Awesomeness in chicken forms

Yesterday I made a chicken for supper but I tried something new.  Normally, I put it in my roasting pan, with the lid, and cook it at 350 for about an hour and a half.  It usually splits the breast but the meat is so tender, I don't care.  It isn't for the Queen or anything so a split breast is a decent sacrifice for such juicy meat.

Well, my husband made a comment that he misses having crispy skin on his chicken.  I don't normally eat the skin so it never dawned on me that there was a difference.  To make Pokey happy, because it's my duty to keep him pleased as punch, I decided to cook my chicken last night in a different fashion.

I first took two lengths of aluminum foil and rolled them length-wise so that I had something to rest the bird since my normal roasting rack did not fit in my dish.  This lifted it up just enough that it wasn't sitting directly in the juices while cooking.  After that was all set, I washed the bird and set it in the dish on the foil bits.  I took my orange blossom honey and drizzled it over the entire bird.  I then sprinkled on some lemon peel, celery salt, pepper, and parsley.  It looked fabulous -

That is one beautiful bird right there!

Even before it went into the oven, I thought it was beautiful.  I honestly sat there and stared at it for a goodly bit thinking that Gordon would be so proud of it if he could see... Paula would tell me to add butter but in my cooking daydreams, Paula is always telling me to add butter to everything.

So I preheated the oven to 275F and placed this gorgeous bird on the middle rack - mine are actually marked A-D so she was on B for her holiday in the oven.  I set the timer for two and a half hours and went about my day.  When the timer went off, I temped her to make sure we were on target for supper time.  She was a big girl at just over six and a quarter pounds so timing was important.  I then covered her lightly with aluminum foil so she didn't burn and placed her back for another hour.  The final results were amazing!  Have a look -

I had to run and grab the camera to get a picture because Pokey couldn't wait to dig in!

It tasted absolutely delicious.  I will admit that the breast meat was not as juicy as it is when I cook it in my covered roasting pan but it was still good.  It didn't dry out at all, like I feared it would.  All I know is that Pokey and Hobbit were very happy and I have two more bags of leftover chicken to use in the freezer from this baby which will yield me a total of four more dinners. 

Like I always say, you just can't beat a good roaster when it comes to getting the most bang for your buck.  This awesome bird was just over $13 so we'll call it $14 for the sake of argument.  That means I got five meals for $2.80 a meal.  You just can't top it.  Just because you are feeding a family on a budget doesn't mean that you have to eat cheap boxed meals.  Good food, when you purchase wisely, can actually save you money and feed you well.

Oh, what was I doing while the chicken was cooking yesterday - finishing up my Mission... which I am promptly going to frog now that I have turned it in.  I love this neon yarn so I am going to turn right around and make something else with it, I just didn't care for the excessive fluffiness of this particular item.  The chicken bag though - well, that's just awesome no matter how you look at it.

See how it drapes like curtains, not a fan.  I'm going to frog it though and make something fabulous.

Off to spend my morning rewinding yarn and searching patterns.  I hope y'all have a wonderful day.  This is Hobbit's last day of school before Spring Break so I'm going to enjoy my last day of quiet for the next 8 days.  On the super up side, Pokey and I were both able to get vacation during her Spring Break so it will be a week full of family fun!

Happy endings and new adventures

I finally made the time to finish the third book in the Hunger Games series.  I must say, since rereading it with fresh eyes and a different perspective on Katniss, I honestly loved it.  It ended just as I had hoped and it even had enough surprising twists to keep it interesting but not annoy me with a feeling of prolonging the story for the sake of additional pages.

I won't share the ending in case there are those who have yet to read it but I must say that I love it when a trilogy can capture my heart in such a way that I honestly get emotional for the characters.  The first time I read it, I simply loathed Katniss so much that I didn't make it through the second book before I just gave up.  I then sat through the movie because my husband loved the books and wanted to see it... wow, did Jennifer Lawrence change my perception of that character.  I picked up the first book and reread it with a better understanding of who Katniss was and the stories came alive for me.

