The Postman Called Really Early

I got up around 8am to find a card behind the door about a parcel delivery. Usually that means I have to go up to the Post Office to collect it if I wasn't around to accept it. Fortunately the postmen know me well and the note said that they had left it in my porch. Yippee. Santa came early. 2 parcels to open before breakfast!

OK so Santa didn't leave them. It was stuff that I had ordered but I still love the opening of parcels. I think that I am turning into a Yarnoholic. Just recently I have ordered enough new wool to keep me going all year not mentioning the stash that I already have. I will have to go 'cold turkey' with wool buying in the New Year for a while until I have paid off my credit card bill. I have one here to pay but luckily the date of last payment is after Christmas. I am not slipping on the ice just to go and pay the bill at the Bank. I don't have online banking so I can't just press a button and pay. I am old fashioned. I don't like the thoughts of my details being on the PC waiting to be hacked.I know that millions of people safely use online banking but it is one of my fears. I don't have much money but what I have I would like to keep.

The first two photos are of baby wool supplies that I ordered from Purplelinda. Some of that is destined for Phil, the barman from the Kings Arms, and his partner who are expecting a baby girl in February. The rest is because I have run out of white double knit for babies not yet arrived.I bought two chunky toddler patterns and also a DK long cardigan pattern. I already have some wool in stash that will suit it perfectly. I think that the longer length will be flattering to wear.

The last two photos are of wool from E Kemp Wools as I cannot resist their bargains. The Wendy Moiselle chunky because I love the wool and the colours and also because it was reduced to 89p a ball. The lilac Hayfield aran as it was such a bargain at £3.99 for 400 grams. The Wendy baby wool is a mix of pinks and blues and very delicately coloured. I thought that might make summer cardigans or boleros for the girls and as that was 79p a ball I could not pass that by. The pattern is once again meant for some chunky wool that I have in stash. I like the shape of the long jacket and the short sleeves. I am not a lover of sleeveless waistcoats but I do like something with a short sleeve for wearing around the house. I usually wear something like that over a fine sweater or long sleeved T shirt. There is only one set of sleeves to push up when I am doing housework.

I am on the collar of my Sister in Law's crochet sweater but then have to stitch it all up. A job which I hate. Then I have to try and make a short sleeved crochet top for my niece's Mother in Law who is also coming for Christmas dinner at my Brother's house. I do hope that I can finish everything in time. I had hoped to finish off the crochet cardigans for my great grand daughters but as technically they are not part of their Christmas presents then it doesn't matter if they get them a bit late. I also plan to knit two chunky long jackets for them to wear in the Spring.

Is everyone like me? Always a few projects ahead of myself, I definitely have eyes and ideas bigger than my hands can manage. I have always been like that but these days I don't start everything like I used to do. When I was young I used to start making another thing when the first thing was only part way done. I have managed to mostly wean myself off that and limit myself to just a couple of WIP at any one time. Usually one in knit and one in crochet so that I can give my wrists and fingers a break. I must admit though that I am so glad to be crocheting again.

Any way time is a wasting and I have things to crochet and pots in the sink. I must set my flying fingers to work as I can hear the sleigh bells approaching in the distance!

Cruel To Be Kind

I have to do my exercises. I know this and yet I shilly shally about and don't do them as much as I should. When the physio made me do the exercises in hospital I know that she was being cruel to be kind in the long run but it is so much harder to motivate myself into causing myself pain. I have constant arguments with myself on a daily basis but they still don't get done as often as they should. I am walking about a lot in the house and the pain levels are decreasing daily so I keep hoping that tomorrow will be the day that I can push myself more.

I don't want this operation to have been in vain and I want better mobility so why is it so hard to motivate myself into doing the exercises as often as I should?

The nights continue to be a trial. My knee hurts more when I try to sleep than it does during the day. I am now back on my prescribed pain killers as the ones that I got from the hospital have run out and to be truthful they were not doing me much good so maybe tonight I will get a decent night's sleep.

My crocheting is progressing very slowly due to my being Mrs Sleepyhead. The chunky crochet is a shrug for a friend in James C Brett Marble chunky. The pattern is basically a rectangle done in UK double crochet but through the back loops. Whilst this is easy to do I find it slow going and a bit soporific. I decided to start the white Blue Curacao shawl by Doris Chan as I wanted something to stimulate my brain. This is for a lady that I was in hospital with and as she has already given me the money for the wool I had better get it finished and sent off. I would hate her to think that I have just taken her money and am not going to make her a shawl. I only have her address to post it so I can't even phone her to say I have started it. She has been through a really rough time lately and it is her Birthday on Oct 21st so I hope to get it finished and posted by then. She has had multiple operations on her leg and is now attached to a metal cage with bolts that have to be tightened on a daily basis to try to lengthen her leg. Being in hospital makes you realise that the world is full of people far worse off than yourself.

