Lots going on today and I’ve been singing some songs. Want to know what?

“I’m Leavin’ on a Jet Plane”. Tomorrow I leave for a long weekend in the mountains in Colorado. This is my annual Girlfriends Weekend with a few (or 11, to be exact) of my dearest friends. All 12 of us convene in my parents’ condo near Keystone/Breckenridge for a weekend of talking, shopping, movies, eating, and scrapbooking. This year my plan is some simplified digital scrapbooking and as much knitting as I can work in. (Because knitting and talking is easy.) I’ll be back on Sunday night, and WH and KD will be packing up your orders this weekend while I’m gone. (Unless you’re all waiting for the shop update on Monday night/Tuesday – which is going to be fun!)

“One of These Thing is Not Like the Other” – wasn’t that a song on Sesame Street? (Great. Now that song is going to be running through my head all day long….) Zoe had a few friends over yesterday and I thought I’d snap their photo. Quite a challenge to get four cats to line up and stay put, but we pulled it off. They tore up the house together and we’re not inviting them back.

“Born in the USA”. Or maybe it should be MADE in the USA. Are these stitchmarkers cute or what? Katie (who makes our extremely popular Loopy/Louise/Bart stitchmarkers) has come up with a fun way to celebrate Project Spectrum – with a Stitchmarker Club! You need to go sign up. Katie is also coming up with another set of stitchmarkers “exclusive to The Loopy Ewe” based on this new technique, so stay tuned for more on that later. (I probably could’ve found a more appropriate song title for this one, but I got tired of reading the song titles list in the “B’s” and so this one won. Are there song titles with sheep in them? How about a song about stitchmarkers? That’d be catchy. Or knitting in general? I couldn’t think of a one. Someone needs to write one for us.)

“Happy Birthday” to me! Today is my birthday and look at the wonderful cake that Wonder Husband and Knitting Daughter baked for me! Are they the greatest, or what? (Some of you might think this looks suspiciously like a dessert from our cruise. Ok, you’re right. I’m just wishing this was my birthday cake!) How am I spending my day? Knitting, dinner out with Wonder Husband and Knitting Daughter (very much missing College Boy) and packing to leave town tomorrow. I hope you all have a great rest of the week and I’ll catch up with you again on Monday!

Sheri don’treallyneedcakebutdefinitelyhavingColdstoneCreameryCakeBatterIceCreamtoday

Well here it is Monday evening, and still no blog for the day. Where has the day gone? Well, here is a bit of what kept me busy and blogless today: Boxes coming in and boxes going out. This is pretty much the way it is around here. The yarns come in, and the yarns go out. It’s a good thing. (You know, they look a lot nicer going out, don’t they?) Just an FYI for you – I’m heading out of town on Thursday (I’ll tell you about it in Wednesday’s post) so we’re not putting any more new yarns up on the website until next Monday evening. That way, WH and Knitting Daughter will have just manageable amounts of orders to get out while I’m gone. But OH MY do I ever have great stuff to put up next week and in the weeks to come. Things are really exciting around here! I have more Apple Laine that arrived today, and our newest indie dyer (Perchance to Knit) shipped our order today. Zen String shipped to us last week but it hasn’t arrived yet, and more Panda Cotton shipped today. We also have more Yarn Pirate, more All Things Heather, Sweet Georgia, 4 brand new lines, and 2 new accessories expected in any day. Plus more Loopy, Louise and Bart stitchmarkers arrived today. And just wait till I tell you about the new stitchmarkers Katie’s going to do for us, and the other cute ones she’s doing. Picture on Wednesday. But remember – I’m saving all of this to put up next Monday night …. or Tuesday. We’ll see how much I can get done on my first day back from my long weekend off. You will definitely want to check in. Consider yourself warned…..

Today IS the day that I announce the winner of the February Blog Contest and the person who gets the monthly Loopy Loot! Your knitting tips were amazing – what a treasure trove of ideas. Thank you so much for sharing them. I loved reading through every one of them and I know others did as well. We had 146 entries and I used the random number generator to pick a winner. The winner is: Tracey! Tracey, email me your address (sheriATtheloopyeweDOTcom) and I’ll get your fun prize out to you.

That’s all for now – back to unpacking boxes of new stuff, waiting for their debut. Hugs to you all.

