Almost Spring...and a Finish and a Half

Hello,


Happy Spring, almost.  Tomorrow morning Spring will arrive.  This morning when I looked out the kitchen window I saw a fat robin on a patch of grass that is exposed (we still have quite a bit of snow on the ground).  Also when I looked out the window first thing this morning (while still in bed), I could see some huge sheets of ice hanging off the upper roof ready to fall onto the patio roof.  We've been hearing crashes all morning and stuff is dripping like crazy.  The icy patch at the end of the driveway is gone.  Hooray!


Can you hear the Hallelujah Chorus?  The Oaklet Shawl is finished!!  Woo-Hoo.  I love the colors.  I did not like working with the yarn (KnitPicks Chrome in the Vermont colorway).  And the shawl?  I like it, but am disappointed that it did not block out larger.  It can hang down my back, but then it won't wrap around my shoulders comfortably.  If I wrap it around, then it draws up pretty short in the back.  I would call it more a shawlette than a shawl.  But, the main thing is it is finis!!

So much sunlight today!  This was finished yesterday just before dinner.  And, on Friday night I finished the first of Colin's socks:

The yarn is Regia and the pattern is Petty Harbour (free on Ravelry).  Look at the size of that foot!  This had better fit him...it's big on me, so there is hope.


Also on Friday I made pizza for dinner.  OMG, this was so good.  Trader Joe's pizza crusts (I like their pizza dough too, but these ready-made crusts are fabulous).  Toppings were:  some sauce and oregano, asparagus (which I had par-boiled), black garlic (also from Trader Joe's - it is a fermented garlic and is kind of sweet and smoky), prosciutto, onion slices, marinated artichoke hearts and some mozzarella.

Last night I cooked a turkey breast and roasted some winter squash and Brussels Sprouts with a little butter, maple syrup and cinnamon.  Yay for turkey sandwiches today.


I really do like to eat...more than I should.....


Last night was another one of those nights when I didn't sleep well at all.  I went upstairs around 11, read for a half hour or so and turned off the light.  Fletch came up at 1 and I was still awake and I doubt I fell asleep before 3 a.m.  Tyg woke me at 5 to go out and then I woke up at 7.  I've been in a cleaning frenzy this morning (bathrooms, kitchen floor, several loads of laundry) in the hopes that I will be exhausted tonight and sleep well.  I hate going to work worn out!


See you next season!!

A Near Disaster Averted – Miracles DO Occur, a Fresh Start and Sleepy Birds

Hello All,

 

How’s that for a post title?  Well, the shawl is not finished, in fact it is where it was when I left off with last Friday’s post.  After being so sure I could whiz through the final rows, I somehow managed to screw it up royally during lunch on Friday.  What a mess.  And, my lifeline was at the very beginning of the lace work (15 rows back).  I think I remember saying here that I should not work on the shawl or any lace work while at work.  True, true.  When I knew for sure that I had messed it up, I just threw it in my bag.

 

After a glass of wine that evening I decided to tink it back.  Ha!  That didn’t work, so in my frustration I just pulled the needles out.  This is where the miracle occurred:  I was actually able to pick up the stitches once the needles were out.  I did not have to rip it back to the lifeline!  Some of the stitches were twisted, but I managed to correct them when I knit a row.  But, I had miss-guessed the row I was on, so that didn’t work either.  I put it away for the night.

 

Saturday morning (which was wicked cold – about 8 degrees!!) while having coffee I looked at it again.  I tinked the row I had done the night before and then knit the correct row.  And it worked out!  Whew.  I debated about moving the lifeline up to a new position and wasn’t going to, but fortunately some sanity prevailed and the lifeline has been moved (just in case…).  At that point, I put it away again and decided not to mess with it for the rest of the weekend.  I need a rest from it and, I’m sure it needs a rest from me.

 

Needing something to knit, I cast on a new sock.  These will be for my son (since the last pair didn’t fit).  The yarn is Schachenmayr Regia in the colorway “pinstripe.”  And the pattern is Petty Harbour which I have knit before.  An easy pattern to memorize and I think it will look good in this yarn.  This is where they were as of last night.

 

They are in my bag for working on during lunch today…believing I can do this without messing it up – lol.

