Pumpkin Sunrise

  Good morning to you! How are you doing? I have recovered from having family visiting last week and am right back to my ordinary quiet days. Spring is arriving again after being here for a few days then leaving for some frigid weather. Today will be over 60 degrees.  I've been having severe dry eye from my autoimmune disease (Sjogren's syndrome) and it's quite annoying. I did see the eye doctor and have a treatment plan but golly, I want it resolved yesterday. Over a month ago, I started doing some HIIT exercising a few times a week at home to improve my stamina. So I  lined up a bunch of videos that were low-impact, all standing routines ranging 10 minutes to 30 minutes. I expected that I would not enjoy this type of exercising but I have to confess, I love it. I feel empowered when I complete a video and am able keep up with them most of the time. Who knew? I continue to walk daily but the windy days make my dry eye symptoms unbearable. I am considering joining a gym w...

  Good morning! How are you? Right now, early this morning it is snowing! gah. Yesterday, I took a much needed break from my second sleeve (not finished but nearly finished) and started a baby sweater for a family member. I found out there is yet another baby coming in the family and I will be knitting more blankets and sweaters in my future. According to Ravelry this is the seventeenth time I have knit this baby sweater pattern!  I have already bought more yarn for another blanket this time going for a forest green and moving out of muted colors. I am happy to be knitting for babies to be. What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! How are you doing?  My knitting news this week is very little. The baby blanket is almost done which I am excited about. I haven't knitted much this week because of being 'busy'. I've had routine doctor checkups that seem to be bundled all at the end of February and beginning of March (!) and we are looking at houses for our son and daughter in law. When I get home I am just too tired to think straight. Luckily I've got a few days to catch up with my knitting, reading and thoughts before the next house viewing this weekend.  What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! How was your weekend? My weekend was relaxing and calm, just the way a weekend should be. I didn't do much of anything but I did knit and read and doodled. Now that the deep freeze is over, I've been enjoying my daily walks and even hear some birds singing. I like to believe it's a sign of very very early spring. Yesterday we went over to my sister's house for an early dinner. It was nice to be with them and to spend time with them. My sister and I knitted our sweaters together. I'm making steady progress on the baby blanket . I try to spend at least one hour a day working on it. I also worked on my sweater each day this weekend.

  Good morning! How was your weekend? My weekend was nice enough. I went out shopping with my sister briefly on both days and also started doing pesky house cleaning tasks. I used the self cleaning function of a VERY old oven and it worked...I was concerned since it is ancient. My fears were unnecessary - my oven is squeaky clean! My next task is moving furniture to vacuum under them, I need my husband's help with that one, but the task is on the list and that is half the battle. Our weather is finally above freezing and on my walk yesterday, I took off my mitts because I was warm. What luxury! I've been wearing double layers on my walks for so long that I felt light with just regular layers.  I started yet again another knitting project. This one is a baby blanket for a relative who is expecting sometime this year. I'm now up to five projects on the needles, that is my maximum. Anything more and nothing will be finished in a timely manner. How was your weekend?

  Good morning! How are you doing?  We've been so lucky to have snow flurries every single day this week and it's beautiful. It's quite chilly out so walking has been brisk - I toy with not walking outside each day, but then I'll walk a bit giving myself the option to turn around and go home if I am too cold. Usually, I keep on walking. I can tolerate the cold more so than the unbearable heat in the summer. I finished my hat ! I received this beautiful yarn bundle from my sister for my birthday in November. I loved choosing the striping sequence and it was fun to knit little bits of mini skeins. Even burying all those thread ends wasn't a chore but a delight.  I wanted a loose hat (I dislike tight hats, I feel colder in them) and I wanted the hat to be slouchy. I just created this hat out of my head with a slightly educated guess to the size. I knit the length until I felt it was long enough on my head with some slouchiness.  Over all my guessing turned out great!

