Legal at last!

Well after not feeling christmassy at all we had a really lovely time. It all came together in the end, the decorations went up on Sunday, which is actually not a bad thing as normally I am getting annoyed by christmas day with retreiveing baubles from all over the house that the cats have hidden. This year they didn't have time to hide many. The kids loved thier new Wii and it provided us with lots of fun on christmas day playing all the games, even my Mum and Dad had a go. The only game I am regretting is the singalong High School Musical one, if I hear 'What time is it?' one more time i will scream!
I got some lovely pressies, a swift (at last), a popcorn teddy kit, a couple of books, some perfume, a storage box for my beads, some choccies, money and best of all, a deed poll changing my name from Sarah to Saira! So I can now legally use the name I have been using for most of my life. I need to write loads of letters informing everyone but I don't mind that at all.
I am now looking forward to finishing off my WIPs and starting something new for the new year. I have a huge list of stuff I want to make, mainly thanks to Ravelry, but I need to sort out what order to do it all in. I only have a couple of bits left on the needles, so I will finish those first.

Bah Humbug!

I'm feeling so un-christmassy its untrue! We don't even have any decorations up yet, work has been a pain, money is tight, D is Mr Grumpy and the puberty fairy has arrived with a vengence in our house! At least I am now off until Thursday so maybe the christmas feeling will start soon. I have finished my christmas knits now so I can breathe a sigh of relief on that score, I made my Mum a scarf in Knitwitches pure silk and I'm really pleased with it. I hope she likes it.

Dad is getting a cabled scarf and hat, he has been moaning that I never make him anything so hopefully that will keep him quiet! June is getting a pair of pink fetchings like I made for R as she admired those when she saw them. The other gifts I made are for Sue and Sue at work, these beaded vases.

I have also made my first ever christmas cake! I followed Delias recipe and have been feeding it with Tia Maria so I can't wait to try it. I hope anyone who happens across this blog has a very merry christmas without too much stress.

Gifts from Las Vegas.

Today I received some squishy lovelyness all the way from Las Vegas! My friend June went and bought me back some wonderfully soft Alpaca and some SWS soy wool for felting. I can't stop stroking the alpaca, it is so soft, that will become a scarf for me I think.

I finished a pair of crochet bootees for Kate at work on Friday and it was just in time as her niece was born on Sunday. They are from Crochet Today magazine and were fairly easy to make, although there were loads of ends to sew in which was no fun. She insisted on purple as that is her favorite colour, its a strange colour for a baby but there you go!

What a day!

Today I have mostly been at the Stitch'n'bitch event in London, and what a wonderful day it was! I listened to a talk by Jean Moss which was interesting, I spent some money which was nice and I met some lovely people which was even nicer!

Here is what I spent my money on, although its not all for me! Some is to be sent on to Gemma from the AY forum who is in hospital and missed out on going to London today. Lottie had the idea of getting her a squishy gift to cheer her up. I had to get the 10g Opal ball as it is so cute! I have no idea what you could do with 10g of sock yarn but sometimes useless can be fantastic!

I met Lucy from Bristol who told me how to put a link in my blog, so here is a link to Lucy's blog hopefully! http://settersknitspop.blogspot.com/ Thanks Lucy!

On Wednesday D and I went to see Top Gear being filmed! It was so good, the lads were on top form and there were lots of laughs. I'll be watching it tomorrow to see if I can spot me in the crowd. I did get a photo with James May, but you will have to excuse the strange expression on my face, I discovered that trying to talk and smile at the same time just leaves you looking badly constipated!!

Trip to Norfolk and meeting the Mayor.

If you have read my blog you will know that R is deputy carnival princess for our village. On Friday night we were invited to a presentation evening where cheques were handed out to good causes in the area from the money raised at this years fayre and carnival. R got all dressed up, she had a new dress that I bought from Ebay (god I love that place!!) and a manicure and her hair was done in curls again by my friend June. When we got there, she was more dressed up than the carnival queen! I was a bit worried that I had got it all wrong but when I checked the letter it had asked for her to go in full regalia! Maybe the queen prefers the understated look. Anyway, she had her photo taken with the Mayor and seemed quite happy with the whole thing so that was ok. It was lovely to see both the girls dressed up and looking gorgeous.


