a Decade in Review.

As I prepare for New Years eve I realize that this isn't just any new year, it has been a Decade. For me, this has been an extremely busy decade.

It has been such a busy decade that I get things mixed up. I decided to post this anyway. I probably need to look at some show posters and it will better tell me what I was doing. But here is goes.



2000: I rang in the new year in Princeton New Jersey. I was working as an intern for the McCarter Theatre. I bought a brand new car, drove it off the lot with 42 miles on it. I loved that car. In May (on Mothers day) I moved to High Point, NC and started working for the North Carolina Shakespeare Festival.

2001: I was still working for the festival this year. On Sat. Sept 8th I purchased my first set of knitting needles. I remember this because I returned form Michaels to a phone call from my mom saying that my Granfather was very ill. I woke up that Tuesday morning and watched the towers fall. My Grandfather died on Sept 13th. Towards the end of my second season I applied to go on tour with the Utah Shakespearean Festival. I flew out to Utah on Dec. 26th. I returned from tour in May and worked retail while living at home for a few months. This was a rough few months. Not a good time at all. . . . .but in August I got hired at the Arts center of Coastal Carolina in Hilton Head, SC. I packed up the cavalier and moved down to SC. . . . . I worked. . . . a lot.

2002: I was still at the Arts Center, and working A LOT!!! I rang in the new year prepping for Around the World in 80 Days by Mark Brown. I say this because to this day it is possibly one of the best experiences I ever had working on a show. It was fun, challenging, and a true team effort to make that show the amazing success that it was. This was also the year that my brand new car got totaled. Possibly one of the scariest experiences of my life. a really great friend got me through that experience. I owe him a lot, probably not my life. . but he saved me from major injury. I dated someone and got dumped. . . . yeah, that's all I will say about that. I found out that two awesome people were getting married. Oh, lots of knitting. I was getting better at this point.

2003: I was working at the arts center (WOW, still. . . . . . ) I made a big decision for my career. It is probably the only decision that I look back on and say what if? I know deep down it was the right decision, but I sometimes still wonder what would have happened if it had been different. I went to Cape Cod and spent two weeks with a great friend and her little munchkin. I lived in CT with Dad and worked a lot. . . . . I was working at Long Wharf Theatre and also working retail

2004: I was in Becca's wedding. It was so much fun.

2005. I worked my first season with PSF.

2006: I rang in the new year with my mom, my sisters, my step dad, and a great friend from way back when. Mom was going through a chemo treatment. I was working a lot and living at dads. I was teaching, working retail, and working at FTD as a customer service rep. I went down to PSF for the summer for my second season. i went back to CT and worked at a coffee/ice cream shop (This was such a fun job), I was also working for my uncle. I went up to Maine for Jenny and Brians wedding. It was such an amazing weekend with friends, I didn't want it to end.

2007: I rang in the new year in North Carolina. I had just moved down there. Great apartment, crappy roommate. But it was great. I started taking classes again towards my teaching license. Great classes, I love being in school. I went back to PSF for the summer. I went back down to NC and moved into my VERY OWN apartment. I took a job as a box office manager. Lorelai was born. I spent my first Thanksgiving away from my family, I got my cat Hagrid. He was fantastic.
I started this blog.

2008: I rang in the new year driving down to NC with my cat hagrid. I was working hard at my job, and met some really awesome artists as they came across the stage. I quickly saw things going downhill at work. I moved to Boston, I got a great job, I had to give Hagrid away. Patrick was born on Dec. 18th. He is amazing. I went to Rhinebeck, it was awesome.


2009: I rang in 2009 with my sister living in Boston. I visited NC with my mom and saw the 4 bitching babes, I saw lots of concerts, I moved to Salem with my sister (I really like it here), I have spent lots of time with the South End Knitters, I went on the Knitters Review Retreat (Which I WON!!!!!), I spent lots of time with my foster pug Stella. She is awesome. (in fact she' sleeping. I learned how to Spin wool. I crewed my first Avon walk for Breast Cancer. I went to Rhinebeck, I went to CT sheep and Wool, I dies my hair pink.



