The Crankypants Blog Experiment

29/366

2012-01-29T17:26:00.003-05:00

Today was a fabulous Sisters in Stitches meetup and fiber swap at the most beautiful Beaufort House Inn here in AVL. I got to hang with one of my stitchin-est besties (we were cross 366-ing), unload some yarn and gear that was being neglected and scored some sweet little prints for projects to be decided later. My friend Erica- in the middle up there- is the innkeeper at the Beaufort (I know, right?) and it is always a treat when we get to invade the cozy and historical dining rooms for stitching and coffee drinking. You can almost picture belles of old doing the same handcrafts in that very space. Pretty awesome.

28/366

2012-01-28T21:15:00.003-05:00

Well, it's official- my folks are Yankees no more, but bon fide residents of South Carolina! This will be the first time in his life that Henry has grandparents living closer than 700 miles away. I look forward to many many more downtown walks and hot chocolates in our future! Hooray!

27/366

2012-01-27T21:30:00.003-05:00

Looking for a non-sugary Valentine's gift for your sweetheart? How about some beastie juggling bags? Stocking in the Etsy shop Monday morning!

26/366

2012-01-26T18:46:00.001-05:00

24/366

2012-01-24T20:34:00.002-05:00

WIP.

23/366

2012-01-23T20:51:00.003-05:00

Here is the first little batch of Monster-o-Grams for Valentine's Day. They will soon be outfitted with locally handmade lollipops bearing sweet banners of lurve for the occasion and popped into the Etsy shop. Holler if you want to claim one before everyone else gets a shot!

22/366

2012-01-22T16:07:00.001-05:00

21/366

2012-01-21T22:03:00.001-05:00

On guard, waiting for the attempted squirrel invasion.

20/366

2012-01-20T19:47:00.004-05:00

Alright, so I couldn't get a good 'after' picture, he couldn't stop making goofy faces. It is seriously cute, though, and I have 346 days left to get a better one. He was reluctant to cut his trademark 'physicist' mop that short and insisted he just wanted a trim, but I finally convinced him to go shorter by showing him this picture of Benedict Cumberbatch, aka: Sherlock, aka: the voice of Stephen Hawking in Into the Universe. Playing with a Rubik's cube. Even my little contrarian couldn't resist that geekbomb.

19/366

2012-01-19T20:20:00.003-05:00

Can you tell how impressed Henry is with my ghost?

Take a good look at that shaggy mop, my friends- Mr. Man is getting a hairs cut tomorrow. We'll see how much either of us has the guts to chop off...

18/366

2012-01-18T14:22:00.003-05:00

My house is almost 100 years old. I love it, though sometimes it feels like some cranky old man we didn't know we invited to live in our guest bedroom. Right now the plaster (with a little help from an 8 year old who can't resist picking at a crack) is begging for some new paint. Kyle is color blind, so I'm kind of flying solo on picking a new color. These paint chips have been stuck in the woodwork for a week and I'm still no closer to making up my mind. What do you think- blue, green or yellow?

17/366

2012-01-17T16:52:00.002-05:00

Here's the second monster of the day. I told you that January was the month of the monster! This little guy was knit with the Mr. Roboto colorway and coordinating trim from Green Strings. I am kind of in love with how they knit up and they are super squishy.

Since I'm only posting a single picture per posting here these day, you can see more custom photos on the Crankypants Facebook page, along with specials, sneak peeks and other Cranky goodness.

16/366

2012-01-17T11:48:00.002-05:00

Darn it, I missed yesterday. That means two today. Stay tuned...

15/366

2012-01-15T19:49:00.002-05:00

You know you live in a geek family when your husband buys, and 8 year old eats, a vegetable because of its 'fractal patterning'. No, I have no idea what this vegetable is...

14/366

2012-01-14T20:27:00.003-05:00

Fluffy towel.
Kindle with Pride, Prejudice and Zombies.
My old blue claw foot full of piping hot water and a few bubbles.
Yes, please.

13/366

2012-01-13T16:48:00.003-05:00

While we didn't get the snow we thought we were in for, Henry and I found that the a whole chunk of our backyard is covered in these crazy ice fingers. I have no idea how they formed, but they are pretty awesome.

12/366

2012-01-12T08:06:00.003-05:00

I can hardly believe it, but Valentine's Day is coming up on us just as we are recovering from the Big Winter Holidays. It is almost time for me to get back into the studio and whip up a batch of Monster-o-Grams and Ninja-o-Grams for folks to start sending to your sweethearts. Monster and Ninja-o-Grams are stuffed guys about 6" tall with a locally crafted lolli-banner tucked into a heart shaped pocket on the front. The little guys are perfect for use as tooth pillows or to pass secret messages after Valentine's is over. If anyone has any color requests, let me know. Otherwise, look for them to stock soon in the Etsy shop.

11/366

2012-01-11T20:57:00.003-05:00

Today was a day for knitting, coffee and awesome lobster rain boots. Okay sun, you can come home now.

Note: I was informed yesterday that, since this is a leap year, this is actually now the 366 project!

10/365

2012-01-10T20:06:00.003-05:00

Dinner tonight- Ethiopian style curried chick peas, cauliflower, cabbage and onions with home made crepes. Why yes, my husband can do all the things!

9/365

2012-01-09T14:14:00.003-05:00

Every day right before it is time to pick Henry up from school and take him to taekwondo (or on errands, or home to wrestle over writing homework) I decide that I may not be able to function any longer if I don't get a little jolt of caffeine rightthissecondthankyouverymuch. I used to pick him up and then set a horrible example by driving through some awful drive through place to get a quick coffee fix. Now. Now, thanks to my fabulous husband who aced Christmas this year, I can whip up a latte super quick with my very own teeny little espresso machine. Everyone is much happier when mama has 24 hour cappuccino access, no? Oh yes.

Also? That REI travel mug is the best travel mug on the planet. I bemoaned spending that much money on a travel mug (even though we had a coupon), but that was about 3 years ago and i've used that thing pretty much every day. The one beef? It doesn't fit in a car cup holder. Good thing the seal actually holds and it could roll around in the bottom of the car for a week without spilling a drop. Not that you'd want to drink out of it at that point, but...you know what I'm getting at.

8/365

2012-01-08T15:29:00.003-05:00

Happy 70th Birthday, Stephen Hawking! Words can't express how amazing it is to have you as a hero and role model for my bright and quirky little geeklet. He devours everything about you, from your bio and information about your chair and computer to your Into the Universe series to your George's Secret Key to the Universe books. His hair is soaking wet in this picture because this kid who I usually have to force out into the sunshine to play wanted to celebrate your birthday by doing centripetal force experiments and it happened to be raining. He doesn't care about sports and he knows comic book heroes aren't real. You are who he wants to be when he grows up, Mr. Hawking. Thanks for that. And Happy Happy Birthday.

7/365

2012-01-07T19:32:00.003-05:00

January seems like it is going to be the month of the Monster! Every custom order I've taken so far has been for one kind of monster or another, so this picture of the day is the first in a winter monster parade!

6/365

2012-01-06T15:43:00.002-05:00

Ms. Bee spent most of her day relaxing in the unseasonably warm sunshine today. Soak it up, darlin', it looks like the rains are coming. Please note the amazing fence I built in the planter behind her lounging area so she can't jump out of it. I call the style "Sanford and Son chic". Feel free to pin it to your Pinterest "Amazing Landscaping" board.

5/365

2012-01-05T16:14:00.001-05:00

Yup.

4/365

2012-01-04T20:03:00.001-05:00

I kid you not, this kid would be attached to this dog 24/7 if he could. Unless she goes outside in the cold. Then she's on her own...

3/365

2012-01-03T17:31:00.004-05:00

Today was pretty miserable. I ruptured my eardrum, there was a snow day the first day the Henrybeast was supposed to go back to school, I had to chase my Harry Houndini (see what I did there?) mutt through the neighborhood in the freezing cold when she bested the fence AGAIN and then drag her to the vet to get shots and I pretty much just feel like poop. But I get to live here and look at those mountains every time I wait at that stop light on Patton Ave. Jeeze louise, life is still okay.

2/365

2012-01-02T14:17:00.004-05:00

This might be one of my favorite Christmas presents of all time, though it isn't the best picture ever. That is my studio (aka: Crankypants World HQ). In the foreground is the exact replica my daddy built for me from scratch- Crankypants World HQ: Birdhouse Edition. I am half tempted to knit up teensy Crankypants and hang them from a clothesline on the porch like I do for customs photos. When spring comes and a happy little family of gold finches settle in I just might die of cuteness overload.

Note: Yes, the shot makes it look like the studio is kind of tilting one way and the teeny version is kind of tilting the other. My yard is by no means flat (we live in the mountains, y'all) but the hubs didn't built my studio sideways, pinky swear.

