more pretty stuff

Dear Mom,
I lost track of most of an evening spinning about half of the roving that Dianne sent to me.
This may be the prettiest stuff yet.

I draped it on the back of a dining room chair and spent some time admiring it yesterday while I knitted on a sweater. I am collecting pretty scarf and shawl patterns now- small projects and simple patterns that will show off the yarn.
Thanks to some Pacers basketball tickets and the Colts game over the weekend, I am ahead of the sock schedule. With the damp, grey weather, I just wish I could stay ahead of the mud.
Love,
Kim

Why I went back to bed this morning....

Dear Mom,
I am not going to blame the premiere of Project Runway on the few hours of sleep I got. I will admit that I got to bed later because of it, but it was the Loud Snoring that awakened me at 3:30 and kept me up. This time it was so loud that I stumbled down the hall to the guest room to try to get a little sleep before the alarm went off. For a moment there, I thought that the dog was going to follow me.
The rough night convinced me to go back to bed after the bus took my kids away. Not much convincing is needed to get me to do that, but this time I didn't feel so guilty about it.
Especially since it became clear to me, after yesterday, that I need my beauty sleep. Lots of it.
You see, I did a bit of running around after school, picking the Young Man up from an after school meeting, and then taking the Young Lady to and from Art Class. It must have been quota day for the local police, because twice The Young Lady and I saw drivers pulled over, getting tickets. The Young Lady didn't comment on the first driver. He must have looked like someone you would expect to see pulled over. The second driver was different.
"That was a Grandma!", the Young Lady announced. (Clearly Grandmas do not speed.)
"It was? Oh dear."
"Yeah, she was a little older than you, in her 50's."
...!!!.....
"I AM ALMOST 50! I AM NOT A GRANDMA! Do I look like a Grandma?"
"NO, Mom, I said she was older than you. In her 50'ssss. Plus she had on big sunglasses."

Yep. Lots of beauty sleep.

Love,
Kim

Just Four Ingredients!

Dear Mom,
This was a recipe I got from a friend that I met when the Teenager was in preschool!!  We make it A LOT in our house because it is stupid-easy.  Just 4 ingredients.  I'm not a chemist so I can't really explain just how these four ingredients can come together to make the most fabulous peanut butter cookies.  But these are the best. The Best! peanut butter cookies!  Ever!  And every time I pull out my recipe card, I laugh because written on the card are literally 4 ingredients.  And nothing else!
But enough already!

And here is the recipe:

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup chunky peanut butter

1 egg

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix all ingredients together.  Drop by rounded teaspoonful on a cookie sheet.  Press down with a fork to make the fun cross-marks on the top of the cookie!  Bake at 350 degrees for 11 minutes.

Enjoy!

Seriously?!?!  About 2 minutes to mix everything together.

Go ahead!  Impress your family!  Your neighbors!  Your friends!  And then go make some more!

Love,

Wendy

Sock #2

Dear Mom,

Love,

Kim

Roving Report

Dear Mom,

On Saturday, I took CarolWhoseHouseGotStruckbyLightening up to Tabby Tree Weaver. She wanted to investigate the weaving and I wanted to look at more roving. We spent a couple of hours soaking in the fibery goodness and before we left, CarolWHGSbL signed up to take a weaving class.
I brought with me some roving that I found on sale from Yarnhollow and I wanted to check out the menu at Tabby Tree to see what I might ply it with. Thanks to the enablers   experts there, I found some mohair which I will combine with my bag o' wool, and then spin and ply it with the hand-dyed roving from Yarnhollow.

The rusty orange and turquoise are the mohair roving I purchased on Saturday. The bright multi-colored roving is the stuff I got from Yarnhollow and that spool has a little bit of the wool I spun from the bag o'wool.

Alice, who taught my spinning class, offered me the use of her drum carder. I am now on a mission to get all my wool washed and ready for the carder when I pick it up at the next Open Spin, in February. The drum carder will speed up the process of getting the wool ready to spin, and hopefully the roving I produce with the drum carder will be more consistent than what I am making with my hand carders.

