I love this...
Monday, December 6, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Since My Last Post I Have....
been doing a lot of things.
We have been slowly renovating PakMail. The corporate colours have changed and since the store has not been painted in, I'm sure the past 20 years. I decided it was time...The new colours are burgundy, white and a colour called Gardenia (it is a yellowy white). The old colours were burgundy and grey. Very nice, but also very industrial when in the presence of packaging material. LOL
Our lease was up for renewal and we negotiated a set of double doors for the front of the store with them. OMG what a difference. I can not wrap and strap skids of goods INSIDE instead of out front on the sidewalk! It sounds like a minor thing, BUT if the weather was bad I had to postpone the shipping date. Which can be a big deal for some shipments.
We have been slowly renovating PakMail. The corporate colours have changed and since the store has not been painted in, I'm sure the past 20 years. I decided it was time...The new colours are burgundy, white and a colour called Gardenia (it is a yellowy white). The old colours were burgundy and grey. Very nice, but also very industrial when in the presence of packaging material. LOL
Our lease was up for renewal and we negotiated a set of double doors for the front of the store with them. OMG what a difference. I can not wrap and strap skids of goods INSIDE instead of out front on the sidewalk! It sounds like a minor thing, BUT if the weather was bad I had to postpone the shipping date. Which can be a big deal for some shipments.
We also redesigned the mailbox wall. My store looks HUGE now! AND very bright! it is a much nicer place to walk into. Very fresh! The only thing left is to have the floor done....soon!
At the beginning of September, (Labour day actually) DS an I headed to St. John's, Newfoundland. DS is going to Memorial University for Physics and Physical Oceanography. Something he has always wanted to do!
I decided when he first applied that I would take him out there to get him settled. That way I could see where he would potentially go and hang out over the next 4 or so years. It's a Mom thing, to know that your kids is settled in and safe! LOL
We arrived Friday around noon in St. John's, with 3 HUGE suitcases, got the rental car and headed off to the hotel. Siunce DS had to register on the Sunday at his dorm, we decided to do aa bit of sightseeing on the Friday evening and the Saturday. We drove downtown and around the city to orient ourselves with what is where. What a gorgeous city! There are some funky coloured homes...
At the beginning of September, (Labour day actually) DS an I headed to St. John's, Newfoundland. DS is going to Memorial University for Physics and Physical Oceanography. Something he has always wanted to do!
I decided when he first applied that I would take him out there to get him settled. That way I could see where he would potentially go and hang out over the next 4 or so years. It's a Mom thing, to know that your kids is settled in and safe! LOL
We arrived Friday around noon in St. John's, with 3 HUGE suitcases, got the rental car and headed off to the hotel. Siunce DS had to register on the Sunday at his dorm, we decided to do aa bit of sightseeing on the Friday evening and the Saturday. We drove downtown and around the city to orient ourselves with what is where. What a gorgeous city! There are some funky coloured homes...
We even found a yarn store or 2...DS played with Franklin the dog in the one store. (That way I could wander around a bit longer!) A few skeins found their way into my bag...some sock yarn (BIG shocker there! LOL) and some yarn to make DS a Hat.
A Good Yarn, St. John's NL
On the Saturday, we went to Signal Hill and Cape Spear. Both were amazing places. We read that at Cape Spear we were closer to Ireland than we were to home! Very cool!
Signal Hill
DS at Cape Spear
Registration was Sunday morning...OMG the line...Talk about long, but the University had it all under control. I was amazed that we got in line at 8:30 (registration was starting at 9) and by 10 we were to the front of the line. The parents went to one spot for tea, coffee and breaky and the students went through the line for their Student card and keys to their rooms. Organized...Definately!
Once DS got his room key, we headed off to his dorm, suitcases in tow. DS is on the 3rd floor. Well HE muscled the suitcases, his fridge and all the other necessities that a University student needs to have in their room, up the 3 flights of stairs. We got him all unpacked, the bed made and everything put away and he decided that it was time for me to go so he could mingle with the other students on his floor. The dorm also had a bunch of activities for them planned for later that evening.
