I survived!

Thanks for all the well wishes everybody! I am feeling much much better today and eating everything in sight. The colonoscopy went amazingly well. Seriously. I held out for so many years out of fear and it was so much better this time. For one thing, I didn't wake up during the procedure this time. I was even taken back 30 minutes early, at 8:30. And out of the hospital by 10am. The sedatives were great :) I passed out before I could even start to count backwards from ten. Guess I'm a good patient. And just as expected, the results are all good. Nothing there. (The only way to diagnose IBS is to rule out every other bowel disorder.) I rested most of yesterday and I'm back on my anti-biotics, lower dose, so hopefully I won't get so sick. And then it's back to Doc in two weeks to talk about the next step.

I haven't been knitting too much, again. I was so stressed all day Sunday, not being able to eat, that I couldn't sit still long enough to knit anything. All I have OTN is a sock and I'm a little bored with it. I wound yarn for three different projects last night though. It's all packed up with patterns and any notion I may need. Packed? Oh yeah.... We're leaving this week-end for a short visit to Ohio. We haven't seen Hubby's family in three years, and they're having a big 4th of July thing, so we figured why not? I'm a little nervous, for no reason really. We've never been away from our house that long (pathetic) but more importantly, my kitties. My babies...I know they'll manage, but Leo sleeps with me very night. Neither of us sleep well without the other... Should be interesting. Hopefully, I'll have some Fo's to report. We'll be spending most of our time on a lake, and with so much family around, I plan on pawning the kids off on whoever is closest. ;)

I have loads of e-mails to send but I haven't been able to get into hotmail today, at all! I got up at 8, and the server that holds my account is down. It's now 3:30 pm and still nothing....I'm going nuts without my e-mail. So if you're waiting to hear from me, that's why you haven't, yet.

I have to go get the kids ready for baseball practice.... I'm not sure if I'll have a chance to blog again before we leave Saturday...So just in case.... Have a Safe, Happy and Fun 4th of July. I'll see you guys soon :)

Almost time...

At this moment, I have 3 and a half hours to eat as much as I want...And then it's 24 hrs on a clear liquid diet. I won't mention the ungodly amount of laxatives I have to take tomorrow. Ugh! Then, 9 hours of nothing (not even water)...All of this leading up to IT. The dreaded colonoscopy. I'll be sedated thankfully... But I'm all stressed out about it. When my body is sick like it will be tomorrow, I tend to make things worse. And I don't do well with IV drugs (they tend to induce anxiety attacks). Normal people can have the colonoscopy, go home and eat anything. I'll be lucky if I choke down toast. Hopefully, by Tuesday morning I'll be back to 'normal' And then you won't have to hear about this boring medical stuff anymore. Sorry for all the whinin...but the Hubby is tired of hearing it and I have to complain somewhere ;)


I don't have much to talk about knitting wise. I finished the first green sock with a picot hem. I'm pretty happy with, it took me three attempts. That's the only thing I'm knitting right now. I really want to make the razor cami, and nothing else is calling out to me. I just can't bring myself to order the yarn. What's this world coming to when Liz can't buy yarn, when she has the money?

Anyhow...I'm off to eat some cheesecake. I figure since I'm going to in the bathroom all day tomorrow, I should eat all the things I normally can't. We had deep dish Pizza Hut for dinner...It's been years since I've been able to eat that greasy crap. Yum!!!

Have a good week-end, see you in a couple days.

Knit Sock Kit Swap ?'s

I joined the Knit Sock Kit Swap...I'm looking forward to getting started. Now if only I could find some good Fabric resources. *Remember, I don't shop at JoAnns anymore* Here's my questionnaire:

*edit to add* Sorry KSKS pal...I was distracted by my "I'm bored, three days into summer" Kids and left some stuff out. I added a few things here and there. Sorry! (and of course, these are all just suggestions!)


What are your favorite colors? Pink (I'm trying to break away from too much pink), Green, yellow, Blue . *edit to add* I really like bright colors.

