I made This Ladybug Sweater to go with the Ladybug Dress.. if you remember.. I knitted the top of the Dress and put Big Ladybug Buttons on the shoulders... Scroll down for that photo.














I put little loops for the Buttonholes..
The Sweater is one that I designed myself.

My Son Timmy with " The Boys"

Grandchildren having some FUN with their Dad...

Here are the children that I do all my knitting for..... All My Grandchildren......Its very rare that we all are together at the same time because they live so far away. My oldest Grandaughter Allie is on the left and my youngest Grandaughter Claire is on the top right... In between are Thomas.. Will..Natalie.Paige.. Sami and Felix... And of course Me ( Grandma ) in the middle :)

I finished the sweater for Sami that I designed myself....just in time for her Visit!!!
I used a pretty light peachy color Sirdar DK yarn and a L. Harding Ribbon for the Trims...
I chose a pretty lace pattern for the bottom and the cuffs ...

My Beautiful Neices.. Debbie and Christie had a Family Get Together for Sami and Felix...
This is our first meeting of Felix and we have not seen Sami in about a year....
My Sister... and Sister in Law...My Nieces and Nephews and Their Husbands and children...
We had a Wonderful Time..... Thank You So Much!!!!!

Aunt Debbie..Sami and Molly....
Molly seems to be posing for the Camera... :)

Thank You Aunt Christie......

Row -Row -Row Your Boat......

Ok OK.. I get it... Next time Grandma will knit a hood on your sweater....

I caught you laughing Sami... :)

Yippee... Dancing on The Boardwalk.....

There's PLENTY of room for you YaYa.......

Felix had his First Birthday Cake at grandma Ya Ya's..
He is Three Years Old.... :)

I Think He Likes it....

Ummmmm......And so does Sami.... :)

Weeeeeeeeeeee... Here's Sami ....... and here comes Grandma YaYa and Felix

Here is My LadyBug Sundress..... :)
I got the idea from the Summerlin Dress and The two Summer Dresses but I change the top to my own variation....The top is done in cotton yarn...
I did a jumper front and back as opposed to just straps in the back... and I did a picot edge all around..
It certainly deserved some LadyBug Buttons so off to the store I went in search of..... :)
It still needs to be ironed so don't mind the wrinkles...

Got My Swap Package today from Favorite Things Swap...
Everything is all nicely wrapped in such pretty paper...

Look Here whats inside this wonderful Box.....
There is a box of Yummy Turtles ( which I imediately stuffed in my mouth)
A book By Nicholas Sparks which I will certainly be reading soon.. he is also one of My Favorite Authors!
A Pretty Blue-Green and white skein of OnLine sock yarn...
A georgeous Multi color..Green-yellow-mellon skein of wool for felting..
A shein of so soft green alpaca with a Twist... Oh Lala... Nice and soft!!
3little pins.. I love knitting- and Peace ..
A bag of Vanilla Chai Latte... Ohhhhhhhhhhh Yum..
Maple Sugar Leaf..
Lip Balm..
Wonderfully smelling Oatmeal soap...
Some Handmade items for a local shop in Kalamazoo...
Some adorable Cards for Knitters :)
A Beautiful Doiley that Jeme knitted for me in a lovely sage green...
Some Handcream for my knitters hands...
And a Sticker for the car which I ran out and put right in my back window... I LOVE it...
Thank you Jemgirl for all you Wonderful Favorite Things... I'm sure they will also become my Favorites!!!

A Chicken Sweater for Felix :)
I used a combo of Encore ..Vannas and Woolease and some texture yarn for the Hay..
The Pattern is in a Bouton D'Or Book ...

Just an Updated Photo of Sami & Felix..... :)

Just Made these Capris For Sami...
I used Filatura DiCrosa Baby.... Zarella Yarn..
Started with directions for pants but they were bottom up and I wanted to do top down because I didn't think I had enough of this yarn for LONG Pants.. So I reversed the directions and added a seed stitch cuff when I got to Capri Length....

Last Week we had Our "Sisters Day "... One sisiter lives an hour and 1/2 form me and the other is 2 hours ...
So.. They know that I hate to travel so they come down here to visit their Baby Sis... :)
We went to Lunch on The Water and had a really nice day together...
Photo is Donna .. Me.. Janie











Here is my new Outdoor Lounge .. I just love it.. Its one of those O Gravity ones.. No adjusting necessary.. Just move your weight and the chair goes from sitting to reclining....
Almost finished my Book while "lounging" :)

Today we had a Big Storm which made for a Beautiful Sunset this evening...


Yesterday there was a plane doing all crazy stunts over the Beach...I tried to catch some photos but he was moving soooooooo fast!!!

A Beautiful Day sitting and knitting on The Beach while Bob went for a Swim...



I know.. I know... Look at His Tan... I guess I don't tan so well.....

