Finally

I did it! Almost three months after Meredith's birth and I finally went jogging for the first time. It felt awesome.

I have a new jogging stroller and I tried to use it last week but Meredith *hated* it do much that I had to turn around and bring her back. Today I went sans baby - just me and Audrey - because my mom is here for the holidays and was happy to watch her while I went. Also I got some great new gear that helped. I got a new pair of asics gel kayano 17 shoes, fancy compression socks and a muscle roller for afterwards. Those 3 things made a world of difference. Hopefully this is the first of many good runs to come.

Cool knitting project

Well I need a new project, like I need another hole in the head, so I am not starting this, but if I ever have a whole bunch of sock weight yarn around....

http://tinyowlknits.wordpress.com/2011/07/29/the-beekeepers-quilt/

What can I say, I love patchwork and I love hexagons and this is both in one - perfection!

Also, I am 36 and 1/2 weeks along...

32 weeks and counting...

I think we are past the point of no return, we are going to be surprised for this baby.

The pregnancy is moving along beautifully. Aside from it being hot and a bit miserable nearly every time I step outside, I feel good. I am eating well, drinking lots of water, milk and prenatal tea and trying to get lots of sleep.

I am going to have the baby at a birthcenter with midwives instead of at the hospital and I am super excited for that. I might even do a waterbirth, since each birth room has a huge and deep tub.

Also, we are planning on doing cloth diapers the whole time with this little one. And the cloth diapers these days are so cute. I am hesitant to get too gender specific just yet, but once I can, I am going to get some really cute covers. You can see my neutral favorites at: http://www.amazon.com/registry/baby/31O8DXJU4ZZ3U

Oh, baby

I am due 8 September. Somewhere between 16 week and 20 is typical for a healthy baby ultra-sound check up. I was traveling then, so I went in at 21 weeks. The baby looked healthy, but was crossing his/her legs and was laying on its back, so the doctor could not see the spine. Three weeks later, I got my second chance to learn the sex. Today the baby had the umbilical cord between his/her legs, so again, the technician could not confirm boy or girl. "If I had to guess, I would say it is a girl," said the technician. Truly, not that helpful.

Triathalete

Today I did my first triathalon ever!! And it was in the snow, which is not the normal way to do a tri and my cheeks are wind/frost bitten from it. This one started with a run and I was in the last wave, which meant we saw the fast people on their bikes before we even got to the starting line. The run was my easiest most enjoyable part. I happened to match up with another lady who had the same pace as me and we stuck together for the run. We weren't super chatty, but it was still nice. Then the transition area, quick drink of water, put on the helmet, grab the bike and run the bike to the bike start line where you are allowed to mount. The bike part was hard, the wind was so cold and going fast mad it colder. It was basically flat though, so it was easy enough. However, bike seats and my butt do not get along. I was sore (like bruised sore) right away, luckily it was cold, so that helped numb the pain in my butt. After that it was back to the transition area where you put your bike, helmet and strip down to your swim suit, put on your swim cap and goggles and run (in bare feet) to the pool. In this case the pavement was so cold, I really did run. Then it was a snaked pool where each lane is only one direction and when you get to the end of the lane, you go under the lane divide and go down the next lane. I expected the swim to be my easiest/most comfortable event. I swim several times a week in the mornings and the distance of 10 laps is my standard distance before I stop and get a drink and then do 10 more laps. So I really thought this was going to be fairly easy. What I didn't count on was that my legs were not really functioning very well. They were tired, so I didn't notice that I was hardly kicking. I had to stop a couple of times at the end of the lane to rest. At one rest, a coach who had just finished helping one woman out of the water early (she had muscle cramps and just couldn't finish) walked over and asked me how it was going. I said, it was going, I was just catching my breath. He said, make sure you use your legs, they will make it easier, I noticed you were not kicking much. I thanked him for the solid advice and finished the rest of the swim without much incident. When I climbed out of the pool and walked across the finish line, boy was I tired, but you could not wipe the smile off my face. I was so proud of myself. I just finished my first triathalon, I did it in the snow and I did it four months pregnant. I had a banana, a cup of water and a couple of mandarin oranges before I hit the shower. I got to the car and had a cup of maple yogurt and coconut water (great electrolytes, not gross like gatorade). Now I am tired, and my poor butt hurts when I sit down, but I am so damn happy I did it.

Composting

Since I set my garden resolution I have been diligently saving all fruit and vegetable scraps and putting them into my new composter. Hopefully it will work well for this year, but if not, it will no doubt be extremely useful for next year.

Ryan has been less enthusiastic about the garden goal since he realized it includes a bowl of rotting produce on the counter (his words not mine). I think he will come around when we actually start harvesting gardeny deliciousness.

Goal for 2011

I have one goal for 2011 - to have a garden. In my neighborhood, you are supposed to either have a fence or get your "landscaping" approved. I have been putting off the garden for years due to lack of a fence, but now, I have decided that I am just going to try it anyway. The worst that can happen is they tell me to get approval from my neighbors and/or tell me to get a fence.

Audrey and I have been talking about our plans and what we want to grow. I am going to do a raised bed for our first garden. I already know my backyard soil is bad and this way it will be fairly simple to put up some chicken wire around the garden to protect it from furry friends who may want to taste test the goods. It should be a fun project!

Kitchen Antics

Recently, we have been eating out less and less. I love it. We eat better and healthier. Also, I have been shopping more at Wegmans because I can get a whole bunch of different veggies. The result is, our grocery bill is fairly high, but we have been eating so well.

Right now we have soup in the crockpot - white bean, sausage and kale.

Also, I am trying my hand at homemade ginger ale. It takes about 2 weeks before it is ready. Hopefully in time for New Year's Day.

swimming goals

The other day I was reading some blogs/fitness articles about new swimmers and a how to do a swimming training schedule. I have never given much thought to improving my swimming endurance. I have just been thinking along the lines of learning how to breath on each side, do the stroke correctly, etc. Now I do not mean to imply that I have even mastered these basics - I am still learning for sure. But the articles that I read made me think that I should focus my morning swims on distance as well as skills so that I can build my endurance.

With that in mind I went to the pool this morning and did 11 laps (down and back) total (550 yds or meters (I'm not sure of the what the pool length is measured in)). So this will be my baseline. It took me the whole 30 minutes, but I do rest between laps. For the last lap, I didn't stop at all on the down and back doing the freestyle - that is a first for me!

For those who may be worried that they will unknowingly break some pool rules, they are actually pretty easy (common sense, not like bowling etiquette). Stay in your own lane (assuming you have a whole lane to yourself); if you do have to share - try to pick the lane that has someone of a similar skill level as you to share with; if you share a lane, stay on your side the whole time (not like a race track); don't talk to people - nobody talks when they swim and if they are resting, they are probably about to start up again; when you go for the ladder and have to cross others lanes, try to be as minimally disruptive as possible, as in try to cross while they are at the other end of the pool. Anyone else know of any other pool rules?

i did it!

