Purling Sprite

Surprise!

My Momma is coming, my Momma is coming....this Thursday!

I called her on Monday and I was telling her all about our new puppy, Osita, and about how much the kids miss her and how much I miss her and after coercing and arm twisting (on my part to her), she agreed to come for a little short visit.

We haven't seen her since Wondergirl was 2 weeks old! Wondergirl is now close to 21 months!

I am so excited and looking forward to giving my Momma a hug...be prepared to meet my darlin' little Mommy soon :).

In the meantime...a picture of Osita with Wondergirl-Wonderboy is a bit afraid of Osita so he is not in the picture--he is hiding behind me waving hello to Osita.

We tried going on a walk this morning with Osita--she lasted for about 10 minutes, then when we were about to cross a very busy street, she just sat there and wouldn't budge (smart cookie) at the end, I picked her up and put her in the back of the bike trailer and she just loved it! At the end, Wonderboy got out of the trailer and walked while little Osita sat next to Wondergirl (half of her body is the back of the trailer and only her little head and front paws were in the front). Both, Osita and Wondergirl enjoyed themselves very much!

Our new baby...meet Osita

The post for today was going to be a bit boring--me telling you all about this yummy salad that I tried at Quiznos on Friday, but our life has gotten a bit more exciting since yesterday's draft post.

Our little family has gained 1 new member. Meet Osita: She is a gorgeous little Siberian Husky. She is 9 weeks old, a little rambunctious just like any little puppy should be. Before arriving to her name, we tried a bunch of other names: snowflake, snowbell, beauty, gorgeous, freckles (little neighbor boy liked the name freckles), snowy, whittie...and then at the end I started telling my neighbor the story of my childhood dog, Oso (direct translation: Bear), and hubby and I just knew that her name should be after my childhood dog--so we named her Osita (Osa). Unlike my childhood dog, she is white and fluffy--more like a polar bear while my childhood companion resembled more a little black bear.

Here is a small slide show with a few pictures of our Osita--she is not camera shy at all!

She is still a bit anxious and sad from leaving her parents and her 4 little brothers. She loves the back yard and enjoys chasing Wonderboy around. Wondergirl is in puppy heaven--she woke up this morning at 4:30am just to play with Osita.

Our day was so exciting and it even ended on a super noticeable note (for the entire neighborhood). We went to get some snacks and a chew toy for her around 9:30pm, we left Osita out in the backyard, since she is new to her environment, we knew that she would probably bark and whine for a little bit--it is expected.

When we came back we were welcomed by a policeman! Some witchy anonymous neighbor called in and complained about our little dog barking! We had to bring her in for the night and we let her sleep in the laundry room. The policeman told us that the nosy neighbor told them that the "it was an on-going problem" lies, lies, how can it be on-going when she had only been in our house for 2 hours! We are so ticked to say the least--Osita just needs some time to get used to her environment. Even the policeman understood our situation--especially when we told him that we would bring her in for the night, he quickly said that if we did that then she would never get used to being outside. Darlin' hubby is going to go this morning and talk to the anonymous complainer! And thus, this is another time when I wish I had an uncle Vito!

And the not so exciting salad-it is only fair to let you see it :)...but the main reason for today's post is our Osita.

Friday night, we were running errands trying to find last minute stuff for the garage sale (like labels to write the prices on) on our quest to find the last minute stuff we realized that it was almost 8pm and we had not fed the kids anything (nor ourselves). We scanned our options and asked WonderBoy what he wanted to eat--he suggested his usual "burgers" . I was adamant against the burgers (especially from a fast-food joint) I had just finished my first week of exercise regiment and I wasn't going to throw out all my efforts for just a lousy burger.

Instead of the suggested meal (eventhough it was tempting to sit down and chew-down on a supersized container of french fries with Fry Sauce) we kept on driving and we pulled in at Quiznos (I am a sucker for toasted sandwiches) but instead of having my usual toasted sub, I had the most delicious salad ever (I say ever because I seldom eat salads--I can count the times I have had salad as a main meal in one hand!). The above picture is a poor imitation of the salad I had that day--I was missing a few key ingredients: salami, the dressing they use, nonetheless, my salad attempt turned out really good and the best part: I am eating a little healthier.

Quiznos Wanna-Be Salad

• Lettuce
• 3 large size olives (sliced)
• 1 thin slice of red onion
• Parmesan Cheese (a couple of shakes)
• Ham (2 slices cut into bite size pieces)
• Dressing: 2 tblsp of Bruschetta (Tomato, Basil & Garlic mix in olive oil)
• Not pictured: 1/2 a slice of Flat Bread/Pita Bread

In my search for healthier eating I would like to acquire more salad recipes, if you know of a good book that doesn't have really weird and expensive ingredients, let me know.

