I never thought it was such a bad little tree.

Christmas Favorites - Lucy

2008-12-14T14:15:00.001-08:00

Lucy is unlike most other cats in many ways - but she does have her "cat-like" moments every now and then. When it comes to decorating for Christmas, she is a true cat. She loves to get in all the boxes, play under all the paper the ornaments are wrapped in, and bat at ornaments down the hall. When we still had a small tree on the floor, she would take these 3 specific ornaments off the tree and play with them during the night. She wouldn't bother any other ornaments except the same 3...she has standards.

We had to be careful last night, though, as we almost had a repeat of the cat scene in Christmas Vacation. I wanted to get a picture of her with the lights, but the color was getting all washed out.

So, I tried with the flash off. Lucy kept moving, though, so I never got a good shot. She wanted to eat them, but as we all know...that never ends well!

Knitting Update

2008-12-14T14:00:00.001-08:00

For all my non-Ravelry family and friends, I wanted to update you on my latest knitting projects.

First, I have several things that I made for our newest nephew, Jack Lindsay. Unfortunately, I forgot to get pictures of one of the hats. I'll have to snatch one the next time that we're home.

Cable Blanket for Jack

This pattern was so easy to memorize, so easy to complete, yet it looks much more complicated. This was the first time I had ever used the Plymouth DreamBaby yarn, and I would highly recommend it. I saw the blanket several weeks after Jack was born, and I know it had been washed many times already. It was still as soft as could be and did not have any signs of pilling.

Earflap Hat for Jack

This is a modification on an adult hat pattern that a friend of mine made. It ended up being WAY big, but it worked out because Jack has a big head :)

Cozy for Bri

I started this shawl to accompany my dress I bought for our 11 year high school reunion. When that fell through, this was put on the back burned until I could finish Jack's gifts. I finished it over the knitting retreat I went on in October. This is super warm!!! Lucy loves it too!

Morning Surf Scarf for Bri

This project took awhile to complete, but only because other projects kept having a stronger priority. My sister Ann gave me the yarn for this project for Christmas last year. I went to visit them in January, and got to go wild in the LYS near her house. It is Rowan Tapestry, and I highly recommend it!!! You can see in the before and after picture that I had to do some major blocking in order to get the waves to come out the way I wanted. In the end, it blocked beautifully. I believe I have enough yarn left over to make a hat!

Christmas Favorites - A Charlie Brown Christmas

2008-12-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

My love for A Charlie Brown Christmas has many origins. Most importantly, I love how Linus reminds us all what Christmas is really all about. It's not about the presents, or the traveling, or the stress...it's much more important

And how can you not love this scene where all the children are dancing. I know that my husband and BFB can attest to me dancing like this whenever it comes on TV. In particular, I love the twins in purple and the spiky-haired guy in yellow.

And last, but not least, we have the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. My in-laws gave us our own version of the tree to put up in our house. Now our Charlie Brown Christmas dinner will be complete on Christmas Eve.

Holy Moly...Bridget is 30!

2008-11-08T12:20:00.000-08:00

I apologize for taking a week to get some pictures up from my birthday weekend! It was an AMAZING weekend, took some time to recover from it, and had a ton of work to get done this week.

As always, Jason made my birthday so wonderful. He took care of some much of the planning for my party, not to mention the clean-up. I am generally so concerned about being the hostess with the mostess, that I tend to work too much at our parties. Not this year! Jason took care of it all.

Plus...he hit a homerun with my birthday gift
What girl can resist the blue bag and box with a white bow? I was so suprised and ecstatic, that I was shaking while I opened the box. It looks just like the front of our wedding invitation

I wear it every day!

I also owe so much of my birthday happiness to Kate. She took time away from her family to join me, sans kids, and celebrate for the whole weekend! Thanks Katie!!! And a big thanks to her hubby who stayed home wrangling with the twins for 3 days.

Here are some pictures from the party. We all had a GREAT time and was probably the best Fredstrom Halloween Party ever! Enjoy...

A blast from the roaring 20's

Howie showed up to play!

I got to play "Drink or No Drink"...I think I won big!

Howie lost his 'stache

True gangsters know how to roll

I had a GREAT time. Looks like Testudo did too

New Countertops!

2008-09-21T08:35:00.000-07:00

They are finally done!! After 4 long months of fighting with Lowes to order our countertops properly, we are finally finished. There are a few minor touch-ups that we need to do with some paint under the bar, but otherwise it's all complete.

This project wasn't without its problems, though. We discovered that the majority of our walls are completely uneven, making it almost impossible to line things up. Thankfully we had our friend Jeremy who is a professional kitchen contractor and a perfectionist to make it all work out. We also ended up having to redo ALL of the plumbing under the sink to compensate for the deeper sink and new disposal. I didn't do much to help with all of this...but I did manage to take all the old plumbing to Lowe's and figure out exactly what new pieces we needed. I was VERY proud of myself.

Enjoy these before and after shots

Main side with the sink. You can see in the background we had the Ryder Cup on all weekend. GO USA!

Jason removing all the nasty quarter-rounds that were used to mask the uneven walls

Bar area from living room

This is what the wall behind the sink looked like after the bar was removed. Taking the bar down didn't do this...the original bar was put in with this big hole there.

Our lovely helper! She was actually very well-behaved during the whole process

By far the easiest part of the whole kitchen

Main counter with new sink

Much larger and deeper sink. I LOVE IT!

Bar from living room

Close-up of bar

Hopefully you can get an idea of how it matches with the floor. It's perfect!

Things I've Learned Today

2008-06-19T10:55:00.000-07:00

1) I will forever be knitting with blue yarn. My sister-in-law just found out that she is having a boy. Come October, the count will stand:

Nephews 6 - Nieces 1

2) Due to the aforementioned thing I learned today, I believe that my husband and I will be the ones to raise a gaggle of girls.

3) I think that it is completely appropriate to knit something pink for a boy. What do you think?

4) No matter whether I get another nephew or a niece, I am blessed and happy to be an aunt all over again!

Benjamin's Baby Blanket

2008-06-06T06:36:00.000-07:00

This is my 1st FO in 2008!!! Yes, it is June. Yes, it took me over 6 months to complete. Yes, this has been my most favorite project to date! I was able to give this blanket to my sister this past weekend when we were in Flo-town. However, with all the hub-bub of the trip, I forgot to take a picture of Benjamin with the blanket. Oh well!

