davejenbarnes

I am typing this up on our new Apple Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard courtesy a very generous brother who spoils me for Christmas. (He also gifted us a new pen for my wacom as well as a much-needed memory card upgrade (4GB!) for the camera.) This tiny keyboard has the benefit of being amazingly quiet. I think our boys are light sleepers and I know our walls in this dinky duplex are paper-thin so when you add a fraidy-cat mom and a clunkly LOUD keyboard to the mix, any blogging time (aka, the boys are asleep time) goes out the window (and knitting time abounds, because, you know, knitting is very very quiet).

Speaking of knitting.

I did not need another project.

But.

I am in loooove. That, dear friends, is the Lizard Ridge, though not exactly what you will get if you follow the pattern word-for-word as I have turned two rows of purl into two rows of knit on each of the color repeats which results in the lovely outlinish garter bumps.

Did you ever color with both markers and crayons and outline the inside of whatever shape/space with the marker then color in the rest with the crayon? I did. All the time. I guess I thought it looked neater or something. I totally think that’s why I’m doing the garter ridges. I have no clue who started it but I know that I liked it and just naturally knit the second row all the way across (resulting in the garter ridge) at the end and beginning of skein swap. The garter ridges totally outline the space in a marker-like way while the inner stockinette stitch is totally crayon-like.

And speaking of knitters. I have decided knitters are some of the most generous people on God’s green Earth (and not because I am one) — I was at my LYS (Local Yarn Shop) today for a 35% off sale (though, sadly, I was not in town for the Woolie Ewe’s 50% off sale this morning in Plano) and everyone at the shop was buying basketloads (they give baskets out at the door, not buckets, sadly, or I could say bucketloads) of yarn to knit up such-n-such for so-n-so. I mean, the yarn is for us, yes? but the FO (Finished Object) is almost always for someone else. I have a gift-list running in my head and just realized that I am not on it.

Anyhow, back to the sale. I only bought yarn for 2 projects. And, yes, the yarn is already assigned projects. 15 balls of the most sproingy (knitting term meaning springy and spongy at the same time) wool/silk/cashmere blend to make a Cobblestone sweater for David and 5 more balls of the highly addictive Kureyon for the above-pictured Lizard Ridge which will be sent, upon completion, to a dear friend of mine in Tennessee whose apartment burnt down a week and a half ago. I know she’d rather just have the money now that I have and will be spending on the yarn, but in the future, hopefully the blanket will bring her more hope and warmth and her living space a dash of beauty and color as well as being more affordable to me by spreading it out over time. Besides, stretching out the gift in this way gives me sooooo much more prayer time praying for her and her family than a prayer in writing a check would take.

I wanted to buy four balls of Silk Garden but, dang, I just couldn’t afford it. Even at 35% off. Maybe I’ll find a Noro sale sometime … before Thanksgiving next year.

On Wednesday, David and I will have been married for eight years. Because we will be, oh, a couple thousand miles apart on our actual anniversary, we celebrated last night with a very relaxing and delicious dinner at Chez Zee and a stroll through the Apple Store in The Domain.

Dinner was so relaxing, not having to cut up somebody’s food into tiny bits or wipe a baby’s face every other bite. We actually got to enjoy an appetizer, some wine, great meals, and desserts without ever having to tell another soul to turn around and sit down the right way or to sign “more” or “all done!” I expected the conversation to revolve around the boys but it really didn’t. We were able to reconnect to our goals as a couple and recognize some of the things we want to be better at as parents, spouses, and people in general. I’m so excited to see where God takes us in the next eight years!

Of course, the evening couldn’t end without a trip to the Apple store. We didn’t have kids with us! David picked up the new OS for our g5 and I was flabberghasted at the latest iProducts (iPhone, iPod, etc) and the new keyboard. Wow. I LOVE that keyboard, though it will be exciting when Apple finally comes out with an Apple-branded touch-keyboard.