Bustin out the Blanket

I've been working double time on the Moderne Log Cabin blanket (even though I should probably be knitting more on the baby shower gifts for next weekend). I really want to get a good head start on this because I'm worried that I'll either become bogged down by all the garter or will get distracted by more complicated projects (Rousette Shawl anyone!?) I set a deadline for myself of having the first four blocks done by the end of the month and I'm happy to say that I finished square number two!

Blue is up next and squares 3 and 4 are much larger than the first two, so I really need to balance my small baby projects with this blanket until I start that shawl. Wish me luck!

The socks are taking over

I had to work this weekend, which meant my striped socks got more love than usual. They live in a project bag in my purse/bag I take everywhere and usually only get worked on while I'm at job #2. Remember how a few days ago I only had about 3 inches done? Now I'm almost to the heel on the second one. These should be done by the end of the month!

The Beginning of the Long Haul

I've been working away on the Moderne Log Cabin blanket for my friend's wedding. See?

This is the first square about 2 minutes before I finished it and bound off. I'm hoping to pick up stitches and start the second square either tonight or tomorrow, whenever I can find 20 minutes of quiet time :) I'm trying really hard to stay on top of this project because I know that even though its not hard, the endless miles of garter are going to slow me down.

I've also been working on a few other projects. I had a shaky start with my Marsh Stripes socks. These are my first pair of socks for me and it took me a while to get the right stitch count. Here's where I'm at right now:

I discovered that, at least for stockinette socks, my secret to a good fit is to go up a needle size after the heel. My feet are a little narrow but I have thick ankles, so going up a needle size gives me a little bit more room. I hope to start some patterned socks in June, so we'll see if I'll need to do this with those as well.

Lastly I started a little project as a birthday gift for a friend. This is going to eventually become the Tabitha the Destash Kitty even though it doesn't look like much right now :)

This project has gone pretty quick so far- this took me about an hour? I haven't made too many stuffed animal type knits before, so I'm a little nervous about the seeming, attaching, and stuffing, but I figure I can handle it :)

Part of the reason I am trying to stay on schedule for the blanket is the pattern I will be casting on in about a week: the Rousette Shawl. I'm wondering if I have bit off more than I can chew with this one. The lace portion is entirely charted out and I (not being a fan of charts) am not sure if I'm going to rewrite it into written directions or just plow through with the chart and hope for the best. I plan on increasing both the stockinette and the lace section as well. The pattern includes directions on how to increase the stockinette portion, but I'm a little lost as to where to increase the lace. Hopefully it all comes together soon!

Refrigerator Rice

I'm pretty sure I have mentioned this dish before on my blog, but its such a staple in my diet (and I had a slightly different version for lunch yesterday) that I thought it was worth repeating. Usually it consists of rice, garlic and ground ginger, soy sauce, hot sauce, and eggs. Anything on top of this is bonus! I've added asparagus, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, and pretty much anything you have leftover in your fridge would work as well.

Yesterday I had some spinach that was almost past its prime and some leftover chicken, so those got added in. I wasn't sure it would be up to its usual standard- I have a funny relationship with cooked spinach and I was worried it would make my rice dish odd. But it was pretty yummy!

The fruit cup is Del Monte Fruit Naturals Peaches. I have come to LOVE these peaches and always pick them over any other fruit we might have in the house :)

All Quiet on the Blog Front

Its been pretty quiet here lately! Its the end of hubby's (insane) school semester, beginning of a new term over at the HPKCHC, and this weekend was taken up with graduation festivities. My (not so) little brother graduated!

So, needless to say, while I've been knitting, reading, and cooking a little I haven't been blogging about it. Here's a quick recap.

• I finished my self designed shawl, and the pattern will be up as soon as I get some good photos!
• I started the blanket for my friend's wedding late this summer. Its going pretty well!
• I'll be making a lot of cute, small items in the near future
• I had a win with my crock pot last week! One of my goals is to use it more, so it was nice to make a good meal with it.
• I'm almost finished with the Hunger Games. I know I'm really late to the game, but I really wanted to read the book before we went to see the movie.
• I'm going to be starting a reread of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire here soon, to go along with this read-along 
• I'm also working on reading Harry Potter y la Piedra Filosofal (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in Spanish). I'm only a few pages in, and its slow going because my Spanish has gotten a little rusty, but I'm really enjoying it!
• Lastly, I got an iPhone! I have been eligible for an upgrade for months now, and I went back and forth on whether or not to get a smart phone, but I'm really glad I did. I might do a future blog posts on the apps I have so far.

Anyway, I'm hoping to be back to blogging on a more regular schedule soon!