Knittin' Myself Silly

I really hope that I am not the only Knitter out there that worries about this...............

Each time we go anywhere in the car I take my knitting. Occasionally we go somewhere that my knitting needs to stay behind in the car. For some reason I hide my knitting in the car or in the trunk. Why? Well, I don't want it to get stolen. No matter how much HoneyBunny assures me that no one is going to break into our vehicle to steal my knitting I still worry. He has assured me that if they were to steal anything it would be our stereo system, items from our emergency bag, etc. "Ya but what if they really like the yarn? You know how nice this yarn is!" His reply, "Trust me, no one is going to steal it." How does he know? There could be some homeless or desperate yarnaholic out there somewhere just looking for their next fix. I am glad he is so understanding and patient with me because my daughter thinks I am nuts!

So I have to know, do you hide your yarn or knitting in fear that it might get stolen out of your car or house? I can't be the only one that would be relieved to find that the burglers only took the television and stereo but didn't touch my yarn stash.

Ok, with that said, now for my latest knitting adventures.......and I must say that living in "Crazy Town USA" promotes A LOT of knitting!





I knit all of that in the last week and a half. I am not joking! All of them are my own designs. I especially like the dishcloths!! and that last brown sock with the tan details! No, the family is walking around in clean clothes and have eaten at least two meals a day. I don't know how I did it. I didn't knit Saturday because The Daughter and I went to Salt Lake to go look at prom dresses and yarn stores. I didn't knit Sunday because I thought my hands probably could use a break. Somehow I managed to knit all of that in that short amount of time. It was fun!!!!

And yes, I am sure I have just about knit myself silly at this point. Oh, well. At least I am enjoying my days a little more.

Anytime!

Anytime.........I just keep telling myself that things are going to get better and things are going to start going good anytime.

I am having a really difficult day. It actually started Sunday at church--kind of an odd place for a bad day to start I know. I hate it when I am faced with the reality that some people are loved and special and I am not (or so the people around you act). I have been brooding over this fact for a couple of days. Then my son decided to try to go to boy scouts here again. It was just as bad as it was a month ago--the last time he went and swore he would never go again. THAT WAS IT!! I had taken all I was going to take from this town of mentally incompetent, male chauvinist pigs!! and empty headed, brow beaten, ignorant women. I marched down to the church and the scout leader and I had a talk. Well, actually, I was talking mostly to the brick wall, because he obviously was not listening, and he was talking to a woman (who has 100 times the IQ he is used to addressing) as if she was one of the stupid women he is used to dealing with. He is so lucky I grew out of my habit of kicking/punching boys who think they are better than girls simply because their dad said so! After several attempts to get Neanderthal Man to understand the point of the conversation I gathered my children and walked out, without saying good-bye or anything. I hope he gets abducted by a legion of Amazons and has to spend the rest of his days as a lowly servant to them!!!

So, now what? Do I just never go to church again? There is no way I am going to get my son to go. The men who are the scout leaders are also the boys youth group leaders--one of which thinks that it is his job "to turn these boys into men". OVER MY DEAD BODY WILL THAT MAN TURN MY SON INTO SOMEONE LIKE HIM!!!! MAKE NO MISTAKE!!

I think I will pack up and go back to Earth where the real people live, or at least the morons are still out-numbered enough that you don't notice them as much.

As if all of this isn't enough, HoneyBunny was told, again, Monday that his back is not repairable. In other words he has a "failed back". He keeps falling down because he will suddenly not have any feeling in his legs. He has fallen twice here at the motel in the hallway and once at Walmart in just the last three weeks. Aside from being scary, it is terribly demeaning and embarrassing for him. Each time he hurts himself also, either his ankle or his knee. Today he fell again and rug burned his arm really bad. I don't know what to do. It's awful. Maybe if we had a boat-load of money the doctors would be more motivated to help him. Moving here to the armpit of America was not a good idea--no doctors, no specialists, etc. that's for sure!

I just want to go home. Can I?

Look! More Pretties!

