Monday, October 09, 2006

Progress

I've been trying to get this post written for four days, but things have been pretty crazy around here. Progress has been made with both knitting and on the house!! Hurrah!

First up is the knitting, of course. I finished my Sugar-Free Walk socks!

Karen's Sugar-Free Diabetes Walk Socks by Chrissy Gardiner
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, 30001 and 300003
Needles: Clover and Knit Picks Size 3 DPNs
Cast On: September 9, 2006
Completed: October 5, 2006

It goes without saying that these socks are very near and dear to my heart!! Chrissy is pledging 100% of the proceeds from all patterns sold before my Walk-A-Thon on Sunday - and last I checked she was up to an amazing $425!!! But fund-raising aside, this was a really fun pattern to knit, and the perfect use for the three balls of yarn I had found in my Christmas socking last year. The little cables are so cute, and kept the knitting interesting. And the Cashmerino Aran knit up really quickly, so I'm thinking about knitting another pair or two for Christmas presents. As for this pair, I will be proudly wearing them on my 6 mile walk on Sunday!! (By the way, my pledge total has climbed to $820, plus the $425 from Chrissy, putting me at $1245 with six days left to go!! Thank you all so much.)

And now, on to the house. We found out at the last minute (like 10 minutes before the workers arrived) that they were starting on Thursday instead of Friday. So we scrambled around trying to do all the last minute things like taking down the mailbox and house numbers and putting away the deck furniture. Then I was exiled to my parent's house all day Thursday and Friday while the old siding was being removed. It tested positive for lead paint, as all old houses do, so safety precautions needed to be taken and they recommended we leave while the work was being done. We were still able to come back to sleep though.

Right now the house looks like this.

If you are interested, click on the picture above to see an album of before and during pictures. I'll be adding more each day as things progress - including the work that was done Friday and Saturday (I'll be taking pictures of those sections some time today).

It's so exciting to see the house evolving, but it's also more of a disruption to our routine than I had imagined. As problems get uncovered, we are trying to fix the minor ones that we can handle on our own. And it's tough to schedule our day around the contractor's schedules. (For example, we must be showered and dressed before the men start walking on the roof outside the bathroom window!!) But we are so thrilled with the whole process. We don't even mind sleeping in a COLD house protected only by some sheathing and a tarp. Well, maybe we mind a little, but it's so fun knowing that it will only get warmer from here on out, because the insulation guy arrives tomorrow to get started. After seven un-insulated winters in this house, I'm looking forward to a warm home this year!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

It must be so awesome to have a pair of your "own" socks!! And insulation can't be beat. Our apartment was freezing for two winters, and we took some steps to insulate it (as best we could) and last winter was amazingly different. Heating costs go down, too!

Sonya said...

Your socks look great, Karen! I know you'll just fly through the 6 miles wearing them. Looks like major progress is happening on the house. A few summers ago Kevin and I sided our house and built 2 decks. He called it Project Summer. I called it Sucky Summer.

Wannabe said...

I love the socks! Boy have you gotten really good at socks!!! :) I'm so scared of cables! LOL!

I want to see the pics of the house but your linkie isn't working! Hope you have a fantastic week!

Anonymous said...

For some reason the ADT sign outside the naked house cracks me up beyond words. Have fun in your warm house this winter.

Anonymous said...

Oh, I love your socks, they're absolutely gorgeous - what a great job you did with the cabling!
Wow, I can't wait to see the photos of your newly renovated house, it's going to look so beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Your socks came out great! I have the yarn and the pattern and hope to start them soon. I can't wait to see the house when it's all finished!

Nathalie said...

wow! its a big undertaking. The Hubster and I finished renovating our first home last Christmas. It was great when it was finished. You could have a look at the archives, I think I posted photos of the finished thing in early January 2006

MissyJoon said...

L-O-V-E the socks, and wishing you a speedy "my house is being redone, but I'll live through it week!

Anonymous said...

It's going to be fun tracking your renovation progress.
The socks are perfect! I love the green heels. What a wonderful idea to wear them on your walk!

knitannie said...

Renovation WIP photos are great, keep them coming. Love the contrast heel on the socks.

Anonymous said...

Funny, the house just looks like skin & bones! Working on the house is hard, but the results are always worth it!

Olga said...

Goodness gracious, I can't believe you've had seven uninsulated winters! You're going to be so cozy this coming season!

Olga said...

oh, and p.s....love the new banner! ;-)

Anonymous said...

*sigh* I need to start covering windows with plastic - I'm not looking forward to it but it's either that or replace our original windows (200 year old glass doesn't insulate well...) :o\

Your house, however, is going to be toasty warm and I'm SO jealous! ;o)

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