Lakeside 4th of July.

I've been a working professional for two years, and I know one thing for certain: paid holidays rock. The 4th of July is one of 'em, and nothing beats a weekday off from work. 

With perfect weather outside and only an afternoon BBQ on my agenda, I packed up my new Matt & Nat cork tote and headed to Tenney Beach. Less than 2 miles from my condo, this seemed like the perfect lakeside lounging spot.

Note: In Wisconsin, the word "beach" means a lakeside place to lounge with a small amount of sand and a large amount of grass. There are no waves, no seashells, and building a sand castle would be a challenge. 

I set up my towel lakeside and pulled out the latest issue of Vogue: pure bliss.

The ducks kept me company.

When I got through my magazine, that perfect lake was calling me, so I went for a swim. I went to summer camp for 9 years, so I'm used to lake swimming, but I probably hadn't been in a lake since 2003. And hell, I hadn't been swimming in the state of Wisconsin yet, so I figured I was due.

After my first swim in Lake Mendota. Wet hair and Ray-Bans.

Swimming: check. Now, back to lounging in my Havaianas.

My solo lake trip was fabulous but I was getting hungry, and in true 4th of July fashion, it was time for a BBQ. I headed off to Jennifer and John's house for a pretty amazing spread:

Chick pea salad, chips, olives, a veggie dog, and a veggie skewer: Yum!

After hanging at the BBQ for a while, my friend Michal invited me to join her at BB Clarke Beach on Lake Monona (yup, that would be another "beach" full of grass). I was pretty full and couldn't pass up more lakeside lounging:

Took those Havaianas to lake #2.

And then, it happened: I revealed the horrible fact that after living in Madison for over two years, I had never been to Memorial Union Terrace (arguably the best place for summer hangouts and swimming in Lake Mendota). We packed up our bags, headed over to the Union, and claimed our spot on the dock:

Michal and me enjoying the sun.

We had a beautiful lakeside view...

and jumped in! 

My second swim for the day: quite relaxing.

After hours by the lake (which included meeting Alejandro, a friendly Puerto Rican who will be Michal's new salsa dance partner), it was time to grab a table and get some food (we opted for Mediterranean wraps).

The signature Union chair: these are all over the terrace in orange, green, and yellow.
Really brightens up the place!

Two lakes, two swimming trips, and a delicious BBQ: a fabulous 4th of July.

Take me out to the ball game: Stitch 'N Pitch 2013.

Last year, I went to my first ever major league baseball game to knit in a stadium and obtain a novelty bobble head. Well, why not do it again? Two weeks ago, 10 friends and I took an evening trip to Milwaukee to watch the Brewers play the Oakland A's,

Sponsored by The National Needle Arts Association, the nationwide Stitch 'N Pitch brings together baseball and needle arts. Yarn vendors come to the baseball stadiums while knitters, crocheters, and quilters enjoy the game and partake in their favorite crafts.

The gals from Stitch 'N Bitch Madison braved the nasty wind and tailgated like champs before the game:

Kat, Andrea, Yours Truly, and Pat in full Sith Lord getup.
Andrea is rocking the death stare.

Despite the weather, we were in it to have a good time:

Pat shows off her 'I love to crochet at baseball games' shirt.

After eating dinner in a parking lot for the second time in my life (last year's Stitch 'N Pitch being the first), we grabbed our tickets and headed to Miller Park.

My ticket.

Then, we met the man of our dreams: this year's bobble head (a knitting hot dog). Since last year's bobble head was cross-stitching, my knitting pals and I were thrilled to see that the hot dog was knitting.

We bonded over our shared hobby
(note that I have a hand injury and have taken up finger knitting).

But then, he got a little naughty!

Anne C. managed to mellow him out.
Oh, and they dressed alike. 

Action shot of Anne C. knitting.

The Brewers weren't doing so well, but the gals were all smiles in the stands.

Andrea, Anne L., Kat, and Porter.

But this guy wasn't as smiley:

This Brewers fan was pouty when the A's took the lead.

Regardless of the game's outcome, it wouldn't be Stitch 'N Pitch without Andrea and me taking some ridiculous photos.

We aimed to pretend to slide down the glove,
but in fact, we WERE sliding down the glove.

Running with the Polish, Italian, and German sausages.

Fist-bumping the Mexican and American sausages.

Silly photos: check. Time to hang with our girls. Group shot:

Top row: Andrea, Anne L. Kat, Carol, and Porter.
Bottom row: Jane, Chris, Pat, Anne C., and Yours Truly.
Note: the smiling guy in the top right corner is our new friend, Tom.
He wasn't part of our group, but really wanted to be in the photo.

