Year of Projects--Week 5 \July Recap

Those of us at Blog A Long have been at our challenge for a whole month! I thought it might be fun to recap my original list and progress made.

Christmas 2011 (due dates for projects in italics)
*Yarn Swap Gift--August 1st
*Hawkeye Scarf--September 1st
*Owlie Sack for Baby Smith--November 1st (WIP)
*Special Occasion Scarf for Grandma Faye--December 25th (WIP)
*Owlie Sack for Baby Ruyter--December 1st
*Jingle Bells Hat for Aiden--December 1st
*Secret Christmas Scarves--December 25th
(I can't reveal these, but I am making 5!)
*Kindle Pocket--December 25th
*Mittens for Mom--December 25th
*Hats--December 25th
(For: Kyle, Joshua, Jason, Daniel)
*Hanging Dishtowel for Z--December 25th
*Leg Warmers--4 sets for my nieces...not entirely sure about this, but my husband thinks it would be neat, so I am adding it.

Top 6 Blog-A-Long Picks
*Aiden's Afghan
*Fingerless Mitts for Me
*Pillowcase
*Socks
*Ballband Dishcloth
*Leg Warmers--inspired and motivated by a fellow blogger and Blog A Long member,

The In Case I Finish List
*Sweater for Me
*learn how to knit entrelac
*Coffee Koozie
*Breast Cancer Dishcloth
*Baby Sweater
*Windmill Bag
*Baby Feet Dishcloth

3/35 completed...yikes.

I have added several items to my general list but am not going to consider them part of my blog a long list. My computer has a sticky note application and I have one huge sticky note with all projects listed. Before Christmas I have 25 projects to complete and I am sure more will be added. AND lots more baby items to make for friends and family! Woot!

Onto week four progress...not much. I thought I would get a lot done while I was at my mom's but that was a negative, we shopped too much. :) However, this week I will have a long drive to knit on, hopefully progress will be made.

I went to work on (and thought finish) the owlie sack but realized that I needed to go 2 more inches of stockinette...haven't felt motivated to work on that. So I decided to work on the coffee koozie that is from my "In Case I Finish" list...who said I had to go in order?!

First I tackled yarn barf.


Then after about an hour over 2 days I finished what I'll call my 'Cup O' Jo Cozy'!

Very fun knit and pattern to follow. Looking forward to my morning cup o' jo!

How are you coming along? Wish you were further? Need to add more projects? Want to join the Blog A Long challenge? Visit us here.

Year of Projects--Week 4

Gosh I cannot believe it is Sunday already...and almost AUGUST! What?!?

A went through a growth spurt this week, or at least that is my guess. Constant eating, lack of sleep and fussiness? Now he is cashed out! I can't believe he is going to be 2 months old in a few days...speaking of A, he is waking up so I better make this quick!

Since I was rather occupied with A I didn't get as far as I wanted on my projects. I was hoping to get to the decreases on the owlie sack but still have about 1/2 inch to go...progress is progress! This needs to be done by the middle of August!



And I managed to get a few more rows done on my Grandma's SOS scarf. It's going slow because my needles are long and aluminum. I definitely recommend going with short, wooden ones...I already know this would be going faster with those...might need to pick some up. The encouraging thing about this scarf is that it gets s t r e t c h e d at the end... so really, it's longer than what the picture depicts :)



A and I are going to my mom's for a couple days this week. I know I will get knitting done bc Grandma won't put him down ;)

Thanks for stopping by, stay tuned for next week's update!

$50 Friday!

It's Friday! The week does fly by doesn't it? Before I share how this week went, I have a photo to share. And yes, it is coupon related. :0)

I helped my mom get into couponing shortly after I started. She has taken off! She is very good at it too. She has a store in her area that I do not, so at the beginning of the week I let her know which deals I would like her to snag for me. Mom came to visit me and A this week and she brought my purchases along. Wow! I seemed to have my own stockpile there! Over the course of a month, this is what I have acquired:
$21.53 worth of product!!!
I do not have the receipts, so not sure of my total savings but I can say that 6 boxes of poptarts at regular price is very close to $20!

