Pictures - is it as hard as I think??

So, I'm trying to figure out how to upload pictures to my blog. To me, it seems very complicated, but I'm going to try. Following instructions on Hello, and they seem easy enough, except I'm not sure how to post pictures in the middle of the post.


This is me. This picture was taken on our honeymoon. We were somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean when this was taken.

But that picture was posted by sending it to my blog and then editing the post afterward. I'll have to try a few differeing things. If anyone is reading this, please bear with me, I'm new at this. Suggestions are definitely welcome.

Okay, so that's all the time I can spend tonight, since I need to get to the restaurant, but I'll keep trying. Cheryl, do you use Hello, too?

No time to say Hello Goodbye ...

There's been so much craziness going on the last few weeks, I have scarcely had a moment to myself.

First, the new puppy has been putting me through the paces. It's O's dog. A replacement for his college pal who recently went to the big dog park in the sky. But, with him being such a sound sleeper, and ridiculously busy as well, I've been the one doing a lot of the work for this new guy. Puppy's not so bright, but very much a playful puppy, which is nice to have. I don't think my dog (now 5) ever played this much in her entire life. Glad she has a playmate now.

Today, I came home to find that, happily, there were no accidents in the house. Unhappily, the dogs had knocked down the bag of puppy food (which rests about 4 feet off the floor normally) and eaten almost all of it. (A wonder there weren't any stinky surprises for me, for sure.) They'd also eaten an entire pack of cigarettes, and ripped the cushions off of a sofa. Fortunately, it was a relatively easy cleanup, all things considered.

Second, the restaurant has been going like gang busters the last couple weeks. The week before Thanksgiving was amazing. Thanksgiving week was very slow in the restaurant, but that's pretty much the nature of DC for that week. Also, since the restaurant was closed for Thanksgiving, I got to see a lot of O. That was really nice.

This week has been great, and they're looking forward to a superb December, with several parties already booked and lot's of reservations coming in. It's my fervent hope that this will be the chance for them to get their feet underneath them and start to turn numbers to the black. It sucks seeing negative numbers in the business checking account and knowing that there are still more checks outstanding.

The puppy has also taken his toll on my knitting projects. Potato chip scarf: thrown away (along with the new knitting needles that it was on); Scrap yarn shawl: dog ate one of the size 11 bamboos, then decided that the yarn really looked best strewn throughout the whole house. What once was one ball of yarn is now 6, and the shawl is on hold, possibly permanently. Candy stripe socks: started with new double points, dog ate the needles, but left the knitting surprisingly intact. Ripped out and started over on plastics, but their points are to nubby and I need to wait until I can get to the shop to buy new bamboos. Silver grey cardigan that I love: Happily the only project that he hasn't touched, and it will remain so. It's been cast off. All that remains is to sew in the ends and sew on buttons. For now, it is well out of pup's reach in the closet.

This weekend was busy, but fun. I went to the restaurant three times, and had a ton of fun. The place is doing better, actually posted a small profit last month. But the payment schedule for bills and purveyors is still really agressive, and there's not much left at the end of the month to go around.

New pup is settling in well, but housebreaking seems to be going backwards. He's got some terrible timing and seems to have a penchant for peeing at 2:00 and 4:00 in the morning. But, he's a sweet boy, and he'll get this whole toileting thing down.

Started work on the potato chip scarf. I'm adding two extra rows to it, since the yarn I'm using is a bit finer, I think, than what's suggested for the pattern. It's only about 1 inch wide with 7 rows completed. I think if I do two extra rows at the end (not fun with 1440 stitches, but worth it, I hope) it will end up wide enough that it makes a statement when I wear it.

Still haven't picked up the neck for my last project. The cardigan is lovely, and I do want to finish it. Just haven't been duly inspired, I guess.

Since I'm new to this blogging thing, I've been looking at some of the others that are out there. I love some of the knitting blogs (Kenny, the Boy who Knits is great, and the blog links from his site are lots of fun.) I'm not nearly as good as most of the knitting bloggers out there. My focus is much too diverse to begin trying to design my own, or be too ambitious. My first step, I think is going to be to begin adding photos to this blog. Haven't gotten quite that brave yet!

Okay, dawdling complete, it's time to get to work on that collar.

Knitting Project - What next

My plan for this evening is to finish the sweater that's been lingering in my projects bag for what seems like forever. Truthfully, though, I do have an excuse for not finishing it sooner, wedding, restaurant, grandmother passed away, sister's wedding, new puppy, and so on and so forth. Lots going on in my life.

