Attack of the Cardboard

6:45 am I go downstairs to make coffee and am greeted by this.







The whole of my kitchen has been transformed into cardboard haven. And I do mean the whole! The pictures were taken from the doorway. The only way to move about the kitchen is in and out through the passages. So I did what any good mother would do. I took a picture and then demolished the part that was standing between me and the coffee pot.

This is what happens when your the first one to bed.

Banners In Progress

High School Banner

On Easter weekend our congregation's youth will be participating in Leadership Training for Christ (LTC). LTC is a year long program that focuses our kids on a particular book of the Bible and a theme from that book. This year the book is 1st Samuel and the theme is Here I Am. Every year comes with it's challenges but we prevail in the end meeting the deadlines and the kids performing their parts wonderfully. The backstage stuff can be ugly but the performances always shine. I believe that most of our kids are procrastinators and shine under pressure. :)


Middle School Banner

My part in LTC, besides making sure my kids are getting their projects done, is banner and Bible Quiz coordinator. I am happy to say that the banners are 90% done! The rest are finishing work that I have to do. There are only 2 this year but each group designed and executed their projects efficiently. We only met twice and the first meeting was just about design. I am very proud of their efforts. I did very little in helping them. Basically, bought the material and supervised. I am so glad they are done!

Lists are fun

• Joy #1 & #2 & I went shopping in KC yesterday for Banner project supplies


• Go a new book Doodle Stitching


• Saw some interesting yarn at JoAnns


• Had coffee at Starbucks, ice cream @ Sheridans, & dinner at Panera


• Rented movies Stardust, Eragon, Sydney White


• Knit 2 rows on sock


• Joy #1 slept in her room last night. Progress without spicy food!

Saturday was a lovely day with my lovely people.

Socks that Rock, Pebblebeach, New Laptop named the Craigon

We Shall Overcome

• Laptop is talking to my network printer (I can print!)
• Laptop is talking to scanner (I can scan)

My system must have needed a good nights sleep just like I did. We are up and running. I still feel a little out of sorts as the dual monitor is new to me but I'll get used to it. :)

Good Admist the Bad

My new laptop and docking station arrived yesterday a little before 11 am. That should be the good news. The bad is that I worked non stop on the set up until 8 pm when I dragged myself home. Here's the short, issues with scanner, issues with network printer, bluetooth mouse & keyboard don't work (they are sending me a replacement), and I in my brillance lost my inbox. Now before you think that I hate my new laptop I don't. I don't even think it is the manufactures problem (minus the bluetooth stuff). I am convinced that if I were to have set this up on April 20th it would have been good to go in 20 minutes. Ok maybe 40. This was a test of my character. I will say that I did not curse, throw a fit, or be mean to the support people. I was irritated beyond belief but kept my cool and tried not to let it affect the office. Today is a new day and if I can't figure my printer and scanner problems I'm just going to call a tech guy to do it.

More good...sock is fabulous. Pictures to follow! I am ready for the first heel.
Even more good...Joy #2 pampered me when I got home last night. He propped me up on pillows in my bed. Brought up hot tea on a candle lit tray for us to enjoy while playing a calm game of chess. I won! First game I have ever won again him or ever (I'm new). I don't think it counts though because I have a sinking suspicion he let me win. He did a good job of making the game last though. Good kid that one!

Thursday

Did you know that today is Wednesday NOT Thursday? Me either! The hours just whoosh by me and somehow I am still standing and moving forward.

I casted on last night for a pair of socks. Monkey (no purl version) in fact. I just finished the ribbing and am starting on the lace pattern. Socks that Rock really do rock. I have knit 1 inch and I love this yarn. I have been knitting a row here or there while scanning in documents and I have the urge to stop working and just knit. I fully recognize that this is the honeymoon stage with this yarn and sock. But it is a good start. I really am pulling for a drawer full of hand knit socks.

In other news my laptop screen died, which means I can't work at home or surf the web after hours. I have ordered a new laptop but probably won't get it until March 15. I'm not looking forward to switching all my stuff over. This also means picture less posts until the new laptop comes. It's too much of a pain to upload pictures here, especially when I'm going to have to move them anyway!

Well, back to the salt mines. My five minute sanity break is up! BTW Joy #1 is still in my room and I am not seeing any motivation on her part to get out. I have threatened to make it my studio if she doesn't get to moving but it still hasn't happened. She did say something about a new bed and turning back on her cell phone as wonderful motivators. I'm not buying!

Did you know I'm not a sock knitter?

Surprising as I have made 8 pairs of socks in 3 years. I just don't like knitting socks. The knitting is not hard and I love wearing hand knit socks but I don't enjoy knitting it. Here is the down side to this acknowledgement. Socks are great gifts and I have given away 5 pairs of those 8 as gifts. The recipients loved the socks and I loved giving them.

So with this said, why did I just purchase some awesome sock yarn? And not just any sock yarn. The cream of the crop Socks That Rock sock yarn. This yarn is raved by every knitter that has touched it. And I didn't just buy one skein. I bought 2. Ok, one is for me and one will be a gift to a friend.

Now a normal person (read non-knitter) would be wondering right now, "Why would she spend good money on sock yarn when she does not like knitting sock?". (The knitters know that great yarn can be considered art and don't have to have a purpose.) I have this theory. Maybe I have not enjoyed knitting socks because of the yarn I have used? Maybe this yarn will be so wonderful that I will want to do nothing but knit socks! And I gotta tell you, I wish my sock drawer was filled with hand knit socks because I love wearing them so much. So welcome to my experiment. I have not cast on yet because I am a one project knitter and I am working on my cardigan. But soon, very soon I will cast on and my fate will be decided. Will I have a drawer full of socks of my own creation or Wal-Mart's?