My clips are due to be removed on Friday by the District Nurse so I may have more flexibility then. I have around 40 or so to be removed. They put clips close together rather than stitches to give the skin chance to heal even though the knee has to keep bending. They look funny. It is like someone went crazy on my leg with the office stapler. I am not bothered about scarring. Let's face it at my age I only flash my legs in my own garden in the summer, in the swimming pool or in the privacy of my own bedroom anyway I don't see operation scars as anything to keep covered up. They are part of life. I might feel differently if the scar was on my face and ugly. I have 3 small scars on my face since a teenager and they have never worried me in the slightest. The world puts far too much pressure on people to be body beautiful. I am glad that I lived in an age when I was growing up where people were not so cruel about anyone who was slightly different. Perhaps I was lucky but I never remember one instance where I was bullied about the way that I looked. We made fun of each other at school of course but only in a childish way and I don't think anyone was permanently scarred by any of the jokes.

I am having a bit of a slow start this morning. I need to get a shower and get dressed. My neighbour's cat came in earlier and will be fast asleep on the spare bed by now. There are 3 teenagers next door and I think Oscar comes in for a bit of peace. He will sleep until lunch, have something to eat, and then sleep until tea time when he will go home again. I feel sorry for him when Buster is here as he can't do any of that. The little black cat comes to my patio but I can't let her in as well otherwise there would be the cat fight from hell!

Home Alone Again

Just as I wrote the title Home Alone Poppy walked back in through the patio doors. She thinks that she lives in both houses ;-)

The dogs were very good considering that they had never stayed overnight with me before. We were up bright and early as I am used to Buster and his weak bladder so I don't like to leave animals too long without a toilet break. I let the dogs out at 5.30am and then we all went back to sleep again.

Buddy is funny. He has a passion for shoes and slippers and so took pairs of my shoes and slippers out one by one and put them on the lawn. Julie told me today that they have to put all of their footwear out of his reach or they have to search the garden for where he has hidden their shoes. He doesn't chew or destroy anything he just likes people to chase him whilst he has a slipper in his mouth.

The only time that I had to raise my voice to them was at 5.30am when they went outside and decided to have a barking contest. I had to shout them back in so not sure which bit the neighbours will remember the most. Their barking or my shouting!

I spoke to my son last night and he knows someone who deals in motorised scooters so he is going to enquire what prices their scooters are and if they have any secondhand ones. He looked on E bay and said that there were loads for sale on there but I am very nervous of buying anything on the net unless it's wool or crochet books of course LOL

I picked up my crochet again today after the dogs had gone back home and am now past the armholes on the last front. I have the front band to crochet and then decide whether to alter the sleeves and make them longer. It's not so much the elbow length that is worrying me as much as the flared bell shaped edge. I will tack them in and try it on before I unravel the sleeves. I had 500 grams of the blue so I will have about 75 grams left once I crochet the bands. That should be enough to extend the sleeves if need be.

I got a nice surprise today. Julie my neighbour bought me a bottle of dark rum for looking after the dogs for her. I am not a big drinker but I do like a glass of rum and coke now and again. In fact I might just have to unscrew the bottle later tonight just to make sure that it tastes just right.

I had got the dates wrong for Buster. He is coming next weekend for a few days. He gets on well with the dogs from next door and doesn't mind if they pop in through the hedge to see me. Poppy has now gone home again. She just likes to pop in and out when it suits her.

Sneaking A Bit of Crochet

Yes, I know that I said I would knit some more on Charlie's jacket. I did. I finished off the first sleeve. After that I succumbed to the call of the hook. I did try to resist but as I have absolutely no willpower at all (hence the sylph like body but that's another story) I gave in and started to crochet a matinee jacket.

It is another of Kay Jones patterns and as you can see it goes up to a child's size so it's a useful pattern as the girl babies grow older. As I am making this for a soon to arrive foster baby I am going to edge it with pale green so that at a pinch a little boy can wear it. I know it is a bit girly with the ties and the lacy pattern but a newborn can wear it. I might possibly just leave the ties off and fasten it with a button to make it more unisex. I will ask the foster Mum when I get to that stage.

I have just come back from a shopping trip up to the village. I cling to Ivy, my 4 wheeled shopping trolley, for stability and balance. She is called Ivy after the lady who gave it to me. It is rather battered but it does the job. Ivy, the person, used it up to getting worse at walking and she had to progress to an electric wheelchair. When she heard on Freecycle that I was asking if anyone had a spare trolley she kindly gave me her old one.It has been the best thing that I have ever got from Freecycle.Nowadays I don't have a car so although I look on Freecycle I don't get anything anymore as I cannot pick it up. I stay a member as sometimes I have things that I want to give away.

My freezer is full again as I am just not in the mood these days to prepare meals from scratch. I know that it is bad for me and no good for my figure but I do tend to take the easy route as far as food is concerned.

