Countdown to Vegas

Counting Down ....



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http://www.happycountdown.com/donnyo/index.cfm

Exactly 2 weeks from today...

• I will be in Las Vegas
• I will meet the Osmond Brothers (all except Alan)
• I will watch a Donny & Marie Concert
• I will meet Donny & Marie
• I will be anticipating the Osmond Brother concert (the following day)

Recent Books

My goodness it has been a while since I've updated. I knew I would not update often (besides, it isn't like anyone checks in daily to see if I have any new and exciting things here - LOL!)

I haven't had much crochet/knitting time at all - been doing some contract work for my old company so that has taken up much of my free time these days.

But...I have managed to fit in a little bit of reading. So, here are a couple of books I recently finished.

Stand & Delivery: Adam Ant's Autobiography

I've been trying to get my hands on this book for ages. First it was in hardback but only available in the U.K. I figured it would eventually be sold in the USA, but apparently it wasn't - I could never locate it on any USA web-sites or bookstores.

It then came out in paperback. I thought, maybe now I can get it in the US. Nope, still no luck. Fortunately, I found a seller on Amazon, that had a slightly used copy for sale, so I nabbed that puppy.

It was a good read, especially for me, since I've been a fan of Adam's since the late 70s, early 80s. I knew he went through a rough time with his battles with depression and I was most interested in reading about that time in his life.

He spent the main part of the book, talking about his childhood and the forming of the Ants. I wasn't expecting him to dedicate that much of the book to his young life, since most autobiographies tend to focus on the "after I became famous" - so I found it interesting. I enjoyed reading about his family and where he grew up. I could almost envision the places he talked about, even though I have never been to England. I didn't realize he suffered from hullications, even at a very young age. It sounds like he made it through and has learned to deal with his problems. I wish he'd make a new CD - I miss his music - a lot !

Twilight

My, my, my, what can I say about this book. Yes, I am very late in getting into the Twilight craze, but I'm glad I decided to join in with other vampire lovers and read this. It is written (or so it seems) for the younger adult - late teens, early 20s perhaps but just like Harry Potter, appeals to all age groups.

I think the biggest draw of this book is Edward Cullens - he just sounds so incredibly beautiful - what a shame that he is a vampire and is about 124 years old. But never mind that fact, because he will always be eternally 17. You just love the way he protects Bella. His "family" is great to her too - I want Alice Cullens to be my friend! I love that Bella is somewhat accident prone, since I can relate to that. (Yes, I said accident prone, not clumsy). I can hardly wait for the movie. Although I don't know many of the actors chosen for the part, I think they did a great job with the casting - the actors look pretty much like I pictured them.

The actor playing Edward is Robert Pattinson, who also played Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I think he is a great choice for Edward.

Now I'm going to read New Moon, the 2nd book in the Twilight Saga.

As far as the crochet/knitting front goes. I'm working on a prayer shawl for someone, who I don't know real well but know her more through another friend from church. She is a sweet person, who I have finally met IRL and I just feel compelled to make this prayer shawl for her. I pray for her everyday and have been praying over this shawl as I make it for her. I hope to have it finished by the end of next week so I can get it too her and I hope it brings her a little comfort and hope in knowing that people are praying for her.

Baby Dress

Since the knitted baby afghan didn't work out (darn those circular needles and my tension while using them), I decided to scrap that project and use the yarn for something else. This is the result.

I made a crochet Flower Baby Dress from May/June 2008 Issue of Crochet Today! I am really pleased with it.

#1 - I've never made a baby dress before
#2 - It only took about a total of 5 hours to make
#3 - It is really cute in real life.

I really hope the mom-to-be loves it. I believe she is the kind that will appreciate it. I also found some cute little daisy buttons to go on the back.

May is Over . . . Already?

Where did May go? It seemed to fly by. I realized I haven't even made a blog entry this month.

I got frustrated with the baby afghan I was knitting - the tension doesn't seem right (too loose in places). I may knit a few more rows just to see how it is coming along and if I don't like it, then I may ending up crocheting it after all.

Speaking of crochet, I'm starting to teach my friend Lynn how to crochet - we had our first lesson yesterday. I hope I can teach her - I know she can do it, no problem with that but I am NOT the best teacher in the world. I hope she doesn't get frustrated with me - I know once she gets going, she will love it!

I did finish 2 more Malabrigo squares and started another one with a cable, but I think I have done something terribly wrong - it just doesn't look like the picture. I wish I had someone to show me how to do it. I tried knittinghelp.com but can't get the video to play because my dial up at home is super S-L-O-W. I think I followed the instructions correctly, but it looks like a twisted mess on that row. I may end up frogging it. Oh well...

Knitting & Crochet A.D.D.

Seriously, what is wrong with me? I think I do have Knitting & Crochet A.D.D. I swore to myself, promised myself that I would NOT start another project until the 4 I already had going were done.

What did I do though? Yes, I started yet another project. I couldn't resist. But I feel like I have a good reason for this one - really, I do!

My friend Alison is expecting her first baby. It is something we have been praying for and God is answering those prayers. She is having a girl. I have no idea what they plan on naming her, but I keep hearing the name "Elizabeth" in my head. I guess I just want her to name the baby that.

So...I decided to knit my very first baby afghan. I have crocheted many baby afghans - so many I have lost count but have never knitted one. I really wanted to make a pink one but figured she would get lots of pink things so I decided to go with my next choice - yellow. I just love baby yellow. She is due in early August so I have to get started on it if I want to make her anything, right? Especially as slow as I knit. I could crochet her one and probably have it done in about 10-14 days but I just want to try a knitted one for a change.

The pattern seems pretty easy. It is called Pretty Fans and Feathers and is from Leisure Arts "Our Best Knit Baby Afghans".

Why oh why, do I start a new project before I finish one? It must be Knitting A.D.D. - there really is no other explanation.

Mmmm, Cake !

Okay, I have not had much time for knitting the past couple of weeks (although I'm really, really wanting to get back to my skull scarf).

Anyway, I was poking around on the internet looking for a recipe and stumbled across this.

The person that posted it said they were having a going away party for Suzanne. The boss ordered the cake from Walmart and told them to write on it "'Best Wishes, Suzanne' underneath that 'We will miss you'". This is what the cake looked like when they picked it up.




I guess they almost wrote what they were told too!!!

Humor of the Day