Benjamin's Finished Blanket!

The pattern that I chose is the Renee Baby Blanket from Staci Perry over at verypink.com. There is such a sweet and endearing story behind her pattern that it made my heart melt and I knew this was the perfect blanket for Benjamin! I made a few slight modifications to the original pattern. There are supposed to be 5 panels of the lace, but I cut it down to only 4. Also, she includes fringe on the end, but I felt that leaving the fringe off makes it more manly.

Since the pattern is lacy, I wanted to take it's manliness further by using some of Tess' Designer Baby and Sock yarn in a color stream of blues, yellows, and greens. While I love the texture and feel of this yarn, I don't think that I will use it again!!! It was heavily overdyed to the point where my fingers turned blue after knitting it. I spoke to my wise knitters over at the Sip n' Knit and asked what I should do to set the dye. They told me I had to give it a boiling vinegar bath.

Boiling vinegar bath??? I couldn't believe that I had spent 6 months on this wonderful blanket and now I had to put it in a pot, on a stove, and boil it in water and vinegar. I was so scared to do this. So, I took the blanket outside to get a couple pictures before I potentially destroyed it!!!

Blanket posing in the sun!

But I don't wanna boil Benjamin's blanket!

Okay...it's in the pot...the water and vinegar are added...no turning back now!

In the end, I did 2 boiling vinegar baths, at least 3 wash cycles, and about 10 rinse cycles to get all the vinegar and soap out. It was a 2 day process, but in the end, the blanket came out squeeky clean and no longer bleeding all over me.

I couldn't live with myself if I turned my nephew into a Smurf because of my yarn choices.

Hubby's New Toy

2008-05-15T08:18:00.001-07:00

For those of you who know my husband...he NEVER likes to spend money on himself. No matter how hard he works, how much he does for me, and how much he does for everyone else...he NEVER rewards himself.

Until now....

Yes, that is our new TV. For those of you who would like to know all the specific specs...you're gonna have to talk to Jason. All I know is that it is:

37 inches
HD
clearer picture

Beyond that, I won't be of any help to you at all. Details on electronics are like baseball stats: guys have an ability to know and remember them, but I am just lost.

Jason...you deserve this TV! I'm glad you finally got it!!! I bet the next golf match will look amazing on it.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

2008-05-15T07:11:00.000-07:00

I have always been a fan of baseball games. Maybe not the game as much as the whole experience of going to a game. The fans cheering...hotdogs...peanuts...and enjoying an afternoon or evening outside.

Growing up outside of Cincinnati, we went to several Reds games at Riverfront Stadium (I don't care who you are...it will ALWAYS be called Riverfront Stadium!) They had this wonderful program where if you got straight A's in school, you'd get a a set of 4 free tickets. My sisters and I were always good students, so we'd each have our own set of tickets. Dad would cash them in for us and we'd go to 3 separate games during the summer. I have such great memories of those games!!

Now that I'm living close to B'more, we've gone to our fair share of games at Camden Yards. That is just an amazing stadium!!! It is aesthetically pleasing...and where else can you get crab cakes and BBQ ribs at a baseball game? They have $8 nights on Tuesday, so we can pile all the friends in a car and head up for a pretty cheap evening at the ballpark.

This year was my FIRST OPENING DAY ever. It was a cold, dreary, and rainy day, but we didn't care...it was Opening Day...the O's were tied for 1st!!!! We followed the Orioles tradition and started out at Pickles before the game....

and then headed inside to our seats which were located...well you can tell!!!!

The O's ended up losing, but we didn't care. It was Opening Day!!! And I knew that my adventures at Camden Yards wouldn't end way up at the top of the stadium...

A week later, I participated in the Orioles Advocates 5K run. This run started outside of Camden Yards, ran down through the Inner Harbor, Federal Hill, and ended up on the OUTFIELD!!! It was so invigorating at the end of a race to come through the player's entrance and right into the outfield. I had never actually been on a real baseball field before...and it's a memory I won't forget! Not to mention I did get yelled at for stepping on the field by accident..oops!

Little did I know that my adventures at Camden Yards were not over....

A little over a week later, Jason got some tickets from a contact through work that put us in the FRONT ROW beside the visitor's dugout!!

Yes - we were that close! I just had to lean forward a bit to snap this picture!! It was an amazing evening. Not only were the seats incredible, but the O's played an amazing game. They went into an extra inning with the White Sox, and I was horse from yelling and screaming for so long. What an experience!!!

I can now say that I have been up at the top of Camden Yards...I have been on Camden's Yard in the outfield (sorry security guard!)...and I have sat in some of the best seats in Camden Yards. I love this baseball park! I love this team!!! We'll be going back to the Yard for several more games this season (in fact, Jason just called and said he's heading back to the front row this month for the Yankee game with some people from work!). Whether we're in the front row or not...as long as the hotdogs, peanuts, and now pistachios (thanks Sean!) are there, I'll be there!!

And it's an added bonus to see this guy play...

Markakis!!!!

Whirlwind Week in Indy

2008-01-26T19:31:00.001-08:00

As promised, I have pictures to share from my wonderful week in Indianapolis! My main purpose for going out there was for this:

Benjamin Andrew Hannan - Nephew #5

Benjamin was born right before Thanksgiving and this was my first opportunity to meet him. He's gone through a lot during his first two months, and it was so hard for me to not just hop on a flight right away to be with him and my sister!! Now that he's home, he is making such progress and I wanted to smoosh him all week long. How can you resist a baby who meets you at the airport sporting his Terrapin pride? I won't bore you with all the details of the week, but it chockabock full of smiles, giggles, snuggles, and naps with this one.

"What is this crazy lady doing to my foot?"

Sound asleep....

I love the expression on his face...and the outfit is just too cute!

"Okay lady, you look a lot like my mom, but you're not, and I'm HUNGRY! I'll just suck on my hand for now, but I want my Mom!!!"

He gave BIG smiles the whole time I was there. However, he reserves
the biggest ones for his big brother.

Speaking of his brother, my 4-year old nephew, Noah, is just wonderful with his baby brother. He's always ready to come running with a burp cloth and to find the pacifier that's been missing for 2 days. He dotes on his brother with lots of hugs and kisses all the time. He also likes to...

give piggy-back rides!!!

