The dog survived

June's end was quite stressful for my poor dog. Tuesday, the 26th, I did not get a new roof, but my neighbors had three trees removed.

Wednesday, the roof guys came. I had to work, so took the dog with me. That was not a successful as I had hoped. All the customers got barked at. She also barked every time I went to the Ladies room. My shop is in office space, so this was not a good thing! She survived.

I took the finished picture a few days later.

The refrigerator got fixed on Thursday. The fix-it man had a new computer board, but had a few problems leftover form the Sears repair team a couple of years ago. Sears did not fix the problem because they said that we needed to have a grounded outlet. We had an electrician rewire two floors of the house and the basement last summer. I decided that it was time to get the ice maker fixed before the July 4th party with the family. Mission accomplished!

Now that the house is put together again, I can have family gatherings. We found all the pieces to put the tarp up for shade. The tarp and poles were in the garage. The ropes and stakes were in the shed. DH didn't know what had happened to hem, so we didn't use the tarp for a few years. The food was in the garage. As usual, everyone brought a little something extra. Dear son cooked the burgers. The group at the table is working on the ice cream. The grand kids are now old enough to help crank.

When the ice cream was finished, the paddle was put on the table. I missed getting  the picture of the dog, cleaning up the ground with ice cream dripping through the cracks of the picnic table onto her head. Clean-up is an important job, and she loves it. When the party was over, I hosed down the table.

This was the first family gathering at my house in a long time, and with a little help, it all went well. Thursday was a rest day. I got a lot of knitting done on the Christmas stocking project. The first stocking of five is finished except for pompoms. I need to find something the right size to wrap the yarn around that will match the size of the stocking I'm copying. I have made this pattern before. It's an old Bernat pattern, modified. by the customer's mother.

The joy was clouded

I wore the jacket to work and the sleeves were too short! They may have gotten shorter during the day. The rest of the jacket was fine and I got compliments on it, but I didn't want bracelet length sleeves. I decided to try sleeve surgery and grafting, in seed stitch! If that didn't work, I had to remove the sleeves and reknit the sleeve cap. I decided on an extra 2" of length. Luckily that worked. It was a challenge to separate the parts because of the three colors involved, but it worked. I have worn the jacket a couple of times since and everything is good. If the sleeves shrink up a  bit in washing, that will be all right. I think they'll stretch out in wearing. Although the jacket is cotton, dishcloth cotton doesn't seem to shrink and all the yarn I used has already been washed in its previous incarnation.

My  DIL requested a hat for a 20 yr old man with cancer. That went fairly quickly and used up more stash. It's all garter stitch. I used Caron Simply soft for the start of the hat and filled in with the black when it became obvious that I would run out of yarn. That head is a little small, but my pottery head is among the displaced and I don't know where it is. It belongs in my living room, the last room to be painted.

The kitchen is finished and I've been moved back in. I have been doing more cooking for time intensive recipes and also baked a couple of batches of cookies.

The dining room is finished for now and the living room is primed. There are small jobs in many rooms, but for the most part they are finished and put together.

I have started another sweater for myself. This is a summer sweater that I designed a couple of years ago for TKGA. I didn't get to keep the original. It looked like this. They put it on a wider model and I didn't plan the neckline to be that wide.

I'm using yarn from two different cones, one cotton and one a rayon/cotton mix. One sleeve is finished and I've started the back. I was appalled at the numbers in the pattern. I should have been tech edited. I failed to take into account the six stitch pattern and multiples thereof. I'm reworking the numbers for myself and put a notice on Ravelry in the notes that I would refigure for anyone else that wanted to knit it. The swatch looks like this, of course the sleeve was a swatch too,

Much of my time this year is taken up with yard work, which I enjoy. I didn't have to do so much of it before DH died.. Next post, I'll have to show pictures of the yellow yarn and the socks I'm knitting, and perhaps some remodeling photos too.

There is Joy

This is the sewing pattern I started with this time. I couldn't find the pattern for what I tore apart. I'm making the pink jacket on the left, but knit instead of sewn.

I frogged about half of the first sleeve after sewing it in and finding it too wide and too long. It now fits and is back in the jacket. The second sleeve is well started and I should finish it in the next week.

