Boston, yarn and duck ponds

Today is the end of a much needed and enjoyed vacation. Tomorrow I return to work..ugh! However, I want to share a fun day I had with my niece and mother! I was born in Cambridge, MA. and lived there on the second floor of my grandparents house,until I was 11 years old. My mother had grown up in that house. We lived between central and Harvard square and by the time I moved to the suburbs, I knew the area like the back of my hand. My parents worked Monday-Friday, but weekends were family time and they kept us busy! One of the places we loved to go was the Boston commons and the garden to ride the swan boats and see the ducks. It was, and still is a great place to people watch, or as my father would say: "Take in the sights".

On Friday, I called my mother to find out what she was doing. I thought we could go to lunch together. She said she was babysitting my niece and maybe we could take her to a park to play. That's when it hit both of us at the same time, Boston! So I picked up commuter rail tickets and we were on our way to Boston. This was my niece's first train ride and she loved it! It was a little crowded on the train and I ended up sitting one seat behind her. We played peek-a-boo and hiding games that sent her into the giggles. I got this picture when she peeked around the seat. She thought It was great that the conductor gave her a green ticket. After that, every time he walked past she waved and said: "Hi!" I was kicking myself a little bit for not bringing some knitting with me. It's a 30 minute ride on the train. I could have knit in-between games of peek-a-boo ;-).

We arrived at South Station ready to hit the pavement! I like walking though south Station. There are book and magazine stands that seem more like bookstores and plenty of places to get food and "take in the sights". We stopped for a light snack because we knew it would be a while before we actually sat down to relax. This is what the building looks like from outside the station. While we were drinking coffee and deciding what we wanted to do first, I was looking around for some lunchtime knitters. I know the Boston SNB group members sometimes meet at lunch or after work at the station to knit/crochet. However, no one was there today.

One of the side trips we took was to the Windsor Button Shop. I didn't know this until I mentioned where I'd like to stop my mother used to buy most of her buttons and zippers there! When I was a kid, she used to sew a lot (she was damn good!). I had never been there myself. I was so excited to see all the different yarns they sell and all of the knit related books and magazines. The only problem I had with the place was the heat. It was really warm in there and I couldn't concentrate on all that yarn goodness. I plan to go back and spend some time there looking at everything and buying! I don't know about anyone else, but all stores seem to be holding out on the AC. Anyway, off to the Commons! My niece was enjoying her stroller ride and every few minutes we'd hear "LOOK!" She's two years old and is talking in sentences, but when she's excited you hear real sentences mixed with jargon. It sounded like: "Nana, look jargon-jargon over there! " Eventually, we figured it out. That kid's really a hoot and so smart!
We walked though the Boston Commons and sat on a bench near the frog pond so my niece could stretch her legs. She had a great time seeing other children and watching the pigeons . Look, Bird! Hi Bird! Me, I'm thinking rats with wings. Time to head to the gardens. Here's a picture of the swan boats. We took my niece for a ride, but had no one to take a picture from the dock. So, here's a picture of some people riding the boat. It doesn't hold the same kind of excitement as when I was a kid, but I loved watching my niece's expressions and chatter.

The ducks are really used to people and swam really close to the edge of the pond and then hopped on the grass to visit. My niece giggled,waved and told all the other kids to look at the ducks and then it was a jargon-a-thon cuz all the toddlers were talking to each other and the ducks!

There's a sign that asks visitors not to feed the birds. It didn't stop a woman from throwing bread in the pond. The ducks came for out of the water for more food and a visit. They're really not afraid of people.

This duckling seemed to be the smallest and youngest in the pond. It walked right up to us, stood for a few seconds, shook itself and proceeded to groom as it stood in front of us. It was really cute! It was a really nice way to spend the day and a nice intro for my niece to the city and the commons. We spent the rest of the day walking through Copley square, stopping at the Church and square across from the Copley Library. There was a farmers market there with lots of beautiful flowers and vegetables. We ate at Legal Seafood's in the prudential Center and strolled through the shops on the way back to South Station. By the time we got back to South Station, I was wishing I was young enough to be pushed in a stroller! (If you live in the area, you can appreciate what a walk that was!) Have a good week everyone and the next post will be knitting updates.

