Handy?

In case you haven't heard, there are a lot of people out there that are taking the Handmade Holidays pledge...that is, they are vowing to make gifts, or support others by purchasing handmade gifts from local crafters, Etsy, and other small businesses that rely on making and selling. I'm not going to be making ALL my holiday gifts this year, but I'm doing quite a few...and I have a few side projects as well. The difference between this year and last year is that I"m actually doing pretty well on checking things off my to-do list....instead of furiously working until the last minute and crossing things off because there is NO WAY I'll ever get to them.

Cases in point: hat, mittens for adorable niece: done. Hat, mittens for adorable nephew: done. Hat, mittens for another adorable family member: DONE! (I'm on a roll, I can feel it). December Daily scrapbook: completed and waiting for December (more on this in an upcoming post). Home made lemon vodka: brewing. I still have to make some felt food for Toast (he's getting a kitchen for Christmas and a bunch of felt food to cook in it).

There is still Christmas cooking to be done, which will be a baking and assembling project for our friends....Hubby and I will work on this together in early to mid December. There are holiday cards to make (I'm making them on the computer and sending them to be developed as 4x6 pictures....) that has to be done soon. I hear naptime tomorrow calling that project's number. There are treat bags for Toast's birthday festivities. There is the possibility of another knitting project; a hat/mitten/scarf set for another family member...it all depends on time and right now time is good!

I'm not halfway done, but some large and time-consuming projects have taken shape in a way that makes me happy. That counts for a lot!

Maybe that crafty mojo isn't gone after all. :)

Crafty

One thing I found out when Toast was born was how important it is to my well being to MAKE something whenever possible. I'm not saying that every day needs to be a craft bonanza, but I enjoy making things with my hands...knitting, scrapbooking, creating in general. Before Toast I had the third bedroom in our house set up as a craft room, and when he came a long it all got boxed up and set aside. Sure, it was still around, but harder to get to. And with a baby and an almost-two-year-old, there weren't a whole lot of opportunities to get stuff out and be creative. Since losing Tiny Man, I've set up shop again in his room. Having the option to go make something when I want to is very theraputic.

Part of this whole "stuck" thing is that I don't really feel like I have any mojo. I have lots of scrapbook pages that I finished at a recent retreat, and some are still waiting for finishing touches. I want to take pictures and post them. I want to finish up some last pictures, thinking if I just get all "CAUGHT UP" then I will be able to move on and create stuff that has to do with life right now.

All this is just excuse. Saying "I can't do this until I've finished this" is another excuse for me to make for things not being perfect. I've realized over the past few years that I have trouble accepting that things are finished, and yet I'm not comfortable with things in process. If something isn't finished, I rush to make it done. If something is finished, I can't help thinking about all of it's flaws.

I'm sure there's a larger life lesson here, and one can look at it positively or negatively: we are unfinished because we are meant, throughout our lives, to be learning, growing, and "finishing" ourselves off. On the other hand, there are some of us who will never be happy with the way things are, finished or not.

All this to say that in addition to the writing on this blog, I"m trying to get past my "block" by purposefully creating. I'm knitting again....seems that things that have a definite beginning and end satisfy the creating part, and will hopefully help me past the mental block I'm experiencing. Maybe just by creating SOMETHING, anything, it will help.

So the Christmas knitting has begun, and it's going very well....since I have a lot to think about, I knit while I think and everything goes more smoothly. I try to set realistic goals on holiday creativity...I don't want to get bogged down in all the things I have to make and lose the pleasure in making and giving them. I can't show off everything I"m making, but I have almost completed Hat and Mitten sets for my niece and nephew (all done except for one mitten...pictures to come), a pair of mittens for an undisclosed receipient, and I'm beginning a hat and sweater (okay, the sweater is for me, but still). I"m also making some felt food for Toast.

And these !! I think these are SUCH a fun idea....I have plans for this idea...big plans. :)

And since we're at it. I'm looking at designing our own photo Xmas card this year (more on that to follow, also)... What did I just say about trying to keep the level of production down? Yeah, forget that.

Too long for a tweet

iPod: Check
Coffee: Check
Unfinished Lace that needs to be done in two weeks: check
Hubby and Toast out of the house: check.

WHY am I vacuuming? Not to mention blogging, tweeting....