I left feeling absolutely unloved and rejected, and went off to get the final few things that he needed for his room. I picked up the last things (and a few extras!) and called DS to let him know that I had them. He told me to stop by and that he would come down stairs and get them from me...
Monday was Orientation...Both for the Students and Parents. I learned of all the services that MUN offers their students, how to cope with your kid not being home and what to say if they are having difficulty. After sitting through all the guest speakers, I definately felt better about leaving my "Baby" there.
Back to the hotel I went after a quick last visit with DS. He had a blast at his Orientation and the swag that he had...what a haul! He was telling me about the dorm and how he had met alot of people there. He was BEAMING!!!!
Tuesday morning had me heading to the airport, Alone...It felt really wrong...even as I type this my eyes are watering and my heart hurts a little bit! But I know this is the progression of having kids. You raise them all these years to get to this point in time, when they are becoming independent and all grown up! But as a parent it is still hard, one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my life...
A week and a half after I got home from NFLD, DH and I went moose hunting in Northern Ontario. Well, we went LOOKING...didn't see anything but a small black bear.
It was a lovely week, it rained 4 out of the 7 days we were gone. BUT I was away and had the much needed break from the work world!
I knit a pair of socks for one of the guys in our hunting party. He was VERY happy to receive them and wore them up there to keep his feet warm.
I left feeling absolutely unloved and rejected, and went off to get the final few things that he needed for his room. I picked up the last things (and a few extras!) and called DS to let him know that I had them. He told me to stop by and that he would come down stairs and get them from me...
Monday was Orientation...Both for the Students and Parents. I learned of all the services that MUN offers their students, how to cope with your kid not being home and what to say if they are having difficulty. After sitting through all the guest speakers, I definately felt better about leaving my "Baby" there.
Back to the hotel I went after a quick last visit with DS. He had a blast at his Orientation and the swag that he had...what a haul! He was telling me about the dorm and how he had met alot of people there. He was BEAMING!!!!
Tuesday morning had me heading to the airport, Alone...It felt really wrong...even as I type this my eyes are watering and my heart hurts a little bit! But I know this is the progression of having kids. You raise them all these years to get to this point in time, when they are becoming independent and all grown up! But as a parent it is still hard, one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my life...
A week and a half after I got home from NFLD, DH and I went moose hunting in Northern Ontario. Well, we went LOOKING...didn't see anything but a small black bear.
It was a lovely week, it rained 4 out of the 7 days we were gone. BUT I was away and had the much needed break from the work world!
I knit a pair of socks for one of the guys in our hunting party. He was VERY happy to receive them and wore them up there to keep his feet warm.
On the drive home, I was working on the back of a sweater that I bought at the Kitchener Knitters Fair.
I have also knit quite a bit since my last post. I joined the Iron Knitter 2 competition and have so far completed 3 pairs of socks (and learned new techniques). I have knit a baby blanket, another giraffe, a few hats, a hot water bottle penguin cover, I started a pair of fairisle mittens, a sweater and another pair or 2 of socks.
I have also knit quite a bit since my last post. I joined the Iron Knitter 2 competition and have so far completed 3 pairs of socks (and learned new techniques). I have knit a baby blanket, another giraffe, a few hats, a hot water bottle penguin cover, I started a pair of fairisle mittens, a sweater and another pair or 2 of socks.
Iron Knitter 2 Round 1
Iron Knitter 2 Round 2 (Intarsia)
Iron Knitter 2 Round 3
Pinwheel Baby Blanket
Kim's Giraffe
Dragonfly socks
Hot Water Bottle Cover for DS
Fairisle Mittens for me!
Currently I am working on Christmas knitting.
I will keep you posted on what happens next...
Keep on Knitting!
Keep on Knitting!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Once again I don't have any excuse for not blogging. Life is my only reason...