  Good morning! Boy have I missed you guys. I had a fantastic visit with family and spent some quality time with the grandkids. They left yesterday morning and I put my house back together again once more. They will be visiting again shortly after Christmas for an extended period of time. I am so lucky! My knitting was non-existent while they were here. I continue to work on the second Musselburgh hat for my husband who sees me knitting it but doesn't know it's for him, ha ha ha. I've been feeling under the weather but I am convinced it's my auto-immune disease, so I've been taking it easy, hydrating and keeping my fingers crossed. So far this plan is working! What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! How was your weekend? Oh mine was deliciously cold, brr. Sadly there will be another warm up this week but hopefully that warm up will be brief. I've been loving this chilly weather and the colors changing on the leaves.  My sister had a craft show over the weekend and I helped out (moral support really). I thoroughly enjoyed seeing family, friends and meeting some of my sister's friends. I had a good time and of course got a lot of knitting done.  I've been spending lots of time knitting my granddaughter' sweater - I have to dig around and find the perfect buttons today.  I noodled around Ravelry some more looking for a new project to cast on. Maybe a shawl? I just don't know what I want to knit. But I guarantee you I will be knitting something! How was your weekend?

  Good morning! How are you doing?  As you know, I have scaled back on my holiday knitting and have implemented a slower pace of knitting gifts to protect my hands and wrists. Last year I had an arthritis flare up knitting gnomes which caused a self-imposed knitting ban until I recovered. Knitting is such a lovely way to handle stress and to relax for me. So I've been mindful of what I knit, how I knit and to rest more often all with the goal of always knitting and to not be in a self-imposed knitting ban.  I'm pleased with my progress! I found these little stars on Ravelry and decided they would be a wonderful little gifts for my family. They use up little bits of scrap yarn and you could go wild with the color combinations. I enjoyed knitting them and the pattern was easy to memorize after one little star. What are you working on this week?

  My knitting has been minimal since I traveled to see the kids in Indiana last weekend. I did do some sock knitting on the way there but then the AC in the car went intermittent. The car was too hot for me to knit and I ached so I didn't do anything but grumble. Of course being with wiggly little ones made it impossible to knit!! (I was happy with the wigglers). I pulled out my sweater yesterday and worked on the body edge ribbing. I have two more rows and then I get to do sleeves!!  What are you working on this week?

  Yesterday evening I finished these socks which will be a Christmas gift. I hope the gift recipient will love them. I created a simple design to break up the monotony of the stockinette knitting. I did 4 rows of stockinette, 1 purl row, 4 rows of 1x1 ribbing, 1 purl row. Then I repeated that. It was a nice diversion. Thank you for your well wishes and happy thoughts about Frodo. He was the best dog ever and he is living free and easy in doggie heaven. We have Holly (the cat) to devote all of our love and attention to for now. She is the Queen Bee of the house!! We are adjusting to all the free time we have now that we are not taking care of an elderly dog. Bittersweet! What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! How are you? I am blissfully knitting the second sock this week and loving the project. I snapped this photo yesterday and I am now at the heel flap.  My knitting has slowed down some (again) because I fell on Sunday in the kitchen doing something un-smart and my left arm and wrist has been aching since. Yesterday after dinner I decided to go to urgent care to make sure everything was okay because I had wrist pain. Luckily for me, my wrist was fine but my elbow has a little fracture in it. Luckily for me, I am in a sling and not a cast and I am allowed to knit. I'm supposed to have a follow up with an ortho doctor in two weeks, scheduling can be a challenge though. What are you working on this week?

  How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good over all. The weather has been beautiful! Low humidity, sunny skies, mid 70's equals a picture-perfect outdoor weekend. Both Saturday and Sunday I walked longer than usual taking advantage of the weather. If summer was like this all the time, I would not wish it away like I usually do. As you can see, I am on the second sock and loving the free and easy knitting. I did some marathon reading of The Princess Bride .   I am quite amused by the book and I recommend it! We didn't do much of anything this weekend - we talked about boring stuff like lawn care (dirt patches from the lack of rain) while sitting on the back patio.  How was your weekend?