I'm so tired of the lack of progress on this project, but I'm too stubborn and too much a perfectionist to let it go, It either is going to fit or it is going in the trash. Luckily it seems it is \going to fit..I have enough sweaters that don't fit because of the weight loss. I haven't found them all, but most of the summer sweaters are suspect. It will take a few years to get everything reworked or replaced.

My kitchen is coming together. The walls and cabinets are painted and the doors are almost done. Some of then are hung, but there are still a few problems . Almost everything I am keeping is back in the cabinets. At least I can use the kitchen now. It should be finished in a few days. I really need to cook up a few pots of something for the freezer.

Back to the sweater knitting. I need to finish.

It's Spring

Remodeling
The kitchen is almost ready for paint! The fact that cupboards have been emptied and refilled my someone other than me, makes for certain challenges. I don't know where anything is! My daughter has done some reorganizing, which makes sense. Some things went in the trash. I was looking for some cider vinegar for a bread recipe today, and it's gone. The bottle was damaged. I used white vinegar instead. The bread is in the machine now.

My dog is thinking about shedding. Her undercoat comes off in clumps and I can't find the rake that I used to use. I'm sure it will turn up, but in the meantime, i bought a new rake and a slicker brush and started the beauty treatments. The rake is great for getting hair out of the slicker brush. She'll get combed at least tw2ice a day for the next few months,or until shedding ceases. Luckily, she likes the attention.

Quilting daughter is in town for a few days. She missed Christmas this year, but there is a family wedding on Saturday. There are also two birthdays that will be celebrated on Friday. Sunday morning is our monthly breakfast at the Gunny Hall, so it will be a busy weekend.

It seems like Spring here. I actually have a few daffodils in the back yard, and have seen crocuses and snow flowers while out with the dog.

Knitting

I have finished another pair of socks recently, and put two sock patterns on Ravelry. The new patte4r has butterflies on the ankles and is called Mama They Tickle. There were too many patterns with "butterfly" or "flutterby" in the name and I thought butterflies on the ankle would tickle. I remembered that out
Botanical Garden had a rainforest exhibit with lots of butterflies, so what a great idea for a photo or two. The butterflies did not cooperate! There weren't as many as I remembered. It was hard to get a photo indoors, because there was no place to put the socks. I went out doors and there were no flowers. I did the best I could, and got some nice pictures. The technique is Mosaic. The darker yarn is left form another pair of socks and I used all but a yard or so, so that's out of my leftover drawer.

I was busy knitting dishcloths. The father of the bride above say me knitting, and mentioned that they used to have knit dishcloths that were well loved, but wore out. I knit a set of three for his wife and all three daughters. That makes 18 dishcloths so far this year, counting the 6 that I sent off in February. Two more daughter want dishcloths, but they'll have to wait. I have one in my purse right now, but haven't worked on it recently. It's emergency knitting.

Knit, knit,

My Tree Bark Sweater is finished. I may add elastic to the bottom ribbing, since I started it before I lost weight.

I finished my Sprouts socks and just have to add changes and photos to the pattern. The basic pattern is written without charts. I couldn't figure a good way to chart the main pattern which has slipped stitches in two colors. I finally gave up when I did the cuff, which would have had a bunch of "no stitch"es. They always seem to confuse people. I'll put close ups of the stitch pattern next to the words, for reference.

The neat thing about this pattern was that I figured out how to do the slip stitches on the top of the foot and by not knitting the contrast color on the sole, I avoided elf toes. On the foot, I knit the contrast back and forth (it's only two rows) and the main color around. 

I've been knitting dishcloths as gifts. The first set will go to my daughter for her birthday. The second set will go to my grand daughter for her birthday. I have fun with stitch patterns, making each cloth different.


I won't say that the kitchen is coming together, because, while there are dishes in the cupboard, the island in the center of the kitchen has been emptied and I can't find canned goods when I want them.

I spent time yesterday looking for a can of beans that I was sure I had bought. I finally decided that I'd already used that can and this recipe was on hold until I went to the store again. That happened today and the pork chop and white bean dinner was delicious.

Welcome home!

I walked in the house after work on Wednesday and was greeted by the smell of heated paint. DD decided to tackle the kitchen cupboard. She explains her reasoning.here. (Jan. 26 post).

Five shelves, about 5 feet long were emptied and the contents piled in the kitchen and dining room. I started to wonder how I was going to eat dinner.It will all be good when she finishes, but in the meantime, I'm living in confusion again.

Update: Friday Night
The shelves are full of dishes again, for now.