Sheri Ididknitthecutesthatyesterdaybutit’soutofoneofournewlinessoit’sstillasecretshhhhh….

Time for another Three Things Post today. (Why three? Because it’s easier than thinking of four.)

Three things I’m in the middle of knitting: (ok – that would’ve been easy to make four)

1. My second Frank sock.
2. My second Faded Jeans Panda Cotton sock.
3. My second Cherry Tree Hill Java sock.

(See a pattern there?)

Three new things I bought this week: (ok – that would’ve been easy to make four, too)

1. This wonderful sheep by talented Laurie (seriously – go see all of her stuff. Now I want the big brown sheep.)
2. The book Favorite Socks by Ann Budd and Anne Merrow (had to order it at Barnes & Noble, but it finally came in)
3. The book The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs

(Not that I have time to read. But I have delusions of time.)

Three questions that you all have been asking:

1. Are you getting any more Sweet Georgia orders? (Yes. One more.)
2. Are you getting any more Loopy Stitchmarkers? (Yes. Soon. And always more in the works!)
3. Are you getting any more Apple Laine soon? (Yes. Soon. And always more in the works!)

Three things that have bugged me this week:

1. My printer just spit out foreign characters instead of a bar code on a shipping label. (What??)
2. The stray cat that keeps meowing outside our front door at night, making me panic that Zoe got out.
3. The fact that I can’t ever seem to get to bed before 1:00 am.

Three things that have delighted me this week:

1. All of your fun emails/testimonials/blog comments/knitting tips. (You know, I think you’re wonderful.)
2. All of your great orders. (You know, I think you’re wonderful.)
3. All of the incredible recipes you have sent me. (You know, I think you’re wonderful.)

One of those came from Dynna, my Loopy friend in Michigan. She sent the recipe, and then she just went ahead and sent me the homemade cookies, too!! (And the most wonderful bag of Michigan dried cherries that I have ever tasted. I’m trying to save enough to make my own batch of cookies, but I keep snacking on them.) You must try these. The tangy cherries and the sweetness of the soft cookie, just make these downright delicious.

Cherry Pecan Cookies

3/4 c. dried cherries
1/4 c. orange juice
Put these together in a small pan and bring to boil. Cool and drain.

1/2 c. soft butter
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
Cream together and then add:

1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
Next add dry ingredients that have been mixed together:

1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
Stir in:

1 c. quick oats
drained cherries
1/2 c. toasted pecans

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Delicious!

Three things I’m going to do today, in this particular order:

1. Get a Peppermint Mocha.
2. Drop off all the international orders at the post office.
3. Head to my LYS to look at someone else’s yarn for an hour.

So, what three things do you want to tell me today?

Sheri alsofoundCOOLnewyarns&accessoriesforTheLoopyEwethisweek,staytuned!

I had to look up how to spell idiosyncrasies – and it still doesn’t look right, but my Webster’s says it is. More on that in a moment…..

I’ve had a great time reading all of your knitting tips! I’m pulling out some of my pretty crystal vases and using them for needles. (And I loved the tip about using your first spinning bits for the bottom of it. Except that I’m avoiding spinning for as long as possible. I’m afraid that I will love it and there is no time in the day for it now.) I like that the tips ranged from actual technique tips, to organizing tips, to …. well, pretty much all over the board. Keep adding to them. And I would love for some of you to take photos of your storage/organizing systems for our “Knitting Nooks & Storage Ideas” gallery. That would be fun. Several of you commented on the fact that you write everything down in a notebook. That’s exactly where the idea for Loopy’s Knit Notes for Socks came from. I was writing things down and just wanted a nicer little book with fill-in-the-blanks on part of the page so that I wasn’t re-writing the same things over and over. Of course there is plenty of space that is blank as well, for adding any other details. Thank you for all of your great tips – I knew you’d rise to the challenge!

