Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

This year Jim and I decided to make our Valentine's Day gift to each other together. After a bit of thinking, we decided on a bird feeder which was a lot of fun to figure out all the plans, measurements and angles. We were a great team while working on it together.

Jim in fact did a lot of the work. He insists that we worked on it together and I adore him for it. We drew up the plans together and figured out a lot of the measurements before hand. I did get to play with the heavy machinery but only with his guidance to make sure I didn't chop off any limbs. It was truly a fun experience with him. I'm glad we worked on our gift together because after all, that's what Valentine's Day is about.

Above is the finished result of our bird feeder. We still have to sand it down, paint, add a wooden dowel for the birds to stand on and attach it to a post. I cannot wait to wake up with a cup of coffee and watch the New England birds visit our bird feeder.

Wintry New York City

 Yesterday afternoon I was walking past Central Park when I was heading to FAO Schwartz and the Apple store and came upon a beautiful scene. The fog was hanging over Central Park after the blizzard had coated the park with it's powdery substance. I had to stop for a moment and admire it so I figured I'd share it with the world. I love small moments like these in New York City.

This past weekend I cast on my new knitting project. I decided to knit up the Aspen Neck Cowl which I found on Ravelry. It's a simple knit which I want right now and hopefully I can enjoy it before the winter melts away in a few months.

Finished Object

This past weekend was the Super Bowl. I don't say this because it is the focus of this blog although I did have it playing in the background (on mute). I have to say that I did find it to be pretty hilarious. I'm glad New Orleans has been making a comeback by hosting it but what was up with the power failure? Anyway, I digress, I in fact took this time to finish a project that I had been working on for two years. I shake my head every time I think about how long this one took. This project wasn't difficult but rather I think it just got put into a bad time slot in my life. I hope to move my future projects along a bit more efficiently. 

The Isabella top from Knitty was actually quite relaxing. I found a few portions of it to be a bit confusing but nothing that I couldn't solve in the end. I really recommend this pattern for knitting up.

Another thing I wanted to review that I purchased recently was the iPad mini. At first I was all against getting a tablet. I saw why they were so useful when I was playing around with my cousin's tablet but I just couldn't bring myself to actually purchase one. It was until one day I was cleaning out my work backpack because it was getting heavy quick. It was starting to give me so many back aches, I couldn't get out the knots in my back quick enough. I kept noticing that the weight was from all my books. I had a note taking book for appointments, my Moleskine calendar (which I LOVE), my suggested reading from my boss and my own personal book I was reading on my own account. Not to mention my brick of a laptop. I realized that the solution to get rid of all the excessive weight was the tablet. I moseyed on over to the Apple Store in Grand Central Station and made the move. 

I cannot tell you how great this thing is. I keep all my notes for work, I can open up presentations and pages in front of my clients, my calendar is there, all the books I'm currently reading, knitting patterns and it's my web browser so that I don't drain my phone battery. If you have been considering getting one, by all means, you should. My fiance even tried keeping it and he hates apple products. We downloaded Minecraft and were playing around with it, as well as a bunch of word and puzzle games which quickly became addictions. The first step is admitting it, readers. 

If you are looking for a cover for an iPad Mini, I recommend the MoKo Slim-Fit Multi Angle Cover. It is really set at a great price on Amazon and does the everything you would want your cover to do. It has durable hard cover, you can set your iPad in four angles, and when you close it you get the advantage of the smart cover that turns it on and off. Not to mention a hand strap and an elastic to keep it open without the cover moving around on you. 

Have a great week, readers! Happy Monday!