I'm in that mourning phase now -  you know, the one where you were so invested in the characters that you are sad you completed their stories.  I have a few books on standby for my next adventure so we'll see where I land next week.  In the meantime, I'm going to pick up the next movie in the series tomorrow since it comes out on video then.  That should help with the transition.

Tonight I am going on a culinary adventure as I'm making my first ever curry.  I was originally going to make Butter Chicken from scratch but there were so many new spices and ingredients that I wasn't sure I wanted to invest my funds into something we might not ever use again.  In light of this - and the sheer cost of it all - I opted to go a different route.  We are still having Butter Chicken but I am using a jarred sauce from the U.K. crafted by Sharwood's.  They have a ton of recipes and ideas but I'm simply making this over rice and we'll see how it goes.  It's one of the best selling curries in the U.K. so it has to be good, right?  I have an emergency $20 tucked away for pizza, just in case we don't like it.

Now, I am going to go and spend some time enjoying this deliciously lugubrious day.  I managed to make up ground last night from the frogging that took place the day before and I'm hoping to finish this section of color changes to see where it falls before starting the cuffs for the whole sleeve idea I have.  This is where I'm at now...

Almost done with the first round of the round (and skein) of orange.  It's extra fluffy for the sleeves.

Naturally, when a project is on the floor it needs to be joined by Tinkerbell who helps model.

Though apparently she only works alone... poor Buddy, he lives with such a diva.

Why wait?

Seriously, who can beat $5 to feed a family... twice over!

Y'all know that I love a good bird, especially one that can get me several meals.  Last shopping trip, we got a beautiful turkey because we love it and figured why wait for the holidays when we can eat it whenever.  So we made a delicious bird that weekend and from that beautiful beastie, we got another 6.5 lbs of meat which gave us six more initial suppers, of which we were able to get another six full suppers.  Breaking it down just for this bird - that $27 fed us for half of the month at 13 full meals, plus a few lunches for my husband.  Oh yeah, I love me some roaster birds!

Today, I'm taking one of those bags of leftover meat and making Turkey Alfredo.  It's a super simple recipe that anyone can make.  Sure, I have the ability to make the sauce from scratch but that's for times when we aren't attempting to squeeze blood from our pennies, so I went the super frugal route.  I can tell you that this entire meal cost me a grand total of $5.  Yep, seriously - and we'll get two full meals out of it so that would be $2.50 to feed my family tonight.  The bird breakdown at $2, the sauce was a bogo at $2 a jar and the noodles were just under $1.

It's great for nights when I have to work or just don't feel like "cooking" cooking.  You boil the noodles, heat the sauce, toss in the turkey because it's already been cooked so it just needs warming.  Once the noodles are done and drained, mix the sauce over it and you could call it done.  I like to put it in a casserole dish and cover it with Parmesan cheese and parsley, letting it bake in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes to give it nice crispy topping.

Just showing proof that I'm honestly & actually doing it.

Walla.   The three of us get nice full bellies and there is usually at least three servings left over, sometimes four.  I swear, just because it's frugal doesn't mean that it's nasty... I'm not talking Hamburger Helper, which would have actually cost me more and not gone as far.  When things get back to being more fluid, we'll go back to making our own sauces but for now, I'm not turning my nose at a jar because it tastes great and they're just as happy.

I'm happy to report that I have finished my book and I absolutely loved it.  It left me sad that I didn't have the second installment of the series to immediately dive into and that is an awesome feeling.  I can, with confidence, recommend "Beautiful Creatures" to anyone who enjoys a story about finding that one soul that you can truly connect with on every level possible.  A story about finding yourself and your capacity to love when you never thought it possible.  A story about strength, compassion and vulnerability with characters who are developed fully and that you can completely relate to on several different levels.  It is a wonderful story - it's not heavy but it doesn't pander either... it is simply engaging, captivating and intelligent.  I'm picking up the second in the series on Friday... if not, I may die too!

Nibbles and Narratives

No narratives this week - it's all nibbles because I wanted to share the most amazing creation that took place in my kitchen on Monday night.  Even my idol, Gordon Ramsay, would approve of this one.  It's that good!