As you can see from my previous post, I HAVE been knitting. Alot!
Work has been a little slow, but seems to be picking up a bit. DD's and my dance classes are over now until September. I am looking forward to returning to class. I enjoy it quite a bit. We laugh alot.
Both DS and DD have been working this summer. DD in her coop as credit for school and DS in a full time summer job. Both have been getting up at the proper time by themselves, in order to get to work on time. Funny thing is that they can NEVER do that when it involves getting to school. I have to wake them in the morning and if they were up late the night before, they are really ugly! DS will hopefully be able to wake himself in September when he is a way at University. Speaking of University...I am taking him out to Newfoundland in September to get him settled at Memorial University. He has decided to take Oceanography. I don't know who is more excited about going...him or me!
I know I am going to miss him, but ever since DD & DS were little they would go away in the summer for a month and visit their father. He lives in the Caribbean. They used to go down to see him every summer from the time they were like 5 and 6. I had a hard time the first time they went, but each time got a little easier. I enjoyed MY freedom. It was nice to go to the grocery store and not have to take little kids with me.
But I digress.... If you take into account the length of time University students are away from home at one time, it is only like 3 months. With computers, cell phones, email, MSN and video calling, I don't think I will have a chance to miss him, or for him to miss me! Hopefully he will be busy with classes and new friends and all the other activities that go along with being at university.
I will be there for 4 days with him. We arrive on Friday and Sunday he can get into the dorm. Monday and Tuesday is the students orientation, and Monday there is one for the parents! I leave to come home on Tuesday afternoon. Hopefully we will get to do a little sightseeing on the Saturday...
We have been picking up some of the things that he will need...bed linens, towels, etc. Because of the flight there we are limited to what he can bring...we will have to get the bulk of the stuff there in St. John's...thank God for Walmart and Zellers! I can't justify spending alot of money on things when we can get them at those stores.
This weekend I will be attending a meeting with our (DH and my) hunting group, to make some decisions for our hunting trip in September. We are going moose hunting again and I am very much looking forward to getting away from the hustle and bustle of my store. I love the customer service aspect of my store, but it does get a little tiring...
Sunday is the PakMail Annual Golf Tournament. Last year was the first time I was able to attend and DH and I had fun. I am NOT a golfer, in fact last year was the first time I had ever golfed. I have been a few times to the driving range but never on a golf course. This year we are attending again, but my father will be joining us. It hopefully will be a good day. I will let you know how we did. Last year DH and I won the Horse's Ass trophy...in other words we came in DEAD LAST!!! BUT in my world the main thing was to have a good time and we did...this year should be about the same!!
That's it for now....I will try not to be so long between posts...
Happy Knitting!!!
As you can see from my previous post, I HAVE been knitting. Alot!
Work has been a little slow, but seems to be picking up a bit. DD's and my dance classes are over now until September. I am looking forward to returning to class. I enjoy it quite a bit. We laugh alot.
Both DS and DD have been working this summer. DD in her coop as credit for school and DS in a full time summer job. Both have been getting up at the proper time by themselves, in order to get to work on time. Funny thing is that they can NEVER do that when it involves getting to school. I have to wake them in the morning and if they were up late the night before, they are really ugly! DS will hopefully be able to wake himself in September when he is a way at University. Speaking of University...I am taking him out to Newfoundland in September to get him settled at Memorial University. He has decided to take Oceanography. I don't know who is more excited about going...him or me!
I know I am going to miss him, but ever since DD & DS were little they would go away in the summer for a month and visit their father. He lives in the Caribbean. They used to go down to see him every summer from the time they were like 5 and 6. I had a hard time the first time they went, but each time got a little easier. I enjoyed MY freedom. It was nice to go to the grocery store and not have to take little kids with me.
But I digress.... If you take into account the length of time University students are away from home at one time, it is only like 3 months. With computers, cell phones, email, MSN and video calling, I don't think I will have a chance to miss him, or for him to miss me! Hopefully he will be busy with classes and new friends and all the other activities that go along with being at university.
