Done and Done!

I don't know why Daryl is making a crazy face!

January has seemed really long for some reason. But the good news is I've actually been finishing things this month!
I've finished the Que Sera cardigan I was sure would never leave UFO status!
















I have plied my Hello Yarn Dappled fiber I acquired in April of 2012. I will give it a quick bath this weekend and then my vision for a striped yoke cardigan shall begin.

Last weekend our family slipped away to SW Kansas to visit our family that way. It was such great weather the boys were outside almost the entire time. They loved it! Playing in Aunt Dee's backyard and in the dry creek bed reminded me a lot of my childhood. I loved seeing my boys enjoying the same things! They also got to play with some cousins they had only met at last summer's family reunion. It was so much fun we will be doing that again soon.










Lastly, if you are reading this post standing up from you phone, sit down! Kelly (after years of nagging) wore his hand knit sweater. He said Monday morning, "Dress warm, it is going to be really really cold today." So I replied, "Maybe you should wear your sweater since you say it is never cold enough to wear it."
AND HE DID
I have proof....







Now what am I going to bug him about?

Pretty Darn Close!

All my lace cardi needs is a collar and some buttons! There were times in the years it took me to knit this that I seriously thought it would never be finished. I'm also quite impressed that it is going to fit. The neck will be smaller with the collar so I'm pleased with the fit so far. This is actually going to happen! Next post will be finished object pictures!!

It's been awhile since we've had a Daryl story. Let me set this one up for you. We were at Goodyear picking up my car after it got new shocks. Now it doesn't feel like the bottom will fall off when I hit a bump. It cost $150 more than the estimate. Then this happened.
Kelly: Don't be mad for the extra work they had to do we got a good deal.
Me: I still feel like we got screwed. (pause) Daryl don't say that.
Daryl: But you did.
Me: We are not equals you don't get to do what I do.
Daryl: When can I cuss?
Me: When you are 18
((pause))
Daryl: How many good words do I have to say when I'm 18?

Oh dear, it looks like we are going to have a potty mouth in 13 years!

It is almost a sweater!

Knitting goal for the year to do 4 sweaters was not really as big as it sounds. I had all the knitting on one sweater done minus half a sleeve. So I looked up when I started the Que Sera sweater. MAY 14TH 2011!
Seriously that is when I cast on the first stitch.
So on Sunday, in one day, I finished the second sleeve. Now I need to give the pieces a bath and block them. Hopefully I can have a finished sweater in January. Wouldn't that be great! That would give me 11 months to knit three whole sweaters. :-)
This is going to look A LOT different once I have blocked the pieces. The lace work should really open up. Fingers crossed! 
Pattern can be found HERE

Keeping my Baby Warm!

I finished Daryl's mittens in time for his first day back to school. He said he really likes them! I think he is telling the truth because he actually did a photo shoot.
Today, I went for my first run since November. I hibernated for a good two months but now I need to start hitting the gym again.
I was curious how I would do after such a long time off. Since it is too cold for me to run outside I used a treadmill. I ran 3.2 miles averaging 5.6 mph. I was pretty happy with that. I want to run at least twice a week during January and then see when I need to start a training program.

The first half I'm interested in is May so I will probably start a program in April. Hopefully it warms up by then! I don't think I could do more than five miles on a treadmill. Toooooooo Boring

He is so stinking cute!

It Puzzles Me...

It puzzles me that more people don't like puzzles! Kelly and I started a puzzle when we were at my mom's house celebrating Christmas. Kelly didn't like doing it after the frame was done but I really enjoyed it.

We didn't get that puzzle done, so I have this feeling of unfinishedness. That is not a word but it is a feeling. So I got a puzzle for our house! I wish my hobbies played better with each other. I can only knit or spin or run or read. And now there is work on my puzzle. This has been my go to activity for the last couple of nights. Sometimes Daryl sits on my lap and watches me work on it. He doesn't do that when I knit and he can't do it while I spin so puzzles might move up on the priority list!

PS-Had everyone who just read this blog post realized how much more exciting Meerpohl Manor is now that you will be getting regular puzzle updates! Some of you are probably praying this puzzle thing doesn't catch on. The others know you want to go to the store and get one too. They are five dollars! Really! For 1,000 pieces, what better can you buy with five dollars.

PSS- You could buy a box of girl scout cookies for $4 but that will last you all of one guilt stricken night hiding in the kitchen eating the whole box. So seriously just go buy a puzzle!

PSSS-PUZZLE!

Making mittens for Daryl!

Told the boys to show their bellies!

Happy New Year!

2014 is going to be good! We are once again in an even year and that just puts something inside of me at peace. :-)

2013 was pretty darn great, here were my highlights:

Our Family Vacation to Branson- I got to spend time with Kelly and the kids and we just made really great memories! Daryl wants to see Mountains this year and since this is not an unreasonable request we will try to comply.

In this photo we were on a cave tour and everyone was very impressed. This is when Daryl said rather loudly "It's just a bunch of rocks." :-)









The boys joint birthday party- We had family and friends celebrate Daryl turning 5 and Alex turning 1 at a local indoor gym. The boys had so much fun playing with their cousins and friends it was a perfect day. I plan to have their birthday party as a joint venture for as long as they will let me. It makes for a great day!



Training for and Running my first half marathon- The biggest accomplishment wasn't running the 13.1 miles. It was sticking to my training plan all summer and finishing what I started. I plan to run more this year because the runners high is just so awesome after a long distance run!





       Turning our house into a home- Planting flowers, fixing the backyard and painting. It is the little things that makes our roof and four walls a home. I'm thankful that Kelly and I found it and were able to buy it in 2012!




I went back to last year's first of the year post to see how good I did on my New Year goals. Turns out I didn't make any! So for the sake of tradition here are some goals this year. :)
Crafty Goals:
Knit four sweaters this year, more specifically Que Sera, Striped Yoke Cardi, Harvest Moon and Olive
Finish my T-Shirt Quilt I started in 2005
Finish my France scrapbook I also started in 2005!

Fitness Goals:
Be Fast, more specifically PR my 5K time 26:42, 10K time 58:11 and 1/2 time 2:07:45.

Money Goal:
Pay Off My School Loan and start on Kelly's School Loan
Be True to the Budget!

That sounds challenging but doable so I shall stop. Happy New  Year everyone!!