Wanna know what a hug looks like?

Like this.

This is me wrapped

in my


wool hug.

When I got home from work today, there was a package from Rosered waiting for me. I knew she was sending me some connectors for my Options but this was a good sized box. I opened it and there were three presents wrapped in red paper with (what else?) red roses.


When I opened the first one, there was this beautiful shawl. It's all shades of purples and dark tones. It's gorgeous. And it will be warm and wonderful when the weather gets cold again. I wrapped it around myself to feel the love and had Kate take a photo for me. There was also a package of chocolate . It's over 93 degrees (33.8) here and the chocolate had to go into the freezer for a bit. And she sent the connectors to make my knitpicks circulars one helluva big cable.


There was a card that was signed by Jane, Denise, Georgie, Bells, Shelley,Kylie and Olivia. I will confess. It made me cry. The thoughtfulness and love were so overwhelming, I had no words. Peter Kevin said, "you guys are amazing. You knitting women. You're so good to each other."

He doesn't know the half of it.

Thank you. You made my day. You make my life warmer and more colorful. And the love and good wishes that were contained in the box? They are returned a thousand-fold.

I was going to show you the buttons Elanor chose for her sweater but I'll save that for another day. Today, it's all about the love.

You never know when you join a KAL what's going to come of it. Of course, you hope there is a FO at the end but other than that, you just never know. Last year I took part in the Tour de France KAL as a Team Leader. This means that I kept track of what the members of my team were doing and whether they were making progress.

One of the perks of this was getting to know some new knitters through their blogs. One of these was Kelli of hobbywhore. She and I are in a similar field and she lives in New Jersey like me. She is also a talented woman who makes lovely knitted items and beautiful, colorful quilts. A few weeks ago she had a contest on her blog where she asked if anyone could tell where she was by a small photographic clue: a bowl of strawberries and cream. For some reason, it came to me that she was at Wimbledon (I remember reading somewhere that berries and cream was THE thing to eat while one watches tennis greats play). I was right and won a prize. There's a lovely skein of sock yarn called Doves Cry from a store called Knit London. It's a bamboo/merino mix and the color goes from a yellow/green to a grey/blue. And two English versions of Tetley tea. It's a lovely prize. But the best part is that I get to see all the imaginative things Kelli comes up with. Thank you, Kelli!

And, Look! I finally conquered the lace stitch for El's sweater. I've done several repeats and it moves along fairly quickly. She has slipped it on (the beauty of top down construction) and likes it. I think I may even get it done in time for her birthday in September. Although, now that I've said that, all kinds of roadblocks will probably spring up. I really, really like this sweater and will definitely make one for me. I was thinking of making it in red but I also think I might like one in pink. I don't have a pink sweater and I'd like one I've made myself. And I'd use this yarn again. I don't know how well it'll wear, but it knits like a dream and just feels nice.

Peter Kevin and I went to the movies and saw District 9. I hadn't heard anything about it and all I could find out about it was that it was a scifi and that Peter Jackson was involved. We decided to give it a try. All we could say when we came out was "Wow". Pk said "that was good on so many levels!". It was an intense movie (very gory so if blood bothers you, you might want to skip this one, I really think it should be rated NC-17 or maybe an X for violence). But, wow. It is a good movie.

We picked up Elanor and then went to get some dinner. Now, we are enjoying a quiet Friday night. Pk is looking for audio books that will download onto his iphone. He as gotten hooked on them and it's good that the online library has finally decided to play nice with apple products. I have cleaning and laundry and shopping to do tomorrow before we meet our friends for dinner. I'm looking forward to shrimp fajitas (I know they're not spicy and they are really tasty). Then possibly a trip to the flea market with Pk on Sunday. The weather is supposed to be sunny and warm.

Have a good weekend!

I have been working on the sweater and have gotten the sleeves put onto the waste yarn and finished another repeat of the lace pattern. It really is an easy 4 row repeat and easy to memorize (despite my carping). I keep a silent 7 count in my head as I move along and that seems to be working. I think by the end of the sweater, I'll be tired of counting to 7! I am loving the Options. I can't seem to get the end screwed on really tight. It comes unscrewed no matter how tightly I screw them on. Is there a trick that I'm not getting? Maybe it's something in the way I knit. They are nice and smooth and make the knitting easy.

