on my needles

Have you ever had a week that you just couldn't wait to get through because you knew it was going to be rough?  Of course you have.  We all have.  Last week was one of those weeks for me.  With some sort of activity almost every single night, packing to do, moving, and finally an official diagnosis of celiac disease (get ready to see a whole lot of gluten-free recipes, friends!), I gotta say, I'm pretty happy it's Monday.  A new day, a new week, and a fresh start.  So let's talk about one of my favorite things...knitting!

I somehow managed to finish Tommy and Annabel's sweaters just in time for Christmas.  I was knitting in pretty much every spare moment that I had, including in the dark on the drive to my parent's house on the 23rd.  Seeing them in their new mama-made gifts at church on Christmas Eve was definitely fun for me.  

    
On New Year's Eve, after the kids were in bed and Will and I had settled in to watch football and wait for the ball to drop, I made a little list of some of the knitting projects I had in mind for 2014 (I tend to be a planner...can you tell?).  I decided that this would be the year to complete the few unfinished projects that were cluttering up my knitting basket.  

First up, a hat for my brother-in-law that ended up being put by the wayside many (many) months ago.

After that, I picked up the fingerless gloves that I had started for myself back in the fall.  I got halfway finished with the first one, tried it on, and realized it was going to be way too big.  Dang.  So Will just got himself a new pair of fingerless gloves - his first hand knit project from me.

Next up, I'll be finishing this sweet little baby sock and making a second.  This was actually my very first knitting project (my eyes were too big for my needles) and I got stuck on sewing up the toe before I knew about all the awesome videos on YouTube.  These cute little socks were meant to go to Sommer when she was born two years ago.  Yeah.  That obviously didn't happen, and I haven't been able to pick them up again.  But it's time now.  I'll finish them up asap and wouldn't you know it, Will's cousin just had a beautiful baby girl last week.  Perfect timing.

After the socks, I'll be casting on for this adorable sweater for Annabel from the September 2013 issue of Taproot.

Next, I'll get started on a linen spring/summer sweater for me in this beautiful Quince & Co. yarn.  I posted a photo of the sweater here if you'd like to see.  Really looking forward to this one.

Tommy chose this yarn several months ago for a blanket, so I'm hoping to get started on that sometime this year.  It knits up pretty loosely though so I think I'll hold it and a strand of white the whole way through to close up the gaps a little bit.  Just need to find a pattern...or maybe make up my own?!

So far, I have absolutely no plans for this lovely pink yarn, but I just couldn't resist it at the yarn shop a few weeks ago.  Maybe a dress for Annabel?  I've been wanting to try knitting a little jumper so we'll see.

I'm also looking forward to doing some baby knitting this spring.  Two of my very best friends are having babies in May and another one of Will's cousins is due in June, so I'm hoping to have something soft and warm ready for them when they arrive. 

There's also a shawl to be knit for my Nan, a pair of fingerless gloves for me, and lots of kid hats in the fall/early winter.  At some point (not all this year), I'm hoping to knit a blanket for all the kids in my family.  So far, Tommy, Annabel, Isla, Sydney, and Charlie have blankets.  But counting all the kids of our immediate family and our cousins, there are 11 kids (and two on the way!) that need blankets.  That's a lot. It's a good thing I really like to knit.

Here's to hoping that this week is much better and way more relaxing than last week.  If you need me, I'll be drinking a cup of tea (or perhaps a cosmopolitan, yes?) and doing some knitting.