WiP It Wednesday

Once again, to prove to you that I have been knitting, here are a few of my current WIPs:

Arm #1 of Willow's Mi Escuelita cardigan.



I cannot even tell you how many times I got about 3 - 4 inches into the cuff, hates how the increases were working out, then ripped it all out. The sleeve is a 2x2 rib, but you are increasing once on each side of the marker every 6 rows. You are supposed to incorporate the increases into the rib, but no matter how I did it, it looked ugly. I'm very much OCD about symmetry - so in the end, I decided to increase only as knit stitches until I had six stitches on either side of the marker, and then incorporated the ribbing - it gave me the inverted arrow series of knit stitches denoted by the yellow in the picture. Not as the pattern intended, but it satisfied my need for symmetry. I hate working with dpns - so I was happy to pick up a 9" circular at Stitches With Style - the sleeve sped along after that.

And this is my Jaywalker Experiment:



An experiment, you say? Looks like a normal Jaywalker to me... maybe I should call it a Reverse Mullet Jaywalker... party in the front -



Business in the back!

This is my third attempt at Jaywalkers, and it bugs me to know end that I can't get these pretty socks over my cankles. So, I decided to do the chevron pattern in the front and just knit the back, like the foot of Jaywalkers. It's working well, and I think there is a small chance that these might actually fit me.

Here's what they look like from the side:



I haven't started knitting anything for the baby yet - does anyone have some cute suggestions for me?

I Fear...

...that the pregnancy brain has sunk in. I tried to go to work in my slippers last week, I'm constantly calling people back because I forgot to tell them something the first time around. I keep forgetting to buy key ingredients for dinner (which is why we are having pizza for dinner tonight rather than the chicken quesadillas I had planned... two fails on that end - no guacamole and the chicken wasn't defrosted). I'm managing to keep things together at work, but I think I need a personal assistant at home!

I've had two dreams lately that I have had two little girls - but oddly enough, at a much closer age range that Willow and #2 will be. In one dream, #2 was an exact mini-replica of Willow, pigtails and all, and in the other dream I had two girls with red hair - one curly, one straight. In both dreams, there was about 4 years between the two girls, not the 8.5 that there will be in real life. And I think it is funny that I am dreaming of another little girl, because I feel like I am having a boy - maybe it is just the familiar. Andrew and I will be finding out the baby's sex - even if for the sheer fact that I want to know whether the 8 year old baby clothes packed away in my basement are still serviceable or whether I need to get more stuff!

Happy Birthday, Willow!

Willow turned eight years old on Thursday (and how on earth did that happen?!?), and we celebrated today with a birthday party at the movie theatre to see 'Ramona and Beezus.'

My friend and co-worker, Stephanie, made the cupcakes - a medley of chocolate and yellow cupcakes with pink and yellow icing. Here's a picture of the birthday girl with her sweets:



Let's get a close up - everyone needs a close up of cupcakes!



And my favourite - yellow cupcake with yellow icing (in fact, I may have eaten this exact one...):



Trust me when I say these cupcakes were beyond delicious. Steph makes them for different work events, and they always get gobbled up. My father-in-law liked them, too (he loves birthday cakes).

And here is Willow with her friends for the party - Andrew (the boy on the right) got his fair share of estrogen with this party, but he was a great sport about it. Some of Willow's other male friends were supposed to come, but were not able to make it due to family commitments. The movie was pretty good, too - for not being an overly comedic, 3D action, or a cartoon - the kids enjoyed it immensely. And I found it highly amusing that the 'euwed' when the adults were kissing, but not when the teenagers kissed!

Because My Dad Is Unrelenting

Here I am, in my 13th week of pregnancy, falling asleep at the drop of a hat, and my Dad still bugs me to update my blog. I haven't taken many pictures lately - I really need to get back in the habit of carrying my camera around with me. In the meantime, please enjoy some recent pictures of Willow and Mattie:



Dogpile on Willow!



Here I look pretty...



