My time: 7 minutes, 0 seconds
Tonight I was motivivated to try Sudoku again, and I completed my first puzzle. Woohoo! It was just the easy level, but I didn't think it was too bad for my first one. Of course when I originally looked at it I gave up after just a few minutes (very unlike myself -I usually love puzzles). Tonight I was in the mood, and I was probably guessing lucky. Now I want to play again! =)
Monday, July 24, 2006
Friday, July 21, 2006
Back from the Mountains
I posted a bunch of photos below. There are lots more here.
Here's what we did:
Thursday morning we (Brian, myself, Tommy, Grandma, and Auntie Louie) started out for a scenic drive across Vermont and into the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It was a spitting rain when we left, but by the time we made it half way through the trip the skies had cleared. We stayed at a little hotel called the Mt. Madison in Gorham. It looked quite a bit different from the picture (smaller), but all that mattered to us was that the rooms were clean and there was a (heated outdoor) pool. We went swimming almost every day, which was a must after coming in from a day in scorching summer heat. -And in case you don't already know, Tommy loves swimming.
Friday was our Day Out With Thomas at Conway Scenic Railroad. It was as terrific as, if not better than, we expected. The ride on Thomas' coaches lasted about 25 minutes (one ride per ticket), and there was a new ride every hour or so. There were many coaches, and they were all packed. In addition there were just as many families outside taking pictures with Sir Topham Hatt, the lego Thomas, and playing with trains. We didn't do all of the activities because we could only take so much heat, but we were there for most of the day. My favorite part was seeing so many kids, all with their Thomas shirts and hats. You could see the excitement in their eyes. -It was a very happy place!
After seeing Thomas we had lunch and iced lemonade a little nearby cafe and then headed across the street to Zeb's General Store. They sell only 100% New England made products and have a 67 foot long candy counter. It was very cool! We bought Tommy some gummy worms (his first ever) and another little kitty before waving goodbye to Thomas the Tank Engine from outside the store.
On Saturday we went to Story Land. There was so much there to see and play with that I can't even begin to cover it all. From the little nursery rhyme houses and play areas to the castles and boat rides... to the more traditional theme park rides and shows, we loved it. Two of our favorites were the raft ride and Professor Bigglestep's Laboratory. We went on the raft ride twice just to get soaked on a hot day. Water squirted out unexpectedly throughout the ride, so it was fun and funny. -The Laboratory was a big round building full of little foam balls flying every which way. There were two levels complete with many different types of machines designed for shooting out the balls. Tommy found one that sucked up the balls like a vacuum, and I went to the second level to shoot balls down at Brian. We stayed there for a while. =)
The original plan was to take the Mt. Washington Auto Road on Sunday, but we ended up taking a gondola skyride up Wildcat Mountain instead, where we had a nice view of Mt. Washington and Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines. We took lots of pictures before heading down and to play mini golf at Pirate's Cove and then back to the motel for more pooltime before a long drive down to Great Grandma's in Rhode Island on Monday.
We don't get to see Brian's grandmother often, so we really appreciated the chance to visit. We all had dinner at a little Italian seafood restaurant, where Auntie Louie tried her first lobster - and liked it! 
Of course we came home Tuesday and headed right back to work on Wednedsay, which was interesting enough as my car had been parked in the garage for a week and wouldn't start Wednesday morning. Thankfully it has been ok since, as Brian's car just ate up over $400 in brake maintenance. Ugh!
Now Tommy and I are off to New Hampshire again - this time for my Aunt Janet's wedding reception in southern New Hampshire. Then I think things will calm down a bit, but in the meantime, we have had some fun!
Here's what we did:
Thursday morning we (Brian, myself, Tommy, Grandma, and Auntie Louie) started out for a scenic drive across Vermont and into the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It was a spitting rain when we left, but by the time we made it half way through the trip the skies had cleared. We stayed at a little hotel called the Mt. Madison in Gorham. It looked quite a bit different from the picture (smaller), but all that mattered to us was that the rooms were clean and there was a (heated outdoor) pool. We went swimming almost every day, which was a must after coming in from a day in scorching summer heat. -And in case you don't already know, Tommy loves swimming.
Friday was our Day Out With Thomas at Conway Scenic Railroad. It was as terrific as, if not better than, we expected. The ride on Thomas' coaches lasted about 25 minutes (one ride per ticket), and there was a new ride every hour or so. There were many coaches, and they were all packed. In addition there were just as many families outside taking pictures with Sir Topham Hatt, the lego Thomas, and playing with trains. We didn't do all of the activities because we could only take so much heat, but we were there for most of the day. My favorite part was seeing so many kids, all with their Thomas shirts and hats. You could see the excitement in their eyes. -It was a very happy place!
After seeing Thomas we had lunch and iced lemonade a little nearby cafe and then headed across the street to Zeb's General Store. They sell only 100% New England made products and have a 67 foot long candy counter. It was very cool! We bought Tommy some gummy worms (his first ever) and another little kitty before waving goodbye to Thomas the Tank Engine from outside the store.