2010: this year a rang in the new year with my sisters watching Glee!!!

Determined

I am determined to not get start-itis. I have woderful projects that I would Like for me. These are big projects. I have got to finish my racing stripes. Maybe I can say I will wear it for my birthday at this point.

Then there is the aleinor. That was gifted to me. It will be my first top down project, and i am anxious to get it started.

But on my knitting to do list

1. Organize the knitting closet
2. Catalogue the needles
3. Organize the yarn. Post yarns that I will not use for trade on ravelry.
4. If no trades in a month, it goes to goodwill.

Once that is done I will be happy.

Racing stripes re-start

So I picked up my racing stripes sweater again. After taking a brief hiatus due to holiday knitting and running out of yarn, I forgot where I left off. I decided to start the front over. I cast on some
More stitches for the body. It calls for 88, I cast on 98. It calls for size 7, I am using size 6.

I'll keep you posted!

Koolhaas

If you read my blog you know that I am pretty much obsessed with this pattern. I love it. I have made lots of adjustments to the pattern. I think I have found my favorite. The two colored koolhaas.



The green is cascade 220, the blue is blue sky alpaca. The ribbing was done with size 5's, and the chart was done on size 6's. I added one 8 sts repeat (I cast on 116 sts)

I am in love. I hope the recipient feels the same way.
(The little bit of red, that is the lifeline. not sure how it will fit the recipient, so I put in a lifeline so that I could easily re-knit if necessary)

Knitted item stalker

Hat on the train platform
Originally uploaded by theatreknitter

So I have become a stalker. a stalker of beautiful knitted items. I will admit that I actually asked this person before I too a picture of her hat. Isn't it lovely?

Motor Baby Bunting

Motor Baby Bunting:
Book: Interweave Knitted Gifts Irresistible Projects to make and give
Yarn: Wool Ease Thick and Quick
Needles: 11 1/2


This is a fantastic pattern. I loved knitting it. This is for a friend who is due in Late January/early February. I gotta give this girl some credit. She does not want people calling her constantly asking if the baby has been born yet, she would rather not tell people her actual due date. And Guess what, it is working.

I used lion brand think and quick yarn.

I am particularly proud of the hood. I did a three needle bind off at the top of the hood. On the back of the hood there are increases, the white yarn made this fantastic pattern. I am really happy.

The only thing that I have to work on is my seaming. I would like that to be better. It works for this project and for the most part I am pleased with that.


This is a wonderful quick knit for any baby shower. I love it. I will totally knit this pattern again.

What was my favorite part?

First things first, I have very few pictures to show. I made a point of not carrying my phone with me for most of the weekend. I really didn't want to be checking email, and I think I did a good job of it. I used the phone to plurk and post on facebook.

I had misplaced my camera, it has thankfully been found. But MAN what a weekend. I am still winding down from it.

The weekend started picking up two pretty awesome ladies. They had flown in from California. First stop Webs (well Duh)

We did really well. I hadn't planned on spending money. I had to buy needles for my class and then a few things just jumped into my arms. The beautiful Blue o the Right, yup, that's the Madelintosh. mmmmmmmm


I decided to look at some spindles, and got myself a Hi-Lo spindle. I also got some Arucania sock yarn. Totally not my colors at ALL but thank you to Angela for pointing out what the yarn looked like knit up, I am excited to see this take shape.

Also in the Warehouse I managed to find this little number.
A Lantern Moon Sling Bag. It is SOOO fantastic for traveling. I LOVE it for commuting already. For $25? It lacks the bonus pockets that most knitting bags have, but it makes up for that in the shape, the sling shoulder, and the perfectly placed smaller pocket for stashing the wallet.



After Webs it was off to Williamstown (FYI, in the famous words of Into the Woods (slightly modified: When going to Webs, know how to get there (it's easy to miss the street) and eat first! After 2.5 hours we were properly hungry.

