I'd rather be Knitting!

Vegas was a pretty good time, and it was pretty good to me. Four days and four nights only cost me $300 in gambling...not too shabby. That means they gave me way more than I gave back since I came away with almost as much as I took with me.

(shopping not included-that is an entirely separate fund of course).

We stayed and played at the Big Apple (NY NY)

Then played at the MGM Grand and watched the men play with the big kitties.
(not on your life would I ever get inside there!!)

POWER WALKED our fat butts all the way to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch one day (and more shopping of course). Then we found out there was a shuttle that could take us the three flippin' miles back to the strip!
The lunch and shopping was well worth the long walk tho, (at least us girls thought it was).
My crazy brother-in-law-type-person (A fellow hillbilly) decided he wanted to ride the XScream at the top of the Stratosphere (insane). So we all dutifully watched him take his ride from the very windy observation deck at the top, with our hearts in our throats. I don't think these pictures do the height of the building and the rides justice.

We were waaaaaaay up there!

Here is Tuck (third one from the front with his hands in the air- crazy fool) Mind you this patricular ride throws you over the edge of the building and suspends you there. Towards the end of the ride we all heard Tuck yell out that he could not feel a certain part of his anatomy that is better left unmentioned. Altho it did generate a hearty chuckle out of the onlookers on the deck. ;)Our last full day we went about in an nice easy stroll. (That power walking spousal-type apparently decided he had enough and spent the entire day in bed- so much the better for the rest of us).

We stopped at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. The figures were so real looking it was totally creepy. Creepy but very cool. There was also a surprise in the museum, which I won't spoil for anyone who might go there. I highly recommend taking a camera to the museum and making sure you make a pit stop prior to the surprise show!!

(Note the Caution sign above)

Tuck and Twig with the Blue Man Group

Tuck bumping it up with erm- somebody or other.

I'll just bet you never saw a Twig pole dance before...LOL
We were worried that he might throw a branch or something.
( I think this was Britney Ho - I mean Spears)

Tuck and Stevie singing Ebony and Ivory... ok -so Tuck was singing, Stevie just sat there.



And here is the result of my airplane knitting. Fingerless glove #1 for that boy who probably won't even wear them if he runs true to form. I slept the entire way home so I really only knit on the way there.

Quite frankly, I was so exhausted after the trip that I could not wait to get back to work and the two 12 hour shifts waiting for me this week!! I think I truly would have rather have stayed home and knit on my vacation.

Viva Baby!

My Baby Surprise Jacket is all done, barring sewing the seams, of course. I had a much better understanding the second time round. Putting it together was like a Chinese puzzle. I twisted it this way and that way, and the finally - I figured out how it went. Thank goodness for that little neck line dip or I would have stuffed it in a drawer.  Since I have lots of this baby yarn I think I will make the little hat too that matches. I will stash it away for a future occasion when I finish. 

I also finished my Hooray for Me gloves. My very first time making fingers I will have you know! I did say I was going to challenge myself this year, didn't I. To some it may seem like baby steps, but for me I am breaking away from my comfortable norm.  Altho, once I get the hang of a pattern, I make it again and again and again, thus making it my new norm. 

My next pair will be for that boy. In a manly dark sagey color. Altho why I don't know, because I am sure he really doesn't deserve it, he has a definite evil side for sure! 

 I think I mentioned last time that we were planning a Vegas trip this week end. I was planning on getting myself a nice little base tan before I left because , I know, once out in that Nevada sun, I will be toast! 

So I take myself off to my friend's tanning salon, and have a very successful 10 min session. (red head, ya know) I am feeling pretty comfortable about it (having burnt myself badly last year) and decide I can handle the normal 20 minutes (seriously, I used to go almost daily). 

Well I left the shop on Sunday feeling life was good, however, by Sunday night my backside was burnt to a crisp! Talk about frying the fat!! It is really too bad you can't loose weight that way.

