We're back!!

We’ve been away for a few days visiting both sets of grandparents – we are very lucky in that although we met in Cambridge, both sets of parents live within about 20 min drive of each other on the Wirral – it makes seeing both lots much easier (although does mean we spend a lot of time going backwards and forwards). Both children behaved (mostly) really well – I was especially pleased that Ruth coped – she’s been getting very stressed about being with unfamiliar people in unfamiliar environments, but she was absolutely fine. (Although this morning before we set off home she managed to:

i) break Grandma’s reading glasses ii) re-program the washing machine mid-cycle – it was definitely time to leave!!

I don’t have time for a long post now, but I will say that I FINISHED ADAM’S JUMPER – in time for Christmas Day:

– there’s a fair bit I’m not too happy with – the neck is too big (although that does mean that it goes over his head easily), and the arms are too tight (but not so’s you’d really notice) – all in all it’s OK given that it was knitted on straight needles using acrylic.

I’ve been having fun knitting for myself, but more on that another time when I’ve got pics to show you. (Although I’m proud to report that I’ve managed to “tame the porcupine” – I really wasn’t liking dpns at all to start with when I got going on my first sock – but now I’ve worked out how to hold them without jabbing myself too often.)

Oh, and Dryad has been returned – she didn’t fit (I had a feeling she might not… still, in a year or two she should fit Ruth). I now have a commission for a “more appropriate” hat – if I can find suitable non-itchy wool for it.

Oh, and Daisy – I’m not ignoring your meme – I’ll do it soon, I promise.

Happy Christmas

Just a quick message to wish everyone a Happy Christmas. I know this can be a difficult time of year for lots of people for lots of reasons – I’ve lit a candle here. Still, I hope you all had a good one, and aren’t feeling too stuffed right now.

I finished all my knitting in time!!! And now I’m knitting socks – my very first – and they’re for me!!! (The first thing I’ve knitted for myself this year!)

Yup, another one

Well – it’s been a little while – and this is very seasonal – thanks to Kathryn for this one

You are ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing’. You take
Christmas very seriously. For you, it is a
religious festival, celebrating the birth of
the Saviour, and its current secularisation
really irritates you. You enjoy the period of
Advent leading up to Christmas, and attend any
local carol services you can find, as well as
the more contemplative Advent church services
each Sunday. You may be involved in Christmas
food collections or similar charity work. The
midnight service at your church, with candles
and carols, is one you look forward to all
year, and you also look forward to the family
get together on Christmas Day.


What Christmas Carol are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Adam and Mummy Day

A fun day with Adam…

First we took the bus (“Mummy, are we still in our country?” ) to the Fitzwilliam Museum where Adam was brilliant – really interested in all the pictures he could find of Mary and Jesus, although rather put out not to be able to find many pictures of Joseph. Then we headed off to the museum shop where Adam bought this bunny for Ruth’s Christmas present:

Update: I’ve just looked at this post on my blog – it’s really not a scary bunny, honest – he’s cute!

and we bought these Christmas tree decorations – the plane for Adam and the horse for Ruth:

Then we went to Fitzbillies where I’m afraid I was much less than impressed – they had a list of gluten-free items up on the wall. However, on closer enquiry I was told “They will contain traces of flour” !!!!!!!!!!!! – So they’re not gluten-free then, are they?!!! That would explain my most recent gluten reaction – it was shortly after a colleague had brought in cakes from Fitzbillies, proudly announcing that the florentines were gluten-free – certainly not her fault that they weren’t – the sign on the wall announced that they were! When will people learn that for many people being on a gluten-free diet is not some sort of wierd life-style choice, but the necessary treatment for a medically diagnosed condition. GRRRRRRRRR!!!! (I have taken the address and will be writing to them, please excuse me venting on here too.) Anyway, by then I’d promised Adam a Snowman truffle – so I bought it anyway – it was HUGE – he’s already had 3 attempts at it, and it still isn’t finished

Then we headed off to the Zoological Museum – Adam was thrilled by all the bones (we went to the Natural History Museum in London to look at the dinosaur bones last Feb – it made a big impression), and kept going round saying in a big loud voice that he didn’t like the birds – “They were killed – DEAD” (Somehow the death of the skeletonised creatures was less upsetting!)

Then lunch at the Rainbow Cafe – pasta with cheese for Adam (he ate the lot – including the salad) and green pea, onion and sage soup for me, served with rice-cakes, and followed by chocolate and cranberry cake – this was gluten-free

Then we wended our way to the bus-stop via a toy shop to buy Christmas presents for Jenson and Trey (Adam’s new baby twin cousins).

