TSA: DPN's are not weapons

 I have an unexpected plane trip coming up this week.  The details are not important, but I am looking forward to a few days of warmer weather, and all of those knitting opportunities that air travel provides.

Some people fuss over what shoes to pack, or clothes.  I fuss over knitting.  And books.  And yes, I always overpack.  I have knitting stashed in my suitcase, in my carryon, and in my purse.  I have mindless knitting.  I have complex lace knitting.  I have dark yarn.  I have light yarn.  I have a couple balls of yarn with extra needles.

But there are so many things that can go wrong, and I don't want to be caught with nothing to knit, right?  A bag could be stolen.  TSA could decide that metal DPN's are dangerous weapons.  Yarn could break.  I could have pattern issues.  I could get bored with one project and want to work on something different.  

Naturally, the teacher mitts are at the top of the list.  Progress so far:  one pair finished;  one pair 5/6 finished, one pair barely started, three balls of yarn in the queue.  Then I am bringing a light pink lace shawl, a black lace shawl, and my placemats (with a couple spare balls for more placemats).  Seven projects in all.  That isn't excessive for five days, is it?

This actually isn't as crazy as it sounds.   There is not a local yarn store within a thirty mile radius.  Apparently, people don't generally travel to Nevada to knit or buy yarn.

Today, it is all about the fiber overpacking.    

New school, new teachers, more mitts

Christmas time brings the new batch of Christmas teacher mitts to knit.  In addition to the baby blanket for Mandy.  (I really need to speak to my friends about having a baby around Christmas, it really puts a crunch for holiday knitting.)

Mandy is due next week.  My goal was to finish her blanket before Thanksgiving.  I did.  Though late Wednesday night hardly counts, since I wasn't able to give it to her before close of business that day.  I had court with her Wednesday, and the baby had not yet arrived.  She made no similar promises for Monday, though I am optimistic, because I haven't given her the blanket yet.  A baby can't be born before the blanket is delivered, right?

With the blanket done, I can focus on Christmas Teacher Mitts.  With the move over the summer, my kids started a new school.  And for my oldest, sixth grade meant he started in the junior/senior high school, with six different teachers.  I told him to select one or two of his favorite teachers, and to find out their favorite colors.  He gave me three, then a day later, gave me all six, with favorite colors and in order of preference.  That is my annoyingly thorough child for you.

So, as of today, the mitt progress stands so far:  one pair finished, one pair half finished, yarn selected for five more, and the goal to finish as many as possible.  Each pair takes 8 to 12 hours of knitting, 18 days to go. . . I am doomed.

Today, it is all about the holiday deadlines.  

Your Chauffer Has a Hobby

I have realized that I now have an unpaid second job:  I am a chauffer for my children.  I drive my children places, I wait 60 to 90 minutes, then I drive them home.  I have been doing this for a while, but the number of days seems to have increased, especially right now.  Monday is football practice.  Tuesday is Boy Scouts.  Wednesday is football practice.  Thursday is Cub Scouts.  Friday, I lay exhausted on the sofa.

That means that four days a week, I rush home, prepare and feed my family, then dash back into town for my chauffeuring duty, then come home around 8 or 9pm.  Those are some long days.  The only good part is that for the 60 to 90 minute wait, I usually get to knit.  Sometimes, I go to my office or run errands, but sometimes I knit during Scouts,  and I always watch the football practice and knit.

That is a lot of scheduled knitting time a week, and that is a lot of the progress that I have been able to make on my deadlines.  The hat is pretty much done, I just need to weave in the ends.  The Court hearing is next week, so that is a reasonable deadline.  I want to baby blanket to be a little bigger, maybe two more rounds, but really I can end it at any time.  Mandy is due at the end of the month, so that one is still a bit of a worry.

I only have one and a half mitts in progress/completed, but that deadline isn't until mid-December, the latest deadline of the bunch.  So I am just postponing the worrying.

Today, it is all about the Mom's second job.  

Stash Diving

With all of the mitts and hats to be done, I realized one nice thing:  I didn't have to buy very much yarn for any of it.  When a hat was requested, purple, no black, no purple, maybe purple and black, didn't have to buy any yarn. I just went to the stash.  I bought them when River Knits was closing.  I didn't know what I would make with it, but the yarn was pretty and significantly discounted.  But now, i am delighted that I found the perfect project for the yarn.  As I have been knitting at the courthouse, I have gotten so many compliments on the yarn.  It warms the heart.

For the mitts, I pulled skein after skein from the stash, to match the favorite colors for the teachers.  I had to buy one skein, because I didn't have any yarn that was "jewel-toned green" but I was able to find the other favored colors in my yarn cabinet.