This shows the color of the yarn well. I like it and it seems to like me. I know this because the color likes to hang onto my fingers after I put it away. Not bad, just a slight bluish tint. Peter Kevin says it makes me look cyanotic. Very attractive.

Hobbes likes the yarn, too. Before I could get any of it out of the bag, he was making himself at home. Each time I moved it, he came and laid on top of it.

We have had a break in the heat and humidity. It's still really humid but the temps have gone down almost 15 degrees. It makes it easier to hold the sweater on my lap. Everyone told me it moves along easily once you hit the lace part so hopefully, Elanor will have a sweater to wear when the weather gets cooler. Kate has already chosen her sweater. She wants Arwen. It's a pattern I really like. Her only request is that it have a zipper or some other closure. I told her we could probably put a zipper in it with very little trouble. So it looks like I'll be busy with sweaters for a while. I need to make myself an everyday cardigan for the cold weather. I have a wonderful wool sweater that my brother bought for me in Ireland and I love it. I've loved it almost to death at this point. I need something I can replace it with. Maybe something not quite so scratchy. I'll start scouting for an all purpose pattern (although I have a hoodie pattern with a kangaroo pocket that I really like and would be perfect as an everyday sweater).

Well, the tough part of the work week is over and now it's mostly paperwork. We are planning to go out to a local Mexican restaurant with some friends on Saturday. The place is small and painted bright yellow and orange. The food is authentic and delicious. When they first opened, the menus were printed in Spanish and I couldn't read anything. I always ordered quesadillas with pulled pork because I knew what they were. I am not that adventurous and hate spicy food (yea, I know, so why are we eating Mexican?). Turns out this place is not TexMex but more plain Mexican and they have some really good food and it's not all spicy. I'll admit I don't like the cactus soup (very strange texture) and the tortilla soup was a little spicy for me but really tasty. I like the chips but stay away from the salsa. Pk is in heaven since he likes spicy food.

I hope you are all having a good week and have something to look forward to for the weekend.

Leave it to teabird to do the research and find out that "garter stitch" was used as the tops of stockings (the garter part) because of it's stretchiness and "stockinette" was used down the leg. In England, it's still called stocking stitch. Thanks, teabird. Inquiring minds are grateful.

I was wondering if there is such a thing as August Brain Melt? I know it's winter down in the southern hemisphere so maybe you all could have August Brain Mush? I can only speak for myself but I am having a difficult time focusing and counting. I figure I can blame it on the fact that summer finally decided to pay us a visit and it's been very hot and humid and my body is using all of its energy to stay cool. That leaves very little to pay attention to counting to large numbers like, say, 7.

As many of you know, the Feb Lady Sweater is mostly garter stitch (which ate up a ton of yarn but looks really nice) and something called a gull wing stitch. This stitch is a count of 7. Yes, 7. The number after 6 and right before 8. A common number and for the moment, one that eludes me. I had two too many stitches after I did my YO increase row so I had to k2tog in an unobtrusive way (which I was totally ok with) and then did the first row of the lace pattern. I purled across the back row and then totally messed up the next row. Somewhere, my August Brain kept losing count. Finally, I just ripped out to the end of the garter stitch and will start again tonight. Maybe. If it's not too hot and my brain isn't feeling too overwhelmed by having to count all the way to 7. Thank goodness it's not a 10 stitch repeat. I shudder at the thought.

Pk and I have discovered that Netflix has the original Star Trek episodes for instant download and have been enjoying watching the crew of the Enterprise go through their adventures. The special effects are cheesy (kinda of like watching old Dr. Who or the BBC version of The Hitchhiker's Guide) but the themes are timeless. So far, I've learned that man has two natures and needs both of them to exist, androids are not as good as humans because they can't love (and love is what it's all about), people weren't meant to have unlimited powers and William Shatner looked good without a shirt when he was young. Now, I think probably, not so much, but when he was young, he was ripped. Not a terribly good actor, but a pretty one.

Happy Tuesday, all. Pk calls it "the second Monday of the week" but I'm determined not to live just for the weekend and to try to find something to enjoy every day. Some days it's damned difficult but I'm going to try.

