To Play or Not To Play

It seems like I have too many things to do!! Most of all...I play and I love playing with...My Little Princess. I had a difficult time convincing her to take off the dress for about 5 days!! Even then, it was only to put on Princess Jammies...Oh to be a child again.




















I have been doing some knitting as well! Currently, I am working on my Harbour Lights Shawl













I am also working on Pearled Romance...Charlotte Bronte...
Lady Jane...and looking ahead to a Spring Shawl and Mystic Star.






I also finally started my February Lady Sweater that I have been dying to knit for about 6 months!!

I'm just glad I'm not the President and have time to play with Rebekah and knit!!

(these thoughts and pictures uploaded while watching the Presidential Inauguration today.)

Whew!! It's a brand new year...

Happy Holidays!!

I made some resolutions yesterday. I want to lose weight (doesn't everyone?) I need to spend more time in the scriptures (doesn't everyone), and I need to finish UFO's this year. I have a challenge going with another knitter to knit the most yardage this year.

I cannot believe that the Holidays are over. We were busier than it seemed. Jim finished up his first Semester of school with flying colors except for one class. We had a great Christmas and now are enjoying the New Year today. We watched the Spartans lose the Capital One Bowl game and the Red Wings win the Winter Classic Hockey game that was played at Wrigley Field.

I have been contemplating my knitting lately...I am casting on for Harbour Lights shawl by Sivia Harding. I'm using Dream in Color Baby in the colorway Beach Fog and beads from Alada Beads in Sterling Heights. I'm also working on Pearled Romance in Zephyr in colorway Cassis. I finished my Fall Shawl but don't have it blocked yet...I'm also considering some Monkey socks from some of the sock yarn I have. I have yarn for the February Lady Sweater that I want to do this year as well!! I know there is much more that I will find to do this year so I hope that I will stick with it and finish up some of the many UFO's that I got organized to finish when I was in the Finishupitis contest.


We had a great Christmas. Rebekah had a great time opening her gifts and everyone else's. She got a Baby Doll from Uncle Brian and Aunt Jennifer. After ripping off the paper from the end of the box, she couldn't wait to get into it!! She loves her Baby!

It's been a long time!

I have been really busy lately between Jim's school work and my work and Thanksgiving and starting to get ready for Christmas. I was able to finish my Central Park Hoodie and My Baudelaire socks. I'm working on some stuff now from a couple of years ago. I'm in a Finishupitis contest and it's been a good motivator towards getting things done that have been on the Needles for a while. Here they are!!











Now back to my regularly scheduled knitting!! More Finishing to come soon!

Halloween Haul

I can't believe how long it's been since I posted!! Well...We bought 4 bags of candy to pass out on Halloween. I figured that we would take Rebekah around for about 20 minutes and then come back home and pass out candy for the rest of the time. It didn't work that way. The weather was so nice! People in our neighborhood were out on their porches sitting in lawn chairs to pass out candy. The kids were out without need of coats. It was like a scene from those Disney movies with the kids trick or treating in California or Florida where it's always warm. Anyhow...we took Rebekah out as Angelina Ballerina. So was absolutely adorable!! I did knit her some ballet slippers but they weren't appropriate for walking outside in (although she loves those slippers!!)

I sort of figured that she would get tired. Should have known better!! She walked the entire way about 1.5 miles around our neighborhood and back home. I only helped her up some of the steep steps. She got to the end and was saying "Treat" and then she'd wave and say "Bye Bye" when we walked away. Even some of the other kids were commenting on how cute she was. Can you hear the pride in my voice as I write this? We had so much fun as a family and I am so glad we had this beautiful day so that we could enjoy Rebekah's first Trick or Treat!

She ended up with a shopping bag full of "CANNY" and chips. So far, I am very proud of her...She knows were the candy is and hasn't been pestering up for more. We do limit her candy intake because she's already a handful without being hyped up on sugar!!

I just had to throw in this one...Rebekah and Daddy love to build tall block buildings. I absolutely love watching Rebekah play! If there is one thing I am praying for as a toddler...I want my Daughter to have fun playing! I don't want her to grow up so fast and join the ranks of kids who hide out in their rooms on computers and cell phones and video games. She loves her Mommie and Daddy and demands their time and attention to play with her and I think this is a good things for her and for us as a family.

I the knitting way...I have been working on my Fall shawl. It is coming along really nice. I decided to take it off the needles and put it on fish line to sort of spread it out and take a picture. It's a yarn blob on the needles and I can't really take a picture of it, So I quickly spread it out on the bed...This is one of those quick snap shots so it doesn't show the beauty of the shawl as nicely as it really is. I wish I could take classes in photography so I could compose better!!

Can you believe...All that work and I forgot to measure it!! It's still on the fish line right now so I will lay it out again and measure what I've done so far. This picture is through clue 5. I think it's a lovely way to use this variegated yarn that I love from Knit Picks. The pattern and the yarn don't compete.