  Hello! How are you? We made it to August - one month closer to Autumn and for some much needed cooler weather. I've had a rough week with the heat and the humidity. My body just doesn't like it. I've spent more time in the house than outside the house trying to keep myself cool, relaxed and feeling my best. As I sit here in my kitchen typing this up, it is raining (yay).  I started writing out my Christmas knitting list. After last year's epic arthritis flare from manic gnome knitting, I'm paring down the amount I knit and also triaging the list. I am ready to strike off knitted gifts if I just can't do it.  My mother (God rest her soul) would ask for a Christmas list by September 1st. I thought she was crazy when I was a kid, who is thinking about Christmas when it's hot outside! Now, here I am doing my thinking in August, I'm sure the crazy gene runs in the family. Although in my defense, I am not asking anyone for a Christmas list. Besides some simp...

  Good morning! How are you? How is your crafting coming along? I finally took a decent photo of my gift socks . Oh how I love working on these! I am on the heel flap since taking this photo earlier in the week. I'm zooming along. I have one more pair of socks I'd like to knit and give as a Christmas gift then I am onto knitting some ornaments. I've decided to not marathon knit numerous gnomes to save me from an arthritis flare. I love knitting gnomes but I cannot control myself with pacing the knitting (yet) so I am taking a seasonal year off. My wrists will thank me! What are you working on this week?

  How are you? I am officially wishing for FALL. I gave up, the weather is too soupy out there to enjoy.   I finished this scarf ! Yes that is me shouting with glee. I've been working on this scarf for a long time, so  it's nice to be cast off, blocked and after I post this - wrapped up to be gifted in the fall. I enjoyed the pattern but I knew I would get a little bored in the middle, I always do on a scarf - with a shawl or cowl I'm okay with the middle, same with a sweater.  What are you working on this week?

  Good afternoon! How are you? How was your weekend? Ta Da! I pulled out some paints and I painted a tiny picture over the weekend - I felt creative and Frodo approves of my skills. Also this weekend I worked on the lace shawl and am so close to the end.  We didn't do much this weekend, at Mass I nearly passed out because it doesn't have AC (this is my childhood church that is very old) so I guess we are going to an AC Church until the fall. No one else looked hot, even the priest with all of his garb. So it's me and my autoimmune condition. Heat and/or sun are just awful for me.  I've been enjoying sitting on the back patio and some quiet time there. 

  Good morning! The past two days have been cool enough to enjoy the weather outside but the heat is coming back. Lucky for me, I have lovely knitting projects to keep me company. The above photo is a pair of mittens , surprisingly for me! My daughter and son in law gave me the wool for Mother's Day. I'm having a hard time seeing the rows because the yarn is so dark but I'm having fun with the pattern. The below photo is the lace scarf that I finally memorized the stitch pattern, this took me nearly half of the scarf to do so. The middle stitches are easy to memorize, it was the bordering stitches that continuously stumped me. I am enjoy this knit! What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! It's a steamy hot day today and I'm sitting inside loving the AC, also I am grateful I have AC. My knitting update isn't very exciting. We had company over the weekend and yesterday I spent the whole day recovering from a brief (but painful) stomach virus. I'm fine now but all I did was nap on and off the entire day. I also slept great through the night! The leg warmers for my mother in law are coming along nicely. I am nearing the end of the stockinette part of the first leg warmer. What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! I started this scarf at the beginning of April and it is a Christmas gift. I had a spare skein of malabrigo yarn lace and according to the directions I should have enough yarn. We shall see! I have to concentrate while knitting this so I only work on it a few times a week while I still have non-credit classes to attend. I will be having a few weeks off before the summer sessions start so hopefully I will have more time to knit! What are you working on this week?