I have been toying with the idea of getting a heart-rate monitor, I saw the Polar F6 over at Lolly's blog, but I am wondering if it works also when running/jogging. Or maybe I should just get a regular watch to time how long it takes me to run my route. If you have tried the Polar F6 for running, let me know how it works.

Hitting the Pavement!

How lazy can a person be? You see that top that is blocking--yeah, do you remember last week that it would probably be blocked and seamed by the end of the day--well, it is Monday (about 4 days after the day I finished knitting it) and I am barely blocking it.

Why did I procrastinate? Let me tell you--do you see the top panel--it is the back. I had to add a second ball to the back (to the front too but it is not so noticeable) look at the top panel closely--can you see it--can you see the defined horizontal line, yep, that is the place where I added the other skein. In my eyes, it makes the top un-wearable. It makes me want to pull it all out and knit from the two skeins throughout. The sample is not mine (which makes my knitting look worse), it is going back to Soysilk but I don't feel comfortable putting together something that I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing--what to do, what to do?

I am going to seam it and suggest to work the two balls of yarn throughout the pattern--rather than adding it at the end like I did.  Another thing that we (Hubby and I) noticed last night when I was blocking it out (check the picture) you will be able to see what we noticed. 2 very defined circles in the front--placement--right by the boobie sector! I don't know....if it was mine...would I really wear it?...I should have started knitting from the other end (maybe). I guess these little things is a risk one takes when knitting with variegated yarns.

My knitting and loom knitting are in hiatus right now. I have decided that I need to change my habits just a wee bit and thus I need to focus most of my energy into changing those habits. For an entire week now, I have been exercising: jogging/running, biking, walking and ellipticalling--I need to get my body used to the exercise, once I get used to my routine, I plan on picking up my knitting again...I am hoping that by the end of next month my body starts showing some little changes. My goal is to lose a bit so I can pick up my needles and knit myself a nice winter sweater--a medium size one (not only will it take less yarn but I will be able to finish it faster). Reading Lolly's blog yesterday about her success gave me an extra boost of confidence--I can do it, I can do it! Not only am I changing my couch-potato habits but I am also implementing healthier foods--yeah, I have finally discovered the use for veggies--and I am not talking about french fries! I have also pledged not to buy any other yarn (for personal purposes) until I shed 5lbs...talk about motivation--but if you have any to give away, remember me...it may be months before I can buy any...sigh.

Over the weekend, we had a huge garage sale--I was able to unload tons of baby stuff that we are no longer using. Some odds and ends also went out the door--less clutter around to clean up--yay! I also managed to get rid of my dining room table; an old beat up round oak table with room for 4 people. And to show you how bad I am at planning things-now we are eating on a fold up plastic table. I thought that if I just went Saturday afternoon to pick up a table that they would have it in stock, it turns out they have to order them in and it will take about a week to arrive. So for the next few days we will be eating on our fancy plastic table....next time, remind me to buy the new "x" item first!

Lastly--a picture of our Saturday Sky.

Question: I have seen a lot of little pictures/icons popping out in bloglines right next to the blog name--how does one get a little picture in there?

My.Head.Aches.Too.Much.To.Think--Contest Info

A huge thank you to all of you for all your recommendations on my lack of sweating problem. Yeah, I never thought I would wish that I could sweat. It has actually been a life-time problem. I have never, ever been able to sweat. Back in HS, I wanted to train to be in the pathetic running team and while "trying-out" my nose started bleeding, so no running for me. I was marked by the coach "as too fragile" for the job, so I sat that down, then a year or so later, I volunteered to be a part of the soccer team and guess what--my nose bled within the first 10 minutes...so I sat that one down too. Fast forward a few years later and well, nose bleeds are less frequent but they still occur.

I have been keeping up with my exercise and following all of your advice: I have been drinking lots of fluids before, during and after. I have even stopped and cooled myself off with some water. I hope that as I keep going that I may be able to sweat it off, hehehe.

The funny thing is that once I stop running/jogging and sit down then my body does cool off and my body starts glistening just a bit--but it is just a tad too late as my head is already exploding by that time from the heat. I am hoping that as I keep it up that my metabolism starts kicking in and changing the way my sweat glands work--maybe they are broken from disuse, hehehehe.

And here is a little MEME  of a sort--I saw it over at Mim's today.

If Isela ruled the world! (The pinky, the pinky and the brain,hehehehe-Sometimes I am the Brain but most of the times I am just like Pinky, hehehehe.)

