Fall is Here!

Fall is finally here! It's my favorite time of year. I love the way the air smells and the promise that it brings of great times with family and friends. It's also the time of year that I plan my holiday knitting. But I have decided to be a bit selfish this year.

• I will choose designs for myself.

• I will choose designs to beautify my home.

• I will relish simplicity so that my projects are freeing and do not pull me into the mires of frogging and charts.

It has been a tough few months with this year no end in sight yet. I have been so caught up in work that I feel like I am loosing all those little pleasurable moments I need to be a better version of me.

But this time of year still finds a way of centering me and letting be creative, from kitchen time to couch, play time with the kids and stolen moments with my man. It's my chance to make myself the priority, at least for the moment.

An Owl Thing

Owls are everywhere! Given my fascination with flight and all things feathered...I am not complaining one bit.

My friend is having her first baby girl. My said friend also has an aversion to all things girlie pink. Alex will not be sporting pink unless it Hot Pink and says RUN DMC on a black tee.

Her nursery is gray, white and turquoise. I have been looking for an excuse to do this pattern...thank  you baby Alex!

I used Berroco Modern Cotton in Bluffs for the body and fun variegated cotton for the owls.

It turned out beautifully. Drapes well and has perfect stitch definition.

Pattern: Owl Obsession

Has anyone out there noticed the gorgeous sweater on the movie "The Holiday?" Cameron Diaz wears this beautiful cabled almost shawl collared, white wrap style cardigan. I must have it....or to say...I must knit it. For some reason, it intrigues me. It appears to alpaca or some silky cashmere blend. I want to knit it in a sumptuous halo of alpaca in cream or soft gray.

Not only do I adore the interlocking cables, but I am most fascinated with the design of the back. The designer, whoever the genius is, used the center of the back for the shaping, creating a yoke or double v if you may. It sets off the cables as they almost merge in the center then veer off to each shoulder.

I tried googling the sweater and came up with nothing. However, I desire it enough that I might just have to design a pattern for it.

A Sweater for Heidi

So Heidi had a birthday coming and she had been hinting for quite some time that she would love a knitted sweater to wear. I had several project ideas but it was when Isabella from Knitty.com came out that I knew I had a winner. It's the perfect style for my aunt. In addition, Heidi is allergic to all things wool, so cotton was definitely in order.

Pattern: Isabella

Needle size: #3

Yarn: 5 balls of Lara from Elann.com in Brick

Modifications: added 1.5 inches to the overall length by adding 1 inch between the second and third row of eyelets and half of an inch to the upper bodice.

Heidi is about 5'10" and even after the addition in length, I wish I had added just abit more. The pictures do not do the color of the yarn justice. The color is almost terracotta, and reminds me of the soft red you would see on a gerbera daisy or in the desert. It also has a nice sheen to it.

But all said and done, Isabella is a winner, Heidi loves her summer sweater.

All good things come...

This year so far has been trying. We have had more trials then I wish to recount. And after months and months of searching for a job that not only would provide for us financially but also give me more time with Martin, weeks of interviews with different companies, rejections of offers that taxed my brain (I think that was more fear of what if this is the best I am ever offered.) I have received an offer worth noting. A little bit of negotiation and viola, I am now a coordinator for Groome Transportation. Or at least I think that is what my title is. So better pay, better opportunity, a chance to use my brain. To say that I am excited is an understatement. I am thrilled to be given the chance and challenge. I start in less than a week.

In addition, I am leaving on excellent terms. My recruiter told me that I had some of the best references and highest praises she had ever heard on a potential employee. I also have it on a reliable source that there is a surprise party in the works for me on Friday.

The only thing that I am apprehensive about is the daunting task of putting a department in order that I no nothing about yet. And I am only apprehensive because I know they dismissed the last coordinator. However, I don't doubt my own ability so I see this as a first of many good things to come.

Today we lost our puppy Annie. We had her for such a very short time but we loved her a lifetime's worth.

Knitting Therapy

As of late, my needles have been my therapy. It's been a tough run these last 2 months....hellish even. In spite of everything I know that I am blessed. And while I have not made the time to upload photos...just seems so hard to do at the moment....I have let the stix fly. It clears my head and evens me out, it slows my breathing to deep purposeful breaths. I can even at times make each stitch a prayer.

We thought we were losing Annie this weekend. Thought that this weekend was it. Thursday night around 11PM, Annie started having severe difficulty breathing. It sounded as if she was breathing through water. This was followed by vomiting. By the time we got to the puppy ER, her lungs were clear and her breathing easy. But she was still in obvious discomfort.

On Friday, she went to my parents while I was at work. My mom called around 5PM to tell me that Annie was having trouble walking. By the time I got her home, she could not even walk at all, her back right leg swollen and hanging limply. My brother and I used a blanket to carry her inside the house. Annie laid on her dog bed the rest of the night. I tried to adjust her position, which was next to impossible given her swollen abdomen. We carried her outside to her favorite spot to pee with no luck. It looked so very grime. I cried in the kitchen while I debated what to do. My mom came over to my house today to help with Annie while I went to work. She was going to give Annie a catheter. But Annie got up on her own! And for the first time in 10 hours did her business.

I am thankful for small miracles. I am thankful for helping family and friends. I am thankful for little blessings everywhere.