D and I had a weekend trip to Norwich while the girls stayed at my Mums. D had a reptile show on the Sunday so we decided to make a weekend of it. As usual it didn't go quite to plan! We got stuck in traffic on the way up because some lad had run in front of a van at the Dartford crossing so we didn't get there until 2.30 and we left my Mums at 9.30! I found Norfolk Yarn, which is a lovely shop and full of ladies with spinning wheels, which was lovely to watch. I bought some red cashmerino to do E some fetchings and a bagain bag of 10 balls of Elle chunky in an aubergine colour to do a jumper for me. On Sunday D dropped me off in Norwich and went to his show, it was very wet and windy but nice to have a casual wander round the shops on my own. I then went to meet D at the reptile show and wouldn't let him buy anything! I'm so mean! We did get a new vivarium which will eventually house a chameleon but not until we have room for it!


When Mum dropped the girls off in the evening she gave me this...















Its a needle roll for my dpns and crochet hooks!! It is absolutely fabulous, I love the colourful cats on it. She is working on one for my circular needles too. What a complete star! So all in all I have had a nice weekend!

Stash enhancement!

Haven't blogged for a while! I have been far too busy buying more stuff. We had a trip to the Knitting and Stitching show at Alexandra Palace and I bought lots of lovely things. There are needles and yarn and a book and patterns and a magazine.
Its all very squishable and yummy so I can't wait to get started on making things. Some is for christmas presents but I'll keep quiet about what exactly just in case the recipients are reading. So on to some finished items instead.

This is a Jaywalker sock made with Regia Bamboo and I am so disappointed with it! The yarn feels lovely in the ball but knits up really floppy and doesn't hold a shape well. The sock feels baggy and shapeless on my foot. I will make the pair for it and give them a wash as I am hoping that will help, but I can see it being a long wait before that happens as I am not inspired by it at the moment.



I also made some fetchings in pink for R. Here she is striking a rock'n'roll pose! These are such a quick knit, they came out really nicely and I am planning to make some for myself, after I've made E some of course, as she is now sulking!!

A better day.

Well, I am feeling a lot better today. D has been really poorly and is in huge pain which means I have been forced into taking a few days off work to keep things going at home. That sounds awful, but has probably saved my sanity a bit. He has been to the doctor and we have been assured that it is nothing to worry about and is probably just spasms connected to the surgery he has had, so once over the initial panic about the pain I can now relax and just worry about making sure he takes his tablets and rests. I know I should see the doc myself and get signed off for a bit, but I am covering someone elses job for the next couple of weeks and would just get more stressed knowing that the work won't be done if I'm not there. I just wish I was superwoman!

Anyway, on to the good bits. I received my winter warmer secret santa from Yunaleska on the Angel yarns forum today and it is gorgeous!! Just feast your eyes on that sock yarn! It is from middle earth yarns and is called midnight... it is wonderful and it is mine all mine (insert manical laugh here.) The other yarn is called Hug and is so soft, there is a pattern to make socks or legwarmers from it. I think legwarmers are to be left to the younger generation as they bring back bad memories of the eighties, so socks it is.

More good bits.. I have finally managed to get tickets for me and hubby to go and see Top Gear! It has taken a bit of persistance and a long wait but we are going on 7th November to see an episode being filmed. We went a few years ago and had a great day so I can't wait to go again and see the hamster (hes lovely!!!) and have a laugh.

Finally R is going to be filmed by the BBC for a kids show on Saturday. She has to take Elvis (our kingsnake) with her as they want to interview her about keeping snakes as pets. She is really pleased and has been telling everyone at school about it.

This is Elvis, he was only a baby when this was taken. He is now about four foot long and rather beautiful, he is also the most docile , calm and laid back snake ever! So he should be good for filming.

The other good news, well sort of, is that Rusty is no longer with us. I have signed him over to the RSPCA to rehome. I feel terribly guilty that we couldn't give him the home he needed, but I am relieved that he is not here any more. As hard as it was I know we made the right decision. The house is so much calmer and the cats have come out of hiding already. Apart from five minutes of tears at bedtime, the kids are ok with it too. They have commented on how much easier it is without him. I really hope he finds a home where he can get the attention he needs and someone who has the time to train him properly and help him get over all his problems.