In the course of the domestic archeology that has been ongoing, some more photo albums were unearthed. One of them contained one of my favorite pictures from the past, taken in 1976 at boy scout camp. My husband and son! It was taken by a professional photographer, who shot at scout camp for fun. This appeared on our church bulletin at that time. (One of the priests was also a photographer.)

Arthroscopic surgery was performed on the Tree Bark Sweater, and the sleeve was removed. It looks much like this, except more knitting has occurred. I had a number of missteps in starting the second sleeve. I started it at work and when I got home a pulled it out of the bag, it came off the needlesin the middle and unraveled the cast on row. I failed at starting the k2, p2 ribbing, doing a p4 in the middle.I finally got the ribbing going correctly and messed up the increase row before starting the cable pattern. I think I have it how and am ready to start cables again. I've lost another cable needle. Seems it's time to buy some more.

I was feeling so good

I had finished one sleeve of my Tree Bark sweater. I took it to Knitting at the library and sewed it to the body. I got the sleeve seamed, but not the body last night. This morning, I was starting the other sleeve, when I noticed the needles in the sweater "kit" were smaller than what I had just finished using.

The bad news is that I knit the sleeve on #8 needles instead of #7, and it shows.

The good news is that it is at least 2" too long, so I will be knitting 2 shorter sleeves.
 
 Yesterday was the day of the third trip to Home Depot for the closet. It is now set up with the pieces I know I want. I plan to put more module(s) under the long rod, but don't yet know what I want. The empty rod will hold short sleeved tops, but repair work needs to be done to the wall, and I'm not wearing short sleeves right now. Wool sweaters is more like it. The short sleeves can stay where they are until repairs are done.

 My black socks have a heel on the second sock. I started a birthday hat for DGS Michael in Bernat Camouflage yarn.

Other than that, business as usual. Today I work

Ah, Winter in NE Ohio

 The runners in the family have had some chances to run outdoors on days when the snow is cleared or melted. There has been a demand for the headbands. I've now knit 5 of them, using up a number of small balls of yarn.

Others in the family have gotten scarves. When I planned to knit 12 accessories for 2012, I didn't plan to knit hem all in January. I've now done 7 and still have a hat for a grandson to make in the next week or so.








I've started writing patterns again, adding two sock patterns to Ravelry and one to Patternfish. My Tree Bark sweater is growng a sleeve. Two different socks are being knit.

Work is proceeding on my bedroom closet.  To the left is stage one. There is a small closet to the left of the photo, which will have all the long items like dresses and slacks. I used to have a rod where the rack is now. but always had trouble with the sliding doors. As you can see it is gone completely.

We are building a modular closet. We had brackets for the shelves/racks on the back wall. It seems there is broken lath just where we needed stability. We'll hang those shelves from vertical strips like on the left. Of course it has already taken 2 trips to Home Depot and will take at least one more.

I've upgraded my winter wardrobe. This morning I bought a new jacket on line from Lands End.to replace the one that is too big and is starting to have zipper issues. I also replaced my boots for dog walking. The new ones are sooooo comfy and say that they will keep me warm to -25 degrees. I won't be testing that. The leather boots may stay around for a while. I do hate to throw things out, but if I don't wear them again this winter, they are leaving the house!!!

My family social life continues. Last Sunday there was a large breakfast gathering. Yesterday my son joined me for an orchestra concert. The Cleveland Orchestra played Brahms Piano concerto No. 2 with Yefim Bronfman soloist, and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 6. Tonight there is birthday cake and ice cream for my DIL Prg.

Empty

Empty is what I was feeling on Christmas Eve. I had plenty to do. I went to a %:00 church service where grand children played Christmas carols as part of the service. I went to my son's house for a gathering of his wife's family. I came home and walked the dog. She was very enthusiastic and made me smile. I ended the day/started the new day by going to Midnight Mass at our church, something I haven't done for years. At 2:00 I fell into bed. I missed having a certain special someone to share it with. Together we wouldn't have done so much, but we had each other. I relish the new freedom, but it's lonely sometimes.

Christmas morning I opened the stocking Santa left me. I hadn't hung stockings because my living room was full of boxes of books that belonged in my bedroom. This was the view earlier in the week while the ceiling was being textured and painted.

