Starbucks and yarn swap

I returned from my trip to Buffalo to find a package waiting for me! I tore it open to find my Starbucks and yarn swap package!! Inside was an amazing bag, a gift card to Starbucks, some chocolates from Starbucks, a book and book mark, and a beautiful skein of Malabrigo!! I absolutely love it!! Thanks so much Molly! I will post pics later, when I'm on my home computer. And then I'll edit the contents too because I'm pretty sure I'm leaving something out.

Ravelry Scarf Swap

Today was a rough day. After taking Celia to the dentist, I came home to a great surprise. My Ravelry Scarf Swap package!! Here is what was inside:

The most amazing scarf ever!! It's SO soft, and the loveliest light blue color. It's got beaded/lace edging, and it's so warm and big! I can't wait to wear it. I put it around my shoulders, and instantly felt a huge hug. I really needed that today, thanks!

Then there was one of the books I've been wanting to read (Things I learned from knitting whether I wanted to or not), a chocolate covered rice krispie treat, some cup cozies, really fun felted stitch markers, and another pretty front/back row marker, as well as a pad of paper and a pen, some fun soap, lotions, and a lovely lavendar sachet. I was SO spoiled, thank you SO much Erin!! You had perfect timing, and I absolutely LOVE everything!!

sad.

Death SUCKS. My aunt Debbie, who has been battling cancer for over 11 years, passed away last night. She's in a much better place, with no more pain and suffering. I'm really going to miss her. I love you Aunt Debbie.

long week

Well, one of my cats is sick. Zoey (who is my favorite kitty in the whole world), went to the vet on Monday and we found out that she has renal failure. She's been on IV fluids for a day and a half, and her values haven't really dropped (some have, but the important one went up). So we're waiting to see how she does for another day. Hopefully she can come home tomorrow. I miss my Zoey!

On another front, I've been busy cleaning. When I get worried about something, I tend to clean. So I've torn apart the office and am working on getting it back together.

I also spent a few hours dyeing over the weekend!! I'm hoping to do a shop update soon. Though I am getting ready for a few local craft shows, so I'll be busy dyeing up extras for those as well.

I also got a gift from my SP SP12 pal:

Lovely fleece artist sea wool. I can't wait to cast on some fabulous socks!! Thanks so much pal!!


I finished spinning for my HHHH pal, and will get her package out this week. I also finished knitting my pals scarf for the Ravelry scarf exchange. That package goes out this afternoon. Then I get to go to a meetup at a BN near me this evening!

I've also received a great package from my HHHH pal too. I absolutely love it!! It's amazing. Here are a few pics:

Included is a bottle of late harvest wine (which was absolutley amazing!!), beautiful handdyed roving in a "Starry Night" colorway, which I absolutely love, the handspun which I absolutely love and can't wait to use. Then there was some shoes for Seth, a purse with fun princess jewelry for Celia, some other accessories, and some fun wine charms. I was SO spoiled, and I can't wait to use everything. Thanks so much Daddysgirl.I was SO spoiled! You really rock.

SP questions

I'm a bit behind, with vacation and work, and everything else going on. So here are my last few "Questions of the week" answers!

Question #6
What is your favorite type of project to take along on holiday/vacation?
My favorite project to take is usually socks. They are small, simple, and pack well. And if I only have 10 minutes to work on them, it's enough time to do a few rounds (or needles if I have dpns) and put them down again. Nice and easy.

If you’d like to share a story…Tell us about a time that you packed too much knitting or were stranded without knitting.
I have a tendency to over-pack. I usually have at least 3 projects with me, and one or two that I can start. Or have a plan to visit a LYS and pick up an extra project. I remember when I went to Las Vegas last January. I knit some on the plane, but other than that, I did absolutely no knitting whatsoever. I had the idea that I'd go to bed early and get some knitting done...but then I was up until 2 or 3 most nights, and up at 6:30 and back out with my family. We sure know how to have fun!! And at least I did do some on the plane... But even on the way home, I was so exhausted from lack of sleep, that I rested the whole way, and didn't knit a single stitch.


Question #7
What is(are) your favorite place(s) to knit? and
I usually do my knitting on my sofa in front of the TV. I love my sofa. It's big, soft, cushy, and comfy.

What supplies (besides yarn & needles) make the setting perfect for knitting?
I have a cube with a lid that inverts to a tray as a coffee table, and I often have some water, wine, or a mojito as I'm knitting away. The TV is always on, either to something on the Food Network or HGTV. Can't think of anything else I usually have. I can't even say other notions, because I usually hunt for them as I need them. And can never find them.

Question #8
What is your favorite supper for a hot summer evening?
I love hamburgers and hot dogs. Such an american girl. Grilled is best, with ketchup on the hot dog (either Sahlen's or Zweigel's), and ketchup and mayo on a cheeseburger (seasoned with seasoned salt). Give me some macaroni salad with hard boiled eggs and miracle whip, and baked beans (only Grandma Brown's) with a little ketchup and brown sugar and bacon before baking. That, and diet pepsi, or a glass of red wine are all I need. Great, now I"m hungry!!

when it rains...