You Remember back some posts I was telling you about the Afghan we were making for the Manager at Paneras where we knit every Wednesday...... Well.. There were five of us..... Mary, Myself, Sharon, Sally and Marilyn who each knitted 4 squares of our choice and I just finished joining them and doing a Border around...
It is now Complete and we will give it to Yvonne this week.. I think we did an excellent job Girls!!!! :)

Another Hat for a Friend...

I took this photo in the Bright Sun to show off all its sparkles BUT they don't show up in the picture :(

The Odessa Hat.... There are beads knit into the spaces between the Spirals...
This was a Fun Knit!!!

It was a Beautiful Day at Jetty Park.....



Mr. Turtle came up for a Photoshoot!!!!


Bob is looking Out To Sea.... and The Pelicans are sitting on the end of The Jetty.. That tint dot in the sky over the ocean is a someone flying in a parachute being pulled by a boat.....

I made This Cozy Shawl for a Friend who needs some Comfort....

Made This Cute Sweater for Sami.... I used Cottonease so it is very soft and light weight for the Summer... Its all rib so it has alot of "give".... The Pattern can be ordered via Ravelry...

Here is Little Claire in Her Downsized Central Park Hoodie that grammie Made for her!!!
Isn't she a Cutie Pie!!! :)






FAMILY PHOTOS

Grandmas Knitted Asian Sweaters and Hat !! :)

Catch Me if You Can !!!


Hugs for Little Sister


Who is This Irish Kid??? LOL

MaMa and Sami & Felix

Love This Little Sweater... I added the Flowers and leaves and I made the buttons with the same yarn and a purl in the center... Then I went out and bought a Dress to go with it.. I found this Little Cutie at Macys and it looks Perfect with the Sweater.... So Clairs Easter Outfit is Complete!!!
I used Knitpicks Sockyarn to knit the Sweater and The Pattern is Sirdar Snuggly 1676

Hey Dad... Can We Have Some ?? :)

Sami is at her Friends Birthday Party wearing The TuTu That I knitted for her last year...

LOL.... Isn't she just TuTu Cute !!!! :)

Touring Around Town we stopped at The River and Bob caught His Dinner!!!! I fried the Little Guy up when we got home... Catch of The Day!!!


While Bob was Fishing I was wandering around looking for other "sea life"....
Here is The Big Guy I found.... No..Its not The Lockness Monster.... Its a Manatee... I waded in the water trying to get as close as I could for his "Kodak Moment" ... You can hear them when they come up an make a blowing sound for air...

Started yesterday stopping for Coffee and going to The Local Farmers Market.....
Yummy Yummy.............. Fruits and Veggies !!!

Here is A Manatee that I saw today in The River.. I'll post more later.... Blogger keeps giving me a hard time trying to post tonight... :(

A Vest I just finished for Felix....
I used Bernats Camouflage Yarn.... Look at the crazy designs it made on the Front and Back.. The "pooling" made it very interesting I think. The Vest is in Ravelrys Patterns.. It was a Fun knit and I love the style of the vest.. Don't know if you can see the Cable from there but they are on the front and back.

So it seems that I have become a Fan of Jodi Picoult... I have one of her books and liked it but right now I forget which one it was.. Here are six more that I have picked up in second hand stores... I also have My Sisters Keeper which I have been wanting to start. Right now I am reading Ken Follets .. World Without End .. Its such a BIG book so its going to take me a while to read it.. I wish I could speed read so that I could get into more books... Last Summer I was listening to books on tape so that I could knit at the same time... Multi Tasker.. Thats me... :)


I sent Felix a little Celtics Hat just like the one I made his Daddy....

This is a Shawl I made this week... Its more like a "shawlette".. I have been wanting to use this crazy wool ribbon yarn that I bought in a yarn shop up north a few years ago.. I just could not figure out WHAT to make with it... So this is from the skeins of the same color which were a nice light brownish tan.. Now I have 4 skeins of this in a light tan and 3 skeins in a nice light oliveish green... So now I am thinking... Maybe a drop stitch scarf or a bulky hat ???? Gotta get more of this STASH yarn used up...

Today we went to The Locks and I was able to catch a few shots of The Dolphins as they came up for air...Believe me.. Thats NOT an Easy thing to do... :)



Here The Pelicans are Diving for Fish as The Locks opened....

Sat in The Sunshine on My Balcony Today and did some Knitting while the Cruise Ships Went By !

Here is The Mickey Mouse Ship at The Port ( Disney Ship)

First Let Me Tell You That The Kids are ALL Home !!!! Yippee!!!!
Everyone is Busy Bonding and getting adjusted. Some of the Stories are really cute...Just one quick one...
Samatha calls Felix ..... "Brother and Felix" and Felix calls Sami.. "Little Sister and SamiNo".. :) ..We figure that April is always saying Sami NO.. So Felix calls her Samino... LOL Sounds like a Chinese name... So Cute!!! :)



OK.. THis is a Downsized Central Park Hoodie that I made up for My 6 year old Grandaughter Paige.. Now all Four of the Girls have CPHoodies..



