One week and counting

The Maple Grove Community craft fair is one week away.  I'm ready, on several fronts.  I'm tired of knitting things that I "hope" will sell.  I want to work on my Yggdrasil again, but can't until after the craft fair.  I keep thinking, one more thing, one more skein spun up.  I love what I'm making but I'd like to settle down and finish the great gray beast. 

I have about 30 skeins of hand spun to bring.  There is a variety of sizes and amounts and type of fiber.  But when I look at the picture I see a lack of reds, yellows and oranges.  I just finished a perfect fall orange so that is covered, but I really need to branch out from my love of moody blues and greens.  I love them, but I think I need to change up the color scheme.  That being said, I'm very happy with my yarn.  And if you look to the left of the picture, that is all my odd bits and bobs of left over singles spun with the last left over singles.  I started doing just white with another left over single, but then I just went to town and I didn't worry about what they looked like, I just mashed them together and have been pleasantly surprised with the results.  The yardage varies on those, some only 30 yards, but others up in the 60-80 yards.  I'm thinking of different ways of marketing those odds and ends.  Ideas?

Then I move on to the knitted up stuff.  Emily laid everything out.  I'm happy with the variety of things, would have liked to have more, but it is what it is.  I work full time, take care of my mom and my girls, and knitting and spinning are on the edges right now.  I will share a booth with my friend, so between my knitted things and my yarn along with her beautiful linens, I think our booth will be filled.  Oh you can see the orange yarn I just finished, still on the bobbin, waiting to be wound off on my niddy noddy.  And the plethora of clickers next to my spinning chair and on the edge of my bed.  One for the fan/light, and the other two for the tv.  I couldn't get the tv to agree to work on just one clicker.  I caved and it is just as easy for me to use them as is.  At least I got the tv hooked up and ready!

This weekend will be spent labeling all my yarn, making sure the ends of my stuff is woven in and price tags put on.  Then a week from Sat. let the fun begin.  If any readers are in the metro area, I'd love to have you stop by my booth, there just might be a wee surprise for my readers! 

Charlie Brown

Noah could be pulling up to my house anytime, ready to load us out of our second story windows.  Minnesota is having some flooding issues...yesterday it rained hard, stead, virtually all day.  The ground is completely saturated already so the water is just running off, major freeways are closed, small towns are virtual islands with the roads shut coming into or out of them.  We are fine, just a bit soggy.

And to totally throw a wrench into the system, I'm listening to "A Charlie Brown Christmas' music.  I explained to my mom over the phone I was listening to it, long pause, she said "do other people have to hear that?"  See I live in a cube world at work, I laughed and said I have my headphones on.  She just sighed....I love Christmas music, listen to it all year round...and sometimes there is just nothing better than to hear Schroder pounding away on the piano....

Crazy hard curveball of a week

Before I get started, let me put in this picture...it soothes me...hopefully it will soothe you.

I'm working on this throw, it shows 2 completed strips and the start of the final row. (I'm now on the last block of that last strip)  Life has thrown us a curve ball.  My mom had to go to the hospital late Tuesday night, calling 911 is such a scary but wonderful thing.  You call 3 simple numbers and they are at your door within minutes.  Bringing help.  She has a history of heart problems and seemed so very sick.  With 2 sleeping children upstairs, I didn't go with her to the emergency room.  We've been through this several times, I know the wait is long and uncomfortable in the emergency room.  There is nothing I can do.  So I waited at home.  In the dark.  I cleaned upstairs.  My girls sleeping soundly.  Me, crying silent fearful tears as I picked up the clutter in the family room.  Our dog Gadget sitting and following me around as I worked.  He usually sleeps with my mom and didn't understand where she went.  After running tests and tests, mom came home Friday with a heart monitor she has to wear for the next two weeks to give them more data.  In between running to the hospital each day, getting the girls to school, getting Emily to her first round of ortho appointments, I showed up at work.  I'm grateful I have an understanding workplace, because the amount of work I got accomplished during the 3 days I was here last week was not on the grand scale.  I knit and spun yarn late into the night at home.  It helped keep my fears at bay.  I'm grateful.

And on a brighter note, I'm now signed up for two craft fairs.  The first one is at the Maple Grove Community Center, on October 9 from 9-4.  My friend Ellen is doing this with me.  She does hand embroidered table linens.  I will have my handspun yarn and various knitting I've done.  Shawls, hats, scarves, the above lap blanket, another cream ruched afghan, some socks and other delights.  I think it will be great fun, if nothing else a day with a good friend surrounded by crafts.  Then this morning I signed up for the "Wild Wool Market", it is held at the Susan Hensel gallery in South Minneapolis.  I've never been to one before, but how wrong can I be at something called the Wild Wool Market!  I'm participating in the November 27 market, from 10-4.  And this time it is all about me.  I'll have a small space and I'll have my handspun there, possibly some knitted items, but primarily my handspun.  After the last week, I'm looking forward to having some wooly goodness surrounding me.

A fresh start

Yesterday was the first day of school.  My girls are growing so fast it seems.  Both had great days and Emily was just so happy and excited.  Can you see her smile?

She was listening to the Zac Brown Band singing Sic em on a Chicken.  grin...something about seeing such pure unadulterated joy makes my heart sing. 

I finished a scarf on Monday night.  I started working Cinnamon Grace, but I altered the pattern as I went.  The original had the straight section only worked for 17 inches, that would have given me a pretty short scarf, so instead, I knit the straight section for 30 inches, then decreased per the pattern.  The next change I made was to the border.  I just didn't like the original border, I thought it was pretty, but not what I wanted to end up with, so instead, I added a ruffled border.  I love how it looks but holy cow was it tedious to knit that many stitches.  I had them crammed way tight on my needle and I'd inch worm my way around.  I kept weighing my ball of yarn to be sure I had enough yarn left.  I probably could have knit one more row on the ruffle before starting the bind off but just between you and me?  I was TIRED of struggling with the knitting and wanted to get it off the needles.  So I popped in a Stargate SG-1 movie, The Ark of Truth and two hours later the galaxy is saved from the Ori and I had a scarf off the needles that I'm really pleased with.

And finally here is the next skein of yarn I finished, let me introduce you to Caramel Apples.  A perfectly squishy yarn for fall....a hat?  mittens?  cowl?  who knows... for now I'll just enjoy it on the shelf.