Are you a new sock knitter? Not really, but I'm still learning all the different techniques

How long have you been knitting socks? Maybe a year and a half?

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn? Hmm..I have to say I really like the multicolored ones

What fibers do you prefer in sock yarn? I don't know that I prefer a certain fiber, but I really like the sproingy sock yarns. *edit to add* Nothing that's going to be rough on the hands

Where do you usually knit socks? Starting this week, at t-ball practice. 2 kids=6 practices a week. I anticipate finishing a lot of socks between now and August 1.

How do you usually carry/store small projects? A small zipper bag from target. Or one of the various totes that I made.

What are your favorite sock knitting patterns? I don't really have a favorite pattern.

What are your favorite sock knitting techniques? I quite like the short row heel/toe if I could ever master it. And the Turkish caston/ Magic cast on.

What new techniques would you like to try? I've considered trying the 2 socks, 2 circulars. But I can't bring myself to spend the money on another pair of Addi's that I can get by, without. *edit to add* I completely forgot about the mitered socks from SoXperience! Carodan Farm launched their new websire yesterday and I was looking around, saw the pattern and said duh! I kicked myself for not taking that class...but I still want to try those socks. Here's the pattern so you can see what I'm talking about.

Do you prefer circulars or dpns for sock knitting? I've been on a magic loop kick lately, but I like dpn's a lot.

What are some of your favorite yarns? I've been using a lot of the hand-dyed yarns lately. Like I said before, I really like the sproingy yarns. Claudia's Handpainted is a good one too.

What yarn do you totally covet? Schaefer Anne (there's this red colorway that I can't find anywhere! It's just red, several shade of red) koigu *edit to add* THere's this color by Sundara Yarn, called Orange Zest...It was just bright orange and bright yellow. I would kill for it! Wether it be by Sundara or someone else. I've been searching for anything similar ever since. I found one, but it had some peach mixed in.

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object? Not that I know of *edit to add* yeah, that mitered sock pattern calls for three skeins of koigu.

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)? Bamboo, but the little ones bend too much!

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be? This question requires too much thought from me. Moving on...

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack? I have a huge sweet tooth and love most candies.

What's your favorite animal? Cats

Do you have pets? What are their species/names/ages? three Cats. Smudge, Tommy and Leo

If you were a color what color would you be? Green

Describe your favorite shirt (yours or someone else's).. It's a black cotton t-shirt with a fairy on the front.

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature? I love the ocean.

Tell me the best quote you've ever heard or read. "Let us be close throughout the years, When one cries the other tastes tears." and "The real killer was when you married the wrong person but had the right children."

Do you have a wishlist? I have an amazon list, but I keep buying the stuff I put on the list.

Anything else you'd like to share with the group today? Reading over my answers, I sound a little picky. Rest assure, I'm open to almost anything and I'm positive I'll like whatever you come up with. Have fun!

And there you have it!

Knitting hasn't been much the last couple days. T-ball started this week, practice is 5 days a week between both kiddos. Hopefully, I'll get some good knitting time in. How about some kitty pictures? A few weeks ago, when knitting butterfly, I had some company. Smudge was happily sleeping near me, when Leo (the one with the most white fur) decided to interrupt.

Moving in...



Settling down. Notice Smudge's ears and face... Boy was she pissed.


Ahhhh...All comfy now. At this point Smudge's tail was all over the place.


And five minutes later.... All better. Of course, two minutes after that, Leo attacked. He loves to get Smudge scared, let her guard down, and then he goes in for the kill. Little punk!

