (probably a cruise so we can hit a lot of islands).  I've been to Maui three times and absolutely love it, but it'll be fun to see the Big Island and Kauai, too.

That's a nice vacation to think about when it's 8 degrees outside.  Aloha!

Most people wouldn't call Robert and me spontaneous - I really am a planner, and I enjoy doing it.  This morning, however, was different.  We took a spur of the moment trip to Lebanon (where Robert is from) and Lake of the Ozarks.

My husband is a small-town boy, and he shared one of his childhood memories with me today.  We played dime skee ball at Bagnell Dam - yes, it's still a dime per game!

 My darling husband is also a saver - look what he had! 

These tickets are at least 15 years old.  He said he never cashed them in because he always thought he'd bring his wife or girlfriend up there to play, and then he'd cash them in on a big teddy bear to impress her.  He had 320 tickets, and we won another 80 this afternoon.  This is what 400 tickets will get you in 2007:

I love penguins, and have a small collection, but Chilly Willy here seems a little odd - don'tcha think?  But thank you, Robert, for an absolutely wonderfully fun day!

Lake of the Ozarks, Bagnell Dam, and Osage Beach are definitely tourist trap areas with their own sense of - well, shall we say charm?

We didn't eat here:

Or here:

(Please keep your comments G-rated - I will edit/delete if necessary!)

On the way to Lebanon, I finished the scarf for RFL:

This is some miscellaneous alpaca with a pink cotton stripe.  Using size 11 Denise needles, CO 250, knit 5 rows MC, knit 3 rows CC, knit 12 rows MC, bind off and weave in ends.  I got really bored doing a scarf lengthways, but hopefully it will raise some funds at the silent auction.

I intended to work on the Irish Hiking Scarf, but it remained in my bag all day.  Here's what it looks like now:

I love this color in this pattern!  And although a lot of knitters are cabling without a cable needle, I really enjoy using one so I'm sticking with it.  If you're interested in instructions for without the cable needle, Kate's got a really good video!

I also recently finished Lizard Ridge square #5.  I think this colorway is my favorite.  I love the muted hues.  My problem, and what I wish I'd done differently, is that I have not kept track of which Noro colors I used for which square.  It's just going to be a mystery blanket!

Lastly, now that I'm feeling fairly comfortable that it's going to work out, I will let you know I'm working on another pair of socks.  These are the Slip-stitch Rib pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks in KnitPicks Memories redwood forest.  This was Thursday night:

Gotta love the heel flap!  And, in homage to the Harlot, this is the sock at Andy's Frozen Custard at the lake today:

The heel is turned and I'm heading down the foot!  Maybe more updates tomorrow. 

And, I can't believe it's been a week, and I failed to blog about our excursion to the other LYS in our area.  Check out Brianne's and Zarah's blogs for details - all I can add is that we had a great time, and I am so blessed to have found such a great group of knitting friends!

And tonight, I finally leave you with some eye candy from today - aren't they adorable!

. . .You're the only one who can!

We are in Tulsa this weekend on a mini vacation, and having load of fun shopping and eating out.  (Although I intended to knit on various WIP's, it's just not happening.)  I have been watching a lot of this lately, and have cleaned out my closet to make room for more better stuff.  Saturday night was fairly successful, although I only purchased shoes.  Four pair of shoes.  I love DSW.  Sunday, we accidentally discovered a Dillard's outlet!  Robert hit the jackpot and found a lot of nice dress shirts.  Me?  Three pair of shoes.  Anyone counting?  That's seven pair so far.  I also got a pair of $150 Anne Klein trousers for $13.  I love Dillard's outlet.  The problem - I still have nothing to wear!

Before shopping, we ate breakfast where Meredith told us to - Brookside by Day.  Very good, but across the street was this . . .

. . . as part of the promotion of the new stamp set that's coming out in May.  We looked for Darth, but no luck. 

Today - yarn shops! (And hopefully, better luck with shopping.)  Robert has been so great - not a single complaint!  I'm so lucky!

I was going to post some more photos of some of the scenic parts of Tulsa (yes, there really are several), but the internet connection in our room is not the highest high speed, so those will have to wait until I get home.

Here are a few of the photos from in and around Tulsa this weekend.

The world's (former) largest McDonald's in Vinita:

Loops

Woodward Park

and Penguins?

Well, we went to Chateau on the Lake in Branson Friday night. We wouldn't have been able to afford to stay there if we hadn't had the opportunity to purchase 1/2 price certificates, so we took advantage of it. This place is absolutely 4 stars. When I made the reservations, the clerk told me that for an additional $4, we could upgrade to a lake view from the "mountain view." Why not? But when we checked in, they said that there were no lake view rooms available, and if it was all right with us, they were going to put us in one of the suites. Oh, darn.