Then it was off to the retreat. The drive to WIlliamstown was lovely. It got dark on the drive. Probably a good thing for my nerves. Williamstown is in a valley, and there are hairpin, and I mean DEFINITION of hairpin, turns heading into the valley. Had I been able to see the drop off's, I would have been terrified. Thanks to not being able to see the rocks, having great company, driving a great vehicle (thanks Jen) and taking it slow we got their safely, and just in time for dinner.

The Williams Inn is a LOVELY hotel. the have real KEYS!!!! no key cards here, I love that.

After dinner we gathered our stuff, and headed into our meet and greet.

(Oh yeah, we got goodie bags, I'll share that when I get home tonight, you want visuals for those)

Did i mention how amazing Clara Parks is? Being welcomed by her smiling face was simply amazing.

WE spent the evening hearing about other people's projects and their philosophy's on knitting. I think the Kris's was the most popular (As long as I have yarn to knit with I will live forever, then there was Chris of Briar Rose. . . I'm Dyin till I Die. . . . )

After a long day of travel I decided to turn in after the festivities of the night.

Oh yeah, I visited the stash room. don't worry, I will share pictures there as well.

What was my favorite part of the retreat. . . . .
Was it being able to knit at meals without getting funny looks?
Maybe it was hearing "May I touch you?" more than once.
How about "wait wait stop, I have got to show someone what you are wearing?"
Oh, how about having a conversation with Ann Budd, yeah I totally didn't know it was her.
Maybe taking a class sitting next to Melanie Falick (What a classy lady, Man can she sew!!! Seriously, she's got skills with a needle!!!)
Maybe it was people walking up to me and saying "Can I just touch you for luck?"
How about my impromptu spinning lessons
The stash room
the encouragement
Maybe receiving just the encouragement that I need to start designing some illusion knitting projects.

This weekend was truly inspiring. I spent 3 days with people who have a passion for a craft. I miss them all.

Pictures of the goodies to come.

Motor baby bunting

Motor baby bunting
Originally uploaded by theatreknitter

This is the motor baby bunting in progress. I am thrilled with how it is coming out. I am making it for a friends baby shower next week. I am using Lion Brand think and Quick yarn. It is really great.

Tonight I am weaving in the yarn ends while settling in for some movie watching on this rainy night.

Koolhaas mittens

Koolhaas mittens
Originally uploaded by theatreknitter

Hey folks, these are my Koolhaas Mittens. I am THRILLED with them.

They were a stash busting project. I used some yarn that I have had for a very long time that I obtained at a Farmhouse Yarn barn sale back in the day.

I ran out of yarn half way up the second mitten, so I used doubled up cascade 22o to finish. I also made the cuff a bit short. I picked up the stitches on the cuff and knit backwards.

Since the pattern is a repeat of 8, I cast on 40 stitches. When I got to the point of the thumb increase, I increased 2 sts every row. Once I got to row 6 of the chart (Which includes moving stitches and the marker) I have 12 sts which was enough for my thumb. This may not work for everyone, but it was perfect for me.

I LOVE these mittens.

Works in Progress

This has been a really busy fall in so many ways. I realize that is no excuse for not posting for so long, but I will take any excuse that I can get at this point.
















This is 4 OZ of Fiber optic yarns days of wine and roses Superwash Merino










This is 4 OZ of gnomespun 4 oz Wensleydale combed top in the Amethyst Shadows Colorway










This is 4 oz Jacob carded roving in the Meet me at Midnight Colorway.












And Finally (this was actually the first Rhinebeck purchase)



Fiberlady.com 100% bamboo in the Very Berry Colorway
























Now I just need someone to give me a spinning lesson. I have inquired with three different shops and none of them have contacted me. This is quite frustrating.

Next post, YARN!!!

North Shore Yarn Crawl part II

Someone kindly reminded me that I never finished posting about my yarn crawl, now wasn't that rude of me.

