Holiday Recap

Christmas is over and the New Year is approaching.  This year has flown by. Overall, it has been a good year.  It's just ending on a sour note.  My mom isn't doing well.  If she doesn't show improvement by the end of January, she and her children will have to make decisions about her care. It's not something I'm looking forward to, but I'm preparing myself.  It is part of life.

For now, though, I'm trying to recoup my energy.  The past couple weeks were very busy.

We hosted Christmas Eve for my husband's family.  Because my father-in-law doesn't like to drive at night anymore, we had an early dinner. It actually worked out quite nicely.  The guests left early enough for us to go to the 6:30 mass.  After mass we drove around looking at Christmas lights.  This was a tradition my dad had when I was young.  Of course, my favorite lights were the ones on our house. When we got home, the five of use watched a movie together.

Christmas morning we opened our gifts to each other.  The kids still like to have Santa bring their gifts.  It is a little extra work for me to keep them out of sight until Christmas morning, but I didn't mind.  Santa wraps each child's gifts in the same paper but doesn't put on any tags.  The piles are identified by the stocking placed with the pile.  This year the stockings weren't filled with candy.  Sure, there was a little candy, but since the kids are young adults, some of their favorite foods were inside:  tea, coffee, cocoa mix, scone mixes and gnocchi.  I little different, but they liked the idea.

After lunch we headed to Cincinnati to spend Christmas with my family.  I gave my siblings mug cozies, reusable travel mugs and coffee.  

Mom was able to join us for the evening.  She was very tired, but sat quietly and listened to the festivities.  The crowd was mostly adults, but there was one little guy there.

I'm back home now.  I'm not going into the office this week.  Resting and knitting are on the agenda.

Getting back to my niece's shawl is the my first priority.  Her wedding is in about 4 months.  Time to get moving!

Christmas Knitting

Christmas has a different feel this year.  My mom's medical situation has forced me to focus on the essentials. The decorations are slowing getting up.  I've noticed that I want things to be soft and cozy. I like sitting in the evening with only a few lights on and candles lit.

Because of my evening light choice, knitting is a little hard.  There is the fatigue factor also.  I can only get a little in each night before I start getting too sleepy.  My Christmas projects are perfect for my current situation.

I'm making cup sleeves.  I love this pattern.  I have to go to the fabric store and buy small buttons for the eyes.  Each sleeve has three owls.  It is a quick project.  I can make one an evening.  I absolutely love the owl motif.  I can see using this on scarves, headbands, mittens or boot toppers.

Speaking of boot toppers, my girls are getting two-color boot toppers.  I saw this on Ravelry and thought it was a fantastic idea. So that they can tell theirs apart, I did one pair by casting on with the brown and the other pair starting with the beige.  I'm not completely happy with the bind-offs.  I wish I could find a bind-off that is stretchy and looks more like a cast-on edge.  I guess I shouldn't fret about it though. While they are being worn, the flared bind-off edge will be stretched out.

My son is getting a hat.  Actually he knows already because he has seen me knitting it.  I told him to act surprised when he opens it on Christmas morning.  Shoot!  I didn't think of it until now.  I should have put an owl on this beanie.  Oh well!  I might just have to make another one for him.

All of these projects are stash-busters.  The yarn is left over from the afghans I made for the girls.

Now off to get my grocery list made.  Tomorrow will be cookie baking.

Time To Give Thanks

Life has been a bit chaotic lately.  My mom's radiation and chemo treatments are occupying everyone's time. The treatments started in mid-October. Thankfully the end is in sight. My siblings who live near her have been taking her to her daily appointments.  I've been going down on weekends to give them a break.  Weekends don't usually involve treatments.  Two other siblings who live out of state have come in and helped also.  We've all helped where we can.  Having brothers and sisters like them is the greatest blessing.  I'm going to quote something one of my sisters posted on Facebook.  She said perfectly:

"We rallied together to help Dad and now we are united with Mom as she fights her current health crisis. While telling a friend about this, she replies that we are special and it shows that our parents raised us right. While I'm saddened to know that there are families that don't get along, I am grateful for every member of mine who puts aside their own interests to pitch in. I am grateful for having been raised by parents who not only taught but lived a life of selflessness with the expectations that their children do the same."