Today’s topic – Search Engines. I was perusing the list of things that people had typed into Search Engines (like G**gle) that brought them to The Loopy Ewe. It shows what the word or phrase was, and how many people, using that phrase, have then clicked on The Loopy Ewe and come for a visit to the website. So – there is something on the website or in the blog that makes the search engine think that THIS is a viable option for what they are looking for. Here are just a few that I jotted down. Some are understandable, and some just left me scratching my head:

- “how to put perm rods in your husband’s hair”

- “loopy people photos”

- “How much is too much front loading washing machines”

- “How many shots in a venti Starbucks”

- “Ugly foot contest”

- “Grey wool birkenstock clog”

- “Chocolate covered strawberies longevity”

- “Purchase 12 silver bed and bathroom door knobs”

- “What pan size do you use for St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake”

- “Vera Bradley recipes corn salad”

- “martha frank”

- “life with loopy”

- “college fun movie”

- “for what did they eat colonial peanut butter fudge”

Search Engines are handy, but they’re also a bit weird, aren’t they? Just makes you wonder. (And if any of the above have meanings that I don’t know, then I don’t want to know. Ok?)

In Loopy News – more yarn is expected this week and next (and we’ll put them up when we get them photo-ed). Yes, I have one more Sweet Georgia order coming in, but it’s small. About 1/3 the size of our regular Sweet Georgia orders. (The size and colors were up to Felicia this time, so I have no idea what colors we’re getting.) I don’t anticipate putting that up until the first or second week in March – it hasn’t arrived yet. I do have some fun accessories coming in that you’ll like, and I have two more indie-dyers that I made plans with this week, who will show up later in the spring. More Scarlet Fleece shipped yesterday, and more Apple Laine is on the way as well. We’re always watching out for you and your knitting needs!

Sheri Zoehasdecidedthatthecomputergivesoffwarmth&sheneedstositrightinfrontofit

I don’t like No Mail Mondays and I don’t quite get it. We have President’s Day to celebrate … past presidents? Lincoln and Washington? What? And do people honestly go out and have celebrations that cause them not to be able to work today, thus giving many a day off? I can see being off for the Fourth of July – there are parades and picnics and fireworks. On Martin Luther King day there are remembrances and ceremonies and special events. But what happens on President’s Day that necessitates a no work day? (Or – more to the point – a no mail day?) I’m glad to have Knitting Daughter home, and I’m glad for all of you who get a day off today because of it, but I sure wish the mail was still going through. I have a bucketload of boxes here (ok, way more than a bucketload) that I know you’re all waiting for at your house. Alas – it’s a No Mail Monday.

So as long as you’re off work, and not getting mail today, you might want to pop on over and check out all the new yarns we put up! Wonder Husband worked on photos all weekend long, just for us. We have new Yarn Pirate colorways, new J-Knits colorways, more Cherry Tree Hill colorways in both solids and variegates, and lots and lots and lots of Lorna’s Laces in solids and variegateds. Please know, that I have more Yarn Pirate, more J-Knits, and more Lorna’s Laces on order, so if you miss a color you really wanted, it’s already in the works again. Our goal is to always have the regular “big yarn companies” in stock, and to get orders from our wonderful indie dyers as often as they can dye up big orders for us. Some of the big companies are great about getting new orders out within 2 weeks, others don’t keep as much stock and we wait anywhere from 6-10 weeks for an order. (That’s always fun – thinking, “Hmmm – what colors will we be out of 10 weeks from now, that I ought to order today?”) I do have more of all the new colors of Lorna’s Laces coming back in in a couple of weeks – so if you miss them today, watch for those to be back in stock even quicker. I also added Needle Gauges (am I the only one that needs one of these in every knitting bag?) and Circular Needle Point Protectors in the Fun Accessories section.
I finished the first Crystal Palace Panda Cotton sock and I love it. (Note – I didn’t even knit out the skein, so this is out of just under one skein with my size 11 feet, knit on size 1 needles with 60 stitches.) It’s such a comfortable sock on my foot and this pattern knit up SO quickly. I will do this one again, for sure. You really ought to try this yarn. It’s worth it just to see the cute little skeins (someone called them skeinlets!) in person. I’ll put it up in the photo gallery as well. Did you notice that I added The Loopy Ewe Quarterly Challenge photo gallery over the weekend? I have already had people sending in their Frank and Martha photos, so it was time. Remember, it’s easy for you to add these photos yourself via your Loopy Ewe account. Who else has finished their Franks and Marthas?

