16 and 17

I finished washing my new hand spun yarns. Both were a bit of a challenge and I am glad that I spun them.  The blue yarn is a chain ply. The pastel is the boucle.  The boucle was the harder of the two yarns to spin. So I can say projects 16 and 17 are done for the year.

14 and 15

Projects 14 and 15 have been completed.  They have also left the house to head to there new home. I have more that are almost done. But I also started 2 new projects today, yes I know I have a lot of UFO’s and need to spend at least an hour a day finishing them.  Maybe I should just set office hours to knit and get projects done.  I wonder if Eric would corporate?  The only way to solve this problem is to knit and spin more. 

Middle of the Night Mom Duty.

Imagine be lulled to sleep after a very long day by the music of The Canadian Tenors.  Then imagine be rudely awakened by the sounds of a young man having trouble breathing.  Once the meter hit 92% I personally did not care how low it wanted to go, it was time for a breathing treatment.  I risk injury to myself when his oxygen level is so low.   He fights the treatment in shear panic.  Then it’s time to do a bit of knitting while I am waiting to give round two.  I got a good 3 inches knit, yes I am using bulky yarn and U.S. size 17 knitting needles.  Some child is going to enjoy this alpaca/ nylon blend scarf.

Then it is time for round 2. It is not a very good sign that he is just as combative.  But at least his oxygen level is up.  He did manage to tweak my left wrist on the second round. So what’s a mom to do?  Go to the kitchen and grab a soup spoon and the jar of Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter and dig in. A little late night snack and some unwind time.  With any luck Eric will be breathing well and fast asleep by the time I finish my peanut butter. Just maybe I will be ready to sleep again.  Although I am not counting on it.  There is too much noise coming from Eric’s bedroom. A second spoonful of peanut butter and I will head back.

I really hope that I don’t finish my scarf tonight.  Wish me luck. I really want to sleep.

Unintended Consequence

There were unintended consequences for staying up until 3:15 am with Eric this morning.  I just realized that the pjs I had bought in November were now so big that they were falling down.  This lead to a trip to get new pjs in you guessed it, one size smaller.  January is not the ideal time to shop for pjs since the holiday stock is almost gone and the spring items were not ordered until after year end inventory was done.  Also the valentines stock has not arrived yet.

I did manage to stay up until the Super Blood Moon Lunar eclipse hit its full peak.  Eric is still not running at his 100% yet, but I am so tired that I am going to bed. I am leaving Elmo in charge.

Time to Laugh

Today I gave myself a very short chore list. My plans included typing up not one but 2 new patterns. This involved finishing the second one, which is on the verge last round right now. Going to the computer and typing them. Taking some pictures.  Seeing if a friend had time to read through the second pattern.  I also wanted to start a baby blanket, there must be something in the water, I have 2 to make so far this year.

What actually happened was that I got half way through my chores.   Then the sounds did not sound right at the other end of the house. I got there just before Eric created 3 more loads of laundry. So the rest of the day was spent dashing to the washing machine to put a finished load in the dryer and start the next load. The last load of the day hit the dryer at 11:45pm.  Did I mention how grateful I am to have a washer and dryer at home?

Because I was popping up and down no knitting was done until after 5:00pm, when I just had a little time while training a new aide. She was great. She was quick and smart.  I only had to show her things once. To bad she was just a fill in. She would be perfect for our Sunday night opening.

I was so tired that John made the sandwiches for dinner.  Thank you John. Right now I am waiting to see if Eric is going to go to sleep before the sun rises later this morning.  Wish me good luck on that one.

Night Terrors and More

I just spent one and a half hours with Eric and a night terror.  I am not sure what it was about or what triggered it.  But he is finally falling asleep.  Now for me to unwind and go back to sleep.

There are just a few comments from my day in no particular order.  

If your child’s school or day program say keep them home when they are sick, this does not mean send your kid with a box of tissues to hold onto and use throughout the day.  Sick is sick.  School or day program is not home.

If you are driving on a public through fair I expect you to keep your eyes on the road, not below the dash board looking for things in the consul such as your French fries.  If you can’t drive and eat, either drive or eat not both.

Silk is not an elastic fiber. Silk will not make your surri alpaca stretch or become stretchy.  Silk is a fiber that drapes well.

Just because you are old does not give you the right to walk in front of a whole line at the check out counter like to five people already in line don’t exist.  You might have been raised to think that the color of your skin or religion make you better than the rest of us. That is so last century and it was not true even then.

These opinions are my own.   Night night see you in the morning light.

Monday and Keep Repeating Monday

If it is Monday it must be eyrpy Eric night.  He was dry when his aide left..I double checked.  He was soaked at 9:15.  The the wild eyrpy began. 

If he is quite for a solid hour I get to go to sleep.  

I wonder if this has something to do with me catching up on sleep today.? I got a solid 5 hour nap. 

Well it’s time to knit and maybe finish the main part of the blanket so that I can crochet  the boarder tomorrow and the finish the next blanket. 