This picture is from Christmas 2009.  It was the last time we were all together.  The next Christmas (2010) one of my sisters wasn't able to make it and then Dad passed away in October 2011.  There are various versions of this picture floating around.  As you can see, we are looking around at different cameras.  It was like the paparazzi was there.

In between the chaos, I'm getting a little knitting in.  Here's the latest.

I've made decent progress on the shawl for my niece.  I have 3 of the 8 center repeats complete. I'm going to have to revise the schedule though.  This project has been tossed aside for others.

Like these, two color boot toppers.  I'm making a set for each of my girls as Christmas gifts.  These are quick and easy. And a great way to use up scraps in the stash.

Another distraction project is this.  This is a mug cozy.  Another great stash busting project.  I was able to knit this last night in front of the television in less than an hour.  I think they are adorable.  I plan to get tiny buttons for eyes and stitch a little beak. Too cute!

The take along project is making slow progress.  There isn't a deadline for it.  Once Christmas is passed, I'll get it done.

Now I'm off to prepare our Thanksgiving meal.  My in-laws are coming tomorrow.  It will be a small gathering.  Ed wanted lots of leftovers so I'm cooking quite the feast.  I don't mind though.  At least the family will have food to eat while I disappear again on the weekend to Cincinnati.

Off Schedule

I'm not keeping up with the schedule I planned for this.  Funny thing how life gets in the way.

I am in the center section.  The pattern calls for eight repeats with an option for a ninth.  There are 36 rows per repeat.  It is moving along quickly because the center section pattern is easy to execute.  There are only two sequences to follow.  The borders are where I have to pay attention to which row I'm on.  My biggest issue was the yarn slipping off the needles and having difficulty inserting the needle for the K3TOG.  I resolved this issue by switching to bamboo needles instead of metal.  The bamboo grips the yarn enough to make the K3TOG a piece of cake.

As far as getting back on schedule, I hope to make a lot of headway this weekend and next.  I don't have any obligations that will get in the way.  And since the weather is quite nasty this weekend, I'll be content to sit in front of the television, watch football and knit.

Quick Update

The big project on the needles is the shawl for my niece.

I am starting the main section.  I have schedule laid out that will have this completed in January.  I am already behind schedule but not terribly.  As a project manager, I have built contingency into my plan.  I am not worried.  Yet.

My diversion project is the crocheted shawl. It is coming along nicely.  

I have the stitch pattern memorized now.  It is a good one to take along places where I don't have to concentrate.

As an added diversion, I'm making my daughters boot toppers.  There are very quick.

I saw on Pinterest where someone made them two-colored.  I have a lot of wool left from Trisha's blanket.  These will use up some.

The last project currently active on the needles is going to get frogged.  The pattern is called Relax.

I love the color and they yarn, but the gauge is too small for me to deal with right now.  I have a knitting machine.  Since this is miles of stockinette, this is going to be done on the machine.  I just need to clean off my craft table to make a spot to put the machine up.

Gotta go now.  My weekends are busy for the next few months.  My mom is battling cancer.  I'll be traveling to spend the weekends with her. If you are the praying type, send some her way.

September Gone

September is over.  I didn't meet all of my goals. 

I did finish Trisha's blanket.  I was only able to snap this one picture of it before she grabbed it and took it back to her apartment.  I'm sure she is putting it to good use since the weather has turned cooler around here.

I now have about 800 yards of light fingering weight yarn.  This picture doesn't show off all of the colors well.  Now I have to decide what to make with it.

With the completion of Trisha's blanket, I am able to start a gift for my niece.  I have two skeins of white Alpaca with a Twist Fino.  I wound the skeins into cakes.  I have been waffling on what pattern to make.  I wanted to make it unique, but I couldn't figure out how to fit the design elements together.  I decided that I should stick with a proven pattern.  I found one from a lace book I had in my library.  

