Monday, I cut and baked 7 dozen pumpkin shaped sugar cookies. Today, I’m going to be making about as many gingerbread cookies. (The yummiest gingerbread cookie in the entire world, I might add). But before I do, I have to haul off to the store to get dinner stuffs, because we’re going to be eating on the run, and I need supplies.

Tonight, at 6:30, Nate’s youngest brother comes home from Italy. (This would be Pete, the recipient of Pete’s Bag linked in the sidebar.) He’s been there for 2 long years, and tonight, we’re going to party. I’m bringing a zillion cookies. (Nate has a very, very large family).

It’s going to be a busy day. I’m glad I’ve been able to rest up these past two days. And resting up I’ve been.

I’m halfway through the armholes on the back of the VCC. 4 1/2 inches to go, then I get to start armholes on the two fronts. This additional length is turning out to be a very good thing. I am very glad I decided to frog and re-knit, and I’m so excited to wear this sweater! I think it’ll look great. And once it’s done, I’m going to jump right into the Interlocking Balloons scarf from Scarf Style, in my red Angora yarn by Elsebeth Lavold. I think they’ll go together nicely.

And finally, mom sent a picture of her clogs.

I wish you could see how fluffy they are. Lamb’s Pride makes gorgeous slippers.

Well, I am hoping that we’ve seen the last of the frog pond for the Vogue Cable Cardi. Last night at a school meeting I frogged the back armholes onto a niddy noddy, and began re-knitting with fresh yarn. Both of the fronts are knit up, ready to begin armholes. I think I’m in for another day of knitting today because despite the rest I got yesterday, I’m still completely exhausted. I took Veronica to the grocery store and then out to lunch, came home, made dinner in the crockpot, and was wiped!

Which reminds me… I know some of you are interested in good crock pot recipes, and let me tell you, I just found another one. Yu-mmy! It is a hamburger and barley soup, with some minor modifications. Here’s my version.

1 lb. ground turkey (not turkey breast, just plain ol’ Foster Farms ground turkey)

1 medium onion, chopped (I used dry onion flakes. They’re easier).

45 or so ounces of beef broth. (I used Swanson’s organic beef broth that comes in a carton. No scary ingredients in that one).

1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes in heavy puree.

3 carrots, sliced

3 celery ribs, sliced

8 heaping Tbsp dry barley (Mmmmm. Love barley).

1 bay leaf

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

1 Tbsp dried parsley leaves

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Brown ground turkey and drain.
Put everything in crock pot, and cook on High 3 hours or on Low 6-8 hours.

Yum, yum, yum! We ate it with a loaf of french bread. Everyone hoarfed. Abby ate two bowls. I would have too, if my stomach even resembled itself, but it doesn’t. Eating is still extremely difficult for me.

Mom’s clogs (remember those?) were finished while she was visiting, but we didn’t get a picture, so as soon as she sends me one, you’ll get to see them. They turned out SO CUTE!!! And I noticed that the medium size (the one that fits a size 8 women’s shoe) isn’t as freaky wide as the women’s large is. Or the men’s medium. It was a much easier felting job.

I am, of course, talking about the Fiber Trends Felted Clogs pattern, knit with Lamb’s Pride. Picture soon. I promise.

I’ve finished the additional length on the right side of the VCC.

And that’s the VCC, for those of you who haven’t been around since the spring. It’s out of the Holiday 2004/05 Vogue Knitting. And it’s gorgeous.

I’m going to finish all three pieces (both fronts and back) up to the armholes, to guarantee they’re the same length, before beginning any armhole shaping.

I think I’m also going to knit a “filler piece” of 3×3 ribbing to go up each side and down the sleeves at the seam point, to assure I’ll be able to wear it when I’m done. After all this work, and frogging, and reworking, I’m going to be wearing this sucker! Then, if I ever do shrink to a happy size, I can take the filler out, re-seam, and still have my sweater! Hopefully, it’s brilliance. We’ll see. I’m just way happy I have an overabundance of this yarn so I can do all of this adding on.

On Saturday, Nate went online to find fun and cheap things to do around Seattle with kids. He found Letterboxing. Have any of you heard of this? I hadn’t. Basically, it’s a treasure hunt type thing, and it’s all over the country. You print out clues, bring a compass, and head out to find a box. In the box is a stamp, a pad of paper, a pen/pencil, and an ink pad.

The idea is that you have your own stamp and pad of paper. You find a box. You stamp your stamp in their book, and stamp their stamp in your book. Then you put the box back where you found it so someone else can dig it up.