1/365

2012-01-01T16:27:00.002-05:00

Wow, this poor little blog has been aggressively neglected for the past few months! On the first day of the new year I feel like I should look back and recap everything I've missed telling you all about. Instead, I'm going to leave you with just one of my favorite memories of the year to kick off the 365 project I've been inspired to do by one of my besties who actually stuck with it all last year. Maybe she can keep my feet to the fire. You can check out her 365 here (Cozy Blue) but you have to pinky swear not to hold me to her standard. In my 365, you can look forward to seeing lots of pictures of coffee and the dog. Henry gets ornery with a camera in his face (imagine that). In the meantime, Happy New Year from the Ketts. Here's hoping 2012 brings community, love, happy adventures and lots of crafty projects! Mwah! xoxo.

October Customs...

2011-11-04T08:19:00.002-04:00

Can you believe that November is here already? When that page turns on the calendar a flip switches and I go into crazy holiday mode. Late fall brings a bunch of Scorpio birthdays, holiday shows and crazy holiday shopping and traveling. This will be the first year we are staying in Asheville for Thanksgiving and Christmas but we'll be busting Henry out of school for a few days in early December to make a trek down to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (shhhh...dont' tell him, it's a secret!). The beginning of November is the time to set all of that exciting stuff in motion- making ridiculous amounts of to do lists and ticking things off one by one. I can't wait for the ticking off part to start...

Somewheeeeeeeeeeere...

2011-10-26T08:27:00.003-04:00

I had a blast making these super duper rainbow longies for Carin's wee one. Carin is the partner in crime (okay, maybe it's photography and not crime, whatever) to my fabulous sister in law, Kirstin, who commissioned these happy little britches for Carin's baby shower. What could be more smile inducing that a tiny pair of woolies covered in rainbows, sheep and toadstools? Um...how about a tiny pair of woolies covered in rainbows, sheep and toadstools on a ridiculously cute babe??? Don't smile. I double dog dare you.

Tyrolean Traverse or: I've Lost My Damn Mind

2011-10-22T10:49:00.007-04:00

Last weekend the staff of the tae kwon do studio that Henry and I practice at, and where I work a few hours a week, had the chance to go on a little team building adventure at Linville Gorge. Being deathly afraid of heights I tried to get the details of the project beforehand, but all I got were vague suggestions of hiking, possible climbing and something about building a bridge. We met in the school parking lot at 8am, met our fearless leader Doc (who thankfully does this for a living) and hopped in a couple of cars to make our way upupup twisty turn-y mountain roads to our destination. Once there, we met our second climbing expert, Jeep, and they split us into teams and started giving instructions.

We were split into three teams of two and three people and explained that we would be building a rope bridge called a Tyrolean Traverse across a gorge, then going across it. This is when I started having heart palpitations. Each team got a specific job and no one team would be taught everything. With each team having a piece of the puzzle we would have to work together to complete the bridge and get safely across. I was put on a team with Tony, the master instructor and 6th degree black belt that runs our tkd school. We were in charge of learning "water knots" and "double fisherman's knots" and using those knots to set up all of the anchor points and belays for the bridge. Yeah.

After practicing for a while, Doc and Jeep did a mock up of the entire bridge and let us study it so we could see how our pieces all fit together.

After we got an idea of what we were going to do, we packed up all the gear and made the mile and change hike (once again upupup) to the gorge we would be building our Tyrolean Traverse across. The gorge was shaped like a horse shoe. We stopped at the bend of the horse shoe to put on all of our safety gear and have more heart palpitations as I looked out on where we would be building.

The distance between 'here' and 'there' is about 50 someodd feet with a drop of 237 feet between. The teams that had been formed on the ground now split up so that a member of each could perform their task on each side of the gorge. I was in charge of setting up anchors and belays 'here'.

Tony, who was responsible for anchors and belays 'there' took this picture of the 'here' team from the other side of the gorge. I get anxiety attacks driving up the Blue Ridge Parkway in a car. I plead temporary insanity.

After setting all the anchors, we figured out how to get the main ropes across so everyone else could do their jobs. It took a while, but we finally got the green light from Doc and Jeep to head on across. Tony went first. You can see how the ends of the horse shoe open up into an amazingly huge and beautiful valley. Jeep is getting ready to buckle him in...

..and off he goes.

Krisy is next.

Elizabeth is completely fearless.

And then it is my turn. Yikes. My language was slightly foul here as I cling to the 'diving board' and Jeep buckles me to the line.

I somehow managed to stop in the middle of the bridge to mug for a photo, but I don't think I have ever been so focused on getting from point A to B in my life. Thank goodness Michael was on the other side to calm my panic and help me back up onto the rock.

Zak and Amy D. went across, too, but we didn't get any shots of them. I'm hoping that once we get Doc's pictures I can add them to the collection. Michael, of course, was a rock star. He made us all nervous by buckling his own safety lines to the bridge and muscling across like he's done it a million times before.

After we were all done and the bridge was disassembled and packed up we all took a couple of deep breaths and posed for a group shot.

I love these guys. For serious.

Cuuuuuuuustoms!

2011-10-17T09:24:00.002-04:00

A yarn supply issue delayed the completion of my September customs, but they are done! Here are the last three of the month: cars, trains and dinos!

Mreow.

2011-10-14T15:22:00.003-04:00

Crankypants is branching out for the holidays, people! Now that we have a furbaby in the studio I thought it was time to whip up some Crankypants goodness for our 4 legged beasties. Even though my beast is of the canine variety, these little tidbits popped into my head and I had to make 'em.

Whether your kitty is a twee loving purrfest, a rock and roll feline or an ironic hipster, they'll love these little guys. They are all made from bits of felt and stuffed chock full of catnip. You know you want to see your cat batting a little jellyfish, tattoo heart or moustache around your living room. You know you do...

It's Coming! Grrr...Argh...

2011-09-30T07:33:00.003-04:00

As the air gets crisp and the days get shorter, we here at Crankypants World HQ start thinking about the most wonderful time of the year. Halloween. I'm not sure what Henry wants to be this year but the gears are starting to turn.

Crankypants is celebrating the start of the spookylicious season by guest stocking at Holden's Landing's special Halloween themed get down today at 3. Check check check...check it out.

Oktoberfest!

2011-09-20T11:29:00.003-04:00

If you are going to be around the Kinsport, TN area this weekend come on out and see me at Oktoberfest! What goes better with weiner dog races, brat eating contests and oodles of beer than Crankypants? I have been in the studio whipping up a ton of pint wraps and coasters for the event, as well as snap-able bandanas for all the racing weiner dogs...

Seriously, it sounds like it is going to be a lot of fun and Magic Hat Brewery (one of my favorites!) is going to be there so how can we go wrong?

Honey Bee

2011-09-02T19:23:00.002-04:00

Everyone, meet Honey Bee. Honey Bee, meet everyone.

Honey Bee is the newest member of our family and Crankypants HQ studio dog. From her sweet disposition and quick integration into the family you would never know that she has spent most of her life in various local shelters. The past two weeks have been a whir of pet stores, walks around the block and... the dog park. Going to the dog park has been like joining my first play group after Henry was born. You go in and feel like you are the only one there who doesn't know anyone. You talk to strangers about poop. You hope your little darling doesn't bite anyone.

Henry has been amazing with the Honey Bee[st] so far. He has taught her sit, down and shake- shake without any help from us at all. She sleeps outside his door and helps me wake him up in the morning. He is in love with her. She is in love with all the treats he gives her and is endlessly patient with his extreme affection.

She hasn't had much leash experience so walks are polka dotted with episodes of trying to keep her from jumping on cyclists or chasing squirrels through backyards, but we're working on it. She has been walking with me to pick Henry up from school and we are greeted with a daily chorus of "Honey Bee!", "Hi Honey Bee" and "Honey Bee is here!" from all kids coming out, petting her and giving her smooches and hugs.

It is pretty damn cute.

Happy Birthday Henry!

2011-07-17T11:48:00.007-04:00

Yesterday we celebrated Henry's 8th birthday a week late at the super laid back Arcade Asheville, an old school arcade downtown. No singing mice, no bad pizza, no seizure inducing lights. Just Dig Dug, Skee Ball and Tron playing on the back wall...

Henry wandered around while he waited for guests to arrive.

I tried to add a touch of handmade to the goodie bags with Mario moustaches on a stick and felt Mario star pins.

Yes, we made everyone Mario it up for us...

Henry kicked my tail in Skee Ball

We ate our 1-UPcakes...

Opened presents

Took one last Mario-esque group shot

And headed off to Henry's Late Birthday Part II: Harry Potter 7.2!!!! We chose to go classic and see it in 2D and it was amazing. Aside from the mom who thought it was a good idea to bring her 2 year old and sit right in front of me (gah!) it was pretty perfect. I was surprised at how emotional it was watching everything wrap up and come to a close. Harry Potter has been a part of our lives for so long! What's next?

Home!

2011-07-08T19:24:00.002-04:00

Home at last! As we drove through TN and the mountains came into view I couldn't help thinking how amazingly lucky we are to live where we do. I am oh so happy to be back in the bosom of the Appalachians, though we had a fabulous time in flat ole' MI.