Business First

**FYI-- I did a spell check and found loads of typos. And then when I re-read the post I found more. So basically, what I am saying is that I am aware that I might have mess-ups in this most. You guys a pretty smart, you'll get what I'm saying anyhow. Right?***


So, I saw the Dr. Yesterday and all in all it was a good visit. He was highly recommended to me, and even though it's a 45 minute drive to get there, it was so worth it. I didn't feel the least bit uncomfortable. (Carol, if you're reading this, thanks for telling me about this Doc!) So we went over my complete history and Doc is fairly sure it's still just IBS. But since I don't have any previous records, Doc wants to rule everything else out first. He wanted to do a colonoscopy yesterday but the nurse who does it was out of the office. (Don't worry, I mention Colonoscopy a few times, but I'll spare you the details.) Come to think of it, she was supposed to call today and schedule an appt., guess I need to call her tomorrow. You know...It was very surreal. I had a colonoscopy 14 years ago, when I was 14. I had to go to Walter Reed Hospital, stay for two nights, and drink a gallon of the most potent liquid you can imagine. To be able to do the test on the spot, in the office, that's kind of new to me. And as much as I detest the idea of doing it, I was kind of bummed I couldn't do it yesterday. Now, when I do go back for the test, I know I'm going to have an anxiety attack. Just the thought of it makes me dizzy.
Besides all that... I am on two seperate antibiotics, on the slight chance it's an infection. (one that I've had for 14 years, and really bad this last year?) I have to take Xifaxan- 2 pills, 3 times a day for 10 days. And Alinia- 1 pill, 2 times a day for five days. And the kicker...One of the side effects is diarrhea. Go figure! I totally understand ruling everything out, but these meds were not cheap! $150 for both. I also got some samples of Lexapro but I'm really hesitant to take it with the two antibiotics. Can we say overload? And I also have to start drinking this yoghurt drink called "Kefir". It's an organic drink, rather chalky. Doc wants me to drink this because months ago, yoghurt did calm my stomach. We'll see what happens. I'm guessing Doc expected to see me back within two weeks, he only gave me two weeks worth of Lexapro and no prescription for it (just in case I do take them).

So now that we covered the boring, "what do I care?" stuff, how about some knitting. I have lots of pictures tonight, for the poor souls who read through all that crap (pun intended!)...


First up.... My sockapaloooza socks. My apologies for taking so long to post about them. They're made with Mountain Colors Bearfoot, and fit perfectly. I have yet to knit with this yarn, but have two pairs of socks made with it, and I love them. Hands down the most comfy. Erica was my pal, and bless her heart, she got these babies knitted up and mailed, all around the same time she gave birth to her third son. Right on!


Up next....Pomotamus socks. I used Claudia's Handpainted sock yarn, color Red Wagon. Another yarn I love! The pictures don't do any justice for them, which is odd since it was taken outside in the natural light. Somebody, who shall remain unnamed *ahem, husband* spilled beer on them so they got washed and are still drying. I'll take an inside picture tomorrow. As for the pattern, I like it a lot. You have to really pay attention but it's not as hard as it looks.



Here's something else I'm working on. It's the Razor Cami, which I found on craftster. I'm not sure if it's going to work. I'm using cascade fixation and I think the fabric might be too tight. Of course, I would have ordered the yarn used in the original pattern if it weren't for shipping. The yarn is $4 a ball, I need three balls, so $12. And shipping was $7. I just can't bring myself to pay that much shipping, for such a small amount. And I can't find this yarn anywhere (Sirdar snuggly)


You like my needle stopper thingys? Here's a close up picture...

A lady (sorry, I don't have her name) at SoXperience told me about this. They're little foam beads found at a craft store. I have tons of these thanks to my crafty monkey girl. I stuck them on my size six needles, and they were just the perfect snugness. And so cheap, and easy to replace.


And now what I really want to talk about... I've been seeing these really cute sewn drawstring bags for sock projects. I have some patterns printed out and keep meaning to sew some up, but never seem to have the time. And then I went to Target (again!) and found this bag...

Isn't it cute?! There were only three left (1 red, two green). It's a little taller than a soda can, and zips all the way around the top. Want to know how much? $1 each... Of course, I bought all three, and would have bought more if they had 'em. I am totally loving my sock kit. It went to Doc's yesterday. I'm happy to say, she travels well. Now, if only I could sew up a needle case to go with it. I have this idea floating in my head on what I want. Of course, I haven't seen any already made ones anywhere, so I have to design my own. I. Do. Not. Design.