And here I look crazy!



I disapprove of all the dog-picture-taking. You may now carry me to the store to get noms.

I'm so crafty, I make people!

Omigod - you don't know how hard this was to keep to myself! I have to start telling people now because I will be needing maternity pants in very short order. I'm 11w1d today, and as Andrew puts it, due in the bleakest midwinter - 2/1/11.

This scan was taken yesterday - ignore the fact that it says 10w3d - the baby was very interested in the ultrasound scanner. It didn't matter how the midwife moved the scanner, the baby turned to face it and we couldn't get a profile pic so she could measure the top-to-tail to get the gestational age - it kept on coming up with everything from 10w to 11w. The baby was dancing around and doing somersaults - it was very amusing because I couldn't feel a thing!

Keep your fingers crossed for us - for all of Willow being a surprise and easy pregnancy - we have not had much luck with other pregnancies past Willow. Willow is over the moon - she so wants to be a big sister and keeps telling us that she wants a baby brother.

Perfect Summer Meal: Chicken Pesto Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes

Isn't it pretty? Here's a close up:



I've probably talked about this before - hell, I may have even blogged about this before, but it is one of my all-time favourite summer dinners. And with this heat (101'F when I was running errands at noon), it's amazing that I would want to go anywhere near a stove right now.

Chicken Pesto Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes - 4 servings

Pesto Sauce:
2 cups washed basil leaves
1/3c. Kraft Grated Parmesan
2/3c. Kraft Light Zesty Italian dressing

Everything Else:
8oz. uncooked whole wheat pasta
1 cooked chicken breast, diced
2c. cherry tomatoes, quartered
Some extra grated parmesan for garnish

Take the pesto ingredients and puree them (I use my Braun hand blender), then put the sauce in the fridge while you make everything else. Cook the noodles as instructed on package, drain. Pour noodles back in the cooking pot, then add in pesto sauce, diced chicken breast, and quartered cherry tomatoes. Mix everything together, and top with a bit more parmesan, and serve.

***

What I really like about this dish is:

1) It is beyond simple.
2) The pesto sauce freezes really well - sometimes I will make big batches and freeze it for when good, fresh basil isn't so readily available in markets.
3) It is open for variation - for example, above I used lemon basil from my local farmers' market, half red grape tomatoes, half yellow cherry tomatoes (from my garden!). There are so many types of basil, and all will lend a different flavour - try different tomatoes, different pastas - I have even used grilled shrimp instead of chicken - and sometimes with no meat at all - it's all good.
4) While Willow may turn her nose up at the tomatoes (infidel!) she gobbles up everything else on her plate.

Enjoy!

Sometimes I'm just too good...

I've had some health concerns lately that have required some bedrest, so I have been working from home for the last week. Lucky has been my constant companion while I am working, so much so that I have a pile of silver grey fur on my white comforter. I went downstairs looking for the pet hair roller, and just what do I find in the roller's normal resting spot?

This:



I had to laugh out loud. This is something I bought for Andrew's Christmas stocking - and I have a very vivid memory of stashing it in the cupboard under the microwave where the telephone books, pet hair roller, candlesticks, and various other stuff we have no clue where to put live. Apparently that memory was not quite so vivid enough for me to remember in time for last Christmas!

No matter. Andrew is happy to eat them now.

I still don't know where the pet hair roller is, however.

WiP It Wednesday

Thank you to Cristi for reminding me what day it is...



I can't say I have much on the needles right now - it has just been too damn hot for knitting. This is Willow's Mi Escuelita sweater, and I am stuck on one of the sleeves because one of my dpns fell under the sofa... and I asked Andrew to get it... and the sofa is too heavy for me to lift up...

And did I mention it is just too damn hot to knit?

Story Of My Life

Actually - that was Willow's fortune cookie, not mine.

Sorry folks - not much to blog about here of late. Super busy at work, wrenched my neck so knitting and reading were off-limits for a while. I'm feeling better now, but I think 3 tornadoes hit my house while I was convalescing.

