Quidditch Round 1

Quidditch Trivia

1. Which of Arabella Figg’s cats ran out from under the car?

A. Tibbles

2. Which of the following is NOT one of Albus Dumbledore’s middle names?

A. Ignatius

3. Which educational decree introduced a High Inquisitor to Hogwarts?

D. (3?) 23

4. Apart from Harry, Ron and Hermione, who was the first person to enter the Hog’s Head that showed an interest in Harry’s Defence Against the Dark Arts classes?

B. (1?) Neville Longbottom

5. In the first Quidditch match of the year which player attempted to score first?

A. Angelina Johnson

6. What kind of bush does Harry hide behind to listen to the news?

B. A hydrangea bush

7. Why is Mundungus Fletcher disguised as a woman when he witnesses the DA (Dumbledore’s Army) meeting in the Hog’s Head pub?

B. He was banned from the Hog’s Head pub 20 years ago.

8. When Harry and Cho go on their first date to Madam Puddifoot’s in Hogsmeade, what is it decorated with for Valentine’s Day?

A. Golden cherubs and pink confetti

9. How old is Sturgis Podmore and where does he live?

A. 38 and number 2 Laburnum Gardens Clapham

10. What did Fred and George Weasley do to Montague?

A. Forced him head-first into a Vanishing Cabinet on the first floor. Picture Scavenger Hunt: Fred & George Weasley together
Hog's Head Pub
Sirius Black
Mr. Weasley & Harry (together)
Draco Malfoy

A First!

Emma Gorodok has challenged us to post about a knitting first.

I've had a few knitting firsts, and many of them fairly recently. Finishing my first wearable sweater, my first magic loop socks, my first cabled project, my first time using Malabrigo, my first swap, etc.

But today I will share with you my first knitted gift. My first knitted gift was completed a year and a half ago for my "grandneighbor" Phoebe. It was my first completed blanket too. I gave the gift twice...the first time, at the baby shower, it was unfinished and still on-the-needles. The second time, I finished it up and took it over, just in time... I didn't realize that the baby had come the day before and was coming home from the hospital that day! Her dad took the blanket to the hospital, and the first thing I saw when I met little Phoebe was my blanket. Which I guess is her blanket. And her first handknit blanket to boot!

6 Questions

Although I haven't been formally tagged, I saw this questionairre while visiting some of my classmates and thought I'd give it a go.

1. What was I doing 10 years ago? Well 10 years ago, I was just a wee 3 years old. My little sister Emerald Bladvak had just been born and my sister Jade was having a tough time adjusting to not being the baby anymore. The family lore says that when I was 3, I got hold of my dad’s wand and cast my first accidental spell and flooded the kitchen. Having no real recollection, I’m not sure I believe it!

2. What are 5 things on my to-do list today: 1. Finish up some homework for Potions. 2. Finish writing a letter to my grandmother so I can send it when the owls get back to work on Tuesday. 3. Work on knitting my Ophelia cardigan. 4. Catch up with my classmates. 5. take a nap

3. Snacks I enjoy: Chocolate Frogs (or any other chocolate item), chips & dip, pretzels, apples with peanut butter, Chex Mix. Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (the Muggle version of Bertie Botts)

4. Places I’ve lived: Just outside of London, Ravenclaw Tower

5. Things I would do if I were a billionaire: Open some kind of cute shop in Hogsmeade, invest in some broomstick stock, travel- including a Muggle cruise with my family, stock up on yarn

6. Who I want to know more about: Any of my fellow Ravenclaws or any other Hogwarts classmates!

No Owls

I love holidays. I especially love holidays when we get a day off school. But the worst thing about holidays is definitely that there are no owls swooping in during breakfast! I realize that the owls need a day off every now and then too (although they do have Sundays to rest, don't they?) but I so look forward to getting mail that it just makes me cranky when there isn't even a chance of getting any...especially when I know there are some good things heading my way, such as some yarn for a gift project, some stitch markers for a knitting friend and a new magazine. I'm sure there are more owls I'm expecting that I've forgotten about!
In the meantime, I suppose I'll just enjoy the owl holiday and work on knitting Ophelia. We have 2 Ophelias here at Hogwarts, but hopefully in a few days, there will be one more... the Ophelia cardigan (pattern by Elizabeth Klett)! And, when my fingers need a break from knitting, I'll be sure to finally catch up on Google's Magical Reader. I got everyone's name loaded in and now I need to read some 300 posts...guess I don't actually need any owls to bring me reading material after all!