On one of the days, I was giving Noah a bath while my sister was finishing feeding Benjamin. During that time, Benjamin proceeded to "erp" up a lot of what he had eaten all over himself. So, my sister being the quick thinking mom stripped him down to his diaper and gave him an impromptu bath with his brother. Noah loved it!

I did manage to get a little knitting time in while I was there. I've been working on Benjamin's blanket for about a month now, but it's no where near finished. Some might say it takes away the surprise of the gift to show it to the recipient before it's done, but I couldn't resist. I'm having so much fun with the Renee Baby Blanket that VeryPink designed that I had to bring it with me to show my sister. If you haven't seen this pattern, check it out. There is a great story behind it which makes it even more special!! I'm using Tess' Super Socks and Baby hand-dyed yarn. This is my first experience with hand-dyed yarn, so I was a bit surprised and concerned when the dye starting to come off on my fingers, but after some quick emails to Tess and my fellow knitters, I relaxed. I'm going to have to do some washing to set the color before I block the whole thing. But I think he'll like it...what do you think?

"Aunt Bri - it may only be 1/3 done, but I love it!"

The other highlights of the week included eating lots of yummy food while watching the Giants roll over the Packers. Here you can see Noah all set for the game...

I have always been amazed by my older sister, but this week in Indy just made me admire her even more. She has 2 children that she gives all of her time to, and what little is left over she gives to her husband, and she still manages to maintain her sanity. I was so exhausted at the end of each day and I would just look over at Ann and she looked like she could continue to go for hours more! She is an amazing mom!!! Not to mention, one hell of a sister! How many moms do you know that can do this:

Playing Guitar Hero while feeding your child

That week just makes me want to work that much harder to get done with school and move closer. I miss playing CandyLand and Tractor Tipping (see the Cars movie) with Noah. I miss waking up and having a nice breakfast of Cheerios and milk, just me and Noah. I really miss the snuggles, giggles, and smiles from Benjamin. But most of all...I miss my sister!

It's Here!

2008-01-22T12:54:00.001-08:00

After a wonderful week with my sister in Indy, I came home to THIS:

Hello...welcome home from your trip!

I will make all of your stress melt away...jump on!

This is what my husband and I gave to each other for Christmas 2007, Anniversary 2008, and Birthdays 2008. I am going to finish unpacking and hop on!

I promise that I will have pictures of my fun in Indy very soon...two cute nephews that I gushed on for 6 days!

Mildred's Cousins

2007-12-29T14:21:00.000-08:00

For my cold feet...and the soft spot in my heart!

Edit: Thanks to my mom for coming up with the perfect names...Louise & Roberta

From Our Family to Yours...

2007-12-26T13:05:00.000-08:00

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and are looking forward to a Happy 2008!

Our annual "self" portrait courtesy of Jason's photography skills

We lost our space in the living room for a tree, so we put up these Charlie Brown Christmas trees to highlight our favorite ornaments.

Lucy really wants to help get the wood for the fire...

but in the meantime she'll settle for a leaf that she brought in from the deck. Further proof she is a dog at heart

Don't mess with my presents!

Don't mess with my wrapping paper either!

We had a lovely holiday that started on Christmas Eve with the 2nd annual Charlie Brown Dinner. We invited several of Jason's co-workers and our neighbors who didn't have other plans on the evening. We enjoyed an amazing plethora of food and goodies and wine. It's so nice to have friends to share the holidays with when we can't be near our friends...we're so lucky! On Christmas Day, Jason and I just took it easy with a long walk in the sunny afternoon and watched the newest Santa Clause movie and our annual viewing of "Love Actually".

Contrary to what this blog may show, I have been knitting. The problem is that I can't show pictures of it because they're all gifts to give to family and friends who view this blog. The second problem is that since the sun has been so rare in its appearance around here that I haven't gotten any good pictures lately either. For the meantime, I"ll appease you with this...

a lovely cake of delicious yarn that I'm using for something extra special!

Let the Holidays Begin

2007-12-02T08:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was just another day....

in New York City!!

I have the most wonderful friends in the world! Cassie asked me if I wanted to take a day trip up to NYC to see the Christmas sites of the city and enjoy a show by the Rockettes! Having never been to NYC before, how could I refuse. So, on Saturday morning we woke up bright and early...well it wasn't quite bright yet, but it was early...and headed up to the city. We took a short drive up to Trenton and then hopped on a NJ train into the city.

Our first stop was...

Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockettes! I wish I could have taken pictures of the show because words just cannot describe it. The Rockettes were quite possibly the most talented performers I have ever seen. Such precision, grace, and beauty all wrapped up into an incredible performance! If you EVER have the chance to see them, pay the money. It would be worth every dime to enjoy the most famous Christmas show ever! For now, though, you can check out their site and see some clips! A BIG thanks goes out to Cassie's parents for the tickets!

Cassie's face after the show says it all!

Myself flanked by the Shular Sisters! You may not be able to tell, but we were very cold.

What is a trip to NYC without a stop at...

Rockefeller Plaza! The pictures don't show how beautiful the tree really is. I believe that this was the first year that they added blue lights to the tree. Now, I am very opposed to the majority of displays that I have seen with blue lights. But they really added an amazing dimension to the tree. I will say that I was surprised at how small the skating rink is. I believe that my parent's house would fit inside of it with just a little room to spare. We had no desire to spend the time waiting in line to skate, so off we were to hit several more brief stops. I didn't take many other pictures, but we did hit Saks and Grand Central Station on our way to lunch. I did capture a great picture of...

the Chrysler Building! I was amazed at how much it really does shine amongst all the buildings in the city. After a wonderful lunch at El Rio Grande off Park Avenue (Another BIG thanks to the Holzberg's for lunch) , Cassie and I made a quick stop to...

Time Square. We walked around the block, checked out a few Starbucks where the lines were WAY too long, and then headed back to Penn Station to catch a train home. It was an amazing first trip to NYC and I left with a few impressions:

1) The air in the city REALLY smells like roasted chestnuts

2) You have to be willing to push your way through a bunch of people when no one is moving

3) I can walk dozens of blocks in heeled boots and live to talk about it

4) Incoming trains are posted at the LAST minute meaning that everyone bolts for the same skinny escalator down to the tracks at the same time. You better book it!