You're going to need these ingredients -

I worked it out and with the six servings, it worked out to about $1.25 a serving.. can't beat that!

Ingredients

• 1 lbs of ground beef
• 8 ozs of angel hair pasta, broken into thirds
• 15.25 ozs of corn, drained
• 10 3/4 ozs of tomato soup
• 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup of water
• 1/4 cup of minced onions
• 1/4 cup of rough cut parsley
• 3 tbsp of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp garlic salt

It's super simple to make and tastes like a million bucks.  Even Hobbit ate it so that's saying something!

Directions

1. Set water on to boil and cook your noodles per the package directions.
2. Toss onions, crushed red peppers and corn into a hot skillet and saute.
3. Add Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt and half of the parsley.
4. Add in your ground beef in chunks to help brown it quicker and easier so you don't break or burn your corn and spices.  Drain once your ground beef is cooked through.
5. Replace mixture on low heat.  Add in the tomato soup and water, mixing thoroughly.  Let simmer for about five minutes or so to marry the flavors.
6. Drain your pasta and add to the meat mixture, combine so all the noodles are wet with sauce.
7. Mix in the Parmesan cheese and add the rest of the parsley to the top for color.

Hungry?

This stuff was so good, I swear! I got six servings total so in our house, that's two complete meals. I think a nice cool salad would compliment this dish really well and if I had had the fixin' in house, I would have made one to go with it. Enjoy - and let me know what y'all think!

Nibbles and Narratives

It's an interesting idea and it worked, mostly, which surprised me.

I am so close to being done with my book, I can taste it!  It's been delicious so far and I want to see how it all plays out in the finale.  Truthfully, I was concerned that I was not going to enjoy this title but my love of all things Bennett won out and thank goodness it did.  Has anyone else picked up "Death Comes to Pemberley"?  What did you think?

This week I was in need of comfort food so I was in a bit of a panic when I went to make my meatloaf on Tuesday, only to discover that I had not one egg in the house!  I did some quick thinking learned a nifty new trick... would you like me to share?  Potato flakes.  Yep, that's right.  To substitute the binding agent that I lacked, I used 1 tablespoon of potato flakes and 2 tablespoons of water.  Again, a nervous nelly was I while it was baking because I can stand a lot of things but ruined/wasted food is not one of them.

Not only did this work, you couldn't tell the difference.  There was no change in texture or flavor really which surprised me.  I was afraid that it would be somehow creamy instead of meaty.  Silly, but it's the truth.  So here you go - my recipe for smashing meatloaf...

Ingredients:

1 lb of lean ground beef
1 egg, beaten (or substitute 1tbsp potato flakes and 2 tbsp water)
2/3 cups breadcrumbs or oats
1 small onion, minced
2 tbsp parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1/8 cup ketchup (or bbq sauce is also good)
1/8 tsp black pepper
2 tsp ground mustard (spicy brown is also good)

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients by hand, making sure everything is evenly distributed.
2. Scoop up the mixture and roll into a huge ball.  Slap it down into a baking dish (I use my 5x7 most often but you could use your loaf pan as well).  Form the mixture into a loaf by squishing together the sides and then patting down the top.  Repeat this process until you have a loaf that is roughly as high as your baking dish, with rounded ends.
3. Take your ketchup (or bbq sauce) and make a nice zig-zag pattern across the top and sprinkle some parsley or chives on top.
4. Bake in a 350* oven for about an hour or until the internal temperature of the meatloaf is at or above 160.  Let it rest for a few minutes and then transfer to a serving plate.
5. Enjoy!  This should yield you about 8 to 10 slices, depending on how thick you cut it.

Nibbles and Narratives

This is my most favorite of comfort foods.

Last week, I shared that I made something awesome and never got back to y'all with the recipe... and it's going to have to be a bit longer because I forgot to pick up eggs this week with the groceries.  I promise, I will have it for you soon but today I have a different recipe for y'all.  One that my family loves and is my ultimate favorite comfort food.  It can be done in a poncey fashion, which I love, and it can be done on the cheap, which I do more often than not.  It's my Cottage Pie recipe and I thought I'd share.