I started a Shawl KAL... THis is Lehmus.. It is turning out very pretty... I am doing this inbetween other projects so don't expect to see it finished for a while :)
Multi Projects going on here again!!!

And Todays Update is.......
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This is a Group Photo of the China Children who were adopted in this Group.



Here are all the children and their Families from The Group...


This is My Daughter and Her Family :)


Time to go for a Walk !!!!

China Uptate

Here is an updated email from April.. It sounds like things are Better and They are now where it is WARM... :)
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John asked me to some up China in one word the other day. It took me all of one second to think, Chaotic. I think I made have said that in an earlier post. I guess part of it is just the way of life here. You talk fast, move fast " I mean your guide/rep does it for you" and think fast. Our reps always seem like they are arguing about something to the locals but we've decided that's just the way they communicate. BTW, there's someting wrong w/ my H key and I'm tired of going back to fix the missed H's. Anyway, another part of the chaos is that we have 12 other families in our group. So if one person is missing we wait, if one family is late we wait. We were ALL so happy to leave today and go down South to Guangzhou, Shaiman Island. One reason, it's WARM, another is we're that much closer to coming home. OK. So this AM we're all ready to go, everyones there, we load onto the bus. 20 min into te trip to the airport, dead stop on the road. People just get out of their cars here and walk around when this happen apparently. Hot, annoyed americans on a bus wanting to get on a plane, not good. Our rep is calling people to see what going on. She decided that there is a VIP here and they close down the roads both ways wen tis happens. She said president fromr other country maybe. Any who, she called the airport and told them to hold the plane for us, apparently you can do that here. So chaos in the airport of course, she has us all cut the line of people going through the check point all as she's yelling at everyone in the airport. It's pretty cool actually to get such treatment. We got pull here. We had a great plane ride Felix and Sami slept the whole 2 hours. Shaiman Island is beautiful and warm. We ate a ton at lunch bacause we hadn't eaten yet and it was 2pm, that happens often that you miss meals and have to just eat your snacks that your sick of. Lonae and I went shopping after lunch, had a tea ritual and the kids are sleeping. I love every family we're with, everyone is so great. Yesterday after we went to get our kids passports, the moms went over to a tea shop. I asked te guy how to do this block of tea and then he sits us down for a tea offering. it was such a cool experience. They put so much into serving a cup of tea. Any way, tomorrow we have a city tour, not anything to intense like in Beijing, the hard parts are over now. We'll be going to temples and church and shopping and then a group dinner. Here's a tid bit about Shaiman Island. BTW, as tough as it's been doing all the things we've had to do, I'd do it again in a heart beat. Don't be surprised if we're back in a couple of years!!! We are at the famous White Swan Hotel. Shamian Island, formerly known as Shameen Island, from its Cantonese pronunciation (Chinese: 沙面岛, pinyin: Shāmiàn dǎo) is a sandbank island in the Liwan District of Guangzhou city, Guangdong province, China. The island's name literally means "sandy surface" in Chinese.The territory was divided into two concessions given to France and the United Kingdom by the Qing Dynasty government in the 19th century. The island is a gazetted historical area that serves as a tranquil reminder of the colonial European period, with quiet pedestrian avenues flanked by trees and lined by historical buildings in various states of upkeep. The island is the location of several hotels, a youth hostel, restaurants and tourist shops selling curios and souvenirs. Since the early 2000s, Shamian Island has become well known for the many Western couples who reside there while seeking to adopt Chinese babies and young children, most of whom are orphaned and female. The White Swan Hotel is perhaps the best-known hotel in Guangzhou, having been in operation for many years, and is usually the hotel of choice for these couples. One reason for this popularity is that the hotel is adjacent to the United States consulate, making it convenient to file paperwork and handle bureaucratic matters. The consular section has since moved to the other side of the city (the whole consulate will move in 2012 as well), but the hotel is still the most popular destination for adopting couples. Beginning in 2007, the Chinese government slowed the rate of adoptions, and as a result the percentage of tourists to Shamian Island who are Westerners has decreased as well

Just so you know that I have been keeping my hands very busy... I went and started more projects this week.....


For My Friends Birthday I knitted up Seven Different Dishcloths..
A Clean one for Everyday of The Week !!!!
That is them all bundled up and tied to the Baloon !!!!!



These are Two Bulky Hats to go up To Buffalo... Better hurry and send them...



A Sweet Little Vest that I started for Felix.....
The yarn is much nicer than this photo... I'll make the final Picture better... :)


A Pretty Shawl that I started for " MYSELF" in Berroco Comfort!!!

