hand eye crafts

I suppose most parents wish, more than once, that their children wouldn't grow up so fast.  My husband and I tried to never  talk about "big boy" or "big girl" things --- we thought it would make our children think the age they were was one to get out of;  that being older meant being better. Tonight, for whatever reason, I am glad my children have  grown up.  Thinking about having a baby in this world, this cruel, tense, polarized, scary world gives me shivers.  Something horrendous is going to happen --- humans tend to do those things to one another --- while my children are alive.  Horrible things have already happened in their lives.  I am very grateful that they are both adults in "these times."  Adults capable of making good, smart, and kind decisions for themselves and for other people.

Thank you all for being so kind to Hannah.  She is still quite wrung-out, but okay.  Her roommate bolted out of town to be with her parents, which I thought was a little insensitive, but everyone deals with things in their own way. Latest finish for the etsy store is this cowl: It's a Red Heart pattern, and goes so quickly.  Three inches of seed stitch, six of easy yarnovers, garter stitch edge.  The pattern builds great drape, and it's one of those knit things that looks glorious and fancy, but was pretty much a cinch to make.

We had a rough afternoon here yesterday.  Daughter and her roommate had to put one of their cats down.  He had been given to them by a friend only a few months ago.  I took them to the vet's office and waited.  Neither of them had ever actually been witness to a euthanizing;  my daughter was surprised, and relieved to see/know that the process was so peaceful. So, Jack's not sick anymore, but there are two girls in town with pretty heavy hearts. And it's the kind of hurting that a parent can't help with much.

I was binding off the other night, and this happened: I still  can't figure out how.

While the contests were going on, my life was lurching along.  There've been 4 changes in my medications over those weeks;  my depression has been spelled with all capitals. Knitting went on, though.  I've built quite a collection of mini-skeins of yarn, and decided to use some to make a fairly simple cowl.   For some reason, as I was making it, calling it "Arkansas" popped into my mind.  Anything I'm going to sell on etsy I give a name, and "Arkansas" worked.  The stripes led me to think of "state line."  So, very on-the-spot, and completely unexpectedly, I decided to use the mini-skeins to make a "line" of items, each named after a "state."  So far, I've made "Idaho" handwarmers, a "Washington" scarf, and am working on an "Oklahoma" wrap. I can't explain it.  Sometimes things just come to you, you know?

Chris' "Mike's Dirty Little Knits" won yesterday's vote, and she shall be receiving her prize next week.  So, too, will Lora, whose "My Rowe-mance" drew strong support as well. The reason Chris winning is fitting is because every year --- every single one since this contest started --- she has nominated Mike.  No one else.  Just him.  She is nothing if not devoted. A few quick thoughts about this year's contests: They included, without question , some of the hardest-to-pair-up-photographs nominees ever.  There were people who smiled in most of their photos against people who almost never smiled in theirs.  There were people whose best side was obviously their left versus ones who decidedly favored their right.  There were age/era differences.  (Do you know how many photos there are of Betty White?  And how many of those might actually "match up" with ones of, say, Scarlett Johansson?) The most difficult was Harper Lee. ...