Oh great and glorious UPS man!

He's paid me a number of visits over the past few weeks, bringing yarn for upcoming design deadlines:

Don't worry, they're not all due at the same time. Now to decide which to start next...

Vacation

How to knit in the woods...

(at our campsite at P.J. Hoffmaster State Park, between Grand Haven and Muskegon on Lake Michigan)

How to knit at the beach...

(on the beach in Grand Haven, lighthouse and pier in background)

How to knit at an amusement park??

(at the waterpark portion of Michigan's Adventure)

Well, we're back, and with all the knitting time I carved out I finished an entire short sleeve cardigan in SWTC/Vickie Howell Collection Vegas, based on a pattern I was reverse-engineering for Vickie (from the one she knit for herself) before I left (it was so cute, I had to have one!) Granted, I was lazy and didn't bother with the lace panels and only did a top button (again, laziness-- I guess that's the effect of knitting at the beach too much) but it's nice to have made myself something for a change. If you're wondering what it looks like, Vickie is wearing hers here.

We decided to do a little half-assed camping this year (meaning we got most of our meals out, though Hubbo busted out the camp stove and made pancakes every morning) and where else to go but the delightful sandy shores of Lake Michigan? It's got it all-- knitting time (and yarn shopping) for me, frolicking in the lake for Emma, and volleyball for the Hubbo.

We arrived on Wednesday, and not one hour after we arrived a series of terrible storms blew up, with hours and hours of torrential rain, huge hailstones, crazy wind, flooded streets, you name it. After a while we gave up on camping for the night and drove into town to find a hotel room. Being 4th of July week, this was very difficult, but we lucked out and found a place that just got a cancellation. After a dry and pleasant night, we headed back to the campground in the morning to finish unloading the car and set up. At this point (and for the rest of our trip) the weather was totally sunny and gorgeous, though a bit cool that first day (didn't stop Emma from swimming though!)

We beached at the campground, in Grand Haven (about 4 miles away or so) and up in Ludington (about an hour north) for yarn shopping and grandparent-visiting. The crowds in Ludington were the most insane-- we waited in a huge line at House of Flavors for ice cream cones but of course it was worth it-- their ice cream is the best (why wouldn't it be, when the factory is right out back?)

The last day we went to Michigan's Adventure, since our kidlet is a total fearless maniac when it comes to rides. She had a great time, and it was perfect-- close by, cheaper than Cedar Point, and though it's smaller it still had plenty of stuff to do, including a really nice waterpark (that didn't cost extra, what a treat!) Here's a few more pictures...

Now to decide what we're going to do next year (and to get back to work-- 2 more boxes of yarn came today for upcoming design deadlines!!)

Just got back...

From our little camping trip to Lake Michigan (we spent most of our time at the beach, naturally). I'm pretty sunburnt, mosquito-bitten, and tired, but as soon as I have a good night's sleep in my own bed I'll have pictures and details (and a finished sweater!)

Cracking open the stash

I just finished a really huge pile of work yesterday-- so to celebrate, I'm going to knit whatever I want for the next few days (shocking, I know!)

Brace yourselves...

Anniversary

Today is me and the Hubbo's 13th wedding anniversary. We've been together for 18 years and for some reason do everything on a 5-year schedule (started dating in 1990, got married in 1995, had a baby in 2000). A little known fact is that we eloped to Toledo and then went out to breakfast at Big Boy (romantic, no?) But hey, we were young and broke. We did have a casual little reception-esque party a few weeks later-- here's the classic cake-cramming shot:


Yes, I got a little carried away.

Goodies!

I recently did some pattern writing and grading for J.Knits (not designing, but taking other's sketches and turning them into patterns. To my delight, today I received this lovely package from Julie of J. Knits herself. The funny thing is the package also contained the check I was expecting for my services, but I must say the yarn (and cute tin of knitter's mints) was so engaging that I almost threw the check out with the envelope! Luckily I noticed before it was too late. The yarn is a big fat skein of Superwash Me sock yarn and two skeins of Simply Luxurious, both in the Honolulu colorway (I know what you're thinking-- green? But I just plain like it).

Behold

I actually get to knit with this. Yes, it's Mariel's Crystals, the Tilli Tomas yarn strung with Swarovski crystals. It is sooooooooo gorgeous. I'm doing a design for Knit n' Style using it, which is great since I don't think my yarn budget would allow for actually buying some myself.