Fingerless Mitts Update

I'm about 75% complete with the fingerless mitts.  I'm loving them!  I got a little extra knitting time while the kids watched Kung Fu Panda.  I wish I had a photo to show you...hopefully next weekend we'll finish with the computer swap.  Otherwise, I might just have to download photos to my mom's laptop for a bit.

I did come down with fever and sore throat last week, so that 25% sick turned into a 4 hour nap on Friday.  That was yucky, but short lived.  Today I've caught the snotty nose.  Guess that will happen when I'm the official wiper of all small noses in the house.  

Now, for a special announcement!  Pay attention if you're knitting some fingerless mitts.  Or if you think you can start a pair now and still finish by Valentine's Day.  Jessi has so generously offered a prize skein of yarn and a set of stitch markers!!!  In February, I'll set up a Mr. Linky post (and I'll give it the 2.14 date to keep it at the top).  You'll link to your post of mitts.  And on Valentine's Day, you'll all vote in the comments of that post.  Mitts with the winning comments will win Jessi's Prize!  And I'll draw another random winner!!!  I'm REALLY excited about this!!!  See all the exclamation marks!!!  When I finish the Valentine's Mitts I'm working on, I think I'll CO for the 2nd pattern I printed with some KPPPM in a aqua and gray.  MMMmmm.  Mitts.  And I have some Cashmerino in lavender for a pair of Fetchings.  What Mitts are you knitting?  

Menu Plan Monday

Breakfast

Monday:  Apple French Toast

Tuesday: from yesterday

Wednesday:  Oatmeal

Thursday:  Waffles from freezer

Friday:  Oatmeal

Lunch

Monday:  Sandwich Sampler & Soup (for S-week)

Tuesday: Vegetable Beef Soup (Monday's dinner)

Wednesday:  PB&J for the kids, More soup for me.

Thursday:  Grilled Cheese & Soup

Friday:  Hot Dogs & Chips (a treat while my freezer is being filled)

Dinner

Monday:  Vegetable Beef Soup

Tuesday:  Turkey Cranberry Braid with Green Beans and Salad

Wednesday:  Spaghetti with Zucchini (more for S-week)

Thursday:  Crock-pot Chicken with Rice-a-Roni

Friday:  Tortilla Soup and quesadillas

***There's a lot of soup this week.  It works well with our alphabet study...and we've all got this monster cold/flu/cough/sore throat.  I do love soup though.***

T

I saw this on Chan's blog...and thought it looked fun.  I asked for a letter.  If you think you'd like to play along leave me a comment and I'll email you a letter.  

The way it works is I have to come up with 10 things beginning with the letter in question that I like.  Here we go.  

1. My middle kid's name begins with T.  He's such a cuddle-bug.  
2. Tillamuck:  Cheese is one of my favorite foods.  And I love good cheese.  I like buying the Tillamuck slices for our cheeseburgers or grilled cheese.  I love my Gram's Cheese Scalloped Potatoes.  
3. Tomatoes:  The kind that you grow in your garden!  I love tomato sandwiches!  But, for as much as I LOVE fresh tomatoes, I'm not so fond of red sauce on my Italian foods...I prefer pesto. 
4. Tea:  We're an iced-tea drinking family.  I usually brew a pitcher each day.  This week with the colds we have, it's a hot tea week.  My favorite hot tea is Lemon Lift with brown sugar or honey.  
5. Tea Cups:  I'd love to have an extensive collection of different cups, but that hasn't fit my lifestyle (or storage space).  But, I have a few really special cups.  My favorite is a blue and white cup that I bought in Moscow in 1993.  Like these ones.  
6. Tree63.  Here them free here.
7. The T.  I've probably mentioned this before...but I LOVE Boston.  M & I honeymooned there in 1999.  We wanted to stay.  We loved being able to get everywhere without a car.  I want my kids to experience this someday.  
8. Tadao Ando.  If you've never heard that name before, then follow that link.  And look here too.  I did a research project on his water temple in college.  
9. Truffles:  ahhh...dark chocolate!  
10. Tulips!  My all-time favorite flower.  A trip to Holland is on my Bucket List.  I love the ones Alicia photographed here.  And no doubt, Jane Brocket will have tulips on her blog again this spring.

And since M was here while I was typing this...you get a 2nd set of T's for free.

1. Tornadoes
2. Telescope
3. Tortilla Soup:  I love that my husband loves this soup I make. =0)
4. Typography...actually we both like this.  Check out this blog. 
5. Tourmaline.  (actually...he likes lots of rocks)
6. Tools (what man doesn't like power tools)
7. Tatsu (a rollercoaster...he likes them all...this one just starts with T)
8. Texture (he really likes cables in knitting...he's STILL waiting for his K2 and his 2nd choice is the Trellis Hat.)
9. The Lord of The Rings...(does this count if it starts with the?)
10. Tourbillon Watches.  (If we were rich...he'd wear a different one each day.)

And a 3rd set from my T kid.

1. Turtles
2. Tumbling (this kid does somersaults just to go down the hall to his room.)
3. Tea (Arizona Pomegranate Green Tea)
4. monster Trucks 
5. Transformers
6. His Own Name!
7. T-rex
8. Tinker (the horse he rides each week)
9. Trains
10. The Eiffel Tower (He wanted to emphasize the T for tower)

And now my 7 wants in...