I would add the following to Mim's rules:

1. My computer at the shop would be without one little speck of dust. Not like it is right now--full of dust and sawdust--yuck!

2. Cables and all types of cords would be neatly organized under the desk. Not all tangled like breeding snakes!

3. The dishes would clean themselves up and put themselves in the dishwasher

4. Food would come in little pills that I could pop in the oven and then the pill turns into a meal. (Like in the Fifth Element movie)

5. All children under the age of 12 would go to bed exactly at 8pm without fussing or crying or giving you a puppy face.

6. Headaches are absolutely banned! Banned! No one should ever have to have a headache.

7. 1 Free Airplane ticket a year to anywhere in the world.

8. And while we are at it...a free hotel stay for 5 days in your city of choice.

Aaaak, the headache is too much...I shall go and find some drugs soon....druggssss...yeesss!

Contest Info:

To celebrate the Purling Sprite blog reaching 2,000 comments, I am going to hold a contest of sorts: The 2,000 comment will receive: 3 skeins of Noro yarn in color 95. Enough yarn to make the Booga Bag.

2,000 comments--wow! So awesome. Thank you all of you for being so great and for helping me reach this goal!

Sweat it Off Goaty!

My goal: to lose at least 10 pounds by my birthday, just ten. With ten, I just know that my double chin will go away and maybe, just maybe a little bit of my huge love handle.  I mean at first the love handle was all cute and everything but now, it is sitting on top of my pants and it is no longer cute--it stopped being cute when my favorite jeans made the love handles pop up to each side, so it is like wearing a big donut around my middle section.

I have been exercising a bit--the elliptical down in the basement is getting used and since I got the bike I have been going on short 20-30 minute bike rides. Even this morning, I went on a walk with my neighbor--pushing two kids in the stroller!

Then this evening, I went out with DAman and braved the pavement--yeah, I went (dare I say it) running--(more like jogging) . As we were running, we took off just fine, nice long strides, each step I gave, I felt my heel touch down then my toes, but as we continued, I felt the ache in my chest. The burning in my bossom (no, and it wasn't from feeling all holy) it was coming from the back of my throat and it went all the way down--a terrible burning--aaak! But, my son inside the stroller kept clammoring "faster Mom, go faster" so I kept going. DAman and Wonderboy kept on cheering me on and I kept going--I finally gave up in the middle of climbing up a little bunny hill.

I just gave in and started walking instead--I was feeling so hot but like always not a drop of sweat (in the distance DAman and Wonderboy kept calling me onwards) but I just couldn't do it--I felt like a hotdog on a grill--hot, hot, hot, and ready to burst! Even my eyes were burning, I could feel my skin tightening and scorching hot, then I reached DAman. There he was glistening with crystal clear dropplets of sweat! His cooling system at work! Then it dawn on me! I can see why he can run on for hours--he has this neat cooling system that starts kicking in as soon as his temperature rises. But mine--where is mine? Did I forget to pick mine up? No matter how hard I work/run/dance/jump not a drop ever falls. I can feel the heat inside of me cooking me alive--my cheeks turn bright red (and that is darn hard to do when you are my color) my hands start to shake from the heat, and my legs, my legs burn like the day I scorched myself with my Grandma's iron.

Aaak, it is frustrating--my question of the day boils down to the following: how can I get my cooling sytem to kick in! I am sure that if I were able to sweat that I could push myself a bit harder--but the inability to get my cooling system working makes it impossible to work-out. The heat inside my body after exercising gets so bad that it creates terrible headaches that last for days! There has to be a way--there just has to be a way to cool off!

On another note--we had a goaty-sitting day. My neighbor just got a little pigmy goat and my kids got a chance to take care of it. They made him "veggie soup" with water and leaves and they took him for a walk all over our back yard. Wonderboy and Wondergirl kept closely behind the little goat making sure that he ate all the leaves that were in front of his path. They even tried playing soccer and baseball with the poor goat. At the end, the goat was thrilled to go back home, my kids on the other hand were very sad because we couldn't keep the goat to play with them (I was sad too to see him go--having a little animal around the house gave the kids another way to divert their energy).

Oooh--I just realized, I am so close to my 2,000 comment! It is time to celebrate--I am thinking a contest. Stay tune and I'll brew up a little something for our 2,000 commenter..yay!  One year blogging and almost 2,000 comments--so kool!

