On Wednesday I went for lunch and saw the movie "Brittany runs a Marathon" with a childhood friend. It was good to get out and it even turned sunny for a bit of a walk after the movie.
It was my son's birthday on Thursday. I have been a mother for 34 years. He is coming out at the beginning of October for a few weeks so we will celebrate then. It will be so good to have him here for an extended visit. It is hard to have both my children living far from my home.
I made quite a bit of progress on the Fisherwoman's sweater this week, and it was clear I didn't have enough yarn to finish despite using some extra my sister had given me. So yesterday I took the sweater to my local yarn shop to see if they had something to match enough to finish it up. She did find the perfect match with some Briggs and Little Sport yarn and if I knit it two strands together it will work very well. I split the hank into two balls last night and then started to finish the front. In a fit of pique I decided to tink (tink is knit backwards) back about 5 inches of the 12 inches of work I had done on the back so I could use the original yarn to finish the front just so there would be no doubt that the front will look uniform. It was a lot of unravelling but I kept repeating my mantra "No one ever regrets pulling out some work, but they often regret not doing so".
It is pouring with rain here today on this the first day of Autumn. I suspect I will need this sweater very soon so it will be my priority to finish it this week.
When not knitting (and then un-knitting) the sweater, I picked up my Knit Slip Love shawl which is a mosaic knit. I have finished the third mosaic pattern and I am on to the next garter dot stitch. It is fairly easy to remember the pattern of each right side row, and then each wrong side row is just knit the knit stitches and slip the slip stitches. Not too bad TV knitting.
On the arm front I have made it to the pool eight days in a row to do my arm exercises and yesterday I.....drum roll please....could do up my bra the proper way by reaching behind my back!. This is progress people. (and if too much information, my apologies).
I also attended my first Tai Chi class on Friday. I signed up for 11 classes - an hour a week. It wasn't easy, but I think it will be good for me both on the physical and mental level.
Yesterday was a memorial at church. It was a communion service dedicated to my friend who died on the 10th. I wept through most of it and have been weeping off and on since. This death has hit me hard. I am doing all I can to take care of myself and it is all I can do right now.
Tomorrow I will go spend a few days with his widow. I will help her navigate the phone calls and paperwork that must be done now. I think it will be a help to me as well to feel I am doing something.
I have a scratchy throat today and fear I am fighting a virus of some sort. I did have a shingles vaccine on Tuesday and have been quite tired all week. So today lots of vitamin C and staying warm in my jammies on the couch. Netflix, me and my fisherwoman's sweater. A good trio on a rainy rainy day. I have started watching the series 'Kim's Convenience' and it is a very good, light-hearted show with lots of laughs. I need the laughs these days.
I did get to my Croatian lesson on Friday, but I haven't been practicing as I should so mostly we had tea and chatted in English. I will get back to it soon. I think once I am feeling better I will look for a conversational Croatian meet-up group so I am forced to practice listening and speaking.
I have linked to other Year of Project bloggers on the right hand side of my blog. That way you can get to their posts even if you are not a Ravelry member.
I can't leave you without a picture of my dear daughter, my grand-daughter and my son-in-law. A beautiful family! So much love in this photo.
Car repairs always hurt the pocketbook. The sweater is almost done! How exciting to have it for the winter. Your shawl is so pretty. The colors blend nicely together. Congrats on the improvement of the shoulder. You must be quite proud of you perseverance. It has really paid off. Tai Chi has always fascinated me. I just don't know if I could move that slowly or gracefully. Keep us posted on your progress with it. Your Croatian family is beautiful. Enjoy your son's visit!
ReplyDeleteI so sorry to hear about your friend, do make sure you take care of yourself.
ReplyDeleteYour sweater is coming along nicely, I'm so glad you found yarn to finish it. Beautiful picture of your family.
Such a great photo! I hope you feel better soon....frogging just plain sucks.....
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of unknit before, but it sounds worth it. Great news on your shoulder. Beautiful picture of your Croatian family and enjoy your son's visit.
ReplyDeleteI understand about the car...I had that big one while I was up North! You are a very patient "frogger"...that's a lot...5 inches! But I love your saying about regretting it if you don't...so true. Your sweater is beautiful. I have always wanted a Fisherman's Knit Cable sweater...not sure what I'm waiting for? So glad you found yarn to match after all that work. Your shawl is so pretty. I'm so sorry about your friend's passing and I hope helping his wife will help you at the same time. I have discovered that grief is very fickle! One minute you're smiling at great memories and the next you're crying because no more memories will be made. Love the picture of your sweet, beautiful family! Hugs ~ Sam
ReplyDeleteIt was good to catch up with you in this post, Mary-Anne. What a good and helpful thing you will be doing for/with your friend after her loss. Hugs to you as you continue to feel the loss of a dear friend. The cables in that sweater are just beautiful. I look forward to the finished sweater. How terrific that your son is going to be visiting you soon - and for a few weeks! And that picture of your daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter is precious. I can feel the love. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely family photo. I hope spending time with your friend helps you move on with the grief. The sweater looks great and you have such patience to tink so much.
ReplyDeleteDon't talk to me about cars! I am sorry yours is costing you at the moment. I sold mine this fortnight because it was getting too expensive to keep running so now I am without car and reliant on the goodwill of others to get around. I am hoping this will only be a short term arrangement and be able to save for something cheaper to run in a year or two. The old car was running my savings dry. I hope your vehicle has plenty of years left in it now that the clutch is fixed.
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