Should Auld Acquaintance? How About the New Ones?

Oh my. This amazing year winds to a close. So many wonderful things have happened this year. So many new friends, a daughter married, a new business expanded, an old pastime revived, and an old flame rediscovered and reconnected. And of course, blogging! I am so blessed.

I haven't kept up as I should, I tend to over-extend. The things I'm certain of include: that knitting lace has won my heart as surely as a certain someone has and that all those KALs over there may not be fulfilled, but I will keep working away at them. My second Aibhlinn is almost complete (but Tess is not even close to being finished, so I guess I'll have to get the book on tape!), my third lace shawl is on the needles. Two of my three UFO's are complete, and the third one will probably be frogged and started again on yarn that doesn't stretch!

To my very special friends in blog-dom: Jane, Birdsong, Christy, Indigomuse, Rebecca, Ruinwen, and everyone on KnittersAtWork on Yahoo and in Rke Valley Spin & Knit Group my local knitting group, you have made a year of adjusting to vision loss and chronic illness so much more bearable than I could have ever anticipated. I love you all.

And to a very special man, you hold my heart this year and all the years to come...
Happy New Year everyone!

Stash Sock Yarn for Class!

 
I just love these colors, don't you? 

New Beginnings!

I love planning for the New Year...not that all my 2005 loose ends are wrapped up yet, by any means...but I've just agreed to a new challenge: Ruinwen convinced me to sign up for the Toe-Up Sock Knitting class at Needlecraft U which starts next week! Knitting socks on 2 circular SIZE 2 needles! Oh my. And I thought knitting laceweight yarn on size 4s was a challenge....Anyway socks were right up there on my list of "things I want to do in 2006" so this will get that off my list in a hurry! I'll be knitting from stash, too, pink/purple Sock-It-To-Me Colori. I usually don't do resolutions, I make plans and try to follow through. Don't always succeed, but it's the trying that counts!

Day After Christmas!

 
This is the mood in this house today...I'm putting in a few rows on the Diamond Fantasy Shawl just because I cannot sit and do nothing, and I'll probably cut out a bag or two for Nana Sadie Rose but other than straightening up a bit, we're just plain tired around here! Happy Boxing Day! 

I've Been Busy!

 
Just wanted to show you my efforts for the DGS's gifts this year (the next two photos)...and yes, those monkeys are handsewn (!) and the scarves are handknitted (a last minute thought - the poor guys looked nekkid). Hope no one reads my blog tonight! (Except my loyal readers, of course...just not the DD or DGS's!) Merry Christmas!!! 

   My first attempt at knitted hats...the second time I've made something (or second and third!) on dpns. Not too bad, and I was doing these on the fly with no real pattern, just some advice from Jane. I'm not sure, but I think the Calico Curmudgeon approves. She snuck into the photo and I didn't realize it till after the flash! See her on the left?

Happy Holidays!

Can't you just imagine the mistletoe over these two? I'm such a romantic. Hope you have a warm, blessed holiday, spent with the ones you love most...and tho' this card says "Merry Christmas" I extend Seasons Greetings and Happy Hannukah as well!

 
This was my final gift to my Secret Pal 6...and I know from the delivery confirmation that she received it. But Debbie, if you see this, could you email and let me know? I know you've had a lot of computer troubles this fall and I keep hoping everything else is okay...

And if any of you think this lovely garden angel Nana Sadie Rose Mera-sized bag is just what you or a friend is looking for, email me! I just love this fabric...reminds me of Monet's gardens. 

Ice Storm

 
It's apparently a lot worse than this photo makes it look. But at present we have yet to lose power...major accidents on the highways but only about 2 inches on the ground of snow and ice. Both of the offices I work with are closed. Snow Day!
(((hugs))) 

SP6 You ROCK!

 
Here's what I discovered in my PO box today! (Canadian Customs let it through safely!) And yes, you do indeed see the pattern I've coveted...now will I get the nerve to make it? White Lies Designs Filigree Lace Jacket and the needles - Susan Bates Circs - you can see the same size in bamboo straights - I've not taken time to look at the pattern yet...yum yum - look at all the candy! That's some wondrous dark chocolate there...and what a cute tote (kitty face!) and even the cats were well taken care of...a scoop to help keep their "facilities" clean (in PINK, doncha know! for my dainty ladies) and a temperature taker (haven't quite figured that one out yet, but I will...). Oh, there's almost too much to know where to start - and some of it's in French, so I haven't had time to translate yet...a cool kitty notepad...there's too much to list! Oh and there's also some cool Holly Hobbie fabric and the cutest little sewing kit in a compact! WOW!

Secret Pal - Can you tell me who you are NOW???? THANK YOU !!! WhoooHooo! You're something else!
(((hugs))) 

SP6 Candy Candy Candy!

 
 
This photo shows how much candy there is...lots and lots! I think that might be Marzipan...and some caramels! I'll be good...I won't eat it all at once...well...that's right - Secret Pal Candy is calorie-free, RIGHT???

Very Victorian?

Am I a glutton for punishment...or crazy...or maybe, just maybe...a perfectly normal girl, pining for a slower era, who tends to over-extend herself?

Before I was an accounting major, before I taught accounting, before I kept books for clients…I was an English major. I studied British literature, mostly, though I was almost as enamoured of American writers…and, at the time, I had taken enough French that I could read it well and speak it "une petite."

This feminist was meant to live in another age. At the very least, I was meant to be a professor of literature…and missed my calling, partly because I was driven to choose a profession that was non-traditional for a woman. I suspect I’d have lived a much happier existence if I’d gone with my heart. Or wandered the moors looking for my Healthcliff. Or gone to Paris, at the very least.

Where is this heading? Well, you’ll see over on the sidebar, that I have joined the Knit the Classics KAL...and want desperately to knit Mrs. Beeton but WILL be knitting Aibhlinn instead, because she’s already on the needles and time is running out as the month is 12 days old and there’s a major holiday in it as well...

I’m also joining Something Red for Tess and reading Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy as I do...Tess is the book of the month for Knit the Classics. Aibhlinn is being knit in cranberry and black Plymouth Encore, so there’s the red...

I’ve already checked the book out of the library. I don’t have enough to do…and I’m a little bit slow when I read now, because of my vision. But I can always give up and get books on tape if it doesn’t work well otherwise!
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I think VooDoo (for all it’s Caribbean Island sound) is very Victorian, too...and those are just finished (see below), in the same yarn as Aibhlinn...Shawls, classic literature, fingerless gloves...I can see myself now...standing on the moors...knitted shawl clutched about me...

Great imagination, huh?

You Are A: Kitten!

Cute as can be, kittens are playful, mischevious, and ever-curious. Like you, kittens hate getting wet. Kittens are often loving, but are known to scratch or bite when annoyed. These adorable animals are the most popular pets in the United States--37% of American households have at least one cat. Whether it is your gentle purr or your disarming appearance, you make a wonderful kitten.

You were almost a: Lamb or a Pony
You are least like a: Frog or a TurtleWhat Cute Animal Are You?

Meezer Says...When's Santa Coming?

 
You don't even get to see the top of the tree, 'cause I wanted to be sure you could see her under it! I never saw her get there, I just looked up to see her staring across the room at me. Guess I'd better put Santa's cookies someplace else, do you think? 

Doggie Bags!

 
A couple of cute bags I just finished for Christmas orders! I can't get them up on Nana Sadie Rose at present, as DD is snowed with studying for final exams (Good Luck, Sweetie!), so I thought I'd show them to you here. If you're interested, email me!(((hugs)))