Onto this week... I didn't grab too much for groceries as we will be gone most of next week but did find a few deals. Here is my trip to Walgreens:
Never tried sweet and salty chex mix or this kind of chocolate; always fun to try for pennies!

Before q's: $10.86
After q's: $1.47
Total Savings of: $9.39

My total shopping trip for the week:

Also included but not pictured: hamburger, ckn, pork chops, bacon, 4 pizzas and bananas.

Before q's: $58.43
After q's: $34.46
Total Savings: $20.97

Not too bad of a week! I wanted to give a quick shout out to my cousin S who has been couponing for awhile now, but never quite knew how to maximize her savings. We have been chatting this week and she is doing great!

Year of Projects--Week 3

Well, here we are again with an update on my YoP list. I had a goal for this last week: to have the owls done on the owlie sack. I can happily report that I achieved that goal and MORE!

I finished the owls and finished about 1 1/2 inches of the next 7 or so inches I need to knit before this is completed. Thankfully it is all stockinette from here on out...which I can do fairly easily while holding Aiden. :o)

I also decided to cast on another project from my YoP List: The Special Occasion Scarf. This is going to be a Christmas gift for my Grandma (no telling Sheila!) My grandma, a hip 60-something year old, loves to wear black. Don't get me wrong, she looks great! However, I try my best to get her to wear some color! Last year for Christmas, I made her a warm fuzzy scarf in...you guessed it...white and black. NOT this year! This year it is going to be lace and lavender!

This is also my first "lace" project...when I looked through the pattern and read"begin lace pattern" I almost kaboshed it! But decided to conquer the first of many knitting fears...(also included, but not limited to: sweater\cardigans, entrelac, fair isle, and many more). One thing at time...

What are\were your biggest knitting "fears"? Did you conquer them? Tell me about it!

$50 Friday!

Time for $50 Friday!!

This week was MUCH better for coupon deals and I was more organized for my trips. First off, here is my trip to Walgreens:
Total Before: $55.01
Total After: $11.52

This was a great week for deals. The had alot of baby\nursing items on sale with rewards too! The best finds were the dog treats. The HUGE boxes are usually $7 and they were marked down to $1.75. But of course, I had a coupon! So I was able to get 2 boxes for $1.50! My husky is going to love me!

Here is everything from all shopping trips, including Walgreens.

Also included in this trip\total, but not pictured: family pack chicken drumsticks, chicken breasts, hamburger, cheese singles, green pepper, tomatoes, eggs, broccoli and an onion.

Total Before: $114.71
Total After: $58.42

Went over my $50 goal again but random purchases always seem to sneak in last minute for events, etc. Not going to complain with a $56.29 savings!

Are you started to get interested in couponing? Want to get started? Head over www.krazycouponlady.com, click on "Beginners" tab. She will teach you everything you need to know to get started and start saving your family $!

Year of Projects--Week 2

Time for an update on my Year of Projects list. I am quite surprised that I actually have something to report!

First off the list is the item I made for a yarn swap I am in, a small pouch\bag. I wish I could have done more but given the limited knitting time I have, I kept it small. I have had this pattern from Lion Brand for awhile and decided now was time to try it! Used RedHeart and Vanna's, sz 6 needles. Made a few modifications...

I finally finished the Hawkeye scarf! I am very happy as I wanted this done before September, not too shabby! I used Cascade Superwash, Black and Daffodil, sz 7 or 8 needles I believe. LOVE it! It's very warm! Haven't been able to get a pic yet, but you can look at previous posts and just imagine that, but longer :) Hope it's recipient enjoys it!

And currently otn (on the needles) is the owlie sack, one of many baby gift items I will be knitting this year! I am about halfway through the owls and then it is many, many rows of stockinette! This needs to be done by November...off to a good start!

Come back next week!

$50 Friday!

Didn't have too many coupon deals this week, however, here is a picture of my trip to Walgreens:
Was able to get 3 Ajax cleaners, 1 Tylenol precise cream, bag of gummy candy and 4 candy bars all for $1.15. I had a lot more on my list but I missed a lot of the deals.

My grocery trip wasn't anything to brag about...