It’s time for our February blog contest! I will draw a name next Monday, from all of the comments on this post. The winner will receive our monthly “Loopy Loot” prize. (And it’s a good prize – lot’s of fun stuff in there!) I thought it’d be fun to share knitting tips for this one. It can be an organizing idea, a stitching idea, a storage idea, or any idea that you have come up with to make knitting and/or stashing better in your life. Here are two of my latest thoughts. I bought this over-the-door shoe holder to put on the back of our closet door, and I keep my favorite handknit socks in there where they’re easy to see. Of course you can only fit so many pairs in there, but it’s fun to keep favorites on display like that. My other tip is that I make an enlarged copy of the stitch pattern that I’m using on the cuff of my socks in progress, attach it to a piece of cardstock to make it sturdier, and then can keep that in my Zelda bag (where my current sock project always resides) without having to put the whole pattern in there. When I’m done with those socks, I tuck the card into the top-loader with that pattern, and keep them all in my pattern notebook. That way, the next time I want to use that pattern, the pattern card is already done and ready for me.

So – tell me your favorite tip, either original or a good idea heard elsewhere – and we’ll all have fun reading them! Then, pop over to The Loopy Ewe to check out the new yarns……..

Sheri thinkI’llgobackandfinishmysecondFRANKsocknow

Well, as you might imagine, Knitting Daughter absolutely loved her custom-dyed colorway. It was so fun to see her read the tag and realize it was all hers! She is in the middle of a pair of socks in Yarn Pirate’s Hydrangea, but says as soon as she’s done with those, she’s casting on her Sweet Jules. I can’t wait to see them knit up. Here is the photo of the colorway. Do you like it? I ordered it in the Merino/Tencel, which is coming in an order from Yarn Pirate and will be up next week. Knitting Daughter gets to keep it for herself in the BFL, which was special for her. (That BFL? You all loved that right out of here in about a day. We’ll get more of that when Miss Yarn Pirate gets more of that yarn in. She was so wonderful to share those skeins with me.) Knitting Daughter also thought it was so fun that you all left wonderful birthday wishes for her on Wednesday!

I’m heading out for the day and won’t be back until tonight …. but I will be packing your orders up from today, when I get home. I promise! Remember, there is no mail on Monday, so although the orders will go out tomorrow, you won’t get them until Tuesday. Hard to wait an extra day, I know. Next week I expect to be putting more yarn up from: Yarn Pirate, Zen String, Lorna’s Laces, Cherry Tree Hill, and Claudia Hand Painted, as well as some new accessories. Keep checking in with us. And hey – have you checked the photo galleries lately? We have LOTS of Socks on Trees up there! (Have you also seen how the photos pop up under that product when you’re shopping on the website? Web Guy is so great.) Please keep adding your photos to the galleries. You can do that easily from your Loopy Ewe account. It won’t appear right away – it comes to me first for verification and approval – but it will be up as soon as I click the ok. I am working on getting the Loopy Ewe Quarterly Challenge gallery up, because I already have Frank and Martha photos from some of you to go in there. You all are so great about sharing and encouraging and inspiring each other! No wonder I think you’re wonderful. And speaking of wonderful, do you ever read our Testimonials section? You’ve have been so good about sending those in regularly, too, and I love having them up there. I know that sometimes people stumble upon our website and wonder if we’re ok to do business with. Those really help. Like I said – you’re just plain wonderful.

Today’s recipe is the best pork roast I have had in a long time! Diane in Massachusetts sent me this, and it was SO easy that we tried it right away. It turns out incredibly tender and delicious. The whole family liked it. (Do remember that I’m not a food stylist and while it may not look absolutely wonderful in the photo – trust me. It is.)

Crock Pot Pork Roast

1 Boneless Pork roast
1 envelope dried onion soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup DR. PEPPER…….

Throw it all in and do the crock pot thing…….8-10 hrs on low. SO GOOD. And of course crockpotting buys you more knitting time. That’s the end goal in all of this. Diane – thank you again for sharing this wonderful recipe with all of us! Next week’s recipe will be Cherry Pecan Cookies because someone (and I told her she’s my new best friend) sent me a whole batch of them in the mail yesterday. YUM! You will definitely want to make them. I need to get a photo before they are all gone.

Sheri IcaughtZoeontheheatventtoday
eventhoughshedoeslove
herCozyCushionandprefers
tobenappingonitmostoftheday