I first learned how to make Cottage Pie from Gordon Ramsay and his recipe is delicious in it's own right but this one is a touch different.  My husband despises carrots, so I don't use them, and I rarely have wine in the house so that gets omitted as well.  Over the years, I just grab from my cupboard and it's all automatic.  So here is how I make Cottage Pie and it costs less than $1.50 per serving.

Ingredients:

• 1 lbs of ground beef (hence the term Cottage and not Shepherd's)
• 1 can of corn, drained (15.25 ounces)
• 1 can of tomato sauce (15 ounces)
• 1 pkg of Instant potatoes (I'm using Idahoan 4 Cheese)
• Worcestershire sauce (to taste, roughly 3 good splashes)
• Allspice (to taste, roughly 3 shakes or so)
• Minced onion (about half a cup)
• Ground mustard (to taste, light dusting over mixture)
• Garlic salt (to taste, roughly 3 shakes or so)
• Pepper (to taste, about 2 shakes)

Directions:

1. Heat your oven to 350 and have your dish ready - I use an old oval one that I've had for years but any 2 or 3 quart baking dish will work.
2. Brown your meat with the Worcestershire sauce, allspice, minced onion, ground mustard, garlic salt and pepper.  Drain and return to heat.
3. Add in the corn and the tomato sauce and let it simmer down.
4. Make up the instant potatoes in the microwave and have them ready.
5. Now, pour your meat mixture in the baking dish and lay it out even.  Put your mash on top, covering all the meat mixture.  Sometimes I add a nice sprinkling of Parmesan cheese on top but I always add some beautiful chives to give it some color.
6. Cook it in the oven for about 40 minutes until the potatoes are golden.
7. Let it stand for five minutes before serving.  Enjoy! 

As far as the narratives go, I'm on the cusp of finishing my current book but I'm taking a moment to brag on my Hobbit.  She just turned 8 not two weeks ago and she finished her first chapter book on a 5.3 level - that's fifth grade reading level and she's only in second grade.  This week she completed reading "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" so I did what any other mother would do... I ran out and bought her "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", which she is devouring as well.

A child who loves to read never will be alone or bored... and Hobbit found her love of reading.

You know that moment...

I'm so stinking proud of this stuff I can't even being to describe it.  I needed one good thing this week.. this is it.

in "Castaway" when Tom Hanks stands up and yells "I have made fire!" and he's all proud?  Yeah, that's me but I have made bread!  The recipe said that it was foolproof and they didn't lie. The crust is crunchy goodness like it should be and the inside looks so soft... and it smells like heaven. 

If heaven has a smell, it's fresh baked bread, I swear.

I did it again

I put down a book that I just could not get in to... although I did request that my husband please read it since my mama asked us to tell her if she would like it.  I figured that if I can't get into it that's one thing but if he can't get into it then my mama definitely won't enjoy it.  Between the two of us, we have her taste in literature completely covered.

In the meantime, I'm waiting for his book that he is currently reading so I am currently without a novel.  I know I will have one before the weekend is up so I'm not fretting over a few days without a book.

This past week I did something that I never thought I would - I put cinnamon in my meatloaf.  Yep, you read that right.  I have been watching "Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course" and in one of the episodes he was making 'real' fast food or street food, and I noticed that he added a teaspoon of cinnamon.  This got me thinking so when I went to make my meatloaf the other night, I played with my spices.  I added ground mustard, garlic, oregano, cinnamon and chili powder along with my standards of salt, pepper and minced onions.  Let me tell you, it was amazing!  Everyone cleaned their plate and commented on how good it was which made me very happy.  So remember, you can jazz up anything with just a bit of spice and creativity.

Oh, last night I finished Hobbit's Valentine's Day present and I'm rather pleased with how it turned out.  I also find it funny that the first thing that she and Pokey said when they saw it was "Can you turn it in for homework at Hogwarts".  Ah yes, I have trained them well.  Here is her hat, which she has donned for school today -

And yes, I turned it in for my Muggle Studies homework, thanks for asking.