I spent an entire day last week playing with my yarn and dye. I just finished getting them all listed in my etsy store. I thought they were so pretty I would share them with you! If you see something you really like, rush over to my etsy store and get the skein for yourself. A lot of my hand dyed yarns are a "One of a Kind" so you won't find another just like it anywhere. I love to play with the colors so none of them are the "true" colors that I started with.

Superwash sock yarn in "Navajo" and "Flowers in the Forest".

Merino and Alpaca blend fingering weight yarn in "Girly Girl" and "Sunny Skies". This yarn would be PERFECT for all of those scandinavian mittens. I have skeins in "Natural" that you could combine with these colorful ones. It would be gorgeous!

These are the first skeins of Laceweight that I have added to my store. "Aztec Gold" and "Glacier". Great colors don't you think!?

I had a huge mess when I got done. HoneyBunny took one look around and he's like, "Havin' a good time? Will we get to eat dinner tonight?"

I ordered pizza.

Oooo! Ahhhh!

And here, for your fiber/yarn viewing pleasure, are my latest adventures:

This is my latest yarn off of the spinning wheel. A luscious blend of satin angora, wool, and bombyx silk. I LOVE IT! And "NO!" Julia you can't have it! (She has bought some of this from me in the past and knows how amazing this yarn is). I have one more skein to finish and then I have to find the right pattern so that I can make something for me out of it. This first skein came up to about 320 yards of sport weight sized yarn. I can't wait to wear it!

This is some LOVELY fingering weight, merino/bamboo blend yarn that I found at a yarn shop the other day along with...............................................

This delicious kid mohair/silk blend yarn and..................................

This yarn.

Aren't they all just wonderful!! I can't wait to knit it all up! That beautiful blue mohair blend is going to become this, and the other two skeins will become socks. The Daughter especially likes the Tofutsies so I am sure she will end up with some socks from it.

I have pretty much recovered from my "Spring Fever" for now. It snowed 6 inches in the last two days and dropped down to 21 below zero. Somehow that just seemed to take the wind right out of my sails. So I am back to loving winter and feeling like a bear all snuggled up warm and safe from the ice and cold. We are supposed to see more snow the next few days.

And now I am off to create my latest idea. I thought of it the other night as I was trying to go to sleep. If it turns out well I will post pictures here and list them for sale in my etsy store. Stay tuned................................................................................

I Feel it Coming

I don't know what it is, but about this time of year I get a "bee in my bonnet". "What?" you say. Well if you look back through my blog every year at this time I start getting........hmmm trying to find a way to describe it..........wander lust? I start feeling like it's time to migrate. Spring is coming so it's time to start thinking about moving, building a nest in a new tree, beginning a garden on a new patch of soil.

I blame it on my mother and ancestors from that side of my family. They were a wild and nomadic bunch! I have native americans, gypsies, and pioneers in my past. The way I was raised didn't help much either. I spent the first eighteen years of my life hunting, hiking, water skiing, motorcyle riding (dirt bikes on trails), scuba diving, rock hunting, camping, snow skiing, etc, etc, etc. Even when we did come home (? to the house that wasn't attached to the boat or truck, or wasn't the tent) I didn't spend much time in it. We always lived out away from the population. So I spent my time outside hiking in my back yard, building indian dwellings, cooking over the fire, etc. (side note here: One of my indian dwellings was "discovered" by park rangers and now features a lovely sign that tells all about the anasazi people that built it. LOL!)

In addition to all of the outdoor sporting stuff, my mother also liked to move around a lot! About every six months or so she would convince my dad that she needed new surroundings. We wouldn't necessarily move to a new town--though we did that a few times also--but just to a different house. (I lived in seven different houses in a town who's population was only 1,300 people.) The years that we didn't move she would completely rearrange, repaint, and/or remodel the house we were living in.

Anyway, so every year as soon as New Years is over I start feeling like a little animal ready to come out of hibernation. It really is awful. It's like cabin fever, but more intense. I remember sitting in school in April watching the breeze blow the new leaves around on the trees thinking, "If I have to sit in here one more minute I am going to have a melt-down." I had and still have a terrible time being inside, especially if the sun is shining!

