Knitting post!

Finally I had it together enough to create a knitting post!!

First off, I got a wonderful surprise package in the mail last week (when I was having a very bad week I may add) from Kristina Yarnsticks, and the funnest thing in there was this!!

What is it?

A case for my DPNS!  Now instead of being all over the place in an old tea tin, they all have a spot and are organized.  Which is great because some of mine do not have sizes on them so I was forever having to measure them out in the sizer and it was kinda annoying.  So now I slipped pieces of paper in so I know!

Thank You, Thank You,  Thank You,  Kristina!

How is the sweater coming along?  Okay, but to be honest this week I was going crazy just going in circles around and around, that I decided to get some side projects.

One is I finally finished these socks from forever ago:

Another is this:

What is this? not a hat.  Something for hiking/camping!!  I'll tell you more when I finish it.

Happy Knitting! And happy Spring!!!!!!!!!!!

Maryland has some stuff for hikers too...

Okay, I have to give some credit to our neighbors north of here. Yesterday we decided to head North to Maryland. We often pass through this area on the way to my parents house, and since we are either going or coming from there, we don't have a minute to spare to stop and look around, netherless hike. So we decided to see what was around that area (and maybe later this year take a weekend camp there). We both want to go camping, and almost did this weekend - but just were not able to. I hope that first weekend in April we'll have a chance to go somewhere!

Anyway, this will likely be a long post (and I finally posted the pictures from last week below this post, so check out the post below this one too!). I hope to have a knitting post later this week.

First stop on our trip was the Cunningham State Falls Park. I had seen a sign for falls (I am a total sucker for falls and caverns), and so I wanted to go. When we woke up and I checked out their website, we noticed they were having a special maple syrup demonstration/breakfast. So of course, that just made us want to go even more.

As a side note, when I think of Northern Maple Syrup... I admit I think of Vermont and Canada, not Maryland. But they sure know how to make a good pancake!

Here is a picture of a tree tapped the way the Native Americans used to do it... with a hollowed piece of Sumac...

Here is the new fangled way of doing things - with a maze of plastic tubing connected to a bunch of trees.

Here is the sap boiling away (apparently it needs to be boiled for at least 3 hours!)

Here is inside the pancake brunch. It was really super yummy and their sausage was out of this world. Their pancakes were rather fluffy - how do they do that? Mine never come out so pillow-y!
They had some local musicians playing away, and a nice roaring fire! It was chilly in the morning, but warmed up later.


After pancakes for lunch we hiked out to the falls (see those people on the rockface? that is how you can see how big the falls really were!)


After we hiked back tot he visitor center, we decided to go next door to the Catoctin Mountain National Park. A lot of the park was closed off this weekend, due to a certain visitor. As most people know Camp David is inside this park somewhere. They won't tell you where anymore, I guess there used to be signs.

We decided to hike in the parts close to the visitor center that were open, and we ended up hiking to Wolf Rock. It was labeled a "strenuous" trail, and after hiking awhile I could see why - it was steeply uphill 95% of the time.

But we made it, and climbed on the rock. Here are our "explorer" poses for you to enjoy.



Then after the hike downhill (much faster!) we decided just to stop off the road and take a look at the Catoctin Iron Furnace. We didn't see all of the furnace site since we had very limited time. We hope to explore it a bit more next time we're up there.

One of the furnaces:


Ruins of the IronMaster's Home:



Anyway - I hope you enjoyed a play by play of our Saturday! I know I enjoyed spending an entire day outdoors with my dear husband... and in the afternoon it even got up to 58 degrees in the sun!! I'm maintaining that spring is almost here...

Pictures from a while ago, now...

Well I just didn't have a chance to blog about the pictures I wanted to put up last week... sheesh!

Anyway, here are some pictures from the Manassas Battlefield Park that I promised so long ago. :)

As you know - I love Sycamores...



And the river looked kinda pretty (albeit everything is brown).



And we were surprised to see ice under the bridge! It seemed to warm for ice to be there!! We were only wearing long sleeved shirts and sweaters!!

a long, multifacetd post!