I will be there for 4 days with him. We arrive on Friday and Sunday he can get into the dorm. Monday and Tuesday is the students orientation, and Monday there is one for the parents! I leave to come home on Tuesday afternoon. Hopefully we will get to do a little sightseeing on the Saturday...
We have been picking up some of the things that he will need...bed linens, towels, etc. Because of the flight there we are limited to what he can bring...we will have to get the bulk of the stuff there in St. John's...thank God for Walmart and Zellers! I can't justify spending alot of money on things when we can get them at those stores.
This weekend I will be attending a meeting with our (DH and my) hunting group, to make some decisions for our hunting trip in September. We are going moose hunting again and I am very much looking forward to getting away from the hustle and bustle of my store. I love the customer service aspect of my store, but it does get a little tiring...
Sunday is the PakMail Annual Golf Tournament. Last year was the first time I was able to attend and DH and I had fun. I am NOT a golfer, in fact last year was the first time I had ever golfed. I have been a few times to the driving range but never on a golf course. This year we are attending again, but my father will be joining us. It hopefully will be a good day. I will let you know how we did. Last year DH and I won the Horse's Ass trophy...in other words we came in DEAD LAST!!! BUT in my world the main thing was to have a good time and we did...this year should be about the same!!
That's it for now....I will try not to be so long between posts...
Happy Knitting!!!
Sunday, August 1, 2010
I Have Been Busy...
May Baby Sweater
Baby Sophisticate
Sally, the Eco Fairy
Sock Giraffe
Gnome
Sock Giraffe & Sock Hippo
Gnome
Elijah
Hippo
Gnome
Vanilla Jim
Telemark Pullover
Nutkins
Jim's Ribs
Keep on Knitting....
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Catch Up Photos
OK I should probably start at the beginning. Life again has gotten busy...again... but I still have time to knit. I knit when DH drives us around and I have 1 1/2 each morning before I start work. Did I mention that I LOVE to knit!
DS asked me for another pair of socks so I bought some Paton Kroy FX yarn and knit up a plain vanilla pair. I know Kroy is a cheaper yarn but it knits up well and wears like iron. DS Loves his socks.
My next venture was to try carrying colour. It turns out that it is easier than I thought. I have been afraid of trying it for years but my knitting group was knitting squares for a charity blanket. Each month there was a different design square, each with a different technique. As a result of these 12 squares that I knit. I have learned a few new technques. I learned to read a chart, to knit cables (with and without a cable needle) and now to carry colour.
DH started to hint that he wanted another pair of socks...So I knit him these...
DS asked me for another pair of socks so I bought some Paton Kroy FX yarn and knit up a plain vanilla pair. I know Kroy is a cheaper yarn but it knits up well and wears like iron. DS Loves his socks.
DH started to hint that he wanted another pair of socks...So I knit him these...
The pattern is Dusk and has a cable design that runs down both sides of the sock. These are knit using Dream in Colour Smooshy. Black Parade is the colourway. They are perfect for DH. Very dark with subtle shades of blue, purple, green. It reminds me of a Black Watch tartan. They are now DH's favourite socks.
I started a pair of Nutkin socks for me using Dream in Colour Knitosophy in the colourway Strength. I enjoyed knitting DH's socks with it that I decided that I should have a pair as well. The picture colour is a bit off. They are a bit more burgundy than they appear.
Now that my Nutkin's are done DH feels that he needs more socks . I pointed out to him that he had 7 pairs and that he should be happy with that. He then asked me how many I had.... I told him that I knit my own and that maybe he would like to try...No, was the answer I got! I have over 2 weeks worth of socks that I love and wear all the time. I will continue to knit myself socks but, to keep the peace I think I will have to rotate between knitting for me and knitting for DH, DD and DS. I figure that as long as I knit one of them a pair in between knitting for me I should be OK! *LOL*
Last week I had a little visitor come to see me at my store. N was walking and playing in the store for a little while when he decided that he wanted to have a little lay down with Tiger in the store window. I managed to snap a photo. Which is pretty good for me as I usually don't think about the pictures till after the moment has passed. I thought this was a great
picture!
picture!