Fireworks were the name of the game, as my in laws live on a lake where the men try to out do each other and themselves from year to year. While the littles are happy with sparklers and fire crackers...

(yes, those look huge. no, he wasn't allowed to light them himself)

The bigger boys channeled Tim Taylor and started throwing around plywood, mortars and construction adhesive for their display.

Yes, we all still have our fingers and toes. All of the big stuff gets done on the end of the dock with the smaller dudes safely tucked away on the porch.

With fireworks done on the 3rd, the 4th was left for the Indian River parade, where Henry smiled and waved his little heart out and was rewarded by candy flung at his little person from horseback.

The Kett-o-thon, wherein we flung marshmallows at each other, raced with eggs on spoons and played an old Scottish peg throwin game called Kubb.

And took our annual ridiculous family picture in from of the Parrott's Point sign. And I just noticed that they spell 'parrot' with 2 't's and that is going to drive me crazy from now on. Why would they do that? Let's just pretend the guy that discovered the neighborhood's last name was Parrott, shall we?

Tour.

2011-07-01T08:22:00.003-04:00

For those of you who know me, this may surprise you, but Henry has learned a new skill on this trip to MI.

Yup. Little man found a BB gun and it is on. We set up a shooting range of bottles and cans, set down some serious ground rules and he's been setting them up and knocking them down ever since.

Yesterday we took advantage of our last day before the rest of the family arrives and did a Northern Michigan Tour of Awesomeness. First stop, Harbor Springs. We walked the docks feeling a little out of place among the bajillion dollar big boats and oohing and ahhing at all the amazing sailboats.

We hopped back in the car and headed up into the Tunnel of Trees. Kyle's folks know all the little nooks and crannies around there and took us to an amazing little farm to poke around and wish we had a CSA there. The canning pantry was absolutely amazing and we couldn't resist the Dilly Asparagus. One taste reaffirmed my summer goal of learning to can and pickle! The best part, though, by far... The Squash Rocket. Load the giant sling shot up with old potatoes and let 'er rip!

And onward. Next stop was the Legs Inn, a famed biker bar and... Polish restaurant. The grown ups indulged in stuffed cabbage, potato cakes and traditional Polish stew and Henry looked out on Lake Michigan with their little quarter fed telescope.

The last stop on our adventure was the dunes at Cross Village. We ran up the giant sand dunes, enjoyed the view of Lake Michigan for a bit, turned around and ran back down.

By the time we got back to the house, I was all about a blanket, a book and a nap. Little man had other ideas, though. He was invited to go tubing with the kids across the street and jumped at the chance! Kyle mustered up the energy to go with them and snap a few pictures.

Phew!

Today is the day that all the Ketts come pouring into town and the craziness begins! Kett Family Olympics, Texas Hold 'Em and euchre tournaments, 4th of July Parade and waaaaaay too many fireworks. Let the games begin!

Thus far...

2011-06-29T19:01:00.003-04:00

Sunday morning we packed up the car and headed north to our old stomping grounds- Ann Arbor! We pass through our old home town every summer as we head to the tippity top of the lower peninsula of MI and every summer we marvel at the changes that have happened in our absence. Ann Arbor is frozen in my memory as the place I started my adult life, went to college, met Kyle, got married and had Henry. It is a place of "oh remember that" and "I used to love that place", so it hurts our nostalgic little feelings when the places we remember disappear from the landscape. No more Del Rio or Old Town, and Babs has gone from dive bar to frat joint. Village Corner, where my broke college self used to buy a baguette and butter for lunch, is gone. No more In Flight or Cat's Meow. No more State Control. American Apparel, 7-11 and CVS have all moved in downtown. It isn't home anymore.

There is one new face we were excited to see, though- The Robot Supply & Repair Shop on Liberty Ave. Robot Supply & Repair was built using Dave Eggars' amazing brainchild the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Store as a model. It is a retail front for a mentoring and tutoring space, full of creativity and HOPE! We loved it!

We managed to squeeze in an Angelo's breakfast and what could be the best falafel I've ever had at a hole in the wall in Ypsi. An amazing falafel with tons of hummus, cabbage and pickles for $4. Hear that, Asheville? A FOUR DOLLAR FALAFEL! Make it happen. Understanding that Asheville doesn't have the Middle Eastern population that Ann Arbor does, I got right with the fact that a $4 is probably not in my NC future. We hit one of the half dozen Middle Eastern groceries in town and got big jars of Lebanese pickles so I can make a pathetic attempt to recreate the masterpiece at home. I also picked up a box of Turkish Delight for Henry's birthday- a treat he has been begging to try since we read the Narnia series years ago but I never got around to tracking down.

The weather turned as we headed up north. Yuck.

We used the weather as an excuse to stop and get a gluttonous breakfast at Tony's in Birch Run. Yes that is all bacon. No, I didn't eat it all.

I was in a hurry to get up north and see the little man after a whole week apart, so we soldiered on and made good time the rest of the way. He humored me with a big hug and claims that he missed me, but... he seemed to have had a pretty fabulous week with his grandparents.

After a gray and blustery day, the sun came out this afternoon. We got the boat in the water, filled her up with gas and headed out for some tubing!

This picture was taken a few minutes before the boat puttered out and everyone had to be towed in by a neighbor who happened to pontoon by. Oops. Hopefully we'll get that sorted out before too long and Henry will be back in business!

The rest of the Kett clan arrives Friday and our annual crazy family reunion will begin in earnest. Lots of loud card playing, staying up too late and blowing thing up are sure to follow. Until then... reading, knitting and relaxing await!

Growin.

2011-06-24T20:45:00.003-04:00

On Tuesday afternoon Henry's Nana and Papa popped through Asheville and spirited Henry away to Michigan for a week of parent free fun. I've been back here in NC, teaching Tae Kwon Do summer camp, prepping for shows and trying not to call him every 5 minutes. So far, so good. We leave Sunday to trek up to Ann Arbor and see some of my oldest mama friends, then onwards to Indian River to see my little man, light off ridiculous amounts of fireworks and re.lax.

Man, I miss that kid.

Show Prep.

2011-06-18T11:41:00.003-04:00

Summer days mean summer shows, and Crankypants HQ is gearing up for 2 shows sandwiching our annual 4th of July family trek to northern MI. I have been buried in the studio all week, and finally snapped a few pictures of my progress!

Pssst...

2011-06-10T15:40:00.001-04:00

School's Out For Suuuuummer!!!!

Monster says "WooHoo"!

Tourney.

2011-06-05T20:03:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was my second taekwondo tournament, held at The Justice Center at UNCA. Though seeing pictures of myself in a ridiculously unflattering dobock does nothing for my ego (I do have a waist- I swear), I had to post this one because of the look my friend Lance is giving me as our medals were announced and our master instructor jokingly called me "ferocious". Priceless.

Peep.

2011-05-31T19:27:00.001-04:00

I wish I had yarn this color...

Hairs Cut

2011-05-30T19:36:00.003-04:00

We are lucky to have a very good friend who is a whiz with the shears and cuts our hairs just the way we like them from the comfort of her home studio. I can get my hair cut while Henry plays with his best bud and then we do the old switcheroo and he gets to sit in the cool chair and get clipped. Lucky we.

This weekend Henry came down from his bedroom and I could no longer stand what he likes to call his "crazy physicist hair". It drove me nuts. I felt like people would think we were nesting chicks in there if I let it go on any longer. And so we decided to go short. This is the shortest it's ever been. I wanted that crazy Einstein mop gone, but I have to admit I was a little bit sad to see the curls drop off, however untamed they were. My sweet boy looks so grown up.

Now that we're down to the last week and a half of second grade I am getting that end of the year nostalgia and remembering how quickly the time is whizzing by. *sigh* My sweet boy.

Picnic.

2011-05-26T12:40:00.003-04:00

Around these here parts, it is no day for a picnic. It is hot and humid, and the way the heavy breeze is picking up makes me think we're in for a storm. The sun is shining but I can just feel it coming.

Also happening at Crankypants World HQ is the daily countdown to the end of school. With Kyle and Henry getting out (and my reign as PTO President ending-yipee!) June 8th and my last day as a TA following on June 10, we will be picnic-ing it up soon enough. I can't wait until climbing up into the mountains of NC and munching on tids and bits becomes a part of our regular routine.

Lavender Explosion

2011-05-25T19:50:00.003-04:00

Later in the season I may have to start making some sleepy time Boo Boo Beastie with a little dried lavender from the garden.

A Boo Boo Beastie tip for all of you without central air and with hot-running kids like Henry- a Boo Boo Beastie fresh from the freezer makes the perfect bed mate! It has all the cooling power of a wet washcloth on the forehead, but none of the soggy pillowcase...

Look for more to pop up in the Etsy shop soon!

Bean.