Day Eight in China

This is yesterdays email from My Daughter....I hope the time passes quicker for them.. It must be so hard with two little ones in a hotel and its too cold outside to play or anything..
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It was a hectic day. We took a 2 hr. bus ride to the orphanage. It was the 5 families all from our orphanage the went today. Felix got sick on the initial ride to meet us the other day so they thought he gets car sick but he didn't get sick today. But Sami did so we're covered there. And Felix got sick on the floor of our hotel room last night from over eating. He's starting to realize today that he's going to get plenty food when ever he wants, slowing down a bit. Any who, we're all tired of eating pizza in the hotel, we're tired of eating noodles and Chinese food in general. Sami just wants berries and regular O's. I'd advise not to take a 19 month old child to China for 16 days, maybe a week ok. The kids are all playing so well, we have hallway play sessions and room to room play. We will be friends with these people for a long time I think. This is definitely a test of your tolerance to many things. There are many ups and downs. We all just want to go home. Maybe we'll feel a little better now that most of the touring and paperwork is done "for the most part." The schedules of things have been insane. It was really tough today bringing the kids back to where they came from. We had to go to do paperwork and to see what it's like. Some kids didn't want to go in and some didn't want to leave there nannies again "Felix." He snaped out of it pretty fast but daddy gets very sad for him when he cries about leaving his nannies. Any way. Night. Tomorrow's a new day

Sami- Felix and MaMa...
Boy.. It sure id COLD here in China ..... Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr


MaMa and Felix wearing the Asian Sweaters that I made.

Its been a Long Day for Dad and Felix.......

MaMa -DaDa and Felix :)

MaMa is Bundling Sami all up to go get her Brother...
Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....... "This sure ain't San Diego" LOL















MaMa and Felix on Their Very First Day of Bonding :)
















Sami and Felix Playing Nicely at The Hotel in China...












April said that Felix was crying for a while missing his Nannies at the orphanage but then he calmed down. Sami is being so Good.. She is sharing and playing and patting her brother.. She was very concerned when he was crying.
This morning felix called Sami.." Sister..Little Sister" :) Awwwwwwww XXXXXOOOO Hugs and Kisses from Ya Ya ( Grandma) PoPo

CHINA

For everyone who has been following My Daughters adoption process and long wait for three years.. Here is The Update !!! :)
FINALLY They are in China to bring FuXi (Felix) HOME...
This is an email from their first day.. They will be there for two weeks...
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I wish I could put into words right now what my day was like. I'll start off with-Amazing. We woke at 2am because we all went to bed when we got to the hotel @ 18:00. Went down to bfast at 6am. Met all the other families from our agencies adopting as well before our tour at 9am. I can tear up at how amazing these people are. They are giving, humorous, strong, down to earth, I could go on. Some families are here to adopt there 3-7th child. From minor special needs, missing ear parts, albinism to heart conditions. We went to Tianamen square, Forbbiden City, "we walked this btw-2hrs, then went to chinese lunch "so good," then to the silk factory "John has a new found respect for silk making," then took a rickshaw through "common folk" town and home. Yes, we went into a chinese home. Sami was a trooper with no nap except for the hour she took before we went out in the AM. She fell asleep in John's arms on the rickshaw. So this house we went into, the man of the house was so cool. He was so greatful that we came, wanted us to ask questions...but it was not anything like you might imagine. He had crickets in his bed room. No, not to eat...they like to feel like they live in the country still. It's like a sound sleeper for babies. LOL. He had pet turtles too.....no, not to eat. Then finally back to the hotel at 17:00. Oh I forgot, we know what it's like to have a daughter as a celebrity. Sami was a big time hit. We had crowds of 20-30 people at a time taking pictures with her, of her, holding her. She would stop crowds and people would yell-oh, baby hi baby, pretty baby. Apparently it's good luck to have blonde hair and even good luck rubs off ih you touch a blonde and take a picture with them. Being the new year, everything that signifies good luck is 10 times more luck. I guess. Speaking of which. The fire works here go off all night until about 2am and the are like bombs. They aren't the wimpy M80's we have in the states, they are serious. It actually hasn't bothered Sami at all. She's sleeping right here and they are soooooo loud. And she had to have soy milk instead of reg milk. I couldn't find New Zealand or Austrailian milk in the market by the hotel. Then again, nothing is written in english soo..... I'll post pics tomorrow. So tired. Can't believe I wrote this much. Oh and my mom in law is such a trooper too. It was a lot of walking, stairs, crying Sami......I might have doubled this email to some of you on facebook, sorry to overload you.nite

Here's Samantha wearing the Silver Ruffle Sweater :)


Now.. Is This a Commercial for Pizza or Horizon Organic Milk ???? LOL

Oh... She sure is Happy eating her Pizza :)

This Week I made a Cable Sweater for Claire.. I used the cable idea from The Last Central Park Hoodie that I made for her Big Sis.
I also did a design on the top seam of the hoodie where I stitched it together. I did that by crocheting together..
Then I made some twirlys for the Top :)

Our Knitting Group which meets at Paneras every week is making an Afghan for the Manager of There.
She is very nice to us and we have been sitting there for Hours every Wednesday for a few years now. I'm sure she will love cozying up in it on cool evenings .
We are doing whatever squares we each choose from The Sampler Afghans Book. I have done two so far and enjoyed making them. It gives me a chance to try different patterns and it does not take long to do a 12 inch square. Hopefully it will not take too long to complete it.