HOT-lanta, concluded

As promised, the funny beer:



Let's see if I can transcribe this correctly -

Weep for your Northern Brethren: Long winters, suspect college football, and perhaps worst of all, no Red Brick Beer. Since 1993, we've been brewing fine craft beers for the South, and only the South. We're proud to stand along grits, hound dogs, and Mama as embodiments of the Southern lifestyle. We're proud to be the beer from around here.

And, the scientific beer:



Maybe a better explanation, sans the beer:



My co-worker, Colin, asked his brother to look up a good place for us to have dinner in Atlanta, and he came up with Max Lager's. It was a absolutely phenomonal choice - I had the best ribe eye steak I have had in a looooong time and some of their homemade rootbeer. I loved how their beers were organized according to a periodic table. These must have been the in-season beers - because there was a larger periodic table on the wall with many other beers listed on it.

And when we were leaving, I spied a little bit of home -



Some Dogfish Head beer stacked up above the bar!

HOT-lanta, continued

(Sorry - work got the best of me. Funny how things explode when you are away for a few days.)

During the baseball game, the announcer made periodic references to a concert after the game. At first I thought that meant that everyone had to clear out of the stadium quickly after the game so they could set up for the concert - but then I noticed that some people had tickets that said, "Field Clearance." It turned out the there was a Beach Boys concert after the game, and if you had a ticket to the game you were welcome to stay for the concert. So, we stuck around in the blazing heat, willing the sun to go down enough so that we would finally be in the shade (I'm not kidding here - we kept turning around and counting the rows as the shade got closer and closer) and watched the roadies arrange the set.

Now, I have something to confess here. I have never been to a concert.

(crickets chirping)

Still with me? It isn't that I never had opportunities - I've even had tickets in hand for concerts - but invariably something happened and I wasn't able to go. So, I was a little bit amused that my first concert was going to be a free Beach Boys concert.

Oh my - the amusement quickly trailed away once they started singing. Firstly, only two of the people on the stage were Beach Boys... and secondly, it was so badly lip-synched that it was painful to watch. Someone a few rows back yelled out, "Turn on the lead singer's microphone!" (only it was a bit more expletive-filled). We stayed through a few more songs, hoping it would get better - but it didn't. We headed back to the car, got lost once again (Atlanta has a serious lack of coherent street signs) and returned to the hotel for dinner.

Next: The funny beer and the scientific beer

(Oh - and PS - the concert I would drop everything to attend? Foo Fighters. Dave Grohl absolutely does it for me.)

HOT-lanta!

Unfortunately, this is not a picture-heavy post.

I was in Atlanta, Georgia earlier this week for a conference - and because it was a work thing, I didn't get to spend much time outside. My co-workers and I flew out to Atlanta Monday morning - and once again, I have to say I love it when I my trips are contained within a single time zone! We arrived at our hotel, the Marriot Marquis, and I had to take this picture from my room on the 23rd floor:



The hotel had a very Escher-like quality to it - and if you are the kind of person who has any kind of aversion to heights, I don't think this would a good hotel for you. Here is a look up from the mezzanine floor:



I hadn't expected to see this kind of interior space hotel in Atlanta - I have seen hotels like this in Denver, but I expected it there because of the cold weather - you would want to give the illusion of open space, even when it is too inclement to be outside.

After checking in and changing, we attempted to find the Georgia World Congress convention center... Yeah, notice the word 'attempted'... We did find it eventually, but not before rolling through some less-than-savory neighbourhoods and finding a motorcycle club. We were tempted to go back to the motorcycle club to ask for directions, but then found one entrance to the GWC. It wasn't the one we wanted (I don't know if I could even explain how huge this place is), but at least by getting in there, we were able to nose around until we found the conference area. We set up our booth, and then high-tailed it out of the GWC to head out to Turner Field (getting lost along the way, once again) to see the Phillies lose 9-3 to the Atlanta Braves. The game was not fabulous, but our seats certainly were - we were maybe 15 - 20 feet past the 3rd base and only 8 rows up from the grass (and at only $38 per ticket!! You would pay *way* more than that to sit in the same place at a home Phillies game.) We arrive in the 6th inning, but it was just as well considering how we were getting clobbered.

