It's A Girl!!

My granddaughter, Olivia Grace, was born at the stroke of midnight on Saturday, October 19.  She is absolutely beautiful and perfect!

Big brother, Jameson, loves her and helps with diaper changes by unzipping her onsie and pulling wipes out of the container.  He loves to hold her and beep her nose.

Now that Olivia has arrived, I don't need to hide the items I am making for her.   This is the Kirby sweater by Berroco made out of West Yorkshire Spinners Bo Peep DK in the Piglet colorway.  It took just under 2 skeins to make this sweater. As mentioned in the last post, the remaining yarn is becoming a romper for her.

I also have a linen quilt in the works for her but my progress has slowed.  Someone likes to lay on it whenever I try to stitch on it.

The day my daughter was in labor I was very anxious.  To occupy myself, I crocheted a hexi block using instructions from Noble Character Crafts.  I'm not sure if this will turn into anything yet.  Maybe a blanket for my granddaughter.  We'll see.

This fall I've been taking a drawing class.  I never got to take any art classes in high school and have always wished I had.  This class is a Saturday morning adult enrichment class offered at the Columbus College of Art and Design.  Below is my final sketch.  There is going to be an exhibition in a couple weeks, but I'm not sure I'm going to attend.  It is the same day as my husband's family's Thanksgiving celebration and I was volunteered to host.

The instructor said  I have a good eye for composition and asked if I'd be interested in taking another class from him.  I would like to take my drawing further and also try watercolors.

In my knitting world, I started a pair of socks using some yarn I purchased in 2023 at the Kentucky Fiber Festival.  I don't remember the name of the vendor and they were going out of business shortly after the event.  The yarn is a sport weight blend of baby alpaca and mint.  It is an absolutely beautiful yarn and is working up into the snuggliest pair of socks.  

The socks are going to be a bit big on me, but I don't care.  They will be house socks anyway.

I finished my Galanta sweater.  I am happy with how it turned out and will wear it often. 

There are only two things that make this not perfect.  The sleeves are too tight and the length is a bit short for my liking.  I'm not going to do anything to the sleeves (I should try to lose some weight which would help) but I am considering lengthening the body.  I'll have to cut along a row of plain stockinette mid-body and the knit a couple inches before grafting the pieces together again.  This may be a project for later because I can't manage it right now.  Reason will be revealed below.

I cast on my next sweater project.  It is another Audrey sweater from Knitty McPurly.  I'm going to do the same modifications I did with the first one.  Squeaks approves of my plan.

But for now all crafting projects are on hold.  Yesterday I had hand surgery to remove a cyst and a bone spur.  Doing anything the requires my thumb is difficult, if  not impossible.  Hopefully I'll be able to get back to knitting soon.  I have a lot of WIPs to take care of.

 

While I recuperate, I'll just spend  more time reading and practicing gratitude.  I am truly grateful for many things right now.  My health is good.  I have a wonderful husband and brilliant children.  I have two perfect grandbabies.  I live in a country that has restored my faith in humanity.  Thanksgiving is in a couple weeks.  I will be thanking the Lord for his abundant blessings in my life.

Busy, Busy

The past couple months have been busy.  And we aren't even in the busiest time of the year yet!

Ed and I went on a cruise during the first week of September to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary.  We sailed out of New York City and visited Portland and Bar Harbor ME, Saint John NB, and Halifax NS.  We didn't do any excursions because I wasn't sure how I would be mobilitywise.  As it turned out, we probably walked far more on our own than we would have on excursions.  My 'excursions' were to visit yarn shops in the towns.  I picked up a few things and will show the finished projects whenever I get them done.  

When not walking around the ports that we visited, we spent our time relaxing on some lovely recliners on the Promenade deck.  We had a waiter that kept our glasses full.  I did a lot of knitting and reading.  It was perfect.  I occasionally had to ice my ankle to keep the swelling down.

I finished a pair of socks that I started when we went on the cruise back in January.  It was nice to get one WIP finished.

Later in September we went out to our favorite steak house on the actual day of our anniversary.

After coming home from the cruise, I had to get into high gear with some baby projects.

The first project was a sweater for a friend's new grandson.  This is Baby Sophisicate in Plymouth Yarn Encore.  Always a great choice for a quick baby gift knit.

 

I also starte the linen quilt for grandbaby #2.  This is not yet completed.  It is hard to work on because Squeaks likes to lay on it.  I guess I need to make her one also.

My daughter requested that I make Simon the Sheep from Edward's Menagerie for the new baby.  This took me a while because the tight crochet stitches were not easy for me to do.  It is now finally finished and ready to give to the little one when he/she comes.

I have a sweater made for the new baby using yarn I purchased from KnitWit Yarn Shop in Portland, Maine but I won't post a picture yet because it will reveal the gender.  My daughter and son-in-law don't know yet, but I was allowed to know so that I can work on some knits for the baby.  

I also have another baby gift on the needles using the rest of the yarn from KnitWits.  This will be a little romper.  I'm mashing together several patterns and crossing my fingers that the finished garment is wearable by the little one.