I have to confess that by the time we were on the bus back home I needed a break from the piping little voice (“Mummy, are we back in our country yet? Mummy, is our country really old? Mummy, is this bus really old? Mummy, is this chair really old? Mummy, what’s that black thing? Mummy, are we in Trumpington yet? Mummy…. – you get the picture)

So I’m hiding on the computer while he watches CBeebies – making star biscuits will have to wait for tomorrow morning.

Meanwhile, in knitting news (I’m taking the risk that my neighbour won’t be reading this in the next few days – Annie don’t read any further… ) I’ve finally finished I do, knitted in bamboo (Sahara – Annie likes “sludge” ). Be impressed by my very first Kitchener stitch:

Anyway, I’ve promised Adam he can have a go at the CBeebies website, so I’ll stop now.

Self Portrait Tuesday

I love Christmas, and Christmas trees, and all the fun smells and excitement that goes with it. At least I do now – we’ve got close enough, I’m organised enough for it to go ahead. About a week ago I wanted to cancel the whole thing – I was too tired, the house was too much of a mess, it all seemed too much. But then we got the tree up, and now I’m happy – I keep wandering in to look at it like a big kid. My 20 month old points at it and says “Wow” in an awed whisper (I know, I know, next time she’ll be pulling it over… ) – there are moments of magic.

A brief plea

Look folks – I know you’re visiting – I can see it in my stats – please (pretty pur-lease) stick a pin in my Frappr map – I want to look like I’ve got even more friends.

Thank you.

Various stuff...

First – I saw this on Yarn Harlot and thought it looked fun, so:
– my favourite knitting seat. John despairs of the top of the chest of drawers and the back of the sofa. And that bolster has taken several years to squash it into exactly the right shape – be warned, I do NOT appreciate it being plumped back to its original form!

And now we have the current state of play on Elijah’s hat:

Those of you who have read me before will be thinking “I’ve seen that pic before”, but no, scroll down a little way, count the stripes – a few days ago I was partway through the sixth stripe – now I’m just about to start the fourth one… It seems that casting on “about the right number of stitches” created a hat which would have been too big for me, never mind our one-year-old neighbour. So it got frogged, and I’ve started again. (How little knitting time?)

I was a little disappointed to start with when this

arrived – the picture on the Celticove website made it look much more golden than this. But now I’m falling in love with it. It’s going to be a hat for me – just look at those little flecks of colour hiding in it – Mmmmmm. (And it was in their bargain basement – reduced from £10.80 to £5.99 )

And today we put our tree up:

(I couldn’t get a picture which showed both the lights and wasn’t horribly blurred, so I had a play with the Gimp – apparently this is a cubist version… )

And final couple of nauseatingly proud mummy moments before I go and get on with some knitting (sitting by the tree, listening to a knitcast) – 1) Ruth can count to four
2) Adam begged for more sprouts at dinner time tonight. We could have done without the whinging that went with it, but still…

_So_ Cute

You’re tired, you’re fed up, the kids won’t leave you alone, your classes have been downright rude – you need a break, something to make you think “awwwww” – well, here it is – Cute Overload

It makes me smile anyway (esp the bunnies in the cups!)

Introducing Dryad

Here she is:

She’s a bit blurry, but you can see her leafy edging and my very first i-cord to pull the top together. I will put a pdf of her pattern on here when I get the time to write it up properly. I am inordinately proud of this pattern. Admittedly the idea of putting a leafy edging on wasn’t mine, and the edging itself is an adaptation from a pattern in the Harmony Guide, but the top and the short rows for knitting on the edging are all mine

Happy Dance time!! (I just hope it fits/suits my mother!)

Knitting night

I was brave – I went!! And met some lovely people:

Here we have Liz (just disappearing off the LH edge), Sarah, Mary and Rosie (who will appear by magic if you click on the thumbnail), and here:

we have Lynette and Carol(e?)