Ehhh, it's alright

This is an awesome and inspiring show!

I'm still reading that book about Abe Lincoln being a vampire hunter.  I can't decided if it is just too weird to get my head around or if I don't like it.  It's written like an official documentary and I think that is the conflict that I'm having - I know it's bogus so some of the things written make me take a pause to digest.  It isn't badly written, the actual dialogued character interactions section at the beginning was rather engaging, it's just... odd.  That's the best way I can describe it.

I have had an incredible attack from my sweet tooth yesterday and knowing that I have some vanilla ice cream in the freezer makes the decision to make these beauties a lot easier... plus, Gordon has never steered me wrong.

Creative cupboard cooking

Ever have a day where you have food in your house but you don't have anything to eat?  Lots of things but a bit lost as to what you want to do with it all?  That was me tonight, until I found four things - cooked chicken, broccoli, cheese soup and rice.  It was awesome!

The spices are Worcestershire sauce, chives, ground mustard, onion powder, salt and pepper.

The broccoli was frozen and I nuked it for half the time suggested - then I cut off the stalks.

Poured the soup in a bowl and added 3/4 of a can of milk, scraping sides to get it all!

Toss in your spices to mix with the soup, this ensures it covers everything.  It's all 'measured' to taste.

Put the rice on the bottom, add cooked chicken, broccoli and soup - mix it all together so it's wet.

Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 35 minutes...

Clean up and wait - or make biscuits and get them ready like I did.

After 35 minutes, stir and taste test.  Now put it back in for 10 minutes, uncovered.

This is when I put my biscuits in the oven because it helps make sure it's all served hot.

Pull it out after 10 minutes and let it sit for about 8 more so that your biscuits can finish.

After those 8 minutes, pull your biscuits and plate your supper.  It's amazingly good!

Do you want to know the best part - I figured out that this supper right here cost me roughly $6 to make and I have leftovers so that would make it $3.  Yet another reason why I love a good old fashion roaster chicken.  This makes the third meal I've made with it - first the actual chicken, then my soup (which gave me two full meals of leftovers) and now this (which gave me another meal of leftovers).

You can't beat that with a stick.

Cowboy Lasagna

I've had a few requests for this recipe so I figured since I was making it tonight for supper, I would post it here as well.  It's super simple and wildly popular in this house.  I hope y'all like it.

Supper's ready!

Ingredients
1. 1 lb of ground beef
2. Minced onions - 4 tbsp
3. Worcestershire sauce - generous sprinkling
4. Parsley - roughly 3 tbsp, divided
5. One can of tomato soup - 10 3/4 ozs
6. One can of corn - 15.25 ozs
7. Dried ground mustard - 3 tsp
8. One package of tater tots - 32 ozs
9. Salt and Pepper to taste
10. Mozzarella cheese - roughly 4 cups

Directions
1. Brown ground beef with spices - drain.  Add can of soup and can of corn, simmer for about 10 minutes.
2. In a greased 9x13 baking dish, arrange tator tots in single layer.  Cover with 2 cups of cheese.  Pour ground beef mixture over top and cover with remaining cheese and 1 tbsp of parsley.
3. Place in a 350F oven for 30 minutes.  Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

I know my idols, Gordon and Paula, would be appalled but my family is tickled.

Gordon Ramsay would be proud!

Roughly chopped parsley, minced onions, lemon peel, salt and pepper on a olive oil rubbed chicken...

My house is smelling fabulous right now.  It's so nice to have my appetite back again!

Sad state of affairs

Cross-stitch my mama made for me

I had put Ramsay up for sale on an internet site this past week because... well... because we were having a really rough patch.  He was being difficult in his potty training, chewing on things that he shouldn't be chewing on and general sneakiness... and I was at my wits end because Hobbit was following the same path of naughtiness.  Something had to give and he was the one that could be removed.

Fast forward to today.  I received an email from someone scouring the pet purchasing site.  He stated that his name was Jack and he was interested in purchasing "it".  He also said that he was too busy to deal with me in person but would mail me a money order, with an extra $80 for my running around and he would have a mover show up to take care of shipping "it".  Just wire him the monies via Western Union and all would be well.