4 miles straight! running the whole time!!

if i am around at the end of september (ie not in beautiful baghdad), i may sign up for a local 10k - and run the whole damn thing!!!

honestly, it was nice and warm out (upper 90s today), but the sun had gone down a little and it wasn't as humid as it was last time we did the whole 4 mile loop (before the chicago 13.1), so it felt a little easier. and i sped it up on the last little bit and angie (my neighbor and running partner) and i talked on most of it (except the last part of the three biggest hills), which we couldn't do last time. thursday we are going to do that again, but this time, add in the extra little hills section (i think it is another 1/3 mile).

the neighborhood i live in is all hills, seriously almost nothing flat. that has actually turned out to be a good thing for me. i think running is a very mental sport. i can push myself to the top of a hill and then tell myself to let gravity do the work on the way down. if i make sure i take it easy on the way down, it really feels like a recovery and i can push myself up the next hill. we always walk 1/3 mile out of the neighborhood, then start our run and end with the 1/3 mile back to our houses. it is a great little loop. hopefully someday soon it can be a several times a week 5 mile loop - that is my life-style fitness goal (for running anyway).

Swimming (and running report)

This year at work, one of my co-workers talked about swimming all winter long. So, naturally I started wishing I knew how to swim for real. Don't get me wrong, I took swimming lessons as a kid. I feel extremely comfortable in the water, but I don't (didn't) know how to lap swim.

I found community rec center swim classes for Audrey and I at the same time on Saturday mornings and she and I just finished up our first round of classes and signed up for round two. I love it. It is an hour of Saturday morning working on the various swimming strokes, down the length of the pool and back. I finish completely exhausted and very happy.

Last week, I asked the teacher if there is some unwritten lap swimmers rules that I need to know. She gave me the basics and I went and did lap swimming for the first time last Wednesday morning. It was awesome. It was a great workout and a great way to start my day. I can definitely see what my co-worker was talking about and I am so glad I tried it.

Also, since I am clearly very bad at updating the blog, I did a 13.1 in Chicago with my sisters and it went well. I shaved 5 min off my time from the year before. I was still super sore the day of the 13.1 - my feet especially. But this time, after a nap and a good nights sleep, I was fine the next day - which is awesome.

I think my next one will be in Feb in Disney - the Disney Princess Half-Marathon awesomeness! That way we can fit in a trip to Disney for Audrey at the same time. Somehow, the 13.1 seems to be a good number for me. I have no desire to do a full 26.2 - that seems like more time for training than I am interested in committing and more pain than I am willing to inflict on myself. The 13.1 is tough enough, that I really do have to train for it, even though I walked most of the last two. It is a real challenge to complete. I hope I can shave off another five minutes this time too. That is the one good thing about starting at the bottom - no where to go but up.

And since we are at it, I made a new life goal - do a triathalon before I hit 50. I have a while to go, both in training and years. But I am making progress, I am now a short distance jogger and am starting to be a swimmer too.

Complicated

Life is complicated.

The other day, my FIL was playing the piano and he played this song, Humoresque by Dvorak, and it just spoke to me and nearly brought me to tears (so of course I went home and bought it on itunes, so I can torture myself at any point). It brought me to tears because it seemed to epitimize life to me. Moments of brightness and lightness intermixed with more powerful feels and undertones of reality and grounding.

For example, I love my job. But my job takes up so much time and energy away from the people I love the most. Complicated.

And that is the easiest of the complications life presents.

Color me crazy

Work is chaotic! right now.

Plus it is Easter and I have the cutest little girl who is so excited to do Easter things and decorate cookies and color eggs.

All this is to say, I am a little stressed, so naturally, I decided to add another 13.1 walk/run into the mix. Chicago Rock n' Roll here I come....

5K #2

This morning we left the house at 6am. In case you didn't know, that is early for a Sunday morning. We then drove 1.5 hours to participate in a small town's high school track and field fundraiser 5k.

Our intent was not to do two 5ks in sequential weekends, but March 5k pickings were slim for a Sunday mornings and I came up with the idea to do monthly 5ks at the end of February. Also, Audrey has dance class on Saturday mornings, so we must do all of our 5ks on Sunday morning.

Our time did not actually improve, it stayed just about the same. I am considering this a bit of a win for us. This course was much more difficult. It was advertised as having some "nice hills" - nice is not the word I would have picked for the hill on mile 3. It was darn near mountain climbing.

Also, we came up with a "training plan" which consists of going for a family run/walk every Sunday morning. In between Ryan and I will try to fit in a bit more exercise individually when we can. It is far from ideal, but it is much better than nothing. All things considered, from couch potato to 2 5ks in two weekends, I think we are doing pretty good.

Love the Run your with - 5K

Two weeks ago, I came up with the good idea of doing a 5k every month as a fitness plan this year. So today, Ryan and I did our first 5k. We mostly walked, but ran a little too. It felt great. Our goal is to beat our time every time. Progress thats the plan.

New Year's Resolutions

Last year I had some pretty lofty resolutions and I accomplished many of them.

This year however, I am hoping to just be more grateful for all that I have and in doing so to honor the present by fully enjoying it.

That's it, my one goal for the year.

Tips for travel to Iraq

Things to bring: flashlight - power is spotty when it is there, even in the nice places; lock - there are various lockers and they are not that secure, but better than nothing; flipflops - or somesort of shower shoe; towel, pillow, sheets, etc.; rugged shoes; khaki pants - otherwise you just won't fit in - trust me i didn't; sunglasses - really good ones; power converters/adaptors (several); sunscreen - regular and travel size; around the neck travel pouch for the essential documents (passport, etc) that you must have at the ready at all times; patience and a sense of humor - the key to all good travel.

Things not to bring: blowdryer - it will most likely take care of that pesky electricity problem you had for a few minutes; heels; nice clothes - things just smell weird when they get home; luggage on wheels - go for a large backpack - but not too large, you will carry it a lot.

A few things I have been reading

A few things I have read lately:

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2008/03/17/luck-is-no-accident-10-ways-to-get-more-out-of-work-and-life/

http://simple-green-frugal-co-op.blogspot.com/2009/11/setting-goals.html

I may even try the site: 43 things

http://dallisonlee.com/blog/2009/11/05/from-cluttered-to-organized/

Homemade

There is something so lovely about homemade things - big and small. Recently I have been doing more homemade food basics.

I made jam - 2 different types of strawberry - one with boil pectin and one with no-boil pectin. They both turned out fabulously. I dried bell peppers, we got more than we could eat from our CSA share. Then I dried some red peppers and jalopenos too (also from CSA). Last week I made pumpkin muffins and froze them to take to work.

Tomorrow I am planning on canning tomatoes (for the first time ever). And starting some vanilla extract (also a first).

I am genuinely surprised by how easy food prep actually is. Plus so far, the pay off is well worth the effort.

I have also been surprised by how little food is necessary to actually bother with preserving. The peppers are a perfect example. I only had 6 bell peppers, but I knew that was more than we would eat before they would go bad, so I washed and cut them and put them on a cookie sheet in the oven with the light on to warm it up a little. One week later, I have a jar (very small) of dried bell peppers perfect for soups, etc.

