Baseball Knitting

Today begins the Major League Baseball season!  I just love baseball and I knit quite a bit while watching.  In fact, I really began knitting in earnest when my oldest son began pitching at the age of 9.  I was terrified he was going to be injured (as I had been as a careless 12 year old and had my front four teeth knocked out, and successfully replaced) so I started knitting during his games.  I could pay attention to what he was doing,  but I also had something to focus on so I wasn't going nuts. 

I've taken my knitting to numerous baseball practices and games for my kids, but also to some major league baseball games, too.  My favorite team is the St. Louis Cardinals.  My son choose that team as his favorite and converted me, since I was raised a Red Sox fan.  We have enjoyed some great times watching the games and even meeting some of the players a few years ago. 

In addition to the start of the professional season, Saturday begins my sons' little league seasons.  They both have games on Saturday, so our entire day will be spent "at the fields"!  We'll get home just in time to watch the local university, Virginia Commonwealth University, compete in the NCAA Final Four.  Quite a lot of sports knitting this weekend!

Here's a peek at my newest socks:

Lots of Knitting Time

My dad was scheduled for a "quick" medical test yesterday.  Needless to say, there are no such things, so I had quite a bit of knitting time, so much in fact that I had to call my sister to fetch my child from school!  The test results were good, so it was all worth it.

As for the waiting room knitting, I used all of the sock yarn not used in my first 2 at a time socks and started a scrap yarn blanket.

I also worked on Mary's Lazy Day Shawl.  After dinner, I worked on the toe of my newest pair of socks and watched a bit of Dancing with the Stars.  I'm always amazed how those people learn to dance so quickly.  It wears me out just watching them!

Knitting Socks

I love knitting socks.  I love the yarns, watching the patterns appear and the impact a verigated yarn has on the pattern and vice versa, I love wearing hand knit socks.  I just love knitting socks.  But, there have been times where I have gotten tired of knitting socks.  I have never left an orphan sock, but I've been close.  I do enjoy the two at a time method.  It's been quite awhile since I've worked on socks.  September to be exact.  I stopped to work on Christmas knitting, then other things grabbed my attention recently.  So, I picked up a pair of hybernating socks and again became hooked.

I finished a pair yesterday, went to the mailbox to find this:

 It's from Winding River Yarns' Harry Potter yarn club.  What timing!  So, I quickly wound it into two cakes and this morning cast on for Melissa Morgan-Oakes' Tuscany socks.  I have time today to wait for my father to have a medical test so I can work on this or the little (for now) scrap yarn blanket I'm making with remnants of socks.  I'll post about that later...

Son #1 has the flu!

Well, my luck ran out Saturday evening - son #1 began the fever, body aches, and cough associated with the flu.  Bless is heart - he is miserable.  It's such a big deal to miss school at his age, too.  The missed lectures and make up work can seriously impact his grades.  However, this can't be helped.

The weekend did have a few positive points.  I finished my socks, the sunroom painting was completed, and our hometown team upset Kansas in the elite 8 of the NCAA tournament.  This town is not known for it's college sports, so this is enormous around here.

About the socks, they are from Melissa Morgan-Oakes' book http://www.amazon.com/Toe-Up-2-at-Time-Melissa-Morgan-Oakes/dp/1603425330/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1301327424&sr=8-2 Toe Up 2 at a Time Socks.  I much prefer knitting socks toe up and the two at a time method prevents the awful second sockitis!

Well, it's been 2 months...

I have been away from the blog for 2 months.  It all started with my bout with the flu, despite having ensured the entire family had been vaccinated.  I must admit, my episode was mild in comparison with that of others, but it was a miserable few days.  Once I was well, son #2 arrived home from school with the same symptoms, but his case was mild as well.  Son #2 recovered and attended school for a whole week and one day.  Then, the secondary infection began and four more days of school were missed before all work was completed from the first illness.  After antibiotics, an inhaler, and nose spray, a new round of missed work has been completed.  In the meantime, darling husband, son #1  and I were visited by yet another upper respiratory illness.  Sadly, I was the only one who lost a voice during this entire mess!    Fingers are crossed that son #1 and darling husband have avoided the flu entirely.