I'm starting work on The Charlotte Bronte shawl. It's for Knit The Classics Yahoo group. We are going to be knitting this shawl or another project of your choosing and listening to or reading classic Bronte. I'm still finishing up the Craft Lit episodes for "The Turn of the Screw" and when I'm finished with those, I have "Jane Eyre" ready to listen to and "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" as well.

I really like Craft Lit for a podcast. Heather Ordover is amazing! Classic books that are in the public domain are read each episode. Well, chapters of the book that is. Right now we are listening to Little Women (one of my favorites growing up) But what makes this podcast so great is Heather's explanation of the literature and things to be aware of. It's like having a mini Literature appreciation lesson. I'm really enjoying it. I just found this podcast, so I am also going through back episodes of it as well. It keeps me company on the long drives when Jim and Rebekah fall asleep in the car. I would recommend this podcast to everyone. I also recommend Faery Knitting with Erin. She reads the fairy tales that are public domain and discusses knitting, goats, milk and cheese...all very interesting. There are several other podcasts I listen to, but these are superb for the book and story telling!

SOTS3 is finished!!

I did it this time, I finished the Secret of the Stole III in time! I loved knitting this one and it looks beautiful. Rebekah loved it too and posed for a couple of pictures. I still have to block it but it looks like I will have to wait until Friday to do that.

I also started to work on the Fall shawl by Wendy McDonnell. It's a shawl that she designed for using the variegated yarns that we like but never seem to be suitable for most stoles or shawls. There is a lot of design choices that we get to make, like where to place the flowers and buds in the second clue. I am finding it very interesting. Not like others I've done that just chart the whole thing out. This is my shawl. I'm sort of designing it a little because I get to pick how the sections will ultimately look. So far, all I have are pictures of the first clue. I'm still working on the second clue.

Catching up on my Knitting

It has been a profitable kniting weekend (even if the laundry hasn't all been folded and put away). I completed Clue 8 of SOTS3. I can't believe that this stole will be finished next week!! It's been so nice to knit and is turning out beautiful. I don't have a clue as to the theme except for snow. Maybe Aspen or Colorado. We will know soon. I just want a chance to win the grandprize of that yarn from Colourmart!!

I also started the armholes on the Central Park Hoodie I'm working on. I didn't have a clue as to how to keep this going in the round but it seems to be working for me this way and I'm controlling the 3 skeins of yarn at one time so far. I like how this pattern is turning out and am planning to maybe knit it for myself without the hood, just a collar. It's also a nice easy nit and the cables make it look fancier than it really is. I use the cableing without a needle method that I learned from Grumperina's Blog.

I also started the pansy shawl from Schoolhouse press. As if I'm not already in enough KALs!! I have started and frogged a number of shawls...so it remains to be seen if I will end up finishing this one also!! I bought the yarn from Wendy of http://www.wendysmodestdress.com It is hand dyed and smells wonderful even while I am knitting with it. It is simply beautiful yarn to knit with, soft and smells scrumptious!!

Next month Wendy is hosting a Finishupitis contest on the Icelandic Shawl Yahoo group and I plan on being involved in that. I promise not to start anything else (fingers crossed) and will figure out what projects I really want to finish and which will end up in the frogged forever pond!!

Really!! I have been knitting!

It's been a bit of a hard week. Jim and I have both been ill, Rebekah has the sniffles. I worked 3 nights in a row (which totally kills me). I also started Precepts Bible study at church (the best in deapth Bible study I've ever done) and today is Rebekah's 2nd Birthday!! We had a little family party with Grandma and Grandpa T and Uncle Brian and Aunt Jennifer last night with Spaghetti and salad and cornbread muffins and cake and ice cream. I have been waiting for her 2nd birthday for a while!! Here's why...

When Dad was 2, my Grandparents gave him this wagon. On my 2nd birthday, I had cake on the same wagon. Mom and Dad have this wagon now and Rebekah plays with it when she visits Grandma and Grandpa....so....

Rebekah had a great little birthday party! And I have documentation that a Ride-Em wagon will last over 60 years!! And still provide lots of fun to children of all ages.

On other fronts, I am working on the Central Park Hoodie and got to the sleeves. I don't know if I am doing it right to qualify as knitting in the round, but it looks good to me and is working in my mind. Maybe I'm "unventing" something in my own way. Anyhow, it's fun!! And I promise to take a picture soon. Check here for further updates or on my Ravelry page (joylinnknits).

I also finished Clue 7 of SOTS 3. I can't believe that I have kept up with this one!! I hope to finish in time and be entered in the final drawing for the Colourmart yarn!! That would be so great!!! This is not the greatest picture. I took it at work over the only thing I could find that was big enough. It's not such a great backdrop, but it's done! I should have posted it earlier. I finished it on Wednesday night.