3 UFO’s From 2016

This month I will try to finish 3 modular baby blankets that were started in the spring of 2016. This should be an easy endeavor because I only have to count every other row. I also love modular knitting.  I will add a crochet edging. I will also be writing up the pattern as most of my notes are ready to be typed.

As I finish  projects they will go into a box for gifts.  Right now there seems to be something in the water at Eric’s day program.  I think I will need a few baby blankets in the next year.  

I also managed to go through my knitting books today. I filled another bag for Bookman’s. So far I have cleared 12 inches of shelf space. I still have several shelves and a foot high pile of book covering a dresser.  I am still following the book Zenning in 5 minuets a day. I am trying to curate my knitting books to keep the ones most relevant to me, instead of getting every book as they come out.  The exception will be books authored  by friends.  Less is more.  

11, 12, 13

My next 3 projects finished today. A red hat for Eric, a blue green hat and scarf for The Flowing Wells SD Clothing Bank. For a total of 288 rows towards the 1 million row challenge on Raverly. More projects were also started.

Project numbers 3 through 10

These 8 skeins of yarn are finally finished. The 2 very colorful skeins will be woven in to charity scarfs for a double bonus on projects. The other 6 yarns are samples from the class that I am co-teaching at Grandmas Spinning Wheel here in Tucson. The class is following the book,  52 Yarns to Spin  Before You Cast Off. We meet the last Saturday of the month at 1pm if you are in town and wish to join us. Call Grandmas Spinning Wheel for space availability.

Just Tuesday

I am trying to finish my PHD in knitting and spinning  this week.  I have 2 hats and a scarf  with in rows of being finished. I have 6 skins of yarn that should be dry by tomorrow. With any luck at all and a sincere hope that Eric will be well enough to go to program tomorrow, I might be able to officially knock of 9 more projects.

My clothes shopping trip was a mixed bag.  On the bright side I got a lot of walking done.  I meet my step count for the day. On the getting what I went shopping for, well let’s say it was just sad.  There were a few shakes my head moments too.  There is a “new” “all cotton “ line by a leading clothing manufacturer that is 85% Polyester and only 15% Cotton. How is that legal? Any false advertising there perhaps? How is this supposed to be the “All Cotton ” line? There were less sizes and less selection in all the stores.  Macy’s has a new Department that looks like it is right out of Tuesday Morning. Stores that I went to the mall for were no longer there.  I thought that it was supposed to be easier to find clothing with the weight and inches I am losing.

The sad part of the whole thing is not even the on line stores had what I needed.  Shopping for clothing is no longer fun.  It has become very frustrating.  Are we going back to bespoke clothing? If so get your patterns and sewing machines ready.

Well Eric is finally asleep so it is my turn.

In the Blender Yet Again

I know things are crazy around here when my to do list takes a backseat to life. John has the crud Du jour.  So I did my best to keep the guys apart, we will know if I was successful later this week.  So I tried to get an early start on chores.  I managed to get 3 loads of laundry done, there would have been more done but I ran out of clothes line space.  I managed to get 3 more skeins of hand spun yarn washed, but due to the damp cold weather ( 1 inch of rain last night) it is taking forever to dry. The dishwasher was run and, emptied and refilled.

Then it was time to fix the vacuum cleaner. For those of you with 3D printers, may I suggest using the shop vacuum to clean up around your printers.  The regular household upright vacuum was not designed to vacuum up filament. Just ask me how I know.  It jams up the beater bar.  It’s a 30 minute very messy job to do.  Did I mention how messy it is?

I also did not need my lunch to explode in the microwave oven.  Who knew that stuffed cabbage was messier than pinto beans,when heated up in the microwave.  It will get cleaned tomorrow, because I did not feel like standing on the step stool to wash it out.

Then under no good deed goes unpunished. I used rumba to vacuum the kitchen floor before I went to Scooba it.  While roomba did a great job and did not knock over my knitting baskets, loom and spinning wheel used as a road block.  Scooba on the other hand died after 10 minutes and would not go any further.  So I mopped the floor using the diluted cleaning solution from Scooba.  20 minutes later the mopping was done and so was I.  By the way I put Scooba in a timeout until we get a new battery.  This upset Eric to no end.

This is why I still have 7 items on my to do list with more to be added tomorrow.  I am exhausted.  Yes, Eric did get enough mommy time today too. I only had the energy to knit 7 rows on Eric’s next hat.  That is 784 stitches. The mittens have not been started.

If someone could lend me their magic wand for tomorrow that would be wonderful.

Playing Catch Up

Eric and I are now over the tummy bug that is going around. So today was a catch up day.  I have finished the 1st stripe on Eric’s new hat. Yes this is hat 3 for Eric for the year. The first one was too short so we are giving it to a friend of Eric’s. The mittens will be started once hat number 3 is finished. 5 skins of yarn were washed in a hot water bath and thwacked. I just checked on them and they are still wet.  Cold damp weather is not ideal for drying yarn.