Wow, I'm in!!!

I play well with others!

After reading about it on a few blogs,I signed up in early June for Ravelry and got my invite on Saturday. I can't believe how much is going on there and how good it's going to be to find so much information in one place. When it comes to knitting sometimes I have amnesia and end up buying more needles, stitch holders, etc... I already have. Ravelry allows one to keep a personal inventory of yarn,books, and other knit related stuff. I had some time today to go through two of the boxes I have in my closet and talk about amnesia! I swore I had not one acrylic yarn in my stash. Imagine my surprise when I discovered I had quite a bit! When I went back to knitting 5 years ago, I wasn't as choosy about yarn as I am now. My only thought was how much I needed, weight and softness. Blasphemy I know, but I didn't think much about the fiber. Oh...color was the only other consideration. However, I thought I had given most of it away, but obviously hadn't. I still like the colors and tended to buy the Caron-soft and I actually have red heart-soft. Looking at the yarn now, I think they might make great sweaters for my nieces. I don't tend to make sweaters for young children because they grow so quickly and I don't want my sisters worrying about taking special care. So, know I can knit some cute everyday sweaters that can be tossed in the washing machine. Everyone's happy. It can also be used to make toys, or bratz/barbie clothes for the girl's dolls. A little charity knitting would be good too.

Looking though my stash and thinking about what's in the other boxes, I'm seeing my progression as a knitter from newbie to intermediate/advanced (more in the intermediate)with the variety of projects I now like to knit and the kinds of fibers I've learned about and choose to use. Like everyone, I'm always looking for bargains. On occasion, I splurge and buy the "to die for" yarn. The other thing is...MY STASH IS SCARING ME TO DEATH! If I want to knit everything I've bought yarn for or are thinking about making, I don't have time to eat,sleep ,or work for a living(scratch that one, gotta work!) (hmm, perfect diet though-knit your way thin! ;-) ) Do I want to stop buying yarn? NAH!

Knitting updates:

1.I'm on the heels of the socks that have been hanging around on my needles.

2.I'm working on MS3 and loving it! I'm not as up to clue 5 yet. Melanie told us this years theme is Swan Lake. Cool, huh! She recommended using black or white yarn, but I chose indigo with gunmetal seed beads (they're blue and a little metallic looking) and a perfect match to the yarn!

3. Kauni Kal - Is on my list to do. I've put it on hold until I finish #1,#2, and#4.

4. My green sweater (Teva Durham) is coming along. I need to make the sleeves and graft the top and bottom pieces and voila, a sweater! I'm loving making this sweater using the Van dyck yarn. The search and wait for it was worth it!

Sorry for the long post. I've been too quiet on this blog! Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

OOPS...Caught!

In my last post, which was eons ago (June!), I stated I would not be joining any KALS for the summer ,because I get too stressed trying to finish everything. After writing that post, I was net surfing and found the Kauni KAL. I just had to join ,despite my post about a join free summer!(So, much for my resolve 8-o ) !). I got a comment posted by a reader (who had a good chuckle while reading it). Why you ask? Cuz she found my blog though the KAL! BAM, caught joining another knit along! When I read her comment, I had a good laugh and a laugh AT myself!!! I must remember to take off my invisibility cloak! Here is a picture of what made me join the KAL ! Many people are making their Kauni sweaters in the original rainbow color seen in the picture. I like it ,but wondered whether it would be too bright for me. So, I ordered the yarn in a different multicolored shade. Mine will be made in shades of Autumn. Here is a picture. It has golds,browns,reds and a couple of other fall colors. I really like the look of it and can't wait to make this one. I'm not starting it until I finish a couple of other items. I'm actually glad I joined this KAL because some of the gauge information and sizing in the pattern is as clear as mud to me! Knitters participating in this KAL are unbelievable! There has been so much sharing of information that by the time I'm able to start this sweater, I should no problem making it. Thanks in advance to any Kauni Kal readers!