End of the bi-month

No, this is not a post about THAT kind of bi-month...I'm talking every two months. Just so we're clear.

See, I haven't actually looked at my posts to figure this out, but I'm pretty sure that I tend to post more in certain months, and the reason is clear...the end of every other month seems to always be crazy. I do this volunteer gig...writing a newsletter for our DS parent support group. I've been doing it for about a year now, and I love it. I really do. Those of you who are reading this and recalling all the complaining..no, strike that..talking..I do about this project need to know: I really do love doing this. It keeps me in touch with our group and the friends I've made there. It gives me an outlet. It's allowing me to figure out a few things about publishing documents and design and typesetting that I never knew. It gives me a massive sense of accomplishment when I see the final project in our mailbox and I think "See those 15 - 20 pages of content? I did that!" I really do love it.

But I will admit, sometimes it makes me crazy. The last three weeks of every other month mean I will be in front of the computer most nights. And naptimes. And sometimes stolen moments during the day. Sometimes I get all done and one more thing to add comes over my email and it makes me scream. There are a lot of people and a lot of back and forth involved. It gets to be a bit much.

Mostly what I don't like is it takes me away from other things I want to do, like knitting, scrapbooking, surfing the web...things I do to take myself down a notch and relax. This month is especially crazy because I have a knitting project I'm striving to finish, both because I am gifting it at the end of May, and because I have some other things I want to do. This leads me to my next point.

I am NOT a deadline knitter. I love the current project, but I hate that I have to "GET IT DONE". It will be lovely, and amazing, and I'm so proud of it, but I would really like to shove it in a bag and go do something else right now, and I can't. I want to write a blog regarding what we are doing to green up our lives right now, but instead I'm relieving my stress writing about what is stressing me out. I want to scrapbook a few pictures and ideas that are bouncing around in my head, but I can't concentrate on being creative and getting that done.

It kind of stresses me out, hear me?

My time to myself is limited. Like most mothers, I get very little time to myself. That's okay. It's part of the job. I knew this when I signed up. I do, however, cherish that time and try to use it for things I really really love (see above) instead of wasting it watching TV. During the end of the bi-month, though, when I get "sitting" time, I tend to veg in front of said TV. Not productive. Not interesting. Not stimulating.
So here's to finishing up some projects and getting back to fun that feels less like work and more like fun.

Two posts in one day. Must need a new hobby.

Or maybe just a new project. Enter this sweater, which I am COMPLETELY smitten with. I NEED to knit this. And it's been a long time since I've said that...but I saw it on the Harlot's site today, and I can't resist it. I'm thinking of a nice beautiful yarn...something that will drape nicely so my "girls" will not make me look pregnant in a sweater like this. Oh, it's so lovely and I"m getting chills just thinking about it.

I think I'll finish some of my deadline knitting....and the sweater will be my reward. Yes, that's exactly what I'll do.

Freakin' Sunshine and Unicorns...

Oh, lovely little blog. The house begins to fall apart and you get so neglected. You know, someone gets sick...then cuts two molars...then winds up with an ear infection and I'm all "what blog!"

A few things..
I don't think I blogged about Weight Watchers, but I have started again. I did this back in...2002? Yes, I think that was it. And I lost a TON of weight. Not enough to make me look like a clothes rack, but I felt really really good and had a ton of energy. I learned how to eat properly, which is why I LOVE this program so much. But then...well, life happened....
So I'm back on the horse. The first week I lost 3 lbs, which is pretty good. I'm doing it online, and I LOVE that...it's very very easy to keep track of everything. Especially when one enjoys quality time with the ol' Mac like I do. So, I'll probably be posting updates on that here and there, trying to keep myself honest and all.

Project 365 (new! with improved coffeemomma "lite" adjustments) is going well. I"m remembering to take pictures every day, which is half the battle. I post them on my flickr page, which is here. I have done three weeks worth of layouts for my book, so I'm keeping up on that also. There are some things I really love about this. One, I'm really really trying to stay away from "scrapbooking" these pages. I'm putting in the pictures on plain cream-colored paper. The exception is the tags for recording what each picture is about, and I'm using pre-made tags in most cases, or making my own. I want the focus to be on what was happening, no matter how mundane (one picture this week was of my shoes). It all seems so silly now, but in the big picture, I'm fascinated by what life was like "back when" for people I know...and that's the boring stuff no one likes to talk about. So I'm picturing the boring stuff! At the end of the month maybe I'll post some of my layouts to show what I'm doing.

