Birthdays

On Saturday Nigel turned 45. The day started out with much excitement and presents alround. After Nigel had cooked his breakfast bacon, and we extinguished the fire we went out to Emma's 5th birthday party. This was held at a small stables in the Santa Cruz mountains. We got there early so we fed the hens. We even got to pet the hens which was a first for me (surprisingly soft and fluffy).


The party activities included crafts and pony rides for everyone. Adam was very pleased with himself; here seen riding Apple. AS you can see the saddles were all 'western' saddles. The stable owner told Adam to hold onto the horn (which I had previously told him was called the pommel). He correctly pointed out that the pony didn't have horns. Finlay was not expecting to ride so was thrilled when he got the chance for a ride on Pony Boy. He had a grin from ear to ear.
The birthday party was probably the most mellow childrens party I have attended and the setting was lovely and peaceful. It was hard to believe we were only 20 mins away from home.

We came back to our second birthday cake of the day, this one made by the boys and I.

We rounded off the day with a nice steak which Nigel cooked for himself on the barbeque!

Pumpkins

Here's what we have been doing this weekend:


The four of us carved pumpkins. Adam and Nigel carved the one on the left, Adam doing the design and most of the carving. Finlay and I did the one on the right - mostly me doing the carving with advice from Finlay.

Lets take a closer look at those scary faces...

Oh, you didn't mean the pumpkins?

Also, I paid a visit to the newest local yarn store purlescence yarns. It's a bit of a trek from here to Sunnyvale but they did have a few things not carried elsewhere at the local stores. They had a large selection of both Rowan and of sock yarns. Also, an excellent range of hand-painted yarns. I bought a skein of Socks that Rock yarn from Blue Moon Fibres which is not carried any where else. Also, a skein of Malabrigo which is hand-dyed peruvian wool similar to Manos, but much, much softer. Both of these are destined for me...once I have finished all my Christmas knitting.

I plan to make a hat from the Malabrigo which is a lovely shade of burnt orange, and... well... socks from the STR.

On this day in history

Im a day late, of course, but I just discovered this site: http://www.historymatters.org.uk/output/page96.asp. Its a project to create a UK-wide blog for the day of October 17th. I like the idea of this as I am very interested in the whole Mass Observation project - to which the organizers are likening this project.

I did my (very dull) entry but am actually very interested in the mundane, and less-mundane details of other people's entries...just like MO. You have until November 1st to write your own entry. The requirements are that you are UK resident or have come connection with the UK. You can write your entry in Welsh if you want.

Pirates and cupcakes

Mostly I have been knitting cupcakes. Tea and cake anyone? These are actually lavender 'bags' and intended for my friend Julie for Christmas. Might knit some more though - they were lots of fun and also quick.


In other news the boys and I made a pirate to sit on our porch. He is a guy but obviously we are not going to burn him (bonfires are illegal in California - and also I'd like my clothes back!). We are considering him a Halloween decoration.

The cupcakes are from One Skein by Leigh Radford and are knitted from all my oddments of yarn. (I see yarn from Gill's mohair shawl, Nigels alpaca scarf, Alisons faux fur scarf, Ned's bunny...). Decorations are likewise left over from other projects; buttons, Gill's beaded hat...)

What we have been up to

On Wednesday Adam's school had a Fun Run to raise money for the school. Adam participated and completed 25 quarter mile laps of the running track. He was completely exhausted when he got home but still needed to show off his medal. Thanks to all who sponsored him.


Both boys have been practising their 'tricks'. Here is Finlay demonstrating scootering on one leg.

and Adam riding his bike down the steps from the deck into the garden.
Both of them are very pleased with these achievements.

On Saturday Nigel harvested the bananas. They are almost certainly inedible as they are small and hard. In this photo you can just see the splash as they hit the pool.
This was our crop.
So, a pretty quiet week all in all.

In knitting news I am mostly knitting secret projects which cannot be talked about here.