So, here I am today; standing in the lobby of the motel, looking out these huge windows that give a 180 degree view of outside, the sun is shining, and I am feeling the stirrings of a restless spirit.

The Good and The Bad

I'll start with the good stuff so if you don't want to listen to me whine about the bad you can just skip it at the end :)

GOOD STUFF!!

Yarn/knitting is always good stuff. Here are my latest two sock projects all done. The first pair are for the Sockamaina KAL. It was a previous monthly pattern but since January is "Make-up Month" I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to get them done. (Christmas had kind of interferred with them getting finished). I used Sockamania's "Get Fruity" pattern and Tofutsies yarn. Next time I make them I will use a solid color so that the pattern is visible since it kind of disappears into the varigation of this yarn. (I turned my foot backwards because the patterning on the back of the sock is completely different that the patterning on the front)

The second pair is made from the "Log Cabin Socks" pattern from "Handknit Holidays". GREAT PATTERN! No mistakes, works up super fast with worsted weight yarn....just a great pattern. I used some yarn that I had hand dyed a dark mossy forest green. However, as I approached the toe of the second sock, to my horror, I realized that I did not have enough yarn to finish it! Of course I had only dyed one skein--I don't need to emphasize the feelings here, all of you Knitter's know just what I mean! So after punishing the entire project for a few weeks for taking more yarn than it was supposed to I ripped back the toe of the first sock, knitted the second sock until both socks were the same length and the last tiny bit of yarn was used up, then finished both toes with a nice golden tan color that actually accented my yarn perfectly. And forgave the pattern for leaving me in a panic.

Here's something fun! My sister-in-law gave me this adorable apron for Christmas. Annie had bought one this past summer and I have wanted one since. This ain't your Grandma's apron! Made out of top quality fabrics, reversable and so cute I would wear it to town!

We ended up have a nice Christmas even though we were stuck at work for the entire holiday season. The kids got lots of fun great stuff. There was plenty of chocolate to go around (Santa was experiencing PMS when she was shopping I guess). Now with it all over.....all of the regular stuff is going on.

I think I am just tired. No one told me that getting old wears you out. I was watching a show last night about a couple that had six babies at once in addition to their two older daughters. They think that it's taxing to feed, change, and clothe them--JUST WAIT until they all become teenagers at once! I'd be selling them off I think. Farm them out to people who have no children or something! The drama, the grades, boys, girls, friends, peer pressure....need I say more? I don't remember why I wanted children at this point. I am definately tired!

For those of you considering getting your teenager/child a cell phone...DON'T DO IT!!!! It seems like such an innocent, good idea. It's not, don't be fooled, don't be sucked in. It is the source of evil--I am sure of it. My kids honestly will walk through molten lava then crawl over broken glass to keep from getting their phone taken away. They think that somehow their very life existence depends on the possession of their phone--like it is some kind of life support system.

The Motel Management life isn't any more fun than having a house full of teenagers either. I get really tired of rude people! I had no idea that the general population was so awful. I've spent so many years around Knitter's and fiber people I was beginning to think everyone was like us. NOT SO! What I wouldn't give to hang out with my own kind for a few days. I had a lady check in last night from an area in Washington that I know has a great yarn store. I mentioned the fact and she said that her mom knitted and liked that yarn store. I couldn't stop myself from gushing on and on about yarn, knitting, patterns, fiber, Knitters. I am sure the lady thought I was quite off my rocker--she was a Non-Knitter. I am getting desperate enough that I have actually considered taking out a "personal" ad. in the classifieds: "Desperately seeking male or female, any age, for knitting companionship. Must have large, out of control stash of yarn, more knitting needles and patterns than they could ever use in two lifetimes, a complete disregard for resisting wool/cashmere fumes, and a lack of conscience when they spend their entire months grocery money on yarn. Please respond soon....I am loosing my mind." I just told my husband that I was going to do this and he said, "DO IT!" He knows me so well it's scary.

