This is what it looks like in our back yard at 6 am. The sun isn’t quite up yet, but it’s on its way. How do I know this? Because I’ve finally decided that there is hardly ever going to be a time when I feel like exercising after I get home from work at night. I tried fooling myself into thinking that after work was the best time for me to do it (since I am so not a morning person), but it just meant that I’d come home, not exercise, and feel slightly guilty the rest of the evening.

So, I heard about the Fitbit and thought maybe that would help. If someone says I’m supposed to walk 10,000 steps a day and do 10 flights of stairs, then those are the numbers I try to hit. And since I started getting up early in the morning to walk for an hour, it has been working. I do like getting it out of the way before work. And I get to see pretty scenes like this (finally – the sun is up above the horizon.):

And this (I love seeing mountains first thing every morning.):

These things have helped me stick to this routine for a couple of months now:

1. Personally, I need to do it every single day of the week. I do take Saturdays and Sundays off, but I’m just about ready to throw at least Saturday into the mix, too. Mondays are a bugger when 6 am rolls around again.
2. I listen to audiobooks. It makes the hour of walking pass by really quickly.
3. I fool my brain. I tell myself that I’m going to walk for 30 minutes (in one direction, away from my house) and then I’ll just walk home. That equals an hour, but the last part of it is just “walking home”.

The downside? I am tired too early in the evening. It’s affecting my knitting, FPS. Somehow I need to learn to be a morning person AND a night person. Is that possible?? I need to finish my Camp Loopy Project Three this weekend. (I’m making a Derecho out of the Loopy Solid Series. So many fun colors to choose from.)

Today’s blog contest question: Are you a night person or a morning person? (And while we’re at it, do you have any tips about sticking to an exercise routine?) Leave a comment below and I’ll draw names for two more skeins of Wollmeise Lace next week.

We do have winners from last week’s blog contest! I’m sending a skein of Wollmeise Lace to Linda in IL and Amber in IN. Congratulations to you two!

Sheri 9162stepssofarfortoday.
Mustwalkbackandforthintheshopafewmoretimes….

Thank you for all of your great book and movie suggestions in last week’s Anniversary contest! I have discovered the benefits of books on tape (or, I guess they call it audiobooks now. Books on tape is so yesterday…) I can walk or knit while listening to good books, and now I have a whole list of titles to explore. We used the Random Number Generator to pick two winners from last week’s comments. We’re sending Sixth Anniversary Kits to Dianne in IN and Leah in MO. Congratulations to you two!

We have a new contest for you again today. (Do you like the weekly contests during our Anniversary Month? We do!) This week’s question is an easy one, I think. What item have you knit or crocheted the most? Socks? Shawls? Sweaters? Blankets? Scarves? Mittens and Gloves? Hats and Cowls? Leave the answer in the comments below and we’ll draw the winner next week. I have two skeins of Wollmeise Lace that we’ll be sending to two winners!

I went to Ravelry to see what the answer would be for me. I’ve missed photoing a few things, but most of what I have knit is on my Rav project page. The answer? Still overwhelmingly socks! Some 60 pairs of socks, about 25 shawls, 30 scarves, 15 gloves/mitts, 10 hats/cowls, a few blankets, a few sweaters, and a few felted bags from the early days. How about you? (You don’t have to give exact numbers – just tell me what you think you have knit the most!)

Sheri ProjectThreeontemporaryhiatusasIknitsomethingelsethisweek

One of my favorite parts of Camp Loopy is seeing all of the amazing projects that you all come up with to knit during each month. I get a year’s worth of ideas (ok, I admit – years and years) just by going through the Camp Photo Galleries. We have been collecting votes for Reader’s Choice favorite for a couple of weeks and it’s time to announce the winner. We have also drawn 3 random winners for all of the entries for Project One. Each of these knitters wins a $35 Loopy Ewe Gift Certificate, which we’ve already deposited into their Loopy accounts.

The Reader’s Choice award goes to Sheryl from CO for her gorgeous Tiong Bahru done in Wollmeise Lace in the Merlot color.

The randomly drawn winners (and thanks for participating!) are Karen from Maine for her Mizzle Shawl done in Trekking XXL, color 411:

And Lena from Norway for her Dahlia Shawl done in Prism Lace, color 111:

And Kathryn from Pennsylvania for her Spectra Shawl done in Dream in Color Smooshy Black Pearl and Fleece Artist 2/6 Blue Lagoon.

Two projects that I have already made (or started) as a result of Project one? My TGV Shawl, which was such a quick knit, and now I’m working on the Derecho for Project Three. (I had planned on a Ripple Rock Shawl, but Dechero won. Ripple Rock is still to come.)

Now it’s time to vote for Project Two! Hop over to the Camp Loopy Project Two Photo Gallery and email us (support@theloopyewe.com) your favorite. We’ll compile the votes for a couple of weeks and will let you know who won the second round!

Did you add any “must knit” patterns to your favorites list from Camp? Or did you knit something and think, “Oh, I need to make this one again, for sure.” I’d love to know what caught your eye this summer.

Sheri whoalsoaddedmanybooksandmoviestotheReadandSeelists

That’s a pretty good combination, isn’t it? First the cashmere show and tell. Elf Roberta knit up this beautiful scarf for her sister-in-law out of Sweet Georgia’s CashSilk Lace in the Summer Skin color. The pattern is Felicia’s CashSilk Fern Lace Scarf, which is free on Ravelry. It uses just one skein. I can tell you, it turns into a beautiful, lightweight luxurious scarf. I think that pattern would also look beautiful done up in fingering weight yarn – something like Madelinetosh Sock or Three Irish Glenhaven Cashmerino Fingering.