2011-05-24T16:44:00.002-04:00

Darcy wanted to celebrate her little one by having a pair of longies made referencing the two places she considers home- Chicago and the North Carolina coast. Topping it all off is a little airplane pulling a banner across the sky of both cities with the wee one's nickname "Bean". It was really difficult to get the whole wrap around design in a single picture, but you get the idea.

Spring Break!

2011-05-23T13:54:00.003-04:00

As the school year wraps up (only a few weeks left!) we're all looking forward to getting out into the sunshine! And speaking of sunshine, Spring Break was a blast. I can't believe I never posted pictures. We only took a few, but I love them. Henry really grew into a beach bum and spent most of his time roaming around looking for shark teeth, fighting the waves and soaking up the rays.

I'm hoping he has as much fun on the lake this summer!

Wow.

2011-05-22T08:21:00.004-04:00

2 Months, hm? A lot has been going on over here at Crankypants HQ (spring break, a new job, big festivals, new retailers-oh my!), but documenting it hasn't been my strong suit. I'll try to catch you all up as we creep up on Summer Vacation!!!

First up, a little Noah....

Fire Breather Monster Booty- Special Edition

2011-03-21T19:17:00.003-04:00

These fire breathing dragon booty longies were knit using one of my most favoritest yarns, dyed up by my friend Joyce at Elliebelly (I'm going to link you even though her store is closed at the moment). It is BFL in her fabulous "Crayons" colorway with contrasting solids. So squishy and so pretty!

Sleepy Kitty Preemie Hat

2011-03-18T13:11:00.003-04:00

Knit patternless with Malabrigo single ply merino in Dusty for a wee little girl who didn't want to stay put and was born last week at just under 2lbs.

Customs!

2011-03-14T08:48:00.003-04:00

{aka: It's Been a While...}

Fund Schools First Postcard How To

2011-02-26T14:22:00.009-05:00

Alrighty. So I came home from the Fund Schools First meeting the other night and wanted to write my elected officials and tell them what I think about cutting the education budget. I thought about the most fabulous April Dockery, who got up at the mic and encouraged us to give our kids a voice. I whipped up this little postcard and people seemed to like it so I wanted to tell you all how you can make your own. It took me about 15 minutes and a $2 trip to OfficeMax to make a dozen. That is enough for Henry and I BOTH to write to our elected officials and tell them what we think.

This "how to" is going to be pretty comical because I am NOT a tech person, but hopefully it will get the job done. My husband could probably make a killer one but he is currently under the house ripping out and replacing my hot water heater so you are stuck with me. Yikes. I'm sure there are tons of folks out there who have fancy software and whatnot but this way you can do everything using online software. Easy peasy rice and cheesy.

1. Go to www.picnik.com and click the big "Get Started Now!" button in the middle of the screen.

2. At this point you can create and account if you want, but you can also just go for the gusto if you prefer. Click the "Upload a Photo" button and browse your computer to find the cutest, most studious or convincing picture of your kid you can. Higher resolution photos work better for printing.

3. Okay. You've got your photo up. Now Click the "Create" tab at the top. Wait until you see my amazing screen shot. I was so excited when I figured how to write on it. I probably shouldn't admit that.

Okay, that's smaller than I thought it would be but hopefully you have your reading glasses on and can see it up there.

4. Okay, now click the "text" button.

5. Once you click on that "text" button a bunch of different font choices should pop up on the left hand side. Scroll around until you find one that you like. Some are reserved for paying members but there are a ton of good free ones. Click on one you like. You type the words in the at top left and when you hit "Add" they pop up on the picture. You have to type it exactly how you want it to show, so make sure you hit return if you want several lines of text like I have.

Grab one of the little circles at the corner of the text box to shrink it to fit your space and use the color chart to change the color if you need to. You can drag the text around by clicking in the center of the text box and dragging it wherever you want it.

6. When you get it how you want it, click the "Save and Share" tab up top.

7. In addition to saving it, you should also share it on as many social networking sites as possible for maximum exposure. Picnik makes it easy for you by having a whole toolbar full of buttons to share on Facebook, Twitter, GoogleBuzz, Flickr, MySpace, etc. Get click happy and spread the LOVE!

8. I got mine printed at OfficeMax by the AVL Target. I put my pictures 4 to an 8x11" sheet using PhotoShop, but I am 99% sure that if you bring in a single file the awesome OfficeMax folks will do that for you. You can bring it in on a disk or on a little thumb drive.

I got mine printed on Bright White regular card stock and then used their slicer (you have to ask them for it because they keep it behind the counter these days) to cut them into postcard size. Here is what they look like front and back (after I addressed it by hand).

Okay. Now that you have that done, sit down and write to your elected officials. Tell them that you are willing to keep paying the $.01 sales tax you probably didn't even know you've been paying to help fund education and other essential public services. Tell them that a cuts only approach to balancing the budget isn't going to work. Tell them that if they want to slash our education budget it isn't going to happen with our quiet consent and they better get ready for busloads of angry parents, kids and educators on their doorstep.

I've already got road trip snacks...

For My Sweethearts...

2011-02-14T12:44:00.002-05:00

Use the coupon code CRANKYLURVE today only for 15% off anything in the Crankypants Etsy Shop!!!

Ninja and Monster-o-Grams!

2011-01-28T11:30:00.002-05:00

I just listed some Monster and Ninja-o-Grams in the Etsy Shop! I am super excited about being able to use a locally hand crafted lollipop made by the fabulous Sugar two Shoes in them this year! They are the perfect little gift for your wee beastie or main squeeze.

Jam Band

2011-01-27T09:26:00.002-05:00

The Great Thaw

2011-01-16T08:58:00.004-05:00

Wow. AVLSnomg! Snopocolypse! Whatever you want to call it, the past week has been a blur of school closings, car scrapings, white knuckle driving and cabin fever! Henry finally went back to school on Friday (after a 2 hour delay) just in time for a 3 day weekend.

I wish I could say that being stuck in the house made me super productive, cranking out tons of amazingness and keeping the house spotless. Um...no. I am looking down the barrel of a 4 day work week that needs to be expanded to squeeeeeze in all the things I am blaming snow days for keeping me from doing last week. Let's see how that works out, shall we?

Though I haven't touched my sewing machine in a while and shipping was seriously delayed on some things last week, one thing the snow didn't stop me from doing is knitting. Nothing goes better with a snow day than a big ole skein of wool.

This afternoon I'll be heading over to The Dry Goods Shop for my very first Sisters in Stitches meet up. I'm looking forward to getting out and having some knits and purls with local crafty peeps. I'll be home just in time to have dinner with some loverly friends we haven't had over in a while. Before all that fun begins I desperately need to clean this place up. The sun may be melting the snow outside the door, but we have plenty of signs of the snopololypse rocking strong in here. I also think we are going to force Henry away from his screens and into the kitchen for a family tamale making extravaganza. Attendance mandatory.

Wish me luck.

Snow Shmow.

2011-01-09T20:41:00.003-05:00

This is a picture of the studio (AKA: Crankypants World HQ) I snapped Saturday morning. We are supposed to get another 3-10" (depending on who you listen to) starting tonight through Tuesday morning. They have already canceled school for tomorrow. I am officially over it. As long as we can keep power we'll be fine but I miss my beloved routine, where I can count on school being in and being able to get around! Cross your fingers for strong power lines and hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with some more Avlsnomg! and some new custom pictures tomorrow. Because we will have power. Right? RIGHT?! Right.

AT AT

2011-01-07T20:32:00.003-05:00

Beach!

2011-01-06T15:24:00.002-05:00

It has been anything but beachy around here! We've been having the kind of heavy grey weather that makes me want to eat my weight in junk food, watch bad tv and has me living in fear of the dreaded snow days. I swear I saw a few flakes earlier and I'm getting jittery. Now, now, I love Henry and the occasional snow day is super fun-but- the 2 weeks before holiday break consisted of exactly ONE full day of school. That's right. Out of the 10 days preceding the 2 week+ break, Henry had 4 snow days and 5 two hour delays. I can't handle that again so soon after my blessed routine has returned!

Anyhoo. I was appreciative to get to escape from the real weather outside my door and into these super bright and beachy longies for a while! The count down for Spring Break at the beach has officially begun! Yeah, I know it's not until April. This could be a long winter...

Speaking of snow days- local peeps can tune in to the channel 13 news tonight between 5-6:30 to see Henry getting interviewed about how HE feels about all the snow days we've been having!

Speaking of customs- January's last custom slot is up for grabs until 10pmEST today in the HC shop. Follow the link HERE.

Retro Hooters.

2011-01-05T12:29:00.003-05:00

My mama got me a set of these super cute Retro Hooters owl stitch markers for Christmas. At first I was afraid they would be too bulky but they are working just fine and they make me smile every time they come around. Lurve.

Green/Blue, Baby!