Craisy Daisy Craiglist Find

I mentioned in an earlier post that I really wanted the Corelle Craisy Daisy Dishes to replace my plain white dishes that are chipped and cracked. I have kept my eye on Craigslist as the best option for getting a big lot of it locally. So I was thrilled when I found a huge 90 piece lot - including a gravy boat! for only $35! The catch - I must drive all the way to Baltimore to get it.

So Audrey and I are waiting to hear back from the sellers (I want to make sure they are home) and then we are off to pick it up. Happy Birthday to me!

Knitting Update

Since I joined the Dish Rag Tag earlier today, I thought it would be appropriate to update my lately lax knitting ways. I usually have a dishrag in some state of progress on at least two sets of needles, because I find that we use them so often, they are extremely portable, and I like pretty washcloths. I finished a cherry one for cherry season (my favorite food) last month.

And then I turned to *cashmere*. Ryan and I bought enough chunky cashmere to make a hat and scarf set for me 1 1/2 years ago at a fancy NY yarn shop during an anniversary trip. I was looking to make a black hat/scarf with cream skull and cross bones elegantly placed on the edges in cream. Cashmere makes it classy, pirates make it sassy.

However, I never really found the desire to make a scarf - it is just such a boring project, so instead I made a lacey cowl out of black. Unfortunately, the lace pattern did not show through like I was hoping and since it is cashmere, I decided to rip it out and now I am make a very boring (TV watching) black cashmere shell with 2 cream stripes at the bottom.

And that my friends is my current knitting.

Dish Rag Tag

I have watched green with envy for the last two years as other knitters have done the Dish Rag Tag.

This year, I am going to do it! I am going to set a reminder for myself Saturday morning and sign up first thing - wish me luck!

Push-Up Fever

My cube mate at work - Mdolole - is quickly becoming one of my favorite people. I mentioned to him that I was trying to do a few push-ups. He said casually that he does 25 push-ups before he gets in the shower. No matter when he showers, even if it is 2 times that day - he does 25 push-ups first.

Well, that number - 25 got stuck in my head. So now I am trying mightily to get to 25 push-ups. Right now, I am at 5 real ones or 15 knee ones.

Anyone care to join me?

Seattle Rock N' Roll Half Marathon

Yes, this is another bragging post, but let's face it folks - this year is turning out to be a good one for me. Another resolution checked off the list. :)

Over the weekend, my sister, brother and I completed the Seattle Rock N' Roll 1/2 Marathon!!

The race was on Saturday morning and we could not have asked for better weather. It was low 70s with a light breeze. It was bright and sunny - I even have the sunburn to prove it. We saw a bald-eagle along the coast of Lake Washington. Claire took lots of pictures (which I will try to add to the blog when she sends them (hint hint)).

We started out faster than I was comfortable with and we paid for it at the end. The last hour, my hips were in such pain, I felt like I could barely move. Our pace went from brisk, with a nice jog every now and then; to slow as a snail but still moving, with a nice jog every now and then.

Our strategy was... power walk for most of it and run whenever we heard music. They have bands every mile along the course, so that seemed like a good strategy. Then we added running when we were going downhill, because as William said, "it would be ungrateful not to". And there was one long and lovely downhill slope that lasted for a couple of bands. That actually felt really good because it used different muscles. I think the combination was a great idea.

Training-wise, I was a little bit off. Fitness-wise I was great. I never got so tired I wanted to die or felt bad. My heart and lungs felt great the whole time. However, muscles-wise, well that was not so pretty. I wasn't ready for the repetitive motion over such a long distance. My hip-flexors got sore pretty quick and then by the end my hips just ached all over. I could barely walk after the race. Three days later, I am feeling good and wishing I had the time to workout tonight.

New Purse for a slimmer me

I don't really like to talk about my weight or weight loss, but I have to take a moment and brag - I have lost 20 pounds! The unfortunate thing is that I am still in more or less the same size clothing (which means my clothes were way too tight before). Now I am swimming in all of my clothes and am very happy about that. Hopefully I will be sizing down soon.

To celebrate this milestone - I bought a new purse - a Butler Bag. It is awesome and I love it.

If you are wondering what is the secret to my weight loss success - it is a change in attitude.

This time, I decided to take a long haul approach. My mantra is: "It is all about direction not speed". My attitude is that if my general calorie intake is less than my general calorie output *eventually* I will lose weight and it is all about direction - not speed. So I started making little changes one at a time.

Along with the "direction not speed" mental switch (which I still have to keep reminding myself), I made a firm commitment that "NO" is not part of my diet/lifestyle (as in "no" cookies, etc.). I noticed when I tell myself I cannot have something, then that thing becomes my focus and I think about it until that is all I want. Instead I tell myself that I can have whatever I want, but I try to eat a smaller portion of it. Then I started to replace some snacky things with fruit and veggies (but mostly fruit, because I still like sweet and they travel well).

Then I found the golden ticket - I got an app (for my iPod touch) - "Lose It!" that tracks my calories and exercise and I make myself use it even when I know I am way over. That has made a huge difference in finding my empty calories. So I slowly looked at my empty calories and started to systematically cut them out if I don't love the food. I only eat food that I love! I don't bother with food I don't like or love. (For example I love a good steak salad and I have noticed that I don't really care about the crunchy friend onions that are added to many of them, so now I just order without that).

I started to consistently eat yogurt every morning (I know I talk about yogurt way too much on this blog, but I really feel so much better when I eat it daily). I almost always have an apple or an orange or both handy - they are my junk food snacks of choice. I try to eat berries everyday. With Lose It! I track my fiber and I get about 25-30 grams a day with my food intake - I add extra beans to my Chipotle burrito bol (which is usually 2-3 lunches now). I stopped taking my daily vitamin and instead just try to eat a variety of good food to get my nutrients (I think I was using it as a crutch).

I started walking in preparation for the Seattle 1/2 marathon. I usually walk about an hour 3 times a week and once a weekend I do a long walk of at least 2 hours (that will all be over soon though). Believe me when I say this has been a gradual process to exercise this much. I mostly do walking videos at home in the evening after Audrey is in bed. I take the stairs almost all the time and if it is a short flight, I run them.

Most of the changes are things I have done in the past, just not consistently enough - but one of the intangibles is that I now *love* my job - and job happiness means I am not running to starbux or McD's for a sanity break everyday. I still love my fancy coffees and that certainly cuts into my calories, but with a goal of 1/2 pound per week, my calorie budget is very reasonable.

Iraq

My current job deals with Iraq quite a bit. Yesterday in fact, I found myself sitting across the table from the Deputy Prime Minister for Iraq and the Iraqi Ambassador. Quite humbling actually.

I have had some time to think about Iraq and while I generally hope not to bring on political comments, since my job is in the apex of most political debates, perhaps I should just say - bring it on!

Iraq has some complex problems and issues that it faces and the tone of many (most) experts is cynasism. That said, this is an exciting time to be in the thick of things. We (the Americans) are leaving and the Iraqis are stepping up to the plate to take over their own security. Obviously only time will tell, but our legacy here could well be an amazingly positive one. I for one am extremely hopeful and "cautiously optimistic" (if there is such a thing).