After we left Seed Stitch we headed Over the bridge int Beverly to the Abbott Yarn Shoppe. This is a small shop in the center of Beverly. I was not overly impressed with the shoppe, though Guido discovered some great pattern books. I have also learned from other knitters that the owner of this shop is an incredibly skilled knitter.

I did discover a really nice organic yarn that I may be heading back for.
Plymouth Oceanside Organic



After Abbotts it was off to Yarns in the Farm. Now I love yarns stores, I think I may have found my new favorite. Down a beautiful winding road you end up at this quirky little spot. The owners are friendly, the yarns are lovely, it is a great spot to get inspiration for your next project. Being across the street from an ice cream shop is just a great bonus.






I am looking forward to taking my first knitting class at this shop this fall. I will be making the Racing Stripes Sweater

After Yarns in the Farm it was off to Cranberry Fiber Arts. (I am pretty sure I got that right, I should have written this awhile ago)

This was a lovely shop. A great selection of yarns and books. I decided it was a day for pattern shopping for me. We sat and knit with the others in the shop. I would most certainly go back to this shop if I was working on a project because I am sure that I could find someone there to help me out.

We ended the day at Butterfly Yarns in Wakefield. This was another great place to sit and knit. It was fantastic company, and I am looking forward to going back there for their knitting day on Sunday.

This was such a wonderful day spent learning about all of the fabulous yarn stores along the north shore of Boston, it really was fantastic.

Thank you to everyone for encouraging me to finish this post.

Let's Review

Every now and then I feel that it is nice to go back and look at where we were. So this time last year, what was I doing.

Boston?

I think I'll go to Boston,
I think that I'm just tired
I think I need a new town, to leave this all behind...
I think I need a sunrise, I'm tired of the sunset,
I hear it's nice in the Summer, some snow would be nice. . .

Well, I think the lyrics state it best, but let me state for the record. . NOTHING is definite. . . . .

After the week at home I gave my resignation at work. Rather than being stressful it was a complete relief. I really thought that this job was going to be a good spot for me, but that was not to be. instead it has been never ending frustration.

So I have been looking for jobs in New England so that I can be closer to family and friends.

Well, one of the options has always been Boston (which is where sister J is) Well yesterday I received 3 offers for interviews.

One at a knitting store on Newbury street (that is part time)

One with the ticketing software company. This is the software that I am currently using now.

And last but not least a box office management position.

And here I am. Well, I'm in Salem but close enough. Was this the right decision, you tell me. . . . Of COURSE it was. I sometimes miss the south, sure I do, but that is what vacations are for. For the first time in my life I feel in control of things. financially and emotionally. it is pretty great.

The only down side was giving up Hagrid, that was rough. I think I have truly found a place where I could be forever. This is a perfect spot here in Salem, I pretty much love it here.

So a year ago, pretty much today, I made a huge decision in my life. probably the most grown up decision I have ever made. Many people have asked me "Do you miss the theatre" truth be told, I still work within the industry, I work with theatre companies every day. I haven't left everything. That being said, I do NOT miss the drama. I do NOT miss working for a board, I do NOT miss the hours. I do miss the collaboration and the excitement of the shows. I do NOT miss the paycheck. Have I given up on my pipe dream, HELL no. Some day in a perfect world I will have my theatre. It will be right next to my yarn shop (which becca will help me run, lots of eco fibers) there will also be a children's bookstore not too far (that is for my sis to take care of) and right next door, a fabulous gourmet shop that does catering for small events (That's for Jenny B)

Yeah, back in the day we wanted our brownstone in the city, now we will settle for little shops in some small town on the shore.

Thank you to everyone for supporting me through this year. I have met some amazing people through fiber this year. Peacefulknitter, the south end knitters, knellyknits, Guido and so many more. It has been a fantastic year in Fiber for me.

Of course I can't end this without thanking piccologirl. It was her idea that I come to Boston in the first place. She opened up her apartment to me when I was pretty much at the end of my rope emotionally and financially. Thank you again Jen.