5) I can run through a train station in heeled boots and live to talk about it

6) New Jersey is an ugly state

7) I need another trip to NYC to capture the rest of the Christmas spirit that it has to offer! Check back after the 14th as Jason and I head up with some friends to do just that.

In the meantime...enjoy the holiday spirit that is all around!

Welcome to the World, Cameron Grace

2007-10-06T13:17:00.001-07:00

Our close friends Ryan and Lindsay welcomed their second child, a daughter named Cameron Grace, into the world two weeks ago. I had really hoped to have the Aran blanket finished before she arrived, but all good plans get delayed. Plus, they didn't need more things to take home from the hospital...their gorgeous daughter was plenty! We were able to enjoy a wonderful dinner with our friends after they returned home, and I gave it to them at that time.

Of all the things I have made so far, this has been the most enjoyable! The pattern is quite easy once you get into it. It looks so much more complicated than it is. It's just 2 types of cables, seed stitching, and a double moss stitch. Since there are several panels that repeat, the stitches change frequently, so I never got bored with it. I also love how it looks like an heirloom piece, making it something that they may be able to pass down or possibly pass off as being passed down to them!!

Here's a closeup of the panels so you can get an idea of the detail. The picture isn't that great because the lighting was low. I had forgotten to take pictures before I wrapped it, so I had to wait until our friends opened it.
All in all, I will keep this pattern very handy for any future babies that come into this world!!

Now on the needles: A Cardigan for Arwen. I haven't gotten a lot more done since my last post, but I am making progess on the back, which is just 25 inches of stockinette stitching. This basic stitching made it the perfect project for Wednesday as my students took their first exam. I had a full 75 minutes of knitting while I kept an eye out for possible cheating! (none to report!)

PhDKnitter is going full steam ahead on her Arwen and making notes where slight alterations or attention needs to be paid. The front is knit in 2 separate pieces and then those are stitched together to the back to create the final piece. My guru came up with the brilliant idea to knit the two pieces at the same time. This allows us to make sure that both pieces are the same length and will hopefully help when starting the sleeves so that they are even across the chest. Don't want a sweater with one sleeve lower than the other!!! If you want a better idea of this process, check out her page because she has started the front panels already.

So, even though I have a LONG WAY to go on Arwen, it's time to get the next project going. My nephew, who I have lovingly named Seamus Hannan for now, is due on Nov 19th. However, with the way things go with my sisters, there is a strong chance that he'll grace us with his presence early. Us Trame girls never like to follow the rules!

All that long diatribe being said, I need to just pick a damn pattern for him!! I have so many to choose from, but I can't decide. I mean, it's my nephew...the pattern has to be just perfect! I have given myself a deadline of Friday the 12th as that is the day that PhDKnitter and I are heading to Stitches East in Baltimore! I am ready to be overwhelmed by all the possibilities and dive into a full convention center of yarn and assundries!!! With my pattern in hand for my new nephew, I know I'll be able to find the perfect yarn. Unfortunately, I won't be able to tell you any more than this as the rest will have to be a surprise for the whole Hannan family!!!

Been a long time comin'

2007-09-14T12:42:00.000-07:00

Contrary to what our blog might suggest, we are open for business at Casa de Fred! We closed for a bit while we enjoyed a great vakay to Minnesota for a lot of family and a ton more more. Upon returning, I went through a whirlwind of writing new papers, revising old ones, and preparing for my first day of teaching. Now that the semester is well under way, I feel like I have a little more time to think and post.

Here are just a few pics from our lovely visit to Duluth and Brainerd! Wish I could post them all.

Yup...you read that correctly...Bri is teaching!!! One of the best features of my graduate program is that they provide us the opportunity to teach our own course. So, I am responsible for molding and educating the young minds of 40 UMD students as we delve into understanding development across the lifespan. It's a lot more work than I ever thought it would be, but it's also invigorating. In the three lectures I have done thus far I have learned just a few things:

1) The same student will ALWAYS be 5 minutes late to class
2) Wearing heels is just a bad idea
3) I can teach a whole lot in 75 minutes, but not as much as I would like

Amongst all the prepping and practicing of my lectures, I have found a bit of time to work on my knitting projects. I still have my Aran blanket to finish. I managed to get a ton completed on it as flew to Minnesota and drove all around the state. It's to the point now that I have to just decide when to stop knitting...but when is a blanket big enough for a baby? I keep dreaming that it would be great if he/she would also be able to use it as a toddler blanket, so I keep on knitting. What do you think??
I have also started my very first sweater!! My knitting guru and I are both delving into A Cardigan for Arwen. It's a whole lot of stockinette stitch, which can be mind-numbingly boring, but it is so exciting to know that soon I'll have my very own hand-knitted cardigan! Plus, the yarn I bought for it...I have decided to call it my "butta yarn" because it knits up as soft and smooth as butter.

Stay tuned for additional photos as I learn about short rows for sleeves, backwards cast-on method, and so much more.

Now I lay me down to sleep

2007-08-07T15:05:00.000-07:00

I have finished this very creative blanket for one of my close friends at work. She has been bugging me for weeks about when she'll finally get to see it. I put on the last 2 faces and 4 hooves this afternoon when I was experiencing a writing block this afternoon.

Pattern: Sheep Dreams from "Knit Baby Blankets!" by Dori Betjemann

Yarn: KnitPicks Swish Superwash in Dublin; Bernat Satin in Silk & Ebony

Needles: Size 7 circular

I loved the pattern for this blanket. There were a number of different stitches that came together for an interesting, yet simple design. Plus, it kept my attention throughout as the stitches changed every couple rows. Even without the sheep, I thought it was beautiful blanket. But, the sheep just add so much to it.

Will I make this one again? I am not sure. The blanket itself was simple and didn't take that much time. However, each sheep took almost an hour to do. That's 14 hours of just "sheep work". There are so many other amazing patterns that I am dying to make for the next baby to come into this world that I'm sure it'll be awhile before I feel the bug to do this one again.

Perhaps this will be a one of kind blanket...perfect for that one of a kind friend!

Count Your Blessings (Instead of Sheep)

2007-07-29T14:49:00.000-07:00

I do count my blessings every night before I sleep...