Coming up next: a surprise concert and funny beer -

Sorry, Dad -

Blog post last night called off due to mysterious power outage. It will be up tonight!

A New Word That Outed Me

After living here in the States for 12+ years, having someone ask me if I was Canadian because of my accent happens less and less frequently.  Every once in a while, however - a new word will pop up and my conversation partner will falter and say, "You're Canadian, aren't you?"  Funny how it almost comes out as an accusation with some people.  In any case - the word?

grout

I can't tell any difference in how I say it versus how Andrew says it - but apparently that one word was enough to paint me as Canadian.

Woo-hoo Me! I Completed a 5K Walk/Run!

Don't I look horrible? Needless to say, I walked the race, not ran it - and it was 90'f(rackin') degrees outside. And I didn't finish last! Trust me - it was close - there were a few people behind me, but that was it. I had horrible shin splints about a third of the way into the race - felt like I was walking flat-footed for a while until we hit the bridge and hill and I was able to naturally flex my knee and ankle while walking. I listened to music from Glee the whole time to keep me hopping, and sweated buckets - if I don't lose weight this week at Weight Watchers I am going to be might unhappy!

I was a little peeved at the people who took shortcuts - this race was held at my work's campus, and the route basically followed the perimeter of the property. There is a road that bisects the buildings, and there were lots of people who skipped the last leg of the race and joined up again about 100 yards from the finish line. I wouldn't have noticed except there was this one woman I had been using as a pacer and I knew I had passed her about three-quarters the way through and then all of a sudden she was ahead of me again.

And I have to say that I have so much more respect for my Dad's accomplishment of finishing the The Great Lake Walk last year. I struggled with 5K, and Dad and his friends completed a 56K walk in one day! I hope to be able to do this again soon - and next time not get shin splints!

CSA Shares.... Week I Don't Remember

Sorry!  I missed a few weeks of showing you pictures of our CSA shares - between me going away for a few weekends and everything else - things were a little harried.

We're starting to get into the fruit!  Let's see - from L - R: kale, carrots, onions, potatoes, asparagus, lettuce, strawberries, beets, broccoli, cilantro, and more potatoes.  Last week there was mint leaves in the CSA shares and I dutifully made mojitos with it (couldn't let it got to waste!).

The strawberries lasted all of five minutes when we got home - between Andrew and Willow.  Me... well, let's say when you come from the Berry Capital of Canada and spent many summers as a teen picking berries, you start to lose your enthusiasm for them.  And picking strawberries is so much harder on your back than picking raspberries, blueberries or blackberries.  I'll take cherries over other berries any day of the week.  I can't wait until later in the summer - the farm we pick up our CSA shares at has peach trees all over its property - I love peaches, too.

My Father-In-Law's Favourite Rhododendrons

My father-in-law tells me that these is his favourite rhododendron in his garden. It's a deceptive flower - look how delicate the spots are and the beautiful cerise shading on the outside of the petals. All this blanches away once the flowers get full sunlight, leaving bright white flowers in its place.

Getaway: Day Three

We woke up Sunday morning to a perceptively cooler day - the weather was hardpressed to make it into the 60s, nowhere near the mid-80s of the day before. We got dressed, packed up the hotel room, then went out for breakfast at the Robin Hood diner. After breakfast we went out and did my final favourite boardwalk walk for weekend.



I know I didn't capture these colours properly - but right in front of me were two of my favourite colours - a teal blue (of the water) and lime/grass green (of the grass). Willow insisted on getting in on the action as well:



We walked around until we found an open coffee shop so I could have my requisite vanilla latte. I'm weird about coffee - I like it doctored a very particular way with fat free vanilla creamer and if I can't have it like that (basically anywhere other than home or the office), I will forgo coffee and have a vanilla latte instead. But the Robin Hood Diner, while providing a great breakfast, did not offer lattes.

