I'm Not Dead, I've Just Been Knitting

I know it's been a long time since I blogged. I did try one day last week, but I could not get into my account. I figured it was some Google problem, not mine, but then I got busy again, and, well, another week has come.

As the title suggests, I have recently refound my love of knitting. I have knit off and on over the years, usually off, but when Lori was here in July, I watched her knitting and it rekindled a long-sleeping desire to knit something by hand. Due to my hate of being cold, I decided I would knit a cardigan to keep me warm during the cold winter months as I type. I found a cute pattern, some yarn on sale, and bravely began. I started the back of this cardigan AT LEAST 10 times. I kept goofing it up, dropping a stitch, forgetting where I was, not liking how it looked. ARGH! That is the reason I go off knitting so frequently. I can't get anything accomplished.

But this time I perservered and the back, tada!, is finished. I am currently working on the left front. Now, whether or not this sweater will be done by cold weather remains to be seen, but I am determined to at least finish it sometime. One of the reasons why I am enjoying the knitting this time is that I have taught myself to knit in the Continental or left-hand method.

I should say I had a sort of Continental style before, but it never felt like I was doing it right, and, well, my fears were confirmed when I looked on You Tube and found a fabulous video of a knitter knitting in Continental style. Why, I said to myself, that looks nothing like what I do. I watched said video several times, attempted knitting, watched again, and finally got the hang of it. It is slow going at first, but if you keep doing it, it becomes more natural, and it is so much faster than American knitting. (It hurts me to say that. I should call it Canadian knitting. Just kidding, just kidding. Don't get out the lynch mob, kids.)

I am posting a link to the You Tube video, but not a picture of my knitting. No, I will keep you in suspense for that until the sweater is finished. Hopefully that's in a few weeks, but, please, people, don't hold your breath. I will not be responsible for any knitting-related fatalities.

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=XuRLFl36tDY

The Nest is Empty

Gary and I have been empty-nesters for about a month now. There are some good things about it, and some bad things about it. Here are my top ten lists of the good and the bad about empty-nesting.

Top Ten Good Things About Being an Empty-Nester

10. The house is peaceful and quiet.
9. Eric's room stays very clean.
8. I can get all the laundry finished for the week in two loads.
7. The phone doesn't ring as much.
6. A small roast lasts us nearly a week.
5. I never lie awake at night listening for the sounds of kids coming home.
4. On Sunday afternoons there's two couches available for a nap, no waiting.
3. I can't remember the last time I changed a diaper.
2. The TV can be on CNN for a long time and nobody complains.
1. Going out for dinner costs less for two.

Top Ten Bad Things About Being an Empty-Nester

10. The house is way too quiet.
9. I can't hear Eric singing in his bedroom.
8. I don't do much laundry, so I can't justify a new washer and dryer.
7. We get more phone calls from telemarketers than anyone else.
6. A small roast lasts us nearly a week.
5. I get woken up at night by the sound of my own snoring.
4. Sometimes Sunday naps start before church is even over.
3. I can't remember a lot of things.
2. I think we watch CNN too much.
1. Going out for dinner costs more for two now than it used to for five.

Forgotten Treasures

Today I was cleaning the kitchen and decided the little table I have in there needed a fresh tablecloth. I went to my drawer of tablecloths just thinking I would get out the plain dark green one when my eye was caught by some pretty 30's fabrics, and suddenly I remembered the tablecloth I had made a few years ago out of 30's fabrics. I wanted to make a Lone Star tablecloth, but I wanted it to lay nice and flat and have matching points and be, well, good. I knew I probably couldn't do that on my own, so I bought a Quiltsmart fusible Lone Star kit.



It was so easy to do and everything came out perfectly. I then added more fabric to make a 70-inch circle, plus some cute machine embroidery daisies and voila! Now, the main reason I had forgotten this tablecloth is because when we moved to Lethbridge and we had a large dining room, we put the leaf in the table and it was no longer round, so I hadn't used it on the dining room table in a long time, and the second reason is my mind, sadly, is going. You've heard of the adage, Out of sight, out of mind. That is me in a nutshell. (Hopefully not me in a nuthouse one day!)

I'm trying to put a positive spin on the forgetfulness. When I forget I have things it's like having new things all the time without spending any more money. So here's a picture of my "new" tablecloth. I'm hoping now that I have forgotten a stack of $20 bills somewhere in the house.

Africa Day

In my last post I told you about the project to make dresses for girls in Africa. Since I knew September would be busy, I decided on Saturday (August 30) that that would be my sewing day. I had 18 t-shirts and 18 skirts all cut out and ready to go, and so Saturday I sewed all day and finished them all. I got out the serger, and they are so much quicker with a serger and done better, too, I think, as nothing will fray. Here is a picture of all 18 dresses on my bed. They look so pretty! I really hope some little girls will love them.

I was sewing the dresses for Africa when my sister, Gayle, called to tell me of their mission call, and I wasn't one bit surprised when she said she and her husband had been called to the Nairobi Kenya Mission. I had guessed Africa long before. I figured they were young and healthy, and the church would need to send them somewhere they couldn't send a couple with health issues. They will be working with humanitarian services in the employment center. I'm so proud of them. They will be fabulous.

Saturday really was Africa Day!