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Showing posts from December, 2021

Knitting News

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  Good morning! How are you? I'm excited to share with you that the first sleeve of my sister's sweater is almost done. Last night I arrived a within a row or two of the cuff. I have romantic visions of finishing this sweater by New Year's Day but that might be a knitter's pipe dream. Still, it's exciting to know that the end is very near and I can get this large project out of my knitting bag and make room for 'me me me' knitting! What are you working on this week?

Weekends

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  Gosh it seems like forever since I've talked to you and yet it's not even been five days. How are you? How was your Christmas if you celebrate Christmas? We had a quiet one, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I missed the kids but we managed to talk to them over the weekend. On Christmas Eve, we were invited to celebrate at my sister and brother in law's house with her son and son's family and our aunt and cousin. It was nice! We had lots and lots of good food and unwrapping of presents. Having my grand nephew who is almost one year old made the holiday more joyful. That evening my husband and I had a mini-miracle - Holly snuck in to snuggle up to my husband on his left side and then Frodo jumped up to snuggle on his right side. Look at Holly's dirty look!?! She is a hoot. I know you are wondering and NO Frodo did not realize that she is sitting there, if he did he would have chased her and barked at her and that is the Christmas miracle. I don't know what it is abo

Headband and a Hat

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  Now that the gifts have been gifted, I can share with you my last two knitted Christmas gifts. The above headband  was for my sister. I used left over super-wash Malabrigo Arroyo wool in the hopes that the wool would not feel itchy on the forehead. I await her evaluation. The only modification I did was to add two stitches to each end of the garter stitch edges since my yarn was thinner that the pattern called for. This was a fun and quick knit! Next up was a hat for my brother in law. I enjoyed knitting this and I did the striping on the fly. I liked how it turned out and it was fun to just decide last minute where to add some color and stripes. All of the wools were left over and I knew my green was a limited amount. I'm happy to report that I did not run out of any colors, phew. What are you working on this week? Merry Christmas to all who celebrate! I will be posting again on next Monday and taking some time to enjoy the holidays over the next few days.

Weekends

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  Can you believe that Christmas is this weekend coming up? I cannot. The days are flying right by it seems. We had the teeniest dusting of snow yesterday morning but so far the forecast is for a green Christmas, bah humbug.  How are you? How was your weekend?  We had dinner at my sister's house on Saturday night and exchanged gifts because we couldn't wait. There's a child in all of us! I also received a gift in the mail from a friend AND a belated birthday gift from my daughter. I love getting gifts in the mail, who doesn't? Over the weekend I stitched a lot and here's the progress of all that stitching on the grand baby birth sampler.. This pattern is nice in that there is no backstitching except for the feet of three birds and they are tiny! Hopefully I'm not making any mistakes. We talked to both kids on Sunday, I really liked that.  How was your weekend? A NOTE: I will not be posting for this Friday or next Friday as a bit of a mini vacation of sorts. I th

Comfort and Joy

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How are you? Around here things are settling down in the daily schedule. All of my packages have been sent and I am officially done with holiday shopping! I'm looking forward to enjoying the lull between now and the New Year. I might do some Christmas baking, but then again, I might not.  These days what brings me comfort and joy are:  twinkle lights - slow and easy knitting -  talking with the kids - a crossed off to-do list -  sketching and doodling - knitting for myself for a change - knitting with really nice wool - simple dinners - bird watching through the kitchen window while I do some dishes - friendships in real life and on line - the kindness of others - outdoor holiday decorations - the colors red and green - fountain pens - journaling - aspirations for the new year - family living near by -  What brings you comfort and joy? Yesterday we went out for an early lunch at a cafe in a local town, it was nice to be out - we rarely are out anymore and I have to say it will be m

Replacement Hat

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  Good morning! How are you? What have you been working on this week? My son in law lost his favorite hat on a walk in their new town and my daughter requested a replacement hat. Music to a knitter's ears! I eagerly dug through my stash and whipped this up on size 8 needles and have already mailed it to him. I might make a back up hat for the replacement hat in the new year. What are you working on this week?