I have so much yarn right now, it delights me to put it all to good use.

Today it is all about stockpiling, and finding a use for it.

All the deadlines

I am starting to feel buried under my knitting deadlines.  It started with the usual Christmas teacher mitts.  My kids started a new school, so I told them the usual thing when they started: find out your teachers' favorite color.  For my youngest, that was fine.  But my oldest is in 6th grade now, and has six teachers.  I told him to pick one of two of his favorite teachers.  He gave me three, then updated it with a list for all six teachers, in order or priority for mitts.  At first, I was only willing to do three pairs of mitts maximum.  But having the list of their favorite colors makes me feel bad for the others.
Then, my good friend is pregnant, and a new baby deserves a new baby blanket.  With her first child, she did monthly photos of her son, and in each baby photo, he was laying on the blanket that I knit.  A kind compliment for a knitter.  So now for her second child, of course, I am knitting another blanket.

Then, there was a hat request.  I have been court appointed to represent a troubled teenager.  A very troubled teenager.  The fact that the Judge was concerned enough to appoint her an attorney when she had no constitutional right to one is a huge indicator.  When I visited her in residential placement last week, she requested that I knit her something.  A hat.  She has gone a month without self-harm behavior, so how could I say no?  But she thinks of events on a short term basis.  I can't give her the hat in six months.

And last but not least, the Saint Baldericks event is coming up.  Last year, my knitting group knit a whole pile of hats for the kind souls that were getting their heads shaved in solidarity and to raise money for cancer research.  I donated three hats, and a shawl last year.  I have a baby blanket already prepared, but I don't have any hats yet.

So the final tally for the next four months:  three to seven pairs of mitts, one hat, one baby blanket, and however many hats I can finish.

Today, it is all about the pile of knitting, with deadlines.

A Home for the Stash

I am officially feeling settled in the new house.  There is still a lot to unpack, but the yarn is unpacked and arranged.  It was a lovely process.  I wish all unpacking could be so enjoyable.  I literally placed every skein of yarn on the floor, then one by one, arranged into the cabinet and bins.

It was like visiting old friends.  I have so many beautiful yarns, some that I had forgotten I even owned.  I have Malabrigo Lace?  When did I buy that?  Ooo, this ball is prettier than I remembered.  I have ten balls of this silk bamboo?  I didn't remember that many.

It was only later that I realized that I missed an opportunity.  I should have taken a picture of each yarn and logged them into Ravelry.   Though, the internet does not get connected at the new house until tomorrow, so really we are talking that I should have taken a bunch of pictures with notes to add to Ravelry at a later date, when I may or may not remember what I am adding.

Today, it is all about the Sunday afternoon playing with pretty yarn.  

Country Life

We have successfully moved into the new house.  Well, out of the old house, and settling into the new house.  There is still a great deal of things in storage and my Mother's basement.  Including my yarn cabinet, sewing machine, and desk.  I was able to stake my claim to the fourth bedroom (though which one evolved over time), so these items will eventually have a home in my home.  Though, I did lose the closet to other requirements.  So now, my stash will be in the room, in my yarn cabinet and bins, in full view of the world.  The stairs are narrow, steep and difficult to maneuver, so my stash should be shielded from viewing by the random guests, for family's eyes only.

All in all, we are very happy with our new home.  We have one neighbor, with another three or four about a half mile away.  We are surrounded by corn/soybean fields, woods, and quiet.  My sweetie and I are looking forward to evening walks around our own land, instead of around the old neighborhood.

With all the packing, moving and unpacking action, I have hardly had a chance to knit at all.  During the closing, I was able to knit the whole time, to the amusement of everyone in the room.  But after that, I knit exactly two rows, forty stitches, in a two week period.  That is pretty bad, but I was too busy and active to notice.  I have a two week deadline for the Ravenclaw Scarf, so that deadline is weighing on my mind.  It doesn't help that I can't knit on that one at home, or at least, not when the kids are home.  Can't have my little Ravenclaw seeing his birthday present.

Once I am more settled in the new Mommy room, I want to really evaluate my WIP's, especially the long-neglected ones.  Some have been stuck in my Mother's basement for so long, I don't even remember them.  I also want to re-evaluate my stash.  With my LYS closing two weeks ago, I scooped up some really beautiful yarns, a lot of really beautiful yarns.  And like the WIP's some of my yarns have been outside of the home so long, I have no idea what I really have.  So stay tuned for those updates.

Today, it is all about the new home, for me, my family, and my yarn.