Transitions

 Note, I am posting from a different device, format may be wonky!

What’s happening here? We had a longer warm period than usual, but alas, all good things come to an end.  We harvested our last herbs and greens, and the frost came.  All of us got used to life spent indoors, although we are still outside a lot.  Temperatures below freezing do not keep us home bound! Sadie the dog is here, on the steps, asking about her walk.

I continue to spin through deep stash.  This is some Polwarth that came originally from Australia, but I bought it in a fiber arts business retirement sale.  It is well aged!  That said, it is spinning up beautifully on my Quebec wheel.

Every fall, a kid or two gets a sweater.  This year, I made another one out of Icelandic plotulopi (unspun.). It is light and warm, if not the hardest wearing.  We were aiming for colour blocking here, but then my kid asked if I could knit the original early 20th century tile pattern from our bathroom into his sweater.  Of course!  I sent him into the bathroom with his iPad and then I knit it from the photo.  I did imagine doing those rows in the bathroom, just to see the tile in person, but thought better of it!

To keep cheerful clothing around, I also made myself another jumper using the 100 acts of sewing pattern and Rifle Paper Company print.  My biology professor husband (currently on strike at the U of Manitoba, but that is another story) suggests I am now dressing like a herbaceous border. I ignored him. I like it!

Last, but not least, our heroic boiler had finally died and we are in the process of getting a new one installed.  So, for now, no central heat, and a lot of toys to tidy in the basement so the new one can be put in.  I am excited about this, although it is an expensive home repair while my professor is on strike…because, well, in Canada, heat is life!  We are doing ok with running two gas fireplaces, a little radiator space heater, and of course, I am wearing a lot of wool…

You take care now, y'hear?

This time of year, my household does a lot of hibernation.  It's a busy time for those who celebrate Xmas, but for us, it's much quieter.  A time to play at home and focus on each other as it gets cold.  It's really cold this week, which apparently will have some very cold windchills...-36, last I heard.

The Jewish Independent in Vancouver ran my article last week called:
You take care now, y'hear?

(Just in case you need some reading from a friendly voice over here.)

In other news:
Sadie the dog has gotten so used to having someone with her that when we leave her at all, she breaks out of all the childproof gates and has gotten into some messes.  Last week, she ate all the high end dog training treats (like eating your way through a steakhouse, frankly) and got into our kitchen trash.  Although we compost and clean most everything that goes into the bin, she still managed to stain the front hall somehow with the trash.  I've already washed it three times.  It's hard to be a dog around here...?!

Happier 'making' news: I have finished a huge undertaking, a wool jumper I made, with a lining, based loosely on the 100 acts of sewing dress no.1.  I lengthened the dress, put in the lining, skipped the bias tape, and it took a while to do.  I'm looking forward to wearing it this week during our cold snap, though!

We've also done some weaving at home.  It was a good weekend to sit near Mommy and the fireplace and hang out.  (This kid has big plans to make things for his teachers.)  The handknit sweater modeled by this kid is Freestyle Super,  with a colour scheme he helped to design.

Finally, since someone has recently asked me...is there a way to buy my Yarn Spinner collection of patterns and stories,  Three Ply ---without buying it through Amazon?  Answer? Absolutely!

Support Ravelry, a small business (and me, as Amazon takes a big cut) by purchasing it through Ravelry right here.

Stay warm and safe!  Hope you're having a great December!

Making, behind the scenes

I have been in recovery lately from a lot of holidays,the trip to see my family, and just keeping up with the start of school and our rough snow storm start to cold weather.  It felt like I was not doing much “work” in the writing department but actually, a lot of making was happening,  I have knitted on additions to two kids’ beloved sweaters (they got taller!) and you can see one of them here. I also decided almost immediately after finishing the black jumper to use the same 100 acts of sewing pattern dress no.1 to make a vest.  I did my own “hack” of the pattern, I cannot seem to follow pattern instructions the exact same way twice in a row!  This was all “free” fabric from theArtsJunktion. (A place in Winnipeg where you can donate arts and crafts supplies and also get them for free..It keeps us reusing and recycling and keeps good stuff for art out of the landfill.) I always make a donation and pay for parking, but the fabric did not cost me anything.  This made up for the fact that this vest took me a while!  I cut too low a neckline by accident, so had to teach myself how to make a dart in the back of the vest to raise the neckline.  I think it worked and am excited about wearing this with black dress pants and my new Strippy McStrippit design.