Apologies for the picture quality – I swear the powers that be noticed that there were people knitting with very dark yarn, and turned the lights down further… Or maybe it’s just that we were sitting at the back of a huge smoky pub. Anyway – I was very relieved that I had taken something bright and simple:

(it’s a hat for my neighbour’s child – the pattern consists of “cast on what you think is about the right number of stitches, knit in K2P2 rib until you think it’s big enough, cast off, sew along the top, add tassels” – I’ll let you know how it goes…)

It was lovely to see one of Mary’s chenille stockings in the flesh, and to see what everyone else was knitting. But it was the speed of Liz’s knitting that blew me away – I tried to watch how she did it – but it was very dark in there, and her hands were just a blur. Still, it turned out that we know the same organic pig-farmers, and that we had met previously (although to my shame I don’t remember it at all) through Camlets.

I picked up lots of useful tips, and have added a couple more books to my Amazon wishlist. I feel like a “proper” member of the online knitting community, especially since I now have the pics on my blog!

Anyway, ‘tis time for me to frantically wrap Christmas presents (Adam’s presents are currently hidden almost in full view in our front room!) – and I need to somehow find time to go and buy bananas for Adam’s nursery Christmas party tomorrow. I don’t begrudge the bananas at all, but I would have liked a little more notice (mutter, mutter!)

Yay! My aforementioned lovely friend has said I can point people her way. Be nice to her

Ruth’s thoughts can be found here – do go and take a look.

Remembrance Day

I have a lovely friend, who has just started a lovely blog, although she has asked me not to point everyone to it just yet as what she writes feels very personal. Still, she has made me think, and wonder some about what I want my blog to do. Clearly it’s primarily a knitting blog, and it’s primarily other knitting blogs that I find most interesting to read. But… but there are other things I want to explore too, so I’m going to meander for a bit…

I always have huge difficulties with Remembrance Day. (Yes, I know it was a month ago, but I think I’ve found a coherent if still confused position, so I want to write about it now.) I was brought up as a Quaker, the child of pacifist parents who met because they were secretaries of neighbouring branches of CND. I now attend the local parish church, which is middle-of-the-road Anglican, with some high bits. It’s not a happy church for very many reasons I’m not going to go into now. So, Remembrance Day and wearing red poppies – I don’t. I have the utmost respect for the huge sacrifice made by the men and women whose lives were torn to pieces – whether on the battlefield or by the destruction of their home lives. I think ex-service pensions should be sufficient for a genuinely comfortable old age, and in that respect I value the work of the British Legion. However, and this is why I can’t wear a poppy – I cannot stomach the continued pride, the continued assumption that “our side” is always 100% right, and “they” are always 100% wrong. To die or be brutally injured at the hands of someone else is appalling – whoever, wherever. The sermon we had this year was excellent – it focussed on remembering in humility. Of course we must remember wars – without remembering we cannot learn. But remembering should not be an excuse to fire up old hatreds. But then at the end of the portion of the service in church the (first verse of the) National Anthem was sung – I’m afraid I couldn’t – most of it I can go along with “God save our gracious queen” – yup – it’d be nice to see her in Heaven – “Long live our noble queen” – well, maybe it’d be good to let have Charlie have a chance sometime soon, but I certainly don’t want her to not live – “God save the queen. da-da-da-da Send her victorious…” – er, no – that’s not remembering in humility, that’s exactly the triumphalism I can’t stomach.

I guess I could wear a white poppy, but because I genuinely do respect the sacrifices that were made, I have no wish to cause offence (which it would in our church, despite the fact that no such offence is intended). So, for now, I shall continue poppyless.

Look at my banner...

I’ve just noticed that my “Make Poverty History” banner has gone all seasonal – it’s got pretty little holly sprigs on it. Even more exciting – if you click on it you get the chance to send Tony Blair a virtual Christmas card. Do have a play.

Quinoa Bake

OK – my recipe (algorithm?) for Quinoa Bake
To serve 4:
1 pint lightly salted boiling water
1/2 pint quinoa, rinsed
1 onion – chopped
1 large clove garlic – crushed
Interesting-looking tasty stuff from the fridge (last night that meant 4 rather dried up old mushrooms, 3 sticks of limp celery and 3 small piquant peppers from a jar that has been lurking at the back for I don’t know how long) – chopped into v small pieces
A large pile of grated cheddar cheese (and a little parmesan – just because)

Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F). Cook the quinoa (put in the boiling water, cook for about 10 min, then remove from heat, cover and leave to absorb the rest of the water). Fry the onion, garlic and other tasty stuff. Take off the heat. Add the cooked quinoa and stir in the grated cheddar. Put in oven-proof dish, top with grated parmesan (or just more cheddar), bake for about 30 min.

As you can tell from the instructions above, this can have many variations. It’s good served with a tomato sauce – last night however that simply meant ketchup.

