I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's been more than 2 months, darn it. But my surgery is over, there's no cancer, and I'm back to work, too. I've gained a lot of insight through all of this, but also got quite a bit of smocking and knitting while I was resting and healing.

Here's the round yolk of a bishop style bubble.


Here's our sweetie pie loving her toes! She's 7 1/2 months old now and still the sweetest baby in the world!
Here's the neck of her round-yoke Easter dress. Aren't the tulips pretty?
And here's a bonnet knit from cotton, to go with the dress. Only problem is it's a little too big.
Last, but not least, here's a new order of yarn from Knitpicks. The gray is for me and the Pink/purple is to knit something for the sweetest girl we know.

New yarn ordered

Today I saw a blog write-up for some really pretty yarn and a recommendation to use Loopy Ewe. I went to their site and ordered 3 different sock yarns. I placed the order this morning and by afternoon I had received an email that my order was shipped. Amazing! Wonderful! I can hardly wait to receive my package and get started knitting at least one of them. I'll try to take pictures and post when I get the package. What fun!! ;-)

Some new purchases

This is some really pretty lilac colored acrylic yarn that I received in the mail today. I found it on the DeStash blog and got a really good price. There are 7 skeins, so the baby will get something nice, if it's a girl. Otherwise my daughter, sister or I will receive something to enjoy


This isn't finished, yet, but it's my first log cabin from the Mason Dixon knitting book. It is Cottontots, for the baby.

This is my latest purchase from Once Upon a Child. It is NWOT, but feels like it has the new sizing still in it. I don't think it was ever worn. Those are little ducks on the pale blue background and it has a polo collar with blue trim.


This is an adorable outfit that is NWT and I found it on Ebay for a great price. That is a giraffe on the bib. Take a look at the next photo. The little pull on pants in yellow have the giraffe on the seat of the pants. Soooooo cute!

Photo heavy post, mostly yarn

This is some yummy sock yarn I bought on Ebay. I have no idea when I'll get to it, but it looks and feels wonderful! I can hardly wait.

This is a beautiful blue yarn I purchased on Ebay, too. IF it's a boy, I will be all set. Girls wear blue, too, so I'm sure it will be put to good use.

This is self explanatory. I can knit baby things or adult thing, and even washcloths with this. I got several skeins of each color, so lots of options and fun!

This is the beginning of my first lace shawl. I plan to give it to my pregnant daughter as a treat for her, since almost everything else is for the baby about now. I MAY have it finished for Easter, but then again, I may keep it until the baby shower in June. Fortunately she doesn't read my blog, so I can post here without worrying that she is seeing it. This has been fun for me to knit. I've tried a little lace knitting before, but nothing this substantial and I'm please with my patience and how it is progressing.

This is Cottontots yarn I ordered from Joann's. The blanket I've already done is out of the Koolade variegated yarn, so I needed a bit more to make a bib or burper. The green, blue and yellow will coordinate with the blanket, too, but be solid colors for designs in washcloths. The purple is just in case the baby is a girl, so I can do a couple of really girly things for her. ;-)

More for the Baby!

Here's a variegated washcloth for the baby. It is made with Bernat Cottontots yarn and is soooo soft. I'm really pleased with how this came out. Now I plan to use Cottontots to make more washcloths and bibs, for sure.

This is a blanket out of Bernat Cottontots, too. It took quite a while to do, but is very substantial and soft, too. I used Koolade color for this one and it is really pretty. I've ordered some more Koolade online from Joann's to make a couple of other things, like washcloths and bibs, to go with this. Maybe even a hat, too.
These are Lion Brand Cotton Ease that I purchased on Ebay and they are the older colors. I just like the brightness of the older colors so much better than the new colors they came out with this year. I have a couple more colors on order, too. After having made myself a vest last year from this yarn I fell in love with it and plan to make a lot for the baby or future babies. ;-)

Knitting and family pictures

This is our daughter, with her German Shepherd, Gabby. Grandbaby is 4 1/2 months along at this point and she is looking wonderful!
This is a picture of my most recent stash enhancements. All are intended for either daughter or grandbaby, at this point. I have some ideas, but am not certain, yet, what I'll do with them. I have more of each, so there's no problem with having enough.
This is the baby kimono (from Mason-Dixon). I just need to add the ribbons and it's done. I used Paton's Astra yarn and I'm not sure I'll use it again. It seems a bit bulkier than I wanted and a bit stiff. Hopefully when I wash it, it will soften up. I certainly hope so, since the booties and one of the hats I've knit are out of it, too.

