Just a quick update this week.......on the needles is Hannah Grace's "3"rd Birthday sweater.....I can  not believe she will be three tomorrow!  I also finished some clothes for her "Merry" doll, but all other WIP's are on hold so I can finish this sweater......nothing like casting on a birthday sweater a week before the birthday!! Hopefully next week I will have photos of the Birthday girl in her special sweater!!

Joining Ginny today......happy knitting!!

Last week we 3 snow storms with lots of little showers of snow in between which put almost 3 feet of snow on the ground! Personally I am really enjoying it! I love the beauty of the snow and I might just also be enjoying the extra time I a getting to knit! So much snow means we are stuck home....the kids are busy playing and I can keep busy baking and knitting......perfect!


So last week I shared some handspun that I spun up on my Bithday.....Camel, Merino and silk......done in a gradient. I found the perfect pattern for that 280 yards and I used up almost every little bit of it to make this lovely cowl! It's Rivendell Smoke Ring , such a great knit and with so much time to knit I finished it in a weekend! It's soft and cozy and warm and I think I am in love with gradient yarns.....so cool to watch the color change as you spin and then as you knit! Ravelry notes here.



We are still listening to Johnny Tremain on audio book this week and enjoying it. Joining Ginny over at Small Things for the Yarn Along. We are expecting some more weather today....looks like more time to knit again!!

I can't believe it is February and this is my first yarn along of the year.......(if you look at the post below you will see why I have not been around in a while......we had a very rough start to this new year)
The weather has been so incredibly cold and snowy and it looks like tonite we are in for another blizzard. I'm so thankful for my warm woodstove and for knitting to keep me warm. My ravelry page is over flowing with warm knits that I just do not have enough time to get to......but I am trying!
Yesterday was my Birthday......yes my only wish was to knit and spin a little and I was lucky and got my wish! I also headed over to Etsy and spent a little Birthday money.....some pretty stitch markers, a new project bag and a yarn holder lazy susan from this shop . I have wanted one of these for a while and since I always seem to have socks on the needles now it will look cute on my little table next to my comfy knitting chair!
I have a few projects that I am working on but the most important and the most fun is this cute little doll! When the Mary, Millie and Morgan pattern came out I knew a soon to be 3 year old that would adore one of these dolls. Hannah Grace's birthday is on the 27th of this month and so I began to scheme. I had no budget for any more yarn but I had  a colorful blanket languishing in my basket that was not getting done and so I decided to rip it out and work on the doll. She would rather have the doll anyway...right!! I could not keep it a secret and so she has directed the color choices for the doll the whole way through. This was a fun and easy knit due to the doll being seamless! I love seamless!!! We are just starting on the wardrobe for her and yesterday Hannah Grace picked out a name......"Merry". And I think that is quite appropriate as she looks to be a very merry doll!! So meet Merry and her very excited owner who totally photo bombed this picture.....(chocolate face and all)


 I also cast on a few weeks ago for another sweater for myself. I bought the yarn last year for a different pattern and never got to it. When I saw Sea Stones I knew this yarn would be great for it! I just need to do the sleeves and the trim around the edge to finish.


On my wheel yesterday was this gorgeous fiber from the Painted Tiger.....it was December's club and is a camel, merino, nylon mix in the colorway  "Salted Camel Mochaccino"  . It is a dream to spin.





I am also participating in two mystery KAL's right now I jumped into the Arrow and also the Solid Socks group mystery sock.  I am enjoying both of them and are really happy with how they are turning out!


 Right now the kids and I are listening to Johnny Tremain and really enjoying it. I've taken to getting the audio books for our history readings so I can spin or knit as we listen.
 I hope you all are keeping warm and cozy and I'm so glad I can join in with you for the Yarn Along this week!!

Can this really be my first post for 2014 and it is already February? Well the last month was a crazy one and I do hope the rest of the year slows down a bit......

Brian's Dad went into the hospital on Christmas Day and never really recovered and on January 20 he passed away. While he had been very sick for a long time it was still upsetting and the kids all took it pretty hard. We will miss him so much but we are praying that he found his way into the arms of Jesus and is now resting in peace.

My poor Claire celebrated her 17th Birthday on the 21st.......we were all so worried that Pop would pass on her Birthday but even the day before is bad enough. We did take her out for breakfast and of course made her favorite cupcakes.....the confetti ones. It's hard for me to believe my "Claire Bear" is really 17.....all of these kids are just growing up too fast for me!



And here we are in the coldest winter we have had ....ever! Negative temps and highs only in the single digits......brrrrrr! Very thankful for the woodstove and our big pile of wood that the boys worked so hard at putting up. We are plodding along through our studies and cuddling on the couch to read a lot. Also shoveling lots of snow.......just yesterday we got about 14 inches dumped on us with some ice on top. It looked beautiful but was not so fun to shovel!

I have a few finished projects and a couple new ones going on the needles. I finished up my first trindle spin and made a 3 ply on the wheel with it.......very squishy and soft!


 and this skein made me happy because of all the bright colors!


I organized my shelves and I now have one with just homespun on it......it's in my bedroom and makes me smile whenever I walk by......


I also started up my PL again. For 2014 I have decide to do a monthly PL and not worry about weeks. It took me a few hours but I had all of January done pretty quickly and I think this process will be better then weekly for me. I've also given myself permission to go back and finish last year monthly as well....that means 4 months and I will have 2013 complete! Here are my January Layouts......very simple and easy! I have not done a title page yet....I'm waiting for inspiration to hit!!








I will leave you with one more photo that I took this past Tuesday when we went sledding over at Pop's place.....it was a great time!