Monday, March 30, 2015

My knitting is out of control, due to a bad case of startitis

Generally I am a very controlled knitter. I have zero control when it comes to stash, but I have always had a pretty good control of what I actually have on the needles. I have been a big believer in one complicated, one simple on the needles. I don't have a UFO pile. I don't think I could live that way. I start a project, and finish it before I cast on another. It is the rule, and one of the only knitting rules that I follow closely. However, when on vacation it is OK to break rules, right? It is OK to cast on many, many projects without completing the things already on the needles. I admit, I went a little crazy. I wanted to go a lot crazy, but I am not an animal. So I only cast on a few too many things. I still felt like I had a pretty good grip on things. Then I got home, and assumed that things would return to normal. I would milk the goats, and cow. I would care for and feed the children. I would clean the house, and do the laundry. I would be a fairly monogamous knitter.
But things didn't really work out that way. The startis continued to flare, and I haven't found a cure. I want to cast on. I can usually control this urge, but not today.

And really, I don't have THAT much on the needles.
Maybe if I make a list, I will be able to stick to it. Or not. This is not a commitment.

I have to finish this belt. This belt. It may kill me.

I am knitting a king size blanket. I don't think this can rationally count against my two project rule. It seems like long term relationships shouldn't count.
I have a pair of socks. Or two. But I don't know that those should count, but I am having a hard time coming up with exactly why it shouldn't count.
I have the second Monica Shawl. It has been on hold for a long while because I lost interest. It is a lovely knit, and highly enjoyable. But it isn't a sweater or cardigan.

K, making a list makes it sounds OK, and really not that bad. Especially since the list says that socks and blankets don't count. I am going to go co Gramps in orange Remix. This list was a great idea!!

UPDATE: like a responsible knitter, I finished the belt first.  The Cardi is done, if you only count the knitting part, which fortunately I do.

And this remix is knitting up nicely.

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Home again, home again, jiggidy jig

I loved my Tennessee trip, but home feels so good. It is where I keep my favorite husband, cow, daughter, and goats. Home is truly where the heart is.

But there are Tennessee things that I really miss. 

Mostly my sister wife, who had no clue I was sneaking pictures of her frequently. I know, pretty creepy... But I miss her horribly and it helps to see her. This is her in her natural habitat, with yarn.

This is what we were sitting in the midst of, while knitting and sneaking pictures. Sheep. Absolutely adorable sheep. With only one fault. Hair. 

And as we were leaving the trees burst into bloom, almost like a final plea to stay with them, in Tennessee. 

Where there are really cool moths. 

And so many toads that it is nearly impossible to walk from the van to the house without stepping on them. (Right after this picture was taken, the toad peed)


But Tennessee may not be as cool as Nebraska. (Just kidding. Nebraska is really long and boring)
Because Nebraska has these.
It is like an awesome bidet toilet highbred. 
And it had a heated seat. How can you not love a heated toilet seat in a public restroom, where others may have or have not had their most intimate parts gently sprayed, and blown dried?

However, Wyoming was awesome. We saw thousand of deer, elk, and antelope. My thirteen year old hunter was very much in heaven. 

But home is good.
Very good. 

And we were blessed with a special surprise the day after we got home. Three perfect little chicks. And one really ugly, odd one. (Just kidding. There were only three chicks)
And she is such a good mama. She tried to eat my perfectly well behaved Lily dog, just for looking. 

Now for the important stuff. 
I have knitting to share. 

I knit (and blocked, though not before this picture) an adorable baby cardi. What a fabulously simple, genius pattern. 
Queensland Sugar Rush (which I just purchased 59 skeins of, so you may feel things get a bit tedious here on the blog for a bit, but I love it)
Knit on a size five.
Pattern is:

And I finished half of the belt cardi belt, and am trying to not be bitter that it looks much better on The Grassfed Angel
Sometimes knits chose their own destiny, instead of following my intended path. This one seems to have chosen her. Cashmere. For real. Maybe I will lose 70 pounds and it will chose me. For now though, I think the chosen recipient should be required to finish the stupid belt. And she can't have my $18 button either. So there. 

Then there is this, the Liesl. I would like to pretend to have knit this beautiful piece of art, but I did not. My sister wife did, and in a knitterly twist of fate, it chose me. I think the knitting God's were trying to even things out. Not sure where that leaves the sister wife though. She is on her own. 
I love it, and it looks amazing on me . It feels amazing. Much love. 

And that is a lot of amazing for one post.