It wasn't all spinning all weekend around here, though. In addition to working on sock #2, I started a sweater.

 

This will be for me. Another version of my Merry Poppins cardigan. I am test knitting my own instructions and tweaking the neckline a bit. I have the wool for a coordinating skirt. And the idea of a classic cabled cardigan in Navy is dancing around in my head. I'd better get knitting.

Love,

Kim

Good things

Dear Mom,
It is easy to lose track of the Good out there. Especially on bleak winter days, or every time you turn on the television. It is easy to feel alone, an alien on your own planet. That might be a clue to why I read my favorite blogs. They give me little peeks into the lives of other people who like and value the same sorts of things I do.
When we started this blog I didn't really think about the people peeking in here, to see what we do. I am surprised to find that I have made a couple of blog friends. Modern day pen pals.
One of these blog friends sent me a generous gift of roving from sheep on her farm.
Dianne has been very encouraging of my spinning. "I'd like to send you a fiber sample", she wrote.

This is a box with 8 oz of natural color roving for me to play with! I can't tell you how magical this box is to me. A kind and generous gift, from someone I never met, in a world that, if you pay attention to the news, is harsh and nearly hopeless. This box of soft wool is proof that it is not. That there are good people out there, doing quiet, caring things that might not seem much on the surface, but they are Little Things That Matter, things that warm the hearts of others.

And more proof that I am reeaaallllllyyyy liking spinning...... I did not knit ONE STITCH yesterday. I spent HOURS with my spinning wheel. And I am liking the yarn I spun so much that I can't decide what to do with it. I want whatever it is going to be to be Perfect.

Love,

Kim

Snow Days and Warm Cookies

Dear Mom,
We are getting beautiful snow and it was a snow day for the kids.  So.  The girls baked.  Hmmmm our favorite cookies.  We did just enjoy these over Christmas break; Santa gets treated to these on Christmas Eve (or, in our house, Christmas morning since no one can go to sleep before 2:00 a.m. because of all of the excitement-even with threats and warnings that Santa doesn't come when children are wide awake!)  Anyhooo----Chocolate Crinkles!

Chocolate Crinkles

3/4 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

6 oz. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

In a large bowl, mix together the melted butter, cocoa powder and sugar.  Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract.  In a medium-size bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture.  Stir in the chocolate chips.  Refrigerate the dough for approx. 2 hours (or--do what we did today--mix the dough, stick in the fridge; put all of your snowpants and coats and hats and gloves and scarves on; pull out the sleds.  Sled and play outside.  Come back in, take everything off. Drink hot chocolate and THEN the dough will be chilled!!)  Heat the oven to 350.  Form the dough into 1" balls and roll them in the confectioners' sugar.  Bake the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet for 10 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.  Try not to eat them all while they are still warm!!!

Enjoy your snow day, too!!!

Love,

Wendy

Sock #1

Dear Mom,

So far so good.

Love,

Kim

Sunday's spinning

Dear Mom,
Here we have Elle modeling the results of Sunday afternoon's Open Spin at Tabby Tree Weaver.

This is about 130 yards of hand painted Merino from Yarnhollow, plied with a charcoal Merino wool from Hello Yarn. I still have more of each roving to spin and ply, so I may actually end up with enough yardage to make more than a hat- possibly a cowl and some fingerless mitts. Like this and these.

I haven't choked my vacuum cleaner yet, but I have emptied the canister a few times in my quest to get Back to Normal now that the kids are back in school. I didn't even mind the 6 o'clock alarm. And while I did not flit through the house singing to woodland animals and harmonizing with a blue bird perched on my shoulder, I sure felt like I could, such was the feeling of having the house to myself. Even if it is spent cleaning.

Love,

Kim

The last and the first

Dear Mom,

This is the last project started and finished in 2009, another baby gift.

