I think that there is no greater compliment to a knitter than seeing a loved one willingly choose to wear a hand knit garment that was crafted specifically for them. 
This speaks volumes to me and warms my heart to no end. It also provides much needed reassurance that my sock knitting skills shall always be needed even though we live in sunny Florida!
Lorna's Laces - Black Watch, in a simple 2x2 rib. Cuff down with a rounded toe.
Blogging without Obligation is a concept that brings freedom to many a blogger, myself included. So today I choose to join those who need the liberation from the chore of blogging and the freedom to knit or not.
In all honesty, I have grown weary of feeling pressured that I have to knit in order to feed the blog. From here on out I will knit only because I find joy in it and for no other reason.
When those times come that I do not have knitting to share, I shall bore you with tales of my new life in Florida, the challenges of being a wife and a mother to our teenage son and life in general.
Of course I have been doing this for months and you seem to enjoy the course change as much as I do.
I supposed I just needed to free myself from self-inflicted guilt and obligation, with a public statement.
Have a great weekend and remember I adore each and everyone of you, whether you comment or not!
The place we moved to has a huge marsh area in the complex, which is teeming with wildlife.
Every morning I take a daily constitutional around the neighborhood and I have learned to take my camera with me because I never know what I'm going to see.
Just the other day, I heard a rustling in the bushes and out popped out an Armadillo much to my surprise! He regarded me cautiously for a moment and then scurried safely across the street into the marsh. I did not have my camera! Waaaaaa!
Right behind our building lives a brown bunny family. Sometimes I can catch a quick glimpse of one or two, before they dash back to the bushes.
I am just so happy and thankful to live in such a glorious place. But you knew that:D
Did you by any chance click on those pretty red words scattered thorought the post? If you didn't, go ahead. I'll wait. Trek was kind enough to share her little bloggie trick with me.
PS. It's good to be back and knitting content will be appear in the next post.
Once again dear reader,
I am having a nice visit with a whole new group of moving men. Actually, I am at the storage facility sitting in a chair supervising them, while they load up the truck. In a few hours my precious belongings will be transfered into my new abode. Then the fun really begins - unpacking and all the thrills that come along with it.
By then end of this long weekend I am sure my nerves will be shattered and I will be up to my eyeballs in emptied boxes and packing paper. Though I must admit that I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. I feel as if I have been on an extended vacation and I'm glad that it's over. There is nothing more comforting than being surrounded by your own treasures.
Thanksgiving is a week away and I have much to do between now and then. In light of this I am taking a much needed blog break and will return on Friday the 30th, with good things to share.
May each of you have a blessed holiday with friends and family.
After 2 days of whirlwind shopping, and touring countless furniture stores TBC and I settled on the furniture for our new home. It was exhausting but worth all the running around. I choose a neutral cappuccino color for the living room suite which permits a wide variety of changes to my accent colors, which are undetermined as of this time.
We even found a recliner for TBC that matches the suite and looks very similar to my knitting chair.
I also purchased the ottoman and it's almost like a chaise lounge. I see many happy hours of knitting, reading and relaxing happening here.
We also selected a sleeper sofa for visiting family. The timing is perfect because TBC's youngest brother and his wife are arriving on Thanksgiving day to celebrate with us!
Of course one must have tables and I was drawn to the graceful oval shape and the rich wood tones of this set. I think it compliments the furniture rather well.
And last is the kitchen table that has a bit of extra storage at the bottom! Thankfully it has a leaf and seats 6 people comfortably.
The lamps, accent pillows and area rugs have yet to be purchased but I have no doubt that I will find them in the next 2 days.
* * * * * *
I did manage to finish 1 sock and have started it's mate on Monday evening. Would anyone care to test knit it for me? I would like it done rather quickly so if you can whip out a sock in a flash, do drop me an email at a1870 at yahoo dot com, subject line: Test Knitter.