And finally my Knitting Group had our Sketchy Dying Day. We all got together and dyed some yarn. It was a blast. All of the skeins were different and all were very creative. Each person dyed their skein in the colours that they liked. Mine are below. The yarn is Knit Pick Superwash Bare sock yarn. We also used acid dyes.
I decided to dye a skein for DH. It is a combination of blues, greens and black. The colour reminds me of the Nova Scotia tartan.
The next one I dyed was a combination of yellow and red, making a gorgeous skein of orange, red, and yellow. I love this bright colourway. I am not sure what I want to knit with this skein yet but I will definately love it!
I had a skein of Fiesta Baby Boom yarn that was called Snow. It was a white/cream colour that was not very exciting so I brought it to dye as well. I love the blues, purples, reds and black that it now is. This is a much more appropriate colour for me now. It will make a beautiful scarf or socks.
Since all of my newly dyed yarn is still wet, I started another pair of vanilla (basic/plain) socks for DH...hopefully I get them done quick so that I can start knitting my "NEW" yarn!
Well, that about catches me up. I am hoping that I won't be away so long next time...
Next weekend is Victoria Day Long Weekend, which is the start of the summer. I have alot or work to get done around our yard but I will try to post the progress on my knitting.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
A Short One!
This is just a short post.
I have recently discovered the TV show Army Wives and have been watching it online each morning. I think it is a great show. In Canada, it is just new to the airwaves and they are starting it at the beginning. But once I saw the first episode last Sunday, I had to watch more. So I found it online and found out there is 4 seasons of it. Needless to say I am now on Season 2...I HIGHLY recommend it.
I finished these beautiful socks. They are knit using Yarn Love Juliet in the Sugared Grapefruit colourway. The colour is an exclusive WoolGirl Sock Club colour. The pattern is Laeticia. I used 2 .75 mm needles and knit them 2 at a time with Magic loop.
Happy Knitting!
I have recently discovered the TV show Army Wives and have been watching it online each morning. I think it is a great show. In Canada, it is just new to the airwaves and they are starting it at the beginning. But once I saw the first episode last Sunday, I had to watch more. So I found it online and found out there is 4 seasons of it. Needless to say I am now on Season 2...I HIGHLY recommend it.
I finished these beautiful socks. They are knit using Yarn Love Juliet in the Sugared Grapefruit colourway. The colour is an exclusive WoolGirl Sock Club colour. The pattern is Laeticia. I used 2 .75 mm needles and knit them 2 at a time with Magic loop.
Happy Knitting!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Photo Catch up...
Here are the photos of the projects that I completed during Ravelympics, Sock Wars and Test Knitting...
My Ravelympics projects were of the Shawl kind. I was part of Team Sketchy.
For SockWars, I ended up knitting 2 complete from scratch pairs of socks in the "Don't Box Me In" pattern.
And in return I received a pair of Death Socks knit in the same pattern...They were dyed just for me. The colour is perfect!
I also Test Knit a pattern for a pair of socks for a designer on Ravelry. I used Fiesta Baby Boom yarn in the Snow colourway. I really like this yarn.
Happy Days...
My Ravelympics projects were of the Shawl kind. I was part of Team Sketchy.
I also managed to finish my La Cumparsita Shawl that I started back in October....This is an elegant shawl that I think will look stunning with a little black dress. Now I just need to go out somewhere so I can wear it! *LOL*
And in return I received a pair of Death Socks knit in the same pattern...They were dyed just for me. The colour is perfect!
I also Test Knit a pattern for a pair of socks for a designer on Ravelry. I used Fiesta Baby Boom yarn in the Snow colourway. I really like this yarn.
Happy Days...
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