how to capture beer beer from fermenting vessel

Ok guys, how do I go about getting beer out of my fermenting bucket? is it OK to open the lid up, and grab some out of there??? I would like to get a hydrometer reading here at the end of this week (tomorrow or friday) but wasnt sure it opening the fermenter was OK or not?

Sure, you can do it. If you have a clean turkey baster that you can sanitize, that's the easiest way. Take out the sample, and close it back up.

that's how most of us do it

sweet. Sorry, im new, and wasnt sure if it was OK to open it up or not. Thanks guys!!!

you can also buy a thief at your LHBS

well, just tested the gravity, and its currently at 1.019. the kit says it should be between 1.012-1.015 when finished. You could smell the beer when I took the lid off. Not sure what exactly I was smelling, but it smelled nice! Took my hydrometer reading then figured I might as well sample the beer. It had a sort of Killians taste to it, with a slightly sweeter under tone, then a long after taste. Not sure of what. Kind of an unpleasant aftertaste. Sort of "chemical" like if you will maybe??? hard to describe. Didnt know if this would go away with finishing out the fermentation, or if thats just a flat beer sort of taste, that you dont notice with the carbonation?

don't make any final judgements til it's done fermenting, bottled for a few weeks and nice and cold

oh, im not. Its got a better taste then I expected from a flat beer. I cant wait to get this bad boy in bottles, and crack the first cold one!!