My Mother's Sweater

My Mom has a little wardrobe problem. She has clothes (and wears them) from before I was born. The other problem is that the closets in her four bedroom house are full. With her clothes! So I am always happy to hear when she has put together a little bag to send off to charity (or trash, in the case of the pre-Amybel items). However, on my last visit she lamented a hole in this mohair sweater. Her mother had made it when her older sister was in Junior High School. That dates this sweater at about 50 years! She was so sad to see it go, I gave in a little and said I would see if I could fix it. I'm pretty sure that the hole is just from wear and not moths. Especially since my mother has always kept her wool sweaters in cedar chests (and yes, she has a few of those too, all stuffed!). After further review I decided that fixing wasn't an option since the fashion police might actually lock me away for enabling (pardon the t-shirt).

It's so not me with the pastel colors and all. Well, that and the pink in there :)But I think that maybe someday when she has forgotten about it (ok, when the kids actually let me work on big projects) I'll take it apart and make something useful out of this for her. Not because she needs any more clothes, but because it is a memory of her mother and the gift of knitting she passed down to me.

Becoming British

Last weekend I had cast off the top of the sage cabled purse, put the handles on holders, and proceeded to work the two front handles at the same time. I was even enjoying a rare episode of knitting while the children played in the same room! All was going along so well (which should have been a sign, sigh) when I discovered that I had made a cable error at some point before the cast off.

I suddenly became British. It's probably because The Masters was on and there was a lot of listening to Nick Faldo and David Feherety (he's Irish, I know), but "Blimey!" and "Bloody he--" (stopping because kidsters are in the room) was all I could come up with. I wanted something a little stronger to represent the emotion I was feeling, but we have always made it a point (ok, tried very hard) not to swear in front of the kidsters. Maybe a few have slipped out during extreme duress and this would have qualified for sure, in my book anyway.

Feeling completely aggravated I put it aside for a few days. That and I didn't have any time to sit and un-knit. I'm happy to report that the unknitting went as well as could be expected, and I am back to where I was a week ago. Well, not happy that a week went by without progress but happy that I don't have to do any more unknitting!

Arrrrgggravated

No, I haven't turned into a pirate (although kidsters would probably get a real kick out of that). I thought knitting was supposed to be relaxing? What happened to my relaxing knitting?

I'm working on my sage cabled purse, that's what. I have knit and frogged the base out at least four times already. I think that I would be almost done with the body by now if I could just keep knitting in a continuous line instead of knit, rip, recalc, cast, knit, rip, recalc. Arrrgggh! I'm not liking this new mantra.

I'm determined to get past it and onto the body of the bag with the designs before Friday night. That gives me about 2 hours to get straightened out. Friday is beer night and beer and knitting go just fine together but add in aggravation and it could be a real problem.

Deadlines

School vacation week is over, and so is the week after. The one where I try like hell to get everything and everyone back on track, including myself. I didn't do all that well either week. So I am now getting back on track. I got a lot of uninterrupted computer time this morning, I needed that! We played outside yesterday even though it sprinkled here and there. The 50 degrees was such a treat that even the kidsters didn't care about the showers. And even better the sun is shinning bright today. Just in time for a major Nor'easter tomorrow. Great.

Usually a snowstorm doesn't bother me. But this time I am on a deadline. A last day of school deadline. My mother offered up Eric Clapton tickets and a plane ride out there. How could I pass that one up? EC is my all time favorite by a landslide and anyone who knows me knows that. And a free plane trip! See, my Dad doesn't get around well anymore. He can't drive the 600 miles to get here and really can't even manage a plane ride. I saw him in November, but before that it was a whole year. I get see my mother a few times a year, but usually she comes here. It's much easier and cheaper to fly one person than for me to fly out there with the two kidsters. Hubster and I were going to take them out there this summer but if I've already been there in June, we just might skip the midwest and go somewhere a little more exciting (no offense to you midwesterners!). Hubster even arranged it with his parents to take the two kidsters on the Monday and Tuesday while he is at work.

But here is the problem...

The last official day of school (for Hubster) is the 16th, a Tuesday. The last day of preschool, or so they tell me, is the previous Thursday. They will have a cute little performance and graduation ceremony. Any snow days could push his last day precariously close to when I will be gone. The concert tickets are purchased, but not the plane tickets, yet. I think there is something Freudian going on in my brain that says wait a little while longer...

Since my last post I cast on for a bike helmet ear warmer I found on ravelry. I'm making it for Hubster, since he loves riding the mountain bike but it's so windy this time of year! Any other knitter would probably knock this thing off in an afternoon, but mine is taking a few days. And I had to rip back to the band after I cast the second pocket back on. I had done it backwards. Pay attention! Oh well, at least I have only about 15 more rows to finish. Should be done today. I'm going to try to make a second one if the yarn holds out. My mother's birthday is coming up in March and the only thing keeping her off of her bike is the cold. Another deadline...

All work and no play...

make for a very dull post. Until today, I had no knitting time since the last time I posted about starting the orange (and pink and ochre-ish) hat for my SIL. And I wasn't doing all that great on the not being grouchy part either.

But today was a breakthrough day. I did some knitting in the car while hubster drove us around. Then while the youngest kidster took a nap I almost finished it. I managed to get about another 20 minutes while same kidster played on the computer this afternoon (you should see him click away. It's amazing. And he's 2!) I finished it! I was very excited. You know that wonderful feeling you get when you have created something from your own hands. Ahhhhhhh.

I was all set to post and congratulate myself on an FO, I even took the pictures! Then I tried it on. (Hear the balloons popping in the background). It barely nipped the top of my ears. And to put it nicely, I have a tiny little bean. I mean, really small. I can wear my kids' hats no problem. And my kids are 4 and 2. Ok, so you are wondering why I didn't swatch? What was the problem with this hat, it is the second time I've made the pattern, right? Well, first off, different yarn. Then, I generally don't swatch. I usually knit felted things, so there's no need. Plus, I am lazy and selfish with my knitting time. I don't want to waste a day making a swatch when I can get a few inches of knitting accomplished. I know, I know, I wasted the day anyway. So, while hubster made dinner I ripped it out all the way back to before the decreases. Back to a hat with only a brim finished and dinner with a grouchy knitter.