Well, I need some lunch and a few hours of personal time with my yarn.

Just wanted to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Hope all of your holiday season is wonderful and full of love.

Best Wishes,

Tama

What a Knitter Wants

As Christmas approaches each year the questions begin. "What do you (the kids, the husband) want for Christmas?" The kids are getting more and more difficult to buy for. Gone are the days of $8 Barbies and $5 car sets. Now the kids are wanting Laptops ($650 to $2000), the latest video games ($40 to $300), and clothes ($40+). Christmas has gone from spending $200 to having to take out a second mortgage.

As a Knitter (notice I capitalized--it's like saying you're American--it's who you are!) I always want the same thing. Sure it's nice to get dishes, jewelry, etc. But what I really want is YARN! and knitting books. As silly as this may seem to you Non-Knitters out there, it's true. The funny thing is, if you buy me yarn there is a really good chance that when I am done with it it will have become a present for you.

See, you can't buy a Knitter sweaters, mittens, hats, socks, or a lovely cashmere scarf for Christmas. You won't offend us, but look at it this way--you just took all of the fun out of the present. I LLLOOOOOVVVEEEEE knitted items! Beautiful shawls, intricately cabled sweaters, angora mittens and scarves, socks made from 12 different colors of yarn all knit into wonderful Turkish designs, and who doesn't love anything cashmere! But for a Knitter it's not just the end product that we love, we love the process also. Sitting for hours looking for just the right pattern, winding the yarn into balls, then relishing every moment of that lovely yarn sliding through your hands as you work your magic on it. Then when the item is finished you can either wrap it up for someone else--who doesn't knit--or put it on and everytime someone comments on it you can say, "Ya, I made it." and they say, "WOW!"

Not sure what yarn or pattern book to buy for the Knitter on your list? Get on the internet and buy them a gift certificate!! KnitPicks has a fantastic selection of yarns, patterns, books, and accessories. They make it so easy to get a gift certificate that it shouldn't even be considered shopping. If you think that for one minute that your Knitter will be disappointed to just get a gift certificate for Christmas THINK AGAIN! They will be thrilled! Knitter's love money that has no other purpose for it other that to be spent on yarn!

KnitPicks isn't the only place that you can get gift certificates. Your local yarn stores offer them, and if you want to give them a certificate for something really special go to Etsy and find a yarn shop there! Etsy is a huge collection of individuals who have shops selling all sorts of hand made items and supplies to make your own. Fiber for spinning and all sorts of yarns, hand dyed and commercial, can be found there. Many of the stores offer gift certificates and if they don't you can e-mail them and ask them if you can get one from them. It's a fun place to shop! TRUST ME! Your Knitter will be thrilled.

HoneyBunny figured out several years ago that I will be happier with a big bag of yarn and knitting accessories than anything else he could get for me. Diamonds are ok, gold is fine, but yarn is divine!

So this year, "give the gift that keeps on giving" or give a gift that will become a gift for you. Give yarn! It's what a Knitter wants.

An Inconvenience

I received a forwarded e-mail the other day that has taken on a special meaning to me the last few weeks. It said:

"GOOD AFTERNOON!

Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of electricity, gas, and oil,

the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off.

We apologize for the inconvenience...."

So that's what's wrong!!!! I have been wondering why I can't see my way out of here. If you are feeling the same, now you know why.

The Worst Day Ever

Ok, I am going to start with an apology. I promised myself I would quit whining about my problems, but if I don't do something I am going to explode!!!!! Here is how my day went:

1. A large group of high school boys and coaches checked in last night in addition to our regular Friday night guests. So we had three times the number of guests that we normally have. I called several days in advance to make sure that PLENTY of maids would be here this morning to clean. I even told myself that if it got to far out of hand that I would fill in.