After a trip to the LYS to get the appropriate needles, I cast on and got to work.  I am going to have to set some milestones for this project to make sure I get it done.

Sticking to the schedule will be critical.

Because shiny objects can be a distraction, like this yummy Madelinetosh Prairie that I picked up while at the LYS.  The was a sample of Jenny's Faith made out of this yarn in colorway Fog.  It was gorgeous!!!

So what do I do?  I buy the yarn, download the pattern from Ravelry and begin. I needed a little Faith of my own.

Now about the September goals I didn't meet.  Exercising daily is not something I have been able to accomplish.  I am going to still strive to do it.  My problem is that I don't enjoy it.  Unlike my husband and children, I don't get the endorphin rush from exercise.  I don't crave it. They do.  They don't understand me and I don't understand them.  For the sake of my health, I am trying to make some positive changes.  This is one I need to keep working at.

The other goal for September, studying for the PMP exam, has fallen by the wayside.  Something has come up in my life that has suddenly sucked all the motivation out of me.  My boss and I had a talk Thursday at work and he agreed to let me defer this certification.

A Time For A Soak

The second to last block is underway.  This project will be finished within a week.  As I mentioned previously, a long car ride is in my future.  I should be able to get this wrapped up during that trip.  Trisha is very excited to have it in her possession.

I will be very excited to have it finished.  Thank goodness Blake has two years until he heads off to college.

My spinning goal for September has been met.  I plied the singles and put it in the sink for a soak.

After about 30 minutes, I gently squeezed out the water, gave it a good snap to set the twist and hung it to dry.  I let it drip dry over my washer.

My rough guess is that I have 800 yards of 2-ply lace weight.  I'll weigh it after it dries.

The colors are subtle.  There are greens, blues, purples, roses mixed in with brown.  I will have to carefully consider a pattern for this.  After it is finished, I'll see what it says to me.  Sometimes the yarn talks.  I'll let it have its opinion voiced.

2 out of 4 so far

Funny thing about goals.  Some seem so easy to accomplish.  Reality isn't quite that way though.  Here's how it's gone since Monday.

Insomnia has been plaguing me for the past several weeks.  My intention to exercise every day has fallen by the wayside because of it.  I got a workout in Monday and Thursday.  That's it.  I plan to get a workout in as soon as I'm done here.  I've started taking melatonin to help me sleep.  Hopefully my brain will stop feeling so foggy and I'll be able function more like a human soon.

I haven't touched the PMP book, but I have spent a couple hours with an online class to help me prep for the boot camp.  That counts for something, doesn't it?

There has been progress on Trisha's afghan. The first block of the last row is almost complete.  I'll finish this block and get the next one started tonight while watching the Ohio State versus Virginia Tech football game. Football season is always a very productive time for knitting.

I know I said I'd sit in my sun room and spin, but it was way too hot in there this week.  Last night I moved Lena into the kitchen.  I finished up the singles of the Frabjous Fibers Tourmaline 

and began to ply them.  I forgot until this moment that you should let the singles rest before plying.  Oh, well.

The color in the first photo is too intense and the second photo is too washed out.  I'll have a photo of the finished skein hopefully next week.

Goals for September

Something is happening around here.  It is something that I haven't encountered in a long time.  It is both strange and wonderful.  This something was caused by the following:  my girls are out of the house and at their respective colleges, my son is busy with school and his part time job and hunting season started today for my husband.  For the first time in 21 years I HAVE TIME FOR MYSELF!!!

Ahem, sorry.  I didn't mean to shout that.  But I am excited.

With the potential of extra time, I am setting some goals for myself during the month of September.

Goal #1:  Finish Trisha's afghan.

  

I've begun the last row.  I'm averaging a block a week.  Getting it completed by the end of the month is very doable.

Goal #2:  Exercise at least 30 minutes each day.  I have a library of DVDs.  If I can't get myself motivated to go to the gym, I can at least pop one of these in.  Today I did the aerobics workout from this on.  It feels good to start the day with a good sweat.

