Hands and Feet

Koigu!

Having finished a pair of fingerless mitts in as many days, I have now moved down to the lower extremities.

These are for my Nana. I know she'll be very surprised to receive these since I measured her foot last January (that would be 2006) with intentions to present her with a pair on Mothers' Day. Then my left wrist started acting up, and I thought if I wanted to keep my job (I need my hands to play the organ as much as I need them to knit), I'd better give up the knitting for a while. That was nearly as painful as the tendinitis.

So I'm sure she's either forgotten all about them, or assumed I've forgotten. I can't wait to see her reaction!

The Fetching mitts are still on my list, so I have to figure out if I want to buy more Cashmerino or if I want to try them in a different yarn. I'm worried about the stitch definition with such a soft, soft yarn. I have to admit, I was always one who pooh-poohed wrist-warmers and such. Now that I've tried them, though, I may be a convert.

Love,

Kim

One down, one to go...

Here is the finished Log Cabin blanket (thank you Mason-Dixon Knitting!). I find the colors absolutely delightful. I believe I likened it to knitting out of a box of crayons, and boy howdy! Casting off each strip and picking up stitches for each new one got a little tedious, but I just love the finished product.

Thank you for your kind words, Peg and Jo. You are both sweethearts. We are all missing Dermot very much. He was a good boy, and well loved.

I've been okay, though. I whipped up these little wristwarmers from Weekend Knitting in the past couple of days. Small! One color! Short row shaping! Fast!

My hand and arm with glove and coat sleeve. Note the poor exposed skin. Not so fun with the frigid weather and wind.

I'll just put on the lovely blue wristwarmer (the book calls them "Fingerless Mitts"). No exposed skin! Toasty warm wrists! A project that was not a square!

Now to finish the blanket for the other sweet baby who's coming (how are you feeling, Rachel?). Then, who knows? Socks, sundresses for toddlers, a possible attempt at fair isle knitting, the options are endless.

Love,

Kim

Dermot

Dermot Michael Moody. (Andy felt Dermie needed his own Irish last name.)

Dermie Germie. Stripey Boy.

His pal Nuala.

He was the cuddliest, most lap-sitting cat we ever knew.

Rest in peace, sweet kitty.

Love,

Kim

Home stretch for the Log Cabin

It's almost done! I cast off the last stitch of the last strip this morning, and started a half-double crochet border in purple.

It measures 35 x 34 inches right now (almost a square meter). The border is only about half an inch wide, so it's not going to add too much to the final measurements, but I think this is a fine size for a baby blanket. The baby girl to whom this is going has dropped, so her mother is very eager for her to arrive. The rest of her family is, too! We can't wait to meet her.

I found that Stephanie Pearl-McPhee will be in Ann Arbor again (Scroll down to August 4 --I'm the one holding the travelling sock and a photo of Rose). She was fabulously funny. Going to hear her talk is what kicked my butt back into gear to start knitting again. I had been dealing with tendinitis, and though it had been treated with a cortizone shot months before and not bothering me anymore, I was still nervous about picking up the needles. That visit is also what inspired me to get blogging.

Sadly, I cannot go this time to see our dear Yarn Harlot, because she is speaking at 2pm on Palm Sunday. Last August, I left right from church, was an hour and a half early, and still ended up in the overflow room (had fun anyway). Palm Sunday services tend to be quite a bit longer than regular Masses, so if I even try to go this year, I would definitely be in the overflow room again. Plus worn out from two extra-long Masses that morning. I wonder if the choir would notice if I got a sub? Just kidding.

Love,

Kim

Weirdness

Alright, alright, alright.

Jo tagged me for the "Six Weird Things" meme, and I think I've finally found six. I mean, I know I've got my weird points (be quiet, Rachel), but listing and describing six? It was tough.

1. I count. I mean, when I'm walking down the stairs in the morning, I count each step. I know how many steps there are, but it doesn't matter. I count them. I count the number of times I move my toothbrush as I brush my teeth. I count the number of stirs as I mix batter. Anything I do that happens at a steady pace, I count.

2. I have watched and loved Star Trek since I was a teenager. The original series, of course, but also each incarnation as it was introduced. My geekiness is in full swing at this time, as all five series are now on television at once, each on one channel or another. I can't remember that ever happening before, and I'm loving it.

3. I have to lie on my back when I first get into bed, to get sleepy. But as I get sleepier, I have to roll to my side to actually fall asleep. I have no idea why.

4. Speaking of sleeping, if I ever have trouble sleeping, watching "Are You Being Served" always helps. It's not that it's a boring program, as a matter of fact, it's one of my favorites. It's just that Detroit Public Television has always played it at 11pm on weeknights, so I think my brain just associates it with getting sleepy. I could pop in a DVD of it at 8:00 and be ready to crawl into bed at 8:30.

5. I know the words to more songs written before 1950 than I do current songs, or even songs that were popular when I was younger. Working in a nursing home for three years contributes to this, but even in high school I could sing "The Sheik of Araby" from beginning to end, not to mention "We'll Meet Again" or "Oh How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning."

6. I love words. I love learning where words come from. I loved finding out that "diva" comes from the Latin for "goddess." Brilliant! And "disaster" -- "dis" (apart) "aster" (stars) -- "separated from the stars, or heavens." How cool is that?

I'm going to break a rule of this meme and only pass it on to my friend Rachel. I'll help you think of weird things if you need me to! Brazil.

Love,

Kim

Two little girls

Dear Rachel,

I have been ever so into the knitting lately -- at the pace I'm going, I'll be done with both blankies by the end of February. That's not just wishful thinking. That's me saying, okay, I'm finishing a strip on the log cabin every other day, and there are five strips left, plus a border, so if I keep it up, I'll be done around the 20th. And for the other, I'm going through a ball of the Cashmerino every three days, and I've got five balls left, so that's a little more than two weeks. It'll be done around the 26th, and you're not due until the end of March, so I totally feel like I'm ahead of the game.

Yes, I'm boasting in a public venue. I'm doing it on purpose. It'll keep me on track. And I have been doing a great job at keeping up this pace. But it sure makes for awfully boring knitblogging. "Look! A colorful square! Look! A colorful square that's just 3 inches bigger around!" Not to mention that you don't even want to see the blanket that your baby is going to get, so I have to just say, "It looks like a brown basketweave rectangle! I can't wait 'til it's a brown basketweave square!"

So, in lieu of actual knitting content, I offer you this tableau:



Rose on the left, Lena on the right. Their first visit, I think, in February 2005. Seven or eight weeks old, the two of them.

Positions reversed, same couch. Five months later, July of 2005. Funny hats courtesy of my mom.

Lena and Rose at Greenfield Village, waiting for the train. A year later: August 2006.

And finally, when you two visited just this last month, January of 2007. Lena in the foreground, Rose in the back. It's been so fun to have our two little girls at the same time. I really am sorry I couldn't arrange to have a second with you, too. Tee hee.

Back to knitting,

Love,

Kim

I miss Smack The Pony

Dear Rachel,

Did you ever watch this show when it was on Bravo? I wish they'd show it again.




One of the best British imports ever.

Love,

Kim