Girls Cotton Bamboo Dress and North Porch Hat, Jr

And this is the first knitting project, started and completed in 2010.

North Porch Hat

It is also my first knitting project using my own handspun yarn. It also demonstrates my lack of handspinning consistency, but I will defend some of those "inconsistencies" by stating that the entire project (except for the direct sheep care and shearing parts) was done by my hands. I washed and hand-carded the fleece and spun enough to knit the hat.

I don't generally make New Year's resolutions, but this year I am using the the New Year as an opportunity to get a grip on the yarn I have stashed away. Specifically, my sock yarn. It is just too easy to buy sock yarn. So, with that effort in mind, and after talking it over with GinaWhoCanParallelPark, I will state here, for the public record, that I will ( maybe, I hope) make One Sock per Week this year. Read that again. That is NOT one PAIR of socks. That says ONE SOCK. By year's end I should have 26 pairs of socks. I haven't taken sock yarn inventory, but I am pretty sure I have the stash to support my goal. Since I started a sock on New Year's Eve, I will make Wednesday my weekly sock deadline.



Love,
Kim

New Year's Resolutions

Dear Mom,
Happy New Year!  January 1 is always a time for reflection, rest, resolutions.
I'm not resolving to lose weight; I eat healthy and exercise daily.  I'm not resolving to save more money; we are extremely frugal (read:  cheap); I'm also not resolving to find the love of my life this year; I already have one of those, thank you very much.
My resolutions are more of the reflection-type.  I would like to actually knit with the yarn I have in my home already.  Oh the sweaters, socks and mittens that are just waiting to be made!  I would like to actually sew with the fabric I already have!  Oh the Amy Butler skirts, blouses and purses that are just waiting to be sewn!  I would like to actually paint the dining room with the paint I bought in August when I foolishly thought that since swim team was over, I'd have time to paint!  Same with the bedroom.  I would like to actually read those books that are waiting by my bedside.  I would like to be a bit more organized and try to control the clutter (read:  junk!) that comes into the house.
I have also decided to make a special cookie every week.  I love to bake.  I bake daily.  I bake with the kids and I bake for therapy.  I usually share my baked goodies with friends and neighbors.  I am going to share with you a different cookie that we have baked each week.  Starting today, on the day of all things new, this week's cookie is a white chocolate chip craisin cookie.  Serve them on your favorite polish pottery plate and eat them warm.  They go especially well with Monopoly.

White Chocolate Chip Craisin Cookies

3 c flour

1 tsp soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 c unsalted butter

1 c brown sugar

3/4 c sugar

2 eggs          

1 Tbls vanilla

1c crasins

1 1/2 c white chocolate chips

1 c chopped nuts (I use whatever kind of nut we have in the pantry!)

Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Slowly add the flour mixtures to the cream mixture. Stir until almost incorporated. Add the crasins, white chocolate, and nuts. Mix until everything is just together.

I rolled into heaping spoonfuls and bake at 350F for 11 minutes.

May your new year be filled with much happiness, love, laughter and cookies!

Love,

Wendy

Preemptive Strike

Dear Mom,

In an effort to thwart the grey gloomy winter feeling that I feel encroaching upon me, I spent a meager $1.49 on a pure pick-me-up, guaranteed to beat the winter blahs.

A Delft Blue Hyacinth bulb. Pre-chilled and ready to go. Plopped into a bulb vase with water to entice its roots to grow and then set upon the kitchen windowsill.

For 25 cents each, I bought 2 more bulbs that were not pre-chilled. They are now taking a 6 week nap in a brown paper sack in the back of the fridge. My plan is that they will be ready to wake up about the time this bulb has worn itself out. The colors of the 25 cent bulbs are a mystery- definitely hyacinths, but separated and rearranged when an unsupervised child played with the hyacinth bulbs at the garden shop last fall.

With all the grey days our winters usually bring, I will have a hopeful little reminder of Spring to pull me through.