Oh, and on the crafty front. This is disgusting:
This? This is the SIX knitting projects I have started. Some knitters? They start lots of things at once, they knit like the wind. They buy and stash yarn in huge quantities. Not me. I'm not a fickle girl. I like to start on a project and see it through. So okay, maybe two...but one will be a pair of socks and we all know those don't count. But SIX? What, do I have Fibre ADD? Apparently. The worst part is ONLY ONE of these is a challenging project...the others are QUICK knits. But not for me. Oy. So I'm working on finishing these up. Oh...and ONE of them is a deadline knit...I stole for a wedding gift that is "due" in May and is my first big lace project...so I really need to be plodding along on that and I'm not. Geeze. (Flickr has this picture with notes so you can see what each thing is, if you're into that kind of thing).

So we're alive and kickin' here....Toast is on the mend (oh, you didn't know I was talking about him in the first paragraph?) and we're feeling fine. Loving the snow, hating the cold. Too bad they come in a pair. :)

Boom

And suddenly the weight of my crafty christmas ideas hits me full force.

I love to make things. I like to knit, journal, scrapbook, cut, glue, doodle, draw. I'm not an artist...in fact I"m a pretty crappy artist. But I love the creative process. Give me a technique, I'll try it. Show me something, chances are I'll come up with a way to make it. I blame my mother, she's always saying "you could make that"...problem is, I also blame her for my downfall: taking on too much...and then not being able to do much.

So this Christmas I have decided to do a lot of crafty things. I have the supplies, I have the "roadmap", if you will, of what I want to do. Two problems: one, I have an-almost-one-year-old son who does not want me to do anything not directly related to him during the day. Problem two is that I"m kind of afraid I'll start all these projects, hate them, and wind up buying presents anyway. I'm a perfectionist that way, and I am horrified by the idea of giving away a hand-made present and seeing the recipient less than thrilled by it. Let's face it, we've all seen crafts gone wrong. Do I want to be that crafter? It's all too much pressure.

But I plow on. The past two christmases I have made knit gifts for people, and I think that what is often said is true: lots of people don't appreciate the handknits. I mean, they LIKED the socks and all...but I wanted to say..."Hey! I knit those!!! On Teeny Tiny needles...out of yarn that looks like thread!" Maybe I'm expecting too much, thinking people will love what I make as much as I love to make it?

See, this is really the thing. I just like to make things. Cover me in glue and paper and I'm a happy girl. It doesn't even have to turn out to be anything, it just makes me content to focus on a task I can do with my hands. It's kind of stressful to not have time to do something creative. I'm a terrible sketch artist, but sometimes I'll just sit down and do it anyway because it makes me feel good to try. Knitting is wonderful meditation. I guess some people like to work with their hands.

Crafting on a deadline is a little stressful. I'm a bit worried I won't finish anything by christmas, or that I will rush and it will look awful. I just need about four extra hours a day I can spend in my craft room. That will solve the problem.

Back in the saddle again

It's been a long time. It's been a time trying to deal with everything...and finding time to blog has been hard enough on my other blog, much less this one. I've been doing a lot of thinking, about what I want to do and how things are going. I'm not going to say that things are better, but I'm ready to revive this blog for what it was intended for: knitting!

So here we go. I've been knitting a ton this spring...finishing a pair of socks, an aran sweater for Bruiser, the Lace ribbon scarf from knitty, and I've started the Pomotomous socks...which I've been putting off forever.

I have some issues with most sock patterns as written, as I have, apparently, wide feet and a high instep. Many socks are hard to fit on over my heel. I've since learned how to adjust a pattern for this, making the heel flap longer and adding more repeats to the gusset, and it's made life so much easier! I'm loving working on the Pomotomus, the chart is easy once you've done the repeats once. Since I'm on the second sock now, It's going so fast.

I'm making the cuff of the sock on size 2 needles, the heel flap on size ones, and finishing the sole on size two circs (since the number of stitches on the needles is not even, I found that this helps me avoid ladders). Yes, my gauge is different on the dp's from the circs, but since I'm making the same part of each sock with the same needles, I figure that it's not a big deal for me.