Rice Cooker - the end of a unitasker

Ryan made a delicious meal, some sort of beer gravy garlic chicken over rice.  The only problem was that we went to eat, the rice cooker never actually turned on.  

So in a hasty moment, we used a regular pan, lid and stove.  And guess what - the rice was fantastic, sticky rice.  So good-bye unitasker rice cooker.  Hello pan.  Alton Brown would be proud.

Stairs

Everyone knows that taking the stairs is a great way to get and stay in shape.  But that doesn't mean that everyone does it.  I know this because while I will take the stairs up one or two flights gladly, I rarely take the stairs for more than that.  

Well at my new job, everyone takes the stairs up to our office on the 9th floor - by choice.  And the even crazier thing is they all *run* the stairs.  

So in an effort not to look like a fool, and because I give into peer pressure, I now take the stairs as often as I can.  My hope is that I can acclimate myself so that when my boss and I happen to be in the lobby at the same time I won't die on the way up the stairs together. 

Training

I have been a little remiss on my 1/2  marathon training (walking). Until this week, I was rather sporadic at best.  Now however, I realize I only have 6 weeks to get my sorry self into shape enough to not die of walking a 1/2 mary.  

So my plan is to walk 1 hour - 3-4 times a week (I have already done 3 times this week) and then to do one *long* walk each weekend until the marathon.

May 17 - 2 hours

May 23 - 3 hours

May 30 - 4 hours

June 6 - 3 hours

June 13 - 4 hours

June 20 - 2 hours

June 27 - 1/2 Marathon!!

I don't think it will actually take me 4 hours - but I figure it is better to know that I could walk that long if necessary.  I actually think I am going to do it in about 3 hours - that is my goal. 

New Job!

"Be careful what you wish for."  I really wanted job happiness this year and I know change never comes easy, but good heavens, this was a slightly crazy job change.  

A couple of weeks ago, I worked at BearingPoint for the Navy.  Now, I work at Deloitte for the Air Force.  

The crazy thing is, even though there has been a lot of change and craziness, I *love* my new job.  I am learning so much, so quickly.  It is challenging.  I am learning a new office, a new military culture, new platforms, new responsibilities, a new country and region.  Of course, it becomes even more crazy and more challenging when your region is a political hotbed. 

Luckily, I am already surrounded by really great people and that makes any new adventure just plain fun. 

Cool things

Zuca is the name of this unusual item.

This is the coolest piece of luggage I have ever seen. I usually only pack my black carry-on for any and all trips, but most of the time, it is not full enough, so all my stuff get jostled. I think this would be the ideal size, and the fact that you can sit on it - is seriously exciting.

Plus I love the organizer bags, that are big enough to actually fit shoes, suits, clothes, etc. And I love the fact that is rolls on the narrow end rather than the wide - so handy for going down narrow airplane aisles.

Want to get one for me for my birthday, earthday, mothers day, fathers day, xmas, or just because...

Go to: www.zuca.com

But consider yourself warned - apparently love isn't cheap.

Dishes

I found the cutest dishes and here is a link - they are called Spring Blossom Green or Crazy Daisy and it is an old line by Correll and Pyrex.

A mile a day!

That is my new fitness mantra. It is really just to make sure I "start" moving everyday, even just a little bit. And the funny thing is, once you start, usually you keep going.

So that's it "a mile a day" - in whatever way (walk, run, climb, hike, swim, stair step, bike, eliptical, canoe, etc.). Yesterday, Audrey and I walked 2 miles (I love Leslie Sansone's walking videos), because we were going to walk one and why not just keep going.

Want to join me?

RV show

Yesterday Audrey and I drove down to the Fredricksburg RV show. It was awesome!

In addition to my favorite, airstreams, they had all kinds of RVs to meet every taste and budget. Audrey was an awesome show buddy. She was excited to explore every single RV. She was polite and said excuse me more often than not when she got in someone's way and she did exactly what I asked the first time, without fussing. It was a good day.

But even better than just being a well behaved child, she was a good friend. For example, when we saw some of the really large RVs with washer/dryer sets in them, I exclaimed, wow, look at that, a washer/dryer inside the RV. And Audrey responded, wow that is really neat mama. Seriously, she was like this the whole time. She got excited for bunk beds in the family friendly rooms and hopped onto all the couches and said things like, oh mama, this couch is really comfy, i like this one. or oh my gosh mama, a tent bed!

This was our first day on the pantry challenge (to spend $60 or less for food this month) and this is a typical place that I would end up buying crappy food at the concession area, but just ending up feeling hungry for something better and so stopping at a restaurant before heading home. Thereby spending not once, but twice for more or less the same meal.

This time however, I came prepared. Before we left, we had scrambled eggs as our mid-morning snack and I made pb&js for the show and cut up an apple and we both grabbed our water bottles. About an hour or so into the show, Audrey says she is hungry, so we go out to our car and sit in the backseat of the van, Milanya, bundled in blankets and eating our sandwhiches. It was actually a lot of fun and it reminded me of doing this exact same thing, but in our family van - Frufru - a white 68 volkswagon camper. Good times.

Using our pantry

My friend Mary just finished a month of *no* spending. Pretty impressive.

So Ryan and I are going to try our version this month. We are not cutting out all spending, because to be honest, we don't really spend much on superfluous stuff anyway. Instead we are going to try to limit our food expenditures for the entire month to $60! That will basically cover: milk, eggs and a loaf of bread or two.

We haven't done any real preparation for the month, because the point for us is mainly to use up some of the food we have stockpiled away in our pantry and freezer. I will be shocked if we are able to get through it all in one months time.

Also, lest anyone be worried that we will not be eating healthy, our CSA share starts next week and we will be getting 2 boxes of farm fresh in season produce during the course of the month. We may become vegetarians in an attempt to eat it all, but at least we will be healthy.

deep thoughts

One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. Which road do I take? she asked. Where do you want to go? was his response. I don't know Alice answered. Then, said the cat, it doesn't matter.

Rev. C.L. Dodgson
aka Lewis Carroll
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

New Year's Resolution

This year I have a couple of new year's resolutions that I am comfortable sharing.

1) finish painting our house - this is one of those things that drives me secretly insane. The main living level of our house is painting and I love the colors, our bedrooms are painted, but no where else. The crazy thing is - I have the paint - and yet my house is still builder's white. This year I hope to conquer the white walls and bring on the beige.

2) knit a pair of socks. Everyone raves about sock knitting - it is portable, practical and makes fantastic gifts. So I just ordered (<3 knitpicks.com) some small needles and a book (why they are not sold at a normal craft shop is a mystery to all) - I already have yarn thanks to my dad for my b-day last year :). I can see this as something, I will really enjoy and if that is the case - you can pretty much guess what everyone is getting as gifts this year. :)

3) complete a half-marathon. originally i had every intention of running it with my bro and sis - but i happen to be a little plumper than either of them and apparently my knees don't appreciate the extra weight, so i am planning on walking it. yay for walking.

4) job happiness. i haven't been happy professionally for a while and i am not sure what needs to happen to change that. maybe a serious change of attitude, maybe a serious change of scenery. whatever it is, i am going to go for the simplest solution first and take it from there.