Central Park Hoodie just finished for my Grandaughter.. Its a Small size but Grandma squeezed into it for the Photo Shoot !!!
I used Woolease for it and it comes out really nice in this Sweater. The one I did for her sister a while back was also on woolease in a deep green. This is a fun sweater to knit and I am thinking of making one a little bigger for Myself :) Hey.. Do Ya think I actually will make something for "Me"... Ha !!!

Just made thes cute little fingerless gloves for Samantha.. The pattern is in Ravelry.. I think its called "little suckers" because the thumb sticks out .. I use sock yarn and each one has different stripes... But My Daughter will like that.. They are bright and really cute.. I made them a little longer so they will cover more of her fingers. April wanted fingerless gloves but making those little fingers was a real pain and I think Sami will like these better.

Home Coming!!!!

Well...For all of you who have been following the progress and praying for Our China Child to arrive... It is Finally going to happen.
My Daughter, Hubby Samantha and Mother in Law will be flying to China in 3 weeks to bring Little Felix home!!!!! Hooray!!! Its been a long and stress 3 years for My Daughter and John. She originally had signed up for a baby Girl ( who was going to be named Penny )but it was taking sooooooooo long and the stress was catching up so she increased her chances by selecting..Boy or Girl up to 4 years old. So FuXi ( who is now Felix)... is about 2 to 2 and 1/2 years old.. He is a Happy and Smart little fellow... and at his young age he speaks some English and Chinese.Oh and did I say that he is Cute as a Button :)... My Daughter has been lucky to be in touch with his nanny at the orphanage and she has been in weekly contact with Felix on the Web Cam for the past few weeks. So now when they go there he will sort of know who they are. When he talks to April ( My Daughter) on the Web Cam.. He says " I Love You Ma Ma"..... Oh and that just brings tears to her eyes... But Happy ones !!!!!
So Yes... It truly is a Happy New Year and a Very Blessed One ....Thanks be To God!!!
Somehow I think that God will also find a way to Bring a "Penny" into our life in the future. I know there is plenty of Love for another Child.
Happy New Year To You All......

Made This Sweater for Felix...it might be a little big right now but he will grow into it :)

And here is a Hat for the DAD...... Now when the Family goes to China to bring Felix home , which should be in a few weeks)... Even Dad will be Dressed :)











This is a really pretty sweater but the photo didn't show it much.. The yarn is Vannas Glimmer in a silver sparkle...

Here is a Stocking for ....... Yup.. You Guessed it..."Felix" :)
My Daughters Dtocking that I made previously all have the Elf Toe Like this one :)

Finished Today... My Stocking for Claire.. My 6 Month OLd GD.... :)

A Sweater for FuXi.. My Daughter has named him Felix..

Its A Boy !!!!!!

For all of you who have been following the years( at least three years ) that My Daughter April has been waiting for her adoption of " Penny" to get going.. Well.. It seems that we have Little Fu Xi .... :) Isn't he the cutest????
He is 2 and 1/2 years old and they just got the final approval to adopt him.. He is in China and they will be ging to bring him home soon... :) So Sami will have a Brother .....Just look at that Sweet Little Face :)

Hello Ya Ya..... I Miss You and I Love You !!!!! :)

Awwwwwwww Ya Ya LOVES you Soooooooooooooo Much Sami !!!!!

Hat

I was making a skirt for Sami ( My 16 month GD) and I did not like how thick the fabric was coming out ..I had about 4 inches knitted... I was going to rip it out an then thought.. A Hat... So I added a few inches and decreased towards the top.. and Walla... A Hat for me to wear in the evenings when we are walking :)
Sorry.. I am very Camera Shy!!!

Cute Little hat that I made for One of My Grandaughters... Which ever one it Fits :)
I used some Jelly Bean Bernarts yarn that I had in My Stash forever:) Hooray.. Use that Stash!!!!



This is a Sirdar Pattern and it has cute little Monkey Buttons on it because Sami loves Monkeys!!!!
I used Red Heart designer Sport...


Fetchings from Knitty for one of my Christmas Gifts....
I used Woolease for these....and I made the cuffs longer

I made some Cowls for Bob and I to keep our necks warn during our evening walk now that it is getting COLD!!!! Brrrrrrrrrr
I used some Mission Falls Cotton that I had in My Stash.. great Stash Buster....

