The Eighteenth box arrived on Monday!

Nifty Nines!

From Lesley, aaaallllllll the way in Alabama.

Treats!

A beautiful dish cloth for Captain Alexis, bubbles for Ellie, a great journal for me and Nestle Crunch for all! Thank you so much Lesley! And Congratulations to the Nifty Nines for a successful completion of the race!

PS The Paper Lantern Bag (Box Seven: DISHY DOZEN’s Sara: Dish Rag Tag the Sequel) has Ellie’s Cardigan-in-Progress in it. In-Progress is the important part of that sentence. It’s taking an age.

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009
10..KNITTING FOOLS 10/10/2009
11..Dish Rag Run 10/10/2009
12..U Can’t Knit Just 1 10/13/2009
13..Dastardly Dishtaggers 10/13/2009
14..Rag Tag Knitters 10/13/2009
15..Knitter’s Dozen 10/15/2009
16..Dishrag Divas 10/19/2009
17..Ragamuffins 10/21/2009
18..Nifty Nines 10/26/2009

The Ragamuffins box is back from Bibby!

I tried to take a picture with everything, but Ellie got the Kit Kats.

I got the Kit Kats back and tried to take a picture really quick:

but I was too slow

and Ellie took everything else.

A magnet!

Ceramic Pendents*!

The magnet and jewelry were made by Sunny Caralho and the batty moose guy has two holes so he might double as a button. Ellie says she wants him on her new cardigan. But I’m not sure. Thank you so so so much, Bibby! Your captain, Deb, is gonna love her dish cloth!

I finished another square and five rows on Ellie’s cardigan. Just four squares left to my DRT goal, but with 17 boxes in, a Halloween costume to sew, a fairy wand to make (unrelated to Halloween), a frog pattern I want to write, and a shop that’s kind of empty, I think I might just have to let this go.

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009
10..KNITTING FOOLS 10/10/2009
11..Dish Rag Run 10/10/2009
12..U Can’t Knit Just 1 10/13/2009
13..Dastardly Dishtaggers 10/13/2009
14..Rag Tag Knitters 10/13/2009
15..Knitter’s Dozen 10/15/2009
16..Dishrag Divas 10/19/2009
17..Ragamuffins 10/21/2009

*Just so you know, that skull is totally upside down. I don’t know why I made that his teeth his hair for the picture. I will blame the baby.

Box number fifteen has arrived!

It was handed to me with a bunch of other stuff and there was no one around to take a picture! Tragedy! But here are the contents:

Knitter’s Dozen!

Shelia has sent ZEBRA YARN!! How cool. I think instead of a dish cloth, I should actually make a zebra… You should notice that the needles and the labels (Aren’t they cool? There is a place for my name.) match the sunset dish cloth for Team Captain Sarah! Thank you so much, Shelia!

As an aside, the yarn for Ellie’s cardigan arrived with the Knitter’s Dozen box, so I have a new project. I also finished one more square to bring my total to

seven!

With only five boxes left to go I’m really not sure I can meet my CounterPain Goal.

Oh! And tomorrow is Boxing Day. That’s the day when I finally get around to wrapping up all the Dish Rag Tag Prizes for the mail. That’s gonna make for a good picture.

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009
10..KNITTING FOOLS 10/10/2009
11..Dish Rag Run 10/10/2009
12..U Can’t Knit Just 1 10/13/2009
13..Dastardly Dishtaggers 10/13/2009
14..Rag Tag Knitters 10/13/2009
15..Knitter’s Dozen 10/15/2009

Three!

That’s right! Three boxes arrived yesterday!

Box 12…

U Can’t Knit Just 1

Gum and postcards from everyone (except Jessica, who sent a map heeheehee and knit the last leg for her team)…

…and kitty stickers…

…and stitch markers! I heart them.

Jessica knit a beautiful dish cloth for Jen. Thank you all so much, this was a lot of fun to open!

Box 13 arrived from

The Dastardly Dishtaggers!

Look at the pretty purple yarn from Keri! I bet she spun it herself – look at her blog, you’ll see why. Butterfly stitch markers with a hexagon quilt block. Are they still called “blocks” if they aren’t square? I love it, it’s sweet adn unique and it matches the yarn. No picture, I quit while I was ahead when the post cards started disappearing. Captain Tracey is going to love her dish cloth! Thanks to everyone.

There were tiny Toblerones in one of the above boxes, I can’t remember which one because Ellie ran off with them and they didn’t make it into a picture. I got them back and hid them – they were sent to ME. I gotta say, I had entirely too much help with this post.

And now for the casualty. If you have young children you might want to ask them to leave the room before this next bit and if you suffer from a weak heart, please close your browser’s window now.

Box 14 was damaged in transit.

One end came open, and spilled contents in the back of a mail truck somewhere. Miraculously, the dish rag (and the instructions) finished the race!

Rag Tag Knitters!

Maggie, the turquoise dish cloth for your captain, Georgi is unscathed and lovely. And the notes on the back of the instruction sheet are priceless. I know it is small consolation, but your box perished a hero.

Congratulations to each and every team member on completing the race.

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009
10..KNITTING FOOLS 10/10/2009
11..Dish Rag Run 10/10/2009
12..U Can’t Knit Just 1 10/13/2009
13..Dastardly Dishtaggers 10/13/2009
14..Rag Tag Knitters 10/13/2009

Ladies and gentlemen, we are over halfway to the end of the race.

We accidently got the mail on the way back from the park.

The team to squeeze into the top ten at the hands of our letter carrier?

KNITTING FOOLS!