On Saturday we went to Story Land. There was so much there to see and play with that I can't even begin to cover it all. From the little nursery rhyme houses and play areas to the castles and boat rides... to the more traditional theme park rides and shows, we loved it. Two of our favorites were the raft ride and Professor Bigglestep's Laboratory. We went on the raft ride twice just to get soaked on a hot day. Water squirted out unexpectedly throughout the ride, so it was fun and funny. -The Laboratory was a big round building full of little foam balls flying every which way. There were two levels complete with many different types of machines designed for shooting out the balls. Tommy found one that sucked up the balls like a vacuum, and I went to the second level to shoot balls down at Brian. We stayed there for a while. =)
The original plan was to take the Mt. Washington Auto Road on Sunday, but we ended up taking a gondola skyride up Wildcat Mountain instead, where we had a nice view of Mt. Washington and Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines. We took lots of pictures before heading down and to play mini golf at Pirate's Cove and then back to the motel for more pooltime before a long drive down to Great Grandma's in Rhode Island on Monday.
We don't get to see Brian's grandmother often, so we really appreciated the chance to visit. We all had dinner at a little Italian seafood restaurant, where Auntie Louie tried her first lobster - and liked it!
Grandma, Great Grandma, and Auntie Louie all offered to watch Tommy after dinner so that Brian and I could go to our first Pawtucked Red Sox game. We had great seats and were able to watch Wily Mo Pena play while on rehab and just before heading back out to Boston. We loved it and would be regulars if we lived in Pawtucket!
Of course we came home Tuesday and headed right back to work on Wednedsay, which was interesting enough as my car had been parked in the garage for a week and wouldn't start Wednesday morning. Thankfully it has been ok since, as Brian's car just ate up over $400 in brake maintenance. Ugh!
Now Tommy and I are off to New Hampshire again - this time for my Aunt Janet's wedding reception in southern New Hampshire. Then I think things will calm down a bit, but in the meantime, we have had some fun!
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Saturday Sky
I took this photo on our vacation in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, from the bottom of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. It might have been Friday, but we passed it on both days...Saturday was my sister Becky's birthday. Happy Birthday Buddy!
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Babies & Yarn
Today Stephanie and I went to Denise's baby shower in Massachusetts. I love baby showers. What's not to like about baby clothes, shoes, and accessories?
We stopped on the way back in Lenox, MA, at Colorful Stitches. The yarn selection was heavenly ...and expensive. -See Forbidden on this page. Amazing! Of course $49.35 per skein was, well, completely out of my price range. If that interests you, see Qiviut on this page, at the bottom. $50 almost seems like a deal after seeing that. Of course, feeling those yarns was just sinful.
I was good and kept my entire purchase to $5.25. Evidence:
I think I did well...
Lenox was very picturesque. I hope to go back some time and sample a few more shops. (It doesn't hurt to have the Lee outlets nearby.) I'm hoping there will be some good walking/shopping close to our motel in New Hampshire this weekend too, when I'll have my camera with me. I love small towns with lots of little specialty shops. :)
Saturday, July 08, 2006
About Photographing the Sky
So... Brian gave me a hard time about taking pictures of the sky today. Part of me saw his point. A bigger part of me, however, didn't care. I mean, there's no arguing that it's silly, but that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with it. Besides, he's sitting on the couch playing a video game right now and laughing like a mad man because he's beating the xbox. I mean, really.
That said, I wanted to take a picture of the sunset today (not super spectacular, but pretty), but I didn't have the camera with me. Then tonight I tried taking pics of the moon (also pretty) and quickly discovered that I don't know how to take photos in the dark. I tried several different settings on my camera - and several techniques. My assumption was that the problem lay both with the camera and the photographer.
This is about the best I could do:
That said, I wanted to take a picture of the sunset today (not super spectacular, but pretty), but I didn't have the camera with me. Then tonight I tried taking pics of the moon (also pretty) and quickly discovered that I don't know how to take photos in the dark. I tried several different settings on my camera - and several techniques. My assumption was that the problem lay both with the camera and the photographer.
This is about the best I could do:
Hopefully I can make up for this week's photos next Saturday on my vacation in the mountains! I can't wait!
Saturday Sky in Upstate New York
I'll be off to work in a few minutes, but I had to post my first Saturday Sky picture leaving. It looks pretty blue in the picture, but it's actually very white and hazy this morning. It should be a nice day though, so maybe I'll catch a better photo later.
Click on the button if you're interested in joining the ring, or click here to see who started it all.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Yet Another Hat
I'm done with hats for a little while now, really... For some reason I couldn't get the color to photograph well unless I put the purple hat next to the new pink one, so I had to either put them together or re-photograph. What you see is what you get! Next, I'm thinking red mittens for Tommy... I want to try working in some color (well, white)... We'll see how it goes! The hats were a fun break from bigger stuff. -Goodnight!
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Keeping Busy
Happy Fourth!
Unfortunately I had to work today, though I will appreciate the money when it comes. Somehow I still managed to save enough time to make another hat tonight when I came home. It took just over two hours, and I am actually pleased! My only regret is not using softer yarn. The white hat, though not as well made, is extremely soft, and the difference is huge.
The new hat will be for Grace (friends' soon to be baby girl). I have enough yarn to make one in pink too, which I will hopefully do soon as well. -More pictures soon!
P.S. You can find the pattern here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)