Two weeks?! How does this keep happening to me?! I always mean to write, and then I don't. Too much going on all the time. Still working a lot. For the last month I have been working pretty much 6 days a week, 8+ hours a day, and on Sundays I clean the house & do laundry so that I have work clothes for the week ahead! On top of the I have friends to squeeze in when I can, dinner to make & clean up, a body to wash & a man to Skype with in Australia.
Showing posts with label holiday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label holiday. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
I love Spring, but not allergies!
What have I been up to?!
My good friend was in town last week, so Sunday evening after my last post, was dinner with her family, Tuesday was a pub night and Friday we went out for Thai at a new place in town, Smile Thai - there were 4 of us and the consensus was that we all loved it!
Also, we have a bit of work happening. A friend needed to drywall his garage, so Spyros & I went to help with that last Saturday (Mar. 24th). It was fun, but our bodies have certainly gotten used to lying about the house. It felt good to use muscles that haven't been used in some time! It was fun to spend a day with friends too. My dad was in town, and as it was Saturday he didn't have to work, so he dropped by and helped out a bit too. He's of the generation of men who literally have no "couch potato" in their makeup!
Sunday we went to brunch with my dad & sister, she was in town as well for a birthday. After lunch I tried to go to my LYS, but it was closed! (I thought it was closed Mondays, turns out it is both Sunday & Monday) After that we drove out to the dykes for a jog. My dad met us there and after our jog we went for another hour long walk with him.
Needless to say, my body saw a lot more activity last weekend than it is used to - but it felt awesome to be feeling muscles, even if they were sore it was nice to know they are there!
Today is Monday, March 26th, and we began a job for a friend today. Repainting their townhouse. Made a good start on it and probably have another 3 days or so. These last few days I have been getting out of bed at normal hours and getting tired by 10pm. This is also a welcome change!!!
Needles:
I completed my Honey Cowl by Madeline Tosh in Berroco Ultra Alpaca in Irwyn
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| Green Honey Cowl |
I also completed my version of the Munchkin Hat by Jeannie Kubricht in Sirdar Crofter DK in 0042
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| Long Tailed Baby Girl Hat |
I currently have nothing on the needles!! Not for lack of wanting, but because the next few projects I want to begin I do not have the correct needle size for, and my LYS has been closed when I have been free!
Upcoming:
Oh so much loveliness!
2)Purl Ridge Scarf by Stephen West for an April KAL w/Diane of Knitabulls
3)Harvest Dew by Rose Hiver for an April KAL w/Aimee & Darren of Knitting in Circles
Spinning:
I wound the single from my drop spindle onto something so that I can ply it. I then started spinning the Ashford Corriedale that I won at Fibres West...only a teensy bit as I was showing a friend how I drop spindle.
Fitness:
The lifestyle change continues!! I made it through 2 and 1s, and will be starting 3 and 1s tomorrow!!
My Friday weigh-in was a no-change weigh-in, but that is better than going back UP! I know that my activity level will skyrocket without me even having to think about it if I start working more, and I look forward to the auto work-outs on top of my planned/specific work-outs!
Travel/Visa:
Nada on Visa.
Soon will be heading up to the Interior for Easter with the family - on that same trip will also be getting some working in, as a friend of mine has a family friend that wants us to do some painting! WIN WIN!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Thanksgiving!
Friday was work as normal in Vernon, and after work we made the trek to White Lake. It's a much shorter journey now, only an hour from Vernon, about 1h45m from our new place. Not much to report on the travels -- construction still going on in Armstrong & Enderby!
This Thanksgiving mum was out of town, she was at her parents place helping them with a few things around the house & yard to get ready for a Northern winter. Here in the Shuswap we decided to surprise mum by finishing off the upstairs! Back in April we renovated the living & kitchen & laundry area. Took all the old stippled ceilings & made them smooth. Repainted everything, and removed the old mahogany trim & replaced it with white trim. Mum also got a whole new kitchen & appliances. The surprise?? The 2 bedrooms upstairs had yet to be touched, and we thought we would tackle those!