I bought some really lovely handpainted handspun from Heritage Spinning and Weaving for this project, and the yarn was too fine. The socks would have been to small for my feet, because the gauge went beyond snug to annoying....I"m kind of sad that I didn't get to use that yarn for it's intended pattern, but I'll still be able to use it for something!

restless

I can't keep with a project to save my life...I"m still pregnant and really wanting to have the baby...but no baby appears. It just makes me restless and irritable. I'm not a patient person under the best of circumstances, but having my body completely taken over by the parasite, having reached the point where mentally I feel able but physically I am cumbersome...well, it's just very difficult for me. In the meantime, I'm doing a lot of deep breathing and trying to focus on the fact that I need to let this go, to let nature take it's course, and to relax and focus on getting lots of rest so that when I go into labor I am ready.

Also in the meantime, I'm trying to decide on a pattern. I have decided that this winter I'm going to cast on my first sweater. I"m hella excited, but I'm also very nervous...a sweater is a big investment...and all that measuring makes me nervous that I"ll mess up. Also, the only time that I knit things that turn out badly is when I swatch...so I"m scared that I'll make a nice little swatch, count all my stitches, and make a beautiful sweater...that doesn't fit. I've decided just to jump in and give it a whirl. Patterns I'm considering can be found in my queue on Ravelry. Did I mention I got called up for Ravelry? I have yet to do much...it's that whole lack of focus thing...oh, and the taking care of the tiny man, but eventually I'll get some projects posted and get on with things.

In the meantime, I have only 1/4 of a sock left for christmas knitting (pictures of those lovely projects soon...) so I'm going to go and get on with that. Well, that and baby watch.

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Now playing: Sarah McLachlan - The First Noel/Mary Mary
via FoxyTunes

Let's get going already

As the time for the baby closes in on me, I find myself in that old familiar place of the last few weeks of pregnancy. I'm unable to sit to any task. I'm irritable. If you haven't been pregnant, I don't think it's easy to understand this. I mean, people talk about "the nesting instinct" as if it's this cute little thing that pregnant women do...you know, we clean and cook up a storm because our dear little swollen hearts are turning toward our home and family as the baby's birthdate grows near. People, I am here to tell you that it is nothing like that. I nest because I hate leaving my house, because I hate to walk, because I am lazy. And if I am merely sitting on my couch, I cannot help but see all the things around my house which I usually do in a single day and cannot do in less than four hours because of the sheer effort of moving. But there I am, hoisting myself up off the couch and doing them anyway. Then flopping, exhausted, back on the couch after sweeping, mopping, sponging, cooking, carrying, etc. etc. So it's no small wonder I'm all irritable and tired, I'm trying to make a person and be Martha Stewart all at once. And we all know that it's no use trying to be MS....

In other news, I finally got called to the front of the queue for Ravelry, and I'm excited about it. I've been puttering around there this past week, trying to decide exactly what I want to do and what is offered. I haven't even begun to explore the pattern pages, and I am a notorious lurker at forums of any sort, but I'm enjoying lurking around. I'll probably spend some time taking pictures first, get all that organized on Flickr, then start putting all that in. My stash is pretty small, but I'm still not thrilled about archiving it. Deciding what to do with all of it will be easier once I have it recorded, though. Since I'm a knitter on a budget, I'm a big fan of knitting from stash, or purchasing just what I need for a project. I know, it's crazy, but it's just what I do.

I've started the book "Eat, Pray, Love" and I'm really really enjoying it. I wasn't sure about this book, to tell the truth, but I have really been changed by some of the passages in it. I got it from the library and I'll need to go out and buy my own copy. I enjoy the author's views on god, the divine, and how she doesn't take it too seriously...I just finished a passage on forgiveness last night that was fairly profound for me. I have a few people in my life that I really need to move on from (unhealthy friendships that continue to be toxic even though they are over). I am NOT good at letting go...not in any way. The idea of forgiving someone, of having that last conversation with them even though they might not be present for it, of letting go being something that we are responsible for ourselves. The idea that we don't have to "settle" everything or have agreement/peace/harmony to end a friendship...it seems so simple, but here I sit a living example of someone who does not function that way. I am looking forward to some deep thinking about this, and some moving on in my future.