Anyway I am off to bed now and hoping that tomorrow is a good day too.

Not much to say!

I have just sat here staring at the keyboard and don't know what to put. I am feeling really down at the moment and can't think of anything positive to say. I'm the same on the forum I visit, I keep going to answer a post and just giving up halfway through typing. So I will take my Grans advice, 'if you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all'. I will wait until the cloud lifts and try again.

I'm in!!!

Yay!! I have finally made it into Ravelry! OMG!! There is so much there to play with! I can see nothing getting done this weekend in the way of craft or housework!

I have also finished the bag for the bag swap, and now that Leah has received it I can show a picture of it. I had to borrow this photo from Leah because I was so eager to send it off that I forgot to photograph it! The bag is crocheted with a 12mm hook in Wendy Pampas, the pattern is from Tess Dawsons book. I added a sparkly charm to it as well. I sent a couple of other bits with it too, a bracelet, kilt pin and scissors with a beaded charm. All of which i made as well. It was nice to get the beads out again, they have been stashed away for too long. It also inspired me to make another bracelet to send to my Winter warmer swap pal, so I hope she likes that too!

Another finished object!!

I have finished an item that was so quick it never even made it to the WIP list! It is a bolero for E in Sirdar Blur. I love this yarn, it knits up really nicely and a little goes a long way. This took less than a ball! I have some in a nice green to do a jumper for me from septembers Knitting magazine and that only needs four balls.

It looks great on her and she is out playing in it at the moment, I just hope she doesn't ruin it whilst climbing a tree!!

R wanted me to put up a picture of her in her new school uniform, so here it is. She has settled in well and already has 5 merits! She has managed to catch the bus on her own and phones me every lunch and break time!! That will hopefully stop once the novelty of having her own mobile phone stops!!

I am back at work tomorrow after a bit of time off to look after D. He is home from hospital but still quite weak. I hope he will be ok on his own next week. I am really stressed and on the edge at the moment which is not a good thing, the dog is winding me up constantly, if I'm not having my arm pulled off on a walk then he is tripping me up, winding up the cats or barking at phantoms in the house. We have the normal arguments with the kids about homework and tidy rooms, the house and garden look a tip and I just feel like I am not coping. I hate this panicky feeling which seems to be there all the time. Never mind, I shall get the chores done and settle down to some craft.

Yummies in the post.

I am taking part in a bag swap on the Angel Yarns forum and I received this beautiful bag on Tuesday! It is from Linda (Allknittingnosleeping) and it is so pretty. It is made from Silk and feels absolutely gorgeous, I've not bought any silk yarn yet but I may now be tempted, if it drapes this beautifully in a bag then it would be lovely as a top.
I have actually started mine, it just needs handles and a lining and then I can post it off.








These are the other goodies I received in the bag swap package, lots of lavender smellies, chocolate and some gorgeous Opal yarn.
I have been planning my extras to go in with the bag and it will have to be beaded!!




Thanks so much Linda, you really brightened my day!

Socks done!!

I have finished the waving not drowning socks and they are lovely! I love Opal yarn and I love how it softens up after a wash, this colour is fantastic, the name Neon really suits it. So now I have my bright and cheerful socks for grey days.

D is still in hospital, he was hoping to be home tomorrow but it looks like he will have to stay over the weekend. He is eating soft food now so things are definately on the up, the only problem is his blood pressure is low so they are trying to sort that out. E is off to brownie camp this weekend so it will just be R and me on our own. We will have to have a real girly weekend and make the most of it.

Last night i had a precious night off, the kids are at Mums, D in hospital so I was all alone and didn't have to go and visit him either as he already had visitors. It was the first time in ages that I have sat down and relaxed!! I poured a glass of wine and planned an evening starting a new project. First I tried winding a skein of Lana Borgoesia cashwool into a ball, that took ages and I got in a tangle near the end so decided the ball was big enough! Then I tried casting on for a beaded shawl but it is the first time I have used anything that fine and I found it really hard so after a few attempts I gave up for the moment. Next I decided to start E's blur bolero, only to find I haven't got any 6.5mm needles. Eventually I started a lacy cardigan in cotton 4ply, after casting on 189 stitches I got in a muddle trying to k4tog tbl and dropped a load of stitches off the needles!! At this point I put it all away and gave up! Sometimes its best to just watch telly!!