The it would be nice list...
1) make the backyard more usable - fence it off, and put in pavers, cement a patio, something, and if i can manage all that plant a garden :)
2) make the front yard even and plant new grass. we kind of gave up last year, hopefully this year will turn out better.

CSA

Last year, I missed the boat on the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) bandwagon and I was so disappointed. Luckily this year, I was able to sign up!

We are signed up with Olin-Fox Farms, which is actually a group of 10 local Virginia farms. Because they offered a payment plan, we were able to sign up for Spring, Summer, Fall and fruit deliveries. The deliveries will be every other week to a nearby place. I am planning on just picking it up on my way home from work every other Thursday. And it starts in March!!

I was hoping to do a garden this year, but until we get a fence up, we can't garden (HOA rules) and sadly, we aren't about to put a fence up. This way we get to enjoy a huge variety of locally grown food, without the work. Yay!!

If anyone else is interested, I highly recommend checking out localharvest.org.

13.1 in June 09

Yep, that is right. Out of shape, non-runner me, is going to run the Seattle Rock n Roll 1/2 marathon with my sister and brother (mom too, with any luck). I may as well warn you now, this may be a painful process for me.

However, I am happy to report my first "run" which most actual runners would literally laugh out loud at. William sent me a link to this training program, for extreme beginners. The goal of the training program is to go from couch to 30 minutes of running straight in 8 weeks. If that sounds as ambitious to you as it did to me, you probably need to do it too :).

So back to my first "run". I came into work early (for those of you who don't know I already come into work pretty darn early (6:30 to be exact)) and then started my workout on the little gym in the office. It was actually a really hard workout for me 1 minute running followed by 2 minutes of walking - repeat 10 times. Even though it was super tough, I did it and it felt awesome!!

Here's to a healthy happy 2009!

PMP baby!

I finally took that damned PMP test... and PASSED!

It has been the bane of my existence to study, work and get ready for the holidays and I cannot tell you the sigh of relief I feel now that the test itself is done. Yeehaw!

First present wrapped

One thing I learned from Flylady is wrap as you buy. Well, of course I am not quite that good, but I did wrap one today - way ahead of my family heritage of mad wrapping on Xmas eve. Hooray for progress.

Brazil pics - part 2

Another amazing thing about Brazil - that I failed to capture on film - was the fruit. It was ambrosia. The mangoes, the passionfruit, the pineapple, the papaya, and some artichoke looking fruit that was white in the center was absolutely delicious. Everyday for breakfast we would go to the roof of the hotel where they had an amazing breakfast bar and you looked out over the beach while eating the best fruit you have ever had in your life.

Another amazing thing - also sans photo - the coffee. They had little espresso machines with whole beans everywhere. I am not normally an espresso fan - it is just too much. But to Brazilians, it is just coffee and it was seriously amazing. The had a little coffee dish called cafe com chantilly - coffee with whipped cream that was absolutely the best coffee in the world.

Back to things i did get pictures of...

The Christ statue. On the way up to the top of the mountain, you take a little train where if you stick a limb out the half-windows you are likely to lose it. It was seriously chiseled into the side of the mountain, through a rain forest with occasional train stops for people who actually lived there.

The first picture is something growing on the trees along the train route, my botany background got the better of me and I took several pics. If there are any phytologically minded people out there who know what they are, please share. I would love to know too.

The second pic is also from the train, it doesn't really show you how steep the mountain is, but you can see that you are getting pretty high up.

Once you get to the end of the train ride, you have to hike up several flights of stairs, maybe 6 floors worth to get to the top, but then the top - wow. This statue is huge and it overlooks the city from several different views. Everyone, was trying to get a good pic of themselves with their arms outstretched juxtapositioned in front of Christ. I refrained, but just barely. It was a holiday in Rio on the day we went up, so it was crazy crowded up there and really hot (especially after all the stairs).

Brazil pics - part 1

This if from the coffee run in a mad dash (hurry up and wait style) across Dulles airport to get the delicious Mayorga coffee (speaking of, they are at my Costco this weekend - yay!).
The view from the front of my hotel room. One thing I wish I would have captured on film is the sidewalks. They were amazing. You can see the sixties era pattern on the Ipanema beach sidewalks and it was all with small stones. All of the sidewalks were basically mosaics - talk about a laborious way to create a walkway. The result is really beautiful. It is amazing. And if you head down the beach for a while you reach Copacobana beach and the sidewalk pattern there is a wave of black and white.

The view from the side of the hotel room (I had the front corner - which gave me awesome ocean breezes). One funny thing about Brazil, this beautiful mountain in the distance is highly populated as you see, but it is a favela or squatter village. Can you imagine a group of squatters just taking over prime real estate like that anywhere else.

I only wish I were a better photographer and that I hadn't been so chicken to take my camera out of my bag that I was desperately gripping the entire time I was in Brazil.

Okay, getting these pics in the right places is a trick with blogger, so I am starting another post - all apologies.

Traveling, welcome home and sick

I went to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for work last week (tough job, but somebody's got to do it) and while the trip itself was lovely, I was worried about my little family (for good reason) while I was gone.

As luck would have it, Audrey started to get sick Saturday night and neither she nor her parents slept much as a result. Having an overnight flight on Sunday night was both a blessing and a curse, I hated to leave poor Ryan with a sick kid all by himself, but I desperately needed the sleep - and you know you are desperate for sleep if sleeping overnight in coach on an international flight sounds like a welcome blessing. That however, did not happen, my flight was delayed/canceled until the next morning, so I had another mediocre/bad night of sleep (trying to let Ryan get a little sleep since he would be handling a sick 3 yr old alone for a week) at home. So, after fighting some good ole DC traffic on the way out, I hit the airport in time to have my ticket changed (and upgraded for free to Economy plus :) - no laughing William). I got to the airport really early, because lets face it, I wasn't sleeping much at home and I really needed to get a little rest on the plane so I was hoping to get a window or an aisle seat.

DC airports have fabulous coffee - Mayorga - so I went, via very slow tram, from one end of Dulles airport to the other to get a delicious cup of heaven and savored every drop of it. As I headed back to the terminal printed on my ticket, I just glanced at the departures screen to make sure my flight was still on schedule.

As an aside, it is never a good sign when there are NO flights to your destination on the departure screens. So I stopped at an information/help booth and they were baffled and seriously looked at me like I was the crazy one just because I was holding a ticket for a flight that left the night before and they had no information on any flights to Rio leaving that day. I went back to my terminal a little bit skeptical which quickly turned to a quick moment of panic when none of the other 12 people I was traveling with were at the gate. However when I heard several small groups of disgruntled travelers mumbling/shouting in Portuguese, I decided to use the ladies room and just sit down and wait - I was at least close to the correct gate.

Then my group came back from the fancy lounge (you million miler fliers know what I am talking about) and all my worries were assuaged for the moment. Then we all sat down to wait. Then they boarded the willing and eager, I was not among them, and so I was one of the lucky people with leg room when they stopped boarding and shut down the gate for a couple of hours. Finally they deboarded the plane, gave us lunch vouchers and told us to come back in 5 hours.