2. We open the office/lobby at 7:30am and the maids are supposed be here ready to go at 8:00am. Back up for just a moment I forgot that at 4:30am the phone rings and one of the toilets in one of the rooms is plugged--later discover that not only is it plugged, but it has run over and the entire bathroom is a wadding pool. Needless to say, after not getting to bed last night until just before midnight then waking up to a huge mess my husband and I started the day VERY TIRED!

3. Anyway, back to the maid disaster--At 7:52 the MOTHER of two of the girls that were supposed to come in called and said that they forgot they had other plans this morning. I begin to worry.

4. At 8:00 the MOTHER of the head maid calls and says that her daughter just woke up (this woman is in her 30's!) and will be late. I am beginning to panic.

5. At 8:15 I realize that the lady we hired and trained last week is not going to show. Now I am just plain pissed off!!!

6. The Daughter, who thank goodness hadn't made any other plans for her day, graciously agreed to start stripping rooms by herself--she is such a wonderful daughter make no mistake!

7. I throw myself together (for cleaning) and join her in getting the rooms changed.

8. I had to go down to the office about 30 minutes into the previous event to take care of something when a mentally challenged/disturbed woman and her obviously helpless caretaker decide to burst into the lobby. The woman was yelling, "Who's here?" over and over and her caretaker couldn't get her to be quiet or leave. As I frantically tried to think of what to do this woman came around the front desk and marched herself into MY living quarters--still yelling and hitting her caretaker. I am sorry, I lost it!!!! I told the caretaker to get her the hell out of my house. Then I found my husband and told him to get the womans family on the phone and
GET DOWN HERE NOW! In the mean time the woman heads for my bedroom, I freak out and slam my bedroom door and lock myself in there until HoneyBunny says that the woman and caretaker went out our back door. I promptly close and lock it also as to prevent any re-entry!
Don't know what became of the two of them, but when her father showed up he didn't even apologize for the incident and simply brushed it off with, "Oh well, that's just what happens every once in a while." EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If it ever happens again I will simply call 911 and freak out on her father!

9. No it's not over yet. In fact it isn't even 9:00am yet! Finally the head maid shows up. She must have sensed the tension in the air because she didn't even say "hi" she just went to work. Unfortunately no one else ever showed up to help.

10. Shortly after the head maid showed up I had to return to my regular job--manager--and start trying to fix the disaster from last night. Two rooms had dogs in them that the guests lied about and didn't pay for. So I have to be the bad guy and charge their credit cards for having pets in the room.

11. Husband and I get into a HUGE fight over what I can't even remember--we were both so tired it was inevitable. He leaves for a while.

12. I sit on my pity pot and feel guilty for not helping clean rooms for a while.

13. At 3:00pm there are only four rooms that are completely finished. Why it's taking so long, I don't know!!!! But the head maid says that she has to leave because her baby is sick.

14. The Daughter, my son, and I clean 9 rooms in two hours and left the rest of the rooms for tomorrow. Maybe we'll be really slow and not rent any rooms tonight? Ya right!

Ok, so there you have it. My day all the way up until 5:30pm. I can't wait to see how the evening turns out.

Oops! An Update

I didn't realize I hadn't written for so long until my dear friend called the other day and said, "What's up? You haven't written on your blog in a long time! Is everything ok?" I explained that I have been so busy knitting that I haven't taken the time to write.

It seems like every year as it gets close to Christmas that I write less and less frequent. All of my free time is spent baking and knitting so writing takes a back seat.

So what have I been knitting?

SOCKS!

This pattern is called "Little Flowers". It was the August (I think) pattern for Sockamania. I had them almost done when "THE MOVE" happened. Of course, in the mean time I started several other knitting projects and three more Sockamania patterns came out.

I finished these two days ago. The yarn is some that I swapped for with Hege. I made a plain pair quite a while ago, but wanted something different for this pair. I started and ripped out four or five different pattern ideas until I said, "That's it! I am just going to start knitting and whatever comes to me is what they will be!" I knew I had to knit them from the toe up because I only had so much yarn left and I wanted to make sure I had enough to make a pair. So here is what turned out. I knit a regular foot with a "Ripples" pattern top. I had plenty of yarn and they turned out nice.

