I'm trying

I'm trying to blog more often, now that I've re-found my knitting passion. Oh and I keep changing my blog layout, sorry!

The blanket is coming along swimmingly, but I'm dealing with a little pain from it too. Whenever I'm out of practice, I have to re-exercise my arms and back to learn to deal with the repetition. It never works, but I like to imagine that it would.

I have been trying a few more stretches and exercises, as well as stopping to take a stretch every now and again, but I'm on a roll and don't want to stop as often as I should.

On top of all that my job is to just type, type, type all day at work, so on top of the repetition with the project, I've got repetition at work. I'm scaring myself into thinking I'm going to repetition myself into having my arms cut off one of these days! I wonder if I could learn to knit with hook hands?

The silly thing is that when I went to pick Chris up from work the other day, I was waiting in the car and found that it was the only comfortable spot I could find to sit and knit... go figure!

So once this sucker is done, I have one more to do. It'll probably be the same colors but maybe slightly different, not so many color changes and that makes for less weaving in later (bonus!). Plus I don't want to give both the girls identical blankets - though I keep hearing that little voice saying, "what if you give one a certain design and the other another design and they end up hating them and switching?"

It's so tough when two people you work closely with are pregnant at the same exact time!

I've planned on my summer (read: HEAT) knitting. I'm going to finish up a pair of socks that I'd started for Chris and I'm also going to finish the Rona Lace Shawl. No more projects until those guys are done!

I also decided that I'm finally going to make my sweater, the Bombshell sweater from Big Girl Knits. I've been pining over this sweater for probably more than 2 years and I've been scouring the internet for the perfect yarn, but nothing has jumped out at me.

Since it's a short sleeved sweater and I live in southern California, all I've been able to find is wool, wool and more wool. Well, 90+ degrees and wool just don't mix. I'd had a bad experience with some cotton years ago, which I won't go into, so I've been having a hard time trying to find the color I want, along with the fiber I want. So I've put it off and put it off and put it off, but I think I'm coming around and I've found a few leads. This sweater just might get made!

I've also done some organizing in my sewing room. I've ditched some yarn (cheapy Red Heart style). I would have given it away but it's got some sort of sticky substance on it, kind of like old grease on a dirty kitchen stove... It was handed down to me some years ago and I never did anything with it... I picked it up once to play and that's when I discovered the "stuff" on it... I'd put it in a bag with some other half-used crappy yarn but I'd never done anything with it.. now I've finally thrown it away...

We also bought new tubs since we're recently having a moth problem (the little buggers keep sneaking in the house!!!). I used to keep my stash in these rubbermaid style drawers but with time, the drawers would slide out on their own. They'd be on a flat surface so I have no clue why they would slide out like that. But it left just enough gap that I was worried... Upon moving my stash I didn't see anything suggesting an infestation, but I'm going to slowly but surely freeze what I have and kill off any potential invaders.

Going through my yarn however brought up some stuff I'd forgotten I bought. Tons of sock yarn (yummm). My brother in law's girlfriend had "gently suggested" I make her a pair of socks... the conversation went like this...

Me: Yeah I knit, I knit all kinds of things. This is a pair of socks I'd started for Chris... ::holding up sock in progress::

Willow: Ooh really? Well, I wear a size (enter number here) shoe... ::big grin::

So I guess she wants me to knit her a pair of socks. LOL! She's so sweet I don't mind actually. I just have to be sneaky and find out her actual shoe size and what colors she likes.