Handspun Friday is postponed ...

But I've got good reasons:

1. My DD Hannah came back from Australia, and left her heart there.


2. We are still very busy, and there's NO time to unpack my knitting bag, or get out the spinning wheel.


3. It rained. (O.K. that has nothing to do with it.)

If I lick it dry -


-can I sit on it?

I see some knitting time in my future, and can hardly wait to put my feet up and get going!

Talk to you soon!

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No knitting to see, move along now ....

I did knit yesterday, but I ripped it out three times, and still got stuck at row 9 of the test knit. I shot off an email to Alexandra, and this morning, after reading her instructions, and giving it another try, I found out that I made the same mistake 3 times. Does that tell you how TIRED I was, but I was so knitting deprived, I really wanted to knit some.
Next time I'll sleep over it, before I cry for help. So, since it's only about 15 rows in now, there's no photo of it yet. But ...

Here's the boys. Before Denny is a grown up, I wanted to show you these pictures:






I took those photos early May.
This week it looks like Happy has decided to NOT take all the crap anymore, Denny is dishing out. It's funny to see how fast Denny backs off, when Happy means business. He should have done so from the start.
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Today we are taking the day off. We've got some errands to run, and later in the afternoon, we'll be picking up Hannah from the airport.
We, meaning my son, and his friend, moved the heavy furniture into the garage yesterday.

(How do you spot a true dog lover? My sons friend had a piece of my berries cake during a break, and Denny was a bad boy, jumping up and licking the piece, before the friend even took a bite. He just removed the edge, where Denny's tongue has been, and ate the rest of the cake. :o) )

Pictures are still on the walls, tennis balls, which were under the sofas, and lots of other chew toys are sprinkled all over the house. The dogs have a field day with all the indoor space to run around right now. There's no comfortable place anymore. I've still got my bed in my bedroom, it's funny how all, more or less, empty rooms have an echo now. I'll be sleeping two more nights in my bed, then I'll have to move downstairs. We've got confirmation of the construction crew arriving on Tuesday morning.
We've still got the kitchen to pack up, and little things all over the house, but we'll get that done with at least Monday to spare. I hope Hannah will help, so it will all go faster.
The air in the walk-out basement is a lot fresher now, since we've got a dehumidifier, and an air purifier running non stop for a week now. I've got to empty the dehumidifier three times a day, which is kind of disgusting.
Well, I'm off to do some errands, and hopefully get some knitting done on my test knit shawl, without making stupid mistakes!
***

Monday, Monday ....

What a weekend! I wont whine again, but I'm glad it's over, and we are coming closer to our goal, and dead line as well. I still managed to bake a Raspberries cake on Friday. This time I used less sugar, less butter, and it was delicious. I like the slightly sour note of Raspberries.


I'm hoping to make another Blueberries cake in the next couple of days.

There has been NO knitting, OR spinning going on. We've started moving all my stuff into my quaters for the next couple of month, and it's just sitting there, ready to be put into it's new place, but that's only going to happen once I really live there, and get a feeling where things should be for maximum comfort. Nevertheless, I'll start a test knit tonight. I'm itching to cast on, but it has to wait. It's going to be a wonderful shawl, which will be my 10th shawl this year. It's called Larix, and I think it's wonderful in the original colors. Read about it on Alexandra's blog here. I feel very lucky to get to test knit this shawl. I'll be using some handspun yarn of mine.

What about the boys? It's like Denny has never had surgery, in fact, I'll have to call them and ask, if they didn't forget to neuter him, since no other dog of ours, has ever healed so fast, without complications! :o)

Something's in the air!

Still, he's going to have to wait the full 10 days before he's allowed to do his usual exercise (what a choke). He's back to his usual shenanigans already, but the only thing he's not doing right now, is swimming.

Meanwhile, Happy is totally happy, enjoying the backyard, and swimming pool all by himself. We play fetch, and after his tongue hits the ground, he goes for a swim or ten. After that, you'll find him either on the sofa, all pooped out, or in one of his beds, snoring away happily!

Still a little wet, but who cares?



Alright, it's back for me to work. It might go easier today, since I've got some lovely knitting to do at the end. I'm just hoping that I wont be too tired.
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Handspun Friday - Mixed Blessings Fiber Club 3rd installation- June 2010

I've written this post partly in advance, because I was not sure if I'd have Internet access this week, but as it turns out, I still do.
This is how I feel these days.



I haven't been spinning for a week now, and there's no knitting going on whatsoever. I miss both, but am too exhausted at the end of the day, to do anything. Good thing I've still some things to show for a while.


This is one half of of June's Mixed Blessing Fiber Club. It's wonderful fiber, so soft, and slippery, and it has wonderful drape. I liked the pre-drafted fiber best. The finished yarn looks a little boring to me.
I made it 2-ply, ~ 197yds. Only the finished yarn showed the hairiness of the Alpaca. Oh, did I mention it's 70% silver Alpaca and 30% silk. It was nice to spin such luxurious fiber for a change. I've been spinning a lot of Falkland lately, which is very different from this.