Milky Way? What Milky Way… The stitch markers, needles and yarn aren’t edible so they are still around. Theresa, I love all the notes. They really made me giggle. Theresa also knit a sweet, crisp white dish cloth for her Captain, Joan.

And team the eleventh is

Dish Rag Run!

See that little pink thing (the little white thing is yummy soap by the way) from Barbara? That is a computer screen cleaner. It’s very good at what it does (just ask Ellie – my laptop is sparkling), but when I unpacked it I thought “hedgehog!” I’m not the only one who felt this way: here’s a tutorial about how to turn a larger size in to a stuffed buddy! Your Captain, Jaymi, will love her dish cloth, the colors are wonderful (and put me in a sweater knitting frame of mind).

Thank you so much to everyone, big congratulations on the completion of the race!

Halfway to the grande finale! I need to work on CounterPain Squares.

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009
10..KNITTING FOOLS 10/10/2009
11..Dish Rag Run 10/10/2009

Let me tell you, this week has just about done me in. The only thing keeping me going is the steady return of the Dish Rag Tag boxes!

Who could it be?

Triskaidekaphobia!

ooOOOooo creeeepy

The team name is totally on the box, I just really liked the spiders. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I didn’t get to take pictures in the Natural Light of Day* so attractive (ahem) tungsten lighting and the kitchen counter it is! At least I’m keeping up!

Picked me right up!

Mandy, you made my day! The wee tiny blocker evokes fond Wee Tiny Sock Memories and just knowing the Starbucks gift card is in the house has lifted my spirits immeasurably. It’s going to purchase the most fatty delicious drink on the menu and I am Not Kidding. I’m thinking mint hot chocolate with half and half. *drool* I think my cholesterol just went up six points at the thought. I know the sea blue (it’s kind of turquoise, really pretty – even in the tungsten) dish cloth will have a happy home with your Captain Kim.

Thank you so much, Mandy, and congratulations to Triskaidekaphobia for successful completion of this year’s race!

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009
9… Triskaidekaphobia 10/9/2009

*Seriously, Ellie must have hit her head at least six times this morning and wept like the world was ending each time. She’s got a great bruise on her cheek from the most eventful collision. Fingers crossed for a kinder day tomorrow.

Two more! But when I saw them on the porch, I thought it was just one.

One of the boxes is Incognito.

Upon closer inspection, it was determined that the seventh box to finish the race belongs to:

Purls ‘n Paws!

Their Dish Rag love just could not be contained by that tiny box.

Kitty Pez is just so appropriate!

Thank you so much, Kathy! Your Captain Natalie will love her dish cloth – I can’t get over how good these look with the self-striping yarn! The needle size thingy has BOTH SIZES of twos and threes! I love it: the “what size is this two anyway” will never plague me again. Thank you to the whole team for the magnets and the postcards, Ellie enjoys them *almost* as much as I do! Do you see the cow magnet? Ellie moos to it.

In eighth place, we have the team formerly known as Team 18:

The Team With No Name!

The Team With No Name has finished the race in their original box! The last leg of the race was handled by Marie (she has one of my favorite blog titles of all time)! Sorry you had to wait until the end of the race, but I certainly benefitted from it. The notebook is so cute, the candy is gone and hey! the yarn matched the son of Dish Rag Tag logo! Awesome. That delicious dish cloth is destined for Captain Gwyn. Gwyn, if your mind works the way mine does, you should run out and get some orange sherbet now and save yourself some time.

Thank you very much to everyone and congratulations of completing the race!

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009
7… Purls ‘n Paws 10/8/2009
8… The Team With No Name 10/8/2009

Five and Six have arrived!

The mailman met us in the driveway, I swapped a bill for boxes.

Box five had no markings, I checked the team listings to find out that it belongs to the Fast Track Knitters!

Yay!

My Alabama neighbor, Lila, knit the final leg for her team! The dish cloth turned out so well in stripes that Captain Lisa will flip for it. Many thanks, Lila!

Every Fast Track Knitter included a post card from their state! I have included them in the contents picture. This is because I learn from my mistakes: the Wicked Sticks sent postcards. I tried to get a great picture but this was the best I could do:

In the chair is my new policy!

The sixth team to finish the race did so in spite of illness and an 11th hour Alternate! Truly a remarkable finish for

The Knitty Gritty!

Edith, perhaps the hero of Son of Dish Rag Tag, packed a great box for us to open!

Ellie played with the suckers all afternoon – don’t tell they’re candy.

Thank you so much, Edith! Captain Cheryl will fall in love with her dish cloth. I always think: TOO PRETTY FOR DISHES when I open these boxes. The Knitty Gritty included one more thoughtful touch:

Plus a swirly purple button and tea! Great idea!

Many thanks to both teams! And congratulations on completing the race!

I hope to get the “Race Complete” blog buttons and the prizes together and in the mail by this weekend. But no promises, it took me all day just to write this post!

Son of Dish Rag Tag Round-Up
1… Needling Ninjas 9/30/2009
2… Chronicles of Yarnia 9/30/2009
3… Wicked Sticks 10/1/2009
4… Peaches & Speed 10/3/2009
5… Fast Track Knitters 10/5/2009
6… The Knitty Gritty 10/5/2009

The fourth box to make it back to Alabama belongs to

Peaches & Speed

No picture in the mail box for you – Michael picked up the mail!

Stephanie, you really packed this box! Thank you so much! All the team members signed the instruction sheet – a fun touch. Your captain, Anita will love the sunny dish cloth. Congratulations, Peaches & Speed, on a great finish!