Flower Basket Shawl

I finished my flower basket shawl. The pattern is by Evelyn Clark. I used a cashmere/silk laceweight yarn from posh yarn.


Here is a close-up showing all the colours - orange, pink, purple; subtle it is not. The colour is called chorus line (is it a singlular sensation?).


Here is the shawl in its unblocked state.


Here it is during the blocking process - it was a nice day so I did it outside on one of the lounger cushions covered with a towel.

I think this is probably the most difficult thing I have knitted, and I was sure that there would be many visible mistakes - however I can't see any and I have looked really hard. Lace knitting requires me to concentrate so I can't really knit and watch TV for example. One exception is knitting during episodes of Columbo - for reasons of his own Nigel has recorded many Columbo episodes - and since I dont actually like it much I am happy to concentrate on something else while its on the TV.

I'm not sure how much use I really have for lace shawls, I plan to keep this one since it's my first. However, I think lace shawls are a good example of process knitting, and I'm sure I will make more now I've got the lace bug. The other good thing is that it takes a long time to knit - so for knitting time vs cost of yarn it's pretty economic...I've been knitting this for months off and on.

Podcasting

Yesterday I felt just completely drained so spent most of the afternoon sleeping, knitting, and listening to my favourite podcast knittyd and the city.

The whole podcast thing seems to have really taken off in the online knitting community. Because anyone can make a podcast with minimal hardware and investment, its rather like public access cable TV. In fact Christina and Wendy (Knittyd and the city) are rather like Wayne's World. This is a positive thing - its like listening to 2 garrulous friends talking about their knitting, wool, mistakes they have made - in fact so much so that I immediately had to call my garrulous friend and talk about knitting.

This is the state of the flower basket shawl so far - I just have the edging to do so should finish this weekend.


The colours look rather subdued in this picture - in reality it's much more lurid than this.

New look

I just finished this scarf for Nancy, its a Christmas present, but since she does not read the blog I am safe in posting it. Also, I'm really pleased with it!

The pattern is Child's Rainbow Scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (beginning to think I've actually got my money's worth from that book!). It basically a mistake rib pattern knitted in a 2-row stripe. The yarn is of course Noro, in this case Kureyon in colours 166 and 139. I always like the beautiful colours of Noro, but really not the sort of thing you need a whole sweater in, but a scarf is just perfect...might have to knit one for myself.

I too have a new look - here looking both tired and startled. Photo by Adam. The sweater is one I knitted last summer; Carla by Rowan in Rowan tape. Hair by Christina at 5-Color Cowboy.

The dress revisited

Last night we went to a fundraising BBQ at Adam's school, it was pretty early so by 7:30 having eaten and both boys in bed I had some time...

So, I unpicked the tent and remade it. Here I am modeling it in the garden with my new boots. If I look slightly flushed its because it was 80 degrees and sunny.


The pattern is Simplicity 4072. The fabric is cord from JoAnns. I was not planning to make a cord dress, as the style would not really lend itself to such a heavy fabric, but it really was the only material I liked at all in JoAnns. The red cord has some stretch which was good for the facings and they are nice and smooth. Made up, I love the fabric as the cord is very fine and actually not too bulky, and I am really pleased with the colour combination.

I added a 3" panel above the waist. Because the pattern is so busy you can hardly see the modification and it looks a lot better, although it took me a long time to get the fit correct at the front and back. As pointed out by the helpful commenters on dress a day I should have lengthened the bodice in the first place. I should remember that hoping that a short bodice will fit is not going to be enough next time! Actually, next time I think I'm just going to buy the dress from Boden...altho mine cost $27 rather than $128.

I would say that I think it looks better in the flesh than in the photo which makes me look very busty...but I suppose the camera does not lie. It was never going to be the most flattering style for anyone with a bust, I had also planned to make long sleeves rather than the kimono sleeves, but again, didnt have enough material (due to incorrectly reading the fabric requirements).

Anyway it will be a nice warm dress for the winter when it comes and another option instead of jeans!