This is a Plain Hoodie from Mary Rich Goodwin ... Kids To Grown Ups Seamless Sweaters....
I made up the Embellishments for it :)

This is My Youngest Grandaughter Little Claire.. She is now just over 4 months old... :)
She is wearing The Clara Dress :)
Awwww.. Isn't she a Cutie Pie :)
XXXOOO

This is Isabella .. My Grand Niece wearing the Hat and Bolero that I knitted for her... Isn't she Sweet!! :)

Finished My Second Swing Thing.. This one is for Claire and I used Vannas Choice in Dusty Green..
This is a great seamless knit .
If you are like me and hate to sew seams.. Give it a try..... It is a Free Pattern in Ravelry...From Turtle Knits

Here is The Berry Baby Hat and The Ruffle one is from the band on Bernart Jaquards yarn... They both were easy and Fast Knits!!!! Aren't the Tops adorable !!! :)

Dress

This is a Dress that I made myself without a pattern.
In My Ravelry Group ( Knitting For Kids ).. One of the knitters posted a Challenge, so naturally I had to jump in and give it a whirl.... There is a Ralph Lauren Dress which is "similar" to this one that I made...and thats what the challenge was..To make that Dress..The Ralph L. one had little pockets on the skirt but I made pockets last night and put them on and took them off.. I think that the Cable Pattern I made is Busy enough for the skirt without pockets..I also put a button flap on the shoulder so its easier to get off and on...
The skirt is Bernart So Soft and the Blouse is Lion Brand Sock Yarn... Two different gauges I know but I did the Math and made it work :)
For those of you that are in Ravelry.. Come Join us at Knitting For Kids !!!

Sweater and Dress

This is a Sirdar # 1557 Pattern Sweater that I made for Claire...Its a size 6-12 months..
I used Patons Beehive Baby Sport and I just love how soft it is... It has colors of Pink-Yellow- White and Red in this yarn... Its a #3 lightweight


This is The Clara Dress which I also made for Claire....
The Yarn used is Valeria di Roma (Lana) Imperial.. A very light ( fingering ) yarn..

Hats

Pass The Hat Please !!!!!
I made more hats this week.. The hat itself is great but getting the Brims to behave is the Challenge.. I think if you do the brim with double yarn it comes out better...I think I will redo the brim on one of them.
Several People have asked for the Directions so let me TRY to explain!!!!

The Hat is crochet... I used a G hook for the hat and a F hook for the brim...Worsted weight yarn...
Chain 4 ....Join to a circle..
Do 9 trbl(treble) crochet in circle....
Chain 3 do a double treble anround post of first treble...do treble in space and double treble around post of next treble... Continue around and join with a slip stitch..
Chain 3 and do a treble in each space and a double treble around post of double treble....
Continue in this manner until you have 9 trebles between the double post treble....
Chain 1.. double crochet next two sts together.. continue doing the two sts around....
Do two rows of double crochet around..... Thats the HAT.. Now you find a brim that works for you... I googled several newsboy caps and tried a few of the brims.. Like I said.. The best ones are done using double yarn... I actually like the hat without the Brim too!!!!
Hope you can make sense out of these directions....Good Luck!!!
Let me know how you make out!!! :)

Finished Samanthas Swing Thing Jacket....
I think I'll make one for Claire now... I just have to decide on a color for her....


This is a Dress I am working on for Claire..
I'll post my Progress !!!

Knitting Update

Just to keep you updated on my knitting....
This is one of the things I am working on... Its the Swing Thing Coat which is in Ravelry...

Beach Day

Today was a Beautiful Day for The Beach..

This is part The Jones Beach Boardwalk .. There's Bob... "Hi" Bob :)....I don't know the length of the boardwalk but I should make a note to find that out.. I know that they have the miles written at points and it is a popular place for jogging and walking... Today we walked past the 7 mile mark but we only walked about a mile or so of the boardwalk...we got Lazy!!!

I'm still trying to catch up to Bob... "Hey You.. Wait for me "

The Beach

Beginning of The LONG Boardwalk....



Those Canadian Tourists :)

This is The Pavillion with Bathrooms,first aid ,food counter, etc

Look How Far it is to The Water...
By the time you get there you really have to jump in.. Its quite a hike :)

Knit Day

Today we were Knitting at Denises House...
This is Denise.. Catherine.. Alice and Myself !!!


Look at Her Beautiful Gardens...

What a great Peaceful spot to knit, read or just vegitate !!!



Here is The Garden Of The Knitting Goddess.........

Oh Penny.. There you go.. "Goofing Around" AGAIN !!!he he

Butterfly

Look at My Beautiful Butterfly Shot!!!


Isn't she Beautiful ??