Saturday night while I was out, the family moving crew came and dug out the living room and moved many boxes upstairs to the room the contents belonged in. My bedroom is finished for now, and all furniture is in place. The blinds are back on the windows. The TV is back on the wall. The bed is against the wall where it belongs. I've started emptying boxes and putting books away. Many books will be donated to our library book sale.There is much work still to be done, but the remodeling part is finished.

Later in the day I went to daughter Jen's house for Christmas dinner and associated festivities with her husband's relatives. Today all my available children gather at son John's house for our family Christmas. Holding  the family get together on a separate day lets everyone see each other. It's also pajama day at that house, so there will be some of those in evidence.

It was a fairly subdued gathering. with fewer gifts than some years. Part of that was due to fewer available people. I got a number of odd food things like carrot and spinach chips, and chocolate covered pretzels. All this can be saved and eaten over time. Even the dog got a gift of a toy, which was made with the help of the grandkids, It is a tennis ball with poly fleece handles for tugging and chewing on. She seems to like it.

A Construction Zone

That's my bedroom at the moment. Usually, my DD Jan puts everything back together at the end of each work day. Today started a little late and continued until completion, after dinner. She was priming walls and ceilings. The walls in the closet area had been wall papered and soaked up the primer.Everything took longer than she had figured on.

I was having a blah day. I suggested grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch, with bacon and tomato. I'd pick up the tomato on my way home from the gym. I got off to a slow start, slow getting out of bed, slow getting breakfast made. And so it went. I couldn't decide what I wanted for breakfast, so i kept knitting on the sock. The heel got finished, which was good. Finally I went off to the gym, my usual Tuesday morning activity.

Most days, I have meals planned ahead. I know today what I'm eating tomorrow. Today I finally decided to make a pancake. With  a just add water mix, I can get the batter quantity down so there are no leftovers. Dinner was Tuna Helper, and we ate enough so that what is left will be part of tomorrows lunch. We'll have Scotch Broth soup from Kristin Nicholas's recipe. It comes out of the freezer tonight.

My Holiday break from work begins at 5:00 tomorrow. There is a Mass being said for my husband at 5:30 pm. We'll both go, come home to a quick dinner, and she'll be off to spend the night with a friend.

There are a couple of small gifts still to be knit, and a pair of felted slippers, which may not be delivered until February. If I get them done quickly, I'll mail the gifts to that family, but they'll be here in February.

A Day to Give Thanks

With two deaths in the family this fall, it's been hard emotionally. Today is a day to look at the good in my life.

• For over 50 years, I had a good partner in my life, (almost 50 of them we were married.).
• My wonderfully supportive and loving children, who have gathered around for family support.
• My sister Carol, who had a rough start at married life, but she and her two children found a good man and a good life.
• My sister Beth who found her man on a blind date and they're still together.
• Family gatherings like Thanksgiving dinner at my daughter's house.
• My house is paid for and remodeling continues, with most of the work being done by family members.
• My friends, mostly knitting ones.
• My weight loss. I started after Easter, and am reaching the end. I've dreamed of this for years, and finally found something that works for the rest of my life.
• Not to forget my dog. I am never alone in my house.
• My yarn stash. I can knit for a long time without spending money on yarn. Buying yarn is optional.
• A freezer full of good food that I have cooked over time. Cooking is optional, although I've done a lot of it recently.
• My new iPhone acquired when my last phone went swimming and drowned. I'm still learning about all that it can do.

Life got in the Way

A number of things happened since I last posted.

DH turned 70 and a party was held. Family friends, out of town relatives. it was great! The kids organized it and brought the cake, with 70 candles. He needed help to blow them out.

After that, he managed to get pneumonia and is now in the hospital. He also broke a wrist, which we thought was only sprained. Stubborn guy didn't want to go to get it checked out. The wrist happened a few days before his breathing got bad, so it was a week until someone declared it broken.


I've joined a gym! Our city has a fitness center with a track and Nautilus machines as well as the usual cardio machines. I am only working 4 days a week (M, W, F, Sat), so I can go to the gym the other 3 days. It's working out well and I feel more energetic.



I seem to have finished two pairs of socks that didn't make the blog. DGD Ana has very small feet and a September birthday.. Her socks are knit mainly form Patons Kroy. The contrast yarn isn't as contrasty as I would like. It's left over from the socks I knit for DD.

