It's the Big Lug

May 13, 2008

Admiral Adorable Turns 1

What has two thumbs and bad travel juju?

This blogger right here.

I had to do a whirlwind trip to the Boston area for work and my plane was delayed due to rain. I really don't get too frazzled when things go wrong with business travel, but still - I never expect travel problems in warmer months. I associate travel issues with blizzards and ice. At any rate the trip BACK was on time, and that's what really counts, no?

But onto my true reason for posting - I never recapped SImon's birthday party. I used to think having a big birthday party for a 1-year-old was ridiculous. Of course that was until MY kid turned 1. I lost my mind and decided to have about 50 people over our house for a little soiree to celebrate the anniversary of the day I became a baby momma. The party was great, my mom and mother-in-law did a lot of the cooking and I think even the non-baby-mommas and non-baby-daddies had a good time. The best part was, of course, Baby Lug having his first cake*.

*I had a really hard time finding a cake recipe, and ended up using this banana cake recipe and the whipped cream frosting recipe on this website. The frosting was delicious, though I only added 1/4 cup sugar to it.

Posted by jen at 07:28 AM |Comments (0)

May 06, 2008

The Yarny Goodness

As I said in my last post, I definitely wanted to buy BrooksFarm and Tess at Maryland and they were the first booths I hit!

At the Tess booth I picked up two skeins of her SuperSocks and Baby yarn in a colorway I can't find on her website. It is a range of warm brown. This will be a manly baby sweater for Simon hopefully in her baby cardigan pattern.

Brooks Farm is always my favorite booth, and this year I was drawn to a different color palette. I usually am attracted to their blue/brown combinations but this year I got some reds and a neutral.

This is their Acero in a red colorway:

And here is FourPlay in a neutral and grey olorway:

I'm thinking a wide scarf or shawl in the Fourplay, since it lies so flat as a fabric. I'm not sure what to do with the Acero, but it's a fingering weight yarn, so I'm thinking some lacework will be in order.

I also picked up some natural Alpaca from Misty Mountailn Farms. I was going to make Mr. Lug a scarf and mittens or a hat out of this. It's so soft and a really manly natural color:

I feel I was fairly conservative in my purchases, but really got exactly what I wanted.

In other knitting news I finished my Tess Microfiber Ribbon tanktop and it only took me 2 years! I had actually completed the entire body a while back, but had to finish crocheting the straps. It turned out better and the fit isn't half bad. Pics of that up next!

Posted by jen at 08:40 PM |Comments (3)

May 05, 2008

Maryland 2008: Why I Love Fair Food

All week I told people that I was trying to go to Maryland Sheep and Wool. Most people I talked to gave me that pleasant smile and "Oh, that sounds nice" that they would've given me if I said I was going to a comic book convention or a fish and tackle expo. Then I explained one thing to them that was universally appealing.

The ribbon chips.

Freshly-fried, thin-cut potatoes with sour cream, cheese, chives and jalepenos. Not for the faint of heart, or the waist watcher. A plate full of deliciousness. Everyone seemed to understand why I would travel to Maryland for a plate of those!

Not everyone understood how excited I'd be to run into old bloggy friends like these ladies:

Anne Marie and Lara

I was so glad to run into those two, Carrie, Lolly, Jess, Maya, Sarah, and Sarah (go team mommies). I didn't get to see anyone for too long, since I wasn't staying over this year, but I did get to say hello and talk to everyone for a few minutes and wander with people. If I saw you, and I lost you in the crowd and didn't say goodbye, I'm sorry! I had fun seeing you!

My sister-in-law Pat came down for the trip with me and we had a good time walking around, reconnecting with people and, of course, shopping. I'll post the haul soon - I was fairly conservative, hitting up the essentials (for me) of Tess and Brooks Farm.

I had a really great time, the weather was beautiful and the trip seems to have given me some knitting mojo back. I pulled this project out of the stash and decided to finish it! I feel that my trip to MD and running into other knit mommies should prove that there is life after baby! So go ahead and get yourself a baby. Ok, maybe that's not such a good idea for everyone, but it's just a thought.

Posted by jen at 09:02 PM |Comments (9)