Back Onto the Face of the Earth

Now how firmly I am affixed onto said face has yet to be determined. Sincere apologies all around for the lack of posts. Life has been nuts for me as it is for most people so I won’t even bore you with excuses that will only sound hollow to everyone else who works hard and has unexpected circumstances popping out. Suffice it to say crazy work hours, wacky personal stuff, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Ok. That being said, I have missed this little community. I’ve missed blogging and reading blogs and my spinning and knitting groups. I hope to get back to a little bit of normal (well, my normal) soon.

In the meantime, however...OH the things I have to share with you.

And ACTUAL FO.

Flying Geese (bloody) Blanket

I fell in love with this pattern from the moment I saw it. I mean, it’s a great book, right? I took a break from working on my mom’s FPS to “whip this up”. Man this always happens to me. And I suppose that until I learn to have reasonable deadlines, I’ll still be considered a newbie.

I was ok with the endless stockinette for quite some time but this thing really did go on FOREVER. I made the SEVENTEEN flying geese strips.

Then I added the larger squares.

Endless, I tell ya. Up side? My first experience with mitered squares. It was really cool watching the whole thing come together and having that ooooOOOOOH light bulb moment. Neat.

Just as I was adding the border, Mr. Murphy reared his ugly head. You see, I always order more yarn than I need. Prior to jumping into this lovely fiber world, I'd read many horror stories about midnight runs to LYS's and fruitless efforts to match dyelots. Anyway, I felt fairly comfortable that I ordered enough yarn. So I'm knitting the border and watching what seems to be the last ball of brown yarn dwindle away. I searched my house HIGH and low looking for what I knew to be the ACTUAL last ball of brown yarn. I searched and searched...No yarn. I couldn't believe it! I really wanted to give my MIL her lap blanket by the weekend. It was Wednesday. Ok. I didn't panic. So I ordered one more ball and asked for turbo shipping. I received it on Friday and stayed up all night working on it. When I wearily went to take a pic of the blanket while blocking...You know it. There was that nice shiny ball of brown yarn smirking at me. Ah well

So...Here it is!

The colors in the picture are a bit brighter than the actual blanket itself. At first I was concerned about the yarn. Thought it might be a bit too itchy but it actually smoothed out quite a bit. Although I try to step away from the comfort zone of knitting items in the colors shown, I really liked the color mix in the book. I couldn’t find the exact colors that appeared in the book but I really think my MIL will appreciate my nod fall colors. I decided against the tomato red. I just felt that it tipped the balance between subdued fall colors and Ode to 70’s knitting colors. Know what I mean?

Ok. So I wish I could say that I matured during my time away and that I learned from other bloggers warnings about ever growing stash but…Ah well. Let’s dispense with the feeble excuses and get to some shameless stash flashing, shall we?

I, of course went to NETA’s Spa Knit and Spin event in February. Yes, I know that Summer weather has barely begun but bear with me cuz’ if I’m takin y’all back to February, trust that it because we’re talking truly yummy and shameless here. Let's see. We've got your Indigo Moon Fibers, we've go your Spunky Eclectic (She SUCH a sweetie, by the way). I'm honestly not sure about the purple and tan fiber in the bottom middle. And, no, wiseguys, it's not due to a blackout after my very obvious fiber binge. It's because my MIL won it in one of the NETA raffles and there's no label on it. I also joined STR and I know everyone’s been raving about the yarns so I won't do a close up of the yarns although they are in the above pic...see???

Oh. And for...

Cuteness Factor/Big News…???

This has a back story. (stop groaning!) When I was at NETA, one of the vendors mentioned he was selling Great Pyrenees puppies from his latest litters. The ONLY thing that stopped me from buying one right then and there, was the fact that my cell phone died and I had no way to call my husband.

So the next day, he and I were talking about it over the phone and I did my prerequisite “I want a puppy!” whine, totally expecting his prerequisite “I do too but you know we can’t have one.” When he switched it all up on me and said “I’m not traveling as much anymore. Why not?” Although he likes bigger dogs like Newfoundlands, we decided that our townhouse living would be more suited to my favorite breed. So you know that before he could change his mind, I was on the net researching. Calling my spinning friend Kat who also owns Corgis and by the beginning of the next month…Our newest addition to the family!

So without further ado… Please meet Otis!!!

Ok. We just love him. He's a Pembroke Welsh, which is my favorite of the two Not only is he exactly the color I wanted but he’s also quite verbal. All sorts of funny noises and he’s very loving. Sure, his legs are only 2 inches long but he thinks he’s a Newfie.

On a final note to this novel…I mean post. I do want to share something. My husband’s grandmother passed away during my hiatus. And although we all felt relief that she was no longer suffering, very few things have been as difficult as letting her go. She was strong, brash and outspoken so you always knew where you stood with her. She was funny, creative and fiercely loving…So…you always knew where you stood with her. She baked boxes full of German cookies. No, I mean this kind of box. She baked and baked with no recipe in sight. She crocheted and knitted baby blankets for future great-grandchildren, the newest of whom is to arrive in November. Stitched and stitched without a pattern in sight. Yes, she was a typical grandmother. But being that I never knew my biological grandparent, she was anything but typical to me.

Well, that's actually it. I'll write more soon.