Love,
Kim

Proof that you are never too old to get a doll for Christmas

Dear Mom,
I bet you thought you were done giving me dolls for Christmas. This one doesn't have a head. Or arms. Or legs. She doesn't talk or eat or wet. But I can dress her up and that is exactly why I asked for her. She is my resident fashion model, and she will make it easier for me to photograph my knitting designs.
Because she is my exclusive model, I have named her Elle. Much to the dismay of the rest of my family, who needed tv's or batteries to play with their gifts, I was able to play with my new toy right away! I took a few photos of her modeling the knitted skirt and scarf I gave to you. It was a complete shift in reality- the Mom playing while the rest of the family waited, but I wanted to take a good photo of the gift I gave to you.

This is the Simple Yet Effective Shawl and the skirt is my design, and I am still trying to think of a name for it. Any ideas?

Today Elle had her first official photo shoot, with wardrobe changes. She was most cooperative.
Here are some of the pictures....

"Merry Poppins"

Lace Duster

With my Christmas knitting, baking, wrapping and cleaning behind me, I was able to finish my sister-in-law's socks,

Generic sock pattern, Claudia's Handpainted Yarn "Teal Party"

and start and finish a baby gift.

This is Elizabeth Zimmermann's February Baby Sweater from her book Knitter's Almanac, and my North Porch Hat, Jr. pattern. The yarn for both is Knitterly Things Vesper Sock yarn. The sweater uses her semi-solid "Magenta" and the hat used leftover "In The Wildwood" from another project. The photo makes the stripes look more red, but they are magenta like the sweater. I covered the buttons with the same shade of green, using gingham fabric to coordinate the set.

I have one more baby gift to complete and then I hope to cast on something for me..... although the Young Lady has been raiding my supply of hand knit socks and I should probably knit a few pairs of socks to keep us both warm.
And with snow on the ground and BRRRRR it is cold outside, we need all the warm we can get our toes into.
Love,
Kim

Santa's Little Helper

Dear Mom,
Benny holds down the wrapping paper for me while I cut...

and he guards the packages to be sure there is no peeking before Christmas morning!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Cranberry Cordial

Dear Mom,
The cranberry cordial takes about 6 weeks to work its magic...but it is well worth the wait, don't you think?! I have been savoring it drizzled over a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a spoonful of those special cranberries and some mini chocolate chips sprinkled on top.  Mmmmmmmm......

Cranberry Cordial

2 lbs (8 cups) fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped

6 cups sugar

1 liter light rum

In a gallon jar, combine cranberries, sugar and rum.  Close tightly and shake gently to blend.  Store in a cool, dark place for 4-6 weeks, shaking the jar gently every day.  Strain to remove the berries.  Strain the cordial several times through cheesecloth to remove the seeds.  Pour into decorative bottles and seal with corks. 

I would suggest using a food processor to chop the cranberries, and be sure to use a jar with a wide mouth.  The "bottling" process can be quite messy, so be sure to munch on the cranberries while straining the seeds, as it seems to make the experience a whole lot more fun!!  The cranberries keep well in the refrigerator. 

While the cranberry cordial is good over ice cream, I still prefer it as it is intended...

Cheers!!

Merry Christmas!

Love, Bonnie Jo

How things are.

Dear Mom,

Love,
Kim

Baking is now checked off the list.

Dear Mom,
During yesterday's baking frenzy, in which I tried a few new recipes, and after talking with you, have come to the conclusion  that: ThereIsNothingLikeAGoodOldFashionedSugarCookie and WhyDoWeKeepTrying?, Bonnie delivered her Cranberry Cordial. OR, as I will be calling it, Mommy's Little Christmas Helper.
Bonnie also kindly shared a jar of the intoxicated cranberries that have been steeping in alcohol for months until the cranberry cordial was Just Right.
Remember that scene in Mary Poppins when she gives the kids the spoonful of medicine and each spoonful is a different color and flavor, and then when Mary takes hers she just glows and says, "RUM PUNCH"? Well that is how Bonnie Jo's Cranberry Cordial makes you feel. Like you should trill your R's and say "CRRRRRANBERRRRRRY CORRRRRRDIAL" just because it is that good.
Having been raised Not to be Wasteful and having been told by a reliable source (Bonnie Jo), these cranberry bits will be excellent on vanilla ice cream with a few chocolate chips and a bit of the cordial, I'll be making a trip to the grocery store for some ice cream later today. I will say that the cranberries are good all by themselves, but have nothing on the actual cranberry cordial, which I will NOT be sharing.

