Fidgity....Anxious....Claustrophobic

Hey there dear blog readers....Happy Summer.
As I write this it's 64 degrees and my bare feet
are freezing!  I guess summer is coming end of next
week....

 I finished up Joe's first sock this week, and started the
2nd one.  On Friday, Mickey walked by the end table
and his giant fluffy tail swooshed this piece of paper
onto the rug. It is upside down.

Note giant fluffy tail:

I picked up the paper and saw this:

The notes I had made for the first sock. I was supposed to
add 8 stitches after ribbing, which I forgot!  So I had to rip
about 3" back to ribbing.  I would be on my way down the
foot by now, but I'm just doing the heel gusset.

I have been feeling all of those things in the subject line,
fidgety, anxious, etc, because I only have one brainless project
going.  I know some of you are faithful to one project till it's done,
but I'm not like that.  I need the stimulation of a challenge and a simple
thing going all at once.  I started something kind of cool, and if it
works out (I've already ripped it 3x), I will show you next week.

Ruth asked if I had finished up the cable sweater...NOPE!
But I did put it by my chair this morning to work on in the next
couple of days before it gets super hot.

Ruth is coming along with her Tomten.  She is playing a bit of
yarn chicken.  I think it's totally adorable!
Lucy is watching it pretty closely

Martha is working away on her socks.  Her own pattern:
R1; k1tb, p3, yo, p2tog, p2, k1tb
R2-8; k1tb, p7, k1tb. Repeat.

The colors are really cool.
Note the difference on the leg and then the foot...

In other news:
I've not nothin!

have a great week dear blog readers...Happy Knitting

Father's Day Post

I know it's obvious that it's Father's Day, but sometimes
I have trouble coming up with post titles...the holidays
save me!  LOL

I am done with the Bare Braches shawl, I'll see
if I have enough yarn for tassles....I hope I do
because they would be cute.

I take horrible knitting selfies, but this is more of a 

true color.

Wollmeise yarn

Very nice pattern and yarn combo!

I'll see if Joe will help me get better pictures for next week.

I am almost ready to decrease for toe on his socks.

The color is actual lavendar. (reminder his choice!)

 Ruth started a Tomten 

using red and a speckle yarn. She hopes she has

enough. This will be toddler size

She has made a few of these before...all wonderful.

I have never made one..have you?

 

I have not heard from Martha today,she is hopefully

outside enjoying nice weather activities.

In other news:

We celebrated fathers day yesterday.  I'm so thankful to have 

dad around!

Aren't  my brother and his wife a cute

 Mark and Max

Joe and Joey went fishing today...here is one of the

big walleye they caught

Today I drove far away 2.5 hours each way to see my

dear friend Ann who is home from  Arizona for a visit.

We started working together when we were just 20 years

old...and she was in our wedding. She hasn't changed a bit.

 

It's been really dry here, we need rain.

the flowers are so pretty...but I need to water them everyday.

 This fella was watching the party from afar yesterday

I'm going to  knit on those socks..I'm already sick of them and

have one to go!  Yikes...

have a great week dear blog readers.

Chicken

 Trying to finish up the Bare Braches Shawl, and playing
serious yarn chicken!  I have 4 more rows left on this current
repeat, then I will do a  row of garter if there is enough yarn,
and then bind off.  It calls for tassles...I would like to add if
enough yarn.  I have liked doing this shawl, the Woolmesie
yarn is wonderful, but enough is enough!

I will have 16 rows (one full repeat) less than the design called
for when done.  I'm  hopeful it will block out really well.  I found
a goof about 1/2 way down that is now a design change. It won't show
when I'm wearing it.

Mentioned last week that I ordered some cotton blend yarn
to make Joe some summer weight socks.
I really like this Panda  Cotton by Crystal Palace Yarns.
59% Bamboo (which feet love, wicks mositure away)
25% cotton and 16% elastic).  It is similar to Cascade
fixation.  Only 182 yards per little ball so I got 3.  Joe picked
the color.  He must be really bored with blue socks, because
he asked for PURPLE.  Um...they will be nice. Tiny little stitches.