We tried a new dessert recipe at our house last week. It’s similar to this one (in a rather anemic looking photo) that I’ve shared with you before, but with the addition of peanut butter. YUM.

Peanut Butter Brownie Trifle

1 brownie mix (for 9 x 13 pan) + eggs, oil, water
1 large containter Cool Whip
2 large boxes of instant chocolate pudding
(prepare each box as directed, as you assemble)
1 bag of peanut butter cups, chopped
3/4 cup of smooth peanut butter
1 (8 oz) pck. cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar

Bake the brownies as directed and let cool. When cool, cute them into bite-sized pieces.

Put the cream cheese in a mixing bowl and add the peanut butter and powdered sugar. Beat until well mixed and smooth. Fold in 1 cup of Cool whip.

Assemble the layers:
1/2 of the brownies
1 box of the pudding prepared as directed and not yet set
1 cup of chopped peanut butter cups
peanut butter/cream cheese/Cool Whip mixture (use the whole thing on this layer)
1/2 of the brownies
1 box of the pudding prepared as directed and not yet set
Frost with the rest of the plain Cool Whip
Top with remaining chopped peanut butter cups

Let set for a few hours (or overnight) and enjoy.

It was fun to read all of your comments on last Friday’s blog post. We’re so glad to have you all here with us on our Sixth Anniversary! I used the Random Number Generator to pick a winner from last week’s comments. The skein of Wollmeise Lace goes to Kimberly in Mt. Pleasant, SC. Congratulations, Kim!

We have another contest this week (since it’s our anniversary month, you know). This week’s question: What’s the best book you’ve read or movie you’ve seen this summer? (I’m looking to add to my book and movie lineup as we move into the fall.) Since this is our second contest of the month, we’ll be giving away two prizes – two of our Sixth Anniversary Kits, which will be making their debut next week. Leave your answers in the comments below and we’ll draw the winners next week!

Sheri goodgrief.OperaonthePandorastation.AbitmuchforFridayAfternoon.

This month we’re celebrating our Sixth Loopy Anniversary! We officially opened our virtual doors on August 1, 2006. We’ve shared a few of these photos before, but celebrations are all about pulling out the scrapbooks and fondly reminiscing, right? Here is a peek at our Loopy (virtual) scrapbook.

The shop started in a tiny corner of our basement, not much bigger than what you can see in this photo – about 90 sq. feet. This was our first group of in-store shoppers. This corner worked well for the first couple of months, and then someone (that might be me …) just kept ordering more yarn and we needed more space.

We decided “who needs a basement?” and expanded from the little corner, into the rest of the finished area that we had.

We had to stack boxes on our front porch and in our front hallway, waiting for the mailman each day. Some days, there were a lot of boxes!

After a year at home, we made the move to office/retail space a few blocks away, and that was our Loopy home for the next 4+ years. After our first year there, we doubled the space by knocking down the walls and taking the offices next door. That was fun, although it made for a bit of an interesting (weird) floor layout.

Last December, we put everything on two large moving trucks, and moved to our current location here in Fort Collins, CO, about an hour north of Denver.

With 4500 sq. ft. here, I’m hoping we will have enough room to put off any other moves for the time being. You all need to come visit so that you can walk in here and look around that corner. It goes down a long way, and every bit of it is filled with yarn! (Here’s a peek down one of our four long aisles.)

Of course none of this would be here without YOU and your incredible support. We love hearing from you, we love pulling and packing orders for you, and we love seeing what you have made when you finish your projects. So often, our yarn companies and indie artisans tell us, “You guys have the BEST customers!” and we totally agree. You are the best. We sure appreciate you.

In celebration of our six years, we will be doing a few different blog contests this month, in addition to a couple of other things. This week’s blog contest question is: How long have you been with us at The Loopy Ewe? I know we have six year Loopy veterans who ordered that very first week, and one day Loopy newbies, who discovered us today when they saw the sign on the building and popped up to see us, hoping “The Loopy Ewe” had something to do with yarn. Leave your answer in the comments below, and we’ll do a random drawing next week for some Wollmeise Lace, that I saved just for our anniversary contests.

Sheri thinkingLoopymightneedtowearapartyhatthismonth

As most of you know, we’re in our second year of Camp Loopy around here, and having a lot of fun with it this summer! Each month the campers are challenged with a new project and today is the day that Project Two needs to be finished and Project Three can be started. It has been great to see all of the photos that have been coming in. And on that note – it’s time to vote for your favorite project from the first month of Camp. You’ll find 768 photos in the Project One Gallery, and we need to award one the “Reader’s Choice” award. YOU are responsible for that! Please take a look through the gallery and email your favorite choice to support@theloopyewe.com. We’ll give it a week or so for voting and will announce the winners soon.

To go along with your camp knitting, I have a new s’mores recipe for you today. We tried it out a couple of weeks ago, and it’s wonderful.

S’Mores Dessert Pizza

1 tube of Pillsbury Sugar Cookie
Slice and Bake dough
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 Tbl. softened butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups mini marshmallows
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cut the cookie dough into slices and then pat them out on a pizza pan or baking stone, so that it becomes one big cookie base.

Mix the brown sugar, oats, butter and flour together and sprinkle this over the cookie crust.

Sprinkle chocolate chips over the crumb mix.

Bake at 375 degrees for 5 minutes. Top with marshmallows and then bake for 10 more minutes, or until marshmallows are golden brown.

I’ll be knitting and watching the Opening Ceremonies tonight. How about you?

Sheri andmabyemakingS’moresPizzaagain