Now, that things are settling down a bit, and Chase seems to be content to be playmate to the newby, I think I can actually finish putting the sweater together, and start on the collar tonight. That's a plan!

Next up - find next project. Mother-in-law wants the next project to be a houndstooth shawl, which is very pretty, but I'v never done color like that before, and I'm not exactly confident in my abilities.

Also need to start the Candy Cane socks. They were intended to be University of Maryland socks, but the red and white stripes are sure to make them look more like Christmas than anything. Maybe I'll get them started tonight as well.

New Family Member

On Saturday, we welcomed the newest member of our family into the household. Basil, a sweet 5 month old mutt, came from the DC Humane Society. He's a bit more rambuncious than our two other dogs, and they're not really sure what to make of him, but so far, it's going okay.

The other two, Toute and Chase, have rule of the house, and he is learning how to coexist with them. Toute especially has been a bit harsh in the transition, growling at him every time he trys to walk past her. Chase is just being a bit posessive of her toys and especially her bed (our bed). Chase played with him for more than an hour yesterday, so I can see progress there. They'll all become friends in time, but for now, he's in need of a bit of special attention.

Housebreaking is going to be a challenge for him, as well. He wants to go outside to do his business, but he's not really good at asking before he needs to go. He's made it to the balcony a couple of times, but he's also had a couple of accidents.

Overall, we're very excited to have him. It's one of those times when you know that everything falls into place when it's right. We had applied for three other dogs, and hit roadblocks with each of them during the process. With him, we saw him for the first time on Tuesday, and brought him home on Saturday. It must have been meant to be.

Quiet Time

You know, because of his hours, which are dictated by the restaurant, O and I don't get to spend much time together during the week. He works late most evenings, I'm usually in bed or on the way there when he gets home. I get up more than an hour before him, and he's still sleeping when I leave for work.

Thursday nights I head to the restaurant for my weekly visit. (Actually, I'm usually also there on Friday or Saturday, but no guarantees for either of those.) It's a chance for me to see my husband when we're both awake, not in pajamas, and likely to remain so for more than an hour.

Truthfully, his schedule now is better than it was when we first started dating. Then, he had just begun working as a sous chef and worked typically 80 hour weeks. I've often said that if we didn't start living together when we did, there is no way we'd have stayed together.

Anyway, I'm enjoying the evening by myself at home. O's mom has gone to the restaurant with a friend, so it's just me and the dogs tonight. Quiet time is nice, I must say.

Starting Out

By way of introduction: I'm the wife of a chef in Washington, DC, we've been together for more than 8 years, but only married recently. In fact, he and his business partner opened the restaurant only a month after our wedding. I love the restaurant industry, but don't want to work in it. Tried it, it wasn't for me, returned to 9-5 and am happier for it.

There's a lot more to life than who you're married to, but since I titled the blog Chef's Wife, let's start by dispelling some myths about being involved with/married to a chef.

Myth #1: You must eat really well at home. - The truth: My husband, like most people, does not really enjoy bringing his work home with him. I sit in front of a computer all day long, with email popping up to tell me whenever some bit of news has arrived. When I come home, I avoid our computers like the plague. He sees food all day long and the last thing he wants to do when he returns home is have to cook for someone else ... even the one he loves. Now, if he is fortunate enough to have two full days away from the kitchen in a row, he starts to get a little ... well, homesick might be the best word. After a prolonged separation, he will get "the mood" to cook dinner, and then, we eat well.

Myth #2: Chefs are really particular about what they eat. - The truth: Chefs are really particular about what other people eat. Mine, though very adamant about only serving the freshest, highest quality in the restaurant, requires a constant supply of food at home that can be taken from fridge/freezer to plate in under 3 minutes. Eating for him is almost a chore. That said, when we dine out, yes, he is incredibly particular about what he eats, how it's cooked and presented. We're both very critical of the restaurant experience in general (you have to be to stay ahead of the competition) but overall we're nice to servers and chefs. We will only send back food that is truly inedible.

Myth #3: You must have tried everything before anyone else. - The truth: No. Short and simple. First, my taste buds are not the ones Hubby trusts (indeed in many cases he doesn't trust mine at all, since I don't eat seafood or mushrooms.) Second, were I to try, even in small doses everything that is created by the kitchen before it is served, I'd never be able to hold down my own job, and I'd weigh more than I care to imagine. Third, I, like most people, have preferences at every meal. I select my meals more often than not because there are things I'm in the mood for.

So, three major myths dispelled. To be dealt with at a later time: The kitchen is an old boy's club, Substance abuse in the kitchen, and drinking habits of the average chef.