Last minute Molly

As it seems to go each year, I am doing the last minute thing. My aunt, uncles, cousins and their families will likely get their Christmas cards in time for New Year. The Christmas baking that I had intended to do last week will be done tomorrow.. or later tonight.
I didn't make scarves, hats, socks or mittens for any of my family members this year. I just couldn't get into the holiday spirit.
P-- and I did go to the COG's Christmas dinner on Saturday. The snow started up just as we were leaving our house and it wasn't showing any sign of letting up after we had finished doing the awards, skit, and door prizes. We did manage to sing "the Twelve days of Christmas" which is a tradition for the group before it was decided to cut the party short in order for members to get home safe.
So, I have purchased gifts for: the couple who's name I drew from my family (as in brothers and partners); my daughter and son-in-law; P--; and my nephew W---. I didn't get anything for my mom yet nor did I get anything for my son-in-law, although I only got small things for my daughter on top of a bigger gift that is for the both of them. I figure that my grandson is too small for anything although I may just see about picking up a book for him on our walk.
As far as my son and daughter-in-law, we are not buying for each other.
L--- and I are doing gift baskets for my sisters-in-law with me providing the wine and some baking. Next year I have good intentions of starting this insanity around Samhain instead of starting at Solstice.
The snow had been showing signs of melting but now we have another snow warning and are expecting 10 - 20 centimetres more of this crap.
In between the previous entry and this one I haven't been idle. I got inspired to clear out the office last week and tossed a whole lot of stuff out. Now I'm sorting and bagging my stash in sealed bags to store in the top of the closet. Unfortunately the sorting did expose some unfinished items which are now taking up space in the basket of "ongoing" projects in the living room. There are only 40 rows of ribbing to go on my sock and then I have to finish my shrug (1/8th finished) before I can finish my sleeveless top.... and A-----'s sweater.

I shouldn't have asked

Winter arrived yesterday, just on the day that we were to babysit our grandson in Nanaimo in order for his parents to attend their work Christmas party. The snow was lightly falling during our afternoon walk but it wasn't looking too serious.
We headed toward my son-in-law and daughter's home in Nanaimo and, as we got nearer, the snow increased. It was sticking at their place just north of Nanaimo.
All went well despite my inability to follow directions on how to operate the dvd player thing. Our grandson co-operated as well by sleeping until the movie we were watching was nearly done. I changed his diapers while his bottle was heating up and then I fed him during the last part of the movie. By the time the movie ended, my daughter and son-in-law had come home.
The snow was quite serious by the time we headed home and P-- drove quite cautiously although the roads weren't too nasty.
This morning we woke to about 6 or 7 inches of the white stuff and it continued to fall until around noon. Now there are about 9 inches outside and the temperatures have fallen to -4℃. At least no more snow is predicted until Wednesday.
P-- and I went for a walk this afternoon dressed up like we were heading out for a stroll in Iqualuit. I had bought some stablicers to wear out hiking in icy sections, never imagining how nice they would be on icy roads. As well we both were wearing our hiking boots and gaitors to keep the snow out of our boots.
Tomorrow I have every intention of doing my Christmas baking. Next year I WILL be making fruit cake, dang it!
Sorry, I didn't think of taking pictures since my kids love to tease me about "another snow picture?". Instead just imagine snow up to your knees... if you are vertically challenged, mid calf if you are normal height.

The weather outside is frightful...

