Granny Square

I don't know if you remember when I posted about my summer knitting goals. It was in this post and the one right after it. Well, I have one of those goals completed!! It is the Granny Square afghan that I made for the baby with some of my stash acrylic yarn.

I picked the colors before I knew for sure what sex the baby would be. It was a good thing there is a lot of blue in there. And I am glad that I like to save left over skeins, because this afghan was made with a lot of left overs.

I like how the afghan turned out and "Au" likes it also. I told her it would need to be washed before she used it for the baby, but that is a small price to pay.

I enjoyed making this afghan, but it sure doesn't help the carpal tunnel at all. My thumbs have been acting up for a couple of weeks now and probably not just from the crocheting.


I have also been knitting a pair of socks. Since this picture was taken, this sock has been completed and the other sock almost knit down to the heel. Sock knitting is taking place when I get tired of packing.

This is the last main week to get the packing done. ES says he will be home next week to get the rest finished up and get us on the road. It will be interesting to see how much I can get done before he gets home.

Off to do some more packing. Happy knitting & spinning.

The Names are all on the Tablecloth

I have a finished project! Nothing exciting, just finished embroidering the names and year on the Thanksgiving tablecloth. No it doesn't look like Thanksgiving, but I had this tablecloth when I started this tradition and I didn't want to get a new one. I should count how many names are on there, but I haven't ever done that. I like the adding on of the names, but it takes me a long time to get them embroidered. I started the tablecloth tradition in 1999 so there are eight years of signatures. Some years there are only two or three names and other years there are ten or more.

I have also worked on my socks I'm knitting with Fixation. I actually like working with Fixation which I didn't think I would like. I might even make a pair for myself with some Fixation that I have in my stash (when I get it all unpacked). I'll get a picture of the first sock when I get it done. I am making this pair not in my usual manner. I am working them on double point needles cuff down one sock at a time! I don't do that very often because I end up with Second Sock Syndrome. I do most socks toe up so I can try them on as I go.

Today has been a busy social day also. I went to lunch with the Birthday lunch group. There was only one other lady that showed up. We had a good hour of talking and visiting. It was really fun and relaxing. Tonight my boss and his wife had a barbecue for all the pharmacy. It was a going away social because I leave in two weeks. The staff pharmacist also announced Friday that she was leaving the same day as me to take another job. Poor Alan! He's going to have two new hires to deal with.

This is the moving room today. I got more boxes packed last night and today. "Au" says it looks as if it is getting fuller and it is. I got quite a bit out of my bedroom and that room is finally looking as if I am moving. The kitchen has been attacked and most of the livingroom is done. Still a lot left to do and only two weeks to do it in!

Happy knitting & spinning.

Nothing New,

For those of you that are interested, here are my moving rooms. They look almost the same as the last time I posted a picture, but they actually have a lot more in there. I packed and packed boxes today. I didn't have to go to work until this afternoon, so I got a lot done. It's a good thing tomorrow is our freight day, so I can get some more boxes. Are you happy with the progress photo, Paula?

I am also working on too many projects. I have a tablecloth that we use at Thanksgiving. Everyone who eats with us signs the tablecloth and then I embroider their names on it. Well, I haven't gotten last year's names embroidered yet. That is my current project, along with the current baby sweater and current sock (actually, there are two pairs of socks). I am hoping to have the names all done by Saturday and then I can pack that tablecloth also.

Happy knitting & spinning.

Moving Update

Even though I haven't posted lately, I have been busy. I finally wound this "Dark Lagoon" fiber into a skein. It came out really nice for a 2-ply. I do not know how much is there, because I got tired of winding onto the niddy-noddy and I kept losing track of what I had counted. I also have done some other plying and will have that to show soon.



I have been busy working on this little sweater. I had hoped to get it done before last night. I hosted a baby shower for "Au" and had hoped to give her this along with her other gifts. I thought I did fairly well. I only have the sleeves to finish and I started it Thursday night after work, so about 9 pm. I will have it done sometime in the next week or so, so they will get it before I leave also.


When my sister, Paula, came to the house last night, for the baby shower, her first comment was, "I want to see the moving room!" I guess she has been following the updates on the blog and I haven't posted a moving shot lately. So on Tuesday's (I know it's not Tuesday--it got away from me!), I will post pictures for the next two weeks of the moving rooms. Mainly to show Paula that I am making progress with this move which has to be done by three weeks from today.

The second moving room is mainly for the furniture. I have two dressers and two desks in there, along with two beds and their frames. I still have a-l-o-t to get done. The good news is that I have had some interest in the renting our house! So maybe that won't be such a worry now.

Well, off to get today going. Happy knitting & spinning.

More Heritage Trip

Last week at this time, "R" and I had stopped in Shelby, Montana. There wasn't much there, but the hotel was nice and the food at the gas station diner filled us up. It was a nice and relaxing evening.