2011-01-04T21:15:00.002-05:00

After almost 3 weeks off, I finally got back to taekwondo class yesterday morning to get my new belt! I was hoping to go again today but when getting out of bed this morning took 10 minutes and various strings of swear words I decided to take a day off. Ever notice how it takes a bajillion years to get into shape and about 12 seconds to fall out of it? Pth.

First of the Year!

2011-01-03T19:56:00.002-05:00

The first Crankys of 2011! WooHoo!

If you missed the January lottery and have a hankerin' for a pair of custom Crankypants of your own, I am going to start putting custom auctions up tomorrow morning on the HC shop.

More Christmas Photos...

2011-01-02T12:13:00.005-05:00

Quillan, chilling on the couch and trying to ignore the giant camera in her face.

Henry doing the same.

Memere, joe and Sam making some gingerbread cookies. Santa brought me some NINJAbread men cookie cutters, you'll be seeing more from them later...

Pretty.

Jay and Sam making a sledding run down the front hill.

Pretty.

This is what stir-crazy looks like. Q brought me an ear flap hat from Maine, Santa brought Sam a super realistic looking stuffed chicken, I happened to be wearing a plaid flannel and my folks think rifles are decorative. The sum of the parts...

Jay and Henry playing the don't-tip-the-clown game.

One of my favorite ornaments.

The Ketts are a little whacko.

But cute, awww...

The traditional family portrait. A quiet dignity, no?

Kudo Wavy

2011-01-01T12:30:00.003-05:00

I knit this scarf for my 17 year old step-daughter, Quillan (hey, Q!) for her birthday in November (Scorpio Power!) and never managed to snap a picture of it finished before I sent it off to Maine. When I saw her at Christmas I harassed her into sending me a couple of shots.

I knit it up out of a single skein of Plymouth Kudo, a silk blend. It is a pretty basic drop stitch pattern consisting of rows of 1, 2, and 3 yarn overs, drop stitch and plain garter rows. The pattern was varied enough to keep me interested, easy enough to do while watching tv and quick enough for some instant length gratification. I am normally a 100% wool girl, but I actually quite liked the Kudo's silk blend.

Prezzies and Such

2010-12-31T17:47:00.005-05:00

Whew! After a little over 14 hours in the car yesterday we crashed hard and were welcomed back to Asheville with a bright sun and the sounds of the last of the snow melting away. We unpacked, I worked a bit and Kyle and I walked up to our favorite coffee place, Waking Life Espresso, where we now have a running tab (thanks, mom!) while Henry played over at a friend's house. It is good to be home! We are waiting for some friends to come over to make pizza and play Rock Band and pretend we won't all be in bed by 10 tonight, but I wanted to post some pictures before I forget.

I tried to make something for everyone on my Christmas list this year and I think I came pretty close. I couldn't think of anything to make my sister in law (sorry Kirstin!) so I did the next best thing and bought hand made from Etsy.

When I asked Henry what he wanted most this year he informed me that all he really wanted was a set of Chinese throwing stars. For a minute I regretted letting him look through all those weapons catalogs while I work at the tkd studio, and then I whipped up a set of double sided felt ones. All the fun with none of the bloodstains.

All of the kids in the family got little tattoo heart ornaments. They say 2010 on the back. Because little kids care about ornaments and sentimentality. Fine- they were really for the parents.

My mom asked for an apron and Amy from Kitch Fabrics helped me with this vintage-y little number. It was my first foray into bias tape and I'm really happy with it. I used some little extra fabric scraps to applique some matching tea towels.

My 4 year old nephew has made the leap from trains to construction vehicles so I whipped up this little pair of jammies for him.

Sam's little brother Joe is 2 and is way into letters. I thought this fabric was way cute and can't wait to see both f the boys in their jammies!

My brother is impossible. When I ask what he needs he always kind of mumbles something about Japanese chisels for wood working that ends with 'or whatever...'. I made him a set of moustachio-ed pint cozies so he and his friends don't accidentally share boy cooties by mistaking their glass while watching the game or playing Pacman, or whatever boys do.

And finally, before I bid you a Happy New Year, the last of the 2010 customs. I have a couple of the things on the needles that SHOULD have been done in 2010, but it looks like they will have the distinction of being the first of 2011 instead...

Everyone be safe out there tonight. See you on the flip side.

On the Last Day...

2010-12-29T19:54:00.005-05:00

Well, here it is. After 3 days in the city and 5 days in the 'burbs, we are packing up the Rabbit once again and will point ourselves back in the direction of the mountains of North Carolina after tomorrow morning's cuppa coffee. We have had a great time hanging out with the fam but I'm ready to get back to my dear Asheville and my routine. My jeans are looking forward to me eating less chocolate and getting back to tkd class!

Some pictures. In no particular order. Expect more when the pro in the family (if you're in Burlington, VT- click here-my sister in law rocks!). Let's put the captions down below the pictures, shall we?

My most adorable mama and the apron that I made her for Xmas.

My father making a blizzard for Henry with the snow blower.

My nephew, Sam, hiding in the woods in our front yard.

My boys after making a sledding run down the front hill.

Christmas morning! There is a ton of other family in the room, but they are all on the other side of the camera...

The race is on! Kyle and Henry vs. my mom and Sam.

Henry looking down from the top of the sledding hill at my old middle school.

Henry, very pleased with himself after smashing a snowball into the top of Kyle's head.

Mom and Sam, trekking back up the sledding hill.

Henry getting a lift.

Kyle, Quillan and Henry on the way down...

Quillan and I making a run.

Getting ready to go!

Ah, the sun! After days of grey skies, the clouds finally parted and we got some lovely sun on top of the sledding hill. Everyone was taking off extra hats and scarves and basking in it!

During our time semi- snowed in with a ton of family [Kyle, my mom and dad, brother and sister in law, 2 nephews (2 and 4), Henry (7), my step daughter Quillan (17) and myself] we managed to play a ton of games-from charades to Taboo to cards and Smart Ass, watch Kung Fu Panda and Pinkk Panther cartoons galore and eat way too much food. I also managed to knit almost a complete pair of longies and read a book on my birthday Kindle. It was The Dirty Life: On Farming, Food, and Love by Kristin Kimball. It was fabulous. Don't read it if you have the means to run away and start an organic farm because you probably will. I need to remember to read it again in the spring to find the inspiration to finally plant a little garden that makes sense and actually take care of it.

So tomorrow we head home, back down the east coast and into the south. I am anxious to see if there is still a lot of snow on the ground, since there was a big snowy storm while we were gone. It's almost 14 hours, so I'm not sure if we'll make it all the way or stop somewhere near Roanoke, VA and finish up on New Year's Eve Day. We'll play it by ear.

Either way, Crankypants will be open for custom request via email (crankypantsknits@gmail.com OR info@crankypantshome.com - doesn't matter which) on New Year's Day. It is usually the slowest custom day of the year so your chances are good if you can pull yourself out of bed! I will put a couple of custom auctions up starting Monday, the 3rd. Also, keep your eyes peeled for the last completed customs of 2010! I hope to have some pictures up pretty shortly after we get home.

I hope all of you had a warm, cozy and family filled holiday and have an equally great New Year's weekend!

xoxoxo,
amy.

Holiday World Tour. Day 3.

2010-12-23T13:49:00.003-05:00

As I write this last NYC installment, I am actually sitting in my folks' living room in CT. Surrounded by lots of open space. Relaxed. And realizing that I am absolutely not cut out for the city life.

Yesterday morning we got up and took the train down to Union Station. We got out and had breakfast at this awesome deli called D&S Market Place. It was the perfect place for a quick, cheap bite to start the day and we finally got our NYC bagel fix. After that we wandered through Union Square's holiday craft fair and farmers' market, which was pretty cool. My favorite was the local honey that was harvested from the rooftop gardens of the city. Genius and tasty- two great tastes that taste great together. We found FAO Schwartz but Henry was too embarrassed to go on the giant piano. At least he let me take his picture with giant LEGO Chewbacca!

Around noon we met an old college friend for lunch at a place I can't remember the name of. It was a "fusion" of about 7 different Asian countries and there was bento involved. I ordered the salmon bento because salmon is Henry's favorite and he doesn't get to have it very often. As soon as it arrived at our table in all of its cute bento-y glory, Henry declared that he no longer liked salmon. Of course. It was great to catch up with an old friend and even made a connection with him back to a friend in Asheville.

After lunch we wandered around n the village for a while and decided over a cup of coffee that we had hit the wall and were ready to get out of the city. We raced home, packed in a frenzy (I think I left my new knitting needle behind, oops) and hopped in the car to try to make it out of the city before rush hour but... didn't quite make it. Nothing like de-stressing from a few busy days in the city by sitting in NYC rush hour traffic for a million years, right?

Phase One of the Holiday Word Tour down!

Holiday World Tour. Day 2.

2010-12-21T19:38:00.007-05:00

*yawn* Wow. That was a full day.

First off, I should show you the bad pictures I took with my phone yesterday.

The Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co.

Kyle trying out one of their capes on the awesome wind platform. Unfortunately, it also blew up his shirt so he looks like a more out of shape superhero than he actually is...