We arrived at around 6:30. Ready to work! Of course since we came straight from work we had brought pizza (thank you Little Caesar for your Hot & Ready) we had dinner & got straight to work. Dad had scraped the ceiling in the master bedroom, and when we arrived Spyros put a coat of mud over the whole thing. I went out to the shop to start prepping the closet doors (also mahogany -- just getting painted white). That was the first effort for the project. To bed early - much work to do!
Saturday morning was breakfast & Spyros got to work on another coat of mud while I primed the doors & the walls. Once the walls were dry dad put up all the new trim so that we could prep it. By the evening we had a coat of primer on the ceiling! We went to spend some time visiting a friend that night. While visiting I took the opportunity to work on my second sock!
Sunday was Thanksgiving dinner...so we awoke & got to work. Two coats of paint on the ceiling, Turkey in the oven by 1pm. Sister arrived around 2:30 and got to work on all the other foodstuffs. Got 2 coats of paint on the main walls by the time we went to bed. Yes, that's right -- even after turkey & the fixins...we managed to do some more work!
Monday we got up & put 2 coats of paint on the feature wall and 2 coats on all the trim. Done!! Vacuumed & washed the floors & moved all the furniture back in...then we got The Brother to help us disassemble his room. Pack all his stuff up, rip all the existing trim & closet apart. We sanded down the doors, scraped the ceiling, put a coat of mud on the ceiling and left it to dry overnight.
Tuesday...regular day for dad & brother. Work & school respectively. So Spyros & I were into town to pick up a few supplies, and then back at the ceiling with another coat of mud. Then primed the doors and the walls...dad put up trim once the walls were dry. While drying I took some time to start this blog & watch a TV show while I worked on my sock! Then it was time to sand & prime the ceiling & prep all the trim. Then more dry time...yes, this is our lives...2-3 times we have to do the same thing & wait for it to dry each time. Yawn! Turkey, turkey & more turkey, it was great for quick & easy sustenance in between painting coats! Did some knitting on my sock while the cat sat in my lap! It still makes me laugh when cats really do play with my yarn - frustrates me, but makes me laugh too.
Wednesday we finished everything but the damn red wall. Terrible red. Not a bad colour - but a clear base that we used an entire gallon on the one wall & still it's picture framing!! OI! Otherwise though, good day - finished everything else in the room.
Thursday morning up & at 'em. Red wall DONE. Baseboard DONE. Floors vacuumed & washed. Most things moved back into the room. Cleaned up the place so that mum wasn't tipped off when she drove up to the house, and we came home!!!!
Friday afternoon -- finally received the call from mum. She's home. She loves it. It's all worth it! <3
This Thanksgiving mum was out of town, she was at her parents place helping them with a few things around the house & yard to get ready for a Northern winter. Here in the Shuswap we decided to surprise mum by finishing off the upstairs! Back in April we renovated the living & kitchen & laundry area. Took all the old stippled ceilings & made them smooth. Repainted everything, and removed the old mahogany trim & replaced it with white trim. Mum also got a whole new kitchen & appliances. The surprise?? The 2 bedrooms upstairs had yet to be touched, and we thought we would tackle those!
We arrived at around 6:30. Ready to work! Of course since we came straight from work we had brought pizza (thank you Little Caesar for your Hot & Ready) we had dinner & got straight to work. Dad had scraped the ceiling in the master bedroom, and when we arrived Spyros put a coat of mud over the whole thing. I went out to the shop to start prepping the closet doors (also mahogany -- just getting painted white). That was the first effort for the project. To bed early - much work to do!
Saturday morning was breakfast & Spyros got to work on another coat of mud while I primed the doors & the walls. Once the walls were dry dad put up all the new trim so that we could prep it. By the evening we had a coat of primer on the ceiling! We went to spend some time visiting a friend that night. While visiting I took the opportunity to work on my second sock!
Sunday was Thanksgiving dinner...so we awoke & got to work. Two coats of paint on the ceiling, Turkey in the oven by 1pm. Sister arrived around 2:30 and got to work on all the other foodstuffs. Got 2 coats of paint on the main walls by the time we went to bed. Yes, that's right -- even after turkey & the fixins...we managed to do some more work!
Monday we got up & put 2 coats of paint on the feature wall and 2 coats on all the trim. Done!! Vacuumed & washed the floors & moved all the furniture back in...then we got The Brother to help us disassemble his room. Pack all his stuff up, rip all the existing trim & closet apart. We sanded down the doors, scraped the ceiling, put a coat of mud on the ceiling and left it to dry overnight.
