overdue shots

These have either been long promised or new pictures that need to be posted TONIGHT.

My proof that Martha Stewart has not one thing on me (OK she has a lot more than 1 thing, but this one I thought of before her help) My heart shaped brownies, served ath my DD party on Valentine's Day. They disappeared in a heartbeat


Next is the 16th square for the Lizard ridge and I'll follow that immediately with square 17.

Noro Kureyon 153A

Noro Kureyon 188D

Here are a couple of pictures from DD's party of the girls working on their crafts and them all together showing off their necklaces.

first thing - make the goodie bags


next we made bracelets... DH wasn't taking pictures then. He escaped to the basement. But you can see one of the creations on the wrist in this picture.


The heart necklaces were the last crafty thing. you can see all the girls wearing them here.

Between all the crafts, we ate pizza, decorated heart cookies and ate them, and decorated the heart shaped cupcakes. All this while the girls sang their hearts out to the Mama Mia! soundtrack

Here is the bracelet DH gave em for Valentine's Day. You can see the sheep and ball of yarn.

At the concert on Sunday as I was listening to the choir sing I was playing with y new bracelet and admiring it and it dawned on me that the chain is reminiscent of an i-cord. I don't know if I was able to catch it in this shot or not.


And finally my creation du jour.


Pattern: Ballband toilet paper cover by hakucho
Yarn: Lily's Sugar and Cream
Colors: hot green and hot blue
Needle: US7

Thanks hakucho, I've had this in my queue forever. Finally got around to it today. Gives me an idea for my upstairs bath to try to make one to match my shower curtain... kind of a jaquard plaid... I'll let you know how it goes.

DH's vest is back to the armhole deccreases again. I want to look at a vest that fits him to see how to go about the next step.

Off to do some schoolwork. Tmrw is a long day for me. Need to get ready for the sub on Thursday as well :-) and prepare for the spinning afternoon.

whoda thunk?

My friend Heather, found this on youtube. It's of our kids spring concert from school last year. One of their classmates must have taped it.
I'm just saving it so DD can watch it more easily. Don't feel as though you have to. They had a concert of old music and their decade was 1910-1920



I'll add more to this post later.

technically

for me it's still Sunday since I haven't hit the bed yet. DH and I sang a Vivaldi concert today at a Cathedral in town. There were 5 of us soloists. It was really fun. I enjoyed it. Wish I had had more to sing though. As I was sitting in the concert I was thinking of all the pictures to put on the blog, but sorry none for today. Hopefully I'll get some on tmrw. I was also admiring my new bracelet and it dawned on me that the bracelet part is much akin to a knitted i-cord... and the charms slide over the i-cord. Promise that I'll post pictures tmrw.

A very old dear friend found me on facebook today. I was pleasantly surprised. Haven't talked/seen him in more than 30 years. I'm sure we wouldn't recognize each other.

I frogged a bit more tonight and finished another lizard ridge square. So that means I've only hit about 9 balls of yarn so far this year... I really better get moving if I'm ever going to make 200. I keep harvesting yarn from sweaters and making more stash instead of knitting it and making it disappear.

This week I go to DS's school to demonstrate spinning. Tmrw I must make some rolags and prepare for that lesson... 2 classes of 50 1st graders. What excitement! It makes for a short work week for me though which is always good. Work Tuesday and Wednesday, off Thursday and work Friday.. can't complain at all :-D

OK.. I think I'm going to bed now... DS2 already came looking for me. So I need to put him back in his bed and crawl into my own!

happy valentine's day

to one and all... tell someone that you love them.

We had a party here at the house for DD and 6 of her friends. I'd type more but I'm really beat. I want to tell you that Martha has nothing on me though. The day before she posted this as her cookie recipe of the day, I had made them for DDs party and have the pictuers to prove it. Just wish I had posted it on my blog Thursday night when I made them. At least in my heart of hearts I know I had the idea before I read it on Martha's site.

The girls decorated little cotton bags for goodie bags with fabric markers, made valentine charm bracelets and Valentine necklaces. We decorated heart shaped cookies and they put the toppings on their heart cupcakes. Of course it HAD to be heart themed being that it was valentine day. I hope everyone had a good time. I'm exhausted and need to go to bed to ward off this sore throat. Tomorrow I solo in Vivaldi Gloria and Dixit Dominus at the Cathedral in town.

