Noolie Knits

Friday with Clover - "Sleeping Babies"

 
   
    Don't be fooled - it's not all sweet sleeping babies around here.  

We also have vampires!

Friday with Clover

(Click the picture to see more)     Samm, Clover, and I went to The Children's Museum of NH the other day.  What fun!    

Friday with Clover

I know I've been slacking off here on the blog. It's not like I haven't written a million posts in my head; they just haven't made it here. I do have some stuff to share, and I will be off work next week so I promise I'll try to be better.  

Until then, enjoy another Friday with Clover and have a great weekend!

Friday with Clover

Until last weekend, Clover wanted absolutely NOTHING to do with the pool. 

Now she loves it (as long as someone holds her).

Have a wonderful weekend!

Friday with Clover

Some of my favorite pictures from July 4th

 

Play time with Mommy & Daddy

 

 

One cool kid with a cool leaf

 

(great) Uncle Bob & Clover

 

(great) Auntie Sherri & Clover

 

 

Clover & Great Papa

 

Hug time.

 

And my favorite picture of the day:

 

Clover & Duke

A Day at the Aquarium

As I told you the other day, I went with Samm, Jay, and Clover to the New England Aquarium last Friday.

Even though the crowds were horrendous (it was a holiday for most businesses, after all) it was a good time and Clover really seemed to enjoy it.

~~There were some really cool Jelly Fish:

~~and turtles:

(There were even other little people with backpacks like Clover's.)  

~~We could get real close to lots of fish swimming in the big round tank in the middle of the building.  It's 3 stories high with lots of windows to watch the fish swim by.

 

Clover really enjoyed the penguins:

I think they may have been her favorite part of the trip.  

 

We were able to watch as the fish were fed:

This is at the top of the center tank.  See the guy in the red & white flowered shorts - he's feeding the fish.  There are sharks in that tank - I think he's very brave!

It was great fun to watch Clover's reaction to all the different sea life.   I'm so glad that Samm and Jay asked me to be a part of her first trip to the aquarium!

Clover and her new pink penguin conked out about 5 minutes after getting back in the car!

Friday with Clover

Gina and Jackie came to visit last Saturday.   We met in Portsmouth at the Yarn Basket and then came back to my house for lunch and a visit with Clover before heading to the Yarn Sellar to meet Heather for a bit of shopping and knitting. 

There was reading.       There was playing.


  There was coloring.       Gina, Me, Jackie Clover And apparently,  there was a uniform of the day.  

 

It was a great day with friends!

 

Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera to the Yarn Sellar so I have no pictures of Heather.

 

 

Friday with Clover

   








    Happy Friday!

Friday with Clover (on Monday)

Since I didn't get around to doing a Friday with Clover post, how about a Monday with Clover post?

Sometimes Clover will have a hard time lying down to take a nap no matter how tired she is.

Other times, not so much.

She was playing in her room one minute, and this was her the next.

 

This time she started out in her bed but decided the floor would be more comfy.

Notice she took the time to bring a pillow and blankie with her.

      Here she is after a ride in the car.
   
 

I don't know about you, but I'm a sucker for a sleeping baby face!    Have a wonderful day :-)

Friday with Clover the Doll (and a contest winner)

 It would appear that Clover takes it literally when told she's a doll.
 

 

 

Nighty-night, little doll.   ******************************************************
 

Thanks to everyone who entered the caption contest; I had fun reading all the great entries.  I'm glad that I decided to use the random number generator to choose the winner;  I would have had a hard time choosing a favorite!  

I guess you want to know who that winner is, don't you?

Drum roll please.....

.....

the winner is....

....

Cheryl.   

Her winning entry was:

Who says it won't count for "You must be this tall to ride the roller coaster"?

Congratulations, Cheryl!

Friday with Clover - The Contest Edition

~~~This week's picture is screaming for a caption, but I can't think of one.

   

~~~This yarn wants to be owned by someone who will actually use it and I've come to the realization that that person is not me.

Rowan 4ply cotton, 5 50g balls (186yds ea.)