But during the evenings, I have to start counting sheep. I'm on crunch time on getting my Sheep Dreams baby blanket finished for my friend. I'm heading out of town in 2 weeks, and then she goes on maternity leave right when I get back. Which means I have roughly 12 days to finish 16 sheep.

After doing my first sheep I didn't think that was possible. I've never done duplicate stitching before, so it took me awhile to figure it out. I had the instructions from the pattern and my two handy "how-to-knit" books on my lap to tackle the first one. Took me about 3 times of stitching and removing and stitching and removing and stitching and removing again before I was happy with the finished project. The problem with this type of pattern is that the blanket has its "ugly" parts of the backside of the blanket...with all the winding colors of yarn that have passed over top of one another. The best part, though, is that the right side of the blanket turns out amazing.

So, I have 1 1/2 sheep done...only 14 1/2 to go in the next 12 days.

If I could turn back time

2007-07-17T09:50:00.000-07:00

Oh where oh where has my summer gone? Oh where oh where could she be?

It's hard to believe that it is already the middle of July, but the calendar doesn't lie. Hubby and I just got back from a fabulous trip to KY to see our family and friends. We were there for 4 days, but it's just never long enough. But, we had a BLAST! We played with our niece and nephew, ate tons and tons and tons of yummy food with our family, and met up with friends each night for a few drinks. I realized when I started looking at the pictures that Jason was the one behind the camera the whole time...only managed to get a few pictures of him.

Jason and his sister enjoying the sun

I also took a short trip up to Indy to spend the day with my sister and brother-in-law. They usually come down to KY whenever we make it into town, but they already had their son shipped off to the grandparent's house for the weekend so they could work on getting the rooms ready for the arrival of my nephew. It was a short trip, but an absolutely wonderful one! I got to help them out with their cleaning and laugh at all the funny stuff they found. The bonus came when my sister found a tape recording of her 3rd grade violin concert. We sat in their car...where the only tape recorder could be found...and laughed at the whole thing! Again...too short of a visit :(

Many people would groan at the thought of an 8 hour car trip, but I saw it as a chance to finish a few things up. On the way out, I worked on an Emma Grace Headband for my niece until it was so dark that I couldn't see my needles anymore. When I saw her the next day, I measured to see how much more I would need to make it the proper length. Both she and her brother were quite enthralled watching me knit...maybe next time I"ll have more time to sit down and teach them! I managed to lose one of my DPN's in the car...and it still hasn't been found. A small price to pay to bring a smile to this one's face.

Isn't she adorable?

On the way back, I tried so hard to finish the final border on my Sheep Dreams blanket for a close friend. But it is just an agonizing pattern so I can only do 2 rows at a time. For row one, you increase 1 into EVERY stitch...for row two, you K2tog or P2tog along all of the 240 stitches that you have on your needles. It's hard on my fingers and boring as hell. So, right around Columbus, I decided to cast on my new blanket for another friend having a baby. It is an Aran blanket design and is turning out just beautifully. I love the simplicity of this pattern, but it looks like it is much more involved when you see the final output. Here's what I managed to get done in about 5 hours:

So, now it's back to work again. Of course, I do have to wait for one more thing...a special FedEx package from KY. In all of my insanity of packing to leave on Monday morning, I left my laptop and laptop bag at my parent's house! In it are not only my wonderful computer, but also ALL of my files for every paper I'm writing, every project I'm working on, and every data file I need to work on everything else. Thanks to my hubby's wonderful family for breaking into my parent's house and shipping my lifeline back to me as quickly as possible. You are all wonderful! So, until I get that back, I'll be trying to come up with things to work on...guess my blog and Ravelry will do for now!

Thank You!

2007-07-03T13:58:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to my few, but loyal readers! I hope that everyone has a safe and wonderful 4th of July holiday. DH and I are heading down to VA to hang out with some friends who get into the 4th like I get into Halloween!!

To all those serving or have served in the military: THANKS! Thanks for choosing to do a job that is very difficult and fraught with experiences that you don't have any choice over. We are all here today because of what those before you have done and what you are doing today. I wish there was more I could do than simply say thanks...but know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Sorry for the lack of pictures and posts lately. I finally got my invitation to Ravelry, so I have spent a lot of time taking pictures and uploading things for that. If you are a knitter/crocheter and haven't heard of Ravelry, than check it out!!! It's the latest rage!

DH and I will be heading to Flo-town for some family, friends, and as I've been told "At least 2 Skyline trips" next week. Look out KY...here come the Fredstrom's! I'll post pictures of all of our summer adventures soon!!!

Knittin' at the Yard

2007-06-12T20:05:00.001-07:00

Every year we get together with our friends Tom & Lauren to celebrate Tom and Jason's birthdays. **Happy Birthday, boys!** This year, we decided to head up to the "Yard" and watch the Orioles play the Nationals for some good interleague play. We gathered some friends, snagged the Tuesday night $8 cheap seats, and settled in for a great game. Unfortunately, the O's lost 7-4. Still, it was a gorgeous evening and we had a blast with our friends!

I convinced my good ol' guru that we should try knitting at the game. We're both working on large, wool baby blankets, so that would not suffice. We needed something smaller that didn't require a lot of attention. So, as my first "stash project" I thought we could try a lacy headband from Knit Picks.
So, we knitted and knitted and knitted...all the while yelling, screaming, and celebrating for the few great plays that the O's managed to squeak out. We were hoping that the camera scanning the crowd would show us up on the jumbotron, but no. I even kept knitting, while standing and singing during the 7th inning stretch!!!! But still, no jumbotron debut.

I think we probably each got about half of a headbead done *she in green, me in blue* by the end of the 7th inning. Since the O's were way behind, we all decided to duck out at that time and head home. I really like this "stash project" because it's so portable and I can work on it anywhere. Plus I have some lovely colors in my stash that I would love to use up. Who knows, maybe I'll make one for everyone I know!!!

We're gonna try to catch the O's vs Yankee's game on the 26th, so maybe we'll be able to do some more knittin' at the Yard! Hopefully the O's will pull out a win the next time...after all, it will be the Yankees!!

OC2007

2007-06-12T19:44:00.000-07:00

Update: Surfin' USA

2007-06-10T18:15:00.000-07:00

I think I'm the luckiest aunt in the world! Anyone wanna go in on a KnitPicks order with me? It's time to buy some yarn!