DH bought me a lovely charm bracelet from Cleo's with 2 charms... a ball of yarn and a sheep... I love it! Thanks honey.

my kind of ad

from Melbourne AU
It's so cute and fresh.... of course, I'm not looking for love, just love the yarn! I wonder how many meters are in those balls??

All 3 kids stayed home with DH today. The older 2 had off from school. I went in and by lunch was feeling miserable. Came home and slept. Now I have to get ready for DDs party tmrw. Cupcakes and house disinfectant.. don't know which to start first LOL.

HOpefully tmrw night I'll have pictures of the party to post. We're doing LOTS of crafty things... (of course ;-) )

it hits again!

Well now the bookend children are on their second round of the stomach bug. DH has been a real trooper. He's been home 3 out of 4 days this week playing nurse and comforter, AND he'll be home tomorrow with them as well since they have off from school, but I don't (snow day make-up). What my school should have done is closed anyway. The number of absences is astonishing! All those kids should stay home for a good long weekend and stop sharing germs.

Having said that, I made valentine candy tonight and mini heart brownies. Except my brownie missed her meeting. I used the Ghirardelli brownie mix and admit to cheating a bit.....but it was soooooooo worth it. You should try them. one word YUM!

I raveled the red/orange silk/cotton/wool sweater yesterday and started the Old Navy rust one today. It's really relaxing to do. I'll wait to wash them together. I have so maany plans, just not enough time....sigh

bronchitis

My middle child is a carbon copy of his father! Not only in appearance but in health as well. The poor kid has bronchitis. He's missed 3 days of school and there's only 1 day left this week. My poor baby!

I've been busy deconstructing and frogging yarns. Look all I've done:

100% Merino from Express sweater, bulky weight all 623 grams/675m



All of which is caked now:

And this blend of wool and angora rabbit from a kids JCrew cardigan which totals 221g/331m. I felted the front pieces. Those skeins are center pull cakes now as well.

I have much more frogged and washed, but need to count and weigh it.

10 favorite places to shop

This is the alternate for today's 10 on Tuesday, since I did the topic last week.

• IKEA
  
• Joann's Fabrics (since it's the only fabric store near me)
  
• Barnes and Noble
  
• BonTon (for sales)
  
• Wegman's
  
• A.C. Moore
  
• Michaels
  
• ebay
  
• American Family Services
  
• Salvation Army
  
• VIA
  

OK that was 11 but who's counting? Can you tell I love a bargain and food?
Tell us where you love to shop!

happy birthday DD

You are an incredible young lady. I can't believe how you've grown since that day 9 years ago when you came home from the hospital. Where did the time go?
Papi and I are so very proud of you. You're smart, thoughtful, helpful, beautiful, great sense of humor and fairness. We are so blessed to call you our daughter.

So even though there will be times when our decisions seem unfair, please remember that we're trying our best and we've never done this before. You're our first and only princess... and we love you more than you can know.

Happy birthday darlin' Hope the new year treats you stupendously!

love
mom and dad

and here they are

Women's S Hugo Bescati butter yellow 100% cashmere wrap lace…4.99









Women's L Heidi tan 35 silk/25 nylon/20 ramie/12 angora rabbit/3 acrylic/5 wool short sleeve sweater DK… $3








Men's XL Old Navy rust lambswool worsted…. $6 *










Women's M The Limited blue-periwinkle tweed wool/viscose/nylon/silk/cashmere/cotton blend sockweight …$6
(i have another in this colorway in my stash already and one in another color… it’s so soft)






Women's L Express beige merino aran knit … $4











Men's Belmondi brown/black/white tweed 55 merino/20 rayon/10 cashmere/10 nylon/5 angora rabbit crew neck sockweight or heavier…. $4






Women's L SO orange/red tweed 40 silk/30 nylon/15 ramie/11 wool/4 other turtleneck light worsted ….$6








Women's M Gap mustard yellow cardigan 100% worsted cotton (hope the button band is picked up stitches) $2








Women's M Express blue white tweed merino turtleneck heavy worsted/aran… $3







* from the pricey thrift store in town

Sorry about the sideways shots... I forgot to turn them before uploading

And these to felt and make bags, mittens etc


I picked up a few sweaters at Old Navy as well.. 3 cashmere ones for me and a cotton cardigan for mom in a beautiful blue to match her eyes!

thrift motherlode

first:
NEW 100% cashmere sweaters (short sleeve) at old navy for $10.... that's right
NEW 100% cashmere sweater (long sleeve) at old navy for $24

and at the thrift stores... oh my!


