Busy May

May has been insane around Chez Counting. Here's a short list of what's been going on, in addition to the aforementioned anniversary and Mother's Day:

1. Strep Throat
2. Impetigo - which is gross, by the way
3. Approximately 850 doctor, dentist and eye appointments. Luckily, nothing major, other than what I've mentioned
4. 1 birthday party so far, 5 more before the month is over, including my baby's #3.
5. 1 house guest so far, 2 more before the month is over
6. A major stash organization project - I am in love with all of my yarn again and just want to knit all the time.
7. Desperate knitting trying to finish up some samples for Gardiner Yarn Works before June TNNA. If I am successful, I should have a couple of new patterns in the line soon.
8. 2 Gigs for the hubby's band
9. 4 Knitting Guild "Events" (mostly meetings) - including the Shop Hop, which I will talk about a bit more below

Of course, all of this is in addition to the normal work, school, etc. schedule. Whew! Is it any wonder that not much knitting (that I can show) is happening around here?

So, I have plenty I could talk about, but will limit it for time sake today. First up, the Shop Hop...our Guild puts on this fun event every Spring in which we rent a nice luxury coach and take 55 eager knitters on a tour of some of the local yarn shops. I say "some" since we have so many in the Portland area we could never hit them all in one day. As it is, we usually go to 6 and are all exhausted by the end of the day.

For the last two years I have been on the Shop Hop committee, which has been very fun. I get to work with some wonderful ladies putting together an event that is always fun and very much appreciated by the folks who participate.

Below is a picture of the participants "Goody Bags" for the event. We are lucky enough to have Lantern Moon as a local company. For the last two years they have sold us lovely bags at a very reasonable price.

As you can see, the bags are stuffed with items donated by various vendors and local yarn shops. Included are things like wool wash samples, a couple of different yarn samples, tape measures, another tote bag, coupons, crochet hooks, yarn requirements guides, etc.

I apologize for the quality of the picture below, but I wanted to show how the event looks from inside of one of the smaller stores when there are 55 people, plus store staff. It is crazy, but so much fun!

I did do a little stash enhancement that day, but have already put it away and am not in the mood to pull it back out and take pictures. These new purchases, by the way, are what drove/inspired the stash organization project. Lots of new yarn always makes me want to organize all of it so I know where the new stuff is and how it fits with the old stuff.

I did finish one thing I can show you though - another pair of socks. For those keeping track, that is 10 pairs since I started knitting socks in February.

Pattern: Broad Ripple, Yarn: Cascade Fixation

My sister gave me this yarn from her stash and I was curious about it because of the elastic and because I had heard that it wears like iron. I have to admit I had a hard time getting started with it. I was pulling the yarn really tight, like other sock yarn, because I like the fabric pretty firm. This was killing my hands though so I loosened up a bit and was pleased with the results. The resulting fabric is nice and snug on my feet and is not nearly as bulky as I thought it would be, seeing as how I knit these on size 3 needles.

Love the pattern! I have worn these a few times and get lots of comments about the wavy tops. Non-knitters think they are very clever. Hah! I haven't told them how easy it was....

I think that's enough for today. Perhaps more another day...maybe even before the end of May, if I'm lucky!

Happy Anniversary

I have been extra busy lately, which means I have lots of things to talk about. However, I am going to wait because I need to talk about my husband. You see. this week we celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary. I am one lucky girl!

I have decided to go outside of my normal policy of not showing my loved ones' faces on the blog to present you with a peak at the man I am proud to call my life partner. The picture below was taken just a couple of months before our wedding, when we were on a trip to New England. He looks so well rested! Obviously, this was before the girls arrived. And yes, for you who know him in person, he is blonde in this picture. He was actually blonde when I met him, but has reverted to his natural hair color in recent years.

Since we have been married five years, I thought I would list five reasons why I am so happy to be married to him. I could list hundreds, but thought five would be a good number for now.

1. One of the very first things that attracted me to my husband was his gentle nature. He is, to the core of his being, a kind and gentle person who really cares about others and the world around him. I strive to be more like him in this regard every day.
2. No matter what size, shape or disposition I am sporting, he loves me and accepts me for who I am. Seriously.
3. He is an excellent and very proud father. There is nothing sexier than a man who cleans up puke in the middle of the night or who gently deals with a screaming two year old in the grocery store.
4. He is very confident and comfortable with himself and who he is, even in our "non-traditional" family. There is a lot of pressure on men in our society relevant to roles and what it means to be a man. He knows he is being the best man he can be by taking care of our girls every day while I work. It's what's best for us and, therefore, he does it. Usually with no complaints.
5. If he goes to bed before I do, he always falls asleep on my side. Then, when I go to bed, he moves over so I have a nice warm spot. How cool is that?

Here's to many, many more anniversaries with my love!