All was not well - that was a scam.  Plain and simple.  It is a sad state of affairs when someone, in an economy such as this, will hunt on those who are emotionally vulnerable.  I love my dog - he just frustrates the snot out of me at times.  Last week was a breaking point... but to attempt to take advantage of me - or anyone else - is just pathetic.  So please, if anyone ever gets anything in an email where the sender states using a money order - report it.  I speak from experience, as this happened to me years ago in my youthful ignorance and it left me almost $1000 in debt to the bank and nowhere to go.  The bad people were not in our country and even though I did all I could, nothing was ever rectified.

Ramsay, and my money, are staying right where they belong - home with me.

Therapeutic Recovery

Progress was made in many ways last night

"Applied for health reasons""the process of regaining possession or control of something lost or stolen".  That is what Ramsay and I did last night.  We had a bit of 'therapeutic recovery'... we needed it... and I think it worked.

After our horrific afternoon full of tears, we spent that evening sitting in our chair together.  He was curled in his spot, I was in mine.  We watched a bit of our favorite chef and spent some time in Stars Hollow... all the while, knitting and rebonding.

I used to spend the evenings knitting in my chair with him on my lap or snuggled in nicely by my side.  It didn't matter where I was, I was somewhere where he could snuggle up and melt away into la la land.  Lately, I've been processing photos or running around or cleaning or fussing at children or playing a game with Pokey... there has been a severe lack of Ramsay/Mama time.  I have squeezed my knitting time into the car pick-up lines at the girls' schools.  Let's face it, it's practically three hours of my daily life where I am forced to be sitting so I might as well knit... or read - currently I am diving into American Wife but it's too early to tell if I'm enjoying it or not... morbid curiosity keeps me reading though.

Anywho, last night I thought that I would sit down with my puppy and knit.  Part of the reason I wanted a small breed dog was because I wanted someone to sit and knit with - and Ramsay fit the bill.  He has always been "my dog".  From the moment I found him in the 'stale puppy' section, we knew we were meant to be together.  He has been my first fur baby that was truly 'mine' and not a family pet... and that is what I wanted.  He snuggles in and will sleep with me if I lay down on the sofa.  He will snuggle in and sit with me while I knit or read or watch a movie.  He isn't pushy and he doesn't ask for much... just to be near me.

You see, I think that is what I forgot with all the craziness in getting through graduation and such lately.  I forgot that fur babies need some Mama time too.  So through the course of two hours, I managed to repair my relationship with Ramsay - and repair my shrug design test knit.  All in all, I would say that it was a definite success... for all involved.

Heven Help Him... He's Gonna Need It

He did it again.  I can't believe that he would do it again, but he surely did.  20 minutes.  That's all I was gone for and he managed to ruin it in no time flat.  In my head, the scene played where he waited for the door to lock, snuck over to the window to watch my car drive away and then WHAM!

"That foolish girl" was probably what he was thinking as he let out an evil puppy giggle.  "She thought that because I have been so good this morning that it would be alright to leave me out of my crate for a short bit while she and Daddy go to get his car.  My plan worked... and now, come to me, my precious."  Slowly, he creeps over to the soft buttery leather bag in the most appealing of cotton candy pinks.  Nudging it with his nose, whoops - it falls to the ground.  "Well now, since it's on the floor, it must be for me.  Right?  *Bwahaha."

Sadly, he was wrong.  He didn't realize this until I returned home... and then, he had no doubt.  The question I ask is why?  Every time he does this, he gets punished.  He knows he has done wrong because he will fold his ears back and squint his eyes closed... sort of like "if I can't see you or hear you, then it's not happening" kind of thing.  The curl in his tail falls out and the smile (yes, he does usually hold a smile) fades away.  Sometimes, he'll throw in a shake for good measure.