Pictures and details to come in the morning after I get it all sorted, just let me say it was a GOOD day!

losing

very slowly, but steadily

1.5 pounds this week and 0.5 inches from the waist (that's all I'm measuring)
Guess it's OK considering I haven't worked out on the Wii in a week.. still..

off to sell GSCookies at the nearby mall with DD...

what city?

You Belong in New York City

You're the energetic, ambitious type. And only NYC is fast enough for you. Maybe you'll set yourself up with a killer career Or simply take in all the city has to offer.

What City Do You Belong In?

or depending on the food I choose…

You Belong in London

A little old fashioned, and a little modern. A little traditional, and a little bit punk rock. A unique soul like you needs a city that offers everything. No wonder you and London will get along so well.

What City Do You Belong In?

Ironic that I'm pretty close to New York and my niece and her husband are in London for a while for work. Maybe I should go visit them... oh wait, they live in a flat, probably wouldn't want 5 of us descend on them.

sleepy eyes

I fell asleep with the youngest last night and awoke after midnight, not wanting to blog. I'll try 2 tonight to make up for it. This one is for Wednesday and I leave you with something that I stole from g-girl:

ten on tuesday

This weeks 10 on Tuesday is supposed to be 10 favorite children's movies.

Very easy for me, since we have 3 children here at the house and I am still a little kid, really.

Monsters, Inc.


Nim's Island



Princess Diaries (both)

The Borrowers


The Parent Trap


The Shaggy Dog


Toy Story (both)



Finding Nemo


Mary Poppins

groundhog day

How could he help but see his shadow with all those bright lights around? Granted it was a beautiful day where I work, but still 6 more weeks.. isn't that a tad depressing? At least I believe we're going to dodge the big snow that was slated for tonight into tmrw. Just a small amount now...

On another note... I got so carried away with organization yesterday that I forgot to post my entry... I'm still going to count it for NaBloPoMo though since I wrote it yesterday. Last night after I cleaned up all the dishes, packed the kids lunches, made my lunch and snack for today and packed it and baked a quiche for dinner tonight for the man and kids, I started with the coat closet. It holds the tablecloths and whatever junk the kids throw in there. I was sick of it... So I had covered boxes for the tablecloths and 2 bins for the napkins. Then I took all the unused lunch bags and backpacks out and put them in storage in the basement, with the other things of that nature. Brought the kids hat/mitten box and put it on the floor and got a bin for DH's and my hats and gloves as well. It's so nice to be able to see the floor and make sense of the shelves.

This closet *could* be attached to the pantry to make a really nice pantry, but where would we put our coats. Guess they could go in the bedrooms... but the boys would be cramped since they don't have a closet so as it is.

OK... I have to say that now I'm loving the food on this flat belly diet. Yesterday for my snack I had Kashi puffs with yogurt and almonds mixed in.. mmmmmm
Today for breakfast I had oatmeal with 2 sliced strawberries, a bit of sliced banana, some peanuts and a bit of semi-sweet chocolate chips all mixed together. It was a little bit of heaven. Lunch was a wheat flat out bread with spinach leaves, sauteed onion and garlic and asiago cheese very thinly sliced all rolled up together. Heaven, I tell you and dinner was a salad of escarole (lots), edamame and tofu cubes tossed in a dressing of sliced strawberries, sliced red onion, diced red pepper, balsamic vinager, olive oil, cold pressed flaxseed oil, with a hint of strawberry all fruit mixed together. It was really yummy! I had been missing my greens so I'm hoping this will help me. I don't miss the heavy carb load or the sugar. AND I feel so great eating this way, even though the pounds are not dropping off like I wish they were. I have more energy and for the first time in a long time am really happy.

I went to see DH in a comic opera at the college he teaches at on Sat evening Mozart's Bastien and Bastienne. He played the role of Colas.. I laughed so hard the tears were rolling down my face. Ham isn't a word that was strong enough for him. The students loved it as well. I'm sure it was the talk of the department today.