A small container of Black Hole. This product highly disturbed my little literalist, who encouraged me rather enthusiastically to "please put that down now".

Okay, now on to today! Our day started out in a less than stellar way when we all got frustrated before we even hit the subway and settled for a generic Dunkin Donuts bagel for breakfast. I know. In the middle of NYC we got a Dunkin Donuts bagel. I said we were frustrated! Tomorrow will be different. Anyway. We put that behind us and rode the train from Brooklyn to Manhattan to get our tourist on. Our first stop was The Museum of Natural History. We got our fill of arthropods, mammals, mollusks, amethysts, rubies and malachite, meteors, giant Japanese spider crabs and wooly mammoths. By the time we hit the dinosaur floor Henry was well done. Not even the super nice guide who gave us a list of all the characters from Night at the Museum could save us. Kyle posed in front of T Rex for me, though!

From there we dragged the beast through a corner of Central Park and over to Rockefeller Center. We actually popped out of the subway right at 30 Rock, which was cool. I kept my eyes peeled for Kenneth, but didn't spot him. We walked through the galleria, peeked out at the skaters and then hit the big LEGO store on the corner.

It reminded me of my brother, who worked for LEGO for years designing huge LEGO sculptures like that sea monster up there. The giant LEGO wall was pretty awesome, too.

Next stop was the M&M store to fill up a (tiny) bag from the crazy M&M walls and to marvel at the sheer volume of M&M merchandise. Who knew that people took M&Ms so seriously? After that we grabbed a cup of coffee and a snack for the bean and headed back out to Times Square and the Nintendo World Store, which was killer. Henry and Kyle played DS and Wii for a bit and recharged while I looked at WAY too much cute, old school Mario gear. Miraculously, we didn't buy anything. *gasp*

From there we walked on down to a little hole in the wall ramen place and ate the biggest, warmest, awesomest bowls of miso ramen ever. I don't know if there is anything better to defrost and destress after a long cold day than miso. Yum. Mers. On the way back to the subway to head back to Brooklyn we passed Rockefeller Square again and convinced Henry to let me snap a quick picture with the giant tree!

Yeah. I should have dragged the camera along, but I didn't want t deal with it so all we have are bad iPhone pictures. Ah well. I have a good memory...

Tomorrow we are going to hit the East Village and see what we can see. Methinks it is going to be an early night!

Holiday World Tour.

2010-12-21T08:06:00.003-05:00

Well, it is that time of year again! All of my presents have been made and tucked away (I'll post pictures of those later but I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise for any of my family blog readers, you know) in the back of the little Rabbit and we have started out on the annual Holiday World Tour. We're doing things a little differently this year ad tacking a little side vacation onto the front of our journey. Hooray!

Sunday morning we packed the trusty little Rabbit to the top once more and headed north, bound for Brooklyn. After an uneventful drive, a stay in a sleepy motel somewhere in PA and and a cup of morning coffee, we hit the NYC. Holy wowza was that an immediate change of pace! I must admit that my slow and lazy Asheville nerves had a hard time with the traffic and assault on the senses. I white knuckled it into Park Slope where I repeated for the 17th time that we would never find parking. By some miracle I spotted an empty space and, after Kyle did a crazy u-turn in the middle of 5th avenue ("You can't do that!" "Um, I think I just did") we slid into a teeny space tailor made for the little Rabbit. Kyle got out to feed the meter and I heard a knock on my window. "Look up", he said. The one empty parking space in Park Slope that we had shoe horned the Rabbit into sat directly in front of Dave Eggars' Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co.- the ONE PLACE I couldn't miss while we were in the city! Never mind that we spent too much time in there and got our first NYC parking ticket, the place was awesome. The woman working the shop was great. She let Kyle try on a cape in the wind tunnel and get de-villainized, and she even let us back through the secret passageway into the tutoring room where we talked with a couple of the tutors (it was during school hours so there weren't any kids to distract) and poked around in the space for a while. If you want to read more about what Dave Eggars (and countless volunteers) is doing there and see the absolutely amazing TED Talk he gave about his wish for private citizens to partner with public schools, go here. Seriously, go. I'll wait.

After feeding the meter again (oops) we headed over to get a gigantic lunch at The Chip Shop and warm up with some coffee at Brooklyn Bread. I found the local yarn store in about 10 minutes flat and replaced the 2nd set of size 8 16" Addi Turbos that I've snapped THIS MONTH with some bamboo ones. I've never loved bamboo (it isn't slick enough for me) but I thought it would be cool to have a pair of needles from the city and I should probably give them another try anyway. We wondered around a bit more but it was so cold that Henry and I were anxious to get to our final destination of the day, my friend Heather's house in Flat Bush that she and her fam had so graciously offered to let us crash at. We made our way around Prospect Park and found her place, where we flopped down on her couch and didn't move again for about 4 hours. We hung out with her two little adorables and caught up over a couple of Brooklyn Lagers.

Henry finally went to bed at around 9:30 and he is STILL sleeping as I type this out. At 8:30am. I think that might be a record. When he wakes up we are going to hop on the train and head on over to the Natural History Museum for the day. I am looking forward to seeing Henry see the giant dinosaurs and the planetarium, and being inside all day.

And off we go...

December? REALLY?!?

2010-12-02T19:52:00.004-05:00

Wow. Time has just been whizzing by me on both sides lately! After our whirlwind Thanksgiving traveling and whatnot I am still trying to get a handle on things.

THIS Sunday is The Big Crafty!!! If you are in Asheville definitely stop by and check it out. It is a crazy craft extravaganza of awesomeness!

In prep for the big show, a few of us were asked to do demo spots on our local news "Craft Corner". I had trouble thinking of something I could make in less than 3 minutes, but I finally settled on felt finger puppets. It aired a while back but I forgot about putting it up until now. If you want to see me look like a big ole dorkopotomous on TV, click here.

I have also been working on a few new tidbits for the show and came up with a customizable ornament design that I really love.

I'll be putting them up on Etsy after the craziness of TBC is over, but if you want one in the meantime just shoot me an email. That one up there is going to be for my nephew. Shhhhh.... don't tell him.

Because of all of the holiday madness happening (and the fact that I have sworn to make at least 75% of my gifts this year) I am only doing 2 custom auctions this month. One is live right now and the other will from from 10-10EST tomorrow. Clicky Clicky.

Savannah!

2010-11-25T06:41:00.004-05:00

Tuesday after school let out we threw a bunch of warm weather gear in the back of the Rabbit and headed out on our Thanksgiving journey. The first stop was Savannah, where we spent the night and about half the day yesterday. It was a pretty uneventful ride, thanks to the world's best 7 year old traveler.

Since we woke up at the crack of dawn and scarfed down some Goosefeathers Cafe Eggel Bagels before downtown had really woken up yet, we headed out to the Bonaventure Cemetery to poke around and look at all the old gravestones. It was beautiful and the Spanish moss was amazing.

When Kyle had gotten his fill of Spanish-moss-over-lonely-statue picture taking, we hopped in the car and drove around the dusty cemetery roads trying to find the "bird girl" statue from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. That lasted a good 10 minutes before I Googled and discovered that they moved that statue a while back because of dorky tourists like us. Oops.

We wandered around downtown and popped in and out of shops for a while until we found an awesome park for Henry to get some ya-yas out.

Okay, maybe I had some ya-yas to get out myself...

After a slightly disappointing lunch at a local dive place, we once again loaded up in the Rabbit and headed out for destination #2- Orlando. The drive was a little slower and we got stuck in about an hour of bumper to bumper ickiness outside the city, but we made it without any major incident. We had a surprisingly awesome dinner at a real hole in the wall pizza joint (I WILL eat their 28" pie someday!) and tucked in to our hotel beds pretty early. I fell asleep to the dulcet sounds of Jamie and Adam trying to simulate escaping a sinking car on MythBusters.

Next stop? Picking up Q in Celebration and finishing our journey on Don Pedro Island. Oooh. I think Kyle just got back with coffee.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

She's (The Big) Crafty...

2010-11-19T20:18:00.003-05:00

Well, it's almost here. The biggest indie craft show in Asheville, The Big Crafty, is coming up fast and furious on December 5th. I have been a busy little bee and there will be some new things to be had if you want to Crankify your holiday season. Here is Part 1.

If you are in AVL and want to beat the Big Crafty punch, I'll be at the 3rd Annual Vance Holiday Craft Explosion! this Sunday (the 21st) at the most fabulous Vance Elementary in WAVL. All booth fees and raffle sales go to support programs and projects at Vance (Henry's awesome school) so come on out and show some lurve! I'll have oodles of things out, along with some other great local vendors.

Woo to the H-O-O!

The Name of This Post is Secret!