He understands that he has done wrong, and yet he continues to be a repeat offender.  I don't know what else to do.  I love him.  I do.  I hate his mischievous, sneaky behavior.  I despise that he knows it is wrong and will do it anyway.  I abhor the fact that I can't trust him.

It's a good thing he's cute because some days, that face and funky tail with it's awkward wag is the only thing that saves him.  I'll be glad when we no longer have a 'puppy' in this house... I don't like 'puppy'.

*In case you are lost, Ramsay knocked over my pink knitting bag and tore apart my new yarn that I was using to work up my original design shrug test knit - along with my actual test knit.  It was all over the floor from my chair where I knit all over the living room... it was as if he was living out the title of Bilbo's book - "There and Back Again".

The Cat's Meow

That's what I'm thinking of calling this sweater - what do you think?  I love the way that it came out but I sure wish my model wasn't so excited that he couldn't be still for a photo.  I promise to update tomorrow with better ones if I can get him calm.

The pattern is an adaptation of "Ramsay's Romper" that I made earlier.  This time I added a seed stitch stripe above and below the harness hole, coupled with a seed stitch underbelly.  I really love how this came out.  I also made it a grand total of 6" in length all the way around so it fits like a real sweater.  

I am just tickled... and so is Ramsay.

Ramsay's Romper - Done

After several false starts, I finally created Ramsay's Romper!  The directions were even more challenging to write out so I drew them out instead.  I know that isn't my normal way of doing things but this project has had me twisted for two weeks straight!

I hope that you are able to follow along and if you have any issues, please email me.  I am here to help you through it should the need arise.

Remember, once these two pieces are done, you are going to need to sew them together.  Place the right sides together at the collar area (12 rows of 2x2 ribbing) and sew down those 12 rows on each side.  Then you will sew up from the "Under" side hem (2 rows of 2x2 ribbing) for the 11 rows just prior to the decrease for the arm hole on each side.  Weave in ends and turn right side out.  Wala ~ one Ramsay's Romper ready to go!

Enjoy making this and I hope that  your precious pooch enjoys wearing it equally as much as Ramsay is enjoying his.  Now, off to find the colors to make a little tiny chef's jacket!

I Did It!

I believe I have created the perfect jacket for Ramsay.  I can't wait to share it with you, but now - bed.

Knitting Mission: Impossible

Two attempts failed.  The final products were perfectly crafted and assembled - they just didn't fit.  Making a sweater for Ramsay is proving to be impossible.

He's tiny and he's not going to get any bigger, those are the facts.  He's a whopping 4 pounds and less than a foot in length.  He's just uber tiny.  I find it amusing that the very aspect of what makes him so appealing to me is the bane of my knitting existence at the moment.

I was making this cute sweater from Talking Tales but it is just way to big.  Here, take a look for yourself.

It's more like a little puppy poncho than anything.  The arm holes were too small, the neck area wasn't tall enough and the back was just way to long.  I love this pattern for it's simplicity and ability to practice fun things like cables and color working.  I've not given up on this pattern, I'll just need to do some serious modifications to it.

Oh well, some of our puppy friends are getting some snuggly warm presents in the mail while we work this out.  If.. no, when... I figure this out for him, I'll be sure to post the pattern for others who might have uber tiny fur babies that are in the same Knitting Mission: Impossible boat.

Chef's Jacket

No proper chef is without his jacket so I thought that I would make Ramsay one - he is, after all, a proper chef.  I'm working on a prototype since I'm going to have to design it myself.  Most of the sweaters I found patterns for were way too big and didn't have exactly what I was looking for in a sweater for Ramsay.  So I did my research and configurations and I am working it up as we speak - currently in left over yarn from "Pokey's Superstar Hat" so it will look beautiful on him!

As you can see, Ramsay is super small (4 whole pounds) and his breed loses heat rather quickly due to not having a lot of body fat on them.  Granted, it doesn't get cold often in Florida but when it does, you definitely feel it.. at least I do.  Raising my girls, I always went with the rule of thumb that if I was cold, they were probably cold too - why would it be any different for my fur babies?

Off to work on my little chef's jacket and hopefully it will be done tonight.  Have a fabulous Saturday!