Lots of links today! (anything underlined is a link! click on it for more info!)

Hi Everyone.
Well we sprung back our clocks today - all the way back to December it feels, as it is 27 degrees out!! However, spring is on it's way for sure, as I have seen actual daffodils popping up on sunny hillsides and some sort of fruit tree in my apt. complex has sprouted pretty pink flowers. For anyone who would like to come to DC for the famous Cherry Blossoms, they say the peak will be March 27 - April 3, 2008! During the Cherry Blossom Festival.

Please make note, though, that Hotel de la Centreville , which has great service and cheap rates (aka free, please come visit us!!), is already booked for the weekend of March 28th. :) H's sister is coming down for a wedding/visit that weekend. Unless you don't mind the blowup bed... then you're welcome too.

Okay so what else is new with me? Well, someone out there got me a subscription to backpacker magazine. Unless I sleep ordered it, somehow. So if you did this and I forgot you were going to, or if you planned some kind of great surprise, 'fess up so I can thank you properly!!

Of course it makes me want to go hiking badly and it is so cold out today. Plus I am tired from yesterday. Yesterday was the Arlington County Red Cross's Basketball tourney. It is their big fundraiser for the year. I was in charge of kids activities and it went pretty well. I tell you - if you ever have a group of under 12 year olds, and need to entertain them for hours and hours, a moon bounce is the way to go. We got two from T.E.A.M. , a local group that gives teenagers the chance to learn business skills. Their prices are very reasonable and the kids loved it. We had a climb and slide one and also a regular moon bounce. I wanted to go it in, it looked so fun. But after 9 hours, I was pooped just watching and making sure the kids didn't get hurt. We also had one of those giant gym parachutes, and kids love those things too, they're a lot cheaper, you can find them on the internet for less than 40 dollars, and there are a ton of games you can play with those.

So that was my weekend, today I have to clean our messy apt. Harland cleaned the kitchen, so I gotta get cracking.

But, before I go I have to catch you up on my last weekend!! Last weekend my friend Elena came. We did some shopping and went out to eat, but also we took a stop to Great Falls National Park on Sunday(and used my parks pass).



Then later in the day (because Elena and I didn't go hiking we just stopped by for a minute on the way to the airport, as the falls are right next to the visitor's center...) Harland and I went for a walk at a 2nd National Park - Manassas Battlefield Park. And we saw some ice under the bridge, which was interesting considering last week it was a lot milder than this week has been. I have pictures, but google is being weird and isn't allowing me t add anymore pictures! Ugh. Technology! I'll just make a new post later with the pictures.

Signs of Spring

I am starting to think that spring is arriving. Here is why...

1. Saw a robin today
2. Saw about 300 geese really really high in the sky flying north
3. When I came home there were people having a picnic and playing Basketball on the courts.
4. Saw some forsythia's were blooming on a sunny hillside on the edge of 66 during my commute
5. The bus windows were open
6. I didn't have to wear a hat, scarf or gloves at the bus stop this morning
7. Saw people running outside of the gym
8. Saw kids riding bikes
9. It just smells like spring out!
10. Work (which was dead last week) suddenly got busy as can be today, and I may even have to stay late tomorrow. So if I don't post in a while, you'll know why.

Like Christmas in March

Today was a very exciting "stuff" day!  Not only did I get a new pair of running shoes in the mail, but we also went to REI to a) use our 20% off coupon b) cash in our dividend check c) use our gift cards... and we did all that by buying me a new sleeping bag.

See the thing is we have light bags that are good, but Harland's second cool/cold weather bag and I do not get along.  First of all it is rather tight in my hips, and so warmth never gets to my toes.  And even though he says it was good for 37.4 degree weather, I was sooooo cold in it last spring when it was in the mid 40's.  So we decided the next camp gear we would buy a new sleeping bag for me.

So we finally did! Yay! 

So now watch out world, I am ready to go camping (of course our March is so booked up, I don't know when we will have the chance... hopefully the one weekend we do have free will be nice).

It's the Cat's Meow (literally and figuratively). Click here for the info.

And thanks Aunt Joanne and Uncle John for the gift cards!