I knit on his vest almost the whole time and have about 14.5" of the back complete again. Now I have to start the shaping of the armholes. So I've more math to figure. Of course my handspun isn't meeting gauge, especially with the needle change up one size, so I've got all kinds of calculations to make now. I've just about knit 2 skeins of the handspun so that puts me down 11 skeins so far this year... Need to really get knitting if I'm going to hit 200 by the end of the year. I'll get rid of some at DS1's school. They're looking for red yarn for a Valentine project, so I'll send some in. I'm not even meeting January's quota. Of course the summer will do me better since I'll be home more, but perhaps 200 was a bit too much to bite off.. a real challenge. I'll definitely make 100 without a problem.

I think some dishcloths and LR squares are in the future. And a friend's son is getting married in June. I'd like to knit them an afghan. I think of squares of all different stitches, perhaps in some Paton's in browns and beiges would be nice. Maybe I should get that Barbara Walker stitch book about the afghan. Hmmmmmm. I just dread the idea of seaming the whole thing.

Well off to work as soon as this little girl stops moving around, I'll escape clean the kitchen pack lunches for tmrw, do some school work and THEN knit.

today is a great day for..

organizing! I don't know why, but I got this urge to clean and organize my pantry in the kitchen. When I was at the grocery store, I bought these fabric boxes and bins and was anxious to put them to use. The large bin was for the kids snacks in the pantry. I wanted to keep them out of MY way so I would be less tempted to eat them. While I was doing that, I figured why not organize the pantry to see what we have...

LOTS of Pepperidge Farm Goldfish (I can go a couple of weeks without buying any and my kid devour them.
TOO MANY boxes of Macaroni and Cheese (enough for a month or more, not every night mind you... but think Sam's Club quantity)
TEA flavors that I should be drinking!
Plenty of flour (all sorts, wheat, white, organic, soy, spelt.... you get the picture)
Powder your body with powdered sugar
NUTS (which I'm nuts about... and are all on my new diet :-) )

At any rate, it's really beautiful now and I know where everything is. And can easily keep away from the crackers and chips and cookies and pudding and well you get the picture.

There's more boxes to hit the coat closet... I'll save that for later tonight!


OH this should be dated yesterday, I wrote it in text edit and forgot to post it.. if you're reading this, you've probably read the previous post and already know why!

let it snow

another snow day except now it's just raining... yuck!

All 3 kids have now had the virus and hopefully we're done with it. I need to get up and moving so I don't feel so old. Tomorrow will be schedule as usual. With any luck there will be no more snow days before I go in to DS1's class to show spinning (or 4 more ;-o )

The college even closed today which is unprecedented. There's not that much snow, I don't get it!

Day 3 of flat belly diet.... I'm not hungry just bored with the food....

10 Favorite Articles of Clothing You Own

I'm not really the fashion diva.. could be my current weight so you'll find my favorite things are all comfy, kind of like old friends

• my soft fleece Gap sweat pant.... they ALWAYS fit
  
• my tie dye dresses... so comfy
  
• my sheepskin slippers (OK it's an accessory, but....)
  
• my white flouncy gauze skirt
  
• purple yoga pants from NY&C
  
• purple ski vest that SIL bought me for Christmas
  
• all my birkis
  
• my handknit socks
  
• GAP long sleeve Ts they're so soft!
  
• Gloria Vanderbilt cropped jeans that Anne gave me
  

tips on unknitting

I was asked if I ever posted how to deconstruct and frog sweaters from the thrift store.I won't presume to be the expert but here's a list of really good sites to visit if you want to try it on your own. I suggest you look at them before you head out to grab a sweater from your nearest thrift store though

• My Virtual Sanity
  
• neauveau fiber arts
  
• recycling yarn
  
• Soulful hues hobbies and random thoughts
  

And just in case you don't know where you nearest thrift store might be. Have a look here to help you out!

I joined NaBloPoMo for February.. at least it's a short month ;-)

thrifting again

yesterday in the morning I ran out to the thrift store and hit a motherlode :-)

These are for felting projects. Some valentine teachery things, some mittens and some Christmas.







JCrew This may be felted for a Christmas project or frogged for yarn, still deciding!








These are to frog:


100% cashmere























this one may need to stay in the felted state if I can't frog it.... will think of something nice to do with it as I have 2 other cashmere sweaters given to me that were felted.










GAP silk/wool blend












silk/cashmere blend









JCrew wool/angora rabbit blend already frogged the sleeves and back. The front was serged to the button band:-( so I'll felt that for mittens







I also got this beautiful mahogany serving dish made in haiti. It will be great for parties with crudité and dip in the center :-)






and 7 of these cute little silverplated knives which I'll use on cheese trays.