While all this was happening upstairs at my sewing machine, our washer broke.  Yes, this is something no twin mom ever wants to hear from her husband on a Saturday night.  However, I did a search for appliance repair people online, emailed three different ones-and kept sewing.

Imagine my surprise when one wrote back and said he could come diagnose the problem on a Sunday!  (Hallelujah!) We were able to have the broken part replaced and were back in the laundry business by Monday afternoon.  Whew!

Also happening—we received our second Black Sheep Mattress. (We were long overdue here for new mattresses.)  I have now slept on it, and wow, it was a good sleep.  It is made of wool, cotton, pocket coils, and an organic cotton cover.  Of course, five minutes after I made the bed with the brand new mattress, Sadie the dog was trying it out!

Then? There was a sale at my friendly, not so local Manitoba fabric store, ThreadCount fabrics.  I may have placed an order...this sewing thing is very satisfying just now.  I mean, I get new clothes when I finish a project!  Who could dislike that?  (Bottom fabric is a bat print for a friend’s teenager.  It is October—doesn’t every fabric order need bats in it?!).  Actually, the professor really does not like bats, and I am not world’s biggest fan myself...so I covered that up to give to my friend later!

Meanwhile, little boys in grade three play very hard.  The “brand new” start of school size 7 jeans are already getting holes in the knees.  However, I discovered that the size 7 jean legs are now almost big enough to mend using the machine.  This drastically reduces the amount of time spent on each hole, and I am all for it.  I even ironed on a patch today and then tacked it using the machine, but the kid with the size 7 slims better stop making holes by crawling on the playground, as they are too small to be easily darned on the machine. (And now that I have used the machine to do it, I do not want to go back to doing it by hand!!)

Last but not least, when kids play in wet, dirty, sloppy snow, they need a lot of mitts.  And my twins grew a lot this past summer.  I knit quickly, but do not work miracles.  So, I took some old felted sweaters and made two pairs of felted wool mitts, one pair for each boy.  These are not works of art but they are warm!  Now that the snow has melted and the mitts and boots are finally dry, I am hoping I have a few days off before we need to do quick mitten production and wet mitten and boot rotation again...

So, if you were wondering, what am I writing these days?  Well, not as much as usual, but things are still getting done over here in the meanwhile! (And this did not even mention how many meals and loaves of bread I turned out this week, did it?!)

Together on path to freedom-& cleaning

My piece on Passover and Reconciliation came out on the Jewish Independent's website on Friday.  Please read it! 
Together on path to freedom

On household topics:
So, I wanted to post a cheerful photo here or some knitting, but honestly, it is snowing here today, right around freezing, and very mucky. (we had bright sunshine and lots of playtime on the weekend though I forgot to shoot photos then.  Oops)  I could see nothing outside today that would be inspirational.  Inside, well, I have been very busy with kids and Passover/spring cleaning preparations.  Knitting opportunities have been limited.  With the springtime muck outside, it does feel like two steps forward, one step back.  Or in more specific terms, I clean up the muddy paw prints from the hallway, and then someone goes outside (kid or dog) and I have to do it all over again!

One thing that has helped?  OK, this is a little strange, but I'm just going with it.  A very small, portable vacuum.  I think ours looks most like the photo here, but here's a cheaper option, if you're shopping.  I believe ours is a Bissell. (Note, ours is a different color, but I am really not sure that matters in terms of function!) We have always had an old style, heavy duty Hoover which really works...but it is heavy and big.  This little stick vacuum doesn't clean up everything, but it sure has helped with the endless dog fluff and kid detritus that seems to accumulate.  Best yet, it is very lightweight and one of my twins likes to use it.

