Another Treat

I've been looking for an excuse to share more of our trip pictures from the Olympic Peninsula and John gave me the perfect opening. Last week, he presented me with a book filled with our trip pictures! There are twenty in all, so I just picked some random ones:

Things

Thing the first: thank you all so very, very much for your wonderful comments on the last two posts (and all of them!). I love, love, love reading them and want to respond to them all, but don't yet have a very good way to do that. So for now, just know that I read them all and love them all. And for those who read and don't comment, I really appreciate you taking the time to stop by our little blog and take a look. John and I set it up basically to document things for ourselves and decided that if we picked up any readers, that would be a bonus. We love the bonus. :) John's still around, by the way. He has loads of fishy news (and pictures of baby fishes!), but he's been busy bringing home the bacon and taking care of said fishes and making room for me at his place.

Thing the second: a couple weeks ago I posted about packing for a trip and realized that I was probably being confusing last post because I'm packing again. This time I'm packing to move. I hate it, but I'm excited to be moving to a bigger place and in with my guy.

Thing the third: I finished it!

Cutie Pie

Pattern: Vesper by Heidi Kirrmaier
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy
Needles: US 4
Project Page

After more than a year languishing, not beside the couch as I think I first reported, but rather in a box I used to block the bunnies out of the living room (it was pretty well covered in rabbit hair), needing only pleats and a few rows of sleeve, it's done! The finishing is almost shameful, really, but I figured I'm the only one who will notice. It also hasn't been washed and blocked, so the drape isn't draping yet and the edges are curling and it's a little tiny bit smaller than it will end up, but you get the general idea.

I don't have much to say about it. The pleats were a pain. I would suggest doing a provisional cast-on around the neck and pleating last the knit way instead of the sewing way (as my Ravelry friend roko did), but that changes the character of it a bit. I'm really happy with it and suspect I'll be wearing it a lot all year long. Hempathy is so fantastic! It's kind of scratchy and stiff to knit with, but once it's washed and worn, it's wonderful! I have another project I knit with it (also one of Heidi's patterns) and I wear it ALL THE TIME! Heidi's designs are great too. She turned me on to the joys of positive ease in garments.

Thing the fourth: John and I finally got to enjoy his Valentine's/anniversary present to me last night. He took me to see my all-time favorite musician and entertainer, Keith Urban! I have never and am confident that I will never see a musician who can put on a show like Mr. Urban. I've seen a LOT of artists live, so that's saying something. He's so lively, passionate, spontaneous, charitable, and honest! I've seen him three times now, every time was distinctly different, and this time was the best because I got to share it with John. You can't beat that. :)

Head over to Tami's blog for more FO-Friday posts!

Something Different

I'm too tapped out to think of anything clever and creative to do today, so let me tell you a little story.  I get a lot of messages on Ravelry about this story.  It's how I came to be a knitter.

My grandma swears she taught me how to knit a long time ago so that I could finish an afghan she or my great-grandma had begun.  I have absolutely no recollection of this.  I think she taught me to crochet, though, which once got me a very odd-fitting hat.

I really began knitting in 2007.  I was a HUGE Grey's Anatomy fan (I still watch it every week, but not with the anxious reverence I once did, sadly).  I remember watching Meredith take up knitting in place of men and I thought, "She's on to something there...."  So I did the same.  I knit and knit and knit and there were boys who slowed me down, but after the boys, there was more and more knitting.  Knitting kept me sane and focused and driven. Sure, I couldn't keep a guy around, but damned if that sweater was going anywhere. :)  When I moved here for grad school, I took up with a couple of knitting groups at the local yarn shop.  The Thursday night group has changed and continues to change all the time, but there are a few constant faces I like to see.  My Friday night group, however, has been more or less the same group of tight-knit (pardon the pun) girls for...ever!  When another boy came and went, all I had was my knitting and that group.  Though most of them have no idea, they did more for me than the knitting did.  I did have to supplement them with a rabbit, but that's just because I couldn't take them home with me. :)

This boy once told me that I'd never be happy with just knitting and a bunny.  He was wrong.  The knitting and the bunny made me extremely happy.  He was the one spoiling the fun.  I never would have met people if I weren't a knitter.  I would have been here all alone, not knowing anyone outside my department and I probably would have given in to my temptation to go home to my family.  I never would have adopted Spike (and then Sweetpea!).  I never would have been here to meet the only boy who matters.  But that's a different story for a different day. :)

In short, I always thought I would just have to knitknitknit until the right boy came along and made me forget about knitting all together.  Turns out, I just had to knitknitknit to find the one who encourages me to keep doing it, because knitting and bunnies and especially the boy who loves them (and me!) too make me the most happy.