Χριστος Ανεστη! Christ Is Risen!

Χριστός ανέστη εκ νεκρών, θανάτω θάνατον πατήσας και τοις εν τοις μνήμασι ζωήν χαρισάμενος.

Christ is risen, with his death he won death, and he gave Life to those who were in graves.

Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is risen!

Happy Easter to all my Eastern Orthodox friends, family and fellow bloggers! I apologize for being so late with this Easter/Paschal greeting!

If you would like to read the Pascal greeting in other languages, see Monachos.net. I've also given some of the versions below:

Albanian Krishti u Ungjall Vertet Unjal!
Arabic Al Masieh Qam! Haken Qam!
Bulgarian Hristos Voskrese! Vo Istina Voskrese!
English Christ Is Risen! Truly He Is Risen!
French Le Christ est Ressuscite! En Verite Il est Ressuscite!
German Christus ist Erstanden! Er ist Wahrhaftig Erstanden!
Greek Christos Anesti! Alithos Anesti!
Italian Cristo e Risorto! Veramente e Risorto!
Latin Christus Resurrexit! Vere Resurrexit!
Romanian Cristos a Inviat! Adevarat a Inviat!
Russian Khristos Voskrese! Voistinu Voskrese!
Ukranian Khristos Voskres! Voistinu Voskres!

In addition, many wishes to all Georges, Georgias, Raphaels, Raphaellas, Irenes, Nicholases and Nicolettas.....

Yesterday was the feast day of Saint George, The Great Martyr and Triumphant (yes, the same Saint George who slew the dragon, although there is much more history accredited to him).

As liberator of captives, defender of the poor, physician of the ailing, and champion of Kings, beseech Christ our God, O great martyr George, Standard Bearer, for the salvation of our souls.

I wish my darling Uncle George M. (and our other uncles and cousins, friends, family friends) many years of happiness and good health.

Today is the feast day of Saint Raphael the Archimandrite, Saint Nicholas the deacon and Saint Irene the 12-year old martyr. My best friend's daughter is named Raphaella...she was dedicated to Saint Raphael...I wish her life-long happiness and health.

A blessed life to all. May we rejoice in the presence of our Lord and may he grace us with his blessings.

A new look

Well, I'm still awake due to a feverish toddler, for which I must thank my older child. So, I thought to add some more ramblings, non-yarn related.

See anything new here?

Yep, my hair is longer and blonder. Gone is the dark & reddish colour. I have pretty blond highlights now. No, actually look closer (click on the photo if that helps). Yep, that's right. I have added a piece of wire & plastic to the contents of my mouth. I now wear a retainer since Thursday.

Although my teeth were not at all horrible, the dream of straight top teeth finally got to me and after the suggestion of my dentist (who's also a family friend), I decided to go for the retainer as it may work for my teeth and isn't such a pain as full braces. He preferred I try veneers instead but who has $300+ per tooth? Certainly not me. Dental benefits wouldn't cover them because they'd be considered cosmetic. Plus, veneers look like Chiclets to me. (No offense to anyone who has them, especially if they look great.) However, I am covered at 60% for orthodontics (mind you, isn't that cosmetic?) and since I'm covered under health & dental benefits for the duration of my severance period, I figured why not.

Well, I now ask myself WHY???? My teeth are slightly sore, my tongue has been cut on the little wires behind the front teeth, the roof of my mouth is sore, I'm still not used to talking yet with this apparatus in my mouth (I sound like someone whose whole mouth is frozen), my saliva production has increased what must be three-fold in my view, and I can't chew gum to my pleasing! My sister, who has what I call the million-dollar mouth due to extensive orthodontic work in her teens, has comforted me by telling me that at least my speech will get better within the week.

After that work is done, I will be considering bleaching my not-so-pearly-whites (they're more like yellow and have been so for most of my life). But we'll get to that road one day.... Plus, I need to quit that occasional sin stick (cigarette). No use to invest in bleaching if I'm still smoking, even casually.

Old friends and new ones

Remember this? The "Weekend Wonder"?

(See this post in case you need to refresh your memory.)

Remember it started out like this during the Crochet Olympics?

Well, that's as far as it got during that whole event. Some weekend wonder, huh? I had so much other garbage going on at the time and in the period just after that I just ignored the sweater until last week.

And this is my progress last week. I managed to complete the back. Not bad, huh? I just hope it's not too wide for me. I usually wear size XS or S and I suspect this is a medium. Well, time will tell after I complete the front panels and sew the pieces together. In all, I'm quite pleased so far.

In other ventures, I've decided on my next project. This came to me during a chance visit to Lewiscraft last week. For those who haven't heard the news or visited Lewiscraft lately, all stores are closing...even the website has been shut down. A true shame as there are no Canadian craft store chains now. So sad. I purchased the pattern booklet and the yarn, Patons Brilliant, on clearance and at an additional 7% off due to my Lewiscrafter membership. Although I love this as a poncho, ponchos are on their way out. So, I've decided I'll knit one panel only but double its length to make it a wrap instead. I'm hoping it'll work!