In the middle of this, we have quietly celebrated Sadie the dog's one year anniversary with us.  She has added such joy into our lives...along with a lot of muddy paws!

I'm not into cleaning as a rule, but it does has to be done to stay healthy and I feel calmer when things are not totally chaotic.  I'm making slow inroads into cleaning up at home, but the emphasis is on slow since I am fitting it around taking care of kids, dogs, and my work life.  I think the key is to get buy in from everyone in the family to help. (...and when the Professor is away for a work trip right before a holiday, it means everyone else needs to help.)  As soon as I figure out how to get the dogs to help out more, I'll be sure to let you know!

winter break

Every day, I've been finding time to do a little knitting or spinning...(and sometimes watching other folks checking out my patterns!)

 A friend gave me this fabulous chestnut cream, so I turned it into icing for chocolate zucchini cupcakes and a little brioche shaped cake. I sent the professor and one twin (the healthy one) off in the snow to deliver a brioche shaped chocolate cake, iced with chestnut cream and topped with raspberries, to the friend who gave us the jar.  (ok, the cake was not as well cooked in the middle as it should have been.  I tried hard!)

Sadie the dog went to play at dog daycare on December 24th and ran and played her heart out.  They took this great photo of her. Today (Boxing Day), Sadie and I had a date to a pet shop where we bought her a new crate on sale.  We're hoping this one (her third!) works like a charm. She broke out of her first kennel, her secondhand second one was not in great shape...but she could use it, and we've gotten up to about 2.5 hours in the kennel at a time... so we went for this new hard-sided plastic one, on sale.  Here's hoping it works out!  (she counter surfs when left alone and loose in the house....)

Every day, one (very sniffly kid with a cold) has been practicing his hand writing.  He chooses a sentence or two to practice each day.  Click on the photo to see his work. I promise, I did not tell him to write these! (but I did make chocolate cupcakes with chestnut icing.  A bribe?!) 

I hope you're enjoying warm and cozy days off!

Snow time is here

Everything takes twice as long when it gets cold out. (Think 0F or -20C.  Nippy.)
Car has to be scrapped off or snow removed. (no garage)  Kids need parkas and boots, etc.  Dog walks become opportunities to bundle up.  However, we also have opportunities to just hang out together inside. 

One of my twins feels that "playing quietly" is an important Canadian cultural activity and he featured it in his recent school presentation.  (I tend to agree...which is why I knit and spin. Hint: I love playing quietly!)

We recently had a cold go around the household and plenty of time to sit on the couch and sniffle. I broke out (wild mom that I am) and insisted we go to Canadian Tire yesterday to buy a new non-skid bath mat.  We could not all agree on the frog and snail one, so we got a plain one too.  Twins got so out of hand debating which one went best in our claw foot tub that we had to leave.

Later, I returned with only one twin to purchase a $10 non-skid rug for the front hall. (Everything takes twice as long this time of year, with twins, and winter, and holiday shopping crowds.  Yup. Deep breath, anyone?!) 
I love our hard woods but cannot keep up with the paw prints and boot melt every time we step inside.  I came down the stairs and found this. Sadie, our new dog, is very active, but apparently this boot mat absolutely meets with her approval!

She did eventually move.  You can see a pile of quick to knit woollies on the side table there, including a Riverbend Garden Hat or two.

Kid sweaters have been in heavy rotation here.  On Track is particularly popular and has been a big seller on Ravelry so far as well...you could definitely knit one as a present pretty quickly, too.

I haven't made any big plans for pattern sales yet.  Is anyone waiting for one? (Do tell me, so I take time to set one up?!)

However, if you're looking to support women entrepreneurs, I know of a really special holiday shopping guide.  In fact, I chose to include my downloadable design pattern sales in it. 

I generally believe in making, not buying, but...we don't make everything.  So, please check this out!:
 I'm proud to be part of the 2nd Annual #ShopWithHer Holiday Shopping Guide produced by Spotlight: Girls.  Get your copy and support women-owned businesses this holiday season. 
Available Black Friday - http://go.spotlightgirls.com/shopwithher-holiday-shopping-women-entrepreneurs-artists-2018

CBC-Parents article has gone live!

