Lets face it, I'm not a very good blogger. I put it off and then, once its been a while, I just kind of give up. The problem with being a non-blogger is that I really do love the blogging community. I keep up with a ton of other blogs and I really value the insight/reviews/ideas/etc I get from them.

So, I'm going to try to give it one more try. My goal is to do at least one post a week. It might be about my diet, knitting or spinning but it will be something.

Speaking of the diet. It was going really well there for quite a long time. I even made it to the big 40 lb mark. Then I just kind of stalled. I dont know what happened but I gained about two pounds and I've been stuck there for weeks--about 5 to be exact. I'm sick now (what I wouldn't give to be able to breathe out of my nostrils...) so I'm really slacking on the diet but I really need to get back on the horse. I was doing way to well there to just give up and return to my wicked ways. I'd love to see 50 gone...40 is good but there is just something nice and round about 50.

I've been knitting--not as much as I used to--but not for lack of wanting to. Its hard to find time when miss S demands my full attention.

Currently on the needles:

Starsky:

I just started this this morning while watching TV on the couch. Being sick may suck but at least I get a lot of knitting time in...

RPM Socks:

Made in Socks that Rock in Lemongrass (the mediumweight). I cannot even explain how much I love these socks. I have many skeins of this yarn but this is the first I've actually worked with and I must have started 5 different patterns and wasn't loving any of them but this simple spiral pattern just works. I'm really hoping to get this one finished and off the needles in the next couple of days though because the first shipment of the Rockin' Sock club should be arriving soon!

Evil Green Socks:

These socks are the bane of my existence. I do not like them. I love the pattern but the color is reminiscent of pureed green beans. I am too close to finishing to give up now though so they have been relegated to the lowest tier of the knitting heirarchy: bathroom knitting.

I also found out about the Spunky Fiber club this morning and joined up. I bought myself a Schact Matchless DT a couple of months ago--you know--because I have so much free time I need another hobby.

I must say I do love spinning though. I'm not terribly good at it yet but I'm learning. Heres what I've done so far:

This was my first attempt--its handpainted roving I bought ages ago from Hello Yarn. It spun up without a problem, even for an inept beginner like myself.

Heres some other handpainted roving I got from etsy.

I saw this great hat on the blog for the spunky fiber club that is perfect for some handspun--maybe I'll even have enough left over for a hat for the little one.

What else...lets see. The stash has grown to epic proportions. I'm serious. I need to cut back since it just doesnt fit on the shelf any more.

Thats not even counting the ugly yarn which is stuck in the closet. Oh--and the sock yarn:

Heres the Lorna's Laces and Fleece Artist (looks like some other stuff in there to the right as well)

In the second drawer, we have Koigu and Claudia's Handpaint. Maybe some Spirit Trail as well.

last drawer--Socks that Rock, Cherry Tree Hill Supersock, and a few other random things.

Thats it--I need to knit from my stash this year, a la Wendy

Posted by fruitychick at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I told you I've been knitting. I'm pretty surprised at the amount of knitting I've been able to do. Miss S is only getting up once in the middle of the night (sometimes twice--but late enough in the morning I usually just get out of bed) and the hubby has taken his share of her middle of the night super awake periods (actually, probably more than his fair share...). That leaves me fairly well rested most days and I take her naptimes to catch up on phone calls, knitting and some cleaning.

Mr. fruitychick is back to work today--although he is working from home now instead of commuting into DC. He spends most of his day on the phone or the computer and holds her when she is sleepy or just in her quiet/alert periods. She just watches him while he works and makes funny faces at her and that gives me some time to get things done around here and knit a little bit. I know I may be jinxing myself here but having a new baby here just isn't nearly as hard as I thought it would be.

So, with more knitting time than I thought I would have, I've totally abandoned my effort at having a monogamous relationship with a project. I finished Miss S's sweater:

Shown here with Miss S for scale. Its from Debbie Bliss' Baby Cashmerino book and even though I knit the 3 month size, it certainly looks huge. I've heard her patterns are usually much larger than they should be but this seems extreme.

I also have a pair of (boring) stockinette and ribbing socks for the hubby half done. I usually don't have problems starting the second sock but my resolve crumbles when I know I'll have to knit for the extra 4ish inches to make the sock fit his feet instead of mine. They are still in the knitting bag but I'm betting they won't see the light of day for a little while.

I cast on for these socks for me instead:

They are from Nancy Bush's Knitting on the Road. I've made a few modifications to fit my wider feet and smaller gauge. Once you do a few rounds, you get the idea of the pattern and you don't need the chart anymore, so these will be perfect riding in the car to Georgia knitting.

I've also caved and started one of the other projects I've seen around the bloggy world: The icarus shawl.

I love it but with all thats going on, I'm guessing its going to take me about 4 years to complete. I'm enjoying the beginning super short rows where I feel like I'm making progress though.

Plans for the big move are progressing--the packers will arrive on the 8th and will leave with my stuff on the 9th. We will start the drive that evening and make it as far as possible so we can get an early start the next day and not have to contend with DC traffic. If we can get 4 hours that night, then we should only have about 5 hours to do the next day.

How scary is it that there are only state outlines on the mapquest map? It seems so much longer without other roads on the map. I cannot believe I'm going to make this drive with a 6-week old baby and two dogs. Actually--I'm more in disbelief that I'm not totally freaking out about it--one week until I move to a city I've never even been to (in a state I've only ever driven though--never stopped) and I'm feeling really calm about everything.

Did I mention we don't even have a place to live yet? seriously--and yet I'm still calm. I'm wondering if someone hasn't been slipping me some type of drug over the past few weeks...

Posted by fruitychick at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)