Between all of this, I was finalizing decisions to demolish and rebuild our sunroom (as it was a do-it-yourself project gone wrong by the previous owner) and replace the roof on the entire house.  At this point, the roof is on and the sunroom is nearing completion.

Sunroom before:

Sunroom during:

And our living room, storing all the sunroom furniture, etc:




I have been knitting.  I completed a beaded scarf for my mother's birthday, am finishing some hybernating socks, began a scarf for Christmas 2011 (not because I'm so well organized, but because I wanted to learn double knitting and this pattern is perfect for a dear horse riding friend), and began a shawl designed by Mary Keenan for another possible Christmas gift.  The previously mentioned sweater for my husband is hybernating, as it is fairly complicated and my head is not capable of such at this point.

But, the best news of all is baseball season is upon us.  My sons both play little league and I love watching them play.  We are also planning a trip to either Washington DC or Baltimore to see our  beloved St. Louis Cardinals play this summer.  I can't wait until the seasons begin.  Sadly, last night the basketball season of my alma mater, the University of Richmond, came to an end.  However, I am so proud of how they played - the sweet sixteen in the NCAA tournament is nothing to sneeze at (and I've been doing plenty of that!).

KAL and other exciting things...

The flu and life have had the best of me for the last few days, but I'm back up and going and so excited about a couple of things.

First, a wonderful group on Ravelry.com, called Knitting and Tea and Cookies, is starting a knit-along in February.  We are actually making a hat designed by the group's leader, Mary Keenan.  I've already made a couple of her designs and they are great.  So, I went out today and purchased yarn to make the hat, a scarf, and convertible mittens.  The yarn is Noro Silk and is really beautiful.

The second bit of excitement was waiting on my porch when I returned home.  It's a new book by Kathleen Taylor called Fearless Fair Isle Knitting.  I am so excited to look through it, but really terrified to make most of the projects!

Isn't it beautiful!  I'm off to read and plan.

Day 1 of Torture!

I have finally succumbed to my sister's determination to get healthy.  She really hasn't nagged me, just the thought of her getting up at 4:45 in the morning to drive to the YMCA practically in my front yard to exercise has bothered me.  She and I are both overweight.  Her knees and hips are impacted.  I'm just really tired of outgrowing clothes at my age. 

So, last night I set the alarm for 4:45.  This morning wasn't so bad.  I got up got ready and made it to the Y at 5 am.  I'm not a swimmer, and neither is she, but this is really great exercise that is easy on the joints, so we kicked with kick boards like the little kids in beginner swim lessons.  There were other people there, swimming lap after lap of freestyle as we shared a lane and kicked.  I can't see a thing without my glasses, so when she informed me that we had been swimming for all of 5 minutes, I almost cried.  But I kept going.  I flipped on my back and kicked, I walked a little, but mostly I kicked on my stomach with that kick board.  She made me stay there for 45 minutes! 

Exiting the pool without my glasses and those poor, rubbery legs wasn't fun.  Neither was exiting the building in 21 degree air with wet hair, but I had to get back home to start my day.  I must admit, having worn my body out like that will make me question what I eat.  I certainly am not going to torture myself and then chow down on just anything.  We'll see about that.  Hopefully, I'll be able to get up tomorrow!

On the knitting front, I'm almost finished with the back to my husband's sweater.  Parent pick-up lanes and piano lessons allow for wonderful knitting time.  I am also listening to books on my iPad.  Right now I'm almost finished with Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins.  I loved the first book, The Hunger Games.  There is a third and final book which has been met with mixed reviews.  I'll see.  I'm still waiting for it to become available from the library as an audiobook.

In addition, I have to mention the wonderful knitting project bags I recently ordered from an Etsy vendor.  The store is Funtific and the items are of the best quality, reasonable prices and FREE SHIPPING!  I couldn't be more pleased.