For the second time this year, we have been able to see the Aurora Borealis.  When I went outside to see them, they were a beautiful pink.  The below picture was taken using the night mode on my phone camera.

I'm hoping we have clear skies later this week so that I can see the comet that is passing close by now.

Also hoping to meet my new grandbaby this week.  My daughter is hoping her labor starts soon.  The pregnancy has been a bit difficult for her.  I'm saying my prayers that her labor is easy and ends with a healthy baby and momma.

These Shoes Are Made For Walking

One would think with the amount of time I spent sitting these past 7-8 weeks, I would have gotten a lot of knitting done.  As it turns out, I was so tired most of the time I couldn't pick up a project.  I did manage to get a couple things off the needles.

The First Impression Pants were a quick knit. These are for our new grandbaby due to arrive in October.  I made these using Knit Picks Stroll.  They are very stretchy.  The won't fit the baby for a few months.  Trisha wants me to make another pair in a smaller size to fit during the newborn months.

My second Rock It Tee was also finished.  Like the first one, I knit this with Knitting Notions Classic Merino Bamboo.  This time I decided to do a single color, Crimson, instead of striping.  I also made the sleeves elbow length. I love the way this turned out.  It is light and airy.  I have 2 more colors in this yarn.  Since this pattern works up so well for me, I might make a couple more but add texture or lace to the body. 

Two of my other WIPs have had some progress.

Slowly adding flowers to the Astri afghan.  For each flower, there are 3 ends to weave in.  I spent a couple evenings dealing with the ends for the 8 rows I did.  Going forward, I'm going to add a row and then take care of those ends.  When this is finished, I will have woven in 2592 ends.  Thankfully, most of those were done as I made each flower.  972 were left when I starting joining the flowers.  I'm about a third of the way through joining the flowers.  209 flowers left to join and 648 ends to weave in.

Nila is coming along.  I'm working the body.  It's not a fast knit but it is interesting with all the textures.  I have to work the body for 11 inches from the armhole opening.  I'll try it on at that point and decide if I want to make it longer.  I have plenty of yarn in case I want to extend it a bit.  

The pattern has 2 options for the sleeves.  The first is just a small ribbing around the arm opening and the other is elbow lenghth.  I'm doing the elbow length because I don't like my upper arms showing.

The crocheted bunny I started before my surgery hasn't been touched.  I need to finish him up.  This is going to be a low key weekend with lots of rain in the forecast.  Maybe I'll devote a little time each day to him.

In other news, I graduated to a boot on July 10.  I was still non-weightbearing though.  I was given the option of either a boot or a cast.  The boot allowed me to shower without covering my leg in a plastic bag.  I should have been non-weightbearing for only 2 weeks, but I developed a slight issue with the incision which delayed things for a week.  On July 31 was allowed to start walking with the boot. 

On August 14 I was given the OK to use regular shoes.  I can't tell you how happy that made me.  Walking out of the doctor's office felt very strange.  My leg was used to having that heavy boot on it.  The boot also added an inch or so.  Ed needed to walk beside me to make sure I didn't tip over.  Later that day after we got home, I took a very short walk down the street and back.  My shin hurt like when a person starts a running routine.  Things are better now.  I just have to remember to wear my compression sock because my ankle swells up if I'm on my feet too long.

Well, that's all for now.  Take care and see you next month!

Quick Snippets

I'm not going to put a lot of delait into each item of this post.  Just wanted to get a few things out there since it's been a couple months since I last posted.

I'll start with the crafting content first.

I finished Yume.  I'm OK with how it turned out.  It has a bit too much fabric in the underarm area.  Sizing it was a bit of an issue.  I did do a gauge swatch and chose a size.  As I knit the yoke, it just seemed too large, so I ripped it out and went down a size.  After I split for the sleeves, I had a feeling it was still too big, but I just kept going.  In hindsight, I should have listened to that voice and ripped out a little.

This is lovely pattern and I may make it again.  I'll just have to try it on as I go.

Below is an old photo of Astri, but I'm slowly making progress on it.  There are just a million ends to deal with.

I made a lion for my grandson using a Toft kit.  The main was a bit of a challenge to get it to look right, but in the end I think he's a rather handsome lion.

I cast on Nila by Natashja Hornby.  I'm using Purl Soho Linen Quill in Lilac. It is a challenging knit, definitely not something for TV viewing.  As a result my progress is slow.  But I'm sure I'll love the end result.  Hoping to have this done by the beginning of September to take on a cruise Ed and I have planned for our anniversary.

I have also been dyeing some yarn using the tincture dyes I learned about from my LYS.  Someday these will go into a blanket.

I also bought myself an e-spinner.  As I'll explain below, I wanted a spinning wheel that is more portable and doesn't require pedaling.  I'm still practicing with it.  I purchased this from the Woolery and they sent along a large bag of roving to use for practice.  Once I feel I have the hang of it, I'll try on of the braids I have in my stash.

Now the life updates.