2010-11-18T19:26:00.004-05:00

Since Henry and I finished reading the Narnia series this summer we have been kind of floundering in the reading department. He has been reading on his own as voraciously as usual but I always like to have another book going-one that is slightly too hard for him to tackle himself that we can tuck into at night before bed, a chapter a day. We tried Superfudge, but it was a little much for me. Henry has been persnickity about books he doesn't pick out himself and The Lightning Thief, Redwall and Danny, Champion of the World were dismissed. He gets nightmares at the mere mention of a dementor, so Harry Potter is off the table for now. So for a while we just stopped reading together. Then I remembered a series a friend had suggested to me, the first book being The Name of This Book is Secret!. Her daughter is a bit older than Henry and equally as big a bookworm so I was afraid it might be too much for him, but I decided to give it a shot and waited patiently as it traveled from the big library branch downtown through inter-library loan. Man, was it worth the wait!

I'm not going to spoil it for you, but the whole thing was right up my alley. The name of the author is Pseudonymous Bosch for crying out loud! Henry didn't want to give it a chance, but the super cool first chapter caught him like a fish on a hook. The story involves 2 quirky kids who form an unlikely friendship while tracking down the mystery of a magician's notebook, a seeing nose dog and two fake grandfathers that run a junk shop out of an abandoned fire station. There are puzzles to solve and fun to be had the whole way through. Well, at least until chapter 11 because that's as far as I got. You see, my dear and darling son STOLE the book from the bedside table and devoured it on his own over the course of a few days time, giggling all the way. At first I tried to keep up with him but to no avail. I never really stood a chance, the kid couldn't put it down and I never really got the hang of telling him to stop reading anything.

Luckily, it's a series. And I have to put in another request for an inter-library loan on the next one so I should have plenty of time to polish it of before it comes in. This time I'm putting it on the top shelf every night after we're done reading together. He may be smarter than me but I'm taller...

If you are interested, the main page for the series is here. The first book's page is here. They are worth checking out.

Bike Ridin'

2010-11-14T14:29:00.003-05:00

There are lots of things my little man will do that a lot of kids his age won't. He'll read books for hours. He'll can beat his dad at video games, even when he tries his hardest. He idolizes Einstein and talks about the ramifications of dark matter. He happily eats tofu and brussel sprouts for dinner. But. No matter how we beg and plead. He won't ride a bike. The whole idea scares the bejeesus out of him and he wants no part of it. So... when we got a super sunny and unseasonably warm Saturday and he agreed to give it a shot, we were psyched!

We went down to the green way by the river and had a time!

Henry rode all the way down to the park and back, laid down some serious skids and actually even smiled once or twice. Next stop- X Games!

Chatty Crafty!

2010-11-12T08:15:00.006-05:00

Last weekend my friend Michie and I packed her little Kia to the limit and headed on down to Chattanooga, TN to be vendors at a new, 2 day show called Chatty Crafty. As we hit a patch of freezing snow we considered that maybe the decision to do a 2 day, OUTdoor show in November might not have been the smartest idea ever, but we had loud music and junk food on our side and we were ready to roll!

We had to be all set up in Renaissance Park on the North Shore by 9am on Saturday so we were up and at 'em, freezing our fingertips off, setting up the booth in 32 degree weather at 7am. WooHoo! It was super blustery all day and we had to tie everything down so it didn't blow away and it never really warmed up. We froze, but the company was amazing!

Monster bags and Boo Boo Beasties from my booth...

The booth across the aisle from me was also from Asheville, called Let's Be Friends. Her shop is empty right now, but that's because she has taken all of her amazingness on the road!

ReUse First came all the way down from Chicago and we were so glad they did. They use all sorts of reclaimed items to make new and fabulous things. I could have spent WAY too much money in there. My personal favorites are the Bingo notebooks and small sketch pads made from old flash cards and vocabulary books. It is a notebook geek's wonderland, I promise you. And they are pretty much the nicest people on the planet to boot.

We had some local girls down the way from Mister Other One with some super awesome hair bands, clippies and jewelry. Many Mario references were made and we were pretty much in love by the time the weekend was over.

I am super bummed that I didn't jot down this shop name because their stuff was really great. It reminded me a lot of my friend Jenifer out in Portland. Super stylized paper dolls and button sets. Love.

Linty Fresh killed me with this scissors hoody, and I'm linking you to a t-shirt version of the deisng that rocks pretty hard, too.

By the end of the first day we were all tired and ready to hop under covers and settle in for the night, but not before testing out this amazing sliding hill that was smack dab in the middle of everything. All day we had watched kids drag pieces of cardboard to the top and slide down, whooping and hollering all the way. As soon as we got a warm drink in our bellies we headed over. Felicia and Adam from Let's Be Friends win the way-too-cute award getting ready to slide on down that thing...

Thanks to everyone who came out and braved the chill to support hand made this holiday season! As the shopping season progresses and the big box stores try to lure you in with door prizes and 'roll backs', please remember to put your money where your heart is and shop local and hand made!!!

November So Far...

2010-11-11T16:50:00.004-05:00

In addition to spending this past weekend at Chatty Crafty in Chattanooga, TN (that is going to have to wait for a whole other post) my little knitting fingers have been pretty busy.

These little bitty snowflake longies are still available st the ELATION stocking at Fresh, along with a cutie little girly monster library bag and Sock Monkey quilt.

This little Monster Booty baby girl was knit for a wee one expected to make her appearance on Christmas day!

And finally... RAWR.

Stay tuned for pictures of the scrappy monsters I have on the needles right now and the crazy mad dash as I get ready for the 3rd Annual Vance Holiday Craft Explosion! and The Big Crafty!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T20:59:00.002-04:00

Trick or Treat!

2010-10-13T08:33:00.003-04:00

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Yesterday we strung cobwebs all over the front porch and perched our giant spider friend in the corner. Today is a half day for Henry so I plan to put him to work making little ghosties to hang from our front tree. He has decided on his costume and we are busy trying to pull all of the pieces together. Funfun!

With Halloween on the brain, we here at Crankypants World HQ came up with some trick or treating bags that your wee beastie can keep carrying long after the last Jack-o-lantern hits the compost pile.

They are all made with 100% cotton prints. The strap length is perfect for a little one to wear across the chest messenger style to prevent slipping, or can be worn as a regular shoulder bag. The orange and pink bags also have a teeny little pocket on the inside the perfect size for a library card, should your little one choose to use them as a library bag when Halloween is over.

WooHoo!

Find them here, on the Crankypants Etsy shop!

Jack-o-Booty Set

2010-10-08T07:34:00.002-04:00

Stocking at FRESH tomorrow at 9am!

Type A Mom

2010-09-27T09:25:00.003-04:00

Though I would never in a million years define myself as a Type A Mom, I was super excited to be invited to attend the local Type A Mom Conference. 300 mom bloggers, marketers, PR people and business owners descended on Asheville to attend workshops, eat too much and party like rock stars. I have a bunch of things converging riht now so I couldn't be there for the whole thing, but I got to pop in for a bit each day, hear some great talks and meet a ton of amazing mamas!

Sunday morning was the local mama business owners' market, so I set up and slung some monsters. I made sure I was next to the most excellent Ms. Robin Plemmons, aka Lemons with a Pea, aka Balls to the Wall, Y'all!

This is her, with one of her awesome #twittery Christmas ornaments.

And my stuffs, some old some new.

Knit the Longies, Cinderelly...

2010-09-24T15:12:00.001-04:00

Alice II

2010-09-23T08:16:00.003-04:00

Dragon Booty.

2010-09-22T08:49:00.002-04:00

Gone, baby, Gone

2010-09-04T11:12:00.002-04:00

That second front top tooth that has been hanging around loose since the beginning of summer finally fell out in the middle of the night last night. WooHoo! We call this: Cutest Jacked Up Grill Ever.

Alternately titled: Watch Your Back, Edward Cullen, There's a New Vamp in Town...

September!

2010-09-01T10:18:00.002-04:00

Oh, September, how I've been waiting for you! Fall is my favorite season and I am already loving the crisp mornings and evenings and soon the leaves will be turning. Hopefully we'll have a couple of months of fabulous short-or-long-sleeves-is-fine weather between me whining about the heat and me whining about the cold.

In the meantime, today is the first of the month! Custom requests are open from 10-noon EST today and three custom auctions will run every day for three days from 10am-10pm starting today!

Get 'em in, peoples!

Screen Free Sunday

2010-08-30T14:00:00.003-04:00

Since school started and everyone is scrambling for time these days, we decided to institute something called "Screen Free Sunday" starting yesterday. No TV, no computers, no Wii, PS3 or DS. No screens. At all. For a whole day. We all survived the day and I only got a mild case of the shakes. We now have a new screen free routine around these here parts. No screens from 5-7pm daily and until 7pm on Sundays. Wish us luck!

While I am home alone and have TV privileges, however, it is Veronica Mars marathon and knitfest time around here...

Little Man August 2009

2010-08-27T09:11:00.002-04:00

I just found this picture of Henry from this time last year. Look at how much younger he looks! The funny thing? He still wears that shirt. I guess he only SEEMS to be getting huge...