I'll leave it to Bonnie Jo to share the recipe. I understand that the process of chopping a billion cranberries was....colorful. But I've also heard Bonnie Jo talking about how to improve the process, which makes me think that she will make some more next year. hint hint


So yesterday, I tried a recipe for Sweet Spiced Almonds, which are pretty good, and a fudge that is rich but broke into eleventy-two pieces when I tried cutting it into squares. Is there a secret to cutting fudge and keeping it intact? I managed to get enough good squares to make a decent gift, but there are alot of fudge shards in a plastic container in my kitchen now.
I also made Laura's Eggnog Pound Cake, which is easy, delicious and I will be making again. In fact, I am adding it to my very limited Holiday Baking Recipe Arsenal. Laura tells me she got the recipe from a Southern Living magazine, but I don't know which one.
Here is the recipe:

Eggnog Pound Cake

1 (16 oz) package pound cake mix ( you just gotta love a recipe that starts with a mix)

1 1/4 cups eggnog

2 large eggs

1/2 t. grated nutmeg

1/2 t. vanilla extract

 Beat all ingredients with an electric mixer at low speed until blended. Increase speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes. Pour into a lightly greased 9X5 loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour to 1 hour and 5 minutes, or until a long wooden pick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and allow loaf to cool completely.

This does taste better when completely cooled. I made mine in mini loaf pans for the neighbors and they cooked about 40 minutes, but you will want to start checking them at 30 minutes if  you do it this way. I over-filled my pans and the cake mix glopped over the pans onto the bottom of the oven during baking time.Next time I will use 4 mini pans instead of 3. Less dough in the pan should equal less cooking time, so that is why you should start checking at 30 minutes. Or just make it easy on yourself and make a big loaf and follow the recipe. This tastes so good you will want the big loaf anyway!

Love,

Kim

Checking things off my list (even the ones that were never on the list)

Dear Mom,

DebbieWhoLivesinaPrettyFarmhouse gave me some roving she had stashed to spin. Here is some evidence that my spinning skills, while still not nearly perfect, are improving. Doesn't hurt that the roving itself was beautiful! The hand dyed roving came from Inish Knits. The results remind me of Peppermint Ice Cream.

In a flurry of activity yesterday , I was able to finish the wrapping and hiding and clean up after myself. I know I inherited my love of vacuuming from you, and yesterday was a stellar one for the vacuum cleaner.

"Simple yet effective shawl"

HoneySpun Yarn from Inish Knits

I finished a knitting project and was able to return to the socks I started for my Soul-Sister-in-law back in October. I was beginning to feel guilty about how long it is taking me to finish and send them to her.

Next on the list- Baking. I have several new recipes to try out, including a recipe for Eggnog Pound Cake which I begged from one of my long time, dearest friends after receiving the baked goods she sent this past week. The cookies, candies and pound cake disappeared within 24 hours of their arrival. Laura is a good cook. If I had known ahead of time how good that pound cake was I would have hidden it from the rest of my family.

I'll share the recipes and my successes here next time.

Love,

Kim

This is not on the list

Dear Mom,

Do you ever find yourself doing the last thing that you should be doing? Especially when the "To Do" list is reaaaaaallllllllyyyyy loooooooooooong?

I do.

Love,

Kim

It's Beginning to Look alot Like Christmas

Dear Mom,

I found the bagels in the veggie crisper this morning.

