My cousin Carl and his girlfriend Katie are expecting! That’s two new baby girls for the family.
I finished a small gift of a hat and booties set for the baby last night. I used a soft and silky Red Heart yarn and the set knit up pretty fast. I finished both booties in one evening. Both the hat and booties are sized for a three month old.
I wish I could share some of my surprises for Allie here, but I want them to be actual surprises in case my sister catches a glimpse of the blog.
Dear Dad,
It’s me, Jenn! Today would have been your 60th birthday.
Life has been good down here and we miss you a lot. You’ve been gone almost eight years after a battle with cancer. There have been so many sci-fi movies we didn’t get to see in the theater, so many hockey games we didn’t get to watch, and many family gatherings that you have been missed at.
As we remember you on your birthday, we know you are no longer suffering. Still, there’s a Dad-sized hole in my heart that no one else will ever be able to replace.
Here’s to you, Dad. I love you.
Jenn
Sorry about another “off topic” post. I have been sick with a virus that imitates influenza, or a paravirus, as my doctor described it. And I feel crummy.
Yesterday was filled with knitting, Gordon Ramsey on BBC, and naps. I was home and quite under the weather. I’m back on my feet today, but I still am a bit out of it.
Well, back to pushing fluids and painkillers. I ache all over. Not fun.
Yeah, but not so well.
It’s pathetic, because I have a degree in German, but I haven’t spoken it seriously for about eleven years. And that’s bad. My language skills have atrophied.
I went to a German-speaking meetup yesterday, complete with German expats and locals who just want to practice their language skills. We met at a local brewery.
If you ever meet me in person, I’m quite awkward. Quiet. Weird. I don’t know why I put myself in social situations with strangers AND speaking another language. It’s beyond me, but I want to be more outgoing, make new friends, and practice a skill that I let go.
When I did speak, my spoken language skills were atrocious, mostly because I was nervous. But, on the positive side, I did understand a lot of the conversations around me.
I’m taking steps to get better. Not only will I go back to this meetup, but I also bought a Conversational German book on my Kindle and am practicing. I’m determined. Weird thing, this morning on the elevator, I thought it was funny that people were speaking English. Wait a second! I guess some of my German skills are buried in my brain after all if I’m think in German again.
In an effort to tie this in with knitting, I suppose that’s why I keep chugging along with knitting. I want to keep learning. I want to keep my skills sharp. And I’m going to do that with my German now.
And that’s pretty much what I did this weekend. I also needed squares from my Lovegood blanket over at Hogwarts at Ravelry, where I am a member of House Ravenclaw. Harry Potter for the win!
So, I decided on two different squares. The first is a horseshoe cable square. I like it! Cables are fun, especially when you read you pattern correctly and it comes out correctly. Interested in trying it yourself? Here’s the link to the pattern on Ravelry.
The purple one here is out of my beloved 201 Knitting Motifs, Blocks, Projects, and Ideas by Nicki Trench. It’s her Kiss block. It’s quite easy to do. Here are the project details over on Ravelry.