So we've had an interesting week and a half. The vacation was MUCH needed, and I'm so glad we took it when we did. Because we came back to a huge storm of activity at both my job and my husbands. I've had deadlines to work towards, which is keeping me very busy. And my husband has been dealing with the results of the new housing bill being signed (probably this week). Unfortunately, it's not good for his company- in fact, they will likely be shut down relatively quickly (in the next few months). For now it's a waiting game to see what happens, and how they react, and then he'll be looking for a new job. Most likely. Unless a miracle happens and they're able to continue in their business (which really isn't likely). So it will be an interesting few months coming up.

On the plus side, we had some testing this week on the baby, to see what else could be causing his asthma/breathing issues. And thankfully nothing big came up. He does reflux a little (which we knew), but it doesn't go into his airway. He does have some swallowing issues which causes some milk to go into his nasal passageway (again, no shock considering when he spits up, it usually comes out of his nose too). The doc has him continuing on his pul.micort once a day, and now we're thickening his feeds with 1 tsp of rice cereal per ounce of formula. Nice and thick. And it seems to be helping a little with the spitting up/refluxing, which is a good thing. However his breathing is still wheezy, but we do expect that since the ped. pulmonologist thinks that he really does just have infant asthma. I say "just", because at least there is nothing more wrong- no structural abnormalitles or anything. The asthma part does scare the hell out of me, but we'll learn to deal with it. And for now, at least he isn't too upset over the wheezing, in fact he doesn't even notice it.

I have had a very productive week as well! I finished spinning up my yarn for my HHHH swap pal. It's all spun and plied, and all I have left to do is wash it and let it dry. I'm right on track! And I finished my Ravelry scarf exchange pal's scarf as well. I love it, and wish I didn't have to give it up. I'll post pics of both of these once the packages have been received by their recipients. I can't wait to see what they think!! Now all I have to do is knit a cup cozy for my Starbucks and yarn swap pal, and I'm good! My SP12 will be getting her first package this week. Unfortunately between vacation and the baby's issues, I've gotten completely distracted and have forgotten to put her package together (even though I have the stuff for it!!). Tonight though...tonight for sure.

I hope to post some WIP pics soon. Or at the very least, some pics from our vacay. Or from our peach picking trip this weekend. I love living less than 15 minutes from 2 fabulous pick-your-own fruit farms. We now have a bushel and a half of peaches, and I can't wait to freeze a ton of them down this evening. Have to do that before they get too ripe. They are incredible though...nice and fresh, sweet and tart, and perfect.

vacay

I had the best vacation last week!! From Wednesday through Sunday we were at the beach in Ocean City, MD. We were there the same time that my inlaws were camping nearby, so we all got to spend lots of quality time together. It was a blast!! We relaxed, got loads of sun, and spent loads of time in the ocean. And even spent some time at the boardwalk.

We got back Sunday to a lovely package from my wonderful SP12!! Inside, was a beautiful skein of Fleece Artist Seawool in a lovely blue/purple colorway. I absolutely love it!! Pics are to come, but I didn't want to wait any longer to post a proper thank you! You rock!!

Infant asthma

For the last 3-4 weeks, baby Seth has been wheezing quite a bit. It varies, sometimes it's constant, others it comes and goes. So we've been in close contact with the pediatrician, Dr D, about this. He was the one who noticed it a few weeks ago when I took Seth in for a low fever. And ever since, we've been treating it with meds. And they haven't really been helping much. So yesterday, we saw a pediatric pulmonologist. After about 20-30 minutes of examining him and talking to me, he came to the conclusion that Seth likely has infant asthma. This is all new to me, and I'm trying not to freak out and worry. We have a game plan for the next few weeks (to get us through our little vacation and the pulmonologist's vacation), and then baby gets an upper GI done, and a follow-up appointment to see how he's doing. Poor kiddo, he has no clue what's going on. Thankfully it's not really upsetting him too much and he's been pretty content through it all. Hopefully the meds will start working fast.

Has anyone else dealt with infant asthma?? This is all new to me.

On the plus side- we leave for vacation to Ocean City, MD tomorrow!! Yeah!! I can't wait to get to the beach. And RELAX!!

Question 5!

1) Where is your favorite place to go for vacation/holiday?
This is a tough one! I have a few favorite places, and I can't pick, so I won't! First, is Niagara-on-the-lake. It's a little town just outside of Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's absolutely beautiful, quaint and just perfect, if you ask me. In the spring, there are tulips EVERYWHERE. In the winter, it's lit up like a winter wonderland. And in the area are at least a dozen amazing wineries. Most of which I have visited, and plan to visit many more times. Secondly, is St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. I went there on a cruise once (with 3 of my best girlfriends the year before I got married), and it was unbelievable. Truly amazing. I really want to go back at some point. Either for a week or just a stop over on a cruise. Then there's always the place that we actually GO to...Ocean City, MD. Or the beach within about 30 miles of there. I've camped at Assateague Island, MD twice, stayed in Rehoboth Beach, DE once, and this year we're going to Ocean City, MD (next week!). It's fun living so close to great beach get-aways. While I love just relaxing on the beach, I really enjoy walking up and down the boardwalk even more. And then there's always the yummy food! And last but not least, is Las Vegas. I absolutely loved Vegas when I went in January 07, and I can't wait to go back!! I especially would love for my husband to see it. If only I could live there...

2) Where is one place you’d like to go?
One place I'd love to go is definitely Napa Valley. My husband and I love wine, and even have a bit of a collection. I've always wanted to visit Napa, and hopefully will get to some day. Preferably before my kids are in college...hopefully within the next few years.