May the warmth of the season last all year through.

My prayers for you to have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa 

and a blessed New Year!

Down to the wire!

Bear with me this week while I navigate the new layout process on this blog. I don't know why the "powers that be" are always changing things when they worked perfectly fine the way it was before! So here goes "nuthin' "!

I finished the last four gifts that I was knitting for Christmas but I can't show all of them because "some people" might be reading this and will see their own gifts. I designed this shawl using Araucania hand dyed lace merino. I was pleased with the shape even though it happened quite accidentally. I was actually trying to make three spines of increases but I kind of like it with just two.

These fingerless mitts are a free pattern called "Treads" from Ravelry. They were made using KFI, Gaelic Aran, a superwashed wool. I'm not sure how old this yarn is, as it was on an archeological dig through my stash that I found it. 

 Maureen doesn't have much time left to finish these slipper socks.

 Beth brought in a sweater that she is making for herself and we ooohed and ahhhed at her beautiful work. She couldn't work on it tonight because we just get too rowdy for anything requiring that much concentration!

 She did however, show us all the Christmas gifts she finished for neices and nephews. This cute little hat has a handmade button top.

 This lucky niece will not only receive Beth's beautiful handmade sweater for herself but one for her dolly as well.

 And Beth found cute leggings to go with the other two sweaters she knitted for the younger nieces.

 Kathleen finished another Baby Sophisticate sweater.

 And even though this scarf is still on needles, Barb finished it and it's ready to be wrapped.

I won't be posting next week as the Chicks will be taking a day off so I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you a blessed Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice or whatever holiday you celebrate. And a happy and healthy 2012 to all!

In Memory Of Eliana Marie

A quick post here to send you a link to my daughter's blog. Some of you may remember she gave birth to a little girl in July 2010 but Eliana Marie was stillborn. It was a tragic time in our lives but with the help of God, prayer and the love of friends and family we are all healing in our own time. What Amanda has done makes me so proud. She is a remarkable woman and a wonderful mother. Please read what she has posted and feel free to pass it along. Maybe it will help another mother who has suffered such a devastating loss to find a way to cope with the pain.

Preparing for a new baby

Beth and I took our gifts up to the shelter for female veterans and what was supposed to be a surprise baby shower for Dell but sometimes things don't go the way we imagined. Someone had to spill the beans so she wouldn't make other plans. But it all turned out to be a grand time after all. Dell prepared a wonderful meal for us and then we retired to the warm and cozy family room to open gifts.

She loved the baby blanket that Kathleen made and marveled at how quickly she made it. She obviously doesn't know Kathleen like WE know Kathleen!

She became teary eyed when she saw the card we signed with the photos of all the Chicks.

Then she sniffled a bit more when she saw the gift card.

But it was the bath kit with the rubber ducky that pushed her over the edge into a full blown cry.

The hat and booties that Carole made were a big hit too.

She kept turning and admiring them and the skills it took to make them.

The peace sign teething ring was a keeper.

And remember this hoodie I showed you last week. I finished it in time to block and wrap it.

So now Dell can save it for her little girl, Emma.

We Chicks are looking forward to meeting Emma upon her arrival.

Good luck and God bless you Dell and Emma.

Can we finish in time?

I'm heading toward the finish line with this little hoodie. The pattern is from "60 Quick Baby Knits". The yarn is Cascade 220 Superwash, a fine washable merino wool.

Kathleen finished another cute cardigan. This yarn has a touch of angora which makes it very soft.

She is almost finished with a baby blanket as well. The pattern repeat is 18 rows long and requires a little bit of concentration but is otherwise fairly easy.

Carole finished a sweet little cap and booties while ....

Beth worked on a Christmas stocking for her new grand-nephew. The marine theme is darling.
Maureen continued to work on the slipper socks. Hope they'll be done by Christmas!
We got into a heated discussion tonight regarding the strange experiences we've shared during this holiday shopping season, both pleasant and "un". We all agreed that there are some people out there who need a chill pill! LOL!
I asked Moose to set up my Nativity set this weekend. Can you tell it was arranged by a creative four year old?
Moose visited Santa this weekend to tell him he's been a good boy. Don't let that innocent smile fool you though. He's an active kid and keeps me on my toes!

Did someone say Santa was coming soon?!
I better knit faster.

Recovering from Thanksgiving dinner

The grands and their parents joined us for Thanksgiving dinner last week. We had a traditional dinner with a few twists. Since none of us really likes a real turkey, I roasted a boneless breast with a dry rub and it was delicious, if I may say so myself. Amanda sent along some photos she took of the boys. This is one of my favorites. It makes me smile just looking at those cuties.

My apologies to Elaine this week because I forgot to post a photo of the two beautiful shawls she knitted and placed into our inventory two weeks ago. She used a cotton yarn that is soft and squishy. I can see these will be well worn.

Kathleen finished this cardigan using a blended yarn of acrylic, viscose, nylon, and angora. By next Tuesday you will probably see a matching hat and another sweater.

Barbara decided to go stash diving and came up with two full skeins of Lamb's Pride wool and enough scraps to make a nice warm cap.

We had a full house tonight.

Maureen worked on a pair of slipper socks for a Christmas gift.

Carole added some length to a pair of fingerless mitts. Later on she switched to her sailboats baby blanket.

And Beth worked on a cardigan sweater for a special little girl.

I finished a couple of more Christmas gifts which you will get to see after the holidays since they are all wrapped already. I felt ambitious yesterday and knocked off a whole lot of wrapping. A few more knitting projects and some actual shopping and I think I'll be ready for Christmas.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I prepared the Spinach-Parmesan Balls on Saturday and put them in the freezer so all I have to do is bake them at the last minute. Last night I made my grandmother's recipe for Escarole Soup. I made the cranberry and orange relish too so all I have to do today is prepare the turkey and stuffing and pop those in the oven, add the potato wedges partway through the roasting and to top it all off my son made his delicious Apple Orchard Cheesecake. No, we're not having pumpkin pie. Believe me, this cheesecake beats it by a mile!

Here's a wish to everyone for a happy, healthy, prosperous Thanksgiving! May God bless your family with a peaceful holiday.

Busy Little Knitters

I've been busy making Christmas gifts for my family. While I can't really say who these are for, there is no reason I can't show them to you.

The Shawl Collared Cowl was made using Caron Spa yarn, a blend of bamboo and acrylic. Very soft!

This cowl was made from Cascade Venezia, a merino and silk blend. Also very soft.

100% Baby Alpaca mittens are REALLY soft.

And remind me not to knit socks for BIG feet anymore! LOL! I started these on Oct. 2 and didn't finish until the 29th. Ok, I did work on other projects in between, but still.....

Kathleen dipped into her magic bag yesterday and pulled out all sorts of goodies.

She admitted that she forgot to work in the first buttonhole of this sweater (it was really the fault of the poorly written instructions) so she decided to go with velcro and adorn the neckline with these sweet rosebud buttons instead.

This is Kathleen's favorite hoodie to knit.

Another favorite pattern of Kathleen's is the Baby Sophisticate jacket.

And this sweet set is made with a cotton and tencel yarn that drapes beautifully.
Elaine came to visit this week. We sure have missed her for the past few months. But life had other plans for her. It was good to get to sit and knit with her.
She modeled this lovely cowl that she knitted.
Carole worked on a baby blanket that has sailboats in the embossed design.
Maureen finished her Baby Sophisticate and checked out a pattern for her next project.
I've got seven more items I need to knit before Christmas so I better get moving!