This room came with robes . . .

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. . . and Chateau shampoo (which is almost as much fun to say as "paprika alpaca")!

During our dinner at Candlestick Inn, we watched the fountains below us at the Landing.

Saturday we went to the Coach store and I got my new bag!

We also went to the Toy Museum, and saw Robert's favorite movie character.

I finished another Lizard Ridge square:

And put the final touches on the baby sweater.

I finished my swatch for my new project (more on that in another post):

This was an absolutely fabulous weekend. But wait until you hear what's in store for next Sunday!

Today Robert and I drove to Kansas City, MO with Steve and Ginger to see a once in a lifetime event.  Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were on exhibit at Union Station.  It's really hard for me to express the magnitude of this event.  One of the event staffers said that the collection was valued at over $65 million, but I don't think that he, or many others at the exhibit, understood that these fragments were priceless.

We saw, with our own eyes, the earliest known fragments of the Bible.  A fragment from Genesis detailing creation, and specifically God's creation of man.  A fragment from Isaiah that prophesies the coming of Christ as from the Branch of David.  A large portion of a Psalm where, even if you can't read Hebrew, you can pick out where the scribes had written YHWH - Jehovah. 

The fact that those fragments were preserved for over 2,000 years is also due to the instruction and providence of Almighty God.  Jeremiah 32:14 says, "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel says:  Take these documents . . . and put them in a clay jar so they will last a long time."  The scrolls were found in clay jars in the caves near Qumran, just above the Dead Sea.

We also saw a Gutenberg Bible, a Tyndale Bible, and a Luther Bible, as well as many artifacts from the find, including the stone jars that held the water Jesus turned into wine, and a small vessel that would have held precious oils like Mary had when she anointed Jesus' feet and dried them with her hair.

And to further credit God for knowing me so well, of all the other artifacts to have at this exhibit, He allowed for me to see an ancient weaving loom, linen fragments, pieces of wool, some indigo roving, and a spindle and several whorls found at Qumran.  Photos weren't allowed to protect the exhibit from further damage or decay, but I'll remember this day forever.

It truly was a once in a lifetime experience.  To God be the glory.

It's been another crazy week that's kept me from updating the blog. I've been trying to keep up and get ahead at work in anticipation of a work-related trip. I flew out today to Boston - my first time here. I'm going to be spending a week in Cannon Trust School's Fiduciary and Investment Risk Management course. And even though it's so hard to be away from the love of my life, Robert agreed that I should take a couple of extra days for sightseeing. He's the best!

I'm staying in the Student Village at Boston University. This is my dorm room.

Better yet, this is the view from my dorm room. That's the Charles River.

After I got settled, I hopped on the T, and headed to Harvard Square. After buying the obligatory Harvard t-shirt (which I really wanted because I've been watching the "Dharma & Greg" reruns lately), I scoped out the nearest LYS, Woolcott's. It was okay, nothing special. But that may be because Grumperina and Jess have gotten my hopes up for Mecca - more about that next week - I'm going to try to get there on Saturday. I did buy a couple of balls of Noro Kureyon for Lizard Ridge, though. It was only $8.50/ball, which is a little less expensive than other places I've been buying it.

And, since I had two plane rides this morning, I made some progress on the Monkey socks.

If you've checked my Ravelry projects, I've put a few more things on as WIP's. I'm optimistic about 10 days here with no TV. We'll see what happens.

Tomorrow, I'm taking a tour to New Hampshire and Maine. I'll try to be more current with my posts. See ya!

Okay, I'm really tired tonight, and more sightseeing tomorrow, so here's just a few photos I took today.

I also had some authentic New England Clam Chow-dah for lunch. Yum. And, since I spent all day on a bus today, here's Lizard Ridge number 13 (I think).

I did pay attention to the sights - more photos are on my Flickr page - my user id is Darth Knitter.

. . . and in a van. With Steve and Ginger. It's our annual couples retreat/vacation, and boy, am I ready for this trip. There's a big difference between travel and vacation. Boston was travel - I still had to work during the week I was there. This time, it's me, my wonderful husband, and our dear friends for a week of fun, relaxation, and of course, lots of knitting. I'm probably being a little over-optimistic as to how much I can really get done, but better safe than sorry!

Bags packed - check.

Road trip snacks - check.

$$$ - check.

Reservations confirmed - check.

Jaywalkers finished - check! Yes, I finally finished the Jays! WhooHoo. I'm really digging these socks, and will definitely make another pair, but the next time I'll use self-striping yarn. They look really cool that way. Anyway, these are KnitPicks Memories in Hawaii (now discontinued). Sammy is quite impressed.