Homework

It's just been so hard for me to get into a nice routine here at Hogwarts this term. I have a feeling things will all fall into place in 16 school days! After that, some tutoring I've been doing for a group of young Muggles (my dad volunteered me for that through the Ministry) will be over and I'll be able to only focus on Hogwarts...and knitting!
I will have about an hour and a half of solid knitting this evening, as I've agreed to go watch Viktor Scamander and some of his Gryffindor pals play baseball. One of the boys played on a Muggle team all his life, and is teaching them to play. It should be interesting to see if anyone tries putting any charms on the ball...or the players!
I did manage to finish the Ravenclaw House Homework. If you haven't done yours yet and want to figure it out on your own, you should stop reading here... Otherwise, scroll down a bit to see it.











Can you keep a secret? The Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix is at No. 12 Grimmauld Place

Already Swamped!

My sweet grandmother has a sign on her icebox that says, "I was put on this earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now I'm so far behind, I'll never die!" Well, I'm definitely feeling that sentiment right now! It's been slow-going getting all of the blogs into Google Reader. I can't keep track of which students changed houses, are taking a sabbatical from Hogwarts, and there's a few that have even changed names! Ravenclaw is obviously where I'm meant to be, as I printed out a spreadsheet of all of the names, blogs, etc. so I can mark them off as I add them (or find they are still there from last term) in Google Reader. I've only gotten about 1/2 way through Ravenclaw house so far! The problem is, I keep getting sidetracked and going to post on the blogs. I wish I had a Rememberall so I'd be able to find my Time Turner.
Besides getting my social activities organized, I've also been quite busy with homework, knitting (just finished a gift for a friend yesterday...then started something for myself), and going for walks and runs around the grounds. I'm always exhausted... I only just managed to be awake at the same time as the 2 girls I share a dormitory with, Agatha Vablatsky and Emma Lovegoods. They do seem quite nice! I only hope that all my yawning didn't make them feel that I was bored with them! It's always hard to get back in the swing of things when you return to school. I remember feeling that way when I attended Muggle elementary school too. Well, my eyelids are beginning to feel heavy... maybe just a quick nap so I can be awake later for some good conversation with Agatha and Emma.

Ravenclaw Homework

I thought I had taken care of the magic links on the sidebar, but must've neglected to hit "save changes" after adding about 20 names! That's what I get for mixing Muggles & magic... I was talking on the telephone to a cousin of mine. I'm going to get back to that when I have lots of time to focus on that alone, but for now, I'll start off with my first Ravenclaw Homework assignment.

My name is Olive Altheda Bladvak. I was named for a shade of my mother's favorite color and a character in her favorite childhood story from Tales of Beedle the Bard ("The Fountain of Fair Fortune"). I am the oldest of 4 girls, and my sisters are all named for shades of green as well: Jade, Emerald & Kelly. My parents met at Hogwarts years ago, when my mother was a third year Ravenclaw and my father was a 5th year Hufflepuff. We live in London, very close to the Ministry of Magic, as my father likes to start each of his days at the Goblin Liason Office with a brisk walk to work. My mother's favorite class was always a History of Hogwarts, and she works part-time at the Museum of Quidditch.
As much as I enjoy the company of my sisters, I am glad to have Hogwarts to myself for the time being. Although I was quite nervous when I arrived at Hogwarts last year, I've found that I fit right in in Ravenclaw House (just as my dad was sure I would!) because I love to think, read, write, and yes, even do homework! I think I might like to grow up to become a professor here at Hogwarts some day. When I'm not studying or trying to meet up with my housemates for some chatting by the fire in the common room, I much enjoy knitting, reading for fun, running, and cooking. Of course, I've only been allowed to cook in the Muggle fashion thus far, so I can't wait until I can start incorporating magic into my cooking and baking like my mum does! I also like to sew; I only wish my good old Muggle sewing machine would work at Hogwarts. Too much magic buzzing around. A good friend of mine showed me how to make a Muggle scrapbook, so I love to do that now too! Oh, and I mustn't forget that one of the things I most enjoy doing is getting Owl Post! My grandmother and I write each other often and between letters to her and new yarn deliveries, my owl Marty (short for Martini) is kept very busy!
I've been fortunate to travel to many places with both of my parents, as their jobs often have them collecting information from interesting places. I've been to Greece, Italy, Germany, a few other places in Europe, Japan (we even used a PortKey to get to the top of Mount Fuji!), Mexico and the United States. Interesting magic all over the world! I love to travel, especially by Floo, and we've even taken a few rides on Muggle airplanes. I guess they're more comfortable than broomsticks for long flights. Still, my dream is to go somewhere where I will see a moose. I just love moose, and though I have a growing collection of moose things, I've yet to see a real one!
I don't know what other information to include in my biography... I'm only 13, so I haven't a whole lot to write about just yet. I do hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about me and my family!

