Home for the Holidays

Tonight we have a snow advisory beginning around midnight and going through Sunday morning. The weather gurus are calling for between 10-20 inches of snow, which is huge for us. People in Maryland freak out over 1-2", which honestly, is just a dusting. But with the way people drive, enough to be a pain in the keister, if you know what I mean.

So, since it is Paul's birthday, (the baby is just 43) I'll be making beef stroganoff and red velvet cake for dessert. We'll be picking up a few movies later on and then we're going to hunker down for the night. It's so much fun to go to bed and wake up to a winter wonderland. I'm kind of excited, to be honest...



We're pretty much decorated for the holidays and even our little donkeys are joining in on the festivities.

For my birthday, my friend, Linda Wei, made me one of her little sheeps. This is a pattern from Ravelry, called Sheep in Sheeps Clothing. But clever Linda modified the head and put a scarf on him, rather than a coat. Which shows the pretty sheep body.

Isn't he adorable?



Behind the baby Jesus, is the knitted Christmas tree she made us the year before. I told her that next year I'll be expecting a Wise Man...

And here is a sneak peek at a special project that I am working on with a new yarn base to be introduced in late spring. I'll be sharing more on this project as I go along.



This is knitting nirvana. I love this yarn.

Lucinda Cowl

While we are busily working on several new patterns for Spring, 2010, we wanted to give you a fun knit that you might want to use for your holiday knitting.

The Lucinda Cowl is a quick and easy one-skein project, perfect for that last minute gift. Made with one skein of Missy Bulky (130 yds) and on size US 11 needles, it is a great accessory item that will keep your neck toasty warm.

The diagonal Brioche stitch is perfect for hand dyed yarns, including variegated and semi solids, like the Shalimar Stonewash. And don't discount it for men! The stitch pattern is a great manly look.

You can download it here off Ravelry. Enjoy!

Snow Day Soup

I don't often cook, let alone deviate from standard recipes, but I was pretty pleased with this easy and quick soup I concocted from left over Thanksgiving turkey. It got rave reviews from the family, and seeing as it is hearty and healthy, I'll be making it again.

So if you have a snow day and prefer to spend it relaxing with your knitting (hopefully with a dog on each side of you) and watching the fat flakes come down, here is the perfect recipe for dinner.




Snow Day Soup

5-14 oz. cans of turkey or chicken broth
4 stalks of celery, diced
3 carrots, diced
1 onion, diced
3/4 c. converted rice (like Uncle Bens)
5 c. turkey or chicken, diced
1/2 c. mayonaise
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. white pepper
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. crushed rosemary
2 tsp. sea salt
4-5 dashes green tabasco sauce
2 tbsp. butter

Bring broth to a boil, add celery, onions, carrots, salt, pepper, spices and rice. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.

In a bowl, whisk mayonaise and lemon juice together. Add to broth slowly until smooth. Add tobasco, butter and chicken to the pot.

Simmer another 15-20 minutes and serve with your favorite crusty bread and greens.

And here is my progress on Akimbo by Westknits. The Zoe Sock has a lot of bounce and body, so this shawl is really fun to knit on.

I'm all Akimbo!

Love the name. And after having such a great time on Daybreak, I had to try another of Westknits wonderful patterns.

Akimbo is another fun knit that uses two colors also. The main color is the Asilomar, with the Saffron as contrast. I've begun to see a pattern lately with my color selections, but I'm just not in a pink/purple mood. So, I'm going with the flow.

Asilomar...



and Saffron...



And I'm really excited because I'm about to break into the Saffron! (Can you tell I'm easily amused?)

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

Tide Pool Daybreak

Done! Daybreak, designed by Stephen West of Westknits is a delightful little knit. I was able to finish this in about a week, since the pattern is easily memorized and ejoyable to knit.

Here it is in Zoe Sock, colorways Sapote (Stonewash) and Tide Pool (variegated). I made the medium size, but cut down the stripes from 16 repeats, to 13 repeats.



Done on US 4's. It went really fast. Next up for me is Akimbo.

The Patience of a Buck

They say patience is a virtue. If you are the Buck. If you are the Doe, then it is a completely different deal.


This was an interesting standoff. He may not look interested now, but when my car kicked them up this morning, he was in hot pursuit (again). I think she's safe as long as she parks it.