I break out the Solarcaine because I can no longer stand the pain late Sunday and realize  am never going to sleep without it. Ask my (evil) spousal type person to kindly spray my back. Which he did, along with my backside! Ok, thank you, I could reached that part myself, but he seemed to get a big kick out if it. So much so, that as I stand waiting for it to dry so I can re-dress, that evil person thought how funny to take sneaky pictures of my red backside with his damn Iphone!!

Worse yet, he had me convinced he put it on You Tube!!!  (no, don't go looking for it, he was just teasing) Men! Unfortunately he also seem to find it funny to show people at his work... oh and please did we have to magnify the dimples??

You're probably wondering why  I am making him a pair of fingerless gloves after that??? Because I stupidly do not hold grudges. Besides, it gives me a safe airplane project. I intend to forget about that horrible incident and plug my ears into my Ipod and knit my way across the country!

Finally- as I sit here waiting for my sheets to dry, I have finished my other slouchy sock, and will be styling at O'hare Airport. 

By Jove, I think I've got it!

Not too much happening in the knitting world for me last week. I had to attend a CTO class, (that is "Communications Training Officer" to the non-police world.) I felt like I was back in High School cramming for a test on Wednesday night. When the instructor announced that it was not an open book test, I started to panic!! My memory is like a sieve nowadays, lack of oxygen or something I'm sure! So naturally on the last day of my class, the day of the test, I brought my knitting and knitted in class right before my test to calm my nerves. Musta worked because I only got two wrong! Woo Hoo!  I am now fully certified :) We also had to give an impromptu demonstration in front of the class during the week, in which I naturally taught knitting... and ladies, I taught it to a man with two pens and a tie from a classmates hoodie. LOL

Since I was stalling the grafting of my beaded scarf now for well over a week. I finally got out my  Knitters Handbook and followed it step by step. I am not completely happy with the final product. It seems like this scarf was doomed from the start. Not being able to get all the beads I needed in a timely manner, then to top things off, I was a stitch off, somewhere along the line I increased and did not realize it until I started grafting, WTF. The original pattern called for a 3 needle bind off, which leaves a big ugly seem. I kinda wanted to try to graft with the beads included so there wasn't an empty row, but that wasn't working out either.

You can see my big boo boo here. I broke all my personal rules about leaving in a mistake, but I just did not have the heart to start all over again. So I left in the glaring mistake and fudged it. Not so great at the garter stitch grafting either. This is what I call a fk it project! At least is not a gift and nobody probably notice when I wear it, at least I hope nobody notices. Design feature..yah that's it design feature.

Remember that toe up sock that went nowhere? Isn't it funny how quickly a project can go when you enjoy the process? Well I got back into my sock groove, and managed to get the first slouchy one finished (top down of course) and I am determined to get the hang of the Kitchener's stitch. It has been eluding me forever. Every sock I do I have had trouble with it. FINALLY I think I've got it! I got out my handy dandy book and talked my self through it (yet again) and this toe turned out perfect!! Even better, I think I actually grasp the stitch!!! 

(note the impressive balancing act on one foot while taking photos - yoga does have some unusual benefits)

Having a smooth toe was really the only thing that prompted me to try a toe up in the first place. I like the way normal sock knitting flows, and altho I am not confident that I can do it again without the book, this was the first time I had the "Ah ha" moment.  

I love this yarn (Felici) it is very soft and comfy, much much nicer than any of Knit Picks previous sock yarns, I predict a long and happy relationship with this pair of socks, even though it makes me look like I have some really fugly kankles.

I think I had the "Ah ha" moment with the Baby Surprise Jacket too. I re cast on the other night and now realize that I had been making a major mistake, like, oh you know, like following the directions!  I think I get it now, and it is starting to look like everyone else's :)  Funny how a little thing like following directions can make such a big difference!

We are still counting down- 9 more days to Vegas.... hmmm what knitting to take on the plane with me.