... but inside it's so delightful! Rain mixed with snow is falling outside, the fireplace insert is keeping the house nice and cozy and I'm being very lazy. Inspiration for SIL gifts hasn't hit me yet and by the time it does it will be too late. Boohoo! Last Christmas the SILs got scarves, each in a different colour

and their husbands got scarves, also each in a different colour, knit in a brioche pattern
I did consider whipping up 3 foliage hats for my SILs (a.k.a. "the aunts") along with 3 watch caps for the "uncles". Maybe I should stop considering anything other than the weather outside and the potential shortage of wine in my "cellar".
Next year I was thinking of getting together with my DD to make antipasto, salsa, liquors and assorted baking. I intend to clear out my weaving room and I'll cut the "dog" off of my loom in order to make Christmas tea towels, a thing I used to do years ago.
As one of my fellow hikers said, "My idea of Christmas is a rented cabin in the Gulf Islands with a nice fire and a good view". I agree but would prefer a unit at Ocean Village Beach resort with a few bottles of wine and a good roaring storm outside. (Sorry DD, you and your little family could come along if you wanted as could my DS and his wife).
In the meantime we are going to the Craig Street brewpub for dinner.

Where's winter?

As usual, I didn't intend to have such a big gap in between blogging but, life happens.
We did have a shower for my grandson. P-- went hiking :-( while I played hostess. My co-hostess hadn't ordered the sandwiches due to a miscommunication (I rarely check facebook which is where J---- had posted the question about how many sandwiches to order). My daughter, grandson and I all scrambled to buy sandwich making supplies and things turned out quite well.

The proud great-grandma (my mom) with A-----
Last week was awesome! We went hiking with P-- and my friend and met up with 2 of her friends in order to do a long hike along Gowland-Todd. L------ led from the parking lot to Jocelyn Hill and then my friend M--- took over. We hiked down to the Durrance Lake parking lot and then up and over Mt. Work to Fork Lake.
The day was foggy with sun and clouds over higher elevations. Luckily the rain didn't start until we reached S------'s car.
(Not using full names to protect the innocent :-)) Despite the fog I found that I was warm so stripped down to my long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up. S------ was in short sleeves and M--- was dressed for the Arctic despite the warm temperatures but then, she says she's always cold.



The following day (Tuesday) I joined the Mac group with my hiking friend who had only had her Mac for a year. I did learn about making photo books and cards. Whee! The prices are somewhat reasonable as well. The only problem is.... ya need a Mac!
On Thursday (Dec. 4th) I skipped a hike with the Manzanita hiking group since 1. I figured they were too slow and 2. I wanted to do more than a few short hikes around Goldstream Park.
With that thought in mind, on Saturday I went hiking with some friends from COG (Cowichan Outdoor Group). We went up and around Cobble Hill (as John would say, like a string of Christmas lights).
The following day COG went to Mt. Richards, which was good.


This week is a non-hiking week since my friend is visiting family in Alberta as well plus the hiking group's Christmas party is next weekend. COG regular hikers are invited to join the light hikers for a hike to Swan Lake/Christmas Hill on Sunday, Dec. 14th, but I think I'll decline. P-- and I will probably do our own thing now that the bears have gone to bed.... I hope!

too many projects? Never!

I just got some more yarn in the mail which will allow me to keep my grandson nice and warm.... next year. I've been wanting to try creating some sweater designs using Ann Budd's book: " a Knitter's book of handy sweater patterns" So far it looks fairly simple. You figure what size you want to make. Then you do a gauge swatch and, based on your gauge, follow the various columns that list how many stitches to cast on, how far to work until armholes, etc.
I've bought A some superwash yarn in a worsted weight yarn and am going to be making a saddle shoulder sweater, possibly with cables.
In the meantime I got my copy of "A gathering of lace" by Meg Swansen from the library plus I'm working on my Noro striped scarf as well as working on another pair of toe-up socks for me. I can handle it!
Poor A had his first bath yesterday and he wasn't a happy camper about it.

The bath also revealed that A is likely going to have reddish hair. A real Scottish... (Dutch, Irish, Mohawk, German, English, American) Canadian!
He does seem to like the bouncy seat I bought him though and has discovered how to make the music work.

Happy 1 week birthday baby A!

My beautiful grandson is one week old today. He and his mom were freed from the hospital last Saturday.
Now that the weather is getting cooler I've decided that warm hats are needed to keep the little guy's noggin warm when he is out and about. I had almost completed a nice hat but it looked a bit like a green breast with a terra cotta coloured nipple so it was partially frogged and it should be ready soon.

