At Last!

Matt's vest is finally completed. He's not a big sweater guy and asked if I would make him a vest. He's happy with is so, that makes me happy. It was great TV knitting (is anyone watching Lipstick Jungle or Fringe...i know totally opposite programs). Details are below. Off to work on the mystery sock that Through the Loops is hosting.

The studious pose!

Sirdar book 328

Secret Garden: Supersoft Aran Knits

Design F

Size 9-10

The 11-12 was huge so I went down a size...not sure what was up with my gauge

Size seven and five needles

Everyone needs an out-take

Please Vote!

You can't complain if you don't vote...
Not one who likes to watch the "stars" jump on the political bandwagon but as I tell my kids this is THE most important obligation we have as Americans.

Coming Soon...

It's blocking as I type and he says he loves it!

Just Busy!

It's been busy here at Upper Pond. The weather has been glorious allowing us to be outside. We all know what will be upon us soon...so it's as if we are scurrying to spend every waking hour in the sunshine.

chicks at the pumpkin farm

This weekend we were busy with baseball and hockey tryouts, golf, cornmazes and long walks.

Autumn is my favorite time of year. The leaves have started to change and pockets of gold, red and orange are emerging through the blanket of green. I have many pictures to show you...so stay tuned!

Matt took this one!

Meme

Okay I was tagged by Andrea! Have fun learning about me and play along if you like!

Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know your entry is up

Random things about me.

1. I have never been overseas because I have a fear of flying.

2. I saw Princess Diana in Toronto years ago before she announced her separation from Prince Charles. She was so close to me I could have touched her. But of course I didn't because she was absolutely beautiful and then again you don't touch the Princess of Wales.

3. I could eat pizza every single day of the year.

4. I LOVE to yell at referees...but of course I don't...most times.

5. I suck at drawing and my kids tell me so.

6. I hated high school but LOVED college and I'm not talking the academic parts!

So there you have it!

Now I have to go and attend to the children...what's that you ask? Did I say children? Why of course I did. Old hurricane Ike reared his ugly head in our neck of the woods last night and over 50,000 homes are without power...so that means NO SCHOOL!

The boys weren't even ready for a "wind" day. They are still in the "I love school more than life itself" mode.

I hope and pray for the people that were in Ike's path. After last night, with sustained winds between 30-40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph, I can't even imagine what it must have felt like to be in the direct path.

Hopefully, relief will come quickly.

In Preparation

It's that time of year again...we are preparing for hibernation around here. Perusing hearty recipes, checking conditions of sweaters and socks, washing the blankets so they are ready for the beds! The leaves have started to turn and the mornings are cool. This is one of my favorite times of the year. In anticipation of the colder weather I have another pair of new socks!

I think what I like most about Trekking XXL is the way it washes and wears. The yarn is so soft with each new wash. This might be one of my favorite colors too.

Trekking XXL

colorway 83

60 stitches

size 1 needles

Lunch Today!

Found this in this month's Country Home...it was quite tasty and will definitely make it again! Enjoy!

Chicken Apple Salad Sandwich

start to finish 25 minutes

• 1 7.5-oz pkg.Tyson Frozen cooked chicken breast strips...thawed. (i actually found these in the regular meat section)
• 1 large granny smith apple, peeled, cored and chopped (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/3 c. dried cranberries
• 1 stalk celery chopped
• 1 green onion, sliced
• 1/3 c. fat-free or light mayo
• 1/3 c. fat free or light sour cream
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp salt and ground pepper
• whole wheat bread

makes four sandwiches

Combine first five ingredients together. In another small bowl mix next five ingredients together. Stir wet ingredients into chicken mixture. There you have it! Yum!

As I was typing this I remembered a job I had in my late 20's when I needed a bit of extra cash. A well known chef in our city hired me to transfer all his recipes onto the computer. It was a pretty easy gig that got me a wonderful free meal and great money. Typing the fractions out, made me realized that it wasn't a job that I loved so it pushed me harder to find a better paying teaching position (is there such a thing?). I only wish that I had made a few copies of his recipes for myself. I hear he went on to own a wonderful well known restaurant and has made quite a name for himself.

