Birthday Party!

Yesterday was my mother-in-law's birthday!! We had her over for dinner, and I made a cake. I also made a really, really, really good pizza for dinner... it was chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and garlic/herb feta cheese with pesto sauce! On a homeade crust. Hubby thought it looked so good he took a picture of it:

I knitted her a hat and about 1/4 of a scarf...

I did not think it would take so long to make a cabled scarf! She knits, too, though, and she laughed at getting an uncompleted scarf still attached to the knitting needle and ball of yarn in the box! She really likes them, and I'll finish the scarf as soon as I can.

Not much else. I am having a lot of pain in my right hip, so I'm not doing much. I think I might go see the doctor soon if the pain doesn't go away. Some days it's so bad I can hardly walk. I don't know what it is. But I have been diagnosed with arthritis in my neck, so I'm thinking it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to have arthritis elsewhere, too.

Obsession

So, you know how when you take up a new hobby it consumes you? I am afraid that is what knitting is to me right now. I am obsessed! I can't stop! I haven't turned on my sewing machine in 3 days... which is a VERY long time, for me at least.

I think it's because I've been interested in knitting since I was a child, but I never "got" it. It was frustrating to those who tried to teach me, too, because I am left-handed. So it was hard for me to grasp what they were showing me, and I can't do anything with my right hand, so I couldn't switch hands.

I also think it's because I can make a hat or a scarf or something in an afternoon, whereas a quilt of any size takes a lot longer than that. Plus, it's so soothing to just sit, listen to music or an audiobook, and knit!

I made my first mitten last night- the lady at the knitting store in town said I should feel comfortable with that before I tackled socks. It's too small for me, but I have the pattern down now. I think I am going to felt it and applique it to a background- my first knitted/quilted combo project! I made a felted bag, too. it's drying right now. It's big, too- I had to use my canning pot to form it! I plan to use it when I take my knitting places. The knitting store has a knitting night every Monday evening. I can't go tonight, but I definitely plan to next week!

3 Hats

Well, an inability to sleep past 4:30 this morning led to my finishing the 3rd hat! I made 3 hats in 36 hours. I am feeling much better today... I really think working on those hats helped me feel better faster - I didn't think about how I felt, I just concentrated on the hats!

This is the first one I did. It's with Lion brand Wool-Ease. It's 2 strands held together, worked in the round. I actually adapted this pattern from one I really like that's worked flat! Doesn't that make me sound like I'm some sort of expert or something :-) Trust me, I'm not. I am teaching myself how to do all this ( a shout out to my Aunt Judy, though, who showed me the basics when I was about 10- it's too bad I didn't appreciate it then, or I would already know how to do all this stuff!!) with the help of a great website that has tons of videos called knittinghelp.com.

Same pattern as above, done with a Paton 100% wool yarn. I worked part of it in a seed stitch because I wanted to try it.

This is a variation of a basic hat pattern I found on Ravelry. It's one strand of Red Heart Soft Yarn. I cast on 89 stitches, and worked 5K, 5P all the way around... it ended up shifting one stitch every round, and that's how it got the spiral look! I really like this one. I made up the pattern. Like I'm some sort of expert or something ;-)

I really like working in the round! These hats were my first attempt at that technique, using both circular needles and double-pointed needles. I definitely prefer it to having a seam down the back of a hat!

I'm almost ready to try a pair of socks. I have everything I need, and I understand the pattern. But I might crank out a couple more hats before I go for it, just to get more experience with the double-pointed needles. I have another hat that I am going to make. It uses 3 techniques I haven't tried before: provisional cast on, Kitchener grafting, and picking up stitches from the edge of a finished piece. Knittinghelp.com has videos for all of these, though, and I've watched them and I think I get it. Wish me luck!

PS- Just a little note: the "Quilt Dad" and "Adventures of Quilt Mom" blogs that I read are not a mom and dad that are related!! Thanks to the person who e-mailed me to ask!

I'm Still Alive!

I've just been ill. But not very ill- just ill enough to be very tired and want to sit around on the couch all day and do nothing. And use lots and lots of tissues! Fortunately I have a great Hubby who can take care of himself when I am not well, so I've been able to do this!

But I have been doing something... I finished 2 knitted hats yesterday alone, and I have another one going that I'll finish up tomorrow! I'll post pictures when they are all done. Which should be tomorrow afternoon sometime!

I am feeling much better than I have the last couple days. I'm going to my quilt guild meeting tonight- the first I've left the house since Tuesday morning!