Tuesday...regular day for dad & brother. Work & school respectively. So Spyros & I were into town to pick up a few supplies, and then back at the ceiling with another coat of mud. Then primed the doors and the walls...dad put up trim once the walls were dry. While drying I took some time to start this blog & watch a TV show while I worked on my sock! Then it was time to sand & prime the ceiling & prep all the trim. Then more dry time...yes, this is our lives...2-3 times we have to do the same thing & wait for it to dry each time. Yawn! Turkey, turkey & more turkey, it was great for quick & easy sustenance in between painting coats! Did some knitting on my sock while the cat sat in my lap! It still makes me laugh when cats really do play with my yarn - frustrates me, but makes me laugh too.
Wednesday we finished everything but the damn red wall. Terrible red. Not a bad colour - but a clear base that we used an entire gallon on the one wall & still it's picture framing!! OI! Otherwise though, good day - finished everything else in the room.
Thursday morning up & at 'em. Red wall DONE. Baseboard DONE. Floors vacuumed & washed. Most things moved back into the room. Cleaned up the place so that mum wasn't tipped off when she drove up to the house, and we came home!!!!
Friday afternoon -- finally received the call from mum. She's home. She loves it. It's all worth it! <3
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Vancouver Island
So it's been awhile. :)
I came home. I worked, Spyros arrived in Canada. We traveled up through most of BC & Alberta as we were visiting my family. Definitely different countryside than Spyros was used to!
Finally we took a trip though. We went to Vancouver Island a couple of weeks ago. We spent a week- we took the ferry over, I knit, I was working on my first pair of socks. We arrived on the Island in Nanaimo. We went to the Visitor Centre & got a couple of maps. We headed for Parksville. We thought the camping would be better there. The plan for this trip was a camping trip. We brought a tent & sleeping bags. Of course we had no plans - just winging it!!
Found a place called Rathtrevor Beach campground. It's very close to Tigh-Na-Mara...the 1 mile beach when the tide goes out. Unfortunately we were out seeing sights each day and were never around during low tide. The campground was nice. We stayed in a group site, 5 spots shared one fire pit. But as I mentioned, we were so busy seeing the island we didn't spend much time at the site. We went that evening into Parksville to find dinner. Dinner was OK, super cute place, mediocre food.
The next couple days we were up early with the sun & the children running about!Our plan was to go out the Cathedral Grove and check out all the old growth red cedars in the area It's a beautiful place, definitely some huge trees!!! The path didn't take us as long as we had thought because there was a big part of it closed. Nonetheless we still were able to see the largest tree in the forest. We checked out Qualicum Falls, there is always time for waterfalls! That turned into a longer walk than expected. The weather was fabulous, it was a long succession of intense falls, but short ones where a lot of water was being forced through rather than a single really high one. We went to Coombs and wandered through the shops. We grabbed some lunch at the market and some fudge at the fudge shop. We found that the distances and the wanderings were much shorter than we had planned for. Into Qualicum we ventured, to see the sights and to check out a yarn shop I had seen along the way. It was nice, the lady working in it was nice. I found a yarn I needed to complete a project for a friend, and some very cool Icelandic wool (I have a small obsession with getting over to Iceland for the spas and knitting right now!). We went into Nanaimo for dinner & shopping. The old quarter was super adorable. The buildings cute and the paint colours and varieties on them were just beautiful. Found another local yarn shop (LYS) and it was very awesome. I bought buttons here. I needed a couple to finish out a cowl. It was a cute area, and my favourite part of Nanaimo.