Housekeeping, part 2

Well, I managed to magically link to all of my classmates. Now I'm off to get everyone entered into the magical device that will allow me to see all of my classmates updates without clicking on every single link! That will really help me manage my time, especially with my new classes this year. In addition to continuing the courses we started last year, I've opted to take Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. I know many people think Divination is silly, and I'm not sure I disagree...but I think the classroom must be so pleasant to be in, with the floor cushions and all, so I've decided to give it a try. I'm going to go finish getting ready for the term, I'm looking forward to stopping by and visiting some old Hogwarts friends, and new ones too!

Housekeeping

Now that we are returning to Hogwarts, it's time for some housekeeping. Some of my classmates from last year have not returned to Hogwarts and some have returned but switched houses. Not to mention all of the wonderful new students who are joining us. That's why I've been taking some time to do some housekeeping in this magic journal of mine. I've gone through and deleted, added & corrected my fellow students and the spells that will take one to their magic journals. I only managed to get through the Ravenclaws and the Gryffindors so far... the Hufflepuff & Slytherin sections are still out of date. Not all magic is just a quick flick of a wand away, and it's taking a very long time. Next I will have to update the fantastic Muggle tool called Google Reader, which has been instrumental in keeping me up-to-date on what all of the other students are up to. The beginning of a term is such a busy time...but also a very exciting time!

Almost time!

I'm just taking a break from packing my trunk for the return to Hogwarts. The term begins on Monday and I can't wait to meet the new students. I'm relieved that one of the new students won't be my little sister Jade after all. I love her, but like I said, I'm glad to be "on my own" at Hogwarts. After I write this journal entry, I'm going to go see if I can't get the pictures from my swap kit to come up now. Last time even carefully chosen spells couldn't get the pictures to show.
A few students are participating in some kind of inter-house wizardship program. I'm not sure of all the details, just what I've heard via owl or in the Daily Prophet, but apparently there will be some house-switching in order to promote school unity. I have a feeling this term will be even more fun than last! Well, back to check that I've packed plenty of clean robes & all my spell books!

Owls galore!

[None of my attempts at loading pictures right now are working... so I'll have to come back and add them a little later...]

I received my kit in the mail on Tuesday. (This has been a great mail week...4 packages, 3 knitting related!)
My kit came to me from Clara Clovenhoove, a Gryffindor. I knew it was "it" when I got the box, but waited and grabbed my camera first!

I got some really lovely yarn from Crazy 4 Dyeing. The colors are just gorgeous and the yarn is soft.

The bag is both knit and sewn... it's a dark blue and very soft yarn with a bronzey fabric lining with stars.

The stitch markers go along with both the color theme & the star theme of the bag.

And I got 2 circular needles, so I can try some socks on 2 circs (I've mostly been doing Magic Loop on 1 long needle) That will be a new technique and a new brand of needles to try out soon! (Oh, and a good excuse to get a new knitting book!)

Thanks, Clara! I can't wait to get to that beautiful yarn... I have a large pile of yarn building up though and a couple of must-finish projects first.