A bit of beadwork

I was going back over the blog and realised that I haven't got any pictures of my bead work. So here are a few. These are not recent bits but they are ones I am particularly proud of. This is going to be image heavy!!

This one is a brooch I made for a secret pal swap on a beading forum. It was sent to Hawaii .

This is a necklace made with art glass beads from an american seller on Ebay. They are so gorgeous, my favourite colour (teal) and up close they look like little galaxys with swirls of stars in deep blue.

This was a challenge piece on the Bead and Button forum, the theme was Bollywood, so I went for lots of bling in red and gold. The little hearts tinkle when you move so it is a lovely piece to wear.

This is a choker made to a traditional American Indian pattern, as a commission piece for a friend who is really into that culture. It took 17 hours to make!! Each seed bead was added individually as the pattern was for a loom but I did it in square stitch!

This was a set in goldstone that a friend at work asked me to make for her daughter. It is beautifully sparkly as the goldstone is filled with lots of twinkly bits.

Last but not least this is the one I am probably most proud of, I made it at a workshop with Lyn Firth from Stitch'n'craft. It is simply stunning and I remember walking into that workshop and Lyn showing us what we would be making and I just thought "No way am I going to be able to do that!" But I did!!

At last the op is over!!

D has had the operation and is recovering nicely!! Hoorah! He is covered in tubes and feeling very sore today but otherwise is doing ok. I am so relieved it is over at last. This has been hanging over us for so long now, I know he still has a lot of recovery to get through and it may not even solve the problems completely but it has to mean some improvement surely!?!

The girls are coping really well, I have had a few tears but I took them to see him this evening and that helped, they are so used to having him at home all the time that they miss him a lot.

I wish I was coping as well, but I am so tired, what with all the animals to sort out and the kids to keep amused as well as work and visiting the hospital I just can't keep up!

We spent yesterday dyeing our sock yarn, it was fabulous messy fun! Just what the doctor ordered! E did hers bright blue and red, she wants a hat. R did bright orange and pink and wants trainer socks. I tried to do some more pastel shades, one is peach and pink and the other a light blue, I got a bit experimental and added some red to the blue to try and make a bit of purple but I'm not madly happy with the result. Maybe it will look better when it is wound and knitted.

Aaarrggh!!

Sorry, another getting it off my chest post! The trouble is that I am having to be the strong one here and all I want to do is lean on someone else and let them worry about everything, but there isn't anyone! The kids need me to be strong, D needs me to be strong and his Mum is relying on me too. He has his op on Tuesday, and he is so scared and stressed. I am bad enough but he really is convinced it is all going to go pear shaped and he will get an infection or something. Neither of us are sleeping, he is grumpy because of the stress and he is in a lot of pain too at the moment. Its lovely here.....not!!
What doesn't help is the fact that we have finally, after much soul searching, decided that Rusty is going to have be rehomed. :-( We have gone through the finances and just don't have the money to pay for the intensive training he needs in order to be a controllable dog. We have had him a good couple of months now and tried so many things to sort out his problems but it isn't working. I hated having to make that decision, but it had to be done. The kids will hate me for it, not to mention other people who have been very vocal about thier disapproval of me even thinking about it! The thing is we never went looking for a dog, he just needed a home and we said we would give him a try. Well we have and it didn't work, now we just have to live with the fall out. Hopefully the kids will be ok and at least the cats will come out of hiding now.
Well I'd better go and be the strong one again! I'll update on the op next week.

Crochet shrug done!

I finished the crochet shrug! It has worked very well except I am not sure about the front, I may need to put an edging on it as it is a bit gappy around the armholes.

My undyed sock yarn has arrived too! We have the food colours all ready so will do that one day soon, I am thinking of doing it on the day D has his op, that way I can keep mine and the girls mind off it!! We won't be able to visit him on that day anyway, just phone for updates. I was only £2 away from the free postage at Violet Green so a skein of lovely plum, pink and purple sock yarn fell into my basket too. Pretty isn't it?