P.S. Pictures of all the fun in the sun will come up soon, but too tired and burnt right now

Surfin' USA

2007-06-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

SUMMER IS FINALLY HERE!!!

(and no I will not be surfing in the USA...I'm a beach gal)

I just can't say that enough. I love the longer days where we can rush home from work, round up the neighbors, and get several games of cornhole in before the street lights come on. Then it's inside to throw some dogs and burgers on the grill because it's already 9;30pm and we're all dying from starvation!

It's also time for the annual Fredstrom trip to the beach. For the third year in a row, we've been lucky enough to have some awesome friends willing to "beach it" with us. We're heading to Ocean City tomorrow night for a long weekend...and we've been counting down the days for over a week now. We have both been really busy with work, tying up loose ends so we can enjoy the sand and the surf. Come Wednesday at 7pm, it's time to hit the road and leave it all behind, with a lot of beer, sun lotion, and Maker's Mark!!

With the longer hours in the day, we're also finding more time to work on my golf skills. Jason is the most patient teacher in the world...especially considering how impatient I am! I've been knocking them out at the driving range for 3 years now, and we're getting to close to me actually setting foot on my first tee! I think that the NEW CLUBS we bought for me last night will help out too!! I can't remember their name right now, so I don't have a pic or link for you...but they are amazing! Thanks to DH for supporting me in this endeavor...and for helping me become more patient in what is probably the most frustrating sport ever!

I don't have any knitting pictures to update because they are all surprises for my wonderful pregnant friends. Most of them know that I'm making them something, but I don't want them to know anything else. I hope to get a bit more done on the first gift while at the beach...which should make for some really funny pictures!!!

I can't wait for Ann to find out if Noah is going to have a brother or a sister because I'm DYING to knit something pink!!!! Of course if it is a brother for Noah, my needles will be clicking happily along with the thoughts of playing Thomas with this nephew too...but I'll blame my bro-in-law for the whole lack of pink on my needles!!!

Seven...Seven...Seven!!!

2007-05-22T13:35:00.000-07:00

I've never been a chain letter gal - but that was usually because it cost money to send all those stupid letters out. I really liked this virtual chain letter I was "tagged" with by my knitting guru.

The Rules: Each person tagged gives seven random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs seven facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know today so I thought I would reciprocate.they have been tagged and need to read your blog.

1. I am an old show TV junkie, and this is best illustrated by showing what I do during the day:
--When I am stretching in the morning before my run, I watch "Saved by the Bell". I can tell you what episode it is within 15 seconds of watching it!
--When I return from my run and stretch again and also eat breakfast, I watch "Boy Meets World".
--In the evenings, I like to catch "Home Improvement" if I have cut out of work early.
--If I have cut out of work very early, I revel in "Beverly Hills 90210".
--On the weekends when I am working in the office, I catch up on my "Full House" and some more "Boy Meets World".

2. I absolutely, positively, 100% do not like melted cheese. Now this is qualified a bit because I do like Italian dishes like lasagna and manicotti, so I tend to despise most Americans, cheddar, Swiss, and anything else that is not in Italian food. The smell of Hot Pockets heating up in the microwave makes me sick to my stomach and I have to leave the room. Even the way melted cheese looks on a hamburger is disgusting. My future children will only have mac-n-cheese if their father will make it for them!

3. I tend keep to a pretty healthy diet, but there are two things I will never be able to stop enjoying. I take each of them in moderation because I know they are bad for me. But I have learned the key to a healthy diet is to have a few vices:
a) Soda - I have to have one soda a day and diet soda is the most disgusting thing ever created (with the exception of melted cheese).
b) Potato chips - I enjoy potato chips several days out of the week and again none of those fat-free or baked things.

4. I cannot go a week without talking to at least one of my sisters or my parents...I'm much happier if I can talk to all four of them! When I am gone on vacation, relaxing at the beach, without a care in the world, I still have to have contact with my family. I feel like I have to keep up-to-date on what's going on in their lives or I get really agitated. When I can't get a hold of one of them when I need my "fix", I will continue to badger them until one of the finally is able to call me back!!

5. I have a secret (although not anymore) crush on Alan Rickman. He is amazing as a villian, particularly the Sherriff of Nottingham with his threatening spoon and Professor Snape with his fiery wand. But, he can also pull off the broken-hearted and love struck Colonel Brandon who will carry you in his arms through a torrential downpour. YUM!

6. My most prized possession is my sock monkey, Mildred. Every lost piece of stuffing and hole that has been darned is the result of my undying love and devotion to her.

7. I have the most difficult time remembering my husband's birthday. It's not that I get to that day and forget it...I can't remember whether it's June 10th or 11th. The only way I can keep it straight is to think of the other day that wives never forget...our anniversary! We were married on the 10th of July, so I know then that his birthday is the 11th of June. I know, it's backasswards, but it works. However, this is still not automatic for me. I have to stop and consciously run through my mnemonic device!!

I am tagging my blogging sisters Kate and Ann, as well as my cousin Kelli. I will then hop over to MySpace and tag the BFB, Allison, Michael, and Jason.

Out of My Hands

2007-05-14T07:09:00.000-07:00

This has to be the largest project I have ever undertaken in the short 6 months that I have been knitting. And while it took FOREVER to complete, and there were a few mishaps that I had to correct, it turned out so beautiful that for about 2 seconds I wanted to keep it for myself. Then, I remembered why I made it...

Because my sister is AWESOME!!!!

I started working on this shawl (aka Clapotis for the knitting community) for Kate back at the beginning of March. I wanted to make her something because she's an amazing woman, sister, and now mother! Her babies had received all of these gorgeous handmade gifts, and I felt that she deserved something too. I truly believed that I would have it finished in time for Easter and worked furiously on it throughout the whole month of March. But, I didn't realize until I got into the pattern that there were three sections, each over 144 rows long. As you can tell from the picture, this piece is ginormous!

So, last week I finished the last row, pulled out the last rung of dropped stitches, and wove in the last end piece. I must say that I love how it turned out...and Lucy approves as well.

Currently, I am blocking the shawl on our spare bed so that it will come out all nice and straight. It took over 100 pins to nail it down to the bed, and we're going on 36 hours that it has been drying...with a fan blowing on it.

There are a number of ways that Kate could use her new Clapotis...