Liesl

Thursday, March 26, 2015

On the way down the dusty old road

Yesterday we saw Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Iowa, and Nebraska. Today is Nebraska, Wyoming, and hopefully Idaho.

Alone, with four kids.

It has been surprisingly delightful.

Sunday, March 22, 2015

More Tennessee lovin'

So many things to love about Tennessee.
Sunshine

Frog legs

Craw fish and collard greens

Piles of bugs hourly

And best friends. 
Tennessee is really a wonderful place. I love pretty much everything about it. I especially love that I am here with my sister wife, and her family. 

And we are knitting. Lots, and lots of knitting. 

I finished the belt Cardi, without the belt. I am working on the belt now. 

I frogged some socks.

And I knit this beautiful Lizzy dress.


 
I knit it with Queensland Sugar Rush. It is light, and flowy. I love the way it turned out. The patterning on the skirt. (Which I mod)

The bodice, which I should block.

I absolutely love the patterning of this yarn. This is why I fell in love with this yarn . I am so pleased with how it turned out. The pattern was so well written!

Now I will work on this blasted belt. It is beautiful, but 5x5 cables in rib may not be my favorite thing. 

Friday, March 20, 2015

Tennessee knits

I threw the four youngest in the car and made the short (30 hour) drive to Tennessee. Few things in life are better and more beautiful than going to your sister wife's (with her own chickens and husband) for a week of knitting. And knitting we are.

The belt cardi that was never meant to be is done and blocking.
If you need proof that blocking is a must, just look at that dirty water. There are a million reasons to block, but that one speaks loudly. 

The other reason speaks loudly as well. It says something about a cardi that should never be. It talks of gauge problems, running out of yarn, pattern errors, and determination. This cardi really wants to die, and lay in frog land forever. But I persevere, despite knowing that it is completely wrong for my body type.  I am really hoping that blocking will be the snake oil that cures all that ails. A girl can dream. It could grow seven sizes. Knits do that you know. Of course they only do that when they are already just a bit too big. 

So we will see what this awkward little lady blooms (please bloom. A lot.) in to.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Happy second birthday, Khyri dear

 Yesterday Khyri would have been two. A perfect, bright, beautiful toddler.  Instead, we celebrated her memory, and the angel she has become. Her mommy made cupcakes.
And delivered them to all of Khyri's local friends. Khyri made it clear to her mommy that cupcakes were not optional. 

And they decorated her sleeping place with balloons and banners. It was very festive and perfect for this sweet girl. 

Then everyone got together and sent balloons up for her to catch. You could almost hear the giggles. 

You will never be forgotten, baby girl. Never.  

Friday, March 13, 2015

Apparently yesterday's post was my 100 post

Which sounds crazy awesome, if I didn't start this blog many, many years ago. Still, I probably should have celebrate somehow. Maybe at 200 ..... With cake.

Speaking of, the paleo lifestyle is going well. Still hanging in there. Thought I would throw that out there since I suck at remembering to take pictures. I have modified and cut out most carbs though. I just plan to do that while I work at getting my bulk back under control, and getting healthy. Then I will add in natural carbs. Not sugars, breads etc. The paleo foods. I feel good. I feel happy. Really happy. At peace. A clean diet makes all the difference.

And to liven things up:
That is my thigh. It is the most you will ever see of my thigh. And that is my blood. I make no guarantees that that is the most you will see of that though. I am not only accident prone, but a bleeder. 

So the story of the blood..... 
This is my precious kitten, who I adore. His name is Blue Zender. He puts me to bed each evening, and then he spend about an hour playing with the amazing man I married. The favorite toy is the string that is attached to the Roku remote. He will chase it for hours. It is very cute. Except today. 
I was about to step into the shower when my precious son asked me to start a show for him. So I walked into my room, naked. I picked up the remote. That is when all heck broke lose, and the bleeding started. My sweet kitten scaled my naked body, and at the sound of my screams, slid all the way back to the floor. 
I blame the amazing man that I married. I know my adorable kitten isn't to blame at all. 
Plus, my toothbrush is missing. Which has nothing to do with anything, but I thought I should put it out there. 

I think today I will knit. Last night I finished the sleeves of the cardi. Then I found that the body is much too short, unless the belt is meant to go straight across the breast. I think it is not. I am confident that this resulted from my choice to leave gauge swatching behind. So today I will knit the body longer, and probably run out of yarn. It's OK, I can always order more. It will be good to let the yarn gods mock me, as they dye up something that doesn't even sort of match. This is one of those times that a knitter knows she is defeated. Knows there is no chance for this garment, so she knits faster in the hope of outrunning the bad. It doesn't ever work, but that doesn't mean I won't try. 