Fall in full swing

It's about time. The air is crisp and the leaves are turning, fall is finally here. Yes, it's still a little warm, but it's nice outside. We went for a walk last night (Hubby walked, Tiny Man strolled, I waddled)..nothing strenuous, but walking is still good for me in any dose. And it was a beautiful night for a stroll.

Took tiny man to the health dept. for a few shots this week. he needed two, and I've been putting it off. I have been to the HD before for shots (we have a cap on what insurance will pay for well baby visits, and the HD is free for shots). I was a little freaked out about going there, because I wasn't sure what to expect, either from the clientèle or the wait, but it was fine. This time, however, was a NIGHTMARE. There were tons of kids running around with dirty hands and runny noses, and all of them wanted to touch Ben. And their parents thought it was cute. I am not the kind of person who thinks its okay to discipline another mom's kid, so I tried my best to keep my cool about this, but I was hoping the whole time that TM would stay germ free. Then we had to wait TWO HOURS to get in to see a nurse. Geeze! Two hours! I"m glad that TM is a trouble free kind of guy, he was happy to play with my keys for most of that time. The nurse was nice, though. And I found out that the county will send a public health nurse to our house after the baby is born to help with breastfeeding, so I started the paperwork on that. I figure the more help the better, and if I decide later I don't need it, I can always refuse the help. Ugh. I hate feeling all creeped out by the health department, it makes me feel judgemental...but I am creeped out, and there's nothing I can do about it.

On the knitting scene, I finished one pair of christmas socks (for my mom, who has very peculiar shaped feet) and I'm working on two more. One is all stockinette in self striping yarn, boring but easy knitting for waiting rooms and the like. The other is the Double Eyelet Rib Pattern by Wendy Johnson. I'm really impressed with this pattern, and I am enjoying knitting it. I didn't plan to make patterned socks (these are for another sister in law for christmas), but I am so sick of stockinette I want to puke. The yarn is a very nice mulberry color. I will have pictures when I"m not so lazy. :)

I decided not to be so hard on myself for not posting and just take a little time off the grid...go with the flow. I even stopped answering and checking email frequently. Good thing, since I had a cold all last week and spent my time miserable and snotty.
For today, however, here are the latest FOs:

Generic socks. This is Wendy Johnson's generic toe up sock pattern (I'm not sure what site I got it from, but it's probably on her website somewhere...). I have decided that toe-up socks are the way to go...they go so fast! The yarn is interlacements tiny toes. Taking this picture on my coffee table does not do the yarn justice, it's a very fun rainbow crazy sock extravaganza. Big fun. Also, check this out:

My first attempt at short row heels. So easy. So fast. Love love love.
So I'm in the middle of sock-extravaganza right now. I have two pairs on the needles that are just plain old socks that I"m making out of some nice yarn for christmas gifts. I also have a patterned pair that are on hold...I swear it will be a miracle if they ever get done. I bought some beautiful yarn at my favorite knitting store for my birthday this spring. I adore the yarn, and I've been looking for the perfect project...so I decided on a pair of monkey socks (after about ten different patterns were swatched, ripped, tried, ripped, swatched, ripped, tried on larger needles...you get it. The life of an OCD knitter). But I had to go up slightly in needle size...I'm making them on US 2 size needles, because I have a large instep to my foot, so the pattern as knitted wouldn't fit over my heel/instep when trying on. So anyway. My US2 needles are just not pointy enough for this pattern to go smoothly. It works, but not in a way that is good for me. So I am going to get some different needles (I have become fond of chiagoo needles, so probably those) and keep on going.
I also finished these recently:

Fetching from Knitty. Mountain colors yarn. My first cables...they went well, even though the picture shows them for crap. These will be another christmas gift. :)
So it looks like I have been doing a lot of knitting, but I'm just plugging along at things. I am trying to get a jumpstart on christmas stuff...knitting and non-knitting gifts alike, since I will NOT want to shop when I am a.) a million months pregnant or b.) home with a newborn.

A quick knitting post

FO: French Market Bag from Knitty


Pre-felting


Post-felting, pre-shaving. The bag looks like a muppet here. I hate that the things I felt always look like a muppet. I never realized there was something that can be done about it. I posted to the forums on Knitter's Review about this and someone suggested using a disposable razor.