Here's a new article I wrote about observing Yom Kippur with kids--
Check it out on CBC-Parents!

We just finished Rosh Hashanah last night, and it was a pretty decent holiday.  We had gorgeous weather, walked to a family service and back, and big meals at home.  Mostly enjoyed each other's company, too....(mostly had peace between twins, which was great!) Sadie the dog went to a dog daycare both mornings so she could manage while we were away for an extended period.  I think she ran a few dog marathons while wrestling the other dogs, so she is beat this morning.  (She's on the left in this funny photo)

sale! Making shade...

 To celebrate the launch of Fissure, my new pattern, I decided to have a sale. 

Save 20% off all my Ravelry patterns!

Use the coupon code:

Fissure

The sale ends July 31st at midnight (CT, US & Canada).

While I've been away from the blog, I've been busy.  The Professor travelled to Ottawa for a second conference, the boys had summer camp, and Sadie the dog has needed an endless supply of walks, kongs filled with peanut butter, and other entertainment.

Also, it's been warmer than usual here, and we don't have air conditioning.  We don't feel we need it, but our living room was heating up.  I used an old sheet, some masking tape, and made a big curtain, and voila!  Shade.  However, it wasn't terribly elegant.  I missed seeing the dappled sun through the leaves, but also?  Our bank of windows cooked the room.  So, I spent $20 on curtain rods at Corydon Hardware Store.

I got out a bolt of muslin I bought years ago.  I made curtains. It was easy to hang them.  Old houses mean someone has done this before; we just used the holes they left on the window frames. We think we may take them down at the end of August, when it gets cool around here...but I didn't spend much on the effort, and it sure is cooler in our living room now. (I've purposely made this a small photo so you can't see the mess, right?!)

Don't forget the 20% off pattern sale!  The coupon code is: 

Embracing Patched Jeans

Hurray!  My first piece went live yesterday on CBC-Parents!

It's in the "Learning" category.
It's live, and on a national CBC website!
Here's a link:
 Why My Kids Have Patches On Their Clothes And What That’s Taught Our Family

In other news:
Sadie the dog had a little run-in with the leftover sugar from canning yesterday.  Rather, she was annoyed that I left home (She was saying, "The nerve of that lady!  Going out for some groceries! Leaving me at home with Sally the dog, the Professor, and both twins---  All on my own!") and decided to do some investigation of our kitchen counters again.  Everyone else was upstairs, getting ready for kid bedtime. This time, Sadie's adventure involved taking a 2 kilo bag of sugar (maybe a pound or .5 kilo was left) and bringing it to the living room, ripping up the bag, and spraying sugar everywhere.  Talk about a mess...OY.  She is paying for it today with a real tummy ache.

It was a lot to clean up but it was also pretty funny.  Oh, we have a big puppy!
Note to self: Do not leave stuff out on counters!  Repeat! (Read that note, again and again.)

She'll grow and learn, but it takes training and time...and I have to train all the other family members to keep better track of her.  (Cause sometimes I do leave home to do things...crazy, huh?)

Making-the napkin efforts

You may remember that over the years, I've knitted a fair number of napkins.  There's been Wipe, Waves & Stars, and even, simply, the knitted napkins.  All of these work, and they are washable, and some of the bright colors even appeal to my kids.  You can also get some of these patterns here on Loveknitting.com.

However, there's worry about them.  The Professor thinks he will ruin them in the wash (he hasn't) and that he can't dry them. (he can.)  Since they aren't dried in a dryer, they are rough, and that can hurt when cleaning up faces covered in jam, ice cream, or yogurt.  (Ouch, according to a survey of two twins.)

So, I looked at the leftover remnants I'd chosen for knitted tunic pockets, a while back.  I ripped the remnant into 6 napkins.  Two full size, and four cocktail/luncheon size, if you're curious.  And, I eyeballed the hems, folded the fabric over twice, and went to town on my ancient Kenmore sewing machine.  Today?  The table has new, bright, shiny napkins on it.  If my Professor reads this:

Yes, you can wash them.