Weekends

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  How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good! I had lots of knitting time, crafting time, reading time AND I am officially done with knitting for Christmas only if I decide not to knit my husband a pair of socks. I'm still mulling that one over. I'm trying to give my hands a rest from all the double pointed needle knitting which inflamed some finger joints when I did all those fingerless mitts one after the other.  On Saturday, my sister and brother in law came over for dinner and dessert. We try to get together once a week and it's a nice tradition - schedule permitting of course. Sunday after my weekly household chores I pulled out the baby sampler cross stitch project that I want to stitch up before the grand-baby arrives in early February - no official name yet so that will be stitched in once the baby makes his/her arrival. Surprises are the best. How was your weekend?

Clarity

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  Good morning to you! How have you been? Are you almost ready for Christmas? Around here it's been a little full in the days with running around but I continue to find my pockets of peace whenever I sit down and knit. I'm grateful for that always. The house is decorated and most of the shopping is done. I finished my Christmas gift knitting (yay). I saw my new rheumatologist again earlier this week - I adore her immensely, she is kind, funny and oh so knowledgeable. After a multitude of blood tests and asking questions I've never ever been asked before by any of my previous arthritis doctors (the questions were long and mighty), she has diagnosed me with Sjogren's Syndrome . I first presented arthritis symptoms in 1997 but was never in a specific category. I was told back then I did mostly rheumatoid arthritis and a little bit of lupus. Back then the blood tests weren't specific either compared to current bloodwork being done. This new doctor is switching my medici

Knitting News

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  I haven't talked about my sister's sweater in a few weeks, so here is a photo update. I'm on the body of the sweater and love the mindless stockinette stitching at night while watching a tv program.

Weekends

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  Good morning! How was your weekend? Mine was full - but a good kind of full if you know what I mean. The photo above was a beautiful sunrise in my backyard.  Saturday, we stayed home and I worked on my Christmas junk journal and knitted on the possibly last Christmas project (there might be one more...). I had fun dabbling in some watercolors and sketching as well. Sunday was a full day of chores. Lots of laundry and house cleaning and in between those tasks I was reading and again sketching. I get so excited to do all the things and then I wonder if I am spreading myself too thin doing all the things! Sadly on Sunday I had to give my aching hands a rest so I did not knit one single stitch. I managed to write out Christmas cards and alerted the receivers to our new address. Do you write holiday cards? I'm toying with quitting the tradition but then again, I like getting them in the mail. I don't have many to send out maybe 22 cards? The list dwindles every single year. The ph

This and That

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  How are you all doing? I'm doing great and am in the midst of the tail end of the Christmas knitting marathon. I might be down to one project.  I've been enjoying my bird feeder and identifying the birds that come to visit. And the new squirrel proof feeder does work! However it is not raccoon proof so we bring it in every single night. All I can say is at least it's not a BEAR. So far no bear sightings but never say never... The above photo is a snap of my Christmas junk journal that I whipped together with scrapbook paper and some Christmas cards. I'm joining in with Brie at Documented Journey on You Tube (she's on Instagram as well) with her Create December and daily prompts until the 25th.  The other evening, Miss Holly crept into the family room to sit by her beloved (aka not me) while Frodo was sleeping under the ottoman. Let me tell you this, she is one brave determined kitty. Luckily for us, Frodo is completely oblivious to her presence and it remained a

Even More Mitts

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  Good morning! How are you? Can you believe it is December 1st?? I'm thrilled to report that I've knit up another two pairs of the peekaboo mitts and I am done (well I think I am done) with the mitt knitting frenzy. There is a slim chance that I will knit one more pair for my husband but I will convert them to traditional mittens....that is still marinating in my little old brain. I did not make a new project page for these two pairs of mitts but added them to a project page for the previous mitts I made. I believe I've knit up five pairs of mitts for this holiday season. What are you working on this week?