Yes…..Norma's posts about making yogurt lured me in post by post, but it was Judy's easy peasy recipe that cinched it for me.  Yogurt is very good for nursing (dog) mum's so the timing was right for me. 

My first batch came out perfectly which of course encouraged me to continue.  The second batch….pretty good too, but that third batch…um….not so good….actually it was a stinky mess.

Of course knowing that my cold drafty house had a lot to do with that failed batch, my next batch was carefully placed right next to the whelping box, which is the warmest spot in the house.  Perfection!  Knowing that the lack of consistent temperature was the problem had me looking at multi-batch yogurt makers. These machines will keep the yogurt at the right temperature while the yogurt cultures set.  I'll let you know if it makes a difference. 🙂

 

Believe it or not there has actually been some knitting happening here too.  Remember how I declared 2010 the year of the sock?  Well…. I made myself finish a few WIP's before I would allow myself to start something new.  Finally they are finished and I am excited to start working on socks again.  The first pair is from Cookie's book…Sock  Innovation… Angee. 

The yarn color that I chose is Beach Sand.  I love how it matches the fabric that I will be using for a quilt along.  It's funny how a certain group of colors will all of a sudden be attractive to you and then it's all you see.  I'm looking forward to working on socks again. 😉

Every now and then a Mum gets to shamelessly brag about her children and it's ok.  It's ok because a lot of hard work goes into raising children as any mom can attest to. So every now and then we Mum's get a free pass at a shameless brag.

My oldest daughter, Stacey who is pictured on the right finished her associates degree this past Spring and entered Nursing School at the University of New England this fall and recently received notice that she made the Dean's list.  She did this while raising 2 children and working a full schedule as a waitress. 
Yay Stacey!!

On the left is my middle daughter Ashley, who you have seen modeling some of my FO's.  Ashley will be entering the Master's program for Education in the Spring.  She also makes these little videos to humor her mother.  I know she hates putting these out there so I'm putting it out there for her. ;

)

Yay Ashley!

Last month I shared with you my Paris-Roubaix scarf made with my newest yarn Oasis.  Because I had snagged 2 skeins of it for myself, I decided to knit the hat and mitts that went with the scarf…….only I changed it up quite a bit.

As you can see I knit the hat in the Paris-Roubaix Pattern, but instead of starting right with the pattern, I did a few rounds of garter stitch holding 1 strand of the Oasis yarn with 1 strand of handspun Angora from my bunnies here.  I like that little added softness on my forehead. 🙂

 

Instead of making mitts, I opted to make full mittens because it is has been very cold up here….bbrrrrrr!  I used the same strand of Oasis with the strand of handspun angora for the thumbs and tops which made for very cozy mittens.  As you can see….little Miss puppy have given it her seal of approval. 🙂

Speaking of the little Miss, I am hoping for a little help here.  Before she was born and after I found out that there was only going to be one, I jokingly said if it's a girl it will be
Ballymena Think Pink, and if it's a boy it will be
Ballymena Darn It's Blue.

Well "Think Pink" has kind of stuck, but now I need to come up with an everyday name to call her that has something to do with pink….but not Rose.

So………put on your thinking caps.  I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with. 😉

Pattern:  Paris-Robaix Scarf Set
Yarn:  Woolen Rabbit Oasis
Colorway:  Scottish Thistle
Needles:  US size 6

Meet the newest member of our household!

This not so little cutie made her way into the world Sunday evening via c-section.  Weighing in at a whopping 11 ounces….yikes!

This is the first litter that I have had in over 4 years, so we are looking forward to watching her grow.

Welcome to the World my little one!

Agghh……….my most favorite pair of socks made the sad descent into the trash can.  Actually this is the second pair of socks in one week to have the heel blow out……and………..neither pair had nary a stitch of nylon in them…and they were my most favorite to wear.  So sad. 😦

I officially declare  2010 to be the Year of the Sock!
(because I need some new ones)
Want to join along?