Denny is doing very well. Because they play rough most of the time, they can't be together all the time during the day, so either both, or one or the other have to chill out in the crates.



Funny thing happened today, while I was checking emails. It was Happy's turn in the crate, when Denny tried to open the crate door for Happy to come out! He can do that with his own crate, when it's not locked, and he gets stuff out of it, as well as the blanket inside. But of course he could not open the locked door, but he sure tried hard, and got frustrated, and left in disgust to chew on a bone. I think that was so sweet!
The surgery seems to have little effect on Denny so far. He's not licking his wound, it's looking really good. Happy showed some interest, but I shooed him away. This morning Denny could not wait for the door to open at the Vet's, and he scratched at it impatiently. He greeted everybody like he hadn't seen them in ages, he's not holding a grudge! :o)

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Oh, almost forgot! Scoot over to Mia - she finished a pair of socks made with my handspun yarn! :o)

***

And it's done.

So, that's over with too. Denny had to be in at 8AM this morning. At 1PM we've got a call from the Vet's office to please pick up Denny asap (for his own good of course), since he was barking up a storm there as soon as he woke up from surgery. Normally they want them to stay over night, but not this time, not this guy!


After he came home he had a big pee, and drank a lot of water, he and Happy settled on the big bed. Happy sniffed him from head to toe. We'll see if we need to get them both a cone, because not only does Denny lick his wound, but Happy wants to help too.





Now, Denny is finally sleeping, but he's never been so good like today, must be the drugs. :o)
He'll be back at the Vet's tomorrow morning for a check up.

***

Tired

Last Friday I made this Blueberries cake, because I have to empty our freezer. There will be a similar cake with Raspberries, and another Blueberries cake soon. This one was very delicious.



Where there's food, there's Denny!



Denny has taken to sleeping in my luggage, which is standing around, waiting to be moved soon. Here he is the morning he had to go to the Vet's. He didn't stay in any spot very long.



But even before that, he climbed in to rest a little.



He knew I was watching, so he didn't chew on the leash for once. He's so much trouble, that I have him on a leash inside, or in his crate. Another funny thing happened at the Vet's. They gave him some Gastro, canned food, which he did not take! They gave him dry kibble, and he ate that! He's the one eating everything, at any time, no matter what texture it is, at home.
On Wednesday he'll be going back for neutering. Until then, he's enjoying several swims a day, and lots of free running.



Happy's checking out his reflection.



We had lots to do this weekend, and it's not over yet. At the end of the day I'm so tired, that I don't even want to look at knitting. Whenever I can I spend my time spinning.

***

All is well ....

Thanks, everyone for the well wishes, it worked!

Denny didn't mind going back to the Vet's this morning. He greeted everybody most friendly, and didn't even look back when they led him into the backroom. Very different from all the others, who always made a fuss, and didn't want to be left there.


He slept through the night without any problems, except to go drink some water once. The funny thing was, when my son picked him up, and he thought Denny was still under the influence of sedation, the Vet's staff looked at him with big eyes, because they thought Denny was quite a hyper dog! He did yap a lot while there though. I'm just glad he's O.K. He doesn't know yet, but he'll be back there next Wednesday for neutering. Good thing he likes it there!


He's eager to get down to go for a swim, and romp around the back yard, and so is Happy - always!



I wish you all a wonderful weekend! Ours will be filled with a lot of work, cleaning, and packing, and in between swimming, and sleeping, that's all.

***

Mr. Personality

Today Denny spent all day at the Vet's. It started at around 3AM, or maybe it started a week ago. In any case. For a week now, he vomited once or twice a night, but this last night, he didn't stop vomiting, even as I talked with the Vet's assistant on the phone, he vomited twice, so off he went for a closer look inside his tummy.



Susan, it was NOT a stone! I was thinking about you and Cooper all the time! In fact they couldn't find any obstruction at all. They suspected corn on the cob, since he swallowed a piece some time ago, but coughed it up in two sessions. I still have no idea what's wrong with him. He was restless, and whiny, obviously not feeling well. They said he didn't vomit there at all. I hope this means it's all a good sign. He's got to go in tomorrow morning again, for another looksie.

It was a horrible day of waiting, after a LONG night with not much sleep. I'm exhausted, drained, I guess the heat had something to do with this too. We just learned yesterday, that demolishion in our house (in preparation of renovations) will start August 2nd, and not middle of August. That means we've got a ton to do, and all our plans for today had to be moved to tomorrow.

Happy was looking for Denny all over. Whenever we went outside, he patrolled the backyard, looking behind every tree, and bush, always looking at us with question marks in his eyes.

Alright, lets hope this night will be better, and Denny just had an upset stomach, since his middle name is Hoover, and we have to take stuff out of his mouth a hundred times a day.