And believe me when I tell you that while I was searching for them, I wondered how and when the Young Man ate half a bag of bagels without my noticing.

I don't want to tell you how long I spent looking for them. Or how many other weird places I searched. I only found them after I gave up.

I know that I did it, because no one else in this house opens the veggie drawer in the fridge.

Which now that I say that, I am thinking that might just be the perfect hiding place..... along with the dirty clothes hamper. No one looks there either.

On a more positive note, a knitting project came off the needles last night. Looks like you will be getting something more than a promissory note for Christmas after all!!

Love,
Kim

Triage

Dear Mom,

With the countdown to Christmas approaching single digits, an excited Young Lady reminding me of the countdown, and less than a handful of school days available to me, I find myself in the triage approach to Handling the Holidays.

My brain scrambles over the overwhelming list of What Needs to Be Done and lands on the most urgent needs:
Who will I see today and is that gift wrapped?
Only 4 more days before THEY ARE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS BREAK!- WRAP AND HIDE! ( alarm bells are sounding in my head- think some kind of nuclear submarine crisis alarm in the movies.)
Does everyone have clean underpants?
Don't clean/iron/knit that now! You can clean it/iron it/knit it after 3:00 in front of the kids.

God Help Us if someone gets sick and misses a school day. There isn't time for that!

Baking cookies for the neighbors and serious house cleaning will wait til next week, when the kids are home on break and  not too much   nothing will happen in secret. 
For now, I am dealing with PRIORITY HANDLING only, trying to keep a clear head. Home cooked dinner every night, clean clothes, and basic home keeping.....

Every time I dare to think that the shopping is done, one more item pops onto the list. I have reached the point that after today, if it hasn't been purchased, then it isn't happening. I won't give up on the knitted gifts yet. Even if I have to wrap the yarn and knitting needles with a promissory note.

I caught myself daydreaming about What I will Knit after Christmas and then realized that I have a couple of baby gifts and a promised pair of socks to finish before I can indulge in some selfish knitting. Also, (and I think I do this every year) I have begun promising myself that this year I will start my Christmas Knitting in January and have gifts stockpiled, something hand knit for everyone on the list. Yeah. RIGHT. At the same time I think about Sweaters  I   Would Like to Have.  That probably fits in with that "buy 2 gifts and  gosh!, I think I will get ________ for me" phenomenon.

I also had to snap myself out of the crazy idea that I could drive up to Tabby Tree Weaver and buy some roving to spin. NO! No, KIM! No time for the drive. No time for the spinning. Remember the bag o'wool!

By the possibly frantic nature of this post, it is clear that I could use some super glue and duct tape to keep it together, but I will manage. In 10 days it will all be over.

Love,
Kim

The Best is Yet to Come

Dear Mom,
I suppose it is the combination of little things-  the year winding down, receiving Christmas cards with photos of friends and their growing kids, decorating the Christmas tree with ornaments made when my kids were in preschool, and memories of Christmases past- but I have found myself pondering.

None of us likes the thought of getting old. Or looking old. Or feeling old. Who wouldn't want their 19 year old body back? But instead of fighting Mother Nature, I think it is a wiser use of our energies to be as healthy as we can, and to look and feel the best we can at every age. We have all had our turn at being teens or young 20's or Thirty-Somethings. Let the current teens and 20's and Thirty-somethings have their turn. I couldn't begin to compete with them. I won't ignore the wisdom of my years for the folly of youth. Honestly, I hope to have the opportunity to get really old, and do it well. I choose to believe The Best is Yet to Come.  And really, who would want to be in 8th grade again?

A Gentleman at a get-together we attended was relating the story of his new Sports Car. He calls his new car The Time Machine. Recently, when running an errand with his wife to the post office, in an area of town that is known for its night life, he drove past a youthful group. "Hey, I like your car!", one of them shouted.