In addition to these two projects, I have knit several Christmas gifts. I will post pictures of them after Christmas though since I don't want to spoil the surprises. Suffice it to say that I have knit five gifts in the last two weeks. See! That's why I haven't been writting on my blog.

Thanksgiving was.......hmmmm.....ok I guess. Managing a motel and living there at the same time means that just because it's the holiday doesn't mean you get the day off. Which makes it difficult to cook dinner and keep up with the phone and front desk at the same time. Christmas will be the same.

Speaking of Christmas, I have been decorating the motel! I have a lot of space to decorate and allthe time to do it so I've been having some fun.

Fun Stuff!!! I love the holidays!

Nothing in particular

Ya, so that is my answer to anything when something goes wrong.--"That's it I'm moving to Mexico!" I visited the Yucatan Penisula and Cozumel at a very impressionable age, had the most amazing time of my life, and so now anytime I want to escape that is the first place that comes to mind. I have even told my husband that rather than go through another divorce, I will simply disappear, and "don't bother trying to find me because I know some great places to hide in Mexico".



Things here in the "new" place are, no surprise here, not as great as I envisioned. Rarely do things turn out the way I think they will. Don't get me wrong, a job that allows me knit myself silly is not ALL bad. However, it's not necessarily the "job" that is the trouble. I have already had to let go one of the maids because she wanted to go into the rooms, lay on the bed, and listen to her I-Pod instead of clean. As a result her grandmother, that she lives with, came in and proceeded to scream obscenities at me for 15-20 minutes until HoneyBunny came out and told her--in a language she obviously understood--to leave NOW! or we were calling the police. Ya, that was fun (not!). I can't say that anyone has ever talked to me that way.

Our ladies that come in to cover for us so that we can have a day off are a few sheep short of a flock--if you know what I mean. One got all mad at me last week because the cash drawer was short and I called her to ask her about it. She promptly reminded me that she is, "just here to HELP and if it is too much trouble having her come in she doesn't HAVE to come in." Hmmmm, well volunteers HELP out of the goodness of their heart, not for pay. AND "help" is only "help" if it makes things better--not more work. So, I don't know what to do......have her keep coming in to "help" or find someone that is interested in "working".

As if that isn't enough, The Daughter has a girl that has decided to pick on her at school and because the girls dad belongs to one of the Olympic bob-sled teams the principal doesn't want to do anything about it. It wouldn't be to much of an issue except that this past week the girl grabbed The Daughter by the throat and slammed her down onto a desk. Ya, the principal got the wrong side of me as a result!! The next day the girl was moved to another class--one that my daughter is not in. After talking to a few of the people around here that also have kids in the High School my daughter isn't the only one that this girl picks on. Hmmmm, in Colorado this girl would have been arrested and put into juvenile hall for even mentioning harming, or bullying, another student. The principals answer to this comment? "Well you're in Wyoming now." WHAT!?



So, you see what I mean? I am homesick. I don't want to move back, I just want to be surrounded by Non-Wyoming minded people for awhile until I have recovered my sanity.

That's it! I'm moving to Mexico!

No, no wait! I can't wear handknit socks in Mexico--it's too hot. I'm moving to Norway. Look out Hege! Here we come.

Fun Stuff!

Halloween has come and gone. At least HoneyBunny was home this year!! We had fun dressing up. Since we moved to this small town the kids got to go Trick or Treating. They had a great time! The kids were really excited that HoneyBunny and I were all dressed up so we took this picture. Don't we make a cute couple?

HoneyBunny has decided that he wanted to try his hand at making jewelry. These are the first three rings he made. They are made from antique silver spoon and fork handles. Aren't they great!! I love them! So unique! Each one is one of a kind. I am going to be listing them for sale in my etsy store.

And.....Look at this adorable hat I finished over the weekend!!!!!! Once again, I was a woman possessed! I couldn't stop working on it. It is such a fun hat to make!! I think I'll make a hundred.