I guess you want to see what's inside eh? Have a look...


I have my All Things Heather yarn, color Avocado. Love it! A sock in progress. An altoids tin holding tape measure, row counter, scissors (they fold up) stitch markers, stitch holder and some post-it notes. A crochet hook, and a laminated card I made with a generic short row heel pattern. And there is still a little room left.
Here's what I have so far on the sock.

I am loving this yarn. Obviously, I'm doing them toe up, magic loop. I did the magic cast-on from knitty and I LOVE it. It's not any easier or quicker than the Turkish cast on (which I recently learned) but I was able to get it tighter than the Turkish cast on. I'm doing 60 sts, on Addi size 1's and it's just right. As I mentioned above, I'm using a basic short row heel. When I get to the cast off I'll decide what to do. Stretchy bind off, picot bind off, picot hem? Soo many choices here.
Here's a close up of the magic cast on toe... Isn't it pretty?!



Phew! That's a lot of info, huh? I think I'll get to bed now. We spent the evening in the pool. Man, that thing wears you out. I'll leave you with a picture of my furry kids at their favorite hangout. Mom and Dad's bed. Bird watching at its finest.

Have a great week-end! Mine's full of baseball practice (two kids) and Father's Day fun. Whee....

Yarn Sale

I posted a bunch of yarn over at the destash blog. I still have some Lion Brand Cotton Ease I want to list later today.

I also have some Socks that rock for sale. I didn't list them just yet. I have 1 skein of Hot Flash and 1 skein of Alina, 360 yards each. And I have one skein of Hard Rock (pink, grey and black) in the 325 yard put up. E-mail me if you're interested in these.

Oh yeah... The link would help, huh?

Here You go

As promised

How about a Finished Object week-end update.

First up we have Salina, from Rowan Vintage style. I finished the actual sweater about two months ago but the sleeves were way too long. So it just sat and waited for me. I don't remember much of the details. I used Rowan Felted tweed in Herb, on size 5's I think. Sadly, I've lost quite a bit of weight since I finished Salina, and she's now pretty baggy on me. The weight loss isn't sad, it's the size of the sweater. I like oversized sweaters so it shoudn't be a problem.
Anyhow...About two weeks ago I finally got up the courage to fix the sleeves. Courage for what? I cut the sleeves to shorten them. Yes, I took pointy ass scissors and cut through my knitting. I really wasn't bad, and easier than I expected. I also made the collar just a tad too short so it likes stand up. I think I'll just tack the collar corners down with some thread.
The pattern was very easy and the yarn totally rocked. I would definately knit with it again.





Up next...Butterfly camisole from Rowan 37. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this camisole. She hasn't made her public debut yet. I was going to wear it at SoXperience, but as sick as I was, and only having a porta-potty for the day, I didn't dare risk it. I did take it and show her off. I couldn't resist :)
This pattern was a piece of work. I read the 37 pages of posts for the knit-along at craftster.org, and was really worried about this project. I decided to knit it flat, as the directions stated. Warning to anyone who plans on knitting this....For some sizes, the chart is wrong. And you really need to add in selvedge stitches. I took a nice quiet Saturday afternoon and sat down and recharted the entire thing. It was a pain but very worth it. Once I had the pattern charted in a way that works I didn't have any problems. In fact, I knit the front and back in just under three days. Seaming lace is a bitch, but I managed. I think weaving ends was the worst part. For my size I should've needed 3 balls of Kid silk Haze but I didn't even use half of the second ball! I blocked it twice. Once before seaming but it was a little snug so I did a second time and it's much better. A little longer than I wanted, but I'll manage. I feel like I'm forgetting something....

I should warn you, as usual, the Hubby is not too good at taking pictures. These were the only decent two out of 15 or so. When I wear it out, I'll get someone else to take a few pictures.



Close up.


My thoughts are really scattered right now. I have so many little things that I'm trying to remember to say. I've been writing this post for three hours, off an on. So if it sounds a little corny, sorry.

