Progress

I have about 3 and a half squares left on this blanket and then a border. Tomorrow and Thursday I will spend most of my time riding a bus to and from Chicago (I live in Saint Paul, so that's a good 12-14 hours of bus time) and I want to get the squares finished today so I can knit the border while I am riding. Sewing tiny squares and weaving ends are not activities that lend themselves to sitting in a bus seat.
If you're in the Chicago area come to Ravinia tomorrow and hear the stunning Rachmaninoff Vespers. I'll be in the front row singing away.
What's on your agenda this week?
Joining Nicole for KCCO.

A Bon Bon Day

First of all, thank you for your kind comments about the teensy sweater and hat!
You all know the stereotype of the stay at home mom: Sitting on the couch, watching trashy tv and eating bonbons.
Well, today was a bit of a bon bon day, if I do say so.
I burned through two bbc miniseries: Arthur and George and The Widower, ate chips and drank cherry coke.

I did have an ultimate goal, which was to organize (to some extent) my collection of fingering yarn stash.

As there is still one more baby brewing in my extended circle, I thought I would make another sweater, but the colors weren't working for me and I ripped it out.

Time to take stock. I found so many bits of old favorite projects and projects half-begun and projects never begun.

 What I realized was that I had the makings of a sweet little blanket here.

I sorted out the ones I liked best and dove in.

Now, here I am, on my third square and feeling great about ripping out the sweater.

I may add in a square or two with the bee motif just because I think it's charming.
Just goes to show that if you have been knitting long enough the stash will provide.

A Teensy Hat

I put the finishing touches on a little hat last night. I was feeling ombre dots to go with the round buttons.

They look a little out of proportion in the photo, but they fit our baby doll pretty well,

so I hope it will fit the new baby well also.

Joining Nicole for KCCO this morning.

Garden Update

Thanks to some good and rainy days the gardens have been getting greener every day.

 The tomatoes are booming,

 The creeping charlie is creeping

 The back woods are super leafy

 I was able to excavate a few more stairs, bringing the total to 5,

 The chives are blooming

 I am loving it out here.

In Training

It's here, the best time of the year, festival season.
Beginning with Grand Old Day, a street festival here in Saint Paul, and concluding with The Minnesota State Fair it's a season jam-packed with lots of walking, parades, food and people watching.
We had perfect weather for Grand Old Day today. Blue Skies, 75 degrees and a slight breeze.

 The bouncing club threw a lady into the air,

 There were dancers and dragons

 Even a wild Eldest child handing out candy with her best friend.

I like to think of Grand Old Day as a good training ground for this season of festivals, as well as an assessment tool to see how much walking a 4, 10 and 12 year old can really accomplish in a morning.
We had a good showing from the 12 and 4, but the 10 needs some work. We need to be in top shape by the time The Fair comes around in August.

Change of Plans

Sometimes you just have to accept that your plans will not work out.
I was super excited to find a nice bright green in my stash that would be perfect to use as bootees to accompany the Sunnyside Cardigan I just finished.
I made up a bootee and when it was finished it was big enough to fit The Youngest.
OK, so next time check your gauge, Jessica.
I made up a second bootee (having done some math to size it down, since I couldn't find my smaller needles) and it was a much better size.

I made up a third bootee and realized that the color was just not as nice and bright as I had thought originally.

Well, it's a good thing I know two pregnant ladies right now.
I can make a different sweater to match the bootees.
Back to my original present, I found these colors in the stash and I hope to make some kind of ombre patterned hat.

I'm pretty excited about this color combo, so it's a good thing the bootees didn't really match.
What's on your needles today?