I found a knitting contest today, at Modest Purls.  You just have to mention what colors you like!

My April KAL cloth, will be finished soon!  I’m about to go up and knit, now! It’s a pretty spring scene!

Sarah and I are glad we aren’t up in Duluth, MN today.  It’s blustery and cold, with a winter storm warning!  Brrrr.  We had a great weekend, with temps in the 50’s and 60’s, down here!

Duluth Webcam - We found this webcam, after we got home from Duluth, last summer.  It’s fun always getting to see what the weater looks like, or how many people are watching the boats go through, or even seeing one of the big ships going through the canal, if you are lucky!

Our local Pick N Save is trying to fit 3000 more items into our store, and so they are moving things around and putting them in new places. We were handed a sheet of paper, when we got in the store, that would help us find stuff. It’s hard enough to learn a grocery store and now we have to start all over! Argh! Another customer and I were commiserating over the fact, that we’ll probably end up buying more stuff, as we are exposed to things that we usually avoid! LOL!

The place was crawling with extra employees, who were restocking shelves, not to mention lots of customers, too. I hate shopping when the store is so crowded. My favorite time to go is Sunday night, after supper, since it’s usually a ghost town and I can fly around the store, doing my shopping. The only bad thing is, that sometimes I can’t find what I want, because the stores are pretty picked over, by the end of the weekend.

They were out of caffeine-free Diet Coke, in 24-packs today. Argh. The 24-pks of Coke products were $5.99 with the saver card. The 12-pks were $4.19 a piece. It doesn’t take rocket science to figure that a 24-pk would have been a much better deal. So, we didn’t buy any.

Gary’s fixing a computer for a co-worker. He will pay us in Diet Coke, so we probably won’t have to buy any, anyway!

I can tell it’s spring. For one thing, the Sheboygan River is all water again, and the ducks are pairing off! I took this picture last night, at Kiwanis Park.

Much of our snow, has disappeared, with temps in the 50’s, over the last few days, but there is still a chance of snow, over the next few days.  I hope we don’t get too much.

This month’s dishcloth, was an “illusion” cloth! That means we knitted the design twice, once in the lighter color and opposite in the darker color. So, when it’s on an angle, you only see the design rows, to make a picture. Here’s the front of the cloth. You can sort of see the design.

Here it is, from the backside. You can see the design, this way, too.

Here it is, viewed from more of an angle.

Another view from an angle. Isn’t it a neat effect? I’ve never knit an illusion cloth before!

Officially, this winter, we’ve had 82 inches of snow. However, that amount is again inaccurate, since we have 5-6 inches of new snow, out on the driveway, yard and sidewalk. Argh. It’s been snowing for about 12 hours now! Might I remind you, that it’s officially spring now, too? I might have seen a robin, but I’m not sure. I saw a bird in a tree, that looked like the right size and the right shape, but I couldn’t see the color of the breast feathers, since the lighting wasn’t right. Darn it!

Pictures of the socks. Finally! I finished the second one, on 2-27-08, but was too busy, to get the pictures posted. They keep my feet warm, and are very pretty. I wore them to my knitting group last night!

Yarn: Sandnes Garn Sisu Fantasy #6547
Needles: Size 2 dpns (Chia Goo Bamboo)
Pattern: Silver’s Sock Tutorial

I already did another Finders/Keepers cloth. I think it’s as addicting as a ballband is! Although it will probably look better with 2 solids, than a solid and a variegated, since the variegated yarn would be hard to see, in the “hidden” row! This one is in blue and ecru, to match my kitchen.

Here is the 2008 March KAL, from Monthly Dishcloth KAL. It’s called, “The Empty Tomb.”

“They found the stone rolled away from the tomb…” ~ Luke 24:2

The stockinette stitch in the lower left-hand corner, is the stone being rolled away. The purl stitching, that resembles a tree, is the empty tomb and the rays are the radiance of the Lord rising from the dead! It’s very appropriate, since Easter is at the end of this month!

Man, it’s cold outside. The last time I was outside, I about froze, and the last time I checked the temperature, it was about 13 degrees F, outside! Brrrr. It’s supposed to be MARCH, not January! On the plus side, all the roads, that had deep, frozen ruts, have greatly improved, so driving around is fun again. One had to drive over those rutted roads, very slowly, or take the long way, driving on better roads.