 

~~~I think this situation calls for a contest, don't you?

    ~Leave a comment on this post with a caption for the picture.
    ~Contest will be open through Thursday, June 11th.
    ~The winner will be selected randomly on Friday the 12th and announced on the blog.

Good Luck and have a great weekend!

 

p.s.  I won't be around to respond to comments this weekend, but I will respond when I get home.

 

A Picture Post

Another picture of Clover and Samm. Samm thought I deliberately cut out her tattoo in the last post so I thought I'd show it to you today.   
 

I finished a pair of socks...

Yarn: Marks & Kattens Clown
Pattern: Stockinette Stitch, top down socks on 60 stitches. Eye of Partridge heel.

 

...and started another:

Yarn: TOFUtsies     Pattern: Rainbow Ripple  

 

Over the past week, I've received more goodies from some very good friends - I'm so spoiled (and I love it)!

 

From the wonderful Dana and Dianne - a souvenier from the festival they work so hard to put together, The Sedalia Spring Fiber Festival: 

A Nana Sadie Rose bag!
With crazy black cats on the outside and pawprints inside (along with many pockets for needles and things) - Perfect!

I'm saving my pennies so that I can buy my own souvenier next year.
2010 Sedalia or Bust!  Right Marianne?

More birthday goodies from Patti and Roger:

Goes perfectly with the rest of the birthday gifties they bestowed upon me.

 

Wait, I'm not done yet.  Even more birthday goodies arrived in the mail on Friday. This package came from the sweet, sweet Gina.

Chalice Cable Handwarmers pattern by Alison Green Will,
the yarn to knit the handwarmers - Rowan Felted Tweed,
and some scrumptious Jojoland Cashmere laceweight yarn!
Don't you love the wrapping paper? And that card is too cute! (click here to see it larger so you can read it)

Thank you all so much - you're all too good to me!

I received one more goodie package in the mail on Saturday - this one wasn't a gift; it was my May Spunky Club fiber:

"Pansy" 4 ounces of Romney
Gorgeous isn't it?  

Clover thinks so!

I have just a couple more photos to share with you before I end for today:

 

This is how hubby spent yesterday morning.
You KNOW that made me happy!!!

Friday with Clover

and Mommy.

  It was a wild hair day!

Celebrating

As some of you know, my birthday was this past Tuesday.   I want to share with you some of the things I did and received. 

Since Hubby works the crazy midnight shift and has a hard time being up in the evening during the week, we celebrated my birthday at home on Monday evening (the end of his weekend).  We ordered takeout from Ruby Tuesdays, which is always good, and then we topped it off with angel food cake covered in strawberries and whipped cream - YUMMY.  Samm, Jay, and Clover then gave me this beautiful gift:

"Child's Touch" by Willow Tree
Isn't that just too sweet?! I love it!
 

Hubby gave me a gift a week earlier when it arrived in the mail.  (Usually it's Samm who can't wait to give a gift.)

 
Isn't this a great T-shirt. He picked it out himself and had it customized! He did good; no wonder he couldn't wait to give it to me :-)

I received one other gift on Monday; this one came in the mail and was from the wonderful Colleen:

The Knit Kit!
Look at what she padded the package with - sample sizes of a couple different fibers. They are going onto some spindles soon!  

Want to see what's in the Knit Kit?

On the top of the front is a row counter, to the right of that is a little pull out thread cutter, and on the left is a crochet hook that snaps into the side.  On the bottom is a pull out tape measure and that button on the bottom sucks it back in.  Turn it over and open the compartment on the back and you get what you see in the picture on the right - fold up scissors, stitch markers, needle protectors.  This is so great!  Everything you need in somethinng so compact.  I added a darning needle to the compartment in the back and I really have everything I need.  So much easier than the baggie I drag along and move from bag to bag.  Thank you so much Colleen!

All that and it wasn't even my birthday yet.    Since my birthday fell on a Tuesday, I naturally wanted to spend it with my other family, The Chicks with Sticks at the Yarn Sellar.   I really did not expect it to be another party, but a party it was.  First, my dear dear friends, Patti & Roger, gave me a great gift:

Sereknity Perfect Sock in the color "Caramel Macchiato"
and an adorable new project bag - notice the clovers and ladybugs - Perfect!
Patti and Roger are too good to me - thanks guys!

It didn't end there though, my good friend Mary came in a few minutes later carrying a wonderful fruit tart (with custard covered in strawberries, blueberries, and kiwi - OMG - YUMMY!), party favors for everyone (silly plastic gemstone rings), a crown for me to wear, and a bottle of wine.  I didn't get a picture of any of this, but I do have this one shot of the crown that I took when I got home:

Yes, Princess Clover now owns the crown.
 

 