TBC and I decided to move out of our parents home so this weekend was rather busy preparing for our 3rd move in 3 months. Consequently my knitting and pattern writing duties have been placed on hold. However, I have many good things to share.
* Friday morning we are taking up residence in a very posh apartment complex that is conveniently located right next to RB's school. This will save me 65 miles and $40.00 of gas transporting our son to his educational facility each and every week!
* I'm franticly shopping for new living room and dining room furniture! The old stuff was left in Payson when we moved. After 16 years of use we felt it was time for a change.
* We are pleased to report that RB did well on his mid term exams. Chinese - B, Honors Math - B, Critical Thinking - B and an A in Physical Education. He is settling in nicely with his new school and has found a great bunch of kids to pal around with.
* RB finds it rather amusing that he is taller than his mother. I am not amused, but I'm learning to deal with it.
* My so called Shrug has experienced gauge issues and sits in a red puddle awaiting its 3rd trip to the frog pond. Fortunately, Mom purchased a pretty red wrap for me at Stein Mart so I can wait on knitting that silly thing.
* Lime & Violet will feature my silly Tuscany sock pattern in the Daily Chum later this week!"
* TBC has landed a temporary job working for the city. They are so pleased with his work that they want to hire him as permanent employee!
* I have made two good friends here and both of them knit.
* The birds still make me laugh.
With a flick of my magic knitting needles I combined my favorite elements to create a pattern that compliments the exquisite colors in this hank of Koigu. 
I become so enamored with it that I completely forgot to start the other sock! How positively silly of me. Since the pattern flows so nicely there is no danger of Second Sock Syndrome and if all goes well this weekend this sock shall have a mate no later than Monday.
Oh, the sock pattern needs a name. Do you have any suggestions?
Yesterday, a nice chap tied a colorful kite to a piece drift wood, and let it twirl in the breeze all day. He was kind enough to let it fly level with my balcony and I enjoyed watching it dance in the wind. I am so easily entertained.
Due to my low spirits last weekend I found comfort in knitting dishcloths. Nothing fancy - the usual 4 Corners and a Checkerboard Square, which I finished at Knit Night. They are destined to be a surprise gift for a friend, could it be you?
Thank you for your positive response to Tuscany. You humble me. I am working on a sock weight version and hope to have the pattern written soon.
Crissy - you have created a monster:D
Crissy, the talented and beautiful, requested that I write a pattern for the Tuscany sock. Since I find it very difficult to say no to her I complied. I quickly wrote the pattern and sent her a copy to proof, after all she is an English major. And she did in a flash. So without further delay I give you Tuscany. 
When I was a little girl my mother would buy Green Leaf Cookies for us to share. They weren't anything fancy, just a simple vanilla sandwich cookie with chocolate on the inside, but we really enjoyed eating them together. After a while the bakery stopped selling them, much to my disappointment and I thought I would never see them again.
Well time marched on but the memories of sharing those yummy cookies with her lingered on. Eventually I joined the US Navy and she moved to Richmond VA. Wherever the Navy took me I would search for them to no avail.
Eventually my Mother joined me in my "Silly Cookie Quest" and one day she found a bakery that sold them and promptly bought 2 dozen.
Many weeks later when my ship was in England I received a very special care package from her. When I open the box I laughed with delight because tucked inside where the cookies! I savored every precious morsel.
Later that same year the bakery closed and the cookies were gone again. Oh well, I still had my memories and the cookies were good while they lasted.
Fast forward to present time.
Today we drove Mom back to the airport so she could fly back to Richmond. I cried and cried after she boarded the plane.
On the return trip home we stopped at a Gourmet Grocery Store. Can you guess what I found in the bakers case? A beautiful tray filled with Green Leaf Cookies!
Suddenly I did not feel so terribly sad, in fact my spirit lifted and the sorrow was replaced with joy! I felt as if she was right there with me and everything would be O.K. even though we are miles and miles apart.
And yes they are still as good as I remembered them. But you know what's even better than that? I can share them with my son and tell him my cookie stories!
God is Good!