Goal #3:  Read this behemoth.  I'm working on getting my Project Management certification.  I'm taking an intense boot camp class in October.  It is recommended that I take the exam within two weeks of the class.  This book will preview the concepts for me before the class and hopefully improve my chances of passing the exam on the first try.

Goal #4:  Sit in my sun room and spin.

The red item in the picture above is a travel bag for my spinning wheel.  Later in September, one of my sisters and I will be taking our mother and one brother to Virginia to visit another sister.  The sister in Virginia is the one that taught me to spin.  I'm taking Lena along for some sisterly spinning.  Patty says she has a couple extra wheels that our mom and sister can use.  Maybe we'll make spinners out of them.

Doesn't Fell Like Chugging Along Anymore

There must be a psychological theory for what is happening here.  When I was less than half finished with this, knitting on this was a chore.  It felt like it would never end.  Getting myself motivated to pick it up was a daunting task.  

But now that I can 'see the light at the end of the tunnel' I am anxious to sit down with this and knit.  I noticed this phenomenon while knitting the light blue/red square.  It didn't seem as tedious to me.  The brown square I am currently on has flown by.  I'll have that finished today and good progress made on the next square by the time I go to bed tonight.

One of the challenges I'm going to have as I approach the end is the yarn.  The yarn used in the first 8 blocks was purchased last year.  I sent my older daughter to the store a couple weeks ago to pick out more to coordinate.  She was only able to come back with five colors.  I do have leftovers from the original colors, but I'm not sure how far it will get me.  The inset blocks are probably going to end up being a bit larger in the last row.  I know Trisha won't care.  In the end I won't care either, but I do have a touch of OCD in me.  I will notice each time I see it.

Maybe one of the reasons the last couple blocks didn't seem as tedious is the colors.  I really love the red, light blue and brown next to each other.  I had never considered them together, but I think they coordinate quite well.

As I'm getting this finished, I am thinking about my next project.  It will be a shawl for my niece who is getting married next spring.  I am planning my own design, but I am taking inspiration from other patterns.  I have the center section planned. Ideas for the borders are still percolating.

Slowly, Slowly

This morning I made blueberry muffins and chocolate chip muffins for breakfast.  We bought a huge container of blueberries last week and have been eating them with everything.  This is my Go To recipe for berries.  They are fantastic.  This time I made some with blueberries and others with chocolate chips.  I put the pieces in after I spoon the batter into the muffin papers.  That way I know each muffin has an equal distribution of add-ins.  I know this sounds a bit OCD, but I like to get a taste in each bite.

I love these muffins with my tea and Sunday paper.

On the knitting front, I'm slowly making progress on Trisha' blanket.  I've sworn to not work on anything else until this is done. After the current block is completed, I will be halfway there.  I'm estimating each block takes 4 hours. If I don't get this finished by mid-September, I'll get some long stretches of time to work on it while taking a car ride to Virginia.

Maui Part 3

There are a few more pictures of Maui I would like to share.  Then I'll get back to knitting.

One of the sites I wanted to find was the heart in the rocks by the Nakelele blowhole.  Erosion has cut a hole in the rock in the shape of a heart.  I had the impression that it was large, but it is actually only about 12 inches high.

On the day we visited the blowhole was squirting water but not extremely high.  It was still very dangerous to get close.  There are signs warning about the deaths that have occurred by getting sucked down the hole.

When we were watching the sunset from the top of Haleakala, my daughter took a picture as if she were holding the sun.  I really like the photo.

On the west side of Maui is an area called Dragon's Teeth.  Millions of years ago a volcanic eruption occurred during a fierce storm.  As the lava flowed down to the see, the waves pushed it upward.  As the lava cooled and hardened, a row of teeth-like rocks were formed along the edge of the water. It is really amazing to see how the forces of nature interplay.

 We spent an afternoon in Paia, an artsy town on the Road to Hana.  A parking lot had a fence made out of old surf boards.

