Back at it

Phew, I was wiped out with some kind of crud last week. Spent the better part of 5 days in bed trying to fight it off. Thankfully the Doc fixed me up and by Friday I was able to go back to work. Glad that's over.

After you check out the doggy pics at the bottom be sure to hop over to Wisdom Begins in Wonder to see all the creative peeps that gather there every Friday.  Thanks for stopping in. LittleDog loves comments about how awesome he is.

I did manage to finish a pair of socks the week before...

Opal sock yarn in Rain Forest.

I've made some significant progress on my Mara shawl...

also started a new sock and a Scrunchie Hat for my favorite restaurant owner.

We've done some puppy sitting lately and he gets cuter every time he comes here. Sam and LittleDog don't think so but what do they know anyway?

When Bear comes to visit LittleDog spends his time like this...

on the arm of my chair where the puppy can't reach him...counting the minutes til Bear's Momma comes to get him.

Another Snowy Day

Well, we waited forever for the snow to come and now it just keeps falling. Makes me ever so glad that I only live 3 miles from work and none of that 3 miles is on a highway. I can poke along at 25 mph and get to work in 10 minutes...no scary stuff.

The dogs have been plowing through the snow in the backyard with no problems. LittleDog seems to like the snow more than Sam does. I shovel a path around the yard for them but they always forge their own paths anyway.

Last weekend brought us a beautiful light, fluffy 12" of snow.

Let me in!

I suffered a sock tragedy a week ago...

wah, wah! First pair ever to wear through...have you ever darned a handknit sock? I'm going to have to do some research on this. I certainly won't be throwing them away.

I'm ready to pick up the thumb stitches on the mitt I've been working on. I really like how these look and they are not difficult.

Thanks for visiting. Be sure to check out the other fibery peeps at Wisdom Begins In Wonder. Have a Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Happy Friday!

Greetings! Thank you for stopping here.  I don't have any fiber pics to share this week but I do have some doggie photos. Enjoy

Just about every night LittleDog back up to The Saint's chair and asks for some rubs.

Here's how it goes...

belly rubs

more belly rubs

then flip over and let's do the back for a bit

Then we had an adventure on Sunday...Bear (our new grand-dog) came for a visit for about an hour. Both Sam and LittleDog were scared of him! He chased Sam around the entire time and LittleDog hid in my chair. It was hilarious.  How could they be afraid of something so cute?

He only weighs 3.8 lbs, geesh.

Have a great weekend. Hopefully next Friday I'll find time to take some fiber pics. I have been knitting quite a bit but the weather has been so dreary that I haven't found a good time to get some photos.  Be sure to hop over to Wisdom Begins In Wonder. I know you'll find some fibery goodness over there.

Winter has arrived...

and we have been getting snow almost every day for the past week. The new header photo is our deck railing this morning. I love when everything looks like it's been iced like a cake. The snow makes the world a much prettier place.

I really do need to get a new pair of boots. I hold my breath every time I lace mine up as the laces are barely hanging on. Doesn't it sound like an excuse to do some shopping today? I have to go out for a haircut this afternoon and maybe I'll leave a little early ;)

Pretty quiet around here the past week. A lot of time has been spent relaxing and doing nothing constructive. That'll change today, I hope, I finally figured out the next step in the knitted mitts instructions so there should be some progress with the knitting today. In the meantime I've been crocheting which, for me, doesn't take a lot of brain power.

Here is the progress I've made on the Calm Cowl for the CAL on Ravelry...

and then my progress on the fingerless gloves that I started last week...

it's fixin to get way more complicated.

I've also been keeping up with our new grand-dog's progress. He's so adorable, meet Bear, our daughter's new Havanese mix.

There really are a couple of shiny black eyes in there somewhere.

LittleDog is, as usual, having a little snooze. I hear snoring sounds behind me as I type.

He leads a dog's life for sure.

Have a great weekend! Thank you for stopping in. It's always encouraging to read your comments. If you'd like to check out more fibery peeps hop on over to Wisdom Begins in Wonder where Andrea hosts Fiber Arts Friday.

Distracted by Downton

Whoo, I feel like I've been involved in a emotional immersion program...oh, wait, I have...I started with Season 1, Episode 1 last Saturday and  last night I watched Season 3, Episode 2. That's a lot of Downton, let me tell you.

I have managed to get some crochet done while watching...

this is Maxi's Cowl, named for my dear departed pet. It's big and bulky and I really like it.

For some reason my photo skills have gone missing lately.

I've gotten a start on the Calm Cowl I'm doing for a CAL. What have you been up to this past week?

Thank you for coming. Be sure to check out Wisdom Begins In Wonder to see other fibery peeps and what they've been up to.

Life's a little different today

Hello! Welcome to my Fiber Arts Friday post. If you enjoy seeing what fibery peeps are up to you can also check out the blog circus at Wisdom Begins In Wonder after you've finished here. Thank you for coming. I hope you find something interesting/educational/fun.

After the worst day ever this week I'm ready for something fun. What's more fun than going crazy with some crochet and some crappy old yarn you've had in your stash for 5 or 6 years?

Above is the best representation of the actual color. This is the Spike Stitch Cowl. The yarn is Tahki "Twiggy Tweed". It's a blue/grey single with purple neps in it...and a lot of VM! I don't know what they were thinking when they sold this yarn but I cannot believe it was marketed commercially as it is. I've been picking pieces of dried grass and sticks out of it every few feet. This must be why it was so cheap on eBay, LOL
The label says "Made in France" and "we recommend dry cleaning", HA! Dry clean wool...a travesty if you ask me. This baby will be soaking in some Eucalan as soon as it's finished. Hopefully that will soften it up a bit. After so many years being stored away I'm sure it could use a little rejuvenation.

I tried to get a close shot of the stitches but it's difficult to see. It's single crochet and triple crochet alternating. I'm carrying the yarn double since it's quite fine. Super easy and fast but a bit hard on my hands.

If I hadn't run out of wound yarn I would probably be finished. I'll need to wind up the other two skeins so I can finish it this weekend.

After that I'm on to the Calm Cowl Crochet-along. Haven't done a crochet along before so I'm hoping it'll be fun. It's a nice looking pattern and I'm excited to get started on it. You're welcome to join in if you'd like.

Have a great weekend. Thank you for the kind words on my Wednesday post.

We'll be here, adjusting to a different life without Max.

Farewell Max

As you drifted off to sleep so peacefully I thought of the day we brought you  home...

and how fast you grew...

and how talented you were.

You set such a good example for your little brother Sam...even though he wouldn't listen...

and you were a great model too.

It was a good twelve and a half years. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Now you can chase those damn squirrels and never get tired.