This is the result. It looks much better. It's smaller then I expected, even though it fits the dimensions given in the pattern. I'm bad at spacial relations, apparently. Anyway, it's perfect to take along in the car with a pair of socks in progress in it. A success!!

Non-knitters, beware...knitting post

Yeah, so I AM still knitting. Slowly, but I am knitting. Exhibit One: The Purple Socks. In the first picture, you can see a very ordinary pair of socks. I'm not a fast knitter, so it takes me awhile to get through projects. I also knit slower during the summer because I do most of my knitting in front of TV and I don't watch much TV during the summer. So there. Anyway. I made these with a standard sock pattern, the Yarn Harlot's generic pattern from her book "Knitting Rules". It really clarified some things about sock knitting for me, like exactly how to determine the proportions of a heel and all that. I mean, yeah, there are a crapload of patterns out there, but sometimes I just want to knit a damn sock, okay? (This post is getting much to surly...sorry, I'll tone it down). So anyway. These were knit on size twos, the leg was all done on two circs and the heel and foot on dpns. Just because I'm like that. The yarn is Wildfoote Luxury Sock Yarn from Brown Sheep. It was really quite nice to work with.
Now to the strange part. See exhibit two:
Yeah, see, I have this problem. I'm an extremely uptight person, which makes me a tight knitter. So I'm trying to break myself of this habit. In the future, all bad habits will be broken at the outset of a new project, not in the middle of one. I had major problems with gage in my socks, as you can see by the enormous difference in the leg-lengths here. I count rows on my socks, and the legs have exactly the same number of rows. Next time I'll measure instead. I just thought that counting would be more reliable. Oh, I'm such a novice knitter. Oh well, no one but me will ever know, but it still bothers me. I can always make the excuse "Hey, this was only my second pair!" or tell non-knitters "Hey, I don't see you knitting your own damn socks".
Again with the surly.
And then there are these lovely things:

I had really been itching to try the Crystal Palace Bamboo/ wool yarn, so I picked up two skeins and made two pairs of baby booties. They were both the same pattern: Christine's Baby Booties . Knit on size one needles. This is color #7377, Red Cinnamon. The other colorway was "violets" and I don't know the number (read: I'm too lazy to go get the ball band)...it was a lovely purple, green and blue blend. Oh, and I used Chia goo needles for these (I think that is the name..they aren't in front of me)..and they are the best DPNs....I love them. These booties knit up very very quickly, even for me. I finished them in a day or two...so for an ordinary knitter, I'm saying they would be done in about an hour. Here's a side view. Aren't they cute?
I'm currently working on the French Market Bag from Knitty...I've had the pattern for awhile, and I've just never started it. The good thing about it is that I can knit in good ol' Pattons Classic Wool...a great yarn for a knitter on a budget like me. Thanks, JoAnns!
I also have a pair of socks on the needles again, and I'm carrying them everywhere. But I don't wait in many lines, nor am I in the picking kids up phase yet, so they get little done on them. I did work on them at the doctor's office the other day. And I'll be traveling with them to Mackinac next weekend. I'm also picking away at a blanket for a friend's baby who is now about four months old...so I need to pick up speed on that. Yeah, I know. I hate blankets too.

We're stripping wallpaper this weekend. I hate stripping wallpaper and painting, but our downstairs bathroom is really getting to be too much for me, so away we go. At least it's a small room.

Stalker boy non-update

I just wanted to thank people for comments on and off about my dilemma. I think I will talk to the mother next time I see her out (about once a week or so) and let her know what is going on. I know that may make me look like a freak, but you are right, if it was my daughter I would want to know.

No other new news, except that I put the purple sock back on the needles, and it looks pretty (I know, that's so descriptive!). It's a k4 p2 rib which really is turning out nicely. Plain, but the yarn is so soft and it is so stretchy I really like it. I went through my yarn today, which until now has occupied two wicker baskets in our living room. Due to the abnormally high number of spiders in our house, I wanted to get it sorted into ziplock bags. Upon doing so I discovered that there is NO WAY I can deny having a stash any more. I always used to say I have no stash...or that I had a small stash, made up of leftovers from what I had made. No, I can't deny it any longer. I have a stash. But it's an organized stash, dammit.