Oooh - maths teaching and knitting combined...

One of my colleagues passed over a worksheet he was preparing to give to a class – those of us teaching Decision Maths (not actually the exam board we use, but close enough) have reached the stage where we are introducing the idea of algorithms, and how to follow them. Anyway – Ray had put together this sheet, which included the following algorithm:

Step 1: Cast on 11 stitches
Step 2: Slip one
Step 3: Knit 1, Purl 1
Step 4: If there is more than 1 stitch remaining go to Step 3
Step 5: Knit 1
Step 6: Turn
Step 7: Go to Step 2

He was quite impressed when I explained that that would produce a rib (I did check that it wasn’t going to be moss/seed stitch!) Little did he realise that he’d just passed a knitting algorithm to the department knittaholic! I’m a little concerned with the algorithm above though – I don’t see that it can ever finish – it looks like a pattern for an infinitely long skinny scarf to me…

It's been a (little) while since I did one of these...

You Have a Melancholic Temperament

Introspective and reflective, you think about everything and anything. You are a soft-hearted daydreamer. You long for your ideal life. You love silence and solitude. Everyday life is usually too chaotic for you. Given enough time alone, it’s easy for you to find inner peace. You tend to be spiritual, having found your own meaning of life. Wise and patient, you can help people through difficult times. At your worst, you brood and sulk. Your negative thoughts can trap you. You are reserved and withdrawn. This makes it hard to connect to others. You tend to over think small things, making decisions difficult.

This feels scarily accurate!

This morning it was Adam’s School Nativity Play. (The nursery were included – they did a star dance.) I can’t believe it – I really have turned into one of those soppy mothers with a tear in her eye. I used to think that school nativity plays were the pits. This one was above average – the singing was audible and (mostly) in tune – but that’s not what got to me. Somehow, despite all my reservations – the consciousness that for most people there it was simply a nice story, and for some the line “Jesus was born in a stable for you and for me” could even be offensive – something about it really got to me – it took a lot of effort not to blub my eyes out.

I’ve designed a hat for my mother for Christmas – I’ll do pics when it’s finished (always assuming that it’s actually hat-sized – I have horrible suspicions that it’s going to be waaay too small, but we’ll see). And as for the “I’m only 1 evening away from an FO” – we..ell – it’s still true. I can’t believe how unenthusiastic I am about Adam’s jumper. I only have 5 seams to do (and I dread to think how many ends to weave in) – I’ve even tried the body over his head, and fitted the sleeve on his arm, so I know it’s not going to be grossly wrong for size, but I think I’m scared to finish it in case it’s as much of a fug as I suspect. Ah well, it was my first big project since regaining the knitting bug – I’ve learnt loads since I started it, so maybe it doesn’t count. But I HAVE TO FINISH IT BEFORE CHRISTMAS – it’s not going to be a present, but I want him to start wearing it a) while the weather is cold and b) before he grows out of it!

Arrrgggghhhh – I’ve just noticed the time – I need to start cooking – quinoa bake for dinner.

Self Portrait Tuesday

This month’s theme is reflections – I’d love to use my very first SPT pic again, but that feels like cheating, so I’ve used one of our garden shed instead. This captures its ramshackleness beautifully – we were going abandon it, but my FIL insisted on reroofing it – very successfully, except that now there is something in there (we’ve no idea what) that makes John’s hands swell up. It’s a novelty for him to be the allergy sufferer, especially since I don’t have any problems with it at all.

Oooh – I saw something very odd this morning – a large party (20+) of middle-aged men and women clearly out for a serious ramble. They were all togged up in fleeces, with hats, scarves, gloves and alpenstocks – they would have looked very appropriate in the Lake District – but not really in the grounds of a primary school in very flat Cambridgeshire!

I have children calling for baked beans – I must go and be motherly. (I’m about 1 evening off an FO – very exciting!)

Finger Knitting (and other stuff!)

Today has been an important day in Adam’s development. He has experienced his first taste of knitting. OK, so it was finger knitting, but it involves pulling loops of yarn over other loops of yarn – that’s knitting in my book.

(Loads of self-indulgent photos of my boy coming up)

First you need to make sure that Daddy is watching properly:

Then you put the loop Mummy made on your finger, and wrap the yarn round in front of the loop:

Then you lift the old loop over the new one:

Pull tight (but not too tight!) and start again:

And you get a lovely cord – ideal for a skinny scarf for Bear:

And of course Ruth was watching, and in complete flirt mode (as soon as she sees a camera she starts saying “Cheese, cheese, cheese!!” )

I don’t think this really does her justice – she was definitely in a funny mood.

