OUTER BANKS HEAVEN

  DESTINATION: Outer Banks, 

North Carolina

    Nags Head

OH the seafood! Yummy! What a 

Wonderful trip! I cannot believe I am back. We had weather to die for. Sunny, high 80's to mid 90's! Who could ask for anything more! OK a few yarn shops maybe? DONE!

Knitting Addiction is a yarn store to spend hours and $$$$ in! One warning, don't take hubby if he isn't into yarn, like you.

Knitting addiction's owner, Jeanne Shrade,  is present and really a nice lady. She has a great sense of humor. I don't know about you, but when I am vacationing and find a LYS, I want to find something unique to that area, that I won't find back home. 

Jeanne covers that with flying colors! She designs her own patterns and you get them free when you purchase the yarn. 

I picked up two. I loose fitting shrug and a pattern called "big people blankie" , which is a triangular heavy shawl, with a large button attached to the top left side.  I will post some pics.

The highlight of the visit, was.....She had buttons! Not just any buttons, BUT the skull buttons I have been looking for over two years for!!!!  I could have gone home right then! But I stayed the rest of the week. I mean, it was only Monday.

Outside the seafood restaurant, my daughter and nephew pose for a beautiful sunset picture.

Yes, nephew. We went with the entire extended family. 19 to be exact! And you ask, well how was that? Wonderful!!! My mom was 

In her glory. All her children, spouses, grandchildren within arms reach 24/7. What more can you ask for!!!!

We did so much in one week, that we all need another to recover. 

Climbed 2 lighthouses. Visited 3. Looked at one from afar.

I loved Cape Hatteras. Prettiest lighthouse on the outer banks! I used to love Currituck, but after climbing Hatteras, it was love at first climb.

The Aquarium is a treat. A must go to, if you are visiting.

Everything we went to, was worth it. 

The ferry ride, to Ocaracoke, was the best part of the trip. The island is......Boring.  The shops are scattered and the                                                            folks are, well, not so friendly. 

The lighthouse, was not open to the public. It was smaller than all the others. Not real impressed with it. No where to park and tons of people trying to see it. But, at least I can say  I was there.

I finish with a few fun shots. Family, pretending to be on the titantic, the lighthouse and the whole Fam on the beach!

Keep knitting

I guess she could go topless!

Finished the Isty, bitsy, teeny weeny, made my hands hurt bikini last night. Well, just the bottom.  So, I said to daughter, "We will have to find a nude beach".  To which she replied with disgust, "Oh mother, that's just gross!"  

I have till Sunday to finish the top. We will be sunning our buns Sunday afternoon in Nags Head.  We are driving. If I put my mind to it, it is a possibility.  The killer is, you have to cast on 300 stitches on a size one needle!!!! I did bump up the needle to a three.  The yarn is a variegated yarn that has elastic in it. So cool. You have to watch your tension, it can go from Light worsted to a finger weight, just by the way you hold it. 

The yarn came from "Knit One" and is called Cascade Fixation. The label says it has  62-186 yards on it, depending on how you use it. It took 1 ball to make the bottom. I have three left. Over estimated I guess.  So, you too, can make one, just give me your address and I will send you my two left over. I need one for the top.

Getting back to the trip...What to take....Last year I did nothing but socks. This year, I think the same. They take up minimal room and are great on trips, waiting in lines, sunning your self by 

 the pool or at the beach.  I am going to scout out some yarn shops. There was one, 16 years ago. Hopefully that number has grown.

I asked the animals how they felt about the family leaving? This is what I got......

They don't care, cause favorite boyfriend is house and pet sitting... Lucky animals.

Well my peeps.....There's knittin to do. 

Oh yea, I gotta pack.

You will be missed

Randy Paush Died this morning from pancreatic cancer.  His story touched my life. 

God Bless his wife and children and all those who loved him.

His book is a MUST read.

My favorite two quotes from Randy:

"Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want."

And

"If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself, the dreams will come to you."

Long time since

                                   Wow. It sure has been awhile since I posted.  Thought that my vacation would give me a few extra hours to blog more. Guess NOT!  Just got back from a week in the Pennsylvania mountains. Cook Forest to be exact.  The pic is of the beautiful mountain laurels. You can look, but cannot touch or take.

We had a great time. Well, if you forget about the huge spiders and bats that flew across one end of our rustic cabin to the other, every night!

Oh yea, and then there was Rodney, the enormous Raccoon that ate all our Marshmallows!! 

 You are probably thinking, why on earth do I go....... Easy.... "Spin a Yarn" in Brookville and "Heirloom quilts and Fabrics" Two of my favorite places on earth!

Spin a Yarn is the cutest little yarn shop. Susie and I have been distant friends for more than 20 years! I love her warm and welcoming personality.  The shop doesn't have a ton of yarn, like around Pittsburgh, BUT you can always

 find a project that you have to make! 

I found some great baby yarn to make a sweater for a little boy that will be born in the fall. 

And then there's the Quilt shop. OMG!!! If you love flannels, she has them all. If you love vintage, tons! And then there is everything in between. Durfee, yes that's how you spell it, Has thousands of bolts of fabric. Her Christmas/Fall room is to die for!  I picked up some blue Christmas fabric. Something hard to find. Going to make a tree skirt. 

I didn't do a ton of knitting, like I normally do.  I think it was because went with friends, and I had fun with them instead. 