My husband's birthday is at the end of May.  None of the kids were able to join us, so I made him a steak dinner and a strawberry pie.  The kids were all in town the following weekend, so we celebrated then with smoked ribs and red velvet cake.

In June I took my brother, grandson, and daugther on a train ride.  The boys loved it. I don't think my grandson actually realized he was riding on a train.  But he did get excited when he saw the engines and cars.

On Father's Day we went with our daughter, son-in-law, and grandson to Seneca Lake to take their new (used) pontoon boat out for a ride.  It was fun to be out on the water.  Jameson loved being captain.

In the final bit of life news, I had surgery on my right foot on June 25 to remove a calcification on the back of my heel.  I'm going to be in a splint/cast for a month and then a walking boot for another month.  Use of my right foot is very limited.  No driving.  Totally non-weightbearing right now.  Since my Lendrum spinning wheel is a single tredle wheel, I can't easily use it, which is why I bought the e-spinner.

Well, that's about it for today.  Take care.

 

The Sun Gets In Your Eyes

 Once a month seems to be my cadence for posting.

 April 8th was the much anticipated solar eclipse.  We were just outside the path of totality.  If we had been at our old house, we may have been in it.  I'm not entirely sure where the edge was.  As it was, it was still pretty interesting.  As the sun got covered, everything took on a weird green aura.  I tried taking some pictures with my phone using the cheapo glasses I had, but the pictures really didn't turn out.  But my bedroom blinds did serve as a camera obscura.

My son, Blake, took the day off work and went with some friends to a spot that was in the totality.  Below is one of the pictures he sent us.  He said it did get very dark.

During the eclipse, Ed and I noticed this bee acting strangely.  It was just hanging out on the railing of our deck.  I think it was confused, not expecting the darkness at that point of the day. 

Ed was getting very stressed out about work so I made him an Emotional Support Chicken.  I named her Doris, but he said he's going to come up with a different name.  As of yet, he hasn't mentioned anything.  Well, nothing appropriate anyway.

Our grandson likes the chicken so I'll have to make him one.  I might just sneak it into his room when I visit sometime and not tell his parents.  We'll see how long it takes for them to notice.

I finally pulled out my spinning wheel.  It has been in hibernations since at least October 2022.  She let me know how upset she was at being stowed away for so long by breaking her driveband as soon as I tried spinning anything.  I ordered a new band from the Woolery.  Once it came I spun up an ounce of punis that my sister gifted me last year.

I'm a little out of practice, as evidence by this skein.  I have enough here for a headband or fingerless mitts.  I have another packet of punis.  I'll spin that before I move on to some roving.  When I get to the roving, I want to try fractal spinning.

Another sister gave me some of her sourdough starter.  I found an easy recipe for bread that I thought I'd give a try.

Here's my loaf  of whole wheat sourdough after proofing overnight but before baking.

And here it is after baking.  I think I left it in just a bit too long, but other than a few burn edges on the top, it turned out great.  Ed even liked it.  And he has always declared that he hates sourdough.

My plan is to make a loaf each week instead of buying bread from the store.  I'm activating the starter for this week's batch, which I'll probably bake on Friday after I'm done babysitting my grandson.

The sister that gave me the sourdough starter had one of her daughters get married this past weekend.  Most of my siblings were in attendance.  Kristin was a bridesmaid and Trisha did a reading at the Mass.  The bride was beautiful and the groom handsome.

Here is my whole family (minus Jameson - no kids allowed) at the reception.

I finished Yume.  I started this last summer, using some Berocco Remix Light that I bought from a yarn shop outside of Cincinnati.  

This was a bit more of a slog than I had hoped for.  After I knit the yoke, it just looked too big so I ripped it out and cast on for a smaller size.  I'm pretty happy with the fit, except there's too much room in the underarm.  When I block it, I'm going to be careful to not stretch it.  

I also made a Baby Sophisticate for a friend of my oldest daughter who is due to have her first baby any day.  This is made out of some Plymouth Encore that I had in my stash.  This was a very easy knit.  I think this is going to be my go-to baby gift knit.

I cast on Nila by Natasja Hornby.  I'm using Purl Soho Linen Quill in the colorway Crocus.  I've had 3 skeins of this in my stash for about a year, waiting for the perfect project.

As with the other Natasja Hornby pattern I made, this one is a bit of a challenge.  The instructions are fantastic.  It just is an interesting construction that I've never attempted before.  My only complaint is that I wish she had a few more measurements noted on the pattern.  I finished the back yoke and am not completely sure I have the edge of the back of the arm long enough to accomodate for when the sleeves are picked up.  My row gauge is a bit off.  I'm hoping that doesn't cause me problems in the future.  Stay tuned.

Because I'm not knitting monogamous, and I need something straight forward as I work Nila, I cast on another Rock It Tee.  This one is also out of Classic Merino Bamboo from Knitting Notions, like my original. I'm am not making this one striped, though.  I'm only using the Crimson colorway.  This should work up quickly and be part of my wardrobe for the summer.