Missing You

I met my husband in the fall of 1965, and although, it's cliche to say so, it was truly love at first sight...for both of us. 

This picture was taken just a couple of years ago, and every time I see it, I want to wrap my arms around him and tell him how much I've cherished our 45 years together.  He was the most generous, understanding, and loving man I've ever known.  He loved his daughters and myself with his whole heart and soul.  We were so lucky to have him in our lives.

I lost my sweet husband on December 20, 2011, and this is the first time I've been able to write a thing about it. 

I've missed my Blog, but I'm sure you'll all understand why I took such a long time off.  When I made my last entry back in November, I had decided to take a break for the holidays, and come right back to it after Christmas.  As it turned out, just a week before Christmas, my husband suffered a heart attack, and my life is changed forever.

My 3 girls and I are so fortunate to be blessed with such a loving, caring, and helpful family....I could never thank them enough for all they did and are still doing to make my life a little easier.

In a few days, Pink Strawberries will return, and I hope to pick up where I left off.  I miss my husband every day, and I know I'll never be the same, but I am doing better, and I think getting back to knitting and my Blog will help.

Stash Enhancement

Well, it's been a pretty busy couple of weeks.  We all have them now and then, and not a whole lot of knitting has been happening around here.  Not only that, but I haven't been posting or reading online, so blogging adventures have taken a real beating.

I'm back to normal now (whatever that means) and I thought I'd share my recent acquisition!  Beautiful yarn came via UPS over the weekend and after squishing it in my hands over and over again, I guarantee whatever this yarn becomes, I'll enjoy making it.  Let's see, there's some Fleece Artist, Shaefer, and two hanks of Lorna's Laces.  Can't wait!

Notice the tendency to lean toward pinky-rosy colors?  I just can't help myself, I suppose.  The colors in this posting are a bit deeper and richer in person, and I hope this comes through in future photos.  Thanks, SUNLIGHT, for not cooperating with me today.

Ball Winding.....gone wild!

Being a long-time-knitter, I've wound hundreds of balls of yarn over the years, but yesterday was a first!

I've been working with wonderful Malabrigo fingering weight yarn (which I love), and the time came to grab a new hank of yarn, wind it, and join it to my ongoing project....no big deal, right? 

After winding about one third into a ball, I came to the end of the yarn...what?  Ok, I can deal with that.  I added the new end to the ball, and continued to wind.....about 6 yards, and another end.....hmmm.  Alrighty, then.  I added this new end to the ball and what do you think happened?  You're right.  For the remainder of that darn hank of yarn, every 6-10 yards, another end of yarn slipped through my fingers.  What's up with that?

In another life, I'd have chucked the whole hank, and chalked it up to some weird yarn-fluke-thing, but I'm almost finished with that lovely pullover, and this was my last hank of yarn. 

The picture immediately above is an example of what I was dealing with.  You know what this means, don't you?  It means, I'm going to have about 15 joins in this sweater, instead of 3.  Crap!

I have used Malabrigo yarn for quite a while, and it's always been a joy to handle.  Has this ever happened to you? 

I know what you're thinking.  Maybe I cut the yarn accidentally.  No, I only snipped once, and the yarn hank was tied with a different color of other yarn. 

Not wanting to end on such a sour note, I did win a $25 coupon from Eat, Sleep, Knit!

So much knitting...so little progress

Row after row of stockinette is looking beautiful in this Malabrigo Tiziano Red, isn't it?  Although it's an easy knit (I'm nearly ready to begin the sleeve prep), it does take a lot of time with fingering weight yarn.

I'm eager to have this completed before Thanksgiving, and with socks and another shawl on the go, I need to pick up the pace!

Socks and Murder?

Nothing like a good murder mystery for sock inspiration, right? 

The Murder at the Vicarage is the title of these wee little beauties, and I'm certain you can see a definite basket slowly inching its way toward the heel.  I didn't find this pattern from any source, other than just repeating row after row of knit-4, purl-4, alternating every 4 rows, but I'm positive there are real patterns out there where a basket can be found.

If you happen to be a follower of Agatha Christie, namely, Miss Marple mysteries, you're familiar with her love of knitting, gardening, and sleuthing!  In this book, much of her detective skills are put to the test from her own little garden in Saint Mary Mead. 

I loved the book, and the fact that Miss Marple spent so much time in her garden, made me think of a lovely little basket laden with veggies or flowers. 

Many of Agatha Christie's novels have been televised, and with the help of YouTube, Joan Hickson's portrayal of Miss Marple is easily available. 

Progress

The sweet little pullover which I began last spring is nearly ready for sleeves.  Since the weather is cooling, it would be nice to have this on my daughter while fall is upon us.  Since the sleeves are short, finishing up this color favorite will be fun.  Heck, I almost forgot what the finished product is supposed to look like!

Violets are Blue, my second shawl in the "Be Mine" E-Book collection is nearly finished, and I'm so glad I decided to hold the lace doubled.  It would have been far too 'wispy' and unsubstantial with the lace yarn as is.

My Agatha Christie socks are on the needles, and I hope to post a picture as soon as I'm past the cuff, to give you an idea of what I'm going for.  I'm naming these socks "Murder at the Vicarage"....and I'll be sharing how I came to name them after this popular Miss Marple mystery.....soon, so stay tuned.

3rd in my Agatha Christie Sock series....coming up

This lovely Sweet Georgia fingering weight will be the yarn of choice for my third pair of socks in my Agatha Christie series.  I hope to get them on the needles today.

The pullover sweater I've been working on, ever so slowly, is still needing attention.  Now, with cooler weather making an appearance, the idea of warm wool across my lap, sounds comforting.

My shawl project has been taking a break, also....remember, "Violets Are Blue"?

I may as well explain why such a lag between postings.  As you might recall from my feeble attempt at Haiku....I did fall.  I tripped over our flagpole.....hard to explain, but it involved trying to keep the flag from touching the ground, and a sweet little dog on a leash.  Trying to manage both at the same time was my downfall, literally!

Without going into too much detail, I landed on my knee, and what would have amounted to an ugly bruise for most normal people, turned out to be a bit more complicated for me.  I had ruptured a vein.  Long story - short.....It's not serious, but keeping my leg elevated does make knitting nearly impossible.  Knitting withdrawal is making me crazy.

Here's hoping my needles will start clicking once again, and a great big thank you, for all your support and kind words.