Knit One Quilt Too

Fever Pitch

Well, I managed to make good on my promise to Rogue and I think she's digging it!  I finished the back and am working on patterning around the neck.  One thing I didn't mention is that, while I do love this yarn, the color (Enamel) is quite a bit darker than I had planned on.  For me it's like knitting black yarn and it really requires good light.  It's a good bit darker than it shows in the photo. 

However, I managed to work on it while hubby watched the Red Sox last night.  Now I understand why Stitch n' Pitch games would be popular.  You can really get a lot done during a baseball game.  Last night's game really was more exciting than almost any baseball game I've ever watched (not very many, mind you) so I got into it by the end.  Now, you may ask, why would we be interested in the Red Sox and the reason is, both my hubby and I grew up in MA and his whole family is still there.  It's a point of pride for my husband and he needs to be able to discuss it with his family, don'tcha know!

Anyway....we are having the most amazing Indian Summer this week, just days after that bit of snow we had last week.  It was so nice I had to take my (handknit) socks off and spread my tootsies out in my Birkies.  I took the kids to the park for photos with the fall leaves.  The park employees were rather too diligent in picking up the leaves and actually asked us to leave after the photos so they could clean up!  Luckily, we got what we came for.

 

U is for...

Unschooling!  I've talked about it before and now I have a blog about it.  It's a lifestyle choice for us that allows us to travel when we want, sleep in if needed and generally have tons of fun while learning a whole lot.  Last Wednesday we had a fantastic day of skiing and snowboarding that was possible only because we unschool.  Here are some photos of that day. 

Perfect conditions and an open road to Mt. Bachelor.

Chloe and Kristin take their first ski lesson.

Ryan the DUDE!  You should see him go!

Chloe and Kristin on the bunny hill.

Chloe's looking good!

Mark snowboarding too.

A New Look

My webmaster has created a real-life, actual, grown-up banner for me!  I love it.  Of course, I was sitting here knitting while she created it and we discussed all manner of detail about it.  Thank you Chloe!  The nuthatch was captured as it sat at the side of our courtyard pond two years ago.  If you've been reading a while you know that birds are a special interest of mine.  I hope you like it!  Photo shoot tomorrow, if we have time, of the finished Trekking socks and a little something new!

Fair Enough

We had a great time at the fair yesterday.  We did win some ribbons and that was gratifying, but we also went on some rides, at fair food, saw the animals and tractors and even a mini monster truck show!  The weather was about as good as you could imagine with temps about 80 degrees. 

First, the ribbons (which aren't actually ribbons as you'll see, but I think you get actual ribbons when you pick up the items).  Chloe got a first, a second and a third!  She was a little disappointed that her computer art only got second, but I still think it was awesome.  I came away with three firsts and three seconds. 

At the bottom Chloe and Ryan are showing off their community involvement projects.  Each shoebox is filled with school supplies and a few treats.  Everyone gets a special ribbon for that too.

My Trekking sock (color 68) got a view of the sheep and I even did some knitting while Ryan took an inordinately long time looking at the tractors. 

I've been working on several new projects and have even finished a couple of little things that you haven't seen yet.  Can you say, "startitis?"  Anyway, stay tuned for more!

Fabulous Fourth

I hope you are all keeping cool and having fun this July 4th.  Chloe, Scrabble and I participated in the pet parade today with our homeschool friends.  Ryan got sick this morning and could not attend, so he stayed home with dad and they watched the shuttle launch on tv.

Meanwhile, here's a sampling of the sights in downtown Bend this morning.  Have a great Fourth of July!  PS.  COOL stands for Central Oregon Open Learners.

Trekking Along up Pilot Butte

Yesterday, Ryan and I took advantage of another beautiful day in Central Oregon to trek along to Pilot Butte State Park.  I should have taken a photo of the butte from down below, in case there are some who don't know what a butte is.  Maybe I'll add one later. 

A butte, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a hill that rises abruptly from the surrounding area and has sloping sides and a flat top".  Here in Bend, Pilot Butte is a defining feature of the town, along with the Deschutes River and the Cascade Mountain Range in the distance.  Pilot Butte has a 0.8 mile hiking trail that winds around it to the top.  There is also a 1 mile paved road to the top that is closed to cars for a few weeks.  We trekked up the trail and trekked down the road, so we got a taste of both.

Ryan shows the sock Mount Jefferson (which is hard to see even if you click the photo) and clowns around in front of Awbrey Butte (the Three Sisters Mountains are barely visible in background).

Mt. Bachelor (our local ski mountain) looms over Bend, while I add a few rows to the sock.

Ryan and I checked out the displays at the top before heading back down.  Bend was settled as a ranching and farming community, but quickly became a lumber town.  It was originally called Farewell Bend which was shortened to Bend a while later.  Pilot Butte is smack-dab in the middle of town, so every way you look you'll see the evidence of humans, but it's a great view of the surrounding mountains and a nice trek up and away from the goings-on in town.  Next up just might be a trekking tour of the Deschutes River!