Time for a coffee and to put my feet up and find something non political to watch on the TV. I hate the requiems that they have after an election. They go over and over the same ground and I find it all so boring. What has happened cannot be changed so let's just get on with things. All the discussions in the world won't change anything.

I just had to do some crochet

I have been knitting for days and was getting withdrawal symptoms for my crochet. My friend Zuleika has been working on a pattern for Mary Jane type slippers so I tested out the pattern for her to see if I understood the way she had written it out. Breathe easy Zu. I did understand. I was supposed to go and buy some aran to make a pair but I am such an impatient person that when I decide to do something I want it NOW!. I found a ball of red aran of dubious origin and made myself a pair. I did think at the time that although the label said aran it looked rather thick. These slippers have turned out great but too big for my tiny feet (size 3-4) so I will have to make the effort to get some aran wool of the right thickness for another pair and donate this pair to my niece. If you like this pattern then contact Zuleika through the link to Life in the Zu (scroll down and see my favourite links) as you all know I am rubbish at attaching links to this blog. I must learn to link one day it would make my life so much easier! Her photos of slippers are detailed and not fuzzy as mine are. I suffer from shaky hand whilst taking snaps. I move the camera as I press the shutter so things come out very blurred sometimes.

The knitting is progressing although I am a little concerned how narrow the sleeve is looking. It's a good job that my sister in law is size 8 with slim arms. I have not been impressed with the way that the pattern has been written out (it had a mistake on the 6th row!) and the sleeve on the pattern photo has distinct points at the beginning (as did the body) but the instructions tell me to go straight into the main pattern so I had to improvise and use the start of the body for the sleeve edge to get the sleeve to match the body. I never used to have this problem with patterns when I had a shop. You just bought a pattern and knitted it. None of this searching Ravelry and the net for Errata pages as with every knit and crochet book I have bought recently. What is wrong with everyone lately. If they could get patterns right a few years ago how come they can't now? You would think with all the modern equipment that they use in printing these days that checking and amending BEFORE printing would be a doddle. Almost every pattern I have used lately has had mistakes especially the ones from the US. I am sorry but if I am paying £12+ for a book I expect it to be right first time. I wouldn't want to read a best seller book and find huge chunks of the plot missing or sentences that didn't make any sense.

I managed to dry some washing yesterday even though I had to take it in from the rain twice. Some summer we have had in the UK this year. It think it was summer those few days when I was in hospital and so I missed it this year.

My back is not liking all this rain and is telling me so. I was doing really well until this last week when I feel like I have taken a step backwards. Maybe I have been doing too much but it is hard to sit and look at dust bunnies without getting the urge to dust. I am not the most houseproud person in the world but after 6 weeks my house is looking very untidy and a bit grubby. I never thought that I did an awful lot of housework but obviously I must have!

The sun is bravely trying to shine so I will have my shower, get dressed and try to tidy up a bit before Loose Women on the TV at lunch time.

My PC is working normally again

The lads who live across the road from me came across this morning to see if they could solve my PC problems and lo and behold they did. It turns out that it was the Yahoo Toolbar that was the thing causing all of my problems. They un-installed everything on my PC one by one and re-installed them one by one. From that it was found to be the Yahoo Toolbar and once that was un-installed the PC was up and running OK again. I sort of knew it was nothing major but just didn't know where to start solving the puzzle. My Norton Anti Virus is back on again, up and running with no problems so all is well in my world.

I finished off Emily's hat in record time. It is barely smaller than Kacey's but seemed to knit up far faster even though there was only an 8 stitch width and half inch length difference. One photo shows both hats and the other shows the 5 of the 7 hats I have made since Christmas

I was yearning for a bit of crochet. I have knitted far too many things lately one after the other and as a crocheter at heart I was having withdrawal symptoms. I started a multi coloured hat for one of the babies but was unhappy with my colour choices so ripped that back. I have started another crochet jacket with the brown flecked super chunky from Lidl left over from my niece's Christmas present jacket. My friend Caroline is super slim but I think this time I will have to make the jacket without the big collar as I have slightly less wool this time. The collar, as per pattern, is rather huge and I doubt if anyone could put a coat over it anyway. Caroline would never fit her slim jacket over it if she wanted to wear it for work. Caroline is useful for using up stash where the colour is wrong for the babies but not enough wool for my size. 200 grams makes her a short sleeved crochet top or bolero. She never showed much interest in my work, thought knit and crochet was old fashioned, until I made her a few jackets and tops. Now she is a convert always hinting about what she would like next.

I am off to walk the dog now. He has recovered from his sickness. He suffers from colitis and although I monitor his food (he is allergic to anything containing beef) my son said this happens from time to time. Maybe some beef slips into a tin or maybe fungus from a stick in the wood Ian said it is just something that happens to him every now and again and not to worry.

I am so relieved that my PC troubles have been sorted, I can start to get used to this machine now. I was so scared of making things worse that I haven't really been using it since I got it.