Paging Mr. Mojo.

"Sandra's Mojo, please report to the front.  Your party is waiting."

If only it were that easy.  I have been off of my game for a few weeks.  This may or may not explain my lack of posting.  It's rather defeating to make a record of flops so I thought one summation would do.  Wondering if I'm exaggerating?  Well, that's fair, but I don't think so.  And I'm pretty sure anyone who attended our casual birthday/promotion celebration wouldn't think so either.  A few highlights:  I turned the stuffed flank into a shriveled piece of jerky and made rubberized mashed potatoes.  And the birthday cake crumbled to bits when I flipped it from the pan, requiring creative use of frosting as spackle.  By the way, it's worth mentioning that these were tried and true recipes, so no blame there.  Just me. 

Luckily, only close friends and family were in attendance and hopefully through the years I've established that I can cook.  If it had been a different crowd...well...shudder...I can't even imagine.  As it was, our guests were kind enough to pretend to be happy dining from a bucket of fried chicken (oh yes I did send Charlie to get a bucket of chicken) and potato pancakes (rubbery mashed potatoes make awesome potato pancakes, fyi). 

And at least we ended on a happy note celebrating Charlie's recent promotion.   My father is a retired Army Colonel, so he performed the oath.  My brother is a Coast Guard officer, so we asked him to read the warrant.  And our three eager helpers invented a new game we're calling:  pin the shiny/distracting/sharp rank on the Lt. Colonel.  I am certain this little ceremony happened without incident because--and only because--I had nothing to do with it, other than being obnoxiously proud.

I have had a lot on my mind and plate so I suppose some FAILS shouldn't be a surprise--but they are.  Oh, and just when I thought it was safe to bury my head in a therapeutic knit, guess who knit an entire cuff of one Monkey on the wrong size needles?  I finally looked at what I was doing, slid it on and realized it fits like a legwarmer.  Nice.

Sandra

p.s.  I know I promised a fabo cookie recipe and I will post it.  But I wanted to write this first--a disclaimer of sorts.   Please take my "it's a great cookie recipe"  endorsement with a grain of salt.  Odds are even that it'll turn out a meatloaf.

p.p.s.  Today is the annual water fight.  The boys are beyond excited.  Happy Memorial Day!

Drive-by post.

Just popping in to say I finished the second sock to Mr. Stripey.  The pair are a bit mismatched in construction because I tried two different toe decreases and grafting techniques.  I also experimented with the heel.  But tinkering paid off because I now know what I like best for my feet.

For the next pair of socks, I've set my sights on the ever popular Monkey.  I've also decided to reclaim the yellow Yarnchef yarn in the Fishies colorway from the shawlette I started a few weeks ago.  I promptly lost all interest in knitting it so it's obviously not working for me in its current state.  But I think I'll love it knitted up as a pair of fun socks.  And the yarn is so smooshy it should be great.  Say bye bye, shawl.   

And even though I am doing more than knitting, I figure no one needs to see photos of me organizing each boy's black-hole-of-a-closet.  But in other news, I have nearly perfected a new altered cake-mix cookie and hope to post it in a couple of days.  It's for any chocolate lovers out there.  You will want to try it, trust me--it's my ace in the hole recipe during busy weeks.  It comes in especially handy if your wonderful husband is out of town for three weeks and you are so fried by solo-parenting that you simply blank on teacher appreciation treats until the morning said treats need to be delivered.  Hypothetically, of course. 

Sandra

Maryland Wool & Sheep Festival 2011, recap.

As part of my Mother's Day treat, I got to spend part of the weekend with a couple of my favorite people. 

Both of these pretty ladies were my roomies and bridesmaids... they continue to be the dearest of friends, have families I adore...and the fact that they are into wool, too, is almost too good to be true. 

We had a great time just walking around, stopping here and there to pet yarn, deliberating where to spend our dollars.  I thought I'd share some of the sights we enjoyed.  There was, of course, a lot of yarn.  I confirmed I am very drawn to semi-solid colorways.

I may print some of these shots for my craft space.  The colors are so inspiring.  And I am officially interested in learning how to dye...

There was even an area where you could pick up your freshly shorn fleece.   I found it incredibly odd that this rather charming process was alongside the food vendors selling lamb sandwiches. 

A funny thing about the group picture posted above.  When looking around to ask someone to snap a shot, we stopped a nice looking fella because his yarn carrier caught our attention--the extremely popular fish hat from Knitty Winter 2008.  He merely pinned it and made a makeshift handle, turning it into the cutest bag I've seen.

I will write another post detailing the lovely skeins that made it home with me.  I am on a mission to organize my stash and get everything photographed and posted on Ravelry so I can better plan my queue.  I am afraid to see what I've amassed in such a short time but it's not like I collect anything else.*

Sandra

*fabric and other craft supplies do not count.  Nor do baking supplies.  Or craft books.  Or cookbooks or handbags.  But that's all because no, we are not going to talk about camera gear as I think Charlie reads my blog.

Happy Mother's Day.

Whether you are celebrating yourself or a loved one, I hope you have a lovely weekend in store.  I am spending part of mine at the Maryland Wool and Sheep festival and am excited about seeing lots of new-to-me yarn lines.  The rest of the weekend will be spent with family.  And hopefully a big, puffy German pancake. 

I also hope to add to my collection of popsicle frames and clay pinch pots. 

Will's crafty goodie came home yesterday after the Mother's Day tea at his preschool.  I truly cannot get enough of these little creations made by my budding artists...

Have a good one!

Sandra

Hooray for FOs, Bleeker.

During the winter, I cast on for a long tunic style knit in bulky weight yarn.  I was going for something cozy. 

Cozy I got.  It's exactly like wearing a blanket.  And because, as I've mentioned, I am cold all winter, I wore it quite a bit around the house.  But I rarely grabbed it when heading out...and I'm not sure if I will next season either.  Sweaters made from bulky yarn can add a lot of, well, bulk to your frame.  And there are simply few days when adding girth to my silhouette is a good thing.  Take a looky:

Granted, I never got around to knitting the belt and perhaps it would look better belted.  Cinching might hint at a waist:

But I'm still not in love with how it looks on me (but it certainly keeps me warm).  The pattern itself is great and straightforward and a satisfying knit.  I just think my execution, especially the seaming, must have gone a bit astray--unclear.  The yarn is Berroco Sundae and I do adore the colorway.  I think it might be better as a chunky cowl or another slouch hat?  Perhaps it will be my first handknit to frog and repurpose the yarn.  But then again, I am not sure I could actually unravel all of those stitches...I still get way too much satisfaction out of producing a Finished Object. 

I think I'll wait and see.

Sandra