In other knitting news, my Teva Durham sweater is coming along. The bottom half of the sweater is done and the top half of the sweater is nearly complete. I had to go to the frog pond once and rip it back to the collar. That was a big rip back! It was almost completed, but the look of the leaves at the neck was bugging the hell out me. They looked wonky, while the leaves at the bottom looked beautiful. That was not going to do, so...rip it. rip it. I have two pairs of socks and both are close to the heel. I'm a little stuck on one of sock heels, because instead of making it on 2 circular needles, I chose DPNS. I think I just need to find a quiet few minutes to read and mull it over to figure out the orientation for knitting the heel and gusset. It's a really cool sock pattern I got from a Socktopia knitting competition. My team came in second, but it was a fun re-match!

Non knitting news... Harry Potter! I reserved a copy at my local borders and picked up yesterday. I can't wait to see how it ends. I have all I can do not to look at the last page! I did not go the Hallows Ball bash all the borders had, but heard it was fun. I was too tired Friday night to stand in line after midnight waiting for my reserved copy of the book. Instead, I picked it up the next day and still got a free poster and magic wand! (will I every fully grow up? Hope not!). I think my 9 year old niece will enjoy the extras. All of you enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Sending out happy knitting thoughts!

Keep It Simple

Ever since I started blogging, I've joined a million (feels like that many!) KALS or other virtual group activities (i.e. summer reading) . My problem? I overwhelm myself and treat them like "must get dones" rather than enjoyable activities and nothing gets done. Then the fun factor disappears. Not this summer! No sock-along, color a-longs, read-a-longs etc. I've joined one and that's it!!! The Mystery 3 stole along. Every week each person in the group gets a clue (part of the pattern to knit). There is a theme to be revealed later. The other groups I joined over the winter are ongoing, but I haven't done much. So, I'm wiping the slate clean! I still want to read (can't live without a good book! 8-} ) or stop knitting, but as my little friend above so eloquently states:Simplify. It's gonna be a no pressure summer!

I haven't any progress pics yet for my sweater, but I have been working on it. The bottom half is completed and I'm making progress with the top half of the sweater. I'm working the separation rows and increases. Once the increases are done and armholes made, the sweater is joined again and worked in the round. Once both pieces are knitted, the upper and lower body will be grafted together using a Kitchener stitch (that's when the language on this blog may become quite colorful!!! ) The sleeves look like fun to knit. We'll see... So far, I'm enjoying it. My socks are UFOs right now, but I keep them in the car in case I need something small to knit. That's it for updates. Hope everyone is having a good week so far.

I'm a wordpress dropout, knitting, and back to blogger!

Well my blogging friends , you must be dizzy going back and forth reading postings between word press and blogger. Despite, the number of issues blogger had, I was one of the fairly lucky ones in terms of posting. I wanted something new, so I switched to word press. It's been a very frustrating experience for me. Learning to post and have pictures wasn't difficult (well, maybe the pics upload, a bit...), but most of my frustration was with the post loading to my blog. It was either lost in cyber-land someplace or I'd get a 404 message! Every time, I posted it took 2 - 3 rewrites to attempt to post. It's one of the reasons, I haven't been posting lately. So, here I am! I kept the new blog name (I really like it) and ditched the blog. From now on you'll find me here. Thanks for hanging in there!!! Now onto actual knitting content!

I have been making socks for ages and decided I needed a change. Last year, I bought some really beautiful yarn and it's been sitting in my stash, waiting to become a sweater. When I bought the Loop-de-Loop book by Teva Durham, I fell in love with the green sweater that many knitters have already made. Here is a progress photo: The yarn I'm using is Van Dyck. The photos don't do justice to how beautifully shaded it is. It's a chunky yarn that's soft and easy to work with. I've finished knitting the lower body of the sweater and have starting the neck up to the leaf section. When the upper body is finished it is grafted to the lower body. I've never done this before so it will be a new learning experience. That's it for now, Enjoy the long weekend!!!