You may be wondering, why is there a picture of two trees? There used to be three trees and this is what we would look for when we were getting close to my father's parent's place. If you "enbiggen" the picture, you will see an eagle in the top of the dead pine tree. He was such a beautiful bird and he had a beautiful view of the Mission Valley. The mountains are gorgeous, the Bison Range was busy, and the Mission on this day was quiet. There were a couple of other visitors, but no noise. Just us.

I think when we were growing up, we only went to the Mission a couple of times. One time sticks out in my mind, I think because Grandma and Grandpa had come with us, so it must have been a special trip into town to see the Mission specifically.

Now for this week: "Au" and I attended the fireworks display last night. We went down to the river about 8 pm, so I took my knitting with me. You know, I only have two weeks to finish a pair of socks for the sos08 bi-weekly drawing. I have to have an incentive to get all these socks knit! While there, the LYS owner sat behind us and made the comment that I was even knitting there. I said, "Of course, I can't just sit!"

It had been a busy day with lots to do and heat to match the 4th. I think I ended up with a little bit of heat-stroke, so spent some time knitting quietly with the fan blowing on me and a drink at my hand. I even took a nap!

I will have knitting and spinning to show you in this coming week. There may even be a package or two coming in the mail. Don't read that part, ES.

Happy knitting and spinning.

More Heritage trip

When "R" and I took his Heritage trip, I started as the driver on Saturday. "R" slept the first hour or so that we were driving. This first picture, of the mountains, was taken as I drove up the road from Missoula. The mountain was so pretty as we came up the hill into Arlee. I never got tired of the views as we drove, at least from what I remember this being more than 30 years ago. Man, that makes me sounds o-l-d.

We had to make the traditional stop at the Arlee Apiaries. I remember stopping to get their honey almost every trip to Montana that we made. I can't ever pass there on our heritage trips without stopping to buy honey. "C" said, when we got home, that I had sure bought a lot of honey. I told him, it wasn't all for us. On an interesting side note, a lady in the knitting group who meets at the LYS on Wednesday mornings, is the sister to the owner of the Arlee Apiaries. Her father has bees here in town, or just outside of town, and I have bought honey from him also.

One of the points of interest, and a measure to how close we were to grandma's house, was the windmill house. I remember when it first showed up. It was the big thing when we were little to be the first one to spot the windmill. We knew we were close! Only another six or so miles, but it seemed to take forever. Anita, don't know if you'll remember this place or not. It's at the bottom of the hill, before the Bison Range.

In all the pictures I took, there is quite a blue sky. No wonder Montana is called the Blue Sky Country. I took over one hundred pictures. Some of them from the moving car as "R" was driving. I won't share them all, but some of them have some fun memories attached and those will be the ones I share.

No new knitting to show. Although I do have about three or four projects that I am rotating through right now. There's a new baby in the neighborhood, not "Au's", that I am making the Mason Dixon bib from their book which knits up very quickly. The only drawback there is, I packed all my cotton yarn except for just enough to make the bib (I hope). I have a new pair of socks on the needles and a new baby sweater on the needles.

There has only been sporadic packing done. I will do quite a bit after tonight. I have worked the last couple of nights and will again tonight, so packing has been on the back-burner for the last couple of days.

Happy 4th of July, tomorrow. Enjoy those fireworks. I know I will!

Happy knitting & spinning.

No Orchids Today

When I got home from "R's" Heritage trip, I noticed that the orchids had dried up. I was disappointed, I really wanted to watch them bloom. Now I'll have to think of something else as a Tuesday post.

While we were gone, I took a lot of landscape/waterfall pictures. Most of them do not have "R" in them, but occasionally he is in one. We were at Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park and I said I wanted a picture. This is what he came up with. I can't believe how much he has grown in the last year. He still has the attitude at times, but over all he hasn't turned out too bad.

It was good to spend some time with just one child to find out what his plans are now and give him something to remember in the next few years. When we got home, the other two who have been on this trip wanted to know if we had gone some of the same places that they had gone. I try to make each trip unique to that individual child. No two trips are the same. We do things a little differently each time, even if we are visiting the same places.

On knitting news, I gave Emma her shawl yesterday. She was thrilled. She said she had never had anyone knit her anything before. I didn't get a picture, sorry. We got talking and it was really warm and then her son came to get her and I didn't get the opportunity to get a picture.

Here is our official first stop, Wagon Hammer Springs, just north of Salmon and before North Fork. As a child, on our trips north, this was always one of our stops, so I always stop with the boys here when we do this trip. Wagon Hammer is a natural spring on the side of the road. A sign just above the springs says the water from the tap has been tested and is good to drink, not sure on the water coming from the rock.

Happy knitting & spinning.