And lastly, this free gift was included with an issue of Simply Knitting Magazine I purchased not long ago. I forgot all about them until I cleared out my knitting/crochet/yarn/needle/hook caddy after we moved. Aren't these labels great! Sooo much better than the usual "Knitted by Nana" type labels I've found here. The magazine is really nice too, especially at the price paid (it's a UK mag thus typical import prices apply): great patterns, cool tips and not too much advertising. Plus, gotta love those Brits for including a free gift in every issue! At least it makes the price worth it!! I may consider a subscription one day.....

Fleece Artist Bling

Yay is me! At the last ROCK guild meeting on April 6, my ticket was one of the ones chosen in the monthly draw. Out of all the available prizes I chose this pewter Painted Petroglyph Pin and Petroglyph Earrings. These are sold by Fleece Artist and handmade in Nova Scotia. I was soooo thrilled! Firstly, I love pewter. Secondly, I know that Nova Scotia pewter is of the best in the world and the craftmanship is just outstanding. Thirdly, I love lambs & sheep (as does my friend Pirk who had a greenish tinge to her face when she saw I chose this). Fourthly, I already understand the symbolism of the Petroglyphs as I spent my summers growing up at a campground right next door to the Petroglyphs Provincial Park (well, right south of it) and visited this park and its artifacts many times. And lastly, I have a beeeeautiful pin to hold my shawls together! I also vow to wear the earrings to each knitting & crochet guild meeting I go to from now on...well, at least for the next while. :)

Never able to resist...

...buying something in a yarn shop.

After dropping off eldest son at his Greek School class on Tuesday afternoon, I decided to venture to the Wool Mill with the purpose of investigating and possibly buying yarn for a yet-to-be-decided-and-if-I-will-make-it wedding afghan for a wedding gift. I arrived there at 4:55 p.m. and there was a notice on the door saying "Be Back at 5:00". So, instead of hanging out in front of the door I ventured over to a hobby shop a few doors down. I picked up the 2006 Thomas the Tank Engine Yearbook for Demetri, a little wooden glider kit for Demetri for only $3.95 and the cutest little kit for me. Actually, it's a pencil case kit for little girls, but I thought it would be oh so cute for my hooks. Plus, it's pink and I like pink (like you couldn't tell).

After I paid the damage at the hobby store (which was under $20 by the way so pretty good in my eyes), I ventured back to the Wool Mill. Now, I didn't find what I wanted there however I did drool over a gorgeous wool/acrylic blend, but wouldn't dare purchase at $8.99 a ball when 20 balls are needed for a crocheted afghan! Yikes! Maybe for something else, but definitely not for an afghan...unless I decide to do a knitted one one day. Seriously, after that venture, I began to really rethink whether I should do the afghan or not. I may decide better after seeing what's been registered at The Bay. BTW, I was asked to be matron-of-honour at this wedding so you can understand how special this is for me...the bride-to-be, my friend Sue, is one of my oldest and closest friends and this is such an honour. But, with the responsibilities of the bridal shower and girls' night out....plus dealing with my own brood, job-hunt and new job eventually, in addition to our future house-hunt, well, I think I'll have enough on my plate between now and September anyway. A lovely gift might do the trick instead.

Back to the topic in question. Now, after patting super nice aforementioned yarn, I found some nice little doo-dads and just had to splurge on myself. See pic below.

1) Super neat point protectors which came in a package of 4 for around $2
2) Needle & hook gauge I hadn't seen before (I seem to lose these to my children anyhow)
3) Very cute crochet hook case
4) 4.00mm circs for a future knitting project

(Super neat point protectors)

I've been wanting a crochet hook case for a while and even contemplated sewing or crocheting one because I was never happy with the ones I found out there. (The fabrics were all so tacky!) This one's definitely not tacky and just my style. Actually, I think Sherri will be jealous because of the lady-bugs. :) I must hide it from her! LOL! Oh and many many thanks to Sherri and sweet Janette at Wool-Tyme in Kingston, I now have a full set of Aero steel & aluminum crochet hooks...did I mention Aero hooks are my favourites? And so now I can keep them handy & nicely stored away in my adorable case! Yipee! And thanks again Janette for the order and thanks to Sherri to bringing them back from Kingston! SWAK to both!

Angelic faces

Now, tell me, how can I not be a proud mama? And I really don't think I'm too biased when I saw that these are two of the most beeeeeautiful boys in the world. :-) Blessed children, all changed and settling down for bed. Oh, to be (almost) six or (almost) two again....

On a knitting note, I completed my third London Beanie. The second one walked away before I could take a pic of it. It was done in all black, for Lucas' godfather. Just in time for the last cool nights of the spring (he works as the head doorman at a downtown nightclub).

This one, in the reverse colours of what I had done the first one in, is child-sized. I made it especially for our nephew/godson. I only changed the pattern as follows: 4 1/2mm needles and used a 1x1 ribbing for the bottom. It fits like a charm, with enough room for head growth as needed for any 5 1/2 year old child.

A New Pill!

I just couldn't resist blogging this:

The website is valid too!