In which I explain my absence

This is a story about aging and facing others aging. I told you about the MIL's accident. And she's getting better, really. But what we found out as a result of her accident is not getting better. MIL is or has been spending way more than she has and as a result is in very bad credit card debt, can't get homeowners insurance on her house and can't pay for it even if she could. We've had to make some really big decisions that children, no matter how old, shouldn't have to make. They involve lawyers, incompetancy, and a power of attorney. So all of our energy has been on handling this part of life. And dealing with all the temper tantrums resulting from this. Mr. Truck's sister, my sister by heart, has been bearing the brunt of all this but we have been directing things from afar. We are all exhausted and sad that it has come to this but really, it is the best thing for now. MIL is in her house, her bills are paid on time and she can't have her check book or credit cards anymore. She is extremely angry and ungrateful for this and I can understand that. My hope for us is that we don't ever make our children go through this. I don't want to outlive my independence or my money for that matter. Through all this, I've been knitting. A lot. And one thing I found out again is how comforting knitting is. The familiar motions and soft clicking of the needles, the slide of the wool through my fingers, the faint smell of sheep. I don't have to think about what I'm doing most of the time and I find that amazing and yet not unexpected. I've been working on a Christmas stocking for Reese for the past couple of nights. It's a pattern that I've had for almost twenty years now. I've made a lot of them, for family and friends. It was the first sock I ever knit. It started me knitting real socks. And as I pulled out the pattern and started, I remembered it without even thinking, my fingers knew the next stitch without me even looking at the words and I find that so comforting.

U is for Unexpected

When I entered the Ravelympics this summer it was just for fun. But at the end I was one of the very lucky ones to win a prize. I never expected it and it was such a nice surprise. And here it is.





A beautiful ebony crochet hook from Laurel Hill . I want to thank Kelli from Laurel Hill for the nice gift. So unexpected.

BOO!

Happy Halloween!

I Was Too Overwhelmed To Spend All My Money

and that's a first for me. But I was so busy touching everything and looking at everyone that I couldn't concentrate on actually shopping. That's not to say I didn't buy anything at all. I did get two skeins of this for a cardigan for me.


Briar Rose Grandma's Blessing. And it is so soft.




Oasis Yarn Aussi Sock yarn for a sweater for Reese. I love the colors, it looks like ice cream.


Little Barn Heavy Metal for hats for some little girls I know. They should love the bling.

Rhinebeck

My first trip to Rhinebeck and I don't even know how to begin to describe it. The trip wasn't too long, the weather was beautiful, cool enough for sweaters, the scenery was amazing, and the fall foliage was just perfect. And the fiber, there aren't enough words to describe it. The only thing missing was funnel cakes. I had promised Mr. Truck funnel cakes and all they had was fried dough. Which was close but not quite as good.





We saw lots of sheep, I liked this one a lot.






Some of the sheep were in pens,




some were being judged (although they honestly looked all the same to me),






and some were getting haircuts. She didn't mind at all, I asked.




And quite a few were being herded by dogs. That was Mr. Truck's favorite part, he loves the dogs. And I had no idea sheep could run that fast. There were also rabbits, and llamas, and alpacas. And I can now tell the difference between the llamas and the alpacas. I think the alpacas have cuter faces.

I saw the most amazing yarn and sweaters and felted things, and weaving and spinning and crocheting. And the most wonderful sweaters and scarves and socks that people were wearing. I also talked to someone who saw the Yarn Harlot at the ATM machine but I didn't see her. I did see Franklin autographing books.





But the best part of all was the knitters. It was so fun talking to everyone about knitting. And the best part of meeting the knitters was the Ravelry meet-up. I was so happy so see everyone even though I don't know anyone without their Ravatars.

T is for Tree

I had an idea for T, but how do you take a picture of time? So I'm going with Mr. Truck's Ginkgo tree. He planted this tree from seeds he found at work about ten years ago. It spent its childhood in a pot buried in the garden and when we moved, it came with us to a new garden. A few years ago it was shorter than I am, but we decided to give it a permanent spot by the road. Apparently, it's happy because it's about doubled its size and grows taller and fuller each year. And the kids have stopped teasing us about the "stick" we planted.




The Latin name is Ginkgo biloba because of the two lobes on the leaves. It's a very old species and it's supposed to help memory. Unfortunately, we have no idea which part of the tree we're supposed to eat so we're as forgetful as ever.




We have more baby trees growing, now. I have no room for them so we're going to put them up for adoption when they're bigger. These two are about 18 months old now, and we can't tell if they're boys or girls but if you want to adopt one, let me know.

No Sheep for Me

As a warm up to Rhinebeck, Mr. Truck and I went to the New Jersey Sheep & Fiber Festival this weekend. There were lots of sheep. Mr. Truck would not let me get one but I pet them all.









This one wouldn't pose very well but I really liked his horns.



There were bunnies



and llamas, or is this an alpaca? I got a little confused.


I knit with REALLY BIG NEEDLES.



Mr. Truck loved the herding dogs.



Our dogs are so not smart compared to these dogs.




But he liked the funnel cake the best.



We met cheekeyredhead and Zarzuela and I bought some beautiful roving from Zarzuela and a spindle. And some plain roving to practice on. We met a bunch of other Ravelers, too and now Mr. Truck realizes that my friends don't just live in my computer, they're real. And we really looked at the spinning wheels.




I also got some really nice yarn for my swap, but it's a secret. (hint)

S is for Seascape

When I last left off, I was deciding how to fix my Seascape. Thank you for all your supportive comments. They helped a lot. I decided to rip it out and do it again. First, a life line.



Then scissors. Very scary. After picking up and re-knitting, back to the blocking. Looking pretty good.



And the final results:






Maybe not as perfect as I wanted, but pretty good considering the terrible blow.

OMG, OMG, OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I'm done soaking and rinsing my Seascape Stole and I'm laying it out to start blocking and this is what I see! I must have caught it on something, I have no idea. But I'm not freaking out and screaming calm now and I have a little more perspective on this.





I can try to fix it, but the yarn is really thin; or I can undo it and knit that part again. It's just the sixteen repeats at the end so I think that's my best option. Of course I'm open to any ideas, now that I'm calm.

The Talented Mr. Truck

I've been away for a bit, and I really don't like the "I've been a bad blogger" explanation but we've had a crisis here. My Mother-in-law was involved in a serious car accident and we've been totally focused on her for over a week. She's fine, or she will be soon, but it's taken all our time and energy making sure of her care. So that being said, back to blogging.

I talk a lot about all the things I do and I've mentioned things other people make but I've recently realized I haven't said anything about how talented Mr. Truck is. He makes things out of wood and I thought I'd show you some. I tell him what I want and show him a picture and then I get it. Amazing. This is a bench for the bottom of our bed that I saw in a Crate & Barrel catalog. I need to get a cushion and some baskets for the cubbyholes, but it's just what I wanted.





And this is a TV stand that I saw in a store. All it needs are the glass in the doors. Mr. Truck wants to learn to cut glass but I think we'll just buy it. Sounds dangerous to me.




And this was one of a few hot plates he made for Christmas last year. And no we didn't drink all the wine, we were collecting corks from everyone for quite a while. I have to claim the credit for gluing them, though. I'm the one with the hot glue gun.




This makes all the tools I've bought him (and I'm not even sure what they all are) so worth it.