I usually get left behind, while the hubby and kids fish. Not this year, I had a buddy to run with.  

I did teach my friend to knit. Thats her in the picture below,working on her first project, A garter stitch scarf. 

Her daughter is next to her. She of course picked up how to knit in seconds and put it down just as fast. NOT FAIR. Poor mom, struggled for hours, till it all clicked! No pun intended!

I did work on my daughters teeny tiny bikini. I do hope to get that done before we leave for Nags Head. 2 weeks from now.

I will try to get a pic of the teeny tiny suit, soon.

I will finish with a few pictures of the beautiful Horseback ride we took a day before we left. Perfect weather, perfect ride. If you don't believe in God, you will after a ride like that. The beauty is beyond words. The serenity is priceless!

Peace out! Knit on my peeps!

Lavender

This little sweater, seems like it is taking me a lifetime. I started it last fall. Put it by my bed, for, just before I go to sleep knitting.

 It is on size 8 needles, which isn't bad. It is knit from the top down. 

The yarn is scented with lavender! But it is SOOOOOO boring!!!!! Round and round. Like a big sock, LOL. 

I love the yarn, and the scent makes me sleepy when I am knitting in bed! 

The pattern is from "Knitting Pure and Simple"
 I love that companies patterns. They are simple, classic patterns. 

I am on the first sleeve. I have about 2 inches left. Then I have the other sleeve and a neckline to finish. It is a sweater I am looking forward to finishing. 

TUESDAY NITE KNIT

Yippee

This is our MIA knitter, Linda. Well, its her foot and her FIRST  sock!!!!! She did a fantastic job.

I felt I needed to put her picture on top of the others, because e she worked so very hard to learn how to do the gusset and turn. Her yarn is the stuff with the aloe in it, so her feet will be nice and soft! Great job, Linda. Glad you came back. Have a nice vacation in Hilton Head!

 I felt it was time to share my knitters and crocheters with you.  Every Tuesday night, we are together. We laugh, we eat, we laugh, we cry, we laugh, we share. Oh yes, and we get a few rows of knitting and crocheting in.  I am so proud to say these are my friends. They are the kind of people you hope you meet in your lifetime. They really like you, care about you, worry about you , and celebrate all those little things with you, like...... finishing a row!  And then there are those major moments, like finishing a beautiful shawl, your first sock and a prized afghan! 

Knitter number 1, Jody and her beautiful Shawl.  Jody is a great knitter, she is a lefty. And she knits completely opposite of a righty. It is sooo cool to watch her. We love having her with us, her laughter is infectious.  

    

This is Vicky's leg. This is her first sock! She did a great job! I taught her to graph the end tonight, and she did it like a pro. Vicky had a hard time with double pointed so she taught herself the two circular needle way. She finished the sock in no time.  Vicky is our speed knitter. She is a no nunsense (LOL) kind of girl!

This is my favorite knit nite buddy. My mom. We are so very proud of her. She claimed she could not learn to do anything crafty.  Now, we all knew different. We just had to convince her. We did! This isn't her first afghan, but her second!!! Woop, there it is! Go momma, go momma! We love having her with us every tuesday.  She and her very best friend come together.  

That would be Donna. She isn't pictured, but her work is.  That is her work below. The black and gray. It's from the einstein book. Donna is such a hard worker. She produces the most beautiful pieces. She never likes her stuff, but trust me, it is always really nice. 

                                                                                      And our last knitter tonight is.....................

Chrystal. She is making a beautiful jacket for her, well maybe for her, maybe for her baby girl. We will see. Chrystal always is our steady, level headed, always puts things in perspective kinda girl. When we are troubled by something, she always has a way of making you feel better. And its always very practical, very, why didn't I think about it that way, advise.

These are just a few of us, there was one knitter who was MIA, and another who comes when she gets the knitting bug.  We all have so much fun together, that I wish the night would last forever. But then, I wouldn't ever get any knitting done! Something I need to do, right now.

Keep knitting. Too hot, try cotton or soy or maybe corn!!! Just knit!

 

 

Time waits for no one

Ok, how did these two cute kids grow up and become really great adults. My daughter graduated last year from high school. In less than three hours the nephew will enter the real world. No more reading, no more writing, no more teachers dirty looks! Well, at least till fall and college.

Life goes so fast. There is an ad on TV, that hits  home. A young mom comes in with a fertility statue and the house fills with things and babies and ends with a young girl grabbing her dads keys and saying "Don't wait up". Yep it goes that fast. So if you are a young mom reading this, grab those babies and love them. Kiss those chubby bellies and eat up those tiny cute toes.

I gave the Prayer Shawl to my dying friend. She cried and we hugged. We cried. She loved it and said chemo sometimes makes her cold. And it is perfect.  I took some pictures, but my phone camera made the colors so ugly I don't want to post it. It was beautiful.  

All the yarn came from Knit One. Rochelle could not have been more helpful. My friends and I had spent most of the morning there, and she offered to serve us lunch right in front of the yarn we were smelling and cooing over for the last hour. We all needed the laugh. Love that place. 

Well, as I check my clock I see that I need to gather my tissues and Gatorade(Its outside and its about 95 degrees!) and get ready to go to the graduation. 

Oh what is on my needles..... LOTS... Started a summer vest with cotton fleece. Two pairs of socks are on needles and a sweater that the yarn smells like lilac, and a vest. There's more, but you know that. Keep knitting, peace out.