I really miss being in Maui.  I wish I had a machine that could instantly transport me back there.  This was the view from the balcony of the condo.  I hope to witness this view again someday.  This is my 'Happy Place'.

I took a couple knitting projects along on the trip.  I really didn't get as much done as I had hoped.  I worked a little on the airplane ride out.  We were so busy in Maui there wasn't much time to knit.  Most of my down time was spent enjoying the view, drinking wine and napping.

I am working on my Pink Selway.  After making the Linen Top, I decided that summer sweaters are quick wins.  This one is not quite as quick since it has a lace pattern.  It won't get done this summer because of other projects.

This is the main reason Pink Selway isn't going to be worn this summer.  This is a blanket for Trisha to take to college.  It is based on Kay Gardiner's A Light in the Window.  Once I got the hang of the pattern, I decided to go my own way.  I'm also only making it as a 4x4 square.  Trisha is petite and is very anxious to have this with her at college. 

My other distraction from Pink Selway is this scarf, Nymphalidea.  I saw some finished projects on Ravelry and fell in love.  I dove into my stash and pulled out two balls that go very nicely together.  This is my take-along project.  I'll do a little at lunch during the week to relieve some work stress.

Maui Part 2

We've been home a week.  It has taken us this long to recover from jet lag.  A friend told me that it takes about a day for every time zone difference.  That is about how it worked for me.  There were a couple nights I couldn't fall asleep until 3 am.  But Thursday night, I went to bed at 10, fell asleep easily and sleep well.  I will admit I drank a cup of SleepyTime tea beforehand.  I'm sure it helped some.

Back to Maui.  We explored the southern edge of the island our first day.  In the morning Trisha, Blake and I took a walk on the beach.  It think Ed and Kristin were exercising.  Wailea beach on the bigger side compared to some of the beaches.  It was about 100 yards or so, bounded at each end by lava rocks.  The rocks were great for snorkeling.  A lot of fish and turtles hang out around them.  The sand at this beach was powdery.  It was so soft on the feet.  Great for exfoliating the feet.

Later that day we went out to Makena state park to see the site of the last volcanic eruption on Maui.  In 1790 an eruption occurred that created an even flow crater.  In the picture below, you can see the layers from the lava flow.

The cinder cone wasn't very high, only about 360 feet.  Ed and Blake considered climbing it until they touched the lava.  It is very crumbly.  Signs warn of the dangers of climbing.  I'm glad they decided against it.  The erosion of the cinder has created a black sand beach.  The sand was coarser than the tan sand on Wailea beach.  And obviously a lot hotter to walk on!  As with all Maui beaches, large lava rocks border the beach.  Here we are on some of the rocks.  Fortunately we didn't try to navigate around the rocks.  We later learned that a nude beach was just around the corner.

From black sand beach we went further down to Big Beach.  Big Beach deserves its name for two reasons.  First, it stretches farther than any other beach on the south shore. Second, the surf there is treacherous.  The shore break is large there.  The waves come crashing and can easily knock a person over.  The life guards announced several times over a loud speaker about the dangers of being in the water.  We had a relaxing afternoon, but stayed out of the water mostly.

Our second full day on Maui was low key.  Kristin wasn't feeling well so we decided to just hang out at the condo for the day.  We did get down to the pool.  It was the only time we all swam at the condo's pool.  I wished we had done that more. Later in the day we visited the Shoppes of Wailea and then went out to dinner.

The third day was our trip along the Road to Hana.  I covered that in the previous post.

July 4 was spent snorkeling at Wailea beach and then a luau.  I think Ed was a little skeptical about the luau at first.  In the end, everyone enjoyed it.

Kalua pig was prepared in an imu.

It was then ceremoniously presented to the guests.

We were given leis.

Had delicious food to eat.

And watched a show which told of the settling of the Hawaiian islands.

On a note about Maui cuisine, I noticed some things are very common:  sweet breads, macaroni salad and banana bread.  They do love their carbs!