Our neighbor is a sweetheart. He’s been coming over to help us chop the ice and packed-down snow, that was covering our driveway and at the moment, it’s 90% dry and clear. He’s also been big help at keeping the storm sewer free and clear of snow and ice, so our street doesn’t flood. We’ve had about 80 inches of snow this winter and the snowbanks were starting to take over the road. Then we had one warm day and 1-1/2 inches of rain, and the water had nowhere to go! That’s all better now, too. Tonight, we are supposed to get 3-inches of lake-effect snow, meaning only the east coast of WI is supposed to get snow, with winds from the East. The clouds pick up moisture off the lake and dump it on us, as snow!

Oh yes, and all of Wisconsin is in mourning right now, since Brett Favre decided to retire. So, it will be interesting to see what happens with the Green Bay Packers next season. I think it was time for him to hang up the cleats. He had a good run!

This morning, I asked a kindergartener, who was talking about football, if he wanted to be the next Brett Favre, and he nodded his head enthusiastically. I thought that was so sweet.

From the newspaper today:

76 inches of snow this season
35-3/4 inches of snow in February alone
Measurable snow on 11 of the last 18 days.

With Monday’s snow of almost three inches, the season’s total rose to 76 inches and moved into the No. 6 spot, only 1½ inches behind 1961-62. First place (94 inches, 1904-05) seems safe — for now, anyway.

It’s just too much snow! LOL! We are running out of places to put it, and it’s way too early to think we won’t have anymore snow! Argh! I can’t remember such a snowy winter.

Back in 1985, right after I bought my first front-wheel drive car, Marshfield, WI got 17 inches of snow. It was the weekend of November 30th/December 1st. We didn’t see grass again, until spring. That was the big kahuna, though. No other snowfall that winter, had that much accumulation!

In December 2000, we got 51.9 inches of snow, in that month alone, but in January, February, and March, we hardly got any snow, so the roads were clear and dry and it wasn’t such an inconvenience.

This year, it snows like every other day and the plows can barely keep up, not to mention that every city is running out of salt! Argh. I can’t wait for spring!

On Sunday, we had temps in the mid-30’s and 1.56 inches of rain! It turned our sidewalks into mush, for the day and flooded the street. In the picture, you can see some city workers, with a shovel and a front-end loader, cleaning the snow away from the storm sewer, so the water could drain off the street!

I just realized I didn’t post my February KAL dishcloth, and I have a smaller version of it, to post, too! LOL! It turned out to be a heart-shaped box of candy, with a ribbon! What a perfect design for February! It was designed by Susan Mrenna of Knit A Little, and entitled, “Valentine Candy Box.

I must admit, it’s kind of fun, doing the heel, after the monotony of 2×2 ribbing for 5″.  There’s many different steps and each step doesn’t take THAT long and boom, you have a heel!  Now it’s onward to the toes, and wanting to finish is then my motivation at that point!

It’s only taken me 3-1/2 weeks to get to this point, from starting the sock, too!  Woohoo!

We were stuck in the house today, because of a winter storm warning.  There were so many differing guesstimates on how much snow we would get! LOL!  What snow?  We got mostly rain, just a dusting of snow!  It was 35 degrees most of the day, and raining and all that water had nowhere to go, with our huge snowbanks and all!  So, the city had to come by to clean snow away from the drain, so the 6″ of standing water could drain into the storm sewer!  What a mess.  Now everything that was slushy is freezing, since the temp is in the 20’s now!

I wonder if the icy roads and sidewalks will warrant a 2-hour delay in the morning?  Hmmm.  Probably not.

For dinner tonight, we had chicken, broccoli, and brown-rice casserole!  Yummy! (and yogurt and basil and oregano and Parmesan cheese!) . Plus we had a salad, too.

On Thursday nights, Emily and I like to gather with other knitters at Bahr Creek in Cedar Grove.  We’ve missed more darn Thursdays, because of snow, and it’s driving us crazy!  It’s 15 miles away, so snow can be an issue.  Argh.  Tomorrow, this is the forecast.