Yes, you can dry them in the dryer.

Please use them, instead of the tattered old ones. :) 

Here, Sadie demonstrates what the napkins are for.  Note location of napkin, it is good at catching drooling while one dozes off.

After I removed the napkins, Sadie was awake and somewhat put out...but I finally got a great photo of her.  I did have a bigger image of her all stretched out.  She is one long tall drink of water!  However, that photo showed how dusty the area all around my Canadian Production Spinning Wheel is.  Ahem.  This is why one crops photos...and chooses the one with the least dust showing...Guess I need to, uh, dust, and spin on it again someday soon!

Busy times!

Two new articles went live over the weekend...and today my twins don't have school.  Busy times here!  The good news is that it's been warm, the front yard is open for chalk drawings and sand box, and Sadie the new dog likes squeaky balls and can play with them by herself. --I almost wanted to make a video of this very funny squeaky ball play, but could not leave twins and two dogs alone in the front yard to get a phone or iPad.  Instead, I did some spindle spinning.  Retro, and much more relaxing... :)

Here's an article featuring Winnipeg Animal Services Agency that went live on CBC-Manitoba:
Doggone lucky Winnipeggers: Animal Services adoption process reveals a system that actually works
Subliminal message from Joanne: Adopt a shelter dog!
Here's a fun Irish setter photo (not our black and tan Gordon setter mix dog) that went with the article.

And another article came out in Vancouver in the Jewish Independent:
Civil Dissent: A Jewish Value 

I am slowly working up a new knitting design, new dogs take a lot of time!
In the meanwhile, maybe you need to knit a little Sumpin for spring?  Or a lightweight linen Nanodistal?  Don't need clothing? How about a bug finger puppet or two? :)

Yak down and Dog training

 I've finished the tunic I was making for myself and am on to using some delicious Reywa Fibers Embrace yak down dk weight yarn that my brother-in-law and sister-in-law got me...a long time ago.  It will likely become a textured wrap design...and if you are at all interested in test knitting it and posting a project on Ravelry, do let me know! 

Knitting (and anything else that requires sitting down) has taken a back seat to some intense amounts of dog training.  Sadie is bright, eager, and active...and young.  She's also still forced to be on a leash for perhaps another week because she just got spayed.  She needs lots of exercise (we're doing three walks a day) and practice at following obedience commands, not tugging on her leash, not jumping--and being by herself.  If we do it right, she is happy to rest quietly indoors when we're done.

We've also had a big spate of "lost and found" problems here.  The blue Riverbend Garden Hat got left at school until I insisted on going through the very stinky lost and found bin by myself one last time.  HURRAY! We found it--but boy did it need a wash!

Then, it got warm out yesterday and this sweater did not make it home...we're still looking for that, we think maybe it got left on the school bus.

Finally, my professor headed out the door to administer a final exam (it's called "invigilate" an exam in Canada, as compared to "proctor" in the US) and discovered he'd lost his car keys.  He had them last night.  I have walked the neighborhood looking for them, and now I'm going to do more intensive searching in the house.  We seem to be losing things at an alarming rate here.

And this is why one occasionally needs exotic, sustainably raised yak down to knit, and enthusiastic young dogs--it keeps me from feeling discouraged!!

What's going on over there?

 Just before we got Sadie, I thought--I'm about to finish a knitted tunic!  (It's a Nutkin variation in navy Briggs & Little Tuffy yarn, designed to stand up to hard wear in our household.)  However, the tunic features pockets, and my house keys often wear holes in knitwear pockets.  So, I sewed two little pocket inserts on my sewing machine out of matching cotton fabric remnants...but the tunic isn't done yet.