Some of the baskets in the laundry room are still knee high and with tomorrow being Sunday there will be sheets and towels to add to the laundry room.  I did manage to get 2 loads done today.  Picking up is still a work in progress, but I am sure everything will wait until tomorrow.

Tomorrow, tomorrow is only 40 minutes away.

Project Number 2

Another hat for Eric. With 84 rows towards the 1 million row challenge on Ravelry. Hopefully this on will cover his ears. Tomorrow morning I will start the matching mittens.  Do to Eric’s hand  Contractures I will wing a custom pair in the same yarn. 

My First Project of 2019

Eric’s new hat for 67 rows. Now I need to knit a backup hat. Off to find more yarn.  

Happy 2019

I would like to wish everyone a happy new year. May your year be happy, healthy and prosperous.

As many of you know I personally gave up New Years resolutions years ago. This year I am making an exception. This year my goal is to stash bust all craft projects in he house, including jewelry, yarn, roving and fabric projects in other words knit, spin, weave, sew, and play with beads. My goal is to finish as many projects as possible. A project will be considered completed when finished, ripped out to repurpose ,thrown into a dog pillow, passed on to some else. Basically just getting it done no mater how. I promise to post as many pictures as possible so you can join me on the journey.

This is the last project I finished in 2018. Row count will be added later.

I Ran Out

I ran out of tissue paper tonight.  I never run out of tissue paper. I always have 2 or 3 extra packages hidden around the house.   Except for tonight.  I really needed it.  No time to run out and get more. Sigh.  So if you find your items wrapped in parchment paper I have no excuse.  I think it is a sad commentary on my life that I have more parchment paper than tissue paper.  I was once told parchment paper was a good thing to warp my looms with, not so much.

Although I should be able to restock at a good price.  It will probably be red, green and white until after Easter, when the pastels will be available.  

Just an interesting side note. Scotch Tape does not stick to parchment paper.

Easy Tri Tip Roast

Teri has requested that I share my tri-tip roast recipe.  It is a very easy 5 ingredient recipe. It takes less than 5 minutes to put together and only 35 minutes to cook.

1 Tri-tip Roast
Salt and pepper
1 sweet onion sliced thin
1/2 c water
Cooking Spray

Pre heat the oven to 425f

Use cooking spray to spray the bottom and sides of your. Le Creuset roasting pan. Place roast in the bottom of the pan. Salt and pepper lightly.  Cover with the sliced onions.  Pour the water on the side of the roast being careful not to wash the salt and pepper off the top of the meat.   Cover and bake for 35 minutes.

Remove from oven and wrap in heavy duty foil for 15 minutes to the the roast finish cooking and rest. Slice and serve.

Add vegetables and a starch for a complete meal.

Down Again

Teri and I did a quick dash to J.Jill today. Our mission was to try to find smaller sized pants. The pants I bought a month ago are now too big.  We were very successful. 3 new pairs of pants were acquired.  I know that I am down at lest 5 pairs of pants, but this just means that I will do my laundry a little more often.  This is not a challenge to Eric to make more laundry.

I find it amazing that when I woke up this morning, I was feeling very fat and frustrated. Then less than 12 hours later I am buying smaller sized pants.  Deep down I know that I will never have a model sized body. I would love my goal to be that.  On a more realistic level my ultimate goal is a healthier me.

Lastly, I would like to,wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday.  .

Mindfulness

I am sitting here wishing that people would be more mindful. On a personal note it would result in less laundry and sticky floors for me to clean up after. I really hate to clean up medicine spills, that would not happen if people would just pay attention.

Outside my house I bet that there would be a lot less accidents and just maybe we would all pay less in car insurance.  If people would be more mindful maybe they might just pick up after themselves.  One can only hope.

Have a very mindful and happy day.

A Rough Start and A Smooth Finish

After a rocky start I managed to get all my errands done.  I also got a home cooked dinner on the table too, albeit leftovers.

Eric is happy with his new jeans. I can’t believe this is the first time since he was in size 5 slims that I bought a regular size 18 for him. He is over the moon that I bought him 5 new pairs of jeans. Truth be told, we just could not do the top button of the size 18 slims up. The 2 extra inches in the waistline should help.

I am still working on the first hand knit project for me the year.  I was hoping it would be done by now. I hope to wear it Wednesday. Wish me luck.

I am calling it a night a little after 10pm. Yes I took something for the arthritis pain with dinner tonight so I am really hoping to sleep until 6am. Night all.

Pain

When am I ever going to learn that I can not sleep when the Arthritis pain is beyond being boxed up? Other than not sleeping it was a very good Sunday.

Klutz Gene

I am still waiting for the scientist to find the klutz gene and find a cure. Otherwise I will have to find a way to be less klutzy. Yes I did fall today and I am OK. Just a little sore. I don’t bounce like I use to.