Ultimate Blog Party 2010

5 Minutes for Mom is hosting its Ultimate Blog Party this week! They are giving away what looks to be a zillion prizes, so be sure to stop by and sign up!

For those of you visiting Inside the Yellow House, you've come at the right time.  Yellow House Knits is having its Semi-Annual Sale this week and next, so this is your opportunity to have a beautiful, handknit baby sweater--including the adorable pink flower sweater below--at a huge discount (all in-stock sweaters are 40% off).  There's also a special offer for bloggers (click here for details). 

The Party prizes are pretty fantastic.  I'm particularly interested in the following, but I would love to win any of the prizes (especially those my little niece would love and the gift cards) if these are taken: the Amazon gift cards from Escalate Network (US 73) and A Full Cup (US 74), the Vanilla Visa card from Shoot Me Now (US 104), the Target gift card from Peggy Gorman (USC 3), the Kay Jewelers gift card from An Unpink Life (USC 13), and the Apple Store gift card from Cmomgo (USC 17). 

Thanks for stopping by!

Semi-Annual Sale Starts Today!

The Yellow House Knits Semi-Annual Sale starts today and runs through April 25.  ALL in-stock sweaters are 40% off!  And any custom orders placed during the sale will receive free domestic shipping.

Special offer for bloggers: Blog about the Semi-Annual Sale between now and April 18 and receive either (1) free shipping on your in-stock sale order (in addition to the 40% off) or (2) a coupon for 15% off a future order.  Your blog post must include at least one picture of a Yellow House Knits sweater.  Email me at yellowhouseknits(at)gmail.com to let me know where to find your blog post and where to send your coupon code.

Have fun!

New Custom Sweater Order

I'm really excited about a new custom sweater order that just came in.  I just love the colors--light and bright pink, orange, and green.  I wonder if the customer is a fan of Lilly Pulitzer?  The colors seem very "Lilly" to me.  I think they're going to look fantastic together. 

The sweater is going to be a mosaic sweater, like this one.   I'm still toying with button ideas--I have some ideas, but I might need to finish the sweater to see what's going to look best.  Stay tuned.  

Reminder: Semi-Annual Sale Starts Sunday

Just a reminder that the Semi-Annual Sale starts this Sunday, April 11.  All in-stock sweaters are 40% off.  Custom orders placed during the sale receive free shipping.  The sale runs for two weeks.

Also, don't forget about the special offer for bloggers (click here for details).   A number of people have asked me if the free shipping or 15% off is transferable.  The answer is yes!  So someone else can take advantage of the free shipping on a sale sweater or you can use the 15% off as part of a baby-themed giveaway.

Next Blog

Do you ever hit the "Next Blog" button in the Blogger header just to see what comes up?  When I'm stuck on a conference call or wasting time online, I find that I can get sucked into clicking through the "next blogs."  Most of them are blogs that I run right past--blogs that are in foreign languages or blogs that are totally outside my interest areas (comic book characters or ultimate fighting or breeding horses).  But every now and then I find one that catches my interest, and occasionally I'm so interested that I follow the blog. 

Here are a couple of the gems that I've found in the rubble of the blogosphere:
The Twiddletails Blog: Gorgeous quilts--make me wish I had the patience for quilting
Diary of a Pizza Girl: Funny and fascinating stories from the pizza delivery front. 
Ink Obsession Designs: Really beautiful (clean and modern) stationery and invitations
All About Mommies: The joys and trials of being a mom

I also stumbled on Katie's great blog Sunshine and Bubblegum just this morning, but of course I'd already found that one. 

"The most exciting National Championship . . ."

One of my friends who knows more about sports than I do proclaimed last night's game "one of the most exciting National Championships we'll see in our lifetime."  I suspect she's probably right.  About midway through the second half, she texted me to see if I was still there (because I had threatened to leave after 15 minutes), and indeed I was. 