The North Shore Yarn Crawl --- Pt 1

Seed Stitch - A Fine Yarn.

On Saturday I had the pleasure of a yarn crawl with Guido

This was our route it is amazing just how many shops there are on the north shore alone.

We started the crawl at Seed Stitch a fine yarn

I could not be more happier to live walking distance to this lovely shop. It is just perfect. The first thing I notice in a show is lighting. There has got to be good lighting. The lighting here is PERFECT.
Then there needs to be a place to work. This shop has comfortable chairs, a work table, and lots of space. You can easily wander the store and never bump into people or merchandise.

The staff is helpful and knowledgeable. They had some great yarns that I hadn't seen yet. I got to see the Spud and Chloe yarns. I LOVED the colorways. Just the names were fantastic. They even have Dachshunds. Of course I called nutmegknitter right away. The color is almost an olive green.

This is a really great shop. It is a must visit on the North Shore. Even better. On the same street there is a yarn store, a bead store, a fabric store, and a needlepoint store. Not to mention a fabulous candy/ice cream shop AND a coffee place. It is great.

The store was having a great sale. I was being very well behaved and decided to only get my new Addi's, size 1.
So now that you are done with your blog, would you mind taking me outside? I am trying to be good, but am going to get really annoying in about a minute.

Ishbel

After reading Peacefulknitters post I knew that I had to knit the Ishbel. i went to the CT Sheep and wool Festival with Nutmegknitter and got the perfect yarn for the project. I used the Silk Merchant from Mocha's Fiber connection. Well it was fantastic. After a couple of mishaps with the cast off, I finally had a wearable garment. This is an item that i am EXTREMELY proud of.




I have taken to wearing this at work and it really helps with cutting the cold from the air conditioning in the office. It is so great. I did make an oops, I believe that I accidentally did the lace work for the large instead of the small. I had JUST enough yarn.

Project Details
Ysolda Teague

from Whimsical Little Knits

Needles: KA interchangables size 5
Yarn: Silk merchant
51% silk, 49% rayon from bamboo
3.5 oz
320 yards
www.mochasfiberconnection.com

I have started my second Ishbel, it will be made out of Violets Pink Ribbon, I am using Size 3 Addis. It is a bit Sherbet Like already, but I do love the yarn, so I am glad that it is getting made.

Okay, pug is giving me the "Please I am cute so please stop typing and take me outside" look. guess I should do that before I regret it.

Hi, I'm Here!!!!

Hello All,

I can't believe it has been over a month since I post it. I slightly blame it on this little one.


Meet my foster pug Stella. She arrived on July 3rd. I am smitten. It will certainly be tough to give her back to mom when it is time to go home, for now it is great to have a sleeping (shhhhh don't wake her up) pug next to me while I blog.

i have also been getting used to my new commute. I LOVE my new apartment and Salem, MA is fantastic. The commute is not too bad, but I do lose two hours of my day to travel.

I will post more tonight. But just a sneak peak at what you have to look forward too.

Ishbel.


Yarn crawling the North Shore of Boston with Guido.


Victorian Lace today Book Review

And more, more more.
I have been very busy. I have my second ishbel on the needles. i figured out the perfect pattern for felted pink ribbons to sell, AND I am getting ready to cast on the Hemlock Ring as a wedding afghan for my cousin and his fiance.

Yup, I have been busy, just not blogging. Sorry.

Oh, and did I mention that I WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will be attending the Knitters Review Retreat in November. And I WON it. You can't win if you don't play right? Well I did, and i won. I can't believe it. I do not consider myself to be a luck person and here I am going on a retreat all expenses paid. I can't believe it. i am still pinching myself.

Yes , I am alive

(Me at 4am)
Hello all,

Well I have not fallen off the face of the earth, really I swear. I have apparently fallen off the face of this blog, but not the earth. The past month has been insane, especially because the move has happened. I will post apartment pictures as soon as I have a bit more unpacked. I will, however, post pictures of the mickey ears.