I'm doing a 7" leg so about 1" to go.  Usually I do a short
row heel for him, but I will do a gusset heel this time. The
yarn is a little slippery and I don't want it moving around
and slipping down in his shoe. (I hate doing the gusset heel by
the way!).  I did a  ribbing on each side.  An added bonus is
it hides the ladders that often come with cotton yarn.

Yarn alert!  Crystal Palace is going out of business, so if you
like any of their yarns, scoop them up fast!

The other cotton blend yarn I got is

You can see from the pic it has white stripes in there ...

I ordered some Opal lightweight yarn from Little Knits.
He will be all set, though I'm just making one pair now. I have
other things I want to do.

I finished up the Giant Socks this week.
Knitpicks Hawthorne yarn.  Really nice yarn.
SOOOO glad these are done. I started in March when
we were on vacation.

I love when they are the same size!
(one on top of the other in this pic)

Martha started a sock out of some undisclosed yarn.
Her own pattern:
R1 k1tb, p3, yo, p2tog; R2-9 k1tb, p7. Repeat.....

Martha's own words describing this picture (so cute)
 This second picture is the sock yarn I have to wind. I had only a few balls wound. This is a tragedy when you need to reach your arm down to get some sock yarn to knit. So I took out about 13 hanks of yarn. I also found 2 missing needle needles and a stitch marker. I organized my random tools on the bottom of the basket, and took a shower. Moxie, our devilish new dog decided it was very thoughtful of me to leave the yarn out to play with. I came down stairs and she had rearranged all of the yarn and chewed the tags off! 🙄 Who needs those? I was able to piece things back together and now everything is in the bags chilling.... young dogs.... 

LOLOLOLOL

Ruth sent me a picture on Friday and I can't find it. She
is working on the edging of her baby blanket. Sorry Ruth!

In other news:

Joe's real birthday was Wednesday, and the kids came for dinner

I had asked Joey last week to bring me a coozie to keep my
beer cold.  I love Shanty beer with certain foods this time of year, but it has to be
really really cold.  He forgot to bring one from home, so stopped to buy
me my own personal coozie, which I have renamed "Conzie".

I made Joe one of his favorite meals today.  First time in 35 years
of marriage that I have made it. Liver & onions.  (insert gag here).
He made me chicken on the grill while I cooked his surprise in the
house. He said it was good, though I know a little over done. 

That's it for this week dear blog readers....wish me luck playing
chicken!

Time marches on

I can't believe it's June already. We had a couple of hot nights
this week, and now it's quite cool here in Western NY.

Not much knitting time as is the usual lately. I figured out some
of the reason is I go to bed so early.....

I managed to turn the heel on the second giant sock.
Reminder yarn is Hawthorne by Knitpicks.
Really nice yarn!

Joe wears the homemade socks all summer and they look so
hot. I took advantage of a couple of sales this week and ordered
some cotton blend yarn that I hope his feet will love and will
be cooler.  It should be here this week so I'll show you next week.
It takes me a long time to knit socks so Im thinking maybe one pair
will get done this summer.  I still have a lot of Christmas socks
to make.

Got a couple more repeats done on the shawl.

 Not sure how much yarn is left, but I have decided when it runs out,
it will be done.  There are 540 yards so it won't (should not be) tiny.

A couple of weeks ago, I made a pair of booties for Ruth's
daughter in law who is expecting and was home for a
baby shower this week. I got pink eye of all things! and could
not go.   Here is a picture that Ruth took of the booties. In my
haste to get them there on time, I forgot to take pictures!

Pattern is Baby Hug Boots made from
Organic cotton yarn. 

Ruth is working along on her sock

I love the yarn and how its striping. she says its striping
differently on the foot part.

Martha is working on her shawl.

Chic knits, pattern Alby by Bonne Marie Burns. The yarn is Twist Sock by Hedgehog fibers the color way I think is Oak. 
She has 24 out of 29 repeats on the lace section done.

In other news....
we had a birthday party for mom and Joe today.
Not very good pictures...but time sure marches on.
Hard to believe they are another year older....but I'm
so glad they are!

Have a good week dear blog readers.
I think it's going to be very cool which = great knitting
weather.