Highlights!

Finally, I got my rear in gear to put this all together. I'm too lazy to upload each picture individually so I just made one big collage. We had a great time this year in the Adirondacks. ALL family members that could visit... did. Allowing for many laughs!

Highlights of our trip included:

• beautiful sunsets and sunrises
• extreme rock jumping
• swimming more than any other year
• waterskiing (we tow our boat with us)
• celebration of summer birthdays (my brother and SIL in June and me in August)
• family members traveling from Dallas, Atlanta and San Francisco for my cousin's wedding
• stopping at WEBS on the way to the wedding (highlight of my trip)
• roasting marshmallows around the campfires
• sparklers
• mountain climbing (this year we conquered Blue Mountain...2 hours up, 1 hour down. All 46 years of my life could be felt at the end of the climb)
• a bit of knitting
• river fishing with a guide (this happened while I traveled to the wedding)
• and just family time well spent!

Another vacation into the memory book!

Finally!

Today the boys finally went back to school. I thought I would enjoy the day by myself but it was pretty lonely. We really had a fun summer together! Of course we had our ups and downs, but for the most part it was a summer of adventure and laughter! Just what a nine and eleven year old need on their summer vacation. Both love their new teacher and I believe this might be a good year for both boys!

Our trip to the Adirondacks was eventful. Hopefully, I will be able to find some time to show you some of the highlights of our trip. Enjoy the scenery and I will be back soon.

One Last Thing!

Ry's socks!

3x1 rib

size one needles

my own pattern

Cascade sock yarn

unsure of what kind

can't find the ballband

and I should be finishing packing

now that i've blogged this

i'm all up-to-date

see you in a week or so!

An Extreme Day!

On Tuesday we traveled to Geneva, NY to view the tear down of a house for the upcoming season of Extreme Makeover-Home Edition.

It all started the night before. The boys created signs to have autographed and to use to catch the eye of the camera people.

But when we arrived, no one was holding any signs and of course the boys were too cool to be the only ones using them so they quickly went away.

So here's the house...a 150 year old dilapidated farmhouse. I know...reuse, recycle etc...Not sure what the condition of the inside was like...I guess we will have to wait for the show to air.

So the reason this family was picked was this: the father was an inspiring boxer and broke his back on a construction job. So...no more boxing in his career. But instead of giving it up, he opened a boxing center for troubled youth, adopted one of those young kids, coached a few Olympic hopefuls...while using all his money that he earned at his day job...a counselor at a local high school. From the gossip I've heard about this family (my mother lives in the same town) it seems as if this is a really deserving family...can think (which at times in this show I'm not quite sure about that area) and will be able to maintain this home. Don't think we haven't talked about the flip side of being on a show like this. My husband is and evil auditor! It's a constant discussion around here!

Anyway ...all the "stars" of the show were there:

Ty

Michael

Ed and the woman whose name I can't pronounce.

and John. He's the guy with the bowtie. The builder hails from my small village and his daughter is in fourth grade with Ry. Many of the sponsors and tradespeople live in my area so we have many connections. Also, I have many friends that signed up to be volunteers. Although, I read in the paper last night that the house is 3-5 hours behind because people are blowing off their time slots because they don't want to drive the 40 miles to get to the site. Ahhh, I guess they want volunteering to be easy and convenient for them.

It was interesting to see what exactly went into filming the episode. Matt is an inspiring film director and walks around with his video camera up to his eye all day long. It was important for me to take him to see this and show him that one shot is not all it takes to record a three minute slot of the show.

He, of course brought his video camera along and shot Ty as Ty was knocking down the house.

Geneva loves having all this activity in their town. It is a pretty desolate upstate town that if the summer tourists never came or the college wasn't there, it would not be a good place to live( sorry mom). This has been good for their economy and feeling proud of the place where they live. No matter if you like the show or have intense dislike (which I understand) it has had positive effects on the community.

Plus...it was a great day trip for the boys!