But those are just the ones I could come up with at 11 o'clock at night. I'm sure there are many others ones...including some that involve the 2 most adorable twin nephews ever!

Hope you enjoy it, siser! I really enjoyed making it for you!! *smoochies*

Savanna Flowers

2007-05-03T07:15:00.000-07:00

For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of either living in Columbia, MD or staying with the lovely folks at Casa de Fred, it can be hard to understand how amazing our neighborhood is. Columbia is a planned community, and I believe the first of its kind, so it has all these wonderful villages and neighborhoods with names like Hickory Ridge, Clary's Forest, and Wilde Lake. The city association takes great pride in keeping the foilage lush and green, even though it comes at the expense of having numerous rules and regulations about what homeowners can do on their own property. Putting aside the restrictions, it is amazing to see how beautiful everything can be year round.

We've also been extremely fortunate to move into the most amazing condo building where we have met and made some of the greatest friends since moving to the east coast. Our first experiences in MD were not filled with friendly neighbors, and we had started to believe that east coasters were just not interested in who lived next door to them. Then, we moved to Columbia and were astonished how warm and inviting our new neighbors were. There have been birthday parties for adults and children, many nights with the grill going and the Maker's flowing, not to mention the many many many games of cornhole! While we are both looking forward to moving back to be closer to our family, we know that moving away from these friends will be very difficult.

I have a variety of different routes that I take on my morning runs, but there is one street that I have made it a point to run down every day this week. There is this amazing lilac bush right along the sidewalk that someone has obviously taken some time to cultivate over the past years. It is quite large and all week it has been in FULL bloom with more flowers than I have ever seen. The strong fragrance rushes through my nose and instantly I am reminded how much I love the spring flowers!!!

As I ran past this wonderful bush on my way back to my home, I thought that I would put to the test once again just how much I love this town. After I finished getting ready for the day, I hopped in my car and headed out to work. I stopped by this house, walked up to the front door, and knocked. A woman with a small son answered the door and after introducing myself I expressed how much I love running past her lilac bush every morning. I asked if I might cut a few sprigs of the blossoms. Her face lit up with a huge smile and told me that I could take as many as I would like. She introduced herself and her son and shook my hand, saying again that I was free as many blossoms as I would like. Once again...the people in Columbia turn out to be some of the nicest folks I have met since moving to the east coast.

Thank you to my neighbor for brightening up my day and filling my office with the most wonderful lilac fragrance. Thank you my new friend!

Don't Drink the Water

2007-04-14T15:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in posts. It has been a crazy 2 weeks. Here's a brief run-down of what we've done around here:

1) Knitted furiously for 3 hours every night to try to finish Kate's Clapotis before we went to NC. I didn't get it done, but I showed it to her, so now I can finally share pictures with all of you. These are just a couple to give you an idea...and to show you how Lucy likes to help! I only have about 1/4 of it left to knit up and then I can send it to her.

2) Trip to NC so that we could be godparents to Brandon while Ann and Gabe stood up as Connor's godparents. We also enjoyed the time with the rest of the Trame clan, including an Easter egg hunt for Noah.

3) It all culminated in me coming down with an awful case of the flu. I took 2 days off to rest and what I thought was taking in enough fluids. On the 3rd day I tried to go into work, but ended up at the health center on campus taking in 2 IV bags of fluid. Guess I was doing more sleeping than drinking. I'm much better now and trying to take on as much water as the Titantic.

So, that's what's been going on with us lately. I would like to give out a hint about a future post. Many people, including PhDKnitter, have asked how Jason became so obsessed with Maker's Mark. He and I will be working on trying to uncover this mystery very soon. If any of you have any specific questions you'd like him to answer, drop us a comment and I'll ask the resident expert himself. I know my only question right now for anyone is "Do obsessions ever end?"

So Damn Lucky

2007-04-02T12:56:00.000-07:00

But so damn tired....

For those of you who do not know me that well, I am a graduate student working on research on children’s social development, particularly looking at the benefits of having friends. Part of the fun of being involved in research is attending very LARGE research conferences in which individuals from across the globe convene in a large city to share their latest research with one another. You’re probably thinking…BORING! In fact, they can be quite exciting and exhilarating, while at the same time completely draining on the body.

For me, these conferences serve a number of purposes:

1) This is the chance to see what other researchers are currently studying in their own labs. It can take over a year to get a study published in a research journal, so these conferences allow us to glimpse into what others are doing right now! This can serve two purposes of it’s own:

a) It is quite motivating to talk to other researchers as it can help spawn new ideas that I would like to explore in my own research. Plus, it’s fun to see other people who get excited talking about friendship and how children think about friendship…we’re all just a big bunch of dorks!

b) It is also very important to make sure that other people out there haven’t “snaked” your brilliant idea.

2) I can have my own “star struck” experiences right there in the lobby of the hotel or the line at Starbucks. I have been working in this field for over 6 years now, and I have quickly learned who the “celebrities” in the field are…and pride myself to find out that others agree with me that my advisor is one of these celebrities. It’s so amazing that they all converge into the same place as me, and for the most part they are interested in meeting other people with similar interests.

3) Of course these events would be remiss without lots of laughter, hugs from those who live far away, and meetings that take place over drinks.

All of that being said, I have recently returned from another great conference in Boston. After being gone for 5 days, it was such a joy to return to the comfort of my own home, where my husband was ready to put me to sleep and the cat was so excited that she drooled all over my face as I tried to sleep. Unless you have attended a conference of this nature, it is very hard to understand just how exhausting the entire experience can be. The best way I can describe it is to say that it’s like reading a complicated research article for 5 days straight while walking around a concrete-floor convention center in heels surveying the room for a celebrity that you would just love to talk about their latest research with.

I had the awesome pleasure of giving a research talk at a symposium on friendship for the very first time while in Boston. This symposium scenario works in that four researchers each give a 20-minute talk on their own research along a similar content area…this one being friendship. I have been working on a paper with a former graduate student here and she allowed me to actually give the presentation. Can I just tell you how amazing it felt to sit up on a stage with three other presenters who have all been doing research on friendship for the past few decades? There I sat amongst these celebrities in my Ann Taylor pin stripe suit thinking to myself “What the hell am I doing up here with these men? They are such amazing researchers and I’m just a 4^th year graduate student who happens to have a project that falls under the umbrella of friendship research? Oh my goodness, I think I’m going to pass out.”

