a labor of love

phew! it's been a while, hasn't it? at my last blog entry, spring was on its way out, and i was busy knitting socks. now, autumn has almost arrived and i'm in a sweater knitting frenzy!

february lady sweater, dream in color classy "cocoa kiss"

i've spent some quality time with my february lady sweater lately. seeing this grow, row by row, repeat by repeat has been so fun, and the prospect of a completely wearable sweater is captivating. i've knit sweaters before, but either they went unfinished or were not worn for more than a photo op. this one will be different!

most of the knitting projects that have kept me up until well into the early summer mornings of were socks. the crosshatch lace socks were completed. audrey's sweetpeas were finished. 40 summers long are now ready for wear. just cast off were the "and they call it poppy love" socks. if you follow my flickr stream or are a friend on ravelry, you've maybe already seen them. if you haven't, here's an index:


i also made two felted berets for a school project, worked heartily on my february lady sweater, began a "simple sock" for when i'm in the car waiting for the kids to get out of school (or dance or art...), and test knit a fabulous mitten pattern.

phenomenon (based on bella's mittens) in cascade 220 superwash

so many thanks to those friends who took the time to e-mail me or re-post to a previous blog entry throughout the summer. the idea that you missed my ramblings here in this little space made my days even brighter. no major life changes kept me from blogging; simply put, writing became difficult to prioritize when the kids were on break -- and underfoot! -- and while a bounty of delicious vegetables was growing in the backyard.

cooler weather lured me out yesterday, and i spent the morning and early afternoon pulling out the spring-planted crops to make room for the fall crops i intend to plant in just a couple of weeks. but don't worry: that endeavor won't keep me from blogging through the busiest of knitting seasons. it's my hope to blog every monday, between loads of laundry and occupying the last kidlet at home. we celebrated gavin's fourth birthday just yesterday. it's quite possible that this is his last year at home with me all day... i can hardly believe it.