Devastation

Well, on Saturday I finished the body of my chocolate stout sweater. Collar was on and all systems were go.

So I tried it on.

I made this one size too big, mind you. And I swatched.

It was too small.

Like, three sizes too small.

I had worked on that baby for a month and a half.

I was (am) devastated. I was so upset and realized that I would have to rip it out and start over (because I do love the sweater and I do want to wear it). So Saturday night, I started ripping it out (with the help of a Mike's Hard Black Raspberry Lemonade. Or two.).

And that sucker wouldn't rip out.

Apparently I'm really good at weaving in my ends. Ugh.

So I ordered more yarn. I figure I can always rip out the sweater later on if I need more than the 1700 yards I will soon have on hand. I can make a big, cuddly, whoofy sweater. It will be amazing.

And I will wear it.

Because it will fit.

I have never had this experience before. I hope to never have it agian though I know I will. Even those knitters I aspire to be like have those moments.

So Saturday night (after the horrible incident-that-shall-not-be-named), I cast on for a Sleepy Hollow Hat by Irish Girlie Knits to go with these gloves (same designer, same collection):

I love these gloves. They make me feel warm and cozy on the inside. I need warm and cozy. So I'm working on the hat.

And when the hat is done, I will swatch (again) for my sweater.

By gosh!

I've been working on a swap package and finally was able to take a few pictures last night. (Read that as: the weather finally decided to cooperate and by gosh, the sun was shining!)

I knit this hat (pattern: Orchids & Fairy Lights by tinyowlknits). I've made it before for me, but it came out a bit small. This time, I changed my needle size and it's perfect. I'll have to make another one for me sometime, but I'm glad this one is perfect for someone else. I was so worried it would be small too!

And because I can't resist flower fairies, as tedious as they are to knit, I made one of those too, in a delightful purple to match the hat.

Pattern: Daylily Flower Fairy by Peargirl Knits

So now, I'm back to working on my Chocolate Stout by Thea Coleman. The body is done (minus the button band and collar) and I'm working on my sleeves (though I'm knitting them two at a time and flat so that my gauge matches the rest of the sweater. My gauge always changes when I knit in the round). 

Oh, and because Plucky Knitter is having an anniversary bash, I snagged some sport weight yarn in the lovely Aunt Ivy colorway. I'm thinking it will become some lovely fingerless mitts.

I have quite the queue built up, but I need to work on my own designs too. So many ideas are floating around in my mind!

Just Normal

My life has never been overly dramatic.

Sure, I've probably made some not so big things dramatic as a teenager (and some may argue that I still do that), but nothing too exciting or out of the ordinary has really every happened to me.

I'm just normal.

But I want something exciting. I yearn for something exciting. I want to find my pearl in the world.

To me, that pearl is a child. Or more. Children are a blessing. My husband and I met while working with children and it was that bond (among others, including how he tolerated my obsession with Broadway) that led us to where we are now.

We've done everything just right. We got married. We've had almost four years to ourselves. We have a house. We're situated. We're comfortable. We're ready.

And yet, my body isn't cooperating. After surgery on my uterus last winter, and two miscarriages before that, I'm just not ready to try yet. What if we fail--again? What does that mean? What does God have in store for me?

I know the only way to test it is to try. And I want to try.

But I also want to succeed.

We've decided to wait a summer and reassess in the fall.

We're still young. We have time. And love.

And love is all you need.

Progress

Last night, while I was doing some dishes, I noticed the dirt had moved in my little mason jars on the window sill. Upon further inspection, I saw sprouts! Real, healthy, green sprouts! The day before there was nothing. Yesterday--all four of the herbs on my window had sprouted.

My cilantro is the third one from the left, and as you can tell, it's really doing well. My chives (and garlic chives) are thriving, and my marjoram, though small, is sprouting.

In light of this, I had wanted to title this post "Progress" (which I did), but all I could think about was the Umbridge quote from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: "...for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering." 

How sad. I believe, in part, what Umbridge is saying. I do think progress for progress's sake must be discouraged. I believe that progress should happen out of enthusiasm and the willingness to learn and explore. 

Take my herbs--they're making progress. I'm making progress with them. And this is my first time with herbs. I want to learn about them. I don't want them to grow just to grow. It's a process, fueled by interest.

And in the end, isn't that where progress comes from anyway?

Whirlwind

This weekend was a whirlwind of activity.

On Saturday, Brian and I worked out at Camp Foster for Mother's Day Family Camp. We had some down time (mostly due to the wind and VERY cold temps--I had on two sweatshirts it was so cold). Anyway, my monkey of a husband decided to climb the tower.

Do you see him way up there? He did that so he could repel down. Because he is insane.

Insane.

On Sunday we visited with my Grandma and mother for some Mother's Day fun. Because I was the only one of my siblings who was going to make it that day, I decided to make some gifts for Grandma and Mom that would show that ALL of us care about them.

We each took a picture holding a blank sheet of paper, and I photo-shopped our words in (so we had the same font, and because my brother was threatening to spell "we" as "weee"). I printed our pictures on tissue paper and then mod-podged them to the canvas. I then mod-podged fabric onto the canvas and added some lace flowers. They turned out pretty good, overall. (Sorry for the bad picture.)

And I started knitting again last night. I spent all of last Monday working in the garden...tilling and hoeing by hand. Tuesday I spent all evening knitting. By Wednesday, my right hand hurt so bad and was so swollen I couldn't even use my computer mouse. And after knitting for two hours last night, I can tell you that my hand doesn't hurt (much). It is still a little swollen, so I'll ease back in.

my little gardens

I've been itching to get my potatoes in the ground and finally, Monday, we had a decent enough evening and I planted potatoes.

And because I decided I was already digging in the dirt, I planted my garden. (Minus some things that have to wait until it gets a bit warmer out...like my sunflowers.)

Yesterday I got my mason jars ready and started planting some herbs. So far, I've planted sweet marjoram, chives, garlic chives, and cilantro. I need some more potting soil before I can start the rest (plus, I have to prep the seeds).

(Ignore the bad picture, the light wasn't cooperating with me.)

I can't wait to have fresh herbs (assuming I did everything right).

My grandpa would be so proud of me!

Needless to say, because I've been spending time planting, my knitting hasn't been progressing like it should. I'm making a sweater now (Chocolate Stout by Thea Coleman) and I love it, but because it's huge and because I've been outside, it is taking forever. But I finally got the swing of the pattern repeat, so it's getting a little better, speed-wise.

Squirmy the Wurmy

I've been on a roll lately with gift knitting. I finished a Christmas gift for my sister last week and just finished her birthday present over the weekend (her birthday is in September).

She wanted a wurm hat. It isn't really my style, but then, it isn't for me, is it? And she wanted it bulky. So I dug up some bulky yarn from the stash, got to work, and made it out the other side with this:

I hope she likes it.

It was gorgeous all weekend, so when I wasn't helping my husband teach classes, I was outside. All the time. I loved it. Can't wait to be outside again tonight!