A new relationship

It is true what they say--sometimes, it is a good idea to live with someone (in this case something) and try it out for awhile and see if you really enjoy it.  I gave it a try, I tried as hard as I could but the truth was that I wasn't really in love with it. I liked it, but it wasn't enough to form a long-time relationship with it. Everytime I rode it, my seat hurt quite a bit--even my cushiony bottom didn't make a difference. The relationship was ok--it got me started and I learned the basics, but in reality I needed something else, something better, so we broke it off. We went our separate ways--she went back to her previous lonely relationship and I went off into the world to find my perfect match.

Being single is sure a difficult thing--so many choices! All of them have one thing or another that I was attracted to--the Townie had some slick old style lines. The Schwinn Cruisers sure gave me comfort with its cushiony seat and the classic style called my name but the bars were just not the most comfortable.

Then, I met her--she was hiding in a corner of the shop. She looked at me and I looked at her and then I felt it, a jolt of electricity passed through both of us! I took her out for a test ride and the moment I mounted, I knew we were meant to be! Her burgundy color with some sleak grey lines won my heart. But it wasn't enough, our relationship needed the approval of the other party involved in the relationship--I mean if we are going to be swinging it together all three of us, hubby had to take her for a test ride too. Hubby's rating: Suspension: Pass; Components: Good; Brand: Good; Comparison to my old one: None--the new one was 300% better!

Meet my new ride--swwwwweeet! Trek Navigator 200. Isn't she just gorgeous...but her beauty is more than just looks--she rides like a cadillac!!

I have been knitting too--by the time you read this, the V Shell above is probably finished and blocking. It is a sample test knit for Soysilk. The yarn is a ribbon style yarn--Phoenix. I am not one that works with ribbon yarns much and let me tell you, this yarn may just change my mind. It knits up beautifully:  a very nice drape and nice feel. I'll post the finished top later in the week.

I am a liberated woman!

Today, I decided to become free to one of my many bondages. No more will I be dependent on someone else to take me around (well--at least not to near-by places). Today, I got off my duff (not-literally) and got the courage to do something that I had never had the nerve to do before. It took me 28 years (almost 29!) but today, I finally learned how to ride a bike! Yes, you read that correctly, today, I learned how to ride a bike--with no training wheels at all! I am so freaking proud of myself!! I want the world to know that Isela aka Purling Sprite can now ride a bike. And since I am just to freaking old to have my Momma show you a picture of my first ride, hubby did the honors of recording this little mini-movie of my ride...enjoy (and laugh as I laughed when I watched it--I look so pathetic--a 28 year old learning how to ride a bike..pretty pathetic, hehehehe)

And now, I shall go and put some ice on my butt because it hurts! No one told me that riding a bike made your bottom hurt. I know I have some padding down there from all the tacos I eat but darn it--it is not enough, I reckon I need to eat a few more tacos to put more padding down there cuz my bottom is sore....me thinks me needs a massage....hehehehehe.

Yay for me...now I can go to rent my own movies and I can even go to the local library---watch out, I am getting liberated. Next thing you know...I may even learn how to drive...and I may even get shoes (jk...hahahahahahahaha).

Look at my sweet ride--it is purple! Now, if I could customize one that said "Purling Sprite Rides" ;).

My Sweeeet Life--in a List

After checking the things in this list, I have come to the realization that I have lead a really boring life. Actually, this morning, on my way to Roy, UT, we had a little panic attack, we were about to cross the railroad crossing when the rails started lowering, we were right in the middle---it was so scary. We crossed as fast as we could, but the first words out of my mouth were "me life flashed before me eyes....it was boring" and to attest to my boring life...here is the list of the things I have done and not done.