Pumpkin Time

Today our homeschooling group went to the Central Oregon Pumpkin Co.  What a fabulous day it was!  We met 3 other families and had a ball checking out the petting zoo, Sphinx slide and Egyptian corn maze.  Everyone got a chance to pick a pumpkin from an actual pumpkin patch (many were still attached to the vine).

Live & Learn

Our first trip to the Live and Learn Unschooling Conference was so incredibly busy and a bit overwhelming.  There was so much to do!  I loved seeing the speakers (left to right: Ren Allen, Robyn Coburn, Danielle Conger, Anne Ohman, Kelly Lovejoy, Ben Lovejoy, Sandra Dodd, Pam Sorooshian, Marty Dodd, Roya Sorooshian, Wes Beach and Kirby Dodd) and their kids in person after reading their posts online for so long.  There were talent shows on Thursday and Friday nights with everyone from little ones to grown ups showing off their talents.  It was a lot of fun and Chloe got up and told a few jokes.  She's already planning what to do next year!

The funshops also kept us busy.  Here's a list of just the ones we attended: marshmallow magic, Harry Potter, artist trading cards (Chloe's favorite~ she traded most of the 37 she brought), European knotwork, arts & crafts, tarot cards, puppetry, geocaching and letterboxing.  There was a temporary geocache placed at the hotel just for the conference and it was great.  We went back three times.  We scored with a brand new Jim Weiss story CD!  We have most of his stories on CD, but this was a new one.

We left Saturday afternoon to check out Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site.  It is the remains of the most sophisticated prehistoric native civilization north of Mexico.  There is a really nice interpretive center and there are trails throughout the site.  We went there to enjoy the beautiful fall day and try to find a geocache.  We did find the cache, though it's been neglected.  The day was so gorgeous we couldn't help but take a lot of photos.  Chloe took the two photos on the right.

The highlight of the conference was a Saturday night trip to the St. Louis City Museum.  This place is like nothing I've ever seen before.  It's a huge indoor and outdoor playground integrated with architectural elements salvaged from the city and includes an art city and a stage where we saw a free improv show.  This place is so cool it even has a fire pit with marshmallows to toast! 

Check out the incredible snowflakes in the art city.  These are no ordinary snowflakes, look closely to see the animals.  Back to our regularly scheduled knitting and quilting content next time!  Hey, I just noticed there is knitting content.  Chloe is wearing the new shrug in the geocache photo above!

A Fun Filled Day

Our friends live in Zionsville, a charming little village just north of Indianapolis.  They were so excited to show off the town since it was our first trip there.  We stayed in a charming little inn called The Brick Street Inn.  Shelly took us all around the town and even out to see her favorite farm stand where we got delicious vine ripened tomatoes and pumpkins for the kids to carve.  Then we picked up her kids from school and we headed to Indy to see the Children's Museum which is billed as the world's largest.  We spent all afternoon and still only saw about a third of it.  The highlight was the Norman Rockwell exhibit.  It was so well done!  A lot of his most famous paintings are recreated and the kids can get right in there.  It also explained how over a 50 year period he painted so many new inventions, fads and world changes.

It was an all too short visit with our good friends, but we found out they are making plans to move to Oregon next summer.  It will be great to have them much closer. 

We left Wednesday morning and stopped at a nearby yarn shop to replenish my supply of yarn for the One Skein Wonder.  The yarn shop was so-so, but I ended up with some Classic Elite Bazic Wool because it was the color Chloe wanted.  The yarn is probably not something I would use again.  It just didn't feel that nice in my hands, but the shrug looks pretty good.  It needs a good blocking before showing it's face here.  Next we journey to the Live and Learn Unschooling Conference just outside St. Louis.

Not the plan

Our flight on Saturday was botched in every way.  We left Oregon an hour late, missed the connection in Salt Lake City and had to reschedule on another carrier.  In the process my bag was lost (Chloe's came through fine).  I didn't get to Chicago until after the Yarn Harlot's talk.  Then there was a hassle with the car rental company and we were delayed another hour.  We finally got to the hotel about 8 pm and collapsed in exhaustion.  My bag didn't arrive until 11:30 the next morning.  What a disappointment! 

We did have a nice day in Chicago, though the temperature was in the 80's.  We spent Sunday afternoon at American Girl Place and had a great time.  The theater show was worth the money, the cafe not so much.  In the evening we went out to see the new Corpse Bride movie which was kind of weird, but okay.  On Monday we went up in the Hancock Observatory and saw a great view of the city and the lake.  Then we walked all the way to the Art Institute of Chicago.  It was hot, it was a long walk and we were a little worn out when we got there.  We did stop at the Cloud Gate which is still being renovated, but it's a marvelous shiny structure which reflects the whole city and sky.  It's really cool and it's in a park which is worth visiting right next to the Art Institute.  At the Art Institute we looked especially for paintings by Van Gogh and other impressionists.  I also found out how much Chloe likes Salvador Dali.  She bought a print of one of the melting clock paintings.  The miniature rooms are amazing and when looking at photos of them in a book you would never know there weren't life size.

We left for Indianapolis right after this and had about a 3 hour drive.  We got there just in time for a late dinner with our friends.  On to bed and a full day the next day. 

This post was edited on 10/12 to add photos and links.