Good news and bad news

Good news first, the alpaca sock is coming along nicely. The yarn is so soft, this sock will be like walking on kittens! I also received my all seasons cotton so I can finish the crochet shrug, hurrah!

Now the bad news! Before I can carry on with the sock I have a bit of a mess to sort out, due to my dog deciding he liked the alpaca too and unwinding the ball for me!!

We had doggy trainers in yesterday and Rusty will be going to school in a couple of weeks. I am at the end of my tether with him, he is not badly behaved indoors but a nightmare outside! We tried a group training class but he was so stressed about the other dogs that is was a total disaster! So now he is going to have one to one training, its very expensive but if it means I can walk him without major dramas then it has to be worth it. Also they said he is very attached to D and suffers seperation anxiety when he isn't here, which is going to be a major problem when he goes into hospital. They have told us what to do and we have 10 days to sort that problem out before D goes in. Hopefully it will be ok, I am going to be anxious enough myself and trying to stop the kids from worrying about thier Dad, I don't know that I could cope with a stressed out dog too!!!

Busy weekend

We have a busy weekend ahead, guests coming to stay and tomorrow we are going to Brands Hatch for the World Superbikes. So I am in the middle of a housework frenzy! I don't know why I am bothering as I know I am the only one who will notice that its tidy and there will be crash helmets and leathers all over the place once they get here, but at least I can relax once its done!

I decided to cast on the alpaca socks as Bronte suggested, I am using Artesano Hummingbird and it is so squishy and soft! I have ordered some non slip paws for the bottoms of them so they will be house socks. Since I don't have a picture of them yet here is one of Tilly relaxing on my bed.

Oh well, tea break over, back to the house work!

A finished item!

I have finished the primrose shawl!! It is so light and lovely and I am thrilled with it. Here is R doing her model bit!

I have made sixteen squares for my shrug so far and run out of yarn! So I have ordered more and will carry on with that when it arrives. In the meantime I will try and finish the neon socks and then I need to decide what to start on next. I am torn between a lacy cardigan in 4ply cotton, some Regia bamboo socks, some alpaca slouch socks or a lace scarf.

I have found out that my Aunt is having a mastectomy in a couple of weeks time, they removed the lump at the beginning of July but think they may have missed a bit, so she made the decision to get the whole breast removed. I think I would have made the same decision. So fingers crossed that this will get rid of the cancer for once and all and she can get on with her life again.

Late night ideas!

I couldn't sleep last night and found myself mentally going through my stash and thinking what to do with it when I had a brainwave! If I take the Rowan all seasons cotton that I won in the Knit Today competition and make crochet squares I can join them together into a rectangle and make a shrug!! So I ignored my 'finish one thing before starting another' rule and started making squares today. So thats another thing in the WIP list, but hopefully it will be quite quick and then I can get back to the Primrose shawl and make the pair for my neon socks. I'll keep you posted!!

No more Harry Potter!!

I have just finished reading The Deathly Hallows and am feeling really down! I can't believe there will be no more Harry Potter books. Every time I've finished one I've been desperate for the next one to come out and now that is it. I can only hope that JK takes pity on us and keeps Hogwarts going in another book, there is so much scope even if the main characters are different.
On a completely different vein, D has had the date for his op. It is the 21st August, which is highly unfair as that is his birthday! So I am trying to sort out leave and who can have the kids whilst he is in hospital and also when he comes out as he won't be able to drive for a while. He in the meantime is hoping the weather perks up so he can get out on his motorbike as much as possible before the op!

Look at my stash!!

Today I got all my yarn out and photographed it. I didn't realise I had so much. Some of it I will never use so it is going to be put on Ebay, but there will still be plenty to work on. I just wish I could knit faster! I don't seem to have the patience with finishing things and am desperate to cast on the next thing before casting off what I am on at the moment. I am having to force myself to only have two main projects on the go at once. At the moment it is the crochet shawl and the Opal socks. I do also have a scarf and a baby blanket in the naughty corner, I will get back to them one day! I am so lucky as I have some really gorgeous yarns to work with and my head is full of ideas to use them.

Some knitting for a change!!