I was the slated to be the second presenter and so during the first presentation I had to keep telling myself to NOT drink the glass of water in front of me or I would need to pee before everyone had spoken. I was also telling myself that I could make it through this whole experience because I knew more about this topic than anyone else in the room (except for my collaborators who were there for moral support). So, I got up there…gave my talk…and it was just AMAZING!!! Such an exhilarating experience to have about 65 pairs of eyes on me, all interested in knowing what we had examined in young adolescent’s friendships.

The crème de la crème took place at the end of the four presentations. The man who I consider to be responsible for starting the revolution of friendship research over 30 years ago stood up at the end and offered his discussion of the entire symposium. This man is 80 years old, and it is still so obvious how dedicated he is to understanding children’s social development and the current research that is being published. He offered such an amazing viewpoint on all four presentations and had some critical questions that each of us needed to consider. I became incredibly motivated by his thoughts and suggestions, and I wanted to run back to a computer to do some new analyses right away (I know…I’m the biggest dork ever). After the entire symposium, I walked up to this man, who I consider my idol, and formally introduced myself, thanking him for such an insightful look into our project. He and I chatted for a few minutes about his suggestions and I walked away feeling like I had met the most amazing individual. In my mind, those few moments will always be remembered and I believe will also help guide me through my many more presentations I hope to deliver during my career.

Besides the “working” part of the conference, there are many, many opportunities to socialize. I was able to spend a lot of time with my former mentor from WKU. This woman made such an impact on my life that I thrive on being able to see her at these conferences and show her that the only reason I’m in this place in my life is because of her and her amazing husband, who regrettably passed a little over a year ago. She came to hear my presentation and sat in the front row beaming the entire time. Afterwards, she told me that not only was she proud of me, but that she knew her husband would be just as proud of me if he could have seen me. *sniffle* I was also able to spend a great deal of time with a close friend who graduated from UMD and is now a professor up in New York. She has been and continues to be such a role model for me that I reveled in the time we spent over dinner or drinks talking about her research and my dissertation ideas.

These conferences are very much about learning about the current status of the research world, but it is also so much more than that. It’s about meeting new people, mustering up the strength to walk up to your idol and ask him what he thinks about your ideas, expanding your ideas on research, and learning a little bit more about yourself each and every day. I am still completely exhausted from the whole experience, but I am also very invigorated to begin working on all the ideas that I have from the conference. Look out Denver…we’re all coming in 2009 and you had better be ready!!!

Wishin' and hopin'

2007-03-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

I suppose that’s exactly what I was doing when I stopped by Target yesterday afternoon…wishin’ and hopin’. We had enjoyed 3 days of GORGEOUS weather, including an almost 80 degree day on Wednesday. And that all just fell apart come Thursday when the rain came in. Over the course of the next 24 hours, the temperature dropped 40 degrees and the rain turned to sleet. So, when I stopped into Target, I headed right for the shoe section to try to brighten my day. After all, I knew I would be greeted by rows and rows of FLIP FLOPS! All the pretty colors and styles…some with jewels, others with cork wedges, and still others with lovely straps to lace up the ankle. It helped me forget the sleet and rain, even if only for a moment.

DH thinks I’m insane when I pull out the flops for the first time because it’s usually still cold in the morning. But I feel it’s worth it to have some chilly tootsies when I know that later in the day those tootsies will be all nice and toasty in the warm sun! I’m a pretty basic flop gal as I don’t like to spend a ton of money on shoes that may only last a few months. I treated myself to a new pair of black flops and some classic looking brown ones. They may be boring, as this post may appear to you as well, but it was the highlight of my day! Now if I could only convince Mother Nature to stop being finicky and just let us have some warmth so I can enjoy my new flops.

I've been thinking ‘bout things

2007-03-12T13:46:00.000-07:00

"I've always had confidence. It came because I have lots of initiative.
I wanted to make something of myself."
-- Eddie Murphy

Recently, I have given a lot of thought to the term initiative. What does it mean? How do we learn it? When and where should we use it? And more importantly, why are some people afraid to use it? I consider myself to be a pretty independent gal, trying to make my mark in this world and trying to make something of myself. As such, I feel that I do take a lot of initiative in my life, particularly in my work.

Many people have asked me how I have been able to foster such a great relationship with the two academic mentors that I have had. I truly believe that the greatest thing I have done is that I take initiative in my own graduate career and research. I am the type of person who loves to be involved in as much as possible. I will not sit around and wait for someone else to tell me what I should do, which classes I should take, and what I should be publishing at the moment. I also don’t wait around for someone to tell when I should complete something or to check and make sure that I have crossed all my “t’s” and dotted all my “i’s”. I am a pretty intelligent person who can figure out what the rules and regulations are and how I am expected to follow them.

So, when my fellow comrades get upset because they feel they have been wronged because they were not specifically told to do something, I just don’t know how to respond. I knew what we were supposed to do, you saw me doing it, why didn't you do the same? My philosophy has always been is that for every task you do: “You should always know the next step.” We cannot wait around for someone to tell us what we should do with our lives and our careers; rather we need to figure it out for ourselves. If you know without asking what the next step is, than jump on in and get started. If you are unsure of what you should be doing next, than I suggest taking the initiative to find out. We’re not always clairvoyant about what is expected of us; however, we cannot sit with our little hands in our little laps and wait for someone to walk past and tell us what to do! Inevitably, you will end up disappointing someone, getting yelled out, and then complaining about it later.

I suppose another way to look at initiative is that it is about taking responsibility for yourself. No one else can tell you what to do with your life. Sure, there are plenty of people out there who can help you and guide you, but only if you ask. Initiative has many forms and the simplest one is to just know what the next step is.

Come in and relax

2007-03-11T12:53:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Casa de Fred, where the door is always open, the spare room has clean sheets, and the Maker's is ready for one and all. Since all the rest of the family and friend are on the "blog" train, I thought it was time for us to join in as well.

Here's a little bit about me:

I am a wife

a sister

an aunt

a student

and more recently, a knitter!

I'm sure I'll be the one to do most of the posting on this site, but I'll try to get DH to post something once in awhile. You'll be able to tell what I'm working on the most at the time: be it school work, knitting, or spending time with friends based on what I'm posting on. Hope you enjoy this little glimpse into life at Casa de Fred!