As another aside, I am really fortunate to work with great people. Hanging out at an airport for basically an entire day before heading on a super long flight is taxing on everyone, but I was fortunate enough to be with a very pleasant and, by the end of our wait, jovially tipsy group.

So we eventually made it into the air a day late, which put us into Rio at 6 am about 2 hours before our meetings were scheduled to begin. We postponed the meetings for a few hours to let us check in, shower, rest and eat. The meetings went well, and the next day we finished them up and got to do tours of their submarines and ships, which was really cool.

Thursday, was a holiday in Rio, and the weather cooperated beautifully. It was sunny with a slight breeze and in the mid 70s - perfect really! We went to see the Christ statue in the morning and then we came back to the hotel. I was determined to at least stick my feet in the ocean and feel the sand between my toes, since we were staying right on the Ipanema beach front at the Caesar Park hotel.

As yet another aside, I had the most geourgous view from my room ever!! The first room they gave me was awful. Smoking is alive and well in Brazil and my first room was a cigar box, but that I would have dealt with. However, my one pet peeve in hotels is showers that don't drain. So I got to my room at 6 am on Tuesday morning and hopped right in the shower, a gorgeous marble shower, that did not drain at all and I had to cut my shower short because I was afraid I was going to flood the entire bathroom as the water kept rising. So I ran down to the front desk and asked for a new room, and eventually I got one, a great one, ocean front and side view with windows that opened, so I got the most amazing ocean breezes through my room.

Wow this post is getting long and the point was supposed to be my return.

To sum up the week, I started traveling to Brazil on Sunday night and finally arrived Tuesday morning. Tuesday we had our meetings. Wednesday we had meetings and ship tours. Thursday was a holiday so we saw the famous christ statue and hung out on the beach and eventually left for the airport. Friday morning I arrived home at 8:01 am.

Friday morning at 8:03 Ryan went to a long and well-deserved sleep (being a single parent taking care of a sick 3 yo who won't sleep when she is sick is exhausting). And I began to take care of poor sick Audrey, luckily grandma took her to the doctor the day before (so Ryan could attend a pre-finals study group) and she had her meds working a little by the time I got home. Audrey was thrilled to see me, but, oh so exhausted and sick with double ear infections. Friday afternoon Ryan went to the doctor and got antibiotics too. So it should come as no surprise to anyone that our house is a disaster and now *I* am sick too.

Luckily, I had preplanned to spend the week of Thanksgiving at home to give Ryan some extra study time and Audrey some mama time. I was hoping it would be a little more fun, but sick is sick and there's nothing you can do about it, so I am off to bed...

AnnieAmelia's sweetcase

An old acquaintance from high-school just started her own on-line yarn store - AnnieAmelia.

It is awesome - she carries really nice yarn. The one thing she does that sets her apart from other yarn stores is her "sweetcase". She show cases a special yarn and provides a pattern that really shows it off. Then she includes something "bodyish", a charm, ribbon and sends it off in a beautiful fabric bag. It is a really cool idea, especially if, like me, you are a little intimidated by all the varieties of fancy yarn on the market today.

So seeing this fancy idea, I volunteered to be a "tester". Lucky me, because she sent this amazing little skein of fancy Australian merino wool yarn with glass beads scattered throughout (tilli tomas), it is so beautiful!!. This is so much fancier than anything I normally buy that I feel totally spoiled.

The pattern she sent is for a headband. I am definitely making a fancy headband with this yarn, but I am really hoping there is enough left over for a coffee cup cozy - how handmade glam would that be (on second thought, i think i may order some "chocolate cherry" and make mug cozies for Xmas - yay another project :))?!

I think this idea would be an awesome gift for any knitter on your list (hint hint).

Oh and also the bag is just as cute on the inside (I turned it inside out for the 2nd photo) and the lip gloss is awesome!

I <3 Etsy

Today I made my first Etsy purchase. I have been a big fan of the site for sometime. I love to just see what other people are creating and selling, but I haven't jumped in until today.

What was it that finally prompted me to buy....

Owls! A cute green owl ornament and an owl crewel picture (to be honest, I don't even know what that is, but I know I really want to try it out). I am going to refrain until after the PMP and after Audrey's Xmas is crafted, but then, watch out world.

Also, I love this person's blog. She has all kinds of neat tutorials. I think Audrey and I may try making some Xmas ornaments with the sunshine clay tutorial. Thanks Nikki.

Picnic blanket

So I have been wishing we had a good hearty picnic blanket/car blanket for a long time. And coincidentally, I found a denim quilt pattern that I really want to try.

I rarely go to fabric stores, as knitting is really my crafty hobby of choice, but I just happened to be in one the other day for material to make Audrey's present. I also happened to see some amazing picnic fabric - so I have yet one more project on the back burner now. :)

Audrey's Xmas present

I know that I said a couple of posts ago that I was not taking on any new projects for xmas. Well, I am making much better progress on my PMP exam prep than expected, so I went ahead and bought the pattern to make this doll for Audrey.

I also went to the fabric store while she was at Gymboree and bought the fabric to make the doll. Now I just need to find a great yarn for the hair and I will have most of what I need to make the project. I am so excited.

I keep looking at this flickr group and getting so excited for the possibilities.

Back to yogurt

This morning, I finally decided to take the time to make some yogurt again. It has been a while (a long while) since I last made yogurt, but I really love it, and it really doesn't take long at all. In fact, when I finished I wondered why I have not done it for so long.

Here is my method: I take ~4 cups of milk and boil them (when I am more vigilant, I try not to quite let it boil, but almost). Then I let the milk cool to 115 degree (F). At which point I pour it through a strainer into a pyrex pitcher. You don't have to strain it if you watch the milk and don't let it curdle, but I rarely watch it that closely. Then I mix in ~1/2 c. of powdered milk. I take about 1/2 c. of the strained mixture into another bowl that I whisk with the starter (this time I used a powdered starter, but most of the time I use 2-4 T of plain yogurt that I let come to room temperature). After the starter is completely dissolved, I add it back to the main mixture and stir some more. Then I pour it into little glass jars in my yogurt maker, put the lid on and wait 6 hours.

When I make it often, I already know the correct spot on my pan that is one quart and I use frozen plain yogurt starter, which is so easy, because my ice cube tray is exactly 1 T, so I just pop a couple of cubes into a bowl to thaw when I start boiling the milk. When I make it often, I also make flavored batches by adding a couple of spoonfuls of fruit and/or powdered sugar and/or brown sugar and/or maple syrup. But today, it is just plain, because that is how I like it best.

Dishcloth set

I cannot for the life of me figure out why blogspot keeps turning this picture from landscape to portrait, but so it is.. the black is bats, the purple is a frankenstein, the orange is a pumpkin, the green is a witch, the brown is a tombstone and the cream is a ghost.For the dishcloth swap that I was a part of, I found this great set of "mini" dishcloth patterns on Ravelry and this blog.

So I decided since they were minis, and since they looked so cute as a set that I would do the whole set for my partner. However, they are only really minis if you do them with the recommended size 3 needles. I did that for one of them (the pumpkin) and then accidentally did the rest in size 5 - which made them slightly smaller than normal dishcloths, but not quite "mini". I really like this set and my spoilee had a great idea of starting an afgan with them. I may actually do that myself at some point with another set. We shall see...