Other news – I finally went to see the doctor about my continuining malaise – it’s now December, and I’m still “not doing” it – still coughing, and getting diarrhoea (tmi – but hey, at least I can spell it!) every couple of days. I like my GP, but she is a bit of a worrier – anyway she’s put me on antibiotics for my chest, and taken blood samples (and given me a sinister blue test tube for another sample – shudder) to test for signs of inflammation or infection, so at least I should find out what’s going on. (I suspect nothing very interesting, and that it’s just one of those things that will take it’s course.) Ruth was with me while I had the bloods done – she sat on my knee and watched avidly – fascinated by the whole procedure. This is a big step forward from the days when she would start screaming as soon as she went anywhere near the nurse’s treatment room!

And it’s Advent – I usually want to do something for Advent, but never quite get my act together, but I’m enjoying reading both A Light Blazes in the Darkness and Hopeful Imagination

Oh – and I’ve finished my scarf exchange scarf:

I promise the fringe doesn’t look that wonky in real life! It’s been a fun knit – I love knitting with variegated yarn when the colours change as subtly as this.

Seven Things...

I’ve been tagged! (Ta lovely husband )

1. Seven things to do before I die
2. Seven things I cannot do
3. Seven things that attract me to my spouse
4. Seven things I say most often
5. Seven books (or series) I love
6. Seven movies I watch over and over again (or would watch over and over if I had the time)
7. Seven people I want to join in, too

OK – this takes a little thinking about:

Seven things to do before I die:

1. Learn to crochet.
2. Climb Scafell Pike.
3. Get (and maintain!) a thoroughly clean and tidy house.
4. See my grandchildren.
5. Conquer my fear of big open spaces.
6. Learn to be more patient.
7. Visit another continent.

Seven things I cannot do:

1. Crochet!
2. Finish one knitting project before starting another.
3. Mend a bike puncture.
4. Cross a wide road on my own.
5. Eat gluten without being ill.
6. Be tidy.
7. Understand pension plans.

Seven things that attract me to my spouse:

1. His tenderness with our children.
2. How good he looks in a suit.
3. His unshakeable convictions.
4. His patience with the big things.
5. The huge amount he does around the house, and the way that he does it without expecting any special praise.
6. The way he respects our differences in taste, and will try to accommodate the gaps.
7. He “gets” me.

Seven things I say most often:

1. “Adam – NO!”
2. “Ruth – NO!”
3. “Alright, it’s time to settle down and get on with some work” (to my classes)
4. “Hello Lovely” (to either child, or to John)
5. “Just 2 minutes on the computer…” (and no, it never is)
6. “What’cha doin’?”
7. “Night night, sleep well, see you in the morning.”

Seven books (or series) I love:

1. Pride and Prejudice
2. The Silent Miaow
3. Shirley
4. Love in the Time of Cholera
5. Milly Molly Mandy
6. The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
7. Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable

Seven movies I watch over and over again (or would watch over and over if I had the time)

1. Singin in the Rain
2. Casablanca
3. Monsoon Wedding
4.10 Things I Hate About You
5. Silsila
6. Babette’s Feast
7. An Ideal Husband

Seven people I want to join in, too (no pressure – if you hate this sort of thing just ignore it)
1. Daisy
2. Fi
3. Ruth
4. Emma
5. Becky
6. Hazel
7. ANOther – in other words if you fancy having a go at this and I haven’t listed you – go for it!

Now that's more like it!

The Goddess of Night and Regret. You are a perfect
confidante. Always understanding and
solicitous, you could be a queen and you are
exceptionally honest. You are an intelligent
beauty.


Which gorgeous goddess are you? For girls! (breath taking pics!)
brought to you by Quizilla

Nearly forgot...

Just to make Daisy jealous – I took my mother to Sew Creative yesterday – I wasn’t going to buy anything, I really wasn’t, no, honestly, but then on the way there she started talking about how she needs a new hat. How is a loyal and loving daughter supposed to ignore that one? So I bought this, and I think I’m going to make something a bit like this with it.

Hey ho – but I have finished that second sleeve of Adam’s jumper, and I’ve sewn up the shoulder seams and started the neckband. (And I’m getting oh so scared that it won’t fit at all… )