Since getting Sadie, it's been all about managing our new dog, our new dog with our old dog, twins, and household.  Yesterday I did something crazy for myself. I went to my physio (physical therapy) exercise class.  I crated Sadie and left her at home for about an hour and a half.  When I got back, her brand new wire crate looked like this:
Shed pushed out the tray on the bottom, cracked and chewed it, bent the crate wires, and shredded towels and sheets that were both above and below the tray.  Oh, and she finished the peanut butter in her chew toy Kong, in case you were wondering... (Yeah.  Not good.)  So, we've got a dog with (note irony) a little separation anxiety and some crate issues.

Since yesterday: We've bought a plastic hard sided, smaller crate.  I've taken Sadie to the vet for a once-over, and for the short term, we're getting some nice drugs to help her calm down so she can be in the crate for a little while at a time, or to sleep in at night.  --Ain't no way I am leaving this dog alone in our house, free range, if she can do this to a crate.  We're doing more walks (vet approved, even though she just had spay surgery on Wednesday) and more training.

And last night, with the first attempt at calming drugs, new crate, etc., she was only quiet and calm on her own in the crate from about midnight until 5.  I am tired.

So, new dogs cost a lot of money!  Last month, I had a marvelous run of pattern sales over at Loveknitting.com.  I was so thrilled!  Then, April came, and drum roll....on both Ravelry and Loveknitting, I have sold a total of ONE pattern this month.  ONE!  So, when the fees are taken out of that?  It's worth about the same amount as ordering a single cup of coffee at a coffee joint.  I emailed the Loveknitting folks, and it turns out they wrote something in a March newsletter that encouraged people to do a pattern search--and this helped knitters find my patterns.  Since then, Nada.

To boost business, I took out a Ravelry advertisement for a few days.  Lots of people are clicking on these ads...So this is a pitch.  Are you a knitter?  Do you like knitting my designs?

If so, please share your projects on Ravelry, link to my design pages, and feel free to talk up patterns you like to your knitter friends.  ...Cause I have an expensive crate-eating dog over here....and I'm going to need more sleep before I can begin even thinking about writing more articles and patterns this week!

This Soft Basket, featured in this photo, is currently filled with dog toys at our house.
Stripe Freestyle, in the ad below, is currently in use--the 6 year old in the photo is wearing it today at school!

Welcome Sadie!

We brought home our new Gordon Setter mix dog, Sadie, yesterday.

  She is about a year and a half old and weighs around 60 lbs (27 kilo).  She's just gotten fixed so is requiring a fair amount of attention, as any new dog should!  Winnipeg Animal Services Agency said she was a stray.  We know nothing other than a birthday,which may be a guess.

Potty training--yes, I think she was, but I do not know what words were used. I tried all the likely English ones and a little French. She could have been trained in Cree, Ojibway-Cree, or Mandarin, for all we know.

Crate training was clearly not a strong suit.  She has already bent some wires, torn up sheets and puppy pads and raises heck when crated. She even sings (not just barking) like an opera singer. (Common bird dog trait, especially in young lively ones.). She does settle down eventually.  We did not sleep a ton last night. :)

She is quiet and clingy when loose in the house with us.  She wants to be near her humans and cuddling with them all the time.  I am the top favorite, but she definitely likes her male family members. too.  Sally, our 13 year old pointer mix, is mostly ok with things.  She missed Harry, our dog who died, and seems glad for company.  She does get annoyed occasionally (who wouldn't!?) and lets Sadie know it.

Sadie is currently resting next to me in my office...she is extremely worried about losing me (entirely understandable, given her recent shelter experience) and stays close all the time.  Last night the Professor had a dinner meeting.  I bathed both boys in the bathroom by myself with the new dog in the room, too. Crowded!

She is a gorgeous big dog, very gentle, and really loving.  Not good at all walking on a leash yet, that is something to work on.  It's hard to see in these photos, but she is very narrow, tall and long.  A 42" crate was the right size.  

After the boys were in bed, Sadie helped me do chores in the kitchen.  She helped move around a dish towel that we used to clean up after she had a big drink of water and dribbled everywhere.

It was very hard work.  Here she is,in the middle of our (not very big) kitchen.

Please join us in giving Sadie a warm welcome home.