We here at Casa de coffeemomma look forward to Easter every year. We go out for brunch with Hubby's grandma. It's always a big spread with the whole fam and we eat ourselves silly. I love to dress the tiny man up and show him off. It should be a fun day for all. :) I know lots of people will be off for the weekend for some reason or another, so I hope you all have a restful time of it.

In which I write a lot about knitting

There are lots of knitting things going on here. First, you will observe to the left the newest love of my life. These are the Endpaper mitts, pattern by Eunny Jang. I made them with Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift, in tartan and daffodil. And I love them. No, really....I LOVE them. I'm glad it's going to snow later this week and I will wear them round the clock on the day it does. I am more in love with them than I should be with any inanimate object. A few things I learned with this pattern: how to do colorwork/fair isle knitting, and of the many ways to do this, the way I like best. If you look carefully at the right mitt, you can see the color dominance change, because I changed the way I knit at that point. Do I care? No, but I'm just saying that I learned something here.
On Sunday I went to Ann Arbor to see the Yarn Harlot. It was a great day, I was excited to be out on my own for an entire afternoon, I got great parking (in the super secret stealth parking area Hubby showed me long ago), and I brought knitting. I went in, stood in line to buy books, met another knitter (because the place was filthy with them, after all), made nice, and we found a seat. Then we found out that the Harlot's plane had been turned around that morning because of fog, and she was going to be two hours late. In no other situation would the room be so calm...after all, we all had something to do!!! Around 150 knitters sat and chatted and knit for the whole time...we had an interruption for a parade of small children who had been upstairs making Easter Bonnets (CUTE!), we turned our chairs around and gabbed. It was great! Here's a pictures of the people who put up with me for two hours:
I was going to take a picture of the parade of children we saw, when I was reminded that it might be considered creepy to put a picture of someone else's kid on the web. I concur, so you'll just have to go without.
I did take pictures of the Harlot, but they turned out badly, so I will not post them. It was a great talk, she is very funny and easy to listen to. I did not wind up getting my books signed, because I had to get home to tutor that night. Ahh well.
Sadly, when I got home that night, I discovered that all of my knitting mojo had left me. I had started a sock that afternoon and it was too small. Rrrrrip. I have started a hat for my sister-in-law about three times, and I have never liked it. Rrrrrrrip. Restarted the hat last night. I'm still bitter about the socks. I knit so tightly that I have to adjust every single sock pattern out there...either add stitches or use larger needles. I'll restart it today.

Done at Last

In my knitting world (and on a much lighter note than last post), I have finally finished this blanket I started last november. It is lovely, and I really love it. It was endless stockinette, however...it's a log cabin pattern from "Mason Dixon Knitting". I have learned several things from this experience, not the least of which is I am NOT an endurance knitter....I really prefer small, portable projects. I like socks, I have discovered, hats are nice, mittens are okay. Alas, I have another blanket of the same type on the needles, but it is a baby blanket and much smaller in size. Should be okay, I think.

This is the first year in a long long time that I have been excited about spring coming. I always used to love spring...in College it meant not freezing my ass off while biking to class. Then I started teaching and it just meant teenagers crankily awaiting spring break...then returning surly and unwilling to do anything for anyone, awaiting graduation. Now I remember what a joy it is to watch the snow melt, smell the ground, and watch flowers poke out. It's nice to be aware of these things again. Seeds are ordered, and I"m looking foward to the garden this summer. I'm looking forward to planting, watching things grow, and taking the Tiny Man outside for a poke around the plants in the afternoon. Looking forward most to being able to go outside again and take a walk. I need it...I need some fresh air, and Tiny Man could use it too. Hubby wanted to go for a walk tonight, but since I have band, not so much. Maybe tomorrow, when it is supposed to be in the mid sixties (!).

Tomorrow is a big day, again....I am going to drop off notice that I am taking another year of leave from work. I have never been so content as to be at home. I enjoy the days with tiny man, I enjoy being able to take life at a slower pace and answer to no one but myself. And Tiny man really is showing the benefits of the arrangement, too. He's doing well. It does feel odd not to work, though. I mean not to go to some destination to work each day. I'm still working: at home, tutoring, one day a week out of the house while mom watches Tiny Man. But it's different....and there isn't the infernal and unending pile of papers to be graded, phone calls to be made, things to be set up, prepared, torn down, put away...for a host of kids who may or may not care, on this day, what is going on.