Hats away!

 I did indeed finish the Musselburgh hat from the previous post.  Alas, I do not have a picture of it.  I'll take one soon.  It needs a bath to relax.  I'm concerned about how much it will relax and if it will still fit nicely afterwards.  If it doesn't, I'll just undo it and make it again smaller...

Speaking of baths... I have a black mostly merino wool cardigan that I have had for years and years.  I would say around 10 years?  I've always dry cleaned it, because I was worried about the wool (which, when you think about it, is a little dumb).  Anyhow, the last time I wore it, it didn't feel very nice.  It dawned on me that I wash wool all the time!  I can give the sweater a bath and it will be just fine!  I washed it last weekend and it was really disgusting.  Here's a picture of the water after the soak.  

I had to rinse it four times before the water came out clean.  That was one filthy sweater.  On the plus side, I wore it to dinner on Sunday night to celebrate our 7th Anniversary and it felt so much nicer!  The sleeves seemed longer, it was fluffier, just a happier sweater.  Note to self - wash the sweater more often.

Other than that, I've turned the heel on the sock for Smallest.  There is dread looming because her foot has been hurting for months and there is a possibility that it is a stress fracture, which would ruin her upcoming performance opportunities.  Boooo!  She was supposed to have an MRI today, but there was confusion with the doctor's orders and what is actually needed, so nothing today.  She was really hoping to know, and is frustrated and disappointed.  

Since my children don't read this blog, I can tell you that we are all heading up to Chicago for Middle's BFA Show and Smallest is coming also!  Middle doesn't know yet, a fun surprise!  Her dad and I think his wife and their little one will also be there.  The wife has issues with me, which I feel are unjustified, but also I understand, so we'll see how things go.

I also finished the neck and one armhole of my purple sweater.  I don't know if I like the way the arm is finished.  I may un-do it and use bigger needles to finish it instead.  Maybe I'll finish the other side with the bigger needles and then I can decide between them.  I like that plan.

We're supposed to get some cold weather next week, down into the 40s at night!  I'm excited about sweater weather!  Chicago will probably be chilly also.

Oh!  One more fun thing - Gaga used to grow blue morning glories on her fence when they moved to New Braunfels.  We thought these plants on our trellis out back were weeds, but no, they are a hello from Gaga!

That's all.  See you in two weeks!

Margie

It's been a lot.

Many things have happened since the last post.  First, Jeff and I went to California to visit his younger daughter, who is working as an intern for Cakebread Cellars during the harvest.  We ate some fantastically delicous food and drank some tasty wine also.  It was a great trip.

Second, we celebrated Jeff's birthday in a very low-key way.  He'll hit a big birthday in two years, so perhaps we'll have a larger celebration then. 

Third, we found out that my sister-in-law, who lives in CO, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and had her first chemo session the previous week.  No bueno.  After three rounds of chemo, it will be surgery to stage things and then more chemo. 

Fourth, Jeff's older daughter came for a visit during a break from law school.  We had a really lovely weekend with her. 

Fifth, Jeff and I got covid.  Bleah.  The Boy seems to have avoided it.  The benefits of being anti-social! 

Sixth, my sister-in-law passed away from her cancer.  It was Stage IV, and all over her abdominal cavity. My father-in-law died two weeks after his cancer diagnosis, and we were all thankful that he didn't have to go through a lingering, painful death.  As sad as we are about my SIL, we are also glad she was spared, because there's nothing much you can do with Stage IV ovarian cancer. 

Oof.

Last night we had a vestry meeting for my church.  I am in my second year of a three year term.  I was participating by Zoom, because I'm between 5-10 days post-covid-symptom-onset and I don't want to get anyone sick.  Before the meeting, I was looking for something to do while I sat.  I thought about working on the second sock for Smallest, but happened to see the fabric for some sashiko coasters I bought a kit for (a while ago!) sitting on my desk.  I got the rest of the kit and an hour and a half later, voila!  C'est finis!  

Below are also some sock progress pictures.

Other projects... I'm working on a Musselburgh hat for Middle.  They finally responded to a question I had about colors.  I am making it with Gauge Dye Works Colorwheel colorway.  It's super fun, and I should be able to finish in a day or two.  I'm not entirely sure I like it?  I think I should have knit it with size 3 needles instead of 4, but we'll see what Middle thinks of it.  We'll see them at Thanksgiving. 

I also made good progress on my Lantana top and just need to put the neck and sleeve bands on to finish it.  Amazing how things get finished when you work on them! 

I think that's all I know.  We're heading to Chicago at the beginning of November for Middle's BFA show, and then to CO, and then back to CO for SIL's service. 

Margie