1. Transformers
2. monster Trucks
3. Tigers
4. Treeclimbers (he's in this at church this year...it's a bit like boy scouts)
5. Trader Joe's (I should have thought of that one.)
6. Target (the toy aisle)
7. Texas (my Dad's side of the family lives there)
8. Tennessee Titans (double points here)
9. Tigger (Nana's cat)
10. Talking on the phone (yes...I know I'm in for it in a few years)

If 3 was awake, she'd want to say...

1. Tap-Tap shoes.  She got a pair as a hand me down from some friends and now she taps all around the house.
2. Twirling dresses.  Like this one...but her's is short sleeved.

OK...enough T's.  This was fun so let me know if you want to play.  And really...10 is enough.  We've just been going through the alphabet one letter a week for school this year...so this is what we do each week.  For example...last week was R week.  We went to A&W for Root Beer Floats, we  ate Raisins, Ranch Crackers, Ranch Dip for our veggies, Raveoli with Ragu Sauce, and Rice Krispies.  3 made a cute Rainbow craft.  

25%

I'm about 25% complete on my fingerless mitts.  I decided to only knit 5 repeats instead of 7 before increasing for the thumb.  I missed my counting and had knit 6 before I noticed.  I'm loving these mitts.  It's been so warm here though, I'm wondering if I should keep them or give them away.  

I'm 25% certain that I'm getting the COLD M has been fighting for the last week.  I'll probably be certain by morning.  It's that nasty thing going around with a sore throat and a fever and lingers for days.  M has been sick since Friday last week.  3 has been sick since yesterday.  The boys cough...but I think they're sill a normal temperature.

My computer has only 25% of it's life left.  It will no longer connect to the internet.  Thank God we chose to back up everything before the New Year.  We have another computer waiting...just need the time to do the swap.  Until then, I'm using my mom's MacBook (which I love).  I don't want to bother with photos on her computer...so no new WIP photos.  

Fingerless Mitts

Oh How Fun! Let's just say CO by January 14th (just realized that's only 3 days away). And try to have a FO by Valentine's Day (February 14th). I'm super flexible...so if you want to CO later, but still think it's finishable for you than great. Try to post a WIP once a week. If I knew how to do a Mr. Linky that would be fun. I'm excited to wind my yarn. I'm leaning to the Fishtail right now...but I'll print both patterns I mentioned and see what works better with my yarn.

Ravelry

I got my Scout's Swag yarn this week, and although I HEART handknit socks, I really want some fingerless mitts. So, I started looking at patterns on Ravelry...for a fingering weight yarn. And then, I see my FRIENDS adding patterns to their queues and favorites. This is so fun. Anybody interested in a KAL. I'm hoping to CO for some fingerless mitts as a Valentine's Day gift to me. If I get going, then I'll have a month and that's totally doable. My Red Pear Tweed is waiting to be wound up. If you haven't seen the projects I'm talking about, I'm looking at MittEnvy and Fishtail Wristwarmers. I don't even care if we're knitting the same pattern to be a KAL...just some hand warmers. Who's in?

Menu Plan Monday

If I do this enough...will I be able to visit my archive and use an old menu? Or is life so varied that it wouldn't make a good substitute? Just thinking...

Breakfast
Monday: Plain Old Oatmeal
Tuesday: Egg Burritos
Wednesday: Sweet Potato Waffles (from the freezer)
Thursday: Becky Pancakes (left over from Sunday)
Friday: Plain Old Oatmeal
Saturday: Eggs, Sausage, and Biscuits (from the freezer)


Lunch
Monday: Muffin-Tin Monday


This photo is the first MTM I did. I just happen to have 3 mini muffin tins so this worked out great for us. I used the opportunity to clean out my cupboard of the small bits of crackers that wouldn't have been enough for a snack for 3 kids. From the top left: peach puffs, organic goldfish, peanut butter filled pretzles, craisins, a butter cookie, cream cheese, grapes, peanut butter, jello, dried apricots, apple slices, and celery. My little 2 were stuffed, and 7 asked for more celery, apple, and peanut butter pretzles. I'm excited to see what my cupboard brings today.
Tuesday: English Muffin Pizza
Wednesday: Mac-n-Cheese @ the park in Travel Thermos. =0) They've been dying to use these for a hot lunch to go.
Thursday: Burritos after the library
Friday: Grilled Ham& Cheese Sandwiches after CBS
Saturday: I'll probably let M order pizza while I'm at work

Dinner
Monday: Mexican Lasagna (from the freezer, I work tonight)
Tuesday: Turkey Cranberry Braid (this is an old Pampered Chef recipe, but I couldn't find it on their website...great way to use left-over holiday turkey)
Wednesday: Minestrone Soup and Homemade Bread
Thursday: Crock Pot (roast or whole chicken...I'll decide later...both are in the freezer)
Friday: Hot Dogs & Baked Beans (I work)
Saturday: Something from the Freezer on the BBQ (I don't think it's supposed to rain?)