As far as hiking goes, P and I went to Westwood Ridge near Nanaimo with the CVOC last Sunday. The weather was cool but dry, which was the important thing. Some members of the group had hoped to have lunch at Robert's Roost, a peak with a 360° view. Unfortunately to get there you need to cross DND property and there was an ongoing military exercise. Instead lunch was on a slightly lower peak with a view of Mt. Benson and Robert's Roost.

An immature eagle (approx. 3 years old) flew around us and seemed to like an area slightly south of us. After lunch we headed in that direction and could smell a strong smell of pot. (Slight wonder the eagle liked that area. It was a miracle that he/she wasn't flying upside down). Two gentlemen with sheepish grins emerged from that area as we passed.


Now I'm wishing that I had heard of CVOC sooner. Their hikes are a great way of working out and, as a group they do events such as snowshoeing/skiing or multi-day trips in other parts of North America. P and I are even considering joining the Outdoor club of Victoria.

At the beginning of the hike to Westwood Ridge M handed me a DVD which she had made of her trip to the BC Interior/Chilcotin. It was very well done so, knowing that M also has a Mac, I set to work trying to figure out how to create my own DVD of our trips to Strathcona (or anything else that could be made into a slideshow movie). It was a very simple procedure using iMovie and iDVD. Picture are dragged into iMovie along with your choice of music. Then, once the pictures and music are in place, you can add titles and tweak your creation before exporting it in order to burn it using iDVD. (Okay, so it isn't easy but there is a lot of how-to information available).

I'm a grandma!

My daughter gave birth to a healthy son weighing 10 pounds, 7.7 ounces. He was an occipital posterior presentation, meaning that his head was facing the wrong way so, after about 12 hours of labour, it was decided that a c-section was the best choice for both mom and baby.
I was amazed that my DD was alert and able to nurse almost immediately after his birth and A seemed to catch on right away. To me he seemed quite smart. While daddy was holding him, he'd turn his head towards mom as soon as he heard her voice.



I had to laugh when the nurse put his little hospital issue hat on his head. Since he was so big, his hat kept falling off.
Needless to say I have now knitted him 2 other hats that should stay put and I'm working on a third hat which should both stay on and keep his little noggin warm when he is outside.

His parents are still thinking little A should be a hockey player but dude, the kid is a big boy, more suited to football.

The great grandparents are tickled!

Without a doubt this one will be spoiled rotten! (Isn't that the job of grandparents?)

Too much fun!

I guess I was having too much fun to stop and blog.
P and I joined a hiking group which usually meets on Sunday morning. Our first hike with them was the Cowichan footpath from Skutz Falls bridge to Stoltz pool and back through the group campsite side of the river. The weather was unbelievably beautiful.
The following week a hike was scheduled for Gowland-Todd on a Saturday but we skipped it since rain had been predicted plus my friend J was told it would be too much for her.
On November 9th P was tied to a pager so J and I went hiking to Eagle Heights. The weather wasn't as nice this time and there was no view due to the fog. J found the hike to be a bit too much for her with all of the uphill travel.
The Thursday hike was another gorgeous day. We hiked to Stoney Hill overlooking Saltspring Island, Mill Bay and North Saanich. It wasn't as tough a hike as the ones we do on Sundays since there is a break to have a snack or to take pictures, remove jackets, etc.





On Sunday my friend T came along on the hike, this one to Maple Mountain. We took the blue route part way then switched to the pink route which led to the microwave tower. From there we took another pink trail to the Maple Mountain parking lot and then headed down for our lunch break. On the way we found an interesting shelter. It looked as if it would keep a person fairly dry but not necessarily warm.



M, one of my old classmates was on the hike and we talked about getting together for hikes during the week. I was supposed to go hiking tomorrow but then M had an opportunity to hike today instead. It didn't work out for me but I'm sure that we'll get together next week.