Of course The Daughter looks great in it. It is so handy to have such a cute model to put all of my hand knits on.

Well the new Sockamania sock pattern is out and I can't wait to get started! I am off to go knit some more.

FO's--FINALLY!

This is my "Hey Teach" sweater all done!! I mentioned that I was extremely obsessed with it a couple of months ago. I actually finished it before we started packing up to move, but since all of life has been consumed with the art of loading and unloading boxes for the last month and a half, I am just now getting the time to take pictures and write about this adorable little number.

And as if the sweater itself wasn't cute enough, check out the buttons that I found!!!!!! FOSSILS! I had to sit down and take a few deep breaths when I saw these. I have never seen buttons like this! I couldn't have special ordered a set of buttons that would have made me happier. (Yes I know, I am a little odd.) Who needs (blank) when you can knit a sweater from a pattern that is this easy, this cute, this well written, and then find buttons like these to put on the finished product? (Feel free to put your own words into the "blank").

I just finished these last night. They are the October Sockamania pattern. I knit them with some yarn I won from one of the KAL's I participate in. It's a bamboo/silk blend. I loved knitting with it!! It is reminds me of really good mercerized egyptian cotton, but with a softer hand and the drape of silk. A certain person from the "Christmas List" is going to really like these!

Speaking of "The Christmas List", how many of you are already making plans to knit all of your Christmas gifts this year? Ya, me too. I am falling into that same rut I find myself in about this time of year every year. (Ooo, I should make that lace shawl for... and those turkish socks for...and an afghan for... Ooo, and that sweater for...etc. etc. etc). It will be November in two days which means that I have less than two months to make all of these lovely projects for everyone on my list. Will I make it this year????? Nope! I never do. But who can resist all of that delicious yarn, the challenge of being "under the gun" at the last minute, and all of those great patterns? I've decided that planning knitting projects is a good chunk of the excitement and fun. After all, I like to think and talk about yarn and knitting almost as much as I like buy yarn and knit it.

So.............Happy Knitting!

I thought this was really cute!

Almost Normal

With my kitchen all in place, my bedroom completely unpacked, pictures finding their way onto the walls, and time to knit I am beginning to relax a little and enjoy my new circumstances. I even found my missing circular needles and all of my knitting books. I had no idea how important some of those items were to my feelings of well-being. Once certain things were in place the break-neck need to keep unpacking until everything was out of a box ended. WHEW! (Now I just need to recover from this stupid cold I managed to get because I wouldn't stop to rest). Now I am unpacking maybe one or two boxes a day or every other day depending on my mood. The biggest project left is to organize our storage/work room. I figure that it can wait until I am completely recovered from the move and winter is serious enough that outside adventures, on our day off, is not an appealing idea (it can stay at temperatures below zero for a daytime high).

Yesterday was our day off and we spent the entire day goofing off. No unpacking, no cleaning, no laundry, no nothing not fun. It was great!! We went out to eat pizza, drove up to the Uinta mountains--which are only about 30 miles away!--,bummed around town looking in stores (HoneyBunny bought me a gorgeous earring and necklace set for our anniversary), and then finished the day with the newest Indiana Jones movie and two hours of non-stop knitting! I loved it!

My Sockamania socks for the month of October are half way done!! Yeah!! It has been at least two months since I was able to complete anything so I am really excited about this project. I will definately post pictures of them when I finish.

In the mean time here are some pictures of my new home/job surroundings:

This is the view out of my kitchen window and the stained glass partition between the living

quarters and the front desk.

The Son and HoneyBunny's idea of moving......LOL!

And what would Wyoming be without antelope and buffalo? The antelope are the herd that hangs out on our lawns and the mountain outside my kitchen window and the buffalo hangs over the front desk.

I'll try to get some more pictures taken soon of the town etc. In the mean time my knitting is calling me and I better take advantage of it before things pick up this evening.

Happy Knitting! and whatever else you would say if you were from Wyoming--like "Ya'll come back now yu hear!" :o)