Sweater and Caps

This Sweater is SO So Soft and Squishie... I just LOVE it... A Girl saw me sewing on the buttons the other day while waiting for my laundry and she was in love with this sweater.. She wanted to know if I sell them ..I told her No... I have way too many Grandchildren to knit for and people just do not want to pay $$$ what we should charge for a handknitted item... She said that she works in Nordstrom and that they would LOVE to have these in the store.. Oh yeah... pfffffft.. Can you just see me knitting a shelf full of these sweaters... No..No.. Thats too much like WORK.. I knit because I like to knit not for the $$$$$...
After all.. Most of us spend so much $$ on our yarns, etc....our ever growing STASH... I don't think I could ever get back what I have spent but I knit for the enjoyment of it and I know my Daughters and Grandchildren really love there Knits from Grammie !!! Oh.. Yeah... It also keeps me a little bit more "sane".... :)
So Anyway....... I put two photos here because the first real yellow one is the true color and the other is not... I'm still figuring out the best settings for my camera... LOVE this digital photography...It makes it so much easier to see your photos....

My Daughter sent me a photo of a hat like this from a store and asked if I could make one for her and one for Samantha... These are the results of my efforts... Now the BIG challenge is seeing how they fit them... I'll send them off soon in the mail and hope to show you some photos of April and Sami wearing their Hats !!!!!

Photo Shoots

I guess This one should be in WORDLESS Wednesday....I was just playing around with my camera today to see how my close ups come out... I love the look of this piece of wood...

And as you can see.. Our Peppers are almost ready!!!

The Petunias are in Full Bloom....

And The Rose of Sharon is showing Herself Proudly !!!

Kitty Blue

I made this Sweater because I wanted to use the Blue Hello Kitty Buttons.... :)
This is a Sirdar Pattern and the yarn is one of my Favorites... Bernart Softee !!!! It is a 6 -12 month size and required only one skein with plenty left over....

Sami !!!

Here's My Cutie Pie !!! All Smiles as usual!!!!

Pink

This is a Sirdar Pattern and I used Bernart Softee Yarn to knit it...
It is a size 12 months and I made it for my Grandaughter Claire !!!
I know she will look so Pretty in Pink !!!!!

Here's Isabella ( My Grandniece) on her Second Birthday ...
Its Limbo Time.........

She is Now Two......

And She LOVES Care Bear!!!!!

This is The Hat I made to match That Bolero Sweater... :)

Hats.. Hats !!!

I started this Hat a few days ago.... Its a Fiber Trends Floppy like Hat...It was coming out so big that I was wondering if it would eventually knit down to a smaller size?? Well... I finished the whole brim and started the Head part and still it is BIG.. I mean ..The brim is Really Floppy...So I am thinking that maybe I need to do this in a Cotton Yarn as is suggested.. It seems that it needs to knit to a gauge that is very Firm... Well I wanted this hat to match the bolero sweater that I made a few weeks ago.. Its down a few posts... And I need that hat for Saturday Soooooooooooooooooooo I decided to Frog this one and start a different hat for the sweater.....
Now My Daughter says today that Sami NEEDS a Floppy Hat .. Guess I'll try it again in cottn next week and see how it works out this time!!

This is The Hat I am working on now and it is going pretty fast.. I should be finished with it tonight which makes me very Happy!!!! I already have the next project lined up and I am itching to start it... You know how it is with us projectaholics!!!! I just HAVE to have another one .... :)

Lacy Grey

This is a Lacy Trimmed cotton Sweater for Samantha... It is about a size 18 months..
I used Phildar Licorne yarn which I picked up at My Yarn Shop.....
It tool EXACTLY three skeins of it ... This is the first time I knitted something and only had 2 inches of yarn left.. Boy..That was cutting it close!!!! I still have to block the lace edges.. You can't really see the buttins but they are really cute vintage ones that I had in my Button Stash for years...
The Pattern was fromThe Yarn Shop but I think it is a Classic Elite Pattern.

A Bolero from Knitting Pure & Simple Pattern #275
I used Vannas Choice yarn in a Sea Mist and I really love the way the yarn feels....I think it would be a good choice of a worsted weight yarn even for some YARN SNOBS ........ :)

CPH Finished

Finished the CPH... Its small for me but then thats because its for my 13 Year Old GD... :)
I did the size 34 and I would say it came out to be a Small or X Small ??? I will know better when My GD tried it on... I have to send it to her in Buffalo!!! First I have to go find some buttons.. I left my Bigger Stash of Buttons in Florida so I'll have to go Button Shopping... Well.. Its a good excuse to go to JoAnns, etc!!!
The color is actually a Darker Green but the sun I guess is making it look lighter.
Thats one UFO off my list!

Progress

Here is The Progress on my CPH...
I started sewing one sleeve seam and have to do the side seam on that side.. Then do the same on the other side of the sweater and then Finish the Hood and do the band around!!!!
I used a discontinued Woolease for the Sweater and I am making it for my 13 year old GD..
I added 4 stitches to the sleeve width and did the length for the second size ( I am making the smallest size otherwise) I'm happy that I did the increase because the sleeves are snug on me even this way!
Looking at the length it looks like it will be perfect for Allie..
I love the look of this sweater and I am enjoying making it...
If I were to make another one and I just might!! I would knit it as one piece to the armholes... I hate SEWING!!!!