 

Yesterday was still bitter cold, but we got up and went out to breakfast.  Later was grocery shopping and interspersed throughout the weekend was a lot of laundry, cleaning bathrooms, scrubbing the kitchen floor, etc.  Fletch installed a new LED light over the kitchen counter on our driveway side.  I love these lights!  I can see!  He had installed one over our sink a month or two ago and what a difference.  Now I want to find some (large and long) to replace the fluorescent lights we have on our patio and in our basement. 

 

Sunday afternoon I looked out our back door and saw two birds napping!  One was a downy woodpecker on top of our suet feeder (that picture didn’t turn out) and the other was this nuthatch hanging on to our peanut feeder.  Not a great picture – taken looking through our (somewhat dirty) sliding door onto the patio.

 

This morning was still cold, but birds are singing their Spring songs and it is sunny.  Temps are forecast to rise all week.  I’m ready for sun and warmth.

 

Hoping everyone has a great week!

Friday Felines

Hello All!


Almost weekending time...just need to get through the Friday workday...but - hey - breakfast this a.m. at work.


My son texted me this picture of Marcel yesterday:

Climbing along the clothes.  I asked if Marcel was stuck or just resting...Colin replied neither - he is just being a nosy brat!


Meanwhile the warmer weather we've had earlier (like last week) seems to have brought out the ticks.  We (well, Fletch) has pulled two ticks off Tyg in the last two days.  I really hate to use Frontline on him, but I'm not sure what else to do.  Any recommendations?  I've heard that rubbing fresh rosemary on pets helps deter ticks and I used to do that with Maestro, but she was never really bothered by them (meaning they didn't seem to like her).  Any suggestions would be great.


The Oaklet Shawl is almost done!!  Only 6 more rows and then I can bind it off.  This is where it stands as of this morning:

I tried to spread it out to show the lace work, but it wouldn't spread too well.  The strand of red is my lifeline which, since I put one in, I haven't needed.  Hoping to get a row or two done at lunch today and finish it up tonight.  A wash and blocking party this weekend!!  Pictures once it is finished.  Just hoping I don't run out of yarn.


What is everyone up to for the weekend?  I have no plans other than casting on something new.

Slow But Steady Progress

Hi All,


I picked up the Oaklet Shawl that I started last September and discovered I had done 55 rows.  Last night I took a very quick picture to send to a friend:

That was at about 73 rows and I am now to 80!  Slow, but steady.  I've been able to do a few rows at lunch each day this week which has been nice (and relaxing).  The knit rows go fast for me, but man am I slow when I purl.  And, of course, every other row the stitch count increases by 4 (now at 169 stitches).  There are 113 rows before the lace border.  Slow, but steady...


And, so far (day 3) I have resisted casting on anything new.  I'm really enjoying the flow of colors in this shawl and it is mindless, almost meditative knitting.  That's a good thing!  Once I get to the lace rows, I will not be able to knit this while at work...too many interruptions and distractions.  Guess I'll have to cast on some socks at that point!!
 

A New Start and Pretty Yarn!

Bonjour on a grey, damp Wednesday.  But hey, it's the middle of the work week, so that's good for me.


I ended up ripping out the socks I started in the KnitPicks Chroma -- the yarn is gorgeous, but horrible to use for sock knitting (even though it is billed as that).  Instead I started the Oaklet Shawl with the Chroma yarn (Vermont colorway).  Here's where it is as of this morning (approx. 30 rows).  The yarn is still a pain, but not as large a PITA as it was for socks - lol.

I also wound two skeins of yarn that I bought while in vacation in Maine earlier this year when we visited Good Karma Farm.  (They were at MDSW for anyone who was there.)  The yarn is hand painted and really beautiful.  It's sock yarn, but a little thicker than what I am accustomed to and I believe it is 100% wool (need to look at the label again).

No names for the yarn, but the pinkish one on the left is already on some #1 needles for socks.  The one on the right has a lot of dark blues and greens in it with some lighter shades -- very pretty.  This may end up as socks for my son.
Planning ahead to next week and my girlfriend trip!  What should I pack knitting-wise?  None of the sisters knit and most of our time will be spent going to the spa, shopping and then, when home, consuming wine, cooking great food, talking (a lot), more wine, etc., etc.  I doubt I'll get much knitting done during the long weekend (maybe the early morning hours if I get up early - ha!) and my flight isn't that long.  I'm thinking just a pair of socks to work on.  Small, easy to throw in my purse or carry on tote...and that leaves more room in my checked bag for purchases!
That's it for now.  Hope y'all are doing well!