I'm taking the laptop with me, so I'll post updates from Asheville. See ya!

We arrived in Asheville, NC on Sunday afternoon and were not disappointed in our temporary home. I highly recommend Willow Winds to anyone coming to the area. Our 2-bedroom, 2-bath "cabin" has a whirlpool tub as well as a jacuzzi on the patio; a deck with a spectacular view; there's a putting green in our "backyard"; they have foosball, ping pong, air hockey, and skee ball in the game room; there's a fitness room; a fishing pond; a 1000 title free video library (can't wait to watch Dreamgirls); and it's in a really convenient location (i.e., there's a Starbucks nearby - I'm not being deprived of my Vanilla Bean Frappucinos)!

So here's some of the highlights of the trip so far.

The view from our deck (I love Adirondack chairs):

Biltmore House:

Steve and Ginger relaxing in style:

The Biltmore Gardens:

We ate lunch at a fine dining establishment (yes, this is the "world's classiest McDonald's according to the Travel Channel):

And dinner at an even finer restaurant on the Biltmore Estate. (No, Steve and Robert did not dress alike on purpose, and Steve is not Robert's Ring Twin!)

The food was delicious and the view spectacular!

. . .to be continued. . .

On Tuesday we decided to drive to Chimney Rock Park to check out the 360-degree views of the Smoky Mountains. Here's a tip - if the brochure touts a 360-degree view, it pretty much means you have to climb to the top of a mountain. Oops. I've driven some white-knuckle roads in my time, but this was definitely number two on my list. The only reason it wasn't number one is because Robert was driving, not me. That's why this was a "once in a lifetime" event. We'll never do this again!

If you decide to go yourself, this is what you'll see:

Ginger stayed safely in the middle of the Rock.

Once we were safely DOWN we decided on a safer activity - shopping! (Okay, it's still dangerous, but not life threatening.) We went here for the guys and Ginger and I checked out Purl's Yarn Emporium and Earth Guild. Purl's was a very nice shop, and the worker was very friendly and helpful. Don't waste your time on Earth Guild. The people in there working didn't even acknowledge we'd entered the store, and were totally rude. I saw some alpaca lace weight I would bought, but because of the workers' attitudes, I wasn't spending any money in there. On Monday after the Biltmore we stopped in at Yarn Paradise, and I'll probably have to go back. Their entire 2nd floor was all 40% off yarns, and I may have to get something for another sweater. I haven't bought any stash enhancement (yet), but I did splurge when I saw the Namaste Executive bag - in ORANGE - at Purl's! I love it!

I have accomplished some knitting, but no photos yet. I've finished two more Lizard Ridge squares, and another repeat on the Moss Grid Hand Towel. I've also been working on the heels on the Monkey socks, but may rip those out again. I am not liking short-row heels. Ginger has been working on a secret project and found a great knitting spot. I think I'll take advantage of it later today.

I'm always overly optimistic about how much knitting I can get done when I have a week to do nothing but knitting, which also includes 26 hours in a vehicle. Unfortunately, I can't seem to knit more than an hour or two at a time without getting bored or cramped fingers. So, it's our last day in Asheville, and here's what I've done so far.

Two Lizard Ridge Squares (the third one is started and I'll save it for the drive home):

Two repeats on the Moss Grid Hand Towel:

The heels are turned on the Monkey socks:

And last, I finally started Lola's Short-Row Hat:

We'll see how much more I get done today and tomorrow.

Well, not quite. We got back from Asheville late Saturday, and after 27 five loads of laundry and a long nap, I was ready for work this week. It's always so hard coming home from vacation, because there's double the work to recover. I haven't yet figured out how to make that better. :0

No real knitting news to report. I have some cool stash enhancements that I need to update here and on Ravelry, but I haven't taken the photos yet. Also, I scored some Wollmeise in The Loopy Ewe's latest Sneak Up - and I think I'm officially a Loopy Groupie now! WhooHoo! (Don't tell Robert - he's scared enough of the stash!)

I also bit the bullet and ripped out the heels on the dreaded Monkey socks - again. :-( But I think I know what I was doing wrong, thanks to Zarah. Except when I was trying to knit the second heel in Asheville, I couldn't figure out how to get to the second sock on the Magic Loop, so I slipped the first sock to waste yarn and knit the second, which actually worked out quite well. Then I put the first sock back on the needles. Except, somehow I think I got them on in reverse order, or backwards, or something, so now that I've ripped them, the working yarn is on the wrong side. I think I'm slipping one back to waste yarn - again.