Best Swap Spoiler ever!!

I just have to post pics of the most amazing and generous and thoughtful swap package I've ever received (which is saying something, because I have had some really awesome swap spoilers).
But JoAnn, this was amazing. This package had: a book of dishcloth patterns, because I mentioned I would like some, another knitting book "Knit 2 Together" which is already distracting me from my required study time, a *huge* skein of lovely cotton yarn - I think I am going to make the bathmat in the Knit 2 Together book with it, KnitPicks 14" size 10 harmony wood straight knitting needles (again, I have totally been wanting to try their sticks), the yarn cutter that I really wanted for travel, some great pumpkin spice soap, a bag of Halloween colored M&Ms (which Audrey has quickly claimed as her favorite potty treats), 2 bags of trail mix (we will be bringing these on our apple picking adventures tomorrow), purple witch socks (I wore them to work on Thursday), a purple bat dishcloth and scrubbie and if all that wasn't an amazing package - she also sent a hand crocheted grocery getter bag.

Seriously - thank you! You have set the bar so high for paying it forward on my next swap :).

Decorating for Halloween

Audrey and I read quite a few library books about Halloween at the end of September. In all of them the characters were making decorations for Halloween and putting them around their house. So a few weeks ago, she woke up wanting to make Halloween decorations to decorate our house.

This is the banner that I came up with. It is actually a bit of a banner from Target that had cool lettering and the rest is bits we got at Michaels.

It turned out just fine (I am not a crafty perfectionist on things like this), but I do wish I had done the project on felt instead of foam - what was I thinking. Oh well, it turned out pretty well despite being made of nasty foam - and most importantly, Audrey *loves* it.

Christmas crafting

I am already thinking of all the xmas presents I would love to make. Of course, non of the things I am about to mention are actually going to happen this year, due to lack of time, but I thought I would write down my thoughts, in case I have a little more time next year. :)

Audrey: Wee wonderfuls doll, we love to look at the photos of the beautiful dolls others have made here. Everytime we look at the photo group Audrey asks if we can get one of these nice dollies for herself.

Ryan: His scarf - this might actually happen, I have been working on it slowly throughout the year.

Genny: a corduroy quilt - she really loves corduroy.

William: A fancy and warm shawl/scarf in some super thin cashmere yarn - go for broke right :).

Mom: A kitchenaid cozy. I have been keeping my eyes open for a pattern, but have yet to see anything I want to make.

Dad: A skinny sweater - he has recently lost a lot of weight (yay dad!). I am thinking maybe the one with the flames on the arms from Stitch n' Bitch Nation, since he has also recently started riding his motorcycle again.

MIL: an afgan.

Me: a sweater (tbd), a cashmere skully scarf and cap (i already have the yarn).

Ben: a denim quilt - i actually have been collecting the denim to do this for a while. I made a denim quilt for William a couple of years ago and was planning to make one for my bro too, but... then I went back to work and it just never happened - maybe someday.

Mary Merna: a denim and khaki quilt (apparently I think everyone needs a good denim blanket in their lives).

House: I would also really like to make a knitted banner for my house. No pattern per se, but I have an idea in my head already.

Toys for adults

Yesterday was Christmas in October for me.

We have been talking about buying a freezer for years - and by 'we' I mostly mean me with an occasional nod from Ryan. Well, finally, with Ryan in school and me working full-time we decided to get one so that we can make the most of any meals we do cook, by freezing some for a less cooking day and so that we can make the most of the partially cooked meal options available as well.

Thank you Costco, we got a great price our beautiful freezer.

Also, last week when G moved out, I went to go vacuum her old room and voila our vacuum stopped working. This isn't really a surprise. We got this hand-me-down, workhorse of a vacuum from my in-laws when they were done with it and buying a new vacuum for themselves - 5 years ago. We have certainly been on borrowed time with it for awhile. Even so, I had no idea how much vacuums cost, man they are expensive. We went with the Dyson DC-24. It is a small vacuum and it is AWESOME!!

I had no idea how dirty our carpets had become. I seriously was having so much fun vacuuming our house yesterday because I was in shock at how much better they looked when I was done. Plus the vacuum rolls on a ball, which at first I was not used to so I just vacuumed as I usually do. Until I got to Audrey's round rug. This vacuum was awesome on it. I wasn't fighting with the rug and the vacuum to keep it on, it just stayed. It was awesome. I am in love, I want to vacuum everything in my whole house.

Breaking News!!

While reading the Yarn Harlot, I saw this...
Obama holding a half-finished knitted sock. Knitters are crazy and so much fun. Things like this make me proud to call it my hobby of choice. :)

Caveat: I am not making any sort of political comment with this post, just posting for fun.

Fall thoughts

One thing I love about fall, is the feeling that comes over me to really get my house in order. I love house projects anyway, but fall really gets me feeling harvesty. So in celebration, Audrey and I are going to head to Costco and buy a freezer. I heart food storage.

(Tangentially speaking: I have wanted a freezer for years, but now with Ryan in school and me working full time, we really want to take advantage of healthy partially premade meals and freeze meals when we do could so that we won't have to do cook or eat out nearly as often, but still get healthy and cheaper food. I could go on and on about how excited I am for this purchase, but that is another post for another time.)

And Ryan and I have come up with a new plan to keep our house a little cleaner with him in school and me working. Inspired by flylady, I am going to empty the dishwasher each morning before I leave and Ryan will fill it during the day. Simple and hopefully effective. Now if we could just come up with a similar system for laundry.

On the knitting front, Audrey's sweater is coming along and she almost has two sleeves to go with those shoulders. Also, I have given myself a bribe for passing my PMP course for work - I get to something from my wishlist. I am thinking either the Mason Dixon knitting book or the Holiday Knits book or some beautiful yarn for a sweater for me, I haven't quite decided. I am waiting until I finish to decide. Now if I could only get myself to study...

Wow!

Now, I will start this with a disclaimer that I am not necessarily endorsing tattooing with this post (especially you Audrey - when you are old enough to read this), that said...

Isn't this an amazing tat! I can't wait to see it when it is done. I saw this on my favorite crafting blog.

Knitting Notions Wishlist

Well, in my last post on knitting I said that I wasn't so much a notions type of gal, but then as part of the swap I am in, I was reading lots of the other participants blogs and I realized I am in fact a notions gal. Here are some I would love to have (and will probably slowly acquire with the weekly 40% off coupons from Michaels).

The lovely yarn cutting pendant - truthfully, I could see myself actually wearing this on travel, just so that it is handy at all times.

The somewhat sassy, somewhat piratey t-shirt - does that qualify as a notion?

The new knitpics straights in the longer lengths - any size will do, I use them all.

This list will grow I am sure as time allows.

Cool Book List

I found this list on Ally's blog and thought it was a fun idea.

The Big Read is an National Endowment for the Arts program designed to encourage community reading initiatives and of their top 100 books, they estimate the average adult has read only six.