Here are some photos of knitting, just for a change!! I still can't find the charger for the camera but have taken photos on my phone instead.
First of all E in her new alpaca hat. It was supposed tobe for me but didn't fit!! The pattern I used said to do 2 repeats of the cable pattern but I'll need to do three to make it fit me. The pattern is from knitting pattern central and is called the Kisses and hugs hat.









This is a work in progress, it is Primrose from Tess Dawson's new crochet book, which is marvellous. I am using Kaalund Classic 2 and the colour is called pacific. It is my first proper attempt at crochet and is very easy to follow.








Lastly I have cast on a sock, I always like to have a sock on the go! This one is called Waving not Drowning from Violet Green. I thought that was appropriate considering everything that is going on at the moment!! I am doing it in the brightest colour I had in my stash, Opal neon. It almost glows in real life!! If that doesn't cheer me up then nothing will!!

That'll make the summer interesting!

D had his appointment with the surgeon yesterday and they have decided to go ahead with the operation!! He is amazed as he thought it would be put off again, then the amazement turned to fear as the surgeon explained what they are going to do! I felt really sorry for him, his face just fell. He will be in hospital for at least 10 days and will be fed via a tube in the nose until he starts eating again. The incision will be crossways and go from one side of the chest to the other, so a fairly large recovery time afterwards. The barium xrays he had done were inconclusive as even the liquid barium couldn't get through the blockage, this means they are going in blind and hoping that the intestine is healthy enough to use for the by pass.
The op is scheduled for the beginning of August, so I am going to have to hope that my boss is feeling nice and will let me take some holiday even though the quota of people off in August is already filled. With the kids off school I am going to need at least two weeks whilst he is in the hospital and the first few days at home.
On the plus side I finished knitting a hat whilst I was waiting at the hospital. I have made it with the alpaca yarn I bought on Sunday and used a pattern on knitting pattern central for a cabled hat. It is lovely, but doesn't fit! I followed the pattern and did two repeats of the cable section, obviously I should have done three as it is fine widthways but too short for me. It fits E so she can have that and I'll do another one.
I am working on a crochet shawl at the moment and it is coming up beautifully, I can't find the charger for the camera battery so will have to post photos another day.

Quick update

I didn't get time to log in last week so a quick run down on whats been going on in the madhouse. I won a competition in Knit Today! How cool is that? I won ten balls of Wendy Shimmer (not sure what to do with that as it is a nightmare to knit with!), three skiens of Collinette Enigma (lush ribbon yarn, I've already earmarked that for a wrap that is in the latest Magknits), membership to Rowan international which also includes a pattern and 4 balls of All seasons cotton, some patterns and two tickets to the Knitting and Stitching show! Aren't I a lucky girl!! I already have my tickets booked for the K&S show so I have given them away on the Angel Yarns forum. Spread the happiness!!

On Sunday the Tour De France came through Kent, so we avoided it and went to an Alpaca farm for an open day. It was slightly less than advertised but we had a lovely time. The alpacas were so cute and the farmer was so enthusiastic that it was great to listen to him talking about them. I bought two balls of pink DK alpaca yarn and have decided to make a hat. I may even get it finished by the 22nd as we are going back to see them again!!

Happy news!

On saturday we went to the local village carnival and fayre, it was incredibly wet and windy but very busy despite that. R was entered in the carnival princess competition so we spent all morning doing her hair and getting her ready. She did her parade of the arena in the rain, I felt so sorry for all the girls, they looked so pretty and the brollies sort of spoiled the effect!

Luckily it stopped raining for the presentation and R was crowned deputy princess!! She was so pleased and wasn't at all bothered about not actually winning as she got a tiara and sash anyway.

I was worried that E would feel left out but she said she would only do it if she could wear camo and trainers! All she wanted was candy floss, so that was soon sorted.

Getting it off my chest!