I didn't complete my birthday celebrating until yesterday when i spent some birthday money that I had received.   Every  year on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend, my friend, Tracy, and I start our summer of eating outside in Portsmouth and shopping downtown.  We like to eat out on the deck of The Old Ferry Landing and have a couple drinks and then walk around Portsmouth and shop.  This year was no different - well, I guess it was a little different as we made a stop at a "shop" that we have never visited before.  Tracy had mentioned when she picked me up that she really wanted to get a tatoo of a couple cat paw prints on her ankle.  That was all it took (well, that and a couple drinks and an Ativan) to give me the courage to do what I've been wanting to do for quite a while.

 

 

 

It'll look better after it heals and there's no longer any blood on it. Aside from the blood, isn't it great?!
 

I'm so happy that I finally did it! It was so much easier than I thought it would be; it hardly hurt at all.

Just one thing - please don't tell my Daddy that I spent the birthday money he gave me on a tatoo :-)

Friday with Clover and Her Best Friends

Rico and Clover



Clover and BeBe (aka Phoebe)   Click either picture to see more.   Have a great day!

Friday with Clover

Clover usually doesn't care too much for a messy face when she eats, she'll stop and take the time to wipe her face every couple of minutes while eating something messy. 

Usually, but not always.

  Samm gave her some hummus the other day; she liked it so much that she didn't even care (or notice) that it was on her nose.  Silly girl.  
 

Friday with (the other) Clover

Our sweet little Clover has learned a new trick.

 

She throws a pretty good temper tantrum.
       

""Tantrum?  Me?  Never!"

Friday with Clover

Clover came to Chicks with Sticks for a while on Tuesday evening.

She had such a good time, she just had to dance!

A bit blurry, but still cute :-)

 

Have a great weekend!

Friday with Clover - The Big Girl Edition

Look who's a big girl now.

Clover got her first "big girl bed" a couple weeks ago.  She got right in it and went right to sleep.  It took her a while to start sleeping through the night in it, but she's getting pretty good at it now.

This is what her Mommy and Daddy found in the morning after her first full night in the bed:

Yes, she's sound asleep in that position.
Silly girl!

Friday with Clover

Another dancing video; this one from Easter:

That was just the beginning of a very nice Easter with Clover. 

She had a visit from the Easter Bunny and wasn't the least bit afraid; she even gave kisses.

She hunted for Easter Eggs (and flung them into the basket; thank goodness they were hard boiled!).

There were bubbles...

and coloring...   and a trip to the playground.

I know this will come as a big surprise, but I have about a gazillion pictures of the day.  If you'd like to see them click here.

 

I'll leave you with just one more; this is one of my favorites:

Have a great day!

Friday with Clover

Clover loves to dance.  She started moving to music before she could even sit up on her own.  Once she started walking, the dancing really took off.  Whenever there's music on, she dances.  No music?  No problem, she'll just sing so that she has music to dance to.  Funny girl.

We've been trying for months to get video of her dancing, but once she sees the camera, she either stops and smiles or she walks right to the camera and reaches for it.

Finally this week we have success!  Samm and  Chris (aka "Gampy") managed to get a video without Clover noticing; I have no idea how they did it (I wasn't there).  

Before I show them to you, I have to tell you that you'll see some frightful things on the t.v. - they are characters on YoGabaGaba, Clover's favorite show to dance to.  The show is actually quite good if you can just get past the creepy characters.

Now that you've been warned, enjoy the show :-)

Friday with Clover

Sometimes I look at Clover and wonder when she turned into such a big girl instead of a 15 month old ...
 

...and then I see this.

 
Still a sweet baby :-)

Friday with Clover

CLOVER GRACE - EXERCISE INSTRUCTOR EXTRAODINAIRE

"First, you must have the proper exercise attire..."


"A comfy fitting onesie works well."


"Good shoes are a necessity"


"Sidekicks really work those saddle bags. (Are you listening, Nonni?)"


"Next up - lunges. Isn't this fun?"


"Squats - be careful; you may need help getting up if you're old like Nonni."


"Time to stretch those leg muscles."


"All done.  Now, wasn't that fun?"      

THE END

Friday with Clover

"Do you like my new wallpaper?"    

 

Something Rarely Seen Around These Parts

I'm about to show you something you have not seen around these parts for quite some time - it's an FO and it's for ME!

This FO started out wanting to be something else.  You may remember my sad tale of denial from this post.

After that failure, I just couldn't bring myself to start the same sweater over again, so I used the yarn for a different sweater:

Why yes it does actually have sleeves; I just couldn't get them in the picture (hey, I was rushing). Here it is on the blocking board yesterday afternoon:

I know, it's still hard to really see what they look like; I'll try to get a modeled picture for you soon.  I have it on today, and I will be going to Chicks wiht Sticks tonight, so maybe I can beg someone there to take a photo of me.

Details:

Pattern:  Knitting Pure and Simple Neck Down Swing Coat
Yarn:  Cascade Ecological Wool   ~   Needles:  Sizes 8 and 9.

Mods:
~I wanted a little less swing in this Swing Coat, so instead of increasing every six rows, I increased every 8 rows.  If I were to make it again, I'd leave out the back center increases (with a butt like mine, I don't need to be drawing attention to it).
~I did the entire collar in seed stitch instead of most of it stockinette with 3 garter ridges as the pattern called for.
~I used seed stitch at the cuffs, the bottom of the sweater, and the button band. 
                            I do love me some seed stitch :-)

More pics:

Seed stitch:

        

Buttons:    

(The true color of this sweater is somewhere between the brownish and the grayish of these pictures; truly hard to capture.)

The sweater during the inspection process:

     

It would appear that it passes inspection!

Friday with Clover

This is my destop background right now; no wonder I'm so easily distracted from work!

Friday with Clover

Clover had her first slumber party a while ago:

Like most slumber parties, there wasn't much slumber going on:

  Happy Friday!

Friday with Clover

Clover got a new Princess Rocking Horse

I think she likes it!

Teeny Tiny Hats and More

Although you wouldn't know it by my last couple of posts, there has been knitting going on around here.  Actually, make that knitting and crocheting going on. 

CROCHET:

I posted a couple of weeks ago about the first preemie hat I made for the K3tog Preemie Hat Knitalong.   I had anticipated making several more when all of a sudden, I looked at the calendar and realized that the month is almost over!  How did that happen? 

I had been crocheting a little hat in the style that my friend's grandmother taught me 100 years ago when I was in high school.  It should have taken me only a couple of hours to do, but because of my inattention to the calendar (and apparently to the hat) it took me over a week!  Well, since I cannot send just two itty bitty hats, I decided I'd look for a quick crochet pattern and whip up a few more itty bitty hats.

 

These hats all use leftover acrylic yarns - Caron Simply Soft, Bernat Softee Baby, Plymouth Jelli Beenz and size "H" crochet hook.

Clover personally tested the hats on her baby:

She approves.

I did crochet one extra one for her baby to keep; I didn't get a picture of that though.

KNITTING:

Hubby mentioned recently that he'd like some more hand knit socks, so I went stash diving and found the perfect yarn for some mansocks .  I told hubby that these would take awhile because I have some other projects I really want to get done but I've been working on them a bit here and there.  I brought them to the doctor's office with me yesterday and when the doctor appologized for making me wait, I told him it was fine because I got some knitting done.  I don't know about you, but I don't mind waiting in the doctor's office as long as I have my knitting with me; I actually kind of like it.

 

 
Cascade Sassy Stripes (superwash) yarn Size 2 dpn's    

The Replacement Sweater is coming along nicely. I've tried it on and believe it will be a nice fit; a little loose but not huge.

Yarn: Cascade Ecological Wool
Needles: Size 9 circular Pattern:  Knitting Pure and Simple Swing Coat

Of course Clover had to inspect it:

She's withholding judgement until it's complete.

Ruffles

I was finally able to get pictures of Clover in her finished sweater.  Let me tell you, it wasn't easy.  She's much too busy to stand still and model.  Here's what I managed to get.

 

Pattern:  Child's Ruffle Sweater by Lynn McCarthy

Yarn:  Vermont Organic Fiber Company O-Wool Balance

Mods: The pattern would have you pick up all the needed stitches for the ruffled collar; I found that too difficult and instead picked up 1/2 the number of stitches called for.  I then increased by K1,M1 across on the first row.  This was easier and I don't think you can tell the difference.  The only other mod I made was to knit the sleeves about an inch shorter than called for.

I thought I was going to have a really hard time finding buttons for this sweater, but while at Chicks with Sticks last Tuesday, I decided to look at the buttons there.  I wasn't really expecting to find anything, but I opened the button box and these were sitting right there, begging to be used.    They were perfect!

(click for bigger)  

I'm very happy with this sweater; the pattern was simple, yet not boring and the yarn is awesome.   I think the  finished sweater looks adorable on Clover (and it'll fit her for a while, which is always a plus).

 

Next post:  WIP's

 

Have a great day!

 

 

Friday with Clover

Clover LOVES books. 

 

And she's got pretty good taste when it comes to choosing what she wants to "read".

She just might be Franklin's youngest fan  :-)