*Look at the list and bold those we have read.
*Italicize those we intend to read.
*Underline the books we LOVE .

Share this list in your blog, too, if you like.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones's Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte's Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

I faired okay 28/100. Interesting many of my favs are on this list (11/100). Notably Jane Austen did quite well with no less than 4 books - go Jane!

How did everyone else do? My guess is that of my friends and family Mary H will take first place, followed by my Mom and William, then Wendi, Desiree and Mary M. I also bet I am at the bottom of my well read friends list.

New Swap

I really enjoy making dishcloths, sad but true. So I really love the online dishcloth swaps because I get to send them to people who I know will be excited about getting them.

I just signed up for the "All Hallows Eve Dishcloth Exchange". This should be fun. I am also in a Christmas dishcloth exchange right now on swapbot. The swapbot exchanges are fun because they are usually simpler than the blog exchanges. It is nice to have so many options. Thanks to all the hosts out there, who are nice enough to set these fun things in motion.

They are back!!

Yesterday Liz called me on her way into the office to see if I wanted anything from Starbux. I told her I would meet her there and off I went, thinking maybe it was an iced coffee day - but as soon as I got there and saw the sign indicating that the delicious Pumpkin Spice Latte had returned, I knew that was the drink for me. I forgot how good those drinks are. They are a little on the sweet side, so I only let myself have a drink or four a season, but each time I savor every drop. Delicious. I think I might try to do my own pumpkin spice latte at home this morning - and I am definitely adding a little cardamom and some fresh ground nutmeg. Yum, I am making my own mouth water at the very thought.

All Hallows Eve Dishcloth Exchange Questionaire

Knotting Yarn
1. Do you knit or crochet? For how long?
I knit and crochet. I have been knitting for a couple of years now and that is my primary yarn hobby. I have been crocheting on and off since I was about 9 and my grandma Gigi taught me.

2. What sort of needles or hooks do you enjoy using the most? Are there some you've been dying to try out and haven't?
I mostly use wooden needles. I have noticed the metal needles hurt my hands, if I use them for too long. I love longer wooden needles and I can't wait to get my hands on the new harmony long needles at KnitPicks.

3. What kind of projects do you most enjoy? Small things you can take with you, or big complex ones that are just gorgeous when they're done? I enjoy small things that I can take with me, I love doing dishcloths because of the quick sense of accomplishment and the fact that they are so usable. I also have a couple of bigger projects in the works - a sweater for my daughter and a couple of other gifts, that I don't want to disclose in case the recipients read this. :)

4. List one pattern for a dishcloth that you love to make, or just tell us about one you've made or received that you loved. I love the Mason Dixon Knitting dishcloth reloaded. I especially love it in bright colors and/or varigated yarns. I also did (designed seems a little strong) a 5 star variation on that theme, that I really love because it lays perfectly flat, but still has a lot of interest.

5. What are your 'must have' notions? Are there any notions you need or can never have enough of? Any that might make you cry if you owned more? I don't really have many knitting notions outside of needles and yarn and my ipod counter. I can't even think of anything I am missing, but am certainly open to surprises.

Petting Yarn
6. What are your favorite yarns to work with? Any you hate or are allergic to? I really love cashmere - don't we all. But to stick within my budget, I use a lot of cotton and I love the cotton blends with other natural fibers - like the cotton linen blend or the cotton modal blends. I really don't like to work with acrylic. It just seems like a waste of work.

7. What colors do you like to use in projects? Any we'd never catch on your needles? I love all colors, the deep and intense ones, the bright and the subdued earthy tones. My current needles have a Christmas varigation and some solid greens. I tend to gravitate towards beautiful greens and reds even when I am not working on Christmas stuff.

8. Any cottons you'd like to try you can't find by you, or just haven't gotten around to getting? I would love to try some new cotton blends with other natural fibers to see how they hold up.

Halloween, Fall, and General Stuff
9. Do you like to use bar soap or shower gel more? What kinds of scents do you love? What kind do you hate? I am definitely a bar soap type of gal. I love clean scents - we use nothing but handmade bars in our bathrooms and as our kitchen soap. I do not care for pachuolli, vanilla or really floral scents.

10. What's more 'Halloweeny' - Ghosts, Pumpkins, or Witches? Witches!!

11. What's your favorite Treat to get? Sweet or Salty? Anything you're allergic to or just hate? I love dark chocolate and I love it with a bit of a salty nut. My absolute favorite - in case my spoiler happens to be from Hawaii is dark chocolate covered macadamian nuts. I just can't seem to find them around these parts very often.

12. What was your favorite Halloween Costume as a kid? As an adult?? As a kid, my favorite costume was to be rainbow witch - yep I made it up. My mom made me all kinds of variations on the theme with everything from a flower power skirt to a large cape. As an adult, I still dress up every year for Halloween as a witch, though now I go for the classic black to either take my daughter trick or treating or to pass out candy.

13. Are you on Ravelry? What's your ID? Yes I am on Ravelry and my ID is "madame" - quel suprise. :)

14. Anything else you'd like to be sure your pal knows? I like unusual shaped dishcloth patterns, if you happen to know how to make something clever like that. I would love a copy of your pattern to try it myself.

Cozy Fun

Because I like cozies so much, I may just have to knit a set of these for any and all of my drinking relatives. I think this could be the perfect gift for my bro for Xmas? :) I saw this on Lime & Violet's blog, in case you are actually curious.

Knitting Mysteries?

So I am not generally a "mysteries" kind of gal. But there is a fun series of knitting mysteries, that I really like. It is by Maggie Sefton and the first book is "Knit One Kill Two" and all of the title are similarly cheesy.

Cozy craziness

I had to post this because Ryan kind of makes fun of my "cozy" fetish. And to be honest he didn't properly appreciate my offer to knit him a computer cozy. So imagine my delight when I found this...

Some clever artist got tired of staring at an old and dilapidated gas station and decided to craft a "cozy" to take care of the problem.

Tumbleweed Houses

I like the idea of small houses, and truthfully I think my own house is a little big right now. I enjoy the coziness of being close to the ones you love in everything you do - for better and for worse. Also, I am really annoyed by the hugeness of nearly all home builders. Do I really have to buy a 3500 sq ft home, just to get a pantry - I don't need a music room, a media room and a library, just an extra closet type space in or near the kitchen - heck I'll even add my own shelves? But I digress.

Back to little houses, Tumbleweed was started by a fellow who lives in a house that he built that is 96 sq ft. This is a little on the extreme for me. But I do like his biggest house plan. Which is incidentally probably the smallest I would actually consider for my family (just about 850 sq ft). It is called the B-53 and it is so cute - an arts and crafts style. Of course, I would add the third bedroom and call that the library/office/crafts/game/guest room (clearly it would need some good shelving) :).

And for anyone else who enjoys floorplans as much as I do, I am including the floor plan.

As an added bonus, can you just imagine how small you power bills would be for heating and cooling a place this size, plus even on a city lot, you could still have a good yard to play on and grow some delicious produce. My frugal sensibilities are all aflutter at the very thought of the cool fruit trees I could grow and the delicious vegetables.

I think I would also want a garage and of course - a pantry :).