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Knowing when to say goodbye

Sometimes in life good-bye has to come. In the life of a knitter, and a knitted object that can be an extra hard thing. We can always darn, pick stitches back up, re-knit damaged portions. And we always know that if all else fails, "that will block right out." But sometimes, just sometimes, there is nothing that can be done. Conditions beyond our control rule sometimes. Sometime you just can't save them, try as you may.
Sometimes it is just time to say good bye. That being said, I don't yet think it is time for this washcloth. I think it has a couple of good months left. Someday soon though, it will be time to say goodbye.

And move on to better things, like new moth proof storage for yarn. I got 48 skeins in one jar. I was pretty sure that it was the most accomplished thing in the world, until my oldest, the grass fed angel, said "well, they were small skeins."

And onto other excitong things like new Frog Tree Pediboo that came in. 3,000 yards of Frog Tree Pediboo. Mmmm. 3,000 yards of amazeballs. 

And new things like Tunisian Crochet, with Noro. Which is beautiful. And not mine. It was made by the owner of our LYS, Twisting Fibers. She is amazing. 


And on the farm
Cuteness is growing. This beef is growing way too cute. 

And the new chicks are turning out stunningly.

And the kids are growing.

And becoming extremely naughty. This isn't his mother. And he isn't nursed. He is bottle raised. In typical man style, he will latch on to anything that will hold still long enough. 

My amazing husband has been making cheese like crazy. It is such a time consuming, precise science. This is chipotle cheddar. I love a strong, spicy cheese.  

He built a cheese cave in the basement. Because he is a man . It is like watching a mother with her newborn. So attentive. Only use the best. Watch it constantly. Adjusting even when the newborn cheese was perfectly comfortably sleeping. 

It really is pretty cute. I am married to one very sexy man. 

Friday, March 6, 2015

Because yarn rules my world

The shopping was amazing! Amazing! My husband and I drove to the yarn store, and that Good man curled up on the couch and had a nap while I sat in the yarn store getting high on yarn fumes. It really was a magical day.  I spend hours just touching, smelling, and deciding. In the end I came home with this:
Llama Lace for a new Jen. I love this yarn. It is my very favorite. 

Cotton for... Something. Maybe a baby blanket?

Sugar cane. 

More sugar cane.

And some more sugar cane.

And then I got some sugar cane.

But then I was enticed by... Some sugar cane.

And since I already had a little sugar cane, I decided I should get some more sugar cane. In purple. 

This is self striping, and I have always loved it. I have some in the stash. Which I have never used. But I could, and that is what counts. 
And it was on sale. For $3.00. I am pretty sure I just answered many a knitters question as to why so much sugar cane. 
For those non knitters, if yarn is on sale it must be purchased. It is a disease. Even if it is ugly yarn even our grandmother won't touch, put a 50% tag on it and it will fly off the shelf. 

Then I got these. I am a pretty experienced knitter, and somehow I didn't know these existed until I saw a friend, who is a fairly new knitter, using them. Where have they been all my life?

Oh.. And I may have ordered this. A lot of this. Maybe even 15 hanks of this. But it is Frog Tree (Pediboo worsted for those yarnies reading) so it was for a good cause. I have so much respect for frog tree, which is a not for profit yarn company.  So much respect. Their mission statement is:

 Frog Tree Yarn Mission Statement
As a result of our experience living and working at the grassroots level in Peru, Bolivia, Mexico and the USA for many years, we founded T & C Imports and Frog Tree® Yarns.
Frog Tree Yarns is a not-for-profit company that helps talented artisans/workers receive well-deserved, reasonable compensation for their efforts and to promote fair trade. Their funds are used to support educational and environmental projects, charitable organizations and volunteer groups

Please consider supporting them, because who has more genius than those that use yarn to help the world?

The Frog Tree will grow up to be:

The cables!! Do you see the cables? And the cables on the arm?  

After the shopping came unexpected gifts. 
My amazing hubby got me flowers. He is so very good at remembering to do this. Twenty years into our marriage , and he still remembers this little touch of love at least once a month.

Then my oldest child got me this. Obviously she knows me well. Very well. She went to Blazing Needles in Salt Lake. 

And after getting all the new yarn, I decided to start working on organizing some of the stash. I allowed the middle boy to enjoy the yarn fumes with me. He is a knitter himself. I am so proud.