So the first thing we did was head off to the stamp store and pick out our stamps. Here’s mine…

Hee hee hee. It’s a fish!

The three boxes we found on Saturday were in parks. We had an incredibly fun time. Nate says there are about 60 boxes in the Seattle area. He looked at the town where mom lives in Central Oregon, there are boxes down there. There’s even a box in the boonies on the drive down there. In the middle of nowhere in Government Camp.

The girls had SO much fun. They didn’t get it at first, and wanted to play on the park equipment while we found the box, but after awhile they got into it, and now they want to know when we’ll be going again.

Good times. I was absolutely sick that I didn’t bring my camera. Particularly when Nate was climbing through the holly bushes, and when we were hiking up a muddy mountainside with stamps and books in our hands.

On the knitting front, I’ve been working a bit on the VCC. I think I’ve knit about 4 inches on the right front, and am ready to begin decreasing the armholes again. Once again, I’m surprised to note how fun this sweater is to knit. It’s really enjoyable.

Today, aside from knitting, I hope to exercise and make cookies with the girls who have today off from school. Tonight, we are delivering invitations for a pumpkin carving party to a bunch of friends, and I figure if we bring cookies too, that’ll be even better.

Do any of you remember our pumpkins from last year?

I have a headache. I have told my daughters repeatedly, and their behavior/noise level has not changed in the slightest. This makes me cranky.

Mom and Steve have left. They’re going to the Maryhill Museum on the Columbia River on their way home. Nate and I love that museum, and now I want to go.

I wasn’t able to exercise this week, other than the housecleaning in preparation for my mom’s visit, and walking all over the Flight museum yesterday. So I have been active, but not specifically exercising.

I am feeling better, although I still tire extremely easily. I think I can be realistically optimistic about the upcoming week, provided I don’t catch a cold or something, to be a good one for exercise.

Of course, I now have two freezers full of ice cream and ice cream cake. So in that respect, I’m doomed.

I know it’s hard to tell, but you’re looking at my three girls, plus mom and Steve at the Museum of Flight.

We got so way lost. Yahoo maps completely sucks, and I hate them.

And finally, after months and months of waiting…. Actually, I think it’s been a whole year…..

Here she is. My mom in her merciless cabled cotton sweater! Yay! It’s way cute. It’s a little too short, but she has a silky black camisole she wears under it, and the cool thing is, that’s totally in style right now.

I wish I had those hips! Of course, for all I know, I do have those hips. They’re just buried.

And one more thing…. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!!!

We’re off to the Flight Museum. Mom’s wearing her cotton cable sweater today, so I’ll be able to get a picture of her in it. Finally. I’ll update when we get back, but it’ll be awhile. I’m wearing Cable-Eight, which is turning out to be a WAY cute pregnancy top. It has so much give, that my tummy can bulge out in the front, and it looks good! Love it. And I’m already braced for all the inevitable “vest” comments. Later guys!

This is what’s waiting for me in the dining room right now. We made zucchini bread and some orange something-or-other Tazo herbal tea.

We’re having a great time. I think tomorrow we’re going to hit the Museum of Flight. I’ve never been there.

Mom’s friend Steve is completely delightful and fun. Gotta go, I’m being called from the dining room. Apparently the tea is getting cold.

Just really, really late. My mom is here. As usual, we’re having a great time. My house is tolerable, and I even got one of the fish tanks clean, although my mom and her friend sat and watched me finish. But that opened up the conversation to my fish, which I can go on and on about, so it was fun. Although I’m sure my mom’s friend now thinks I’m totally obsessed with fish. Seriously. And I’m not. I’m only partially obsessed with MY fish.

Mom wants a shrug. I told her I didn’t blame her. Haha.

We went to my doctor appt today and got to hear the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. It’s so exciting. My uterus is three fingers below my belly button, which is where it’s supposed to be. That is reassuring, considering I haven’t been eating well. At all.

Speaking of not eating very well…. If you have access to Schwans, buy their Banana Nut ice cream! I just bought it last night for the first time, and it is the MOST amazing stuff. Mmmmmmm. We’re ALL about the Banana Nut!

In other baby news, we have an ultrasound date set! I cheated, and set it for 19 weeks instead of 20, but the doc sort of gave his ok. So, we’re set for November 9th at 10 am. Woo hoo! Once I know whether I’m growing a little tyke or a little princess, I think I’ll finally be ready to begin baby knits! I know there are some of you out there anxiously waiting for a baby-along. Well, in 4 more weeks, we may start something.