Thank You, Mrs. Munch! :)

Oh my...another secret pal package arrived yesterday...from Marina in Ireland! I really enjoy the privilege of writing via email to her...she's a wonderful knitting mom that I have had the opportunity to get to know via the knittyboard.com mellow swap for new knitty members. I TRIED to wait to open my parcel until the evening...but I couldn't do it! :)
Marina had sewn for me a beautiful satin/brocade sock bag, that I will put to use very shortly, and included a lovely handmade knitting card, tulip notecards (my favorite flower), a keychain sockblocker kit, a puppy tin of the most lovely stitch markers, a stitch row counter, beads to make more markers, and some fimo needle protectors in cute shapes. The whole package smelled of roses, from a small bar of rose-scented L'Occitaine soap. The yarn...where do I start? TWO balls of Felis to felt with, a skein of Regia Sockenwolle in "Surprise Color", and...my favorite...a hand-dyed skein of a beautiful superwash sock yarn from www.fyberspates.co.uk, crafted in Wales. It's a beautiful spring colorway, and I love it. My favorite part was the 3 page handwritten note from Marina...it's been my privilege to have her as my secret pal for this swap, and I hope to keep in touch with her.
On the homefront: Updates: Annie the 11 week old Schnoodle puppy is doing fine, and on medication for her protozoan infection. Good handwashing skills are in use here! I miss Hannah, but Annie is filling the void AND keeps me extremely busy. The saga of the extracted tooth continues...all is fine at the moment, and I see the Oral Surgeon again on Monday. Sock knitting has been minimal this week, due to the crazy week, puppy vet visits, and Vicodin/tooth..but it's back on track now!
Sockapalooza 4, Knitters Coffee Exchange, a Spring Felted Bag Swap, and other swaps begin soon....all fun! I REALLY enjoy finding goodies to send to others. I must confess, though...I purchased a box of the yummy Nonni's chocolate biscotti for a secret pal, and then a second box for myself...so delicious with my morning coffee.
If anyone is interested in joining a knitted sock kit swap, go here. This swap begins May 14th, and you send a handcrafted sock bag, yarn to knit socks, and some goodies to your pal by June 3oth. It will be fun!
Enjoy this Saturday!

For Knitters Only...Knitting Goody Box Arrived from SP10!

OK...this is "eye candy" for Knitters only...I apologize to all others. :) Actually, only knitters (and my sister) should be reading this! :)
I returned home from CT with a painful dry socket where tooth was extracted...headed directly to oral surgeon, went home to unpack car before church last night...saw 3 boxes for me in a pile in the kitchen...and I actually waited until 9 pm last night to open the boxes.
Oh Goodness! :) This box is from my Secret Pal 10 Pal...somewhere in Georgia. :) I opened the following goodies. First, a sweet letter on ladybug notepaper from my pal...it made my day. :)
Next: a handmade roll-up needle holder from Kaffe Fassett's "Potentilla" fabric...I love the bold colors! AND the extra piece of this print was sent to me so I can quilt with it! Kaffe Fassett's fabrics make my heart sing...
On the needle holder is a beautiful beaded angel keyring/stitch marker holder...and 4 SETS of handcrafted beaded stitch markers in beautiful jewel tones. To put IN the needleholder are 2 pairs of rosewood size 0 dpns!...in 5" and 8" lengths. I think I needed to catch my breath at this point! I also have 2 new books by Maggie Sefton...knitting mysteries in a series that I've been told about... Knit One, Kill One and Needled to Death.


















I also received a taffeta bag with a Leaf Pattern Bath Mitt Kit from KnitOneCrochet Two in the "Italian Ice" colorway from K1C2's Gourmet Collection yarn. Yumm-O. This is a Mother's Day gift...I'm looking forward to knitting it up!

The best part of the whole evening was watching my dear hubby's face as I oohed and aaahed over all the goodies...he's a dear, but clueless in the area of crafts and knitting. He was puzzled when I began taking photos of everything..I told him he wouldn't understand the mind of a knitaholic, but he tries...Gotta love him!
He saw a small woven basket of a wee bit of my sock yarn stash and said..."Hey, we can call this place "Skeins-R-Us"...poor guy, he doesn't even realize that the basket he was referring to was just the tip of the iceberg. :)
I also received a lovely order from Woolgirl...which I'll have to post about later. I ordered a skein of yarn for a Secret Pal, a Monkey tape measure, and a cute dog pin...everything arrived all packaged and tied in ribbon, with a cute handwritten card! I think I'll order again, just because the packaging made me feel so special! Order from Jen and see for yourself!
My parting photos are from the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, CT..where my little guy and I went Tuesday afternoon while in CT. The river otters were hilarious and posed for me. Sam posed on the lions in front of the greenhouses to show how we felt after a day at the zoo.

Wednesday Already!

Wow! What a fast week this is! Kids are off from school (the homeschool group we attend also takes the same week off as the public schools)...I went to CT to my parent's house to "cat sit" and earn some extra $ by scanning surveying maps at Dad's office (extra $...not for yarn...it's for taxes and bills, of course)...we also took puppy Annie, Sam, and a family friend (who watched Sam while I went to work). Sam and Miss K had a great 3 days...relaxing and enjoying the Spring weather. Annie's Vet called, she possibly has a parasite (not the kind taken care of with the routine puppy wormer) and needed to return to NH for another stool test... so we've washed our hands carefully...and I developed a dry socket after the tooth extraction last week...I was blessed by being able to visit my dad's oral surgeon, who packed my socket until seeing my own Periodontist today. I think God had planned for me to be back home here in NH to hear my Pastor's preaching tonight...I'm so glad to be home with hubby and kids, too. :) Annie still needs to see the Vet tomorrow... but that's tomorrow! :)
I received a wonderful, wonderful thoughtful package from my SP10 pal, and I'll tell you all about this special box of goodies tomorrow. Too tired to even knit!!! :)

Knitter's Coffee Swap...YES, I'm IN!!!

1. Whole bean or ground? Ground. I also have a Keurig coffee maker, that takes K-cups...
2. Fully loaded or decaf? Decaf is for sissies! :) I prefer light to medium/regular roasts.
3. Regular or flavored? Both, depends what kind of mood I'm in.
4. How do I drink my coffee? In my Longaberger ceramic coffee mug, with extra half and half, and
Splenda. I drink it in bed, throughout the day, and early evening. :)
5. Favorite Coffee Ever? Favorite is Original Dunkin Donuts when I go to DD's, ...favorite K-cup flavors are
Vermont Country, Nantucket Blend, Cinnamon Cream Swirl, Hazelnut, and Rain Forest Nut. Green Mountain Coffee's Breakfast Blend is good, too.
6. I am slightly fussy...as long as it's fresh though, not bitter, caffeinated, and hot, I'm a happy camper. :)
7. Favorite treats to have with coffee: scones, homemade cookies, Nonni's biscotti, shortbread...
8. Anything else about my coffee preferences? no.
9. I love sport weight and fingering weight sock yarns. Solids, varigated... all nice. :)
10. I don't care for fun yarns or acrylics.
11. I have SOCKS on my needles, of course! All Things Heather "Oceania" fingering weight sock yarn, SKS pattern.
12. Favorite colors: Jewel Tones, Autumn and Spring Colorways, Reds... most any.
13. No allergies.
14. I love coffee. I love knitting. I love to do both simultaneously. :)