Old & New

I haven't been in the mood to blog lately . I'm blaming the funk on the miserable weather. Can you believe that it's the end of May and I'm still wearing socks and shoes , not barefoot with sandals .The heat even went on downstairs the other evening . Looks like summer is happening other places , just not here .

There has been just a little knitting going , but there's mostly been reading , I've even squeezed in some relating to sock knitting . More on that the next post . I'm thinking that willgive me something positive to say, rather than complain about the weather . Here's the long overdue socks . The pattern is a called waterfall rib and the yarn is Trekking . I lost the ball band so don't have the colour # . These are going in the gift basket . They're intended for a birthday or Christmas gift for a friend .

I cast on a new project the other night while watching the new season of "So You Think You Can Dance " . Here's a sneak peek . So far it's easy peasy but the more challenging part comes a bit further on . More next week & next month

In the meantime , have good weekend !

Dog sitting Saturday

Dog sitting Saturday
Originally uploaded by crzy4stchn

The knitting mojo has left the building . What's taken it's place is gardening , reading, and dog sittting . Here's my canine grandkids (Alaska & Zeus) on a visit Saturday while Max & Stef were away . It's been awhile since they were over. Bingo is still recovering from having 2 BIG dogs in the house ; -) .

Mother's Day to remember

This year's celebration was special because Jessey's christening fell on Mother's Day . The ceremony was just beautiful , the reception afterwards was fun with lots of family, friends and good food . What more can you ask !

Here's both sets of grandparents and uncles and aunts of the little guy . We took lots of photos in the Church and fewer at the hall. I forgot to take out the camera as much there, for some reason . Could be that I was busy catching up with everyone and just enjoying the moments .

A pain in the neck !

As predicted it's rained most of this week . It's just as well because I've been feeling a little under the weather since Tuesday , so all the garden plans were on hold anyways . Occasionally I have episodes of neuralgia . In my case it's the the trigeminal neuralgia giving me sharp shooting pains at the back of my head just behind my ear . Painkillers are of little help , so I have to wait it out and hope it disappears on its own . These episodes can last anywhere from a couple of days to a week or more . I don't know what brings it on , could be that I caught a draught which triggered some ear pain . I can tell you that it's awful and I'm really hoping it disappears soon . It's kind of wearing me out .



Anyway , enough of that . I'm working on my socks for May . Sock #1 is done and here's my progress on the second one . I don't know why these ended up at the bottom of the knitting basket . I don't normally have socks as UFOs , usually it's bigger and more complicated projects . Apparently these were started in 2006 , so I guess it's about time they're of the needles.

Sunday will be Jessey's christening , so I'll be able to get photos of the baby sweaters . Mike is off next week and apparently at least the first few days promise to be sunny , perfect for the garden work . I just hope this pain in the head and neck is gone by then :) !

Have a good weekend !

Weekend roundup

The weekend just flew by . We had such nice weather for working in the garden so that's just what I did . It was sunny and not too warm (18 -20 degrees C ) , which for me is perfect for that . I like it just a tad warmer for getting in the pool .





My perennial beds have been neglected in the last couple of years . Life and the weather not cooperating at the right time just always seemed to get in the way. This year Mike is taking next week off so that we can try and get the yard and perennial beds in better shape . That will involve a lot of digging and transplanting and dividing of overgrown perennials .





This year we're going to plant a few tomato plants in a sunny location near the house . We're hoping to expand that next year to include some green beans , cucumbers and salad . We've got a lot of other things going on this summer , especially the downstairs bathroom renovations , so we didn't want to bite off more than we could chew . I'm keeping fingers crossed that the weather cooperates next week . It's supposedly going to rain most of this week , which is fine by me so that next week should be sunny . It can't rain for 2 weeks straight can it ?





Not much knitting going on here , but that will probably change with the rainy weather. I dug out the socks that have been hibernating for almost 2 years and will work on them . I also have that little green baby sweater that really needs to get done . There's a baby boom going on around here this year . Chantal's cousin and his wife are expecting twins for sometime in early November . I'm really happy for her , they've been trying for two years . She is such a sweetie and will make a great mom . Nice for Jessey to because they also live close by , 2 houses over .