My Knitpicks Options needles arrived (yay!!)along with the wool for Elanor's Feb Lady Sweater. I chose Knitpicks Swish worsted (photo stolen from their web site. I cannot get the color to come out on my camera) and El chose the color. It's called Deep Ocean. It's soft. It feels nice to knit with and it's superwash. That was very important in a sweater for Elanor. She is a lovely young woman but handwashing is asking a bit much. She is not a knitter/spinner/crocheter or any other kind of fiber artist. She is a beader and has made me some lovely beaded stitch markers. I was surprised you can't connect the cables of the Options to one another like you can with the Denise needles. Pk is now urging me to buy the cables that don't come with the set. I don't really need them right now but eventually I'll buy one of the longer ones.

I am knitting away on the yoke of the sweater. I love it. I did the kfb increases and I like the way they look in the garter stitch. El wanted to know why I bought so much yarn. I've used up an entire skein and haven't done but 3 inches of knitting. She was amazed. I was trying to explain how garter stitch eats up the yarn and she wanted to know why it's called "garter stitch". I can't find any reason. Does anyone know?

I have ambitious plans for tomorrow but if they don't happen, I'm ok with that too. I'd like to wash some curtains and windows and give the house a good cleaning as the weather is supposed to be cooler (ok, a little cooler). Pk is going to a galoot fest in Maryland (It's a pot luck. How strange it seems that a group of men would have a pot luck. Is that a sexist thought? We made chicken/chorizo empanadas and had some for dinner. They are delicious and were easy) so the house will be empty except for me and El. I say 'plans' because it all depends on how I feel when I get up. I may just dust and vaccuum and then spin and/or knit all weekend. I'm having an incredibly terrible period this month. Most months it's not too bad (and I never miss one and I'm 51 years old). This month it seems like my body is making up for all of the light months. I'm tired and headachy and very crampy and slightly nauseaus. And the flow is very heavy. TMI? Sorry. I keep waiting for a month to come and go without a visit from 'my friend' but it doesn't happen. My gyn says that it's good and I should be glad. Hormones keep you young. (but hormones keep you having a period!)

div>

Tonight, I'm listening to Persuasion by Ms. Austen and enjoying it very much. I like being kept company by Anne Eliot. I hope you all are in as good company as well.

Yesterday my baby girl turned 20. This means there are no more teenagers in my family (at least no more chronological teen agers, nothing to do with behavior). Kathryn Margaret, my Katiebaby, is now a young adult. In another year she'll be a full adult.

Kate is the scrappiest of my girls. Since she was the youngest, she had to fight to be heard. Her little voice would start a story and someone would interrupt her and then she would have to start again and someone else would interrupt her and soon we were asking "is there a point to this story, Kate?".

She struggled to read the credits on the television when her reading skills were new and her sisters would read them for her. This frustrated her so they did it more. Their actions prodded her to learn to read faster. She consumes books like food and water now.

Kate's imagination is boundless. She is a D&D player (I'm so proud) and is a dungeon master for her group. She has a gift for words and is a good writer. As punishments when she was growing up, Pk would make her write an essay on why something was wrong (or right) and she would give him essays that made me laugh for their cleverness.

She can paint and draw and knit and sew. And she is learning to cook. If I had to choose people to be stranded on a desert isle with, Kate would be definitely on that list. She is mischevious, fun and delightful to talk to. She also reads such a variety of books that she usually has some arcane facts to throw into the conversation that make you scratch your head and say "huh". She's alot like her father that way. They share a love of airplanes and for Father's Day, she took him to the Air and Space Museum's hanger in Maryland to look at old planes.

Kate chafed at being the youngest most of her life. One time, she came to me in tears and said, "Mom, they're lying to me again. Elanor and Emily said I would always be the youngest". I almost didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. She was probably all of 4 or 5 at the time. So, I told her that they were right. BUT, she must be the best of the lot since we stopped after her. We figured we couldn't do any better so we stopped trying. Kate must be just about perfect, unlike her sisters. This made her grin with glee and she ran off to share that information with her sisters.

She is fearless, feisty, loving, compassionate, clever, funny, cute, and, well how long do you have? I could go on and on.

Kate, you are the light of my life and such a joy to be around. I only wish you good things. You have brought such joy into my life. I can't imagine what life would have been like if we hadn't held out for 'just about perfect'.

Happiest of Happy Birthdays!