***

Cubist socks done!

The Cubist socks by Cookie A. are finished! Too bad they are too tight around the cuff for me. So I made them shorter at the foot too, and will give them away as a gift. I loved knitting with this yarn, and I like the colorway very much. The pattern is lovely, not hard to knit at all. I especially like the attention to detail, which is true Cookie A. style. Notice how the stitches from the cuff melt into the leg pattern. Just beautiful! If I were to make them for myself again, I would only do two of the three leg repeats, that way the cuff would fit too.



pattern: Cubist socks by Cookie A. (free pattern)
yarn: Wandering Cat Yarns - Alley Cat - Purple People Eater (love that name), merino/nylon, 400yds
needle: 2.5mm
start-finish: June 26 - July 3

Another shot of my hydrangea's out front. They are so lovely.


Some random, older photos of the pups:


This is the hole Happy dug in Spring. Denny was going to expand it, digging two tunnels. It's filled up again, and so far they've left it alone.


The chase is on!

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New Fiber Club!

I just have to share this with other spinners!

Shelby of Spinning Awesome Good is having her first fiber club! I'm very happy about this, because I suggested it to her, and others thought it was a great idea too. I love her dyed flowers, and her very friendly attitude.
Read about the her new club here, and maybe you'd like to join her ravelry group as well. You could win her flowers, since she's having monthly draws if you post pictures of bought flowers, or the handspun yarn you made from them. Here's my first flower, and handspun yarn. So, this week we'll have Handspun Friday early. :o)

Here's a quick description of her fiber club:

"A three month themed subscription for your spinning pleasure!!! ♥
Fiber to include, merino/tussah, BFL/Tussah or Merino/Bamboo
1st months ~ Flowers (I will give you three choices TBA)
2nd month ~ Intuition, Dreamy, Moody
3rd month ~ You send me a picture of a color scheme and I will create a roving just for you!

If you are interested, send me (Shelby) a message and I will create a listing for you!"



This is 4oz BFL/Tussah in the colorway "Fairy Ring".



I wanted to spin it 2-ply and a little thicker. It turned out pretty good, and for the first time I didn't have any left over on one bobbin, because I actually did have left over singles, but wound it into a center pull ball, and plied it on to the rest of the yarn. I'll do that from now on, so nothing goes to waste. I don't know why I didn't do that in the past.
This is 2-ply yarn, 185yds. I thought I'd like to knit a cowl with it, since its soft and squishy.

This morning I noticed the first Lilly of the ones I planted out front, had opened up. It's the shortest of them all, but had her pretty blossom first. The others are taller and will open up soon. Isn't it pretty?


This is also from my front yard. Pretty Hydrangea. I have them in pink, and blue, but this might change with the PH level in the soil. We'll see next year what color they will be. I wont add anything to the soil. I like them no matter what color they are. I took the pictures in the morning, when it was still shady.

Handspun Friday - The Dreaming

They say today was the last day of the heatwave we are having. I sure hope so. Rain would be nice too. But it's definitely good weather for drying handspun yarn! I finished three colorways today. I'll show you one of them today.



This is The Thylacine Club Fiber, June 2010, Shetland/Alpaca blend. It's a little hairy, and it had a lot of guard hair to be picked out. I didn't get it all, but most of it. This was a rather rough blend. It was my last club fiber, and the first I've spun from this club.


I've only used 3.5oz for this. I wanted to see how it turned out first. Seeing it like that, I must say I like it.


It's ~ 249yds, navajo plied yarn, probably good enough for some socks.


We've had fun with the pups. Happy loves to swim now, going in to get out all the toys, for me to throw them in again. Here he's with his Wubba, which both of them like.






Denny is always looking for something to munch on, foraging through the garden. I called him, and he looked at me, but did not come. I only wanted his attention, and I got it.

Pashmina

Yesterday I got this beautiful Pashmina as a gift. Until now, I've only heard of it in an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond, when his mother in law brought a Pashmina to a family photo shoot. I don't know how or when to wear this scarf, but I hope there will be the right moment for it. It's so wonderful soft, the tag says 70% pashmina 30% silk. I thought Pashmina is the name of this scarf, which it is, but I didn't know that it's an actual fiber, from a goat as well.



In todays mail was a damaged package, with an apology from Canada Post. I didn't mind, because the yummy yarn inside was not harmed. It's Wandering Cat Yarns. Two of them are dyed to pool on purpose. I'm going to try to knit a couple of scarves with them. I hope I'll be patient enough for that. The other one is called "Baby" and I liked the soft pink color, which surprises me a little. Pink - moi?



The boys alternate between swimming and snoozing. Best thing they can do, since it's sizzling hot outside. I even got to spin some, which makes me especially happy, since it's been a while (a while means at least three days or more without spinning).



Time out on the deck is kept short during the day. Poor guy heats up more quickly than Happy with his brown/black coat.



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