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink

02. Swam with wild dolphins

03. Climbed a mountain

04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive

05. Been inside the Great Pyramid

06. Held a tarantula

07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone

08. Said 'I love you' and meant it

09. Hugged a tree

10. Bungee jumped

11. Visited Paris

12. Watched a lightning storm at sea

13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise

14. Seen the Northern Lights

15. Gone to a huge sports game

16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa

17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables

18. Touched an iceberg

19. Slept under the stars

20. Changed a baby's diaper

21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon

22. Watched a meteor shower

23. Gotten drunk on champagne

24. Given more than you can afford to charity

25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope

26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment

27. Had a food fight

28. Bet on a winning horse

29. Asked out a stranger

30. Had a snowball fight

31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can

32. Held a lamb

33. Seen a total eclipse

34. Ridden a roller coaster

35. Hit a home run

36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking

37. Adopted an accent for an entire day

38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment

39. Had two hard drives for your computer

40. Visited all 50 states

41. Taken care of someone who was drunk

42. Had amazing friends

43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country

44. Watched wild whales

45. Stolen a sign

46. Backpacked in Europe

47. Taken a road-trip

48. Gone rock climbing

49. Midnight walk on the beach

50. Gone sky diving

51. Visited Ireland

52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love

53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them

54. Visited Japan

55. Milked a cow

56. Alphabetized your cd's

57. Pretended to be a superhero

58. Sung karaoke

59. Lounged around in bed all day

60. Posed nude in front of strangers

61. Gone scuba diving

62. Kissed in the rain

63. Played in the mud

64. Played in the rain

65. Gone to a drive-in theater

66. Visited the Great Wall of China

67. Started a business

68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken

69. Toured ancient sites

70. Taken a martial arts class

71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight

72. Gotten married

73. Been in a movie

74. Crashed a party

75. Gotten divorced

76. Gone without food for 5 days

77. Made cookies from scratch

78. Won first prize in a costume contest

79. Ridden a gondola in Venice

80. Gotten a tattoo

81. Rafted the Snake River

82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"

83. Got flowers for no reason

84. Performed on stage

85. Been to Las Vegas

86. Recorded music

87. Eaten shark

88. Had a one-night stand

89. Gone to Thailand

90. Bought a house

91. Been in a combat zone

92. Buried one of your parents

93. Been on a cruise ship

94. Spoken more than one language fluently

95. Performed in Rocky Horror.

96. Raised children

97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour

98. Created and named your own constellation of stars

99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country

100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over

101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge

102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking

103. Had plastic surgery

104. Survived an illness that you shouldn't have survived

105. Wrote articles for a large publication

106. Lost over 100 pounds

107. Held someone while they were having a flashback

108. Piloted an airplane

109. Petted a stingray

110. Broken someone's heart

111. Helped an animal give birth

112. Won money on a T.V. game show

113. Broken a bone

114. Gone on an African photo safari

115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced

116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol

117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild

118. Ridden a horse

119. Had major surgery

120. Had a snake as a pet

121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon

122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours

123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states

124. Visited all 7 continents

125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days

126. Eaten kangaroo meat

127. Eaten sushi

128. Had your picture in the newspaper

129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about

130. Gone back to school

131. Parasailed

132. Petted a cockroach

133. Eaten fried green tomatoes

134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey

135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read

136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

137. Skipped all your school reunions

138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language

139. Been elected to public office

140. Written your own computer language

141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream (every day)

142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care

143. Built your own PC from parts

144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you

145. Had a booth at a street fair

146: Dyed your hair

147: Been a DJ

148: Shaved your head

149: Caused a car accident

150: Saved someone's life

There should be 2 more in there but...for privacy purposes they shall stay unmarked, hehehehe.

Show-N-Tell

First let me show you our yummy food, recipe courtesy of Miriam. Yummy, yummy, yummy. Next time, we are going to sprinkle some Lemon-Pepper for a tangy taste. Follow her recipe exactly for a super-crunchy-tasty skin and moist inside chicken. We will be making this chicken often at our house...great taste and super easy to make. We put the potatoes around the chicken and they tasted delicious with the chicken drippings. Thanks for the great recipe Mim!

After dinner, we took a trip to the wonderful world of Staples for toner for the Brother printer and I came back with some little goodies....and the toner too (of course, we didn't remember to look up our printer model so we were a little lost but Sam's photographic memory started working at the nick of time!)

Look at my goodies: Tiny-Itty-Bitty-Gel Pens in all colors.  A cute little clip-on pink calculator that I can clip-on my Patterns Notebook (commonly known in my household as "mom's video game") ..gosh, how I miss back-to-school shopping! Going to Staples is always such a fun experience. I love going down each isle and seeing all the new goodies they have available.

Close-up of the swatch up above:

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino SuperChunky

Project: Ruana for the book. I am lagggin' behind with this one project--the yarn I had for the book did not work and at the end I had to call my friend at LittleKnits and she hooked me up right away with the heavenly Cashmerino. The Ruana is almost there (if you consider having 1/2 of it done and a 1/4 of the other half done as almost done).

Quick Decrease at the Crown

Decreasing the crown for a Gather Removal.

No more bulkyness at the top of the hat! Use this quick method to decrease at the crown. Guideline: last 2-2 ½ inches of the hat.

1. Move stitch to the neighbor peg (from odd to even). Loom ends up as: 1 empty peg, peg with two loops

2. Ski wrap (in and out of the pegs, making sure the yarn ends up to the front of the peg on the pegs with the 2 loops.

3. Knit 2 over 1, only on the very first round, following rounds only lift 1 over 1.

Rep steps 2 and 3 for approx 2-2 1/2 inches.

Remove with Gather Removal Method.