Ok, today I am going to have a moan and get it off my chest, so those who happen across this blog and don't want to read the deranged ramblings of a mad woman can go away now!
D has Crohns disease and over the last seven years has not only lost huge amounts of weight but become a completely different person. He is bad tempered, moody, and can be really obstinate. I know its because of the medication he is on and because he is in pain a lot of the time but he really is a bugger to live with!! Finally after a good few years it seems they have got the Crohns into remission, which means he can now have an operation to bypass the scar tissue at the exit of his stomach. This will hopefully stop him constantly throwing up and he can put some weight back on and get rid of all the pain and discomfort.
Sounds good eh? But of course it isn't as straight forward as that. The reason he is in remission is because he is on immune suppressant treatment, so he has no immune system to speak of. The surgeon that we have been referred to is not keen on doing the surgery because of the risk of infection afterwards. He can't stop the treatment because not only could the Crohns come back, but once you stop you can't ever have that treatment again as it would send you into anaphalatic (sp) shock. The risk of infection is quite high at this hospital, last November my Grandad died after having a hip replacement op and picking up MRSA. MIL's best friend died in February after having an op and catching C-Diff. So given that knowledge the op seems more and more of a risk.
The problem is, I know D can't carry on the way he is, and I know I can't!! But I am scared to death that the op that should save him may end up making him more ill or even worse killing him.
Added to all this life seems to be determined to be a pain in the backside and keeps giving me more and more to cope with. R is playing up big time, she will be in a cast for six weeks but the ADHD is making her a complete cow at the moment and she is not making any effort to control it. My Aunt has just broken the news that she has breast cancer, work is too much stress, and I am just not coping. All I want to do is hide somewhere until it all goes away.
Well, there you go, rant over! Maybe getting it off my chest will help, maybe not.

More chaos!!

Why is nothing ever easy! D had to go to the hospital for a barium xray on thursday, so he was there all day and I had to take time off work and rush around trying to sort out cookery club supplies and school runs. Then in the evening R is at gymnastics and I get a call to say that she has an accident and can I go and get her. Turns out someone has accidently landed on her hand and her thumb lokked all swollen and a bit wrong. So off to A&E we go, 5 hours later at 1.30am we get home complete with plaster cast and sling. Today I was on earlies so I felt like death all day, R wasn't much better, she went to school but came home at lunchtime as she was in a bit of pain and kept falling asleep in class. We both had a nap this afternoon but i still feel shattered.
With all this going on I haven't had much chance to knit, or practice the crochet I learnt at my workshop on wednesday, hopefully we will have a quiet weekend and I get stuck into some serious craft!

A few weeks ago we adopted a dog called Rusty, he was about to be thrown out on the streets so we took him in. He is very sweet but needs training! He cannot walk on a lead, barks continually and hates being left on his own. On Saturday D was out with his brother and the girls and I went shopping. I got back to find my knitting bag had been emptied all over the floor! Not only that, but Rusty had found a bar of Green and Blacks chocolate in there and eaten the whole thing. Chocolate as you may know is poisonous to dogs so off we went to the Vet and he had to have charcoal powder every fours hours, yes even through the night! On Sunday we were back for a blood test, luckily he is fine but it cost over £100 in vet fees!! The only good news is that I managed to save the sock that he nearly ruined by a bit of spitsplicing.

I'm really not good at this blog stuff, am I?

I think I had better try harder to keep up to date with this, I love reading other peoples blogs so it would be good to keep mine in a state where people might actually want to read it!!

Since my last post I have received my secret santa goodies from the Angel yarns forum swap, and they are lovely. I have already started a pair of socks with some of the Jojoland Melody. It is a slightly strange pattern as I have used a stitch pattern from the Knit Today sock booklet, but the pattern in the booklet is for DK and the Jojoland I've used is fingering weight so I had to adapt it. Its the first time I have worked without following a pattern strictly so I am really pleased with how they have turned out. The yarn is fabulous too which helps.

I am also on a stashalong which is going to last until the Knitting and Stitching show in October. I have written a list of all my stash and have the yarn and patterns for so many things that I just can't justify buying any more!! Having said that I fell off the wagon last week and bought some Wendy Fusion to make a felted bag! I must behave from now on! I have also joined a sock club, but that was an anniversary present from D so I'm not counting that!!

I am going on a crochet workshop next week and will update the blog with how I got on afterwards.

Hello

Well I seem to have cracked it!! Here is Fat cat on a box! Now I know what to do I can start to put up some pictures of my knitting and stuff.