Speaking of the little man ...


This is him yesterday afternoon playing in his exersaucer . My heart just about bursts whenever I get to spend time with him .
I have so much fun . I love him to pieces !



Sorry but I just couldn't end this post with absolutely no photos . Off to more gardening and then cut the grass

That's it for April !

Mission accomplished ! Sweater #2 is on it's way to baby Marek . Monika is choosing the buttons and sewing them on . I'll post another pic when I get it back for a photo shoot . I'm happy with it overall .

I finished the April No Rainy Days socks for SAM. There was a knot in one ball of the Regia yarn , so they don't quite match . Normally this would bother me , but I'm going with the flow with these . I love them anyways and the colours make me happy !

More good news , I found a dress for Max's wedding ! In my size , no alterations needed except for possibly the length , it's a miracle ! Now for shoes ....

This and that

Whew , another week has already gone by ! I've been babysitting Jessey this week while Chantal prepares for a dance show going on this weekend . She stopped teaching this year because of Jessey , but still helps out with the shows . I had so much fun with the little guy this week , the time just flew by . I enjoyed the one on one time , getting to know him . It never ceases to amaze me how quickly they change at this age . I forgot to bring the camera so no photos , too busy anyways , he kept me hopping :0 .







The knitting time has been infrequent this week , but steady progress is being made on sweater #2 . I'm knitting the raglan decreases and have almost reached the neck decreases . I'm trying to do this when I'm not tired . I don't want a repeat of all the frustration and ripping out of the first one . I've finished one sock though . It's the easy peasy garter rib pattern , which seems to be my go to pattern when I don't want to concentrate . I was cleaning out my knitting corner and found another sock on the needles . I think it's been there for at least a year or more . May socks already decided !






This last pic is of Bingo . He has this unexplainable really bizarre reaction to Mike whenever he manages to get home for lunch . He shakes and shivers like a leaf as soon he hears him pull up and park in the driveway and then goes to look for a place to hide . This only happens at lunchtime ; he's completely fine when he gets home in the evening . And only with Mike , which completely baffles me as he's never shouted at him or mistreated him in any way , ever . Here he is in his hiding place underneath the throw on the couch on the family room .He'll stay there till Mike leaves . He's 12 so I'm guessing that this is somehow age related . It started happening from time to time about 2 years ago , but now happens whenever Mike comes home at lunch during the week . I mentioned it at the vets and they are as puzzled as we are . I don't know what to think , he's as sharp as can be in every other way , just this weird crazy lunchtime behaviour .




Looking forward to some nice weather tomorrow , too bad I have to to continue the search for a bleepity, bleep dress for the wedding . I really hate clothes shopping , nothing ever fits properly or it costs the earth . Last weekend we ventured down to the garment district in Montreal where a lot of the manufacturers are open on Saturday mornings . They have better prices than the retail shops ; the problem is that their sample sizes are anywhere from a 2 to an 8 . Now I'm nowhere near that . Actually most mothers of the bride or groom are nowhere near that . Would it kill them to have some choice nearer the size of the average woman ? We also went to a shop that is well known for their reasonable prices on evening wear . The salesperson asked me my size and showed me what was available . Well , when I came to try on a couple of dresses I couldn't even get them over my bust . Now , I'm not that amply endowed and everyday clothes in my size fit . I ended up trying on dresses that are at least 3 sizes bigger which then needed altering on the bust or shoulders just to fit my waist . I think there's something wrong there . I wonder how the fashion industry sizes their clothes ?



Dress shopping shouldn't be this hard , frustrating and humiliating .In case you're wondering I'm a size 16 and I have a shape. I know I could and should lose a couple of pounds but geez louise make it a bit easier on the average middle-aged mom of the groom to dress up for her son's wedding . We come in all shapes and sizes .



Rant over , so more of the same tomorrow . Heading over to St Hubert street which is bridal shop alley in Montreal . Wish me luck , something tells me I'm going to need it...