Small projects

I like to have multiple knitting projects on the go at any time; usually something complicated (currently my orange & pink lace shawl), something mindless for when I am watching TV or listening to a conference call (just finished large secret project), and something small for knitting in the car, or at the park.

Here are a couple of my small projects:

Nigel requested these handwarmers to wear under his cycling gloves. They are knitted in Regia silk, a sock yarn with wool, silk and nylon, so they are both warm and light. I used the pattern from Last Minute Knitted gifts that I had previously knitted for myself.

This little outfit is for my friend Alison's baby which is due on Friday. I think I'm pretty safe posting it now as I'm pretty sure Alison doesnt read the blog. The pattern is a combination of several baby patterns Ive got. Its knitted in Cascade 220 Superwash. The little suit is from the UK.

I made us a tent

While Nigel was away this week I thought I would entertain myself with some sewing. I had been planning a dress like this since I saw one in the Boden Catalog and here .

The fabric is a fine cord and I was really pleased with how the colours worked together. The cord was not as bulky as I had feared and the colours together with the design have a nice japanese style.

However, you will notice that its shown artistically draped on the front bench rather than modelled by me. This is not because of a lack of photographer but because it looks absolutely terrible on. I look dumpy in the extreme: the waist is about the widest point of my bust. I am wondering whether to add another waist panel, because the sleeves and other styling look better than I expected, or whether to follow Nigel's suggestion and cut it up the middle to make a rather sophisticated dressing gown.

The day was not entirely a wash-out from the creation point of view - Finlay and I made some successful brownies which were eaten for tea with much relish by all.

Finlay's favourite part of baking = licking the spoon.

Looking back at the Dress-a-day website I see that Erin made a McCalls pattern whereas mine was a Simplicity one. I might need another trip out to see if I can find the McCalls pattern because it looks as if it might have a longer waist. Hmmmm.....

GO Wonderpets!

Finlay's new favourite show is Wonderpets http://www.nickjr.com/home/wond_splash.jhtml

Linny is one of the heroes, he is a hamster. Finlay engaged me in a conversation as follows:
Finlay: Mummy, you know Linny in Wonderpets? On the TV he looks big, but actually he is really quite small.
Me: How small?
F: As small as the hamsters in the pet shop. (A popular activity for Finlay is going to visit the hamsters in the pet shop). I saw him.
M: Don't you think the Wonderpets are make-believe?
F: No they are real. The reason you have never seen them is that they live a long way from here. I saw them when I went in my spaceship. The chick and the turtle are small too.

This whole line of conversation has me wondering, yet again, if he really has a space ship concealed somewhere. After all, the wonderpets appear to be classroom pets - but are actually super heroes.

By the way, I love Wonderpets. It's one of the shows where I actually sit and watch with him. All the dialogue is sung like an opera. The only downside is that I sing the Wonderpets song all afternoon.."We're
not too big and we're not too tough, but when we work together we've got the right stuff...Go Wonderpets!"

Im running a small book on how long before we acquire a pet hamster.

Tales of the city

We went to San Francisco on Sunday. It was a lovely day - clear skies, 74 degrees or so. First of all we took a cable car to the top of Nob Hill. Both boys did eventually take seats on the outside of the car (after much persuasion on F).

Then we walked down to Chinatown, where there was a lot going on. We saw an old man playing some instrument that looked like a tin can with a stick stuck in it, he was playing it with what looked like a violin bow. We have no idea what the instrument was but since it sounded like chinese music sounds we assume it was a tradtional instrument. (Who knows - could really have been a retired violinist fooling us all).

We also saw some dragons and acrobats. Here is a photo of the acrobats - they were perfoming on top of plinths about 6' off the ground. I would have taken a photo of the dragons, but F was holding tightly onto my head and struggling to get away (!).

I think this might have been rehearsals for the Autumn Moon festival which is next weekend.