I don't know why I'm having such trouble with these socks. Okay, so toe up is new for me, Magic Loop is new for me, and two at once is new for me. Maybe next time I shouldn't be so ambitious about learning new techniques!

Anyway, my plan is to finish the socks by Tuesday. Yep, I have a deadline. Because Sunday, I'm flying out to Denver for another business trip, and planes and airports are very conducive to knitting. I'm only taking these socks and a couple of balls of Noro to work on some Lizard Ridge squares. That's it. If I don't have anything else with me, then I have to finish.

And for a final Asheville pic - it always seems like wherever I go I find some crazy squirrel. Everytime we'd start to open the door to the deck, he'd run over and put his paws on the window and want to come into the cabin! Funny, he doesn't look like he's starving!

So, this year I added a new activity to my ever-growing knitting-related fun, and started listening to podcasts. Stash and Burn is probably my favorite, but it did take me until just recently to finally get on board with the fact that I probably have (a little) too much stash for even me. The problem is that most of my stash is earmarked for projects, so I don't want to get rid of it. Last week, the Springfield Knitters had an online swap, which was way too much fun - each of us looking in our Ravelry stashes and e-mailing, "ooh, can I have your . . .?" I managed to twist Kate's arm to take a lot of my "I can live without it" stash, and came home with less than I'd given. Perfect.

I got 2 skeins of black Cascade 220 from Brianne, 2 skeins of red Elann Peruvian Highland Wool from Kate, and some Karabella, Sari silk, and Araucania Nature Wool from Zarah. I was feeling pretty good about my stash reduction, and then we had Christmas with Michelle (over the phone because she lives in Alaska) and she sent me this:

Gorgeous Mirasol Miski - that's baby llama, folks! Yum.

And today, we're headed off on the long awaited excursion to Kansas City, where trips to The Studio, The Yarn Shop & More, and The Yarn Barn (in Lawrence, KS) are in my immediate future. Must. be. strong. (I think I'll look for bags!)

So, everyone knew that Robert and I were taking off these few days before Christmas. We've had them scheduled since August, so it's been a long time coming, and we were going to Kansas City to stay on the Plaza, do some shopping, and see the lights. Fun, right? Oh, and Robert's been teasing me for months that he had a surprise for me, but that it wasn't romantic and I couldn't open it, and I'd eventually understand everything. Now, I'm usually a hard person to surprise, but I promised him I wouldn't try to figure it out and ruin it for him, so I pretty much forgot all about it.

So, we drive up there yesterday, visit a couple of yarn shops - I was really impressed with The Studio - and although I was ready to check into our hotel, Robert wanted to shop and look in the giant Barnes & Noble and The Sharper Image.

Finally, we get to the hotel, he checks us in and we head to the room. I unpacked while he went and parked the car. When he came back to the room, I was in the bathroom and he said, "Hi, honey, I'm home! And I picked up your surprise at the front desk." So I come out of the bathroom and - are you ready for this? Are you sitting down? Michelle. From ALASKA. In our hotel room. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I was floored. I knew she was spending Christmas in Texas with her dad and siblings this year, but she came up with the idea to fly into KC and got Robert in on the plan, so he arranged this whole trip as a cover to come pick her up to spend a few days with us. We'll take her back to KC to fly to Texas on Sunday, but wow. Talk about a surprise - I never would have guessed it in a million years!

Happy New Year!

Although I've been knitting for almost 3 years now, I feel like is 2007 when I really became a Knitter.

To recap, here's a summary of the projects I accomplished:

8 pair of Fetching
5 hats
5 scarves
4 pairs of socks
3 dishcloths
2 baby sweaters
1 pair of baby booties
1 towel
1 felted bag

I accomplished most of my 2007 knitting resolutions - 7 out of 10 (although I changed a few of the specifics) - and I don't think I'll be confined to a list as much this year, as Ravelry is keeping me on track. My 2008 goals include:

1. Finishing the Lizard Ridge blanket
2. Knit at least 1 sweater for me
3. Mittens, mittens, and more mittens
4. To reduce my sock yarn stash (and prepare for its inevitable enhancement at The Loopy Ewe's Spring Fling) by knitting a pair of socks each month.

On the non-knitting front, 2007 was also special for me as I got to cross 3 more states off of my list (I've always wanted to visit all 50 states), with my work trip to Boston that allowed me to take a couple of day trips and go up into New Hampshire and Maine. This year we're planning to cross the rest of the northeastern states off of our list when we go to - are you ready for this? - Rhinebeck! But before that happens, another work trip may afford me the chance to go to Michigan as well. 2008 is looking to be a great year in travel, too.

Here's wishing each of you many blessings in this coming year!