One Week Down...

2010-08-26T08:53:00.003-04:00

Our first weekend after back to school was our annual big group camping trip to Hot Springs to celebrate the birthday of one of Henry's oldest friends. Unfortunately, it was also the weekend the drought decided to break and send a torrential downpour our way. The mountains were pretty. The camping situation?

Not so much...

The weather didn't stop all of the super manly men from executing their annual manly crossing of the French Broad, though- see them way over there on the other side? Manly.

It is a testament to just how awesome our friends are that we managed to have a good time despite being trapped under a tarp for a good portion of the weekend. As the birthday girl stated so eloquently in her after-present-opening-speech: "I LOVE YOU PEOPLE"!

The good news is that Fall seems to finally be on the way in. the mornings and evenings have gotten cooler and I actually had to wear a hoodie to walk Henry to school this morning-very exciting. It can be difficult to get motivated to knit up oodles of wool in 98+ degree weather. I'm hoping this little cool down will help me to pick up the pace and start cranking out some hand knit goodness!

SupahModel

2010-08-20T22:45:00.002-04:00

Hello Again

2010-08-19T11:08:00.004-04:00

Holy neglect, Batman!

This has been a long, crazy summer and now that school has started again it has gotten even crazier! I am attempting to get back on schedule, though, so look for more regular updating soon. In the meantime, let's get up to speed, shall we?

Henry:
Henry had a blast this summer. He is excited to be back at school- in the second grade and upstairs with the big kids. I can start to see him changing a bit and growing into himself. As we were getting ready this morning he refused to wear his Crocs because he wanted shoes he could run in. He has never expressed any interest in running before, in fact he generally rivals the two toed sloth in the speed category. I guess recess is going to be different this year! He also wouldn't let me walk him into school today, but blew me a kiss as he went in the front door on his own. I am reminding myself that it is my job to make sure he as the self confidence to get more independent but my baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaby! His teacher is a first year teacher straight out of college and she seems awesome. She is having them blog, which is awesome! I can't wait to see what they do with it. Henry also successfully tested for his green belt earlier this month!

And here are some pictures of some Alice and the Cheshire Cat longies from earlier this month:

Along with school, tkd and keeping up with the Crankys I somehow find myself as President of the PTA. Okay, okay, stop laughing, I know. It should be an interesting year...

July, July...

2010-07-19T20:45:00.004-04:00

I can't believe how this summer is flying by! I still haven't managed to post pictures form the MI leg of our trip so let's start there, shall we?

Danny and Jack give Henry a lesson in charades..

You got it!

Kett family portrait- goofy version.

Henry's little cousin, Drew.

I :heart: ice cream.

Waiting for the parade to start. The Indian River, MI Fourth of July Parade is a true small town event.

Tubing with Dad on Mullett Lake.

FASTER!!!

I will get around to posting all about The Big Crafty, July customs and upcoming shows soon, but for now I have to continue to attempt to play catch up. Vacation was a blast but it has sure left me scrambling! There are a ton of Fall shows I need to apply for, Henry's belated 7th birthday to plan (can you believe he's 7?!), taekwondo testing for my yellow-green belt to prep for and getting ready to take over as president of the PTO next month. Phew!

'Til then!

The Great Road Trip of 2010: Part 1.

2010-07-07T15:17:00.006-04:00

Asheville, NC to Ocean City, MD
546 Miles
9.5 Hours

What seems like forever ago (June 19th) we hopped in the little VW Rabbit and headed off on The Great Road Trip of 2010. The first leg: Asheville to Ocean City, where we would meet up with my folks, brother and sister in law and 2 nephews, Sam and Joe. Ocean City is halfway between my brother's house in Burlington, VT and Asheville, so my folks decided to rent a condo there for us to all spend a week together. It was pretty much the perfect set up. The condo was in a nice, secluded little complex with its own pool and little beach so there was lots of reasonably quiet relaxing, swimming and hanging out with the kids. When we were itching for a little of Ocean City's touristy, blinky lighted goodness the boardwalk was just a short bus ride away.

We heard that it was a moral imperative to get a giant bucket of Thrasher's french fries, complete with apple cider vinegar and salt. The bucket was about the size of a small movie popcorn and was gone in about 2 minutes. We also managed to squeeze in a visit to The Fractured Prune on the recommendation of my friend Michie- made to order donuts that are little sugary grease bombs from Heaven- and hammered our way through a half bushel of blue crab at one of the little crab shacks on the strip. Yumma.

We made our way down to the board walk and spent a while at Trimpers, where they have all sorts of vintage amusement park rides.

My nephew, Sam, was not impressed.

Henry and I, however, had a blast.

My brother and Kyle went on the upside down roller coaster while we all watched from the ground.

There was a little fountain area in the condo complex that the kids could run through and they loved it! It was perfect for the times they wanted a little water action but the grown ups were too tired to make a trip to the pool.

Since Henry's birthday is coming up (I can't believe he's going to be 7 in 3 little days!) and we wouldn't be together then, my folks threw him a little impromptu un-birthday party.

Yay

Of course we couldn't leave the boardwalk without a little cheesy family vacation photo...

And we couldn't leave a family vacation without a little portrait to commemorate the occasion.

L-R: me mama, me dad, sister in law Kirstin, Brother J with Sam and Joe, me, Henry, Kyle. Are we an attractive bunch or what?

Rawr.

2010-06-17T08:11:00.003-04:00

For the past few days it has felt like this little dragon has been sitting on the back of my chair breathing fire in my direction. It has been in the mid 90s here with sun a blazin' and high humidity. The sky cracks and lets the rain go for just a few minutes and we all cross our fingers hoping for things to cool off, but the sun seems to come back to pick things up right where it left off. My cucumbers and tomato plants are loving it but I must admit that I am wilting a bit around the edges. I see many pools and lazy days in our future...

June! June! June!

2010-06-15T08:21:00.005-04:00

Getting a full day's work done with the little beast home from school is proving to be challenging. Luckily, I married a teacher and he will soon be able to be "primary caregiver" (in theory) during the day while I get out into the studio to chip away at the huge to do list I need to tackle before we go on the Grand Summer Adventure of 2010.

While I will continue to work on customs on the road, the shop will be closed for 3 weeks starting this Saturday. Lots of loose little ends need to be woven in before then!

One less thing on my plate is this Happy Little Baby Monster, who went into the mail heading towards his new home yesterday. I hope the rest of your pregnancy is easy peasy rice and cheesy, Christia! I look forward to seeing pictures of the new little man when he makes his grand appearance!

Schoooool's Out!

2010-06-13T20:07:00.002-04:00

To celebrate the end of school, Kyle took Henry up to Cataloochee to go hiking and camping with our friends Adam, Sam and Leo. Think he had a good time? That grin is awesome! If someone was there to take a picture of Kate (Sam and Leo's mom) and I out getting drinks and looking forward to sleeping in while the boys were camping last night I think we might have had similar looks on our faces...

My Little Grub Worm.

2010-06-03T08:23:00.003-04:00

Little man was given the part of "Grub Worm" in the first grade musical. His costume consisted of this awesome face paint done by a mom in the class who also happens to be a professional face painter (handy, no?), a camo doo rag and a camo sheet wrapped tightly around his body. He had two speaking parts, which meant he had to struggle up the stairs and to the stage armless twice to get to the microphone. At the end, all of the bugs receive flowers (it is the crux of the plot, people!) and, since his arms were all wrapped up in the sheet, the kid next to him took the flower and shoved it down his neck hole. It sat there poking him in the face for the rest of the play. Comedy. Gold.

Tonight is the kick off for the summer reading program. Tomorrow is the last honor roll ceremony of the year and the class party. I have the feeling that next week is going to be a movie watching, field day going, extra recess having week of fun. Is he really going to be in second grade next year? Up on the top floor with the "big kids"? How did that happen?

*sniff sniff*

Remind me of this mushy, lovey, he's-growing-up-so-fast-and-I-want-to-squeeze-him-tight feeling towards the end of summer break when I am pounding on the front door of the school and begging them to let him back in...

TKD Testing- May 2010

2010-05-24T11:49:00.011-04:00

Friday night I got to test for my yellow belt with all the other white and white-yellows who are movin' on up. Yes, I did paint my toenails yellow to match my new belt. No, I didn't get any pictures.

Yesterday the upper belts had their testing. Since I was already done, I got to sit back, relax and enjoy the show. I had a lot of friends testing in the upper ranks and it was awesome to watch them kick ass! Testing is broken down into 4 sections:

Every time you reach a new belt level you get to learn a new series of moves put together in a sort of routine that you perform as a whole. These are called forms. Each form is meant to teach you a new set of techniques, and the higher you go the more complex they get.

Next up are one steps. One steps are a series of reactions to a punch to the face. One partner repeatedly punches towards the othe partner's face and that person reacts to it using different moves.

Sparring.

And my favorite... board breaking!