Finally we wrapped up with Dim Sum for lunch. Adam was very adventurous and tried everything including tea. Finlay polished off a plate of pretty spicy noodles but didnt really want to try anything else. They both attempted to eat using their chopsticks with fairly predictable results, however with more success than the middle-aged midwestern tourist on the next table.

Dragon in the garden

We found this beastie in the garden - he was about 5" across.


We have the small blue dragoflies over the pool often, but had not seen one this size.

Last weekend

Last Saturday we went to Pacific Grove for the Pacific Grove Triathalon (sprint distance). We had a lot of fun cheering Nigel (and the other cyclists) from a good vantage point in the cycling loop. Then we went to the running track and watched him finish.
It was actually a lovely weekend, we even had some rain which was a nice change. We did a lot of rock pool exploring and some long cycle rides along the coast.

We saw loads of crabs, starfish and seals, including 2 seals mating.

Is that a...

...Certified Executive Project Manager?


Yes it is.

To celebrate we had breakfast at the LG Cafe.

Labor Day weekend

This weekend was a US holiday which turned into a 4-day weekend for us.
So what did we do with all this leisure?
The action men went surfing and diving. (A&F got pretty wet too)

Nigel did some gardening, and some of this...
...and I did some knitting.
This is a scarf (obviously) in Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud, its a simple feather fan stitch pattern and really my first foray into lace. I actually finished this a week ago or so, but only got around to blocking it this weekend while swatching for yet another secret project!

And of course we followed that ancient American tradition and barbequeued.

Capitola-by-the-Sea

Finlay and I went to the beach today while Adam went to school. We headed for Capitola which is much improved since I was last there.

We arrived at 9:30 and it was much too cold to go on the beach, so we warmed up with hot chocolate and coffee.

By 10 the sun had come out and we hit the sand.

We had a lovely time and it did a lot to lift me out of my bad mood.

On the busses

On Tuesday Adam went to school on the bus. The stop is at the top of our road and there are about 25 children who take the bus from this stop. Its a general get-together for all the parents.


There are several other Kindergartners on the bus, but they didnt go on Tuesday so Adam asked Olivia if he could sit with her. She took good care of him getting him a seat at the front.


He says that the bus driver shouts a lot but she gives out stickers for good children!

First day at school

Monday was Adams first day at school. He was very excited and a bit apprehensive.

Finlay and I dropped him off at school - he was very disappointed that he didnt get to go on the bus, and even more disappointed when I picked him up too.


To celebrate his first day of school he got to chose his favourite meal for dinner, we ate pancakes.

I have heard other people talk about how emotional it was seeing their child off to school for the first time. I think that because he has been in daycare since he was 5 months, there is less emotion about leaving him with someone, or him going off alone. The only think that has really struck me is how quickly this has come around.

Yes, we have no bananas

We thought that we had a non-fruiting banana tree - but this week we have noticed these...

We dont still have the label from the tree - so are thinking that maybe the fruit is not edible - but we will probably try it anyway.

When we planted this it was less than 4 feet tall - the fence behind is about 5 feet high which gives some scale.

While the cat's away...

...the mice play. This is what we did this week.

The boys ordered some costume accessories from a catalog (after about 3 months deliberation). The stuff arrived on Tuesday. Adam, of course is a Knight.

Finlay, equally naturally, is a pirate. Personally, I think he gives Johnny Depp a run for his ducats.

On Wednesday we had a tea party. A&F had been asking about drinking tea - so we decided to have a special party with cakes from Icing on the Cake.

On Thursday we went to Bonfante Gardens. Adam took this picture of Finlay and I on the Ferris Wheel (!!!).


They also had fun in the waterfalls. Adam went around three times and got soaked, but since it was sunny we all dried out quickly.

Finally, of course there was some knitting (and a lot of watching of Footballers Wives). Finlay has his own socks.

My usual basic sock pattern scaled as for Adams socks except I made the top of the ribbing red so they can tell their socks apart. I also made the entire cuff ribbed as his legs are skinnier than Adams although their feet appear to be about the same size.