I did participate in the Boston Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. It was an amazing experience. Our team was the Crew-Ka-Teers and I said that I would make the mickey ears.

This is my Aunt Sue (our Team Leader) and Wendy (The Route Division Leader
One of the Awesome Moto Safety Crew members
Route Clean up (Our Heroes in Green)

More Moto Safety

CT Sheep and Wool

I am so glad that I went home for this fair. First of all, HUGE thanks to nutmegknitter, without her resourcefulness I would not have gotten home. i took GoToBus, $15 to get from Boston to Hartford. it was great. Some solid knitting time, and I got to catch up on some podcasts, so awesome.

This is how my day started out. Sitting at the Christian Science Plaza underneath an amazingly beautiful sky. What a wonderful start to the day.
.
I arrived in Hartford and we headed off to Vernon for CT Sheep and Wool . This Festival is a PERFECT size. While much smaller than Rhinebeck, It was Fantastic. We had the opportunity to scan the entire festival, every single vendor, then went and had lamburgers for lunch (yes lamb burgers, they were great. They are also famous for their lamb stew but it was a bit too warm for that for me). So Becca and I scanned the entire festival.

Ultimately I decided on some Semi Solid Sock yarn


From Ball and Skein
Hand dyed, 75% Merino, 25% nylon. 450 yards
www.ballandskein.com
I also got an AMAZING tool called the Wristaff from this Vendor, the photo did not come out, but I will re-post. SO cool.

I also got some WONDERFUL silk blend



Silk merchant
51% silk, 49% rayon from bamboo
3.5 oz
320 yards
www.mochasfiberconnection.com
I am sure I will shop more from this shop, they had some amazing mohair, great silks, just beautiful. I am looking forward to adding their shop to my yarn crawl map.


There were a number of soap vendors. I was excited to see this. I will say, nutmegknitters "green" ideas do rub off on my. I have discovered that shower gels are very wasteful (the bottles) so I have started looking for some nice bar soaps.


Blackberry and Basil (actually vegetarian soap) and Lemon Vanilla.

www.sleepymoonsoap.com
Oh, and she was smart. She put the bars of soaps in the bathroom. Yup, I was seeking her out because I had used it. Note to soap sellers out there.

I do owe you another post because I also acquired a POUND of alpaca fiber. It is amazing. I went for the white because I hope to play with dyes, so more to come.

Until then, I leave you with SUPER cute.


I had a greast time, it was really fantastic.

More to come.

Okay, so it has been awhile

It has been awhile since posting, so sorry that I have disappeared.

Well I finished montera. I will have to post some pics for you. I am not thrilled with how it came out. I will wear it, because it is nice and warm, but just not thrilled. I will not give up on sweaters, but just don't think I am meant to be a sweater knitter. i did just purchase Snow White, I am also hoping to case on this. I will not give up yet.

I have started the Curve of Pursuit blanket I LOVE this pattern, it is so fantastic. It is so much easier than it looks, don't let it scare you, I LOVE LOVE LOVE it.


As for socks, I am still in love with Cookie A. She is amazing, I wish I could see in yarn what she sees. She is just brilliant!!!!! I have cast on Glynnis. I think I am going to go through the book in order, because I am just that much of a dork. Though I would also like to knit another pair of monkeys, and also pomotomus.


Currently most of my knitting has been taken over by pink hats. Yes yes yes, lots and lots of pink hats. I feel like they will be going on FOREVER. but not really. This year i am taking part in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer here in Boston. I have been making Pink Mickey ears for our team, the Crew-ka-teers.

They are coming along, and they will be done for the walk. I have to make about 15 hats!!!! can you believe it!!!! It has been fun knitting them, but I think I am just bored. I can't really pick up other knitting, and that has been disappointing.