Samantha is Having Her First Birthday and Her First taste of ice cream cake !!!! :)
Yup!!! She is One Year Old already.... Wow!!!!!

Here is The Progress on My Central Park Hoodie...
I am halfway up sewing the sleeve seam on one side and still have that side seam to sew.. Then I have to sew the other side... I started The Hood but have alot of it to go...
Then I have to do the Bands all the way around the front and the front of the hood...
I am making this for Allie .. My 13 year old GD....I did the sleeves a bit longer (like the second size requires ) because I heard some knitters say the sleeves were too short and to tight.. I also added 4 stitches to the width of the sleeve and I am glad that I did because it is still "fitting" on my arms....
Looking at the length of the sweater on me.. I think it should be a perfect length for Allie...
All in All I enjoyed making this sweater... Its just the "sewing up" that I never like !!!
I guess you can knit this in one piece up to the armholes and have Less Sewing!!!

The Yarn is an old discontinued Woolease that I bought years ago..
So another good thing is that I used some of My Stash!!!!

Grammie and The Grandkids !!!!!

The Gang

Here We Are!!

The Daddy- The Grandma-Allie- Mommy With Baby Claire-
Will-Paige-Natalie-Thomas

This Photo is Grandma with her Oldest Grandchild.. Allie.. who is almost 13
And My Youngest Grandchild .. Claire .. who is 3 weeks Old!!!

So You Think You Can Dance !!!

Here are my Five Grandchildren putting on a Dance Show for me !!! :)

Here's Claire in her sweater.... He he... She's all tuckered out from playing with Grandma !!! :)

Baby Wrap

I made Claire her First Grandma Knitted Sweater.....
Its a really little baby Wrap and I got the pattern from "Cherished Knits for Babies" ...Hummm.... I THINK thats the name of it...
I added the embroidered flowers myself ..
We went up to Buffalo to visit all the grandkids this past week so I got to deliver it and see Claire wearing it... Which reminds me to post that photo also... So it will be already posted by now being the way the Blog goes from one post and then the other later.. I wish we could rearrange the posts order sometimes so they are in the correct order ???
Anyway.... I used fingering yarn and a size 2 needle for this one so it is really a nice light weight sweater.. Perfect for Little babies !!!!

Here is The Progrerss Report on the Dress that I am test knitting...
Its a size 8 and this is the top and some of the skirt..
I have to knit to the length that I want and then do a few additions... If I had kept knittting just this one project as I should have... I would have been finished with it by now but then My Daughter went and had a baby Girl sooooooooooo I HAD to knit up some things for her because I am going up to Buffalo to visit them all... :)
So Lily.. I will get to finish this Adorable Dress very soon... Sorry for the delay .... :)
But as you can see , Your Pattern and its directions are working up very well...

Grandma's

This is for All The Grandma's from their Grandchildren :)


GRANDMA'S MISSING


THE COMPUTER SWALLOWED GRANDMA
The computer swallowed grandma. Yes, honestly its true!
She pressed 'control' and 'enter'And disappeared from view.
It devoured her completely,The thought just makes me squirm.......
She must have caught a virus Or been eaten by a worm.
I've searched through the recycle bin And files of every kind; I've even used the Internet, But nothing did I find.
In desperation, I asked Jeeves...... My searches to refine....The reply from him was negative, Not a thing was found 'online.'
So, if inside your 'Inbox,'My Grandma you should see, Please 'Copy,''Scan' and 'Paste' her....And send her back to me. :)

The Ducks

First we have The Duckies !!!! :)
This was in a Debbie Bliss Book and i could not resist them......
I used Simply Soft form my stash... Hooray... Use that Stash!!!!





The Second Pair ... My Pink Rosies !!!
This is The Bootie Pattern Free from Fabulous Yarns on line....
For these I also used some Simply Soft from My Stash!!! :)
The Roses I also had and thought they looked perfect on them....

Its been sooooooooooooooooooooo HOT here these past two days ... I am glad I had small things to knit!!!!

Bunny Hop

Today we are doing The Bunny Hop !!!

The outside photo came out too light so I took one at my Computer :)

These are from a Debbie Bliss Book..
Quick Knits for Kids and are also a Debby Ware pattern......

Kohls

I went to Kohl's Today and got some things for My Grandchildren ... I got the Best Deals today that I ever got in Kohl's .. Including this adorable Three Piece Little Dress for Claire and after all the sales on it.. It had a final ring up of $1.98..... Unbelievable !!!
It will look cute with The Pink Shoes I just made her :)

Its A Girl !!!!

I tired to Post a few days ago but Blogger was acting up again...

May 27th.... My Seventh Grandchild was Born..... Claire Elizabeth weighed in at 9 pounds 7 oz.
She's A Big Little Girl... :)
Mommy and Baby are doing great!!!!!!