My Stealth Knitting has been gifted. DD the remodeler got socks. She loves socks. These are knit from Grundl Four Seasons yarn that I got on sale a few years ago. The pattern doesn't show up much, I'll reknit it in a better yarn before releasing to the public.



I finished another SKA challenge. This month it was chartreuse or one of the specified designers. I had no chartreuse yarn, so chose a designer, Janneke Maat. I've been looking at her Aragorn Socks for quite a while.I used some Sushi sock that I got from The Unique Sheep in a man's sock club. The color and yardage wouldn't work for DH, so now it's mine. I had knit the club pattern in another yarn.

A friend offered some chartreuse yarn to me. She had 3 different skeins in sock weight. I chose Dream in Color Smooshy in Spring Tickle. The Dream in Color website is being remodeled, so I hope this works. The SKA Mystery Sock is growing. The patter is called Watercress by Lise Brackbill. I'll finish the first sock today.

Breakfast time! I'm having trouble cooking for one right now. Lack of time contributes. DD will be here later to work on the remodeling. I'm making Roasted Tomato Soup that I found in a Cooking for Two cookbook.

Things are better now

The electrician finished his work and everything works as expected, finally. We have a new kitchen ceiling. It still needs priming and painting. Since this picture, it was textured and a new fan was installed over the stove. The texture picture shows the other end of the kitchen.

Worker damage
The man who did the texture work really seems to know what he is doing on ceilings. However, in other things, not so much. In helping install the fan, he stepped on the top of my stove bending the center and damaging the surface. Luckily our contractor could repair the bend. It took him a couple of hours to dis-assemble the stove top, straighten it, and put it together again, hours which were deducted from texture man's pay. It's not a new stove and chances of getting a new top were slim. We're relatively happy with the repair. At least everything still works.

DH and DD have been running tv cable through the walls of all rooms were we will want a tv. this, of course, has resulted in language I didn't want to hear, multiple trips to Radio Shack for supplies, new tools, and finally, success. We will have connections like this in 3 bedrooms, kitchen, living room, and basement. We don't have that many tvs, but the thinking is to do it now, before insulating the house.

Ideally, all wires should be in place before we get insulation blown into the walls, making the house snug and cozy for winter. That is why the flurry of activity in electricity and tv cables. The electricity needed doing, the tv cable was more optional. Our neighbor insulated a couple of years ago, and cut his heating bill in half. We cut ours in half by installing new windows, now we'll cut it again. Next year we'll put siding on the house, and stop spending money like a drunken sailor. We expect it to pay for itself in about 5 years.

Knitting
I seem to have missed showing off the latest pairs of birthday socks. For my son-in-law with the large feet, I extended the yarn by adding color to the leg. I still need to write the pattern, but I have the charts for the leg done. The pattern will offer a number of options for the leg portion of the sock. This man really loves my socks, because they fit!

In addition, I knit a pair for DD the remodeler. I know I didn't show them there, because she reads the blog. Because of the yarn colors, I used a simple pattern. It still doesn't show up well in the photos. The "in progress" photo shows the pattern, k2, p2 ribbing offset every 6 rows. Unfortunately, this doesn't show well in the later photos.

This is the daughter who shrunk a couple of things earlier this year. The socks were not supposed to shrink, the wrist warmers were wool, but she forgot. I won't be using that yarn for socks again. All gift socks are now being knit with bullet proof yarn. The brown socks are Patons Kroy 4 ply with Regia contrast. The other socks are Grundl Four Seasons. I seem to need 25% nylon for gift socks. Even the careful people occasionally find socks coming out of their dryer. Maybe my sister will get some fancier yarn. I know she hangs sock to dry, and is a sock knitter.

The tree bark sweater is up to the "armholes" in back, there being no armholes, just a square piece. I slowed down on it because I realized that another birthday looms, and the recipient is back in town. She took off for parts unknown (kids!!) but is now back. The socks would be finished now, but I knit the first foot on leg needles, which were too large. Reknitting commences within minutes. Luckily these are the smallest adult feet in the family. Main color is Patons Kroy 4 ply, contrast is left from above socks. There was more dark color in the variegated yarn than I expected, so not the best contrast. I'll choose better colors and knit another pair before I release the pattern.

I will write patterns for both pairs of socks, but will delay release until I have samples that better show the stitch patterns. This may be the winter for reknitting patterns that have been on hold. I also have a number of them where the original socks were black, again not a good choice for photos.