We were trying to figure out a plan, Crystal was planning to meet us in Tofino, a send off before Spyros & I moved away from the lower mainland. We went about it in a most strange way, but it ended up alright! We went back down to Victoria..in Victoria there was no camping, we decided to splurge and spend a couple of nights in a hotel. We wandered around the city for food, and for sights & shopping. Again, an old quarter/China Town that had fabulous buildings. We found Fan Tan Alley which was incredible, and another similar little alley that had government offices in it. I love that kind of thing a person can find in older cities. Also, a VERY fabulous LYS that I wanted to move in to! There were a lot of dirty areas and run down areas and people there as well. Over in the quay, where the parliament buildings were it was quite posh! We went to the Butterfly World and saw butterflies in all stages of their lives. It was pretty amazing. Also to Butchart Gardens, which was overpriced. They had beautiful flowers -- but I have seen other beautiful gardens that were cheaper or free! So I was a bit disappointed in that. A short journey into Sidney to see it, it took no time at all as it is quite tiny. I found it very cute that there was a little amphitheatre (where a wedding was being held) that was shaped similarly to the Sydney Oprah House in Australia. A bit of a longer journey took us to Sooke. We went up to the Sooke Potholes and wished we had come a little earlier in the day. It would have been a lovely hike, very glad we saw it though!
The finale of the trip was Tofino. The most expensive area of the island (though we did find most of the island quite expensive), we met up with Crystal the night before and camped in another place in Parksville - after that we went to Tofino, drove the windy treacherous road and found a place to camp. We wandered through town, many interesting shops, Crystal booked her surf lessons, we found some food and headed back to the campground for a BBQ & some time on the beach. It was nice for Spyros to see some sand that was more like home, but the temperatures sure weren't! Sunset was gorgeous though. It was a bit cooler in Tofino. The rest of the trip was quite warm (we drove too much to enjoy it though), and in Tofino we wanted to hang out on the beach all day and it was foggy & overcast and cool. So I took photos of Crystal surfing. We went shopping. We ordered a pizza, and watched another sunset. On our way out of town we stopped at the Tofino Chocolate shop- it did not disappoint. Neither did the LYS! Found some yarn there too. The week went too quickly.
It was a good trip. We saw much, and spent much. Next time I would like to see the smaller islands, Gabriola, Pender, Hornby, etc. I would like to have the time to spend at least 3 days at each place, to just enjoy the camping, the nature and the mellow time. Not be rush rush rush everywhere. We did not feel rested at the end of the trip, and we were surprised at how much money our camping trip cost us. We did enjoy most of our interactions with islanders...though I found in Tofino people were pretty rude (except the yarn shop & quilt shop - YAY crafters!). Glad we got to see a bit more of Canada, as our planned trip to Montreal had to be cancelled.
I endeavor to post more often. About life, about travel (even small road trips) and about knitting, as I am really trying to do more of that to as I love it!
Knitting updates: aside from the smaller projects I have been working on and accomplishing SOCKS I was afraid of. I have now completed my first sock, it has some issues, I followed a pattern and ignored my gut. Silly! But I am keeping it as it is #1 -- #2 to come soon. The other new & exciting thing, I took a course with my sis to learn to spin. It was using a drop spindle and kinda more art yarn, but oh-so-fun! I think my scrapbooking days are over, as I love fibre and the many many things I can do with it :)
TTFN
I came home. I worked, Spyros arrived in Canada. We traveled up through most of BC & Alberta as we were visiting my family. Definitely different countryside than Spyros was used to!
Finally we took a trip though. We went to Vancouver Island a couple of weeks ago. We spent a week- we took the ferry over, I knit, I was working on my first pair of socks. We arrived on the Island in Nanaimo. We went to the Visitor Centre & got a couple of maps. We headed for Parksville. We thought the camping would be better there. The plan for this trip was a camping trip. We brought a tent & sleeping bags. Of course we had no plans - just winging it!!
Found a place called Rathtrevor Beach campground. It's very close to Tigh-Na-Mara...the 1 mile beach when the tide goes out. Unfortunately we were out seeing sights each day and were never around during low tide. The campground was nice. We stayed in a group site, 5 spots shared one fire pit. But as I mentioned, we were so busy seeing the island we didn't spend much time at the site. We went that evening into Parksville to find dinner. Dinner was OK, super cute place, mediocre food.