This weekend I am off to CT sheep and wool with becca. Looking forward to a nice day of yarn and fiber. I am also looking forward to a spinning lesson that I am planning for myself 9it is tough to get it scheduled with work because so many yarn stores close early, but I will get it done)

My Birthday

Hello All,

Well to everyone on Ravelry and Facebook who wished me a happy birthday, thank you so much. I certainly felt loved. I had a relatively uneventful day. Work was, well, work. . . What can I say. . . .

After work I got to take advantage of the fact that things actually happen here in Boston, and last night was no Exception. Casey and Jess (Founders of Ravelry) gave a talk at Simmons college. It was incredibly refreshing to hear someone say that a Business can start from a passion. I know that what I want for my long term goal is a few years off, but to know that it can happen makes me very happy.

Of Course I got pictures of people holding my knitting. How nice of you to ask.Here is Jess (She is holding the beginning of a Victory Junction Afghan that I am making)
This is Guido from It's a Purl Man

It really was a great night. Tonight I will probably be avoiding Boston as much as possible. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy going out and playing, what I don't enjoy is dumb drunk people, I don't tolerate amateur night well. Tomorrow night, however, I will be meeting Kat Von Dee . I am SO excited.

Monkeys

Monkeys
Originally uploaded by theatreknitter

Wearing knitted socks mean having just the right shoes to show them off. I discovered these shoes at Pay less. Comfy, inexpensive, and they show off the monkeys.

Hellooooo out there

Hello All,

I have not been very good about my blogging lately. I am trying to be a bit more productive while I am at home. I have tried a couple new routines and it seems to be working for me.

Nobody really "enjoys" cleaning the house, there are things we would all rather be doing. I, unfortunately, am a creature of clutter. it just happens. No matter what I do. At the suggestion of another blogger I have been trying to follow a bit of a plan. Every day I spend just 15 minutes cleaning. What I do is VERY specific. I do nothing else for that 15 minutes (okay, so maybe the radio is on) But it is amazing that by actually doing it, I find that it works. This doesn't necessarily work for laundry, but does for other things, especially because when you realize that you only have 15 minutes, you move quicker, and may actually be able to get two things done.

Okay, so now for the fun stuff. I did get to see Patrick last weekend. This is a huge bonus of being closer to home, it doesn't take too much to be able to see family. He is getting such a personality and really starting to interact and is so adorable.


Last weekend was SUCH an amazing weekend and I took the opportunity to spend a day wandering around the city. I of course went to a yarn store. This one is A Good Yarn out in Brookline. A friend from my knitting group works there. It really is a great shop, and they have roving for spinning, which I have discovered is hard to find. Lots of places have roving for needle felting, but not for roving. I got some great tips on my spinning from one of the ladies there, and it was great.

LITTLE SECRET: they have an AMAZING sale bin. I made out QUITE well with some WONDERFUL Louisa Harding Angora. Can you say something wonderfully luxurious for Betsy?!?!?!

Of course on my walk I saw something random, and couldn't not take a photo.

I went back home and buckled down on knitting. I have been working on Montera, and I love this pattern. I can't wait to wear it.
The picture sucks, sorry for that, but here it is.


Then I went off to church. I think I may have found a church that I really like in my neighborhood. This was a challenge because I had such a fantastic church down in North Carolina. Apparently there is a new Lenten rule, you can "indulge" in whatever you have given up on Sundays. I gave up Diet Coke this year. This has been a HUGE sacrifice. Though I will say, this week I haven't missed the actual Diet Coke this week. I have missed "drinks with bubbles" if that makes any sense. SO anyway, back to church. I was leaving church and SERIOUSLY craving a diet coke. I decided to get just one bottle for me and Jen to split (she has given up Diet coke as well) I went into Stop and Shop and went to grab one out of the cooler.



God is playing a cruel trick on me.

Okay, the birthday is next week!!! Seems like a year has gone by so fast. It has certainly been an interesting year. Never thought I would be back in CT, certainly never thought I would be living with family, and NEVER in my life did I think that I would be working in Software. Everything happens for a reason. . . . . .