Anyway.

On route to the Coffee Mill, we passed a high end toy shop (I forgot to make note of the name, but it is right next door to the Coffee Mill!) that had all these knitted toys in the mini-bay windows:







Aren't they adorable? Andrew was trying to convince me to knit these as well, but I have absolutely no interest. I detest colourwork, and the toys look like they have a lot of it. Somebody else can do it - I will just admire it.

We had a wonderful time at Rehoboth Beach - and it was just icing on the cake that this was Mother's Day and I was between some heavy deadlines at work, so the rest, sun, alcohol(!), and family time were deeply appreciated and needed.

Getaway: Day 2

And this is what we woke up to Saturday morning:



So beautiful and peaceful! I would love to wake up to that every morning. We walked down to a coffee shop for breakfast, and Willow found this dolphin to cuddle. This picture is for Tara - to prove to her that Willow still wears the skirt Tara made for her (the flouncy capri pants are too snug now, though!)



I found this pretty rose outside the coffee shop - I love how there is a single bloom in front of all the over-blown roses.



After breakfast we went for a walk along the boardwalk and I spied my dream house - although I think I would have to win a lottery or two in order to afford it. I love all the windows facing the ocean.



After our long walk the weather was still holding up (the weatherman had predicted a doozy of a storm in the afternoon) so we decided to park ourselves on the beach and play in the sun a bit. As you can see the beach wasn't that crowded - even though it got to be about 85'F by afternoon.



Here is Willow building herself a sandcastle:



Later in the afternoon we moseyed on down to Kitschy Stitch, and I picked up these lovelies:



TLS Dover sport weight sock yarn in 'Crushed Candies.'



Dragonfly Fibers Sock yarn in 'Villainess' - and I have to say, I bought it entirely because of the name. Ali, Kitschy Stitch's very gracious owner, said both of these were from local Delaware vendors, so I was quite pleased with that. I also bought some yarn and a sweater pattern - but that will get a post of its own.

The storm hadn't hit yet, but looked imminent, so we decided to hit the Tanger Outlet stores, where Willow rode a harley:



She hasn't lost her enthusiasm for these coin rides - even though she is bigger than most of them now. In the end, the storm never materialized, and it was lovely all day. We had dinner at Jake's Seafood on Baltimore Avenue, walked along the boardwalk again in twilight - and were treated to the sight of the girls of Cape Henlopen High School in their prom dresses taking pictures on the beach.

Tomorrow - more peaceful walks and a very happy Mother's Day.

Getaway: Day 1

How fabulous is it when you check into your hotel room, open up the balcony doors, and this is what you see:



Balcony view from room 309 at the Atlantic Sands Hotel

A few months ago we decided that we wanted to spend the weekend in Rehoboth Beach again. We had such a great time in April 2009 when we spent the weekend here - unseasonably hot weather, great beer and food - that we booked our hotel for the last available weekend before the high season started.

We arrived Friday night around 7:30pm, dropped our bags in the hotel room, and rushed down the street to Dogfish Head Brewery to have dinner and drink beer:



Okay - so Willow wasn't drinking the beer - but I was:



This time I tried the Shelter Pale Ale and the 60 minute IPA - and I have to say that I really liked the Shelter Pale Ale. I really wish that Dogfish Head had a pub up here in Wilmington so we could try out their stuff more often - it is always a must stop when we stay at the beach.

After dinner we walked back down to the boardwalk where I snapped this picture of Willow on the beach:



She's getting so damn big. Would you believe she is less than 8 inches shorter than me now? Mind you, I'm not quite 5 feet tall, but it is quite disconcerting to have that height differential get smaller and smaller.

Tomorrow: Playing on the beach, dream homes, and yarn shopping!