Slow Olympic start and more blog woes

So with not quite as much of a bang as some of my fellow bloggers have started out, my Olympic knitting challenge is off!! I had a rough beginning Friday. Little Man got to stay up late and watch the opening ceremonies (because what little kid wants to miss guys with fire coming off of their heads?) but that also meant too much distraction to really start much knitting. He finally tuckered out for bed around 9:30 so when Matt put him down I got started.

Unfortunately, I hadn't swatched prior to Friday and then thought I'd better do it just to work out the stitch pattern. Lucky I did. It took me five tries to get it right. First I had trouble with my new Addi's and the Rowan 4-ply merino I am using. The yarn was slipping all over the place and I got really frustrated. So I switched to bamboo which was just too slow, and went back to the Addi's again. I got more used to the Addi's, but then kept losing the right number of stitches. On the fifth try I realized that I wasn't doing one of the yarnovers right, fixed it, and cast on. My Heirloom Silk (merino) Baby Shawl from Erika Knight's "Knitting for Two" is off!!!



I showed Matt the picture of the shawl in the book and how much I had done. He's such a great coach. I asked him if he thought I'd get it done. His reply, "No way." (Not only is he honest he knows me too well) Then he asked me, "So how many other knitters do you think are sitting around freaking out about this like you are?" (This was after the fourth swatch and many unpleasant words). I'm guessing quite a few of you!!

I'm feeling better now that I've gotten a start, but this is going to take some late nights. I figure the center panel is 28 inches, so I need to be doing about 4 inches a night to get done soon enough to start the four side panels. I've got four inches done in three days, and that was over a weekend. But, I've got the hang of the pattern now and it actually goes quickly as long as I'm not interrupted or falling asleep.

As for the blog woes, I have to ask you fellow bloggers for some ideas. With the new computer, I've totally got the picture thing down now. My problem? The side panel. It is taunting me with its plainess and totaly lack of anything other than the Knitting Olympics button. I tried to add the Team Wales button, but again, can't figure out the picture attachment to the link (Nate, where are you? I can't bug him again, I mean the guy gave us a free computer and he already showed me once.) I just can't figure out how to get the stupid picture to be on the link. I also can't figure out how to get new sections put up there. I really would like to have a seperate list of blogs, as well as a list of WIP and FO. I have read over Blogger a million times and can't find any help, and the html sites just make me feel like I've had way too many cups of coffee right now (and I'm off of caffiene). But I know it can't be that
hard, as everyone else seems to have it figured out. So, I give. As stupid as I feel asking this question, where is the secret "How to put things on your sidebar" page? I know it's out there somewhere!

Now, as Matt just said, "Shouldn't you be knitting right now?" Yup.