My New Ride

It is a Chevrolet Equinox. It is a car/SUV crossover and I love it! The color is bright blue (just like my old Focus) which I don't mind. The car has everything I could ask for...OnStar, XM radio, fancy rims, radio controls on the steering wheel and a nice smooth ride. My Focus was turning into a piece of junk (to put it mildly!) The front end struts and stabilizer bars were always breaking and it was a dangerous car to drive on snow. The Equinox is front-wheel drive (I did not opt for the AWD one) and it has some weight to it which will make it perfect for Michigan winters. The Focus also had front-wheel drive, but the thing was so light that it slid around the lane in snow making me feel like I was going to spin out, even at 20 mph.
The Equinox is a used 2005 model with only 55,000 miles on it. I was looking for a Ford Explorer Sport, but my sales buddy (who I know personally) said "you don't want that SUV" so I saw the Equinox and that was that. I have only put 35 miles on in in 3 days! I know gas prices are insane right now, but I don't drive that much (6 miles round trip to work) and gas is gas so I am not worried.

Here is a video on the vehicle




Also, it is now football season. Bob loves the Vikings so we spend most Sundays at Damon's to watch the game. I just take some knitting along to keep me busy!

Bounty from Mom

My mother has a great garden and loaded me up with a lot of goodies the other day.
Tomatoes, basil, parsley along with some garlic and a lemon. I made a wonderful baked bruschetta using some regular bread.

Baked Bruschetta
I rarely measure anything, so use your own judgments and taste!

• 1 loaf French baguette
• 1 stick butter, room temp
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• dried oregano
• diced tomatoes
• mozzarella cheese, shredded
• fresh basil leaves
• salt & pepper
  

Cut bread into slices about 1/2" thick. Toast slices in oven and set aside.
Mix butter, garlic and oregano together and spread some of the butter mixture on each slice of bread.
Top with tomatoes, salt & pepper and cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.
Top with fresh basil leaves and serve.

Mom also gave me some homemade fish cakes (like crab cakes) and they were really good. I made a sauce of mayonnaise, lemon juice and dill to have with the cakes.

My stepbrother brought over a giant water slide for all the kids and the thing is huge!!!

Another Addiction....

Spinning yarn!!! I have no clue why, but I just wanted to try it. After some not so good results, I finally found some great resources thanks to the very talented people at Ravelry. Now I have another passion that I am loving. Above is a practice run. I bought some wool roving that was blue and green and separated it into two strips. I plan on plying the two colors together. Below is the roving spun as is:Sorry for the blurry picture. One of my first attempts did not turn out so well......

Very uneven and "wormy". This was made right after spinning yarn "clicked". I used some random roving I had for needle felting. I think it is just wool, maybe with some alpaca too. The book Spin to Knit by Shannon Oakey says "your first yarn can be soncidered designer yarn, with the unevenness and thick and thin parts" and I have to agree. The spindle is made by me out of a toy wheel, wood dowel and a cup hook. I made another one today out of a large flat bead (some sort of stone) and a wood dowel. Butterfly Girl Designs has some lovely spindles!! The roving for sale on Esty is to die for!! I would order everything if my budget allowed, but I only ordered some BFL and a batt for now. I can't wait until they arrive! I still have plenty of the blue & green roving left but I am anxious to try new fibers.

My New Addiction...

I decided to try dyeing my own yarn, and it turned out great! I used Kool Aid for the colors and here is a picture of the final product....
I call the colorway Grateful Dead because Bob said it would make a great tie-dye shirt.

Before I wound it up, it looked like this...I did another hank today with pink, orange, blue and green. The next one I would like to do is different shades of purple with some yellow, like an iris flower. I used the dip method, and will experiment with "painting" the color on as well. Below are some in-the-process pictures I took to document my adventure:This is the yarn as I wound it to form it into a long hank. (There is the plastic snakey-snake cat toy on the floor, you wind it up and it wiggles along the floor.)

Next I soaked the yarn in water:
Then it was into the dye for a steamy soak:

After that, I rinsed it and hung it up to dry. This morning I wound it into the hank you saw above. I gave it to my mom and she loved it. My adventure into dyeing has begun!

Mommy, We Have a Visitor!

Lucy and Sake have a friend! He comes right up to the window and looks inside to see if I am home to give him peanuts. He is pretty friendly, I can open the door when he is outside and he does not run away. I just have to be careful that he does not get in the house!
At my old house in Hemlock, I had a chipmunk that would come right up to me and sit on my leg. I would call him and he would come running for peanuts.
My latest knitting project is completed, I nade it for my sister's birthday. It only took a few hours and turned out great. Yes, it is a thong.

Now for my secret indulgence........I love to watch Tori and Dean, Home Sweet Hollywood. I am not a fan of reality shows, or even a big fan of Tori Spelling, but I started watching the show when they had the bed & breakfast and liked it. They are so cute together!

One Year and Counting...

Bob and I get married on June 27, 2009! He is in Minnesota right now and I miss him.
I have been knitting up a storm since he left on Tuesday. Here is what I have made so far...
They are Arizona Flip Flop Socks. They were fun to make and cute to boot!! I used Cascade Fixation yarn, it is cotton with a little elastic. Soft and stretchy.

I also made this...Calorimetry is the pattern. It is a headband/hat. Very quick to knit and it fits great. I just need a button. I am going to make a lot of these to give away (Aunt Sandy, you are getting one!) It is a headband that keeps your ears warm, and allows your hair not to get mushed like wearing a hat would do. It is great for when you are wearing your hair up or for keeping it out of your face on a windy day. Click on the picture to see it in action.
Today I am going to get some more yarn (like I don't have enough already!) and buttons for Calorimetry. I may even try to put some things in the garage, our place still looks like we are just moving in. My bedroom is like a storage area, and I want to get in nice and girly like I had it at my house. It will be my area to relax and knit, surrounded by quilts, embroidered table runners, lace and pastel colors. I no longer have a dresser, it was stolen from my old house along with my mountain bike, jewelry armoire (with a pearl necklace in it) and various other things that I cannot replace. I think one of the renters stole the stuff, they are the only ones who had access to the basement where my things were.

Dave Matthews & Rush

Monday night, Bob, Andreja, Josh and I went to see Dave Matthews at the DTE Music Theater. It was a great show! On the way back home we stopped at White Castle for burgers and they were really good. On Tuesday, Bob and I went to the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit to see Rush, where we got to go backstage and meet the band.

You can read more about our concert adventures at Bob's blog.

Knitting-wise, I am almost done with Coachella. I was hoping to have it done to wear to the Rush concert, but that did not happen. My boss and his wife had their baby last night, so I have to get cracking to get the blanket done. It is not far from being finished, but as any knitter knows, nothing ever is! That is why we have so many WIPs!!! (that is Works In Progress for you non-knitters out there!) So I better get going on my projects........