Good Saturday evening! We have had some real summer weather here for the past few days. It has been so hot and humid that it was hard to breathe. On Wednesday, I went bowling with the Social Rehab group and we had to walk only 4 blocks back to the center from the subway. I got into the building but our a/c was not keeping up with the heat and it wasn't enough to cool me off. I sat in the warm building all the rest of the afternoon and then came home and was sick. My body doesn't deal well with the heat. I drank copious amounts of water and took a cool shower and laid on the bed for about an hour and that seemed to help. But, it was nasty for a while.



When you have days like that the chance for thunderstorms is great. And last night, we had a doozy. Pk and I decided to go out to buy some needed household goods (underwear and sheets) so we went to a local department store on the way home from work. I just made it into the car before the rain started. But, you know how sometimes it rains just for a minute and then it stops and then the skies open and it's like an ocean falling from the clouds? Well, that's what happened. We got to the store and it wasn't raining so we made it inside dry. But we were looking for sheets and someone said, "oh my god, look at that" and you couldn't see the cars in the parking lot through the rain. It was blowing straight at the glass doors. It was amazing.



The only thing to do was keep shopping. So I found some bras that I can wear under t shirts (I hate bras with seams across the cups and don't understand why designers think that is a cool design feature but a lot of them obviously do because they were everywhere) and some panties and Pk found some undershirts and we went downstairs to find some new sheets. I don't know about the rest of the world, but department stores here in the US sell sheets and pillow cases in plastic bags with zippers. I can't tell if we're supposed to put our sheets back into the bags when we wash them? We don't. Usually, I threw this excessive packaging away. This time, however, I happened to see a new possibility for them. Ta da! The pillow case bags are the perfect size to hold a sock or other small project. The zipper is handy and the plastic is slightly thicker than ziplock bags. The sheet sizes will hold a lace project or part of a sweater for portability purposes. I kept all of them and felt better for not throwing them away.



We also lucked out because it was the weekend of the American Assoc of University Women's used book sale. The assoc has a used book sale each summer to raise money for scholarships. Pk and I browsed the tables while we waited for the rain to let up. (Yea, I know. A real hardship. We persevered. ) I found two old books of knitting. Not old enough to be really interesting. Just old enough to have hoods with pom pom ties and knitted pantsuits. Really attractive stuff. Actually, I bought two Jeffrey Deaver books. I love his Lincoln Rhyme stories. And I know El will read them and then we'll pass them on to someone else. Pk found some computer and wood working books.



Em came down for dinner on Thursday and we exchanged little gifts. Emily gave me some hand spun yarn that she made from batts she got through the club we signed her up for as a birthday gift. It's really pretty. It's the first time anyone has given me handspun yarn. The colors are flowery, pink with some green mixed in there. There's not a lot of it but I'll find something to make out of it for myself. (and yes, those are my pasty white legs in the photo. I have done an admirable job of not getting a tan this summer. On purpose.) Julie sent me some purple trainwreck roving (which I spun and am in the process of knitting into socks for Kate) and some sock yarn called Zap. I finally finished the socks and gave them to Em. I was supposed to give Em the yarn but she beseeched me to just make the socks for her because "you're so much faster than I am". The socks are incredibly difficult to photograph and get the colors to come out. The yellow is very bright and the blue is turquoise. The lightning bolts show up pretty well in a plain sock. Of course, it's a little hot to wear wool right now but in 2 months or so it won't be.




I am making Elanor a Feb Lady Sweater. I think the style will look good on her. She likes feminine but not frilly and that will fit the bill nicely. Of course she chose blue yarn (my girls love blue. I'm pretty sure Kate's sweater will be green, though. ) which we ordered yesterday and I finally ordered myself a set of Knitpick options. Pk kept telling me to order it and I kept putting it off but if I'm going to make a couple more sweaters, I need them. He wanted me to explore the Addi convertible needles but when I saw the price, I declined. I haven't heard anything about them and don't want to pay almost 200 dollars for a set of needles. Maybe when we win the lottery.



That's about all. I just took a shower to wash all the sticky off my body and am now comfortably installed on my bed with a new Vogue magazine. It's the Age issue and has Christy Turlington on the cover. She looks beautiful for 40. I'm going to drink my iced decaf and move as little as possible. Tomorrow will be a lazy day. I did the laundry and shopping today and have nothing emergent to do so I'll sit still and try not to sweat. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday. Have a good rest of the weekend!