The Gentleman stopped, rolled down his window and hollered back, "This isn't a car! It is a Time Machine. Every time I get in it I am 29 years old!" We chuckled, commenting that "those kids" probably thought he was some goofy OLD guy. And then he smiled widely and with the suggestion of pride,said, "Well, I am."

I have many cherished memories, but I also have plans for the future and interests in the here and now that keep me busy and building more cherished memories.

Getting Older has it's insults, but so did being a teenager. Getting Older is the price I have to pay to experience the Best that IS Yet to Come, and I gladly pay it. After all, I can feel young on the inside, and still act my age.

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Love,
Kim

Pioneer Dinner

Dear Mom,

I made venison stew for dinner on Wednesday night.  The Young Hunter was proud that he helped provide for us.

A slice of homemade bread and a glass of milk completed the meal. 

As my neighbor's young son would say, it was "Yummm-O"!!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Progress!

Dear Mom,

From this:

bag o'wool

To this:

small amount of washed wool, drying

And a couple of spinning classes and a new spinning wheel later.....

yarn!

Isn't it pretty?! This is about 100 yards of hand spun yarn, and only represents a very small dent in the bag o'wool. Not enough to make even a hat. YET. But I will get there!

I am finding that a little spinning is a nice break from a marathon of knitting. Still LOVE knitting best, though. Lots of knitting swirling around in my brain begging to be let loose. The nice thing about spinning (so far, until I get carried away, which is a definite possibility) is there is no urgent need for it to all be spun at once. NO deadline. Just relax and spin away and continue to add up the yardage. I am kinda excited to knit with it, though!

This is where you tell me to Settle Down, Kim. Remember the Christmas knitting?

My personal wool suppliers (GaryandCarol) have been updated on the status of the gifted bag o'wool and more has been promised.  I see myself headed down a slippery slope. Will I be brewing vats of dye in the back yard next summer?

OHHHH, THE POSSIBILITIES!

Settling Down, now.

Love,

Kim

Motivation

Dear Mom,
I have a new favorite mug for my morning tea. There isn't anything fancy or pretty about it. The sentiment on the mug is what works for me. Words to live by....

For me, these three words speak volumes: No excuses, be inspired, life is short- don't waste it, you can do it Duffy Moon. All of that.

Make it happen.

Love,

Kim

Warmth

Dear Mom,
It was a weekend of all-day fires in the fireplace, and hot cocoa.
We watched Holiday Inn- I can never watch too much of that stylish and graceful Fred Astaire.
My Hero and the Young Lady decorated the front porch with Christmas lights.
And I did some fireside knitting and spinning.

Yes, spinning.

Meet Daphne Joy.

I met Daphne Joy at Open Spin on Sunday afternoon and couldn't go home without her. Daphne is an Ashford Joy spinning wheel. She is quite compact, folds up to stay out of the way if I need her to, and she will transport easily (because I realistically admit that I will need advice and instructions from the experienced spinners at Tabby Tree Weavers). I have loads to learn, and it just seemed to make sense to learn it on my own spinning wheel. I've managed to fill up almost two spools already! I am washing  small batches of the raw fleece, and then carding and spinning it as I go along.

So, Mom, if you are handed a Christmas gift that is not....um..... er....... well......finished.....I am thinking you can probably guess what got in the way.

Love,

Kim

I Gotta Dance

Dear Mom,
I love to dance.  I dance at home while doing chores (oh, okay, I don't do chores.  I just dance!), I dance at the bus stop with the kids.  I dance while I am running.  I dance at work--my BFF Brooke and I have an entire routine going on.  I don't claim to be a great dancer.  I am probably even a klutzy dancer.  But it makes me happy when I can dance.  Gleeful!
I hurt my knee a few weeks ago and the Diva said to me, "Oh no!  You can't dance!"  Everyone knows--I gotta dance.  I wasn't able to walk or run for awhile, let alone dance.
Guess what?!?!  I could finally run today . . . . . that is cause for a celebratory dance. . . .