Thursday

Not as cold. Light snow likely in the morning…then snow in the afternoon. Snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches. Highs in the upper 20s. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph shifting to the west late in the afternoon. Chance of snow 90 percent.

So, it looks like we will be knitting at home, yet another Thursday.  On WTMJ this morning, they said 3-6 inches. When is spring coming?  Last week Wednesday, 2-6-08, we ended up with 16.5 inches of snow, bringing our seasonal total to 62 inches, which is up from our seasonal average of 41 inches.  We’ve had 3 inches and 2 inches, since then, too!  Geez.

The only good thing is that days are getting longer.  There is actually a little bit of daylight, when I get up around 6:15am and it’s very much still light out, after 5pm, in the evening, too!  So, we are getting closer to spring.

My second dishcloth is done was finished a few days ago! It’s called Diamonds on Lace. Yarn was Peaches n Creme Fiesta Ombre and was knit with size 7 needles.

I’m also on my way, with my second sock! After a few false starts, I got the “join” right and I got an inch done, at the knit-night tonight! I’m past the awkwardness of getting started, with the double-pointed needles and knitting has gotten easier. It was fun to show off my completed sock, to the knitting group, at Bahr Creek tonight!

My market bag, Elisa’s Nest Tote, is all finished with the knitting part. I need to get my crochet hook and the instructions ready, to start seaming up the sides. I haven’t had a chance to get that done yet.

Last week, I made a Baby Genius burp cloth, from the Mason-Dixon book, but I already gave it to my cousin, last Saturday, without taking a picture! Argh! I used Peaches and Creme Sea Mist which is blue, green and white. It was pretty. Now, I’m working on the Mason-Dixon bib! I’ll get a picture of that, before I send it off.

At the knit-night tonight, I was skimming through Stephanie Pearl-Mcphee Casts Off. I was laughing so hard I was crying! Emily and I will have to see if it’s at the library tomorrow!

We missed the last 2 knit-nights, due to bad weather, that only seemed to be occurring on Thursday nights! Two weeks ago, we had snow and last Thursday, the snow happened more during the day, but it had been warm and was supposed to be much colder in the evening, leading to all the wet spots freezing up. Well, that seemed a little too scary to be driving in, so Emily and I stayed home. We love going, so it was hard to just stay home, although, we did knit at home, but sure missed the social aspect of going to the yarn store! All those women are great company!

Amy, one of the usual women who come, is going to Mexico this weekend on a mission trip! Our group knit over 50 hats, for her to take with her, for the orphans! Emily and I knit 2 of those 50-some hats! We can’t wait to get started on new hats, for the next need that comes along.

Tomorrow is supposed to be in the 20’s. I almost don’t remember what that feels like. After the single digits and sub-zero temps of the past week, 20’s will feel like a heatwave. Then we get 30’s to possibly 40, over the weekend! Woohoo!

From Weather Underground:

Thursday

Blustery. Snow in the morning…then light snow likely in the afternoon. Areas of blowing snow in the afternoon. Snow accumulation of 2 to 3 inches. Highs around 30. South winds 5 to 10 mph increasing to 15 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Chance of snow 80 percent.

My 15yo daughter and I like to go to our LYS (local yarn store), about 15 minutes away, to knit with a wonderful group of women and share our projects and see what they are knitting, etc. It’s a lovely social outlet and a chance to share the hobby with other like-minded women. We couldn’t go last week, to Bahr Creek, because it snowed in the evening. Now there’s a potential for our Thursday night to be all messed-up again! There is a winter storm watch for the southwestern part of the state tomorrow and the storm has the potential to go far enough east, to bother us, too!

So, why on Thursdays? Why not any other day of the week? Whine! If Thursday gets messed up again, Emily will NOT be happy!

It seemed appropriate to me. It seems all we hear about is football, in January, especially since the Green Bay Packers get to play the Championship game at HOME! DH and I watched the last 2 minutes of the Giants/Cowboys game last night, because the suspense was killing us. I wanted the Cowboys to lose, so the Packers could play at home! I’m staying far away from Green Bay next Sunday. Sounds like it could be a crazy place!

Recess duty for my lunch job, wasn’t too bad today. I think we are going to be inside, later in the week, though, especially with kindergarten kids, because it’s supposed to be good and cold! I’m not looking forward to that!