Ok baby, your shawl is done.

I skipped my hiking date on Thursday to knit, although it was raining sideways outside, and I spent the best part of yesterday knitting in order to finish the shawl. I'm pleased to say that it is all done now aside from the blocking. Pictures of proof will be posted as soon as the shawl is dry, weather permitting.
Now to move on to other projects, including reading my book, "The story of Edgar Sawtelle". Then I plan to knit Jarod Flood's Habitat hat using some yarn left over from knitting Oblique.

The picture was taken before I added the buttons but the weather hasn't been ideal for taking photographs. I am even thinking of replacing the buttons that are now on Oblique with some nice wooden ones which I still have to purchase. I must admit that I really love this sweater and sort of skipped the washing and blocking part of finishing. One test try on and I was in love!

Well, bring on the grandson. He will be a warm little bundle with a wooly wardrobe.

The power of the shawl

Well, there still isn't a grandchild but he really isn't due until November 7th. I'm betting on November 8th although something says that I should put my money on November 11th. Hey, not everyone has their birthday on a stat holiday!
DD figures that what is keeping her son from being born is the fact that his shawl isn't finished yet. The story is that, way back in the spring of '08 (I think) I started working on my second Fir Cone square shawl. The first one was done in emerald green for myself. I told my daughter that I was going to knit a second one for a future grandchild and the first grandchild born would get it. I poked along at it until my daughter phoned to say that the shawl would come in handy since she was expecting a child in November. I continued knitting but summer holidays and other knitting projects came in between until the shawl, needing just the last edging, found itself stuffed in a closet with other UFOs. As the date drew nearer for my grandchild's birth I remembered the shawl and started working on it in a mad fury. Now 2 of the 4 edges are complete. I'm counting on having a completed project by Sunday, November 9th.
Here is a token picture of the green shawl just to give an idea of the size.


Ok baby, you can come out anytime now. Your shawl will be done by the time you come home. (Notice my fingers are crossed?)

Back at it

.... but for how long before I lose interest and stop blogging for a few months?
Well, I'm not a grandmother yet although I'm sure that my daughter is eager to get rid of her little passenger.
I've given up (temporarily) of knitting little baby things in exchange for knitting ME things. I completed Oblique and am now working on a generic toe up, short-row sock. The only variation from my normal, boring but functional sock pattern is that I'm doing a cabled ribbing at the top of the sock. I do promise pictures.
Fall has been very mild and colourful in our part of the world. We did have some rain and the occasional gust of wind which removed quite a few leaves. Last weekend we went hiking with the local outdoor club and it was very nice to hike through the leaves that were covering the hiking trail.
This picture was taken while we stopped to admire the leaves and to observe a river kayaking class going on.



Last Saturday my daughter and I attended the Cowichan Fibre Fest. I scored some nice loot including a 1 pound skein of 3-ply Superwash Merino (shawl?) and some Tencel/Merino roving in a nice blue-green colour. I'm hoping to spin that up soon.
While at the Fibre Fest I ran into several members of the weaver's guild of which I used to be a member before I decided to work. Now that I'm no longer working on the guild meeting days, I hope to return to the guild. That may in turn lead to more weaving projects and possibly more spinning.
Right now I am hoping to blog at least 2 to 3 times a week and I promise to post pictures.

Sorry for the long delay.

I did really have great intentions of at least blogging weekly if not daily.
Well, I'm going to be an aunt in August (DH's sisters are late starters) and a grandmom in November. Whee!! I've been whipping up Baby surprise jackets in a wide array of colours and sizes for these two new babies. Then I decided that my 1-year old nephew needed a jacket as well so I'm making him a Tomten jacket although I'm having trouble deciding on what the chest size would be for an 18-month old. The version I'm making now is made with Tivoli Aran yarn, which is a worsted weight yarn. I figure it should be big enough to fit a 3-year old so, he'll just have to roll up his sleeves until he grows into it.
I've also been doing a wee bit of spinning using a sack of roving I had from a few years ago.
On the non-baby side I have been working on socks, hats (foliage), double layer mittens (a modified EZ design), and a sweater based on EZ for myself (still unsure if I'm doing a double layer hem or a henley neck or both).