I came home smiling :-)

everything is as it was

DS2 stayed home today with DH. He's fine now.
DH is taking SIL to the airport for her return trip home. Boy, am I gonna miss her.

Found this photo of the beautiful moon that was out on my bday but somehow I missed.



I'm ready to sleep

sick kiddo

so I was putting DS2 to bed tonight. I laid down with him knowing full well that I'd be asleep before he was. That cuppa joe I had last night at 10:30 kept me up until 4:30 this morning.. so I was feeling kinda tired. All of a sudden he wakes up crying... and I knew it was inevitable... projectile vomiting... all over the bed AND me. These are the moments I hate having long hair. He's sleeping soundly in my bed now... question is where will I sleep????? His bed is stripped and airing out. I hope he's finished for the night.

10 on tuesday

is all about favorite sports moments.

I don't have 10...
but 2 of mine were from the men's swimming in this Olympics.


Other than that I was whooping it up with my 6th graders during the inauguration today. What a happy day! (sorry Eric) DD and I will watch some of the pre-ball stuff together. It's a girly thing that I am sure she'll enjoy.

thrifting

so I had the itch to thrift today. I took my SIL to SA in A-twn hoping to clean up... sadly, I didn't. I got some great sweaters for mittens that are even already felted for me. And picked up this really soft autumn tweed sweater from the Limited..... got it home and remembered that I have a blue tweed one just like it that is such a bear to frog.. well deconstruct. The seams are mattress stitched and it's really hard to find the right thread in all the mess..... but the yarn is so soft. It's a blend of wool, viscose, nylon, silk and cashmere in really pretty colors (as is the blue) I could smack myself in the head!

I did find (well SIL found them but they were too big for her) a pair of nine west shoes for 5.99 that were brand new... very dressy black slides with a heel but the old kind of wide in width but not in length heel. You can see that my shoe vocabulary is expansive. I'm not a shoe girl, most obviously. But they have a square toe and are a kind of satiny upper so would look great for a concert, so they came home with me.

we were out most of the day looking for some things for her b4 she goes back home on Friday. I'm going to miss her......lots.

my life in the zoo

We had a blast yesterday at the zoo. The behind the scenes stuff was fine, a bit boring for the kids, but the animals that were out and moving were so much fun. We went to the giraffe barn and got to go into the galapogas tortoise exhibit. There was a reptile thing where we saw one of the pythons close enough to touch. Some of the extra behind the scenes we skipped but our favorite spot was the big cat walk.

DS1 was playing for a LONG time with one tiger. He'd run outside and the tiger would see him, actually look for him. Then DS would run back into the place with the glass separation and the tiger would run right up to the glass. They would have touched noses were it not for the glass. Then they pawed at each other and the running game started over again. It was so funny and DS LOVED it.
He had watched an older boy doing the same thing with the lions and got the idea to try it with the tigers. It was almost closing time and I'm sure about dinner time for the tigers, so they were looking for some interaction. Plus it was a tad chilly... about 18° F.


The pumas were out and very playful as well. They were enjoying people watching. The zoo has a set of triplets (2 boys and a girl) that were found orphaned because a hunter had shot their mother. Fortunately he had reported it and a animal rescue team went out searching for the pups. They knew it was vital because they discovered that the mother was still lactating. These cats have been in captivity just about all their lives so when the zoo heard the story, they pounced on it and the cats were transferred to Phila. To distinguish the one male from the other the zookeepers have painted a black mark on its left hindquarter. It actually looks very natural though.

If you want a great book to read to your kids try Verdi. It's about a snake. This snake reminds me so much of the snake in the book, I had to take its picture.

The orangutans were having a blast but sadly I have no good pictures to share....

prayers answered

thank you saint anthony for prayers answered. DH's vest (well if you can call it that) is found. Last night I sat down in my chair to do something else, I think I was putting away my options needles that had been out for other projects and looked to the left and there it was staring up at me. It had NOT been there before. So there you have it!

I have another Lizard Ridge block done. Here are the two that are completed

Noro kureyon color 175C

Noro kureyon color 149F

I need to find the ball band of the one OTN now but I think it's color 194.

