go irish, beat boilermakers

The Notre Dame vs. Purdue game is a big deal for my family since we have graduates from both schools among my siblings and cousins. So we were super excited for the Notre Dame Shamrock Series (our annual home-away-from-home game) at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis this year! Our tailgate was complete with delicious food, cornhole, and our annual game of "cups." Before the game, we walked towards Georgia Street where the pre-game show was being filmed and met up with some of my high school friends in the Purdue lot.

I didn't expect the roof to be open in Lucas Oil. The day was gorgeous when the sun was out, but it got pretty chilly by half time!

Purdue put up a good fight in the first half, so I was a little worried. I kept thinking, "At least if we lose to Purdue, Michigan will feel even worse about being shut out by Notre Dame." That's mean of me. Sorry, Michigan (but not really). On to the next game: Go Irish, Beat Orange!

go irish, beat owls

It's that time of the year again: college football season! I'm planning to live vicariously through my sister who is a freshman at St. Mary's this year and has student tickets to all the Notre Dame home games. Fortunately, the ticket lottery blessed me with four tickets to both the season opener against Rice and the Shamrock Series game against Purdue at Lucas Oil Stadium.

My parents went with us to the Notre Dame vs. Rice game last weekend. Despite a forecast predicting an 80% chance of rain, we stayed dry until mid way through the game. Then the heavens opened, and the entire stadium played a game of "how quickly can you put on plastic rain poncho." We got a little soggy, but we did get to see a victory. I also got a peek into my sister's dorm room... I might be jealous of her tickets, but I do not miss living in a tiny room with two other people!

Don't be fooled by Dan's Notre Dame jersey. He's wearing his Penn State t-shirt underneath "so the Notre Dame doesn't touch his skin."

a little bride bunny

I learned how to knit in high school, but all I could really make was a rectangle (a.k.a. a scarf). I knew the basics of how to start, how to finish, and a little bit of what to do in between. So how did I get from knitting scarves to knitting sweaters?

• YouTube. You can learn every single thing you need to know about knitting (and lots of other hobbies) from YouTube. Every confusing instruction, every weird stitch, every interesting technique is explained step-by-step in a video. (I even replaced the cracked gas tank on my lawn mower by watching an instructional video on YouTube.)
• Ravelry. This online community for all things knit and crochet is a treasure trove of patterns (free and for sale), inspiration, and support. I wouldn't be nearly as interested in knitting if I didn't find all these awesome ideas on Ravelry.
• Yarn shops. Michael's and Hobby Lobby have decent yarn. But, oh my gosh, I didn't know what I was missing until I ventured into my local yarn shop... there are some really beautiful yarns out there. Working with quality materials makes knitting so much more fun.
• Little Cotton Rabbits. I stumbled on this blog a couple years ago and immediately fell in love with the adorable knit animals. I followed the blog for a while and was indescribably excited when she published the patterns for her girl and boy bunny. These patterns are not simple and not quick, but they are so rewarding. Wanting a bunny for my very own was my biggest motivation to learn more about knitting.

I just finished making my eighth bunny from Little Cotton Rabbits. She is a gift for my friend Jen who is getting married in November, so I decked her out with a wedding dress, a veil, and even a little garter. I love how she turned out, and I know she's gone to a good home!

This little bunny was made with Cascade 220 in color doeskin heather, and her dress is Rowan wool cotton 4-ply in antique. Additional project details are available on my Ravelry page.