Was able to get all of this plus lettuce, tomatoes, onion, apples, 2 lunchables, and 2 more yogurts (husband ate them already) for around $47.00. Made it under my $50 limit but Hy-Vee has a deal on meat, seafood and cheese, so I think I am going to go stock up! That will put me over my $50 but hopefully it will all last awhile!

Come back next week! How are your grocery trips going? Have you been using your coupons?

Couple Things...

Just a couple things I wanted to share...

First off, I read about this from another blogger and wanted to share! Help this grad student out with her thesis by taking a simple survey!

http://craftbookproject.com

Secondly, I received a package today! I am in a group on rav called Just Yarn Swap. The group has a different themed swap every month and this month was for Newbies. I have never participated in a swap before and I would like to say that my first experience has been WONDERFUL!!!

My amazing swap buddy MmmmmalebrigoMel sent the most wonderful package! It included 4 skeins of 100% merino from Twisted Sisters (located in CA), 2 skeins of recycled cotton and 2 skeins of a mosaic twist (the multi-colored ones), a pattern for Ballet Flats and a tote bag. How did she know I collect tote bags? I had to include the wrapping paper, it's a cable print! How neat is that! She did a wonderful job and I can't wait to send her package too!

Yarn swaps pretty much ROCK!

Year of Projects Update

It's Sunday! Therefore, it is time for a Year of Projects update! Considering our group has only been working on our project lists for 2 days, I do not have much to report on my list, but I do have a report!

The first project on my list was for a yarn swap I am participating in. I have had a pattern for a small pouch\bag that I have wanted to try out for awhile now and thought this was the best time! Obviously, it needs to be blocked and sewn together still.
I am going to include a few goodies such as earrings for her dtrs and some buttons for her inside of it.

The Hawkeye Scarf is so close to completion its ridiculous! I need to straighten the stripes as best I can, sew the ends together and block it. I am hoping to get it to its recipient on Monday!
Thanks for checking in, stay tuned and come back next Sunday!

Blog-A-Long List

Some of you may recall an earlier post called Blog-A-Long, a group created through Ravelry. Its purpose is for myself and fellow knitters to stay motivated with our knitting. We have spent the last month and a half creating our year Blog-A-Long list of knitting projects and we will post our progress on our lists on Sundays (hopefully!).

As a new mom, I thought this group would keep me motivated to knit and "make" me find "me-time", even if its a few minutes day. I know my knitting time will be more limited so I tried to keep my project list simple. But, that was quite difficult!! SO I decided to create three lists: Projects to complete by Christmas 2011, Top 5 Blog-A-Long Picks and a third list in case I complete the first two. :o)

Without further adieu, here are my lists for the year long Blog-A-Long. I linked ones to the patterns I know for sure, although, I have not chosen patterns for several:

Christmas 2011 (due dates for projects in italics)
*Yarn Swap Gift (I am participating in a yarn swap and one criteria is to knit a little something for my recipient)--August 1st
*Hawkeye Scarf--September 1st
*Owlie Sack for Baby Smith--November 1st*Owlie Sack for Baby Ruyter--December 1st
*Jingle Bells Hat for Aiden--December 1st
*Secret Christmas Scarves--December 25th
(I can't reveal these, but I am making 5!)
*Kindle Pocket--December 25th
*Special Occasion Scarf for Grandma Faye--December 25th
*Mittens for Mom--December 25th
*Hats--December 25th
(For: Kyle, Joshua, Jason, Daniel)
*Hanging Dishtowel for Z--December 25th
*Leg Warmers--4 sets for my nieces...not entirely sure about this, but my husband thinks it would be neat, so I am adding it.

***I know there will be several more Christmas gifts added to this list but this is what I know right now***

Top 6 Blog-A-Long Picks
*Aiden's Afghan
*Fingerless Mitts for Me
*Pillowcase
*Socks
*Ballband Dishcloth
*Leg Warmers--inspired and motivated by a fellow blogger and Blog A Long member,

The In Case I Finish List
*Sweater for Me
*learn how to knit entrelac
*Coffee Koozie
*Breast Cancer Dishcloth
*Baby Sweater
*Windmill Bag
*Baby Feet Dishcloth

If you are interested in following my progress, feel free to subscribe or visit my blog on Sundays!Wish me and the other fellow knitters luck!