Sunday, October 17, 2010

Weekends

It's been a busy couple of weekends. Last weekend started off with a bang! I had long been eying the Five Finger shoes that are supposed to feel like being barefoot. Yes, I got a pair. They are totally crazy looking, but they really do make it feel like you are barefoot. When I first wore them, the back was digging into my heel a bit, although the rest felt great -- this problem has mostly gone away as I have gotten used to the shoes. I usually exercise barefoot at home, so the transition was easy. I especially love using them for running on the Treadmill at the gym. I feel like my quads are less sore when I use them than when I was wearing my running shoes. Of course, they are great in aerobics class because I am so used to doing aerobics at home barefoot. Success!


The second exciting event of last weekend happened on Saturday. Seth surprised me by taking me to the store to get my holiday gift early. A nook -- the new e-reader from Barnes and Nobel.


I had been reluctant to get one in the past because I am such a library addict, but Seth found out that I can get ebooks out of libraries that aren't even near where we live, like Philadelphia. Very exciting. I haven't had a lot of time to do reading on my new gift because I am finishing up with some library books I had out before I knew the nook was coming. I am excited to get to use it more.


At the end of last weekend, I want down to Glastonbury to spend the day with Dad. We had a great time cleaning the Volkie! Two hours were spent washing, vacuuming, and waxing the car. He looks great. We also went to Blue Back Square in West Hartford where we browsed some stores, enjoyed the nice weather, and had a great lunch and tea. Fun times.

This weekend has also been a whirlwind. Seth and I started out by attending the Chancellor's Breakfast, a donor stewardship event at UMass during Homecoming. It was alright. It turned out that we ended up sitting at a table with a grad from Smith who had lots of questions for me upon learning that I worked in Development there. Then the breakfast become sort of work and less fun. Seth and I ended up leaving early because I had to get to Connecticut. Seth stayed on campus for the George Parks in memoriam event.

I had a great time in Bethany. I got to wish Mom a happy birthday and visit with Greg, Aunt Geraldine, Uncle Jimmy, Aunt Judi, and Uncle Moe, the latter two who were visited from Pennsylvania. It was a great visit. My nephew, Dozer, is getting so big. He's over seventy pounds now and such a good boy. What a cutie!




I also got Greg and Grace's wedding gift. They got our invitation that Seth designed framed with paper work all around it. Beautiful!


Today, Seth and I headed up to Rhinebeck, New York with Seth's parents for the New York State Sheep and Wool Festival.


We had a great time enjoying the fair together. There were lots of sheep. They didn't seem to want me to scratch their heads as much as last year.

We were able to meet Seth's brother and sister in law and their friends for lunch, which was nice. I got to play a bit with my niece who is around five months old.


There were many cool items at the fair. (Below are some amazing glass orifice hooks.)


One very exciting find was that the seller, loop, who I often purchase fiber from online. She had a booth at the fair.


I didn't do a lot of spinning this summer due to the heat, so I only got a little bit of fiber. They are really cool clouds of fluff that I should be able to spin without any drafting at all.


All the weekend travels, around nine hours in the car, have left me exhausted. Time to curl up with my lovely baby girl, Lily, and get some zzzz's.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Keepin' On Keepin' On

Whew! It's been a super busy couple of weeks. This is my first day off since mid-September. Work has been go go go what with "go live" and the start of the Phonathon.

In my few free minutes, I've been catching up on my knitting. Now that the weather is cooler it's a perfect time to get back to my fiber arts!

I finished the blanket I was making for Seth's sister, Sheila.



I love the hourglass cables. This is the same blanket I made for my dad and Lisa for their engagement gift. For Sheila, I used Valley Yarns Northampton, a wool two ply. This was my first time using this yarn. I usually knit with Valley Yarns Berkshire, a single ply alpaca and wool blend. The Berkshire is a bit softer because of the alpaca but the Northampton will pill a lot less being all wool and a two ply. I think that Sheila will prefer that.

I started on a new blanket.


It features cables interspersed with open work.


The pattern is a lot of fun and the results are pleasing. The color is a deep purple in real life but seems more periwinkle in these pictures. It's a deep jewel tone in reality.

Today, I was able to catch up on a bit of spinning. I spun up a merino super wash batt with black and bright colors. It looks great plied.


There is also a hint of sparkle in there, which is always fun! With the start of the fall my desire for warm blankets on my lap increases, so I am sure there will be more updates soon.