The game carried on, and we wound up tied at the end of the 9th inning. It was extended to a 10th inning and...

WE WON!

The excitement on Andrea's face says it all. After two years of Stitch 'N Pitch, I must say that my favorite part is the car ride to and from Milwaukee. I have some hilarious friends, and great things happen when we're confined to a small space.

For my coverage of Stitch 'N Pitch 2012, click here.

Let's throw some cash at the ceiling.

My college pal Allie stopped in Madison for 12 hours, so I did my best to show her some of the city's best options for local food & drink:

Dinner at The Coopers Tavern.
Drinks at One Barrel Brewing Company.
Dessert at Chocolaterian.
Brunch at Lazy Jane's.

A pretty awesome 12-hour visit, eh?

When we walked into One Barrel, we immediately noticed money all over the ceiling:

After chatting with the bartender, we learned that all ceiling money for the months of May and June will be donated to the Dane County Humane Society. It's an old bar trick: fold a stack of quarters and a thumb tack into a dollar bill, and voila! We had our dollar folded by a pro:

Step 1.

Step 2.

Step 3.

Then, Allie did the honors:

Awesome throw! Nice way to help out the cause. Good times with one of my favorite gals.

Milwaukee day trip, and how I met a camel in Wisconsin

Last Saturday, Elysha and I took baby Clementine on a day trip to Milwaukee.

First, we stopped at Cafe Hollander for brunch with my college pal, Mary. It was delicious!

And no, Clementine was not the smallest one in our group: we also brought George, a traveling gnome from Ravelry.com, who was spending some time with Elysha and on his way to Iowa:

George hangs out in Clementine's pocket at the restaurant.

Next stop, the Milwaukee Zoo, where we met a variety of animals:

Toucans! 

Penguins!

Flamingos! 

Cows (of course)!

And my favorite: Lippy the camel. He was happy to pose for some photos.

The sea lion show was adorable:

When we were about to leave, we were privileged enough to witness a peacock mating ritual (unfortunately, this stud was turned down by his lady friend, but we applaud his efforts):

"Look at my feathers! I'm so handsome!"

"Even from behind, I'm still handsome!"

Oh, and I found a cow to pose with (surprise, surprise):

All in all, a nice day outside of Madison. Clementine loved the birds!

Unusual things I've seen in Madison: part 4, Ryan Gosling in chalk.

I stopped by my friend Andrea's house last Wednesday and wound up finding yet another unusual thing in Madison.

Sighting #6: Ryan Gosling in chalk on a Jenifer St. driveway.

Drawn by Andrea Miller, Hannah Stern, Nina Reynolds, and Veronica Sandoval
(photo by Veronica, of Paper Robot Design)

Andrea is a metal sculptor and a high school art teacher. In an effort to inspire her students while studying portraiture, she recruited her neighbors to help her bring Ryan Gosling to life in their driveway. The result is at once lovely and humorous (I think Andrea did a particularly good job on the eyes).

Never a dull moment!
For more of Andrea's work, click here.
For more of Veronica's work, click here.
For an amusing Ryan Gosling Tumblr, click here.

Another round of cuteness: Great Midwest Alpaca Festival, take 2.

Last year's trip to the Great Midwest Alpaca Festival was a day full of furry cuteness, so when I saw that the event was back in town this year, I knew I had to give it another go.

Accompanied by fellow knitters, Kat and Caitlin, we bonded with a variety of Midwestern alpacas and checked out a lovely assortment of yarn.

We had a feeling that we'd run into Mindy and Linda from Galpaca Farms, and sure enough, they brought a few adorable friends to the event, like this guy:

Meet Tsunami! He was happy to pose for a photo with me.

Snacking on some hay for the camera. Total diva.

The cuteness was everywhere! Kat and Caitlin also made some new friends:

Kat experienced some first class fluff.

Caitlin found her soulmate.

A few more alpaca shots (double click any of these images for a larger view):

And just in case alpacas weren't enough to draw us to the event, there were many yarn vendors for us to see, too:

Diving into some freshly sheared alpaca wool. SO soft!

Lovely blues.

Great colors!

Oh, and then there was this alpaca who really enjoyed dinner to the fullest:

All in all, it was a great day, and I think I'll make this an annual thing. We ended the day with a delicious dinner at Pasqual's, complete with refreshing sangria:

Cheers to alpacas!

To read about my visit to the 2012 Great Midwest Alpaca Festival, click here.
To read about my trip to Galpaca Farms, click here.