The next couple days we were up early with the sun & the children running about!Our plan was to go out the Cathedral Grove and check out all the old growth red cedars in the area It's a beautiful place, definitely some huge trees!!! The path didn't take us as long as we had thought because there was a big part of it closed. Nonetheless we still were able to see the largest tree in the forest. We checked out Qualicum Falls, there is always time for waterfalls! That turned into a longer walk than expected. The weather was fabulous, it was a long succession of intense falls, but short ones where a lot of water was being forced through rather than a single really high one. We went to Coombs and wandered through the shops. We grabbed some lunch at the market and some fudge at the fudge shop. We found that the distances and the wanderings were much shorter than we had planned for. Into Qualicum we ventured, to see the sights and to check out a yarn shop I had seen along the way. It was nice, the lady working in it was nice. I found a yarn I needed to complete a project for a friend, and some very cool Icelandic wool (I have a small obsession with getting over to Iceland for the spas and knitting right now!). We went into Nanaimo for dinner & shopping. The old quarter was super adorable. The buildings cute and the paint colours and varieties on them were just beautiful. Found another local yarn shop (LYS) and it was very awesome. I bought buttons here. I needed a couple to finish out a cowl. It was a cute area, and my favourite part of Nanaimo.
We were trying to figure out a plan, Crystal was planning to meet us in Tofino, a send off before Spyros & I moved away from the lower mainland. We went about it in a most strange way, but it ended up alright! We went back down to Victoria..in Victoria there was no camping, we decided to splurge and spend a couple of nights in a hotel. We wandered around the city for food, and for sights & shopping. Again, an old quarter/China Town that had fabulous buildings. We found Fan Tan Alley which was incredible, and another similar little alley that had government offices in it. I love that kind of thing a person can find in older cities. Also, a VERY fabulous LYS that I wanted to move in to! There were a lot of dirty areas and run down areas and people there as well. Over in the quay, where the parliament buildings were it was quite posh! We went to the Butterfly World and saw butterflies in all stages of their lives. It was pretty amazing. Also to Butchart Gardens, which was overpriced. They had beautiful flowers -- but I have seen other beautiful gardens that were cheaper or free! So I was a bit disappointed in that. A short journey into Sidney to see it, it took no time at all as it is quite tiny. I found it very cute that there was a little amphitheatre (where a wedding was being held) that was shaped similarly to the Sydney Oprah House in Australia. A bit of a longer journey took us to Sooke. We went up to the Sooke Potholes and wished we had come a little earlier in the day. It would have been a lovely hike, very glad we saw it though!
The finale of the trip was Tofino. The most expensive area of the island (though we did find most of the island quite expensive), we met up with Crystal the night before and camped in another place in Parksville - after that we went to Tofino, drove the windy treacherous road and found a place to camp. We wandered through town, many interesting shops, Crystal booked her surf lessons, we found some food and headed back to the campground for a BBQ & some time on the beach. It was nice for Spyros to see some sand that was more like home, but the temperatures sure weren't! Sunset was gorgeous though. It was a bit cooler in Tofino. The rest of the trip was quite warm (we drove too much to enjoy it though), and in Tofino we wanted to hang out on the beach all day and it was foggy & overcast and cool. So I took photos of Crystal surfing. We went shopping. We ordered a pizza, and watched another sunset. On our way out of town we stopped at the Tofino Chocolate shop- it did not disappoint. Neither did the LYS! Found some yarn there too. The week went too quickly.
It was a good trip. We saw much, and spent much. Next time I would like to see the smaller islands, Gabriola, Pender, Hornby, etc. I would like to have the time to spend at least 3 days at each place, to just enjoy the camping, the nature and the mellow time. Not be rush rush rush everywhere. We did not feel rested at the end of the trip, and we were surprised at how much money our camping trip cost us. We did enjoy most of our interactions with islanders...though I found in Tofino people were pretty rude (except the yarn shop & quilt shop - YAY crafters!). Glad we got to see a bit more of Canada, as our planned trip to Montreal had to be cancelled.
I endeavor to post more often. About life, about travel (even small road trips) and about knitting, as I am really trying to do more of that to as I love it!
Knitting updates: aside from the smaller projects I have been working on and accomplishing SOCKS I was afraid of. I have now completed my first sock, it has some issues, I followed a pattern and ignored my gut. Silly! But I am keeping it as it is #1 -- #2 to come soon. The other new & exciting thing, I took a course with my sis to learn to spin. It was using a drop spindle and kinda more art yarn, but oh-so-fun! I think my scrapbooking days are over, as I love fibre and the many many things I can do with it :)
TTFN
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