The game was really, really fun!  The crowd in Lucas Oil Stadium was very pro-Butler (not surprising because we're in Indianapolis), and we all really wanted Butler to win, so the loss was a real heartbreaker.  But they put up a really good fight, and it was a real nail biter at the end.  Our seats were GREAT--about 30 rows back, so we could see everything, which was awesome.  I was really glad I got to go--what an experience!

The Ultimate Irony?

I am not a sports fan.  I am especially not a basketball fan.  I think the last basketball game I went to was in high school, so almost 20 years ago.  The only reason I know the difference between dribbling and traveling is because I have seen Fletch approximately 1.2 million times (I identify with Gail Stanwyck).

What's so ironic, you ask?  Well, it turns out that I'm going to the NCAA championship game tonight.  And we have really good tickets.  I'm in Indianapolis for business, and our client offered us tickets.  I couldn't say no, because I couldn't resist the opportunity to tell people that I'm going to the "Final Two."

I think I'll be cheering for Butler because I like to see the underdog win.  I'm actually kind of excited--I figure I'll stay for a good 15 minutes!

Peeps Show

Easter in D.C. means the Washington Post Peeps Diorama Contest.  Every year, I eagerly wait to see the submissions, which are always amazingly clever.  Here's this year's winner, based on the movie, "Up."  The house is actually floating above the ground.

There are also some semi-finalists that particularly appeal to me--one recreating the famous Dupont Circle snowball fight, which got national attention during the Snowpocalypse.  Another depicts the recently rebuilt Eastern Market, which is truly the centerpiece of my Capitol Hill neighborhood.  There are also literary references ("Goodnight Moon," Jane Austen, and "Madeline"), pop culture (the balloon boy, Super Mario Brothers), and semi-political (Bo Obama and the White House party crashers).

Check out all of the finalists and semi-finalists here.

Rocking Out in the Car

Last night I drove from D.C. to Pittsburgh to visit my parents for Easter.  It was a great night for driving--warm enough to have the windows down and the music turned way, way up.  The time goes so much faster when I sing my heart out while I'm driving, especially at night when I'm feeling sleepy.  My singing voice is absolutely terrible, but I make up for it with my enthusiasm.  Of course, there'e no one but Bullet to hear me make a fool of myself. 

I was thinking, though, that my selection of "driving music" is pretty ecelectic, favoring 80s and country music.  Here's a small selection of what I heard last night:

Cecilia (Simon and Garfunkel)
Wild at Heart (Gloriana)
Summer of '69 (Bryan Adams)
Let the River Run (Carly Simon)
Callin' Baton Rouge (Garth Brooks)
King of Wishful Thinking (Go West)
I Can See Clearly Now (Johnny Nash)
Walking on Sunshine (Katrina and the Waves)
Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skinner)
I Gotta Feeling (Black Eyed Peas)
Closer to Free (Bodeans)
Convoy (C.W. McCall)
King's Highway (Tom Petty)
He Thinks He'll Keep Her (Mary Chapin Carpenter)

What songs make you turn up the radio and sing out?

Happy 14th Birthday (Observed) Bullet!

Happy Birthday to my favorite April Fool!  Of course, today almost certainly isn't your actual birthday.  I don't know when you were born, but the shelter estimated that it was probably in the beginning of April 1996, so April 1 seems as good a day as any to celebrate.

Unfortunately I missed the first seven months of your life.  I so wish I could have seen you when you were a little puppy.  I imagine your ears were a bit floppy and your paws were too big for your skinny legs.  And you were probably pretty wiggly and likely quite speedy, which may be how you became known as "Bullet." 

But if given the choice between knowing you as a puppy and watching you grow into the wise, distinguished old man you've become, I would always take the latter.  Even though you were the one who was in a shelter, I like to think that we rescued each other.  You have become my best friend, my confidante, my protector.  Now, as your glossy black fur gets grayer and your steps slower, I'm reminded of how precious our time is together.  And I'm so grateful that I have you in my life.  

Happy Birthday Mr. Bullet!  I cherish you.