Mmmm Bop anyone?!?!
Love,
Wendy

Good old Garter Stitch

Dear Mom,
I managed to stay awake long enough the other night to finish my magazine project.

I am extremely pleased with the results. This design is a departure from my usual aesthetic and construction- the garment is a bit more trendy and is worked side to side. We will have to wait for the September issue of Creative Knitting magazine to see this one in print, and I am curious to see how it will be styled and photographed.

No rest for the weary, though, and Christmas is coming,which means a gift knit was cast on yesterday. I met with my usual bunch and as we had not seen each other for a few weeks, there was a tremendous amount of catching up to do. Words flew as fast as our fingers and at times the revelations required us to set our knitting down and ponder, commiserate, and provide emotional support. And laugh.

My plan was to begin a scarf with a stitch pattern. (The giftee does not read the blog, so I feel it is safe to reveal some details.) Within minutes of starting on the scarf, I could see that the conversation and stitch pattern were not compatible and decided there was nothing to do but garter stitch. In other words, I knit on every row. Nothing but knit. Knit knit knit knit knit. All good.

The knitting every stitch of every row thing should work out fine if I go into sleep knitting mode, too.

Love,
Kim

A Suspicion Confirmed

Dear Mom,
A contented evening by the fire, wool socks on my feet, knitting in my hands and a book in my ears.
And a suspicion confirmed.

Knitting does an abundance of things for me. I can be excited about what I am knitting and find that I cannot knit fast enough. It occupies me in waiting rooms and carpool lines. It is my quiet companion during television shows, and is a constructive outlet for nervous energy when I watch the Young Man's sporting events. I depend on my knitting (probably more than I know) to relax and put me in that happy place called Contentment.

There have been occasions, though, when I get a bit too relaxed and find myself starting to doze off with my knitting at hand. When I rouse myself I wonder if, while I was nodding off, did I stop knitting? Because sometimes it doesn't feel like it.

Last night, with my feet toasty warm and another 2 inches of a rather dull 5 inches of knit 2 purl 2 ribbing ahead of me, I got, let's say, really relaxed. Twice. And both times after nudging myself into a more conscious state, I looked down at my knitting and...yes, there it was. Evidence that I do in fact continue to knit in that semi-conscious Land of Nod. What I found was not knit 2 purl 2 ribbing, but several dozen purl stitches. Apparently I zoned out on a purl and just kept going. Before I had to correct a third round of errors, I took the hint and went to bed.

Where I read a few pages of my book until I fell asleep, and tonight I will have to reread the parts I don't remember reading last night. It's a wonder I get anything done.

Love,
Kim

The Dude's got a Car!

Dear Mom.

Seriously.
Dude.
The Buddy got his own car.

Let me say that again. The Young Man's best buddy has a car.
You can NOT imagine the frenzied level of excitement that the Buddy's car has generated.

Buddy arrives and gives the horn a quick tap... just to let us know he is here, you know.

As Buddy hops out of the car, and I rush out the door to capture this momentous occasion on film  er   digits  oh whatever.... he spouts off details that only matter to boys- the year, the make, the mileage..... and then he pops the HOOD.

Now, I am pretty sure that the Young Man has NO IDEA what they are looking at, but they both point at stuff and admire the engine area.
I comment on the 'looks almost brand new' condition of the car and Buddy proudly tells me the classic "Old Lady who only Drove it to Church" story. In this case, considering the cars age and low mileage, it may actually be true.

The Young Man and Buddy take a spin around the cul-de-sac and share a celebratory bag of Cheetos.

Until April, when The Buddy has had his driver's license long enough to legally drive with another minor without an adult present, the car will be a glorified play pen parked in the driveway with the two friends tucked inside.

"How long are they gonna stay out there?" asked the Young Lady.

"A long time," I told her. "Don't worry about it. It is good."

A short time later, the Young Man raced in asking for one of these relics from the past. Something that suddenly got a whole lot more cool....

Dude.

Love,
Kim