I have pictures from my Chorus concert. I didn't take them, so they aren't as good as I'd like, but it's better than nothing. The fat blob in the red skirt is me. Hopefully I'll be thinner by the spring concert. We all have on scarves because the concert was about snow. We don't have an auditorium in my school, so we have to use the gym for all our programs... kind of stinks. But DH built the big white screen and I do a power point to go along with all the stuff so that there is some kind of scenery. This year I hung up snowflakes the kids made from the ceiling. at different heights. Just to add a touch of something. The shredded paper is supposed to be like snow. In the last song the kids sing about going outside and throwing a bunch of snow... so at the very end they all threw white yarn pompom balls into the audience. It was kind of fun.

I have a long weekend since I took a trade day from the summer. So does the rest of the family. I hope I get to do something fun for me... I'm feeling the urge to go thrifting really badly. Not that I need anything, just for the hunt!

Tomorrow we go behind the scenes at the Phila. zoo.... just hope we don't freeze!

10 things you're really good at

• singing classical and religious music
  
• teaching
  
• knitting
  
• cross-stitch
  
• organizing choice things
  
• math
  
• baking
  
• sleeping
  
• eating
  
• drinking
  

Yes the last 2 are tongue in cheek..... but I am good at them!

Play along

prayers to st. anthony

I can't find DH's vest I'm making him. I had done up to the armholes in the back and then we decided that the resulting fabric was to stiff.. so I ripped out down to the ribbing at the waist... and carried it around for a bit, but left it for after Christmas, and of course now, can't find it....


I made a block for Lizard Ridge on Friday. Color 175C. Made another tonight color 149F.
Pictures to come.

what color flower?

You Are an Orange Flower

An orange flower tends to represent boldness, energy, and warmth. At times, you are courageous, like a poplar tree. And at other times, you are hopeful, like an orange iris. And more than you wish, you bond too quickly to people, like a honeysuckle.

What Color Flower Are You?

I love orange... it's a happy color and I could use some of it about now!

3 down 197 to go

I made my SIL these 6 cloths. I intended them for dishes but she says she won't use them for that cuz they're too pretty... crazy girl. I used the 365 knitting stitches a year perpetual calender for all of them and lily's sugar 'n cream cotton in white (her preferred house color)

Jan 28 - fagotted lace panel CO 43


Feb 9 - feather and fan CO 4O


Mar 4 - crossed stockinette CO 42


Nov 6 - star CO 43


Dec 25 - rice CO 43


Dec 31 - bamboo CO 41


Yarn: Lily Sugar 'n Cream
Color: white
Needle: US6


No school today because of ice. This is good because it changes the day that Tuesday is next week. Don't ask, it will make no sense... but trust me. I was happy! I could go for a late start tmrw. I'm really not feeling the love there. I feel overworked and underappreciated. But a short week now this week. Next week is my birthday and the concert and then the following week is short because of MLK day and the fact that I took a class this summer for a trade day.

My neighbor is driving me nuts of late. He plays loud music very late. It's almost midnight and I hear wild drumming through the wall (we live in half a double) I'm wondering if he has rockband for PSP or Wii.

I've been pretty good about working out on Wii... missed today though because everyone was home and I couldn't get on. Now DS2 is sleeping in front of the TV so I hate to move him and wake him up and I can't work out there.

Natalie and I got together and worked on the stuff for the spring concert. Earth Day in the park with all environmentally consious songs. I'm excited for it, but want to get the winter concert over with first. I made her a CD of our concert together from last year. I think she was really happy!

K off to do some lunch packing and get prepared for the am... blech. I love my job when I'm with the kids, it's the other adults I can't stand!

10 things you'd like to do in 2009

• finish my poncho
  
• spend more time with DH
  
• actually sing decent repertoire (maybe a recital)
  
• sew more
  
• be ready for Christmas 2009 before December
  
• keep my house tidy
  
• knit every day
  
• spin all the fiber in the stash (that's a dream)
  
• travel fun places
  
• get fit
  

Play along

200 stash down

I'm going to try to knit 200 balls of yarn this year as a part of knitting down my stash.

So far I've knit one ball of white kitchen cotton. I'm working on the 2nd right now. I figure if I knit down 200 balls it will reduce my stash by about 1/3 or so. Right now I have 498 yarns stashed. That's including fiber and doesn't count multiple balls. So I really don't have an accurate count. It's a good goal though and I'm hoping to do it.

I'm also looking only to enhance with either sock yarn or recycled yarn....wish me luck!