If anyone would like to see a knitting group in Duncan, BC, contact me. I'm leaning towards either Mondays, Wednesdays or Thursdays at 7 p.m. at my place.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to everyone and hopefully you all got what you wanted for Christmas the holiday.
Santa was good to me, with a little help and brought me a Schacht Ladybug spinning wheel. :-) I thought it would be hard to get back into spinning after not doing it for soooooo long but it was a bit like riding a bike. It came back to me sooner than I thought.
As far as knitting, I made a scarf and mittens for my friend in Toronto and then figured that, since I was right into the scarf thing, I'd make each of my three sister-in-laws a scarf as well. I used the branching out pattern and 2 balls of Sirdar Sublime cashmere, silk, merino DK yarn per scarf.




After completing them with 1 week to go before Christmas I madly decided to make the husbands of the SILs a scarf each as well. It was another trip to the LYS to buy some Paton's Shetland chunky yarn in 3 different colours for the men's scarves. It was suggested that I work the scarves in k2, p2 rib, alternating each rib row with a knit row. I really didn't like the resulting look so checked various books and came up with brioche stitch. Each scarf used 2 balls of yarn and I finished with 2 days to go before Christmas. Then I cast on for another scarf, this one for my 4 year old niece. It was done using garter stitch and Funny yarn. All of my Christmas knitting was completed by the time we sat down for Christmas breakfast with my family.
I even found time to knit a baby hat for my 7 month old nephew. The lady at my LYS suggested the "Faux Fair Isle" hat from Lesley Edmonson's "Knitting for babies: blanket, booties, bibs & more". The yarn suggested was sock yarn, of which I had lots so I cast on for the medium size (12 months?) and finished it off while watching "Once".



Now I'm finishing of the second pair of socks for DH. These were intended to be given to him for Christmas along with another pair which I was able to finish in secret. At least he'll get these before his birthday.
I'm also working on a sweater for myself and, thanks to Ravelry I keep finding more and more projects that I'd like to knit.

Happy New Year to everyone and hopefully you all got what you wanted for Christmas the holiday.
Santa was good to me, with a little help and brought me a Schacht Ladybug spinning wheel. :-) I thought it would be hard to get back into spinning after not doing it for soooooo long but it was a bit like riding a bike. It came back to me sooner than I thought.
As far as knitting, I made a scarf and mittens for my friend in Toronto and then figured that, since I was right into the scarf thing, I'd make each of my three sister-in-laws a scarf as well. I used the branching out pattern and 2 balls of Sirdar Sublime cashmere, silk, merino DK yarn per scarf.




After completing them with 1 week to go before Christmas I madly decided to make the husbands of the SILs a scarf each as well. It was another trip to the LYS to buy some Paton's Shetland chunky yarn in 3 different colours for the men's scarves. It was suggested that I work the scarves in k2, p2 rib, alternating each rib row with a knit row. I really didn't like the resulting look so checked various books and came up with brioche stitch. Each scarf used 2 balls of yarn and I finished with 2 days to go before Christmas. Then I cast on for another scarf, this one for my 4 year old niece. It was done using garter stitch and Funny yarn. All of my Christmas knitting was completed by the time we sat down for Christmas breakfast with my family.
I even found time to knit a baby hat for my 7 month old nephew. The lady at my LYS suggested the "Faux Fair Isle" hat from Lesley Edmonson's "Knitting for babies: blanket, booties, bibs & more". The yarn suggested was sock yarn, of which I had lots so I cast on for the medium size (12 months?) and finished it off while watching "Once".