Oh..Guess what I realized today... I signed up for the Amazing Lace and never posted my introduction. Oops... I finished my lace before I even "started". I wonder if I'm the only one? I'm signing up for this one tomorrow morning... Knit Sock Kit Swap I think this one will be a lot of fun. Now if only I could decide if I want to be part of the "Eff the Math" group or the "I Heart Algebra" group. I'm in the middle...Eff the math is sort of too easy, but algebra might be a little too much. Must sleep on it.


I'll leave you with some pictures of the Family. Grandmom and Pop-Pop bought the kids one of those big 16 foot pools. The kind where the sides come up as the water fills it. We have low water pressure, and it took ten hours to fill! It's worth it though. The kids were in it all afternoon and Emily had purple lips when she was done. It was a little chilly out there....

Here's Christian and our neighbor Abby.


And Emily with Daddy (Jason).


Up next.... SoXperience pictures, stories, and Yarn sale soon.

Where I've Been and Where I'm going

Yikes! I know it's been awhile since my last update, but I didn't realize it has been over three weeks. Sorry 'bout that folks...

So where did I begin? Fo's, SoXperience, life in general? You know, when I'm driving in the car, I can write three posts in my head. They're witty and fun. But everytime I sit down at the computer to type, nothing. My excuse for being gone is complex in the most simple way. Life got in the way. I'm not going to go into too many boring details. I kind of shut the world out the last few weeks. No phone, no e-mail (not much anyhow), I even cut my blog reading for a short time. I just needed to step back from everything and stew. On what? Nothing really. I go through these phases once in a while.

Lucky for me, I did manage a good amount of knitting and stash enhancement. Details later. I went to SoXperience last week-end. I wish I could say the week-end was perfect. But with me around, how could it be? Mary was a great travel buddy, and was a joy to be around. Unfortunately, I was a mess. Two years ago, I had General Anxiety Disorder (GAD), and for whatever reason, it decided to rear it's ugly head last week-end. I had three or 4 anxiety attacks, one that was pretty massive. I was so worried my IBS would kick in, and cause us to be late for classes that I had an anxiety attack. And what is anxiety to IBS? Of course, it brought on and IBS attack, which made the anxiety even worse.

I've had enough of living this way. This time next week, Iwill be at a Richmond hospital seeing a highly recommened specialist/Gastroenterologist. Let me tell you how hard it was to call for an appt. I had an axiety attack just thinking about calling. Afterwards, I was shaking from it. But I did it. It's much too long of a story, but I had a not so nice experience with a Dr. dealing with my IBS when I was a teen hence the anxiety. Not to mention how long it's been since I've actually seen a Dr. for it. I've 'lived' with this for 14 years untreated and I just can't take anymore. After I see this guy, depending on what he says/does, it's on to another Dr. for the anxiety. I've always been unhappy with my life and very well aware that nothing's going to change unless I make it happen. Up until now, I haven't been able to find the motivation to do it. So cross your fingers that all goes well....I'd really like to get my life back. For my Family, and for Me.

The week-end really took a toll on me, and right now, my stomach is still really bad. I haven't been able to rest much since I got home (As a Mother I don't expect to rest) and that's what I need to get my body back to "normal". I even managed to lose 4 pounds in 4 days. I'm sure when I am able to eat more, it will all come back though, which I don't mind :)

I do have a lot more I want to post about, knitting stuff. I'm going to spread it out over a few posts though. I have 2 Fo's, both Rowan patterns ,that I really want to share. And of course, pictures and details of SoXperience! I'm going to spend the afternoon photographing yarn. I went through my stash and have a nice size haul I am ready to unload. Yes, it's a stash sale. I'm waiting for membership approval at the destash blog, I think I'm going to post it all there. I'll let you know.

I'll leave you with a picture from the week-end. It was my first time in the Charlottesville/Harrisonburg area and I loved it. I can't wait to get back there and do the whole tourist thing.