Catch Up

This lovely purse was a fun present knit from surprise yarn that arrived last week from my lovely Sister-in-Law Heidi. It came on a day that I felt really crazy with all the motherhood things I do. It is amazing how these lovely children can almost drive you to drink. So instead of drinking I knit. The yarn is from Plymouth Yarn Kaos series. Color 308. It is the Summer Sack from Ruhama's Yarn store in Milwaukee, Wi. Heidi is so wonderful. How did she know I needed yarn?

Baby socks are done but the pictures didn't turn out well so I am leaving you with pictures of flowers. That is the other thing I have been doing. A little early to plant in Florida, but I had a window of time and I took it. Happy Spring to all of you!

Socks II

Here is a picture of the second pair of socks I made. Even though there is only one sock in the picture both have been completed and washed. They fit me perfectly and are very yummy to have on my feet.

I took this picture several days ago after completing only one sock. The yarn is from Flat Feet. I am sure every sock knitter knows about this yarn. I had read about it but was never really interested in it until I took the sock challenge. This yarn unravels as you knit it. The hand dyed colorway knits up really different than you would expect. I had a ton of yarn left over so I am making some baby socks for my husbands niece, who is having a baby this fall. I will knit a pair of toddler socks for the big sister too, if I have enough yarn to finish both pairs.

This is a picture of one finished baby sock. You can see the colors a bit better in this photo. The colors are more vibrant in person.

I am having a fun time with socks. I can see how knitters become obsessed. Sock yarn is a relatively easy and cost effective purchase. Socks are easy to make and I assuming quick once you really get the hang of it.

Beautiful Hands

These are the beautiful hands of my Mother-in-Law Grace. She is making a baby blanket for her ninth great-grandchild.

These hands have seen things that our generation will never imagine. Grace is 90. She still builds houses for Habitat for Humanity. She volunteers on so many boards that it is hard to keep track of. She has received many awards for all that she gives back to the community. She is an avid church member who has promoted peace through out the country.

These hands have gone to college to study when girls were not likely to want further education. These hands got married and had a baby, when her husband was on a ship in WWII. These hands raised four wonderful children, who in turn had ten children, who in turn have had eight children to date. These hands taught physical education and coached many school teams. Grace's student still stop by to see her. These hands make Thanksgiving Dinner for the entire family, all 27 of us every year.

These hands have touched so many hearts, and will in turn touch the little one she is making this blanket for. These hands have made us all want to be better people. These hand have spread love and have worked hard to make to world a better place. Aren't we lucky?

Hello

Just a quick note to say hi. My Mother-In-Law, Gracie and my Sister-In-Law, Barb are here for a visit from Wisconsin. We have been busy running around, with their visit, work and my regular family responsibilities it has been busy, busy, busy.

Gracie turned 90 last September. She is a truly amazing person and anyone who has met her is the better for it. The day after she arrived we made a trip to Jo Ann's to buy some yarn for her to knit a baby blanket for her seventh great-grandchild arriving this fall. She has made blankets, scarves, and hats. I taught her to knit several years ago and she loves it. Can you imagine how special it would be to get a knitted gift from your 90 year old Great-Grandmother? Gracie has arthritis and has to take breaks here and there, but she is AMAZING!

Barb has just started a beautiful purple felted bag. She likes to knit too, but is not near as obsessed as I am. She is a great help, and is lots and lots of fun for my boys, (especially the one with fur who is very obsessed with her).

I will check in soon. Oh, by the way I am making progress on my second pair of socks. Photos to follow soon.

Hope you are all staying warm. It was 31 degrees out this morning as I drove my youngest to school. While I understand that is a heat wave for many, here in Florida it is crazy chilly. My plants are dead and the grass is brown. Five big frosts this year is a lot for us. I am not complaining by any means. I know everyone else covered in snow, ice and brutally cold temperatures.

Stay in and knit where it is warm and cozy.

Finished II

Yes, I have been busy. I finished the Noro vest and I have to say it turned out very nicely. I ended up doing the arm edging twice as they ended up being too confining. I casted off these edges with a size 8 needle to make the cast off edge a bit stretchier. It fits very nicely. The colors just pop out. I really love it. A very fast knit especially considering I had to knit the left front twice. Remember the 39 stitches versus 41 fiasco? I would recommend this pattern to anyone, very easy and fast. Just remember to count your stitches and make the arm holes a bit deeper.

Here are the completed version of my first socks. You may notice that they are now anklets as opposed to socks. When knitting the second sock I realized that I was quickly going to run out of yarn. I finished up #2 and quickly frogged back #1. I put in a Knit 1, Purl 1 rib and was done. They need to be washed and hopefully will shrink a bit, regardless my Mother will love them. She actually wears ankles much more than socks so it ended up being a perfect mistake. My next pair of socks will be done on a size 2 needle rather than a 3. I think I will put a ribbing in right away rather than just at the top, and cast on just a few less stitches.

I have to confess that yesterday I went to the yarn store and purchased more sock yarn. I am officially off my yarn diet as it wasn't working anyway. I was still buying yarn and frankly feeling guilty about it. So now I can buy yarn but get rid of the guilt. Cathy, my partner in knitting crime, busted me as she went to the store just after me. When the owner told her I had been there Cathy informed her I was on a yarn diet. The owner not wanting to get me in trouble didn't actually confess to my purchases. Cathy who knows me well, promptly called me up and busted me for straying from my self imposed diet. So, I am still going to try to be aware of my yarn purchases and buy yarn because of need, not just to buy. I will go to my enormous yarn stash first, then shop second. As I have never been a sock knitter I haven't had the opportunity to establish a sock yarn stash. So you must understand the need to purchase the sock yarn.