Well, off to do taxes (ugh!) and then knit while watching the Las Vegas Nascar race this afternoon. ;-)

The first baby cap!

This is the first cap I've knitted for "the baby." It's obviously very simple. Only took me part of the evening Sunday. I used Paton's Astra yarn on size 5 needles. It's heavier than I anticipated, so I'm trying a white cap out of something a bit thinner. We'll see. I think the baby is going to get lots of caps and blankets, so far. I've started a white blanket. I'll post a picture of that next time.
;-)

Discloths done!

This is one of two dishcloths I finished and blocked today, to give to a friend for Christmas! It's a teapot, in case you can't figure it out and it's done in pale green (the color isn't the best today with my camera!) Peaches and Cream cotton yarn.

This is another Peaches and Cream dishcloth for my friend's Christmas gift. I love using the cloths as a practice for other stitches. This entrelac wasn't the easiest and I did have to rip out a few times, but I think I'm getting it, finally! ;-)

Another addition to my stash!

I purchased this in Destash's blog and I'm really looking forward to using it for a small decorative shawl for Spring. It's pink and blue silk tweed yarn and I have several skeins, so I can do something really fun with it! It will, however, have to wait for a few wintery things to be done first, along with some socks. I'm almost done with a few dishcloths for Christmas gifts and can hopefully get back to my socks and a shawl that are on the needles. I also have a beautiful sweater on the needles, but I think that one may not be finished until next winter. Who knows?
;-)

More new yarns!

Here are the other two hand-dyed merino yarns I purchased on Ebay. I'm obviously into purples right now, but they are soooo pretty! I'm anxious to get back to my sock knitting, but I'm trying to make some dishcloths for Christmas presents right now. Hopefully I'll finish those soon and can finish the socks on the needles and start something new. I want the nice warm socks, too. I'm really feeling the cold this winter and it isn't even winter, yet! ;-)

New yarns to play with!

Here are a couple of new hand-dyed merinos that I purchased on Ebay. Aren't they pretty?
I've got to finish my first merino socks and then will knit some more with this and a couple of others I bought with these. I'll post them soon! ;-)

Newest project

I purchased this yarn in Williamsburg, too! It is for Tom! A scarf to match a cap he already has. As a matter of fact, we just got home from a trip to Las Vegas and I was able to get quite a lot of this scarf done while we were gone. Airports are great places to knit. So is my brother's house. I worked on my beautiful merino purple socks, too, so I'll soon have more to show off.

Our trip was fun. We stayed with Ward for 3 nights and then spent 2 free nights at Main Street Station. David and I entered a slots tournament and even got to the finals, just didn't win. It was different and fun. Downtown Las Vegas is fun and the Fremont experience still is worth seeing any evening. We like the strip, but it is much more expensive.
;-)

Trip to Williamsburg

Look what I bought at the Twisted Sisters Yarn Shop in Williamsburg two days ago. The red is actually a bit darker than this picture, but it is beautiful hand-dyed sock yarn! The turquoise and purple is a ribbon yarn from which I'm going to make a triangular shawl, mostly decorative.
The shop was full of wonderful things and they offerred a 15% discount to us conference attendees. I was attending the VLA(VA Library Association) annual conference and it was quite fun! Learned a lot and I helped the Scholarship Committee quite a bit, too.
;-)

New Socks on the needles

This is some yarn I purchased on Ebay in August and it is absolutely beautiful!! It is hand dyed 100% Merino Sock Wool, in shades of blue, purple and pink. The seller was KBRECE and she has more up for auction that I'm watching. The quality of this yarn is superb! it is very soft, the colors are very deep and it knits into a really nice finish. I'm knitting on size 2 (US) bamboo needles and I'm knitting with the pattern in the picture, which is River Rapids Socks. This is a pleasant pattern, too. I'm really excited about this project, so hopefully it won't take too long to get done.

I'm off to Williamsburg on Wednesday for a library conference (VLA annual) and home on Friday evening. Then on Saturday my DH and I will be flying to Las Vegas to visit my brother and have some fun for almost a week, so my postings will be few and far between for a couple of weeks.

;-)