Saturday, March 31, 2007

First let me start by saying I LOVE my Dyson. My husband freaked when he found out how much I had spent on it, but I was seriously tired of getting vacuums that just did not preform to standards, or running out of bags just before a party. So I think this give away is a great idea. I would love to win one for a very dear friend of mine that has allergy issues and has not been able to afford one. Or maybe for my mom who chose another brand because of its weight, but I don't think it is that great of a vacuum. BTW Dyson is sponsoring this give away which is also terrific. Thanks to Housewife for letting me know about it. TTFN, Miki

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Matching socks is it possible?



A little while back I wrote about knitting socks that match. It frustrates me that people don't take the time to match a self patterning yarn so each sock lines up. Housewife said she was just glad her daughter wore socks, she didn't care if they were the same or not. Well, her daughter might like the ones I just knit for my youngest. They were knit with Moda Dea Sassy Stripes yarn, color 6946. I had purchased two balls of this yarn a few years ago to knit socks and never did. Now that I am buying higher end yarn, I didn't want to knit these for me. She wanted them and I figured that I would knit a "matching pair" for her BF, my neice. Now Moda Dea says you need to balls to knit one pair of socks. I had originally bought two, in the same dye lot so they would match. I grabbed one ball, and began knitting. The sock began knitting up different then I thought it would...but I continued. When it was done, I pulled out the rest of the ball to try to match the repeat. I didn't find a repeat...in fact the rest of the ball looked completely different than the sock I had just knit! I had a sock that would NEVER match another sock! J, my youngest daughter, decided that was fine with her. Now it is our little joke. In a way I think it proves the original point I was trying to make, that just because two socks are knit with the same yarn, doesn't make them a matched pair. Of course, it could prove another point also, that isn't mine. That socks knit with the same yarn are not supposed to match. Of course I realize this is an extreme case. On a side note, the second ball of yarn, matches the second sock, so something was wrong with the first part of the first ball of yarn. I plan on calling Moda Dea about this.


To continue this same idea a little further. Before knitting up the no match socks, I had started a pair for Hubby. They are knit in Austermann Step, Nacht Blue. I love this yarn. It has aloe in it. It is SO soft. The yarn store said one ball made a pair of socks. So I began knitting. Finished the first sock, pulled out the repeat and began the second sock. Got to the toes, and didn't have eonugh yarn to finish the sock. Went and looked at what I had pulled out for the repeat and it didn't match either. Now mind you, Hubby doesn't have larger feet. He wears a 10 1/2-11. If not for the repeat I would have been able to knit for him, but certainly not anyone with larger feet. I gave him the option to finish the socks with the no matching pull out, but he said he wanted the toes to match to. Now the difference in the blues for the toes would have been minimal, but he said no. So, we went back to the yarn store, and they were out of that color, so now we have to wait until they get more in. Am I being punished by the sock knitting gods for critisizing the non matching socks people were knitting.


I also have another pair for my BFF that match the last pair I made for myself on needles. Now they won't match mine exactly, because that is even a little too anal for me. But they will be close. TTFN, Miki

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Seeing the World Through Rose Colored Glasses

I just read a post on a blog that I read regularly, and it got me thinking. Am I viewing the world through rose colored glasses? I like to think I see the best and people. Maybe I am just living a fantasy. Housewife thinks that unless our blogs are private for family and friends we should limit or maybe even eliminate the personal information on our blogs. After reading her post it made me think about how irresponsible I had been. Have I used my kids names? Yes. Had I mentioned things they did? Yes. Have I mentioned where they go to school? I don't think so. Have I mentioned where we live? Yes, that is in my profile. Are my kids safe? I hope so. As a parent I like to think that I have done everything in my power to keep my kids safe, but maybe I haven't. Do I frequently check websites to see if registered sex offenders live near me? You bet I do. Have I checked every single one of the kids' parents in my girl scout troop? Yep. Overkill? I don't think so. My sister had a father of one of her girl scouts on the list. He liked to hang out off to the side during her meetings. He never spoke with the girls, but they all knew who he was, so there was no stranger danger. When she found out that he was registered and not to be around children, she called his parole officer. Boy did that ever make his wife angry.

Now I have sort of lost my train of thought. Anyhow, this has got me to thinking...I need to be better about what is put on my blog, for the safety of my whole family. This for me started out as a way to stay in touch with family and friends, but has become something more than that. I am not prepared to make it private because I would lose the input of the few readers that I have, that I both enjoy and respect. Thank you Housewife for reminding me to take my shades off indoors. TTFN, Miki

Friday, March 16, 2007

New Sock Yarn

I finally ordered some sock yarn from Ray. He had recently done some new colorways, and I just couldn't resist. I ordered Blue Jeans, Doberman, and Milk and Honey. I thought about ordering the Rasberry Ice ( I think that is what it was called). But I didn't think I had enough pink to wear with it. Anyhow, I got them in the mail yesterday, and they are AWESOME! The colors are great and the yarn is soft. I can't wait to make socks out of them! If you haven't checked him out yet, please do. He has nice yarns at competitive prices, and great customer service. I had my order in two days! Plus you are supporting an independent bussiness man, and the American economy. TTFN, Miki

Friday, March 02, 2007

Fergie the Spelling Tutor

Somthing must be wrong with our world when we have pop stars/rappers, or whatever she, Fergie,wants to be reffered to spelling in their songs. Has the state of our public education system gotten so bad that in Fergalicious she tells us she isn't a slut, and I say REALLY? Then why are you rolling around in cake and frosting in barely any clothes in the video? Give me a break! Now she has a new song Glamorous and which she also needs to spell for us. TTFN, Miki