In the beginning, all things are hopeful.  We prepare ourselves to start anew.  Though we may be intent on the magnificent journey ahead, all things are contained in this first moment: our optimism, our faith, our resolution, our innocence.
Deng Ming~Dao

On this first day of the new year I have spent some time reflecting over the past year and looked ahead not only to the new year but a new decade.

I no longer make resolutions as there is only disappointment when they are broken…and they usually are.  This year I am going to focus on just one thing……discipline.   As much as I hate to admit it, I am a very undisciplined person…..a fly by the seat of my pants and never wait for anything kind of grrl.

This is not necessarily a bad thing, but many things go left undone. So for this new decade a little discipline is my goal for 2010.  With a little bit of discipline a lot of the other things will fall into place.

For you my friends I wish for you a year filled with peace, joy, happiness and fulfillment.

Happy 2010!!

You may remember my sharing my practice quilt with you back in the early fall.  One of the things that I am going to work on next year is being a little more disciplined about finishing things…..so before I got too involved in the Happy Hour quilt, I set about finishing this disappearing 9 patch quilt top. (I have the Christmas kit too…eek)

 

To Ashley and Brian on their Christmas engagement…..

It was almost 6 years ago when Ashley called me up and told me how the "hot" boy in her history class actually talked to her and I remember the hint of excitement in her voice.

This picture is from the first Thanksgiving that they shared here with our family.  Over the years we have had the opportunity to really get to know and love Brian.  We are very happy to welcome him in to our family.

Congratulations!!

"Figgy Pudding"

"we won't go until we get some"…..

I loved this fabric from the very first glance, but I loved it even more when I learned that the line was called Figgy Pudding.
While this is a Christmas Fabric line, I thought it would be perfect year round. 🙂

I had a few extra minutes today and thought I would share the colors of Oasis that I was able to photograph today.   I finally managed to get these uploaded to the store…….enjoy!

Blue Moon

Forever In Blue Jeans

Cape Cod Blues

Scottish Heather

Rib Bit

Oakmoss

Pumpkin Patch

Chiquitita

and as always the Custom Color option is up as well.

Back to Christmas wrapping…….fa la la

Tis the Season…..Fa la la la la la la la

Pattern:  Paris-Roubaix
Yarn:  Woolen Rabbit Oasis (online soon)
Colorway:  Scottish Thistle
Needles: US size 6

Whew….it's been a crazy busy couple of weeks.  Has it been like that for you?  I actually have been working on a lot of things, but in order to keep myself somewhat organized I have not really been able to spend much time on the computer.

This scarf is one of Anne's patterns from last year.  Very similar to my favorite tesserae socks, so I thought it would be a nice pattern to test a new yarn I will be carrying.

A blend of silk and camel that is lightweight, warm and very soft.  It truly was a pleasure to knit.  Tonight I think I will cast on the mitts when I finally get a chance to sit for a bit.

I hope to have this yarn listed up in the store soon.  I actually dyed and photographed a batch of it during Fryeburg Fair, but I'm afraid I may have lost the pictures when my computer crashed….I'm hoping that I managed to save them on one of my disks.

Over the last few weeks I have really suffered with a bout of sciatica as well.  I KNOW….that SO sounds like an old lady condition doesn't it?

Actually it stems from an old accident from years ago that flares up every now and then.  Of course if I would lose a bit of weight and buy a new mattress it would help.

This time though I had to bite the bullet and have the doctor prescribe some medication…and let me tell you this medication is playing havoc with my sleep patterns.  I am up all hours of the night and then dragging my sorry behind around during the day.  I really have been trying to stay on task though in spite of my aching backside and lack of restful sleep.

I have been working away on some new bags…this one really makes me smile. 

How can you not love Olivia…she is quite a pip isn't she?  When I saw this fabric in the store it just made me smile.

I have added some new batiks that I hope to sew over the weekend as well.  Of all the fabrics out there, the batiks have always been my most favorite.  There's just something so earthy about them….I love them. 🙂

Well, that's a little part of what's been happening here at the Woolen Rabbit.  I hope that you all are enjoying this festive time of year with wonder and peace.