Boxing Day

Today, we drove 3.5 hours to the coast and back. Long day. But a nice day with all the siblings, partners, parents, grandchildren (one aged four, one unborn) present for the first time in a long time. 

On the way, I worked on my red cardigan which is only a few days old. 



We drove through lush, green dairy country.



And finally, I was able to present the big, secret Christmas knitting project to my sister and her family.



It's my second Hemlock Ring Blanket. Like the first, it's made of Bendigo Woollen Mills Rustic 12ply, this time in the Natural Fleck shade. I cast it on on 16 Nov and finished it on 7 December. Not too bad at all really.

Once it was done, that was the biggest burden of my Christmas knitting done. It was gratefully received by Adele, her husband and young Will, who happily posed beneath it for me, despite the heat of today on the coast.

Later, Will was sitting on my lap "knitting". Too cute.



In the afternoon, there was swimming in the pool, lounging about, eating trifle and posing for family photos. Here's mum, with we three girls. That's my youngest sister next to me, who is having a baby in February. A little girl.



And here is all of us. It's so hard not to squint in summer photos. From the back, Adele, Keith, Dad.

Front: Fiona, Me, Mum.



So that's Christmas done and dusted. It's been nice but I am relieved to have my leave ahead of me now, with the silly season stuff over and weeks of me time stretching out gloriously into the new year. It'll be hot and there are jobs to do at home, but not every minute of every day. No way.

Next post - Sean's fabulous gifts to me and what I plan to do with them!

Bells

Flowers Great and Small

It's been a little while since I updated how the flowers are going in our little patch of Earth. It's been a fairly dull, damp summer so far which means the veggies are not really flourishing yet. But there are some lovely tail-end-of-spring flowers around and some bursts of sunlight in the form of these.



Sunflowers have long been a beloved flower of mine. Yes, it's true that tiny, delicate flowers can take your breath away but really, who can shun the sunflower? That big, smiley face, the way it seems to hold the light in the petals, it's all amazing.

Even better are the sunflowers that show up completely by surprise. When we planted our bare rooted Ash trees at the tail end of winter, we used a lot of compost and in doing so, apparently set the scene for a magnificent mini-field of sunflowers in the centre of the back yard.



See how they're right there among the (thankfully flourishing) ash trees? What you can't see here because of the fabulous greenery everywhere, is that there are about five of them. The other two aren't even the same variety. They're multi-headed sunflowers, each with a dozen or so yet to bloom heads on them. Amazing.

How this happened I don't know as it's been two years since we last had sunflowers. 

Elsewhere in the garden, there are smaller examples of light, colour and foliage. My other, smaller current loves are Everlasting Daisies, natives of Western Australia.



I've got loads of these and just adore them. Today, I was describing the wonder of these flowers to Amy in Rhode Island, because I used a photo of them on the Christmas card I sent out this year. These feel all papery and when you cut them, they live, without water, for ages. I don't know how long because the yellow ones on my window sill look just as good as when I picked them earlier this year. They've darkened a little but look just the same.

There are more.



And then these pink lovelies.



Kuka, take note. The pink ones are the ones that started out life in your greenhouse!

I think, in a few weeks when the searing heat of summer is turning everything into brown, crumbly dust, I'll appreciate even more that I thought to plant these water-wise flowers. They require almost no care at all, except some trimming when the plants become heavy. 

I adore the European flowers that do well here, but the more I garden - and the more I learn about sustainable gardening, the more I begin to fall in love with the natives, the ones that actually belong and thrive here in our harsh climate. 

This will be my last post before Christmas, so I'll say now that I wish you all rest, relaxation, fun, merriment, love and joy in whatever way you choose to seek it out over the break. Thanks for reading and thanks for the friendship, the learning and the great writing and photos I find when I read all your blogs. It's all contributed so much more to my life this year than I can possibly say.

So merry Christmas and see you soon!

Bells

xo

FO: Adamas Shawl

I've got a new shawl! Somehow, despite all the Christmas knitting, I've managed to fit in a bit of time for this lovely piece. Actually it's been on the go since October, so it' s not like it flew off the needles.

Also, I cheated and didn't do the full fourteen repeats of the second chart, but it's a fabulous size nonetheless. Not quite a tiny shawl, not quite huge. Just right.

It's my second finished project for A Long Lacy Summer. I just haven't been able to blog the first one yet.



It's feather-light, delicate and a rich shade of blue. All things to feel good about.

Pattern: Adamas Shawl by Miriam Felton. It's actually a free one from Miriam 'Icarus Shawl' Felton's website. 

It's a great pattern. I'm quite ok with the triangular shawl now - the way the shape appears is, three shawls in, still something to marvel at. You start out thinking you're at the point of the triangle when actually you end at the point, but it's not clear at first. Clever.

Yarn: Knitpicks Shadow, in Jewel, snapped up when Donyale was having a destash a while back. I actually have two skeins left because I only used one (and a tiny bit) for this shawl. It's lovely yarn, if not particularly flash. I think this will make a good, easy wear shawl(ette). 

It measures 165cm by 59cm (or 69inches by 23 inches). Four repeats short and still quite good. Also, I got bored. No, not bored. Impatient. I am going to start new lace right on or after Christmas and I wanted to be ready!

Early on I was concerned the diamonds in the lace were not diamonds but in fact hearts. Judge for yourselves. They are a bit heart-like, aren't they? Never mind. I can cope. 

Finally, tomorrow Sean and I are having, for the second year in a row, a little Christmas lunch for ourselves a few days early. Last year we decided that because we never hold Christmas at our house, we never get to learn  how to cook a proper festive meal. We'll be scaling it back somewhat from the bazillion dishes I prepared last year, but with a special menu planned, some wine and a day of just being at home alone, it's bound to be fun.

If only I didn't now have a very sore throat. Here's hoping I can still taste by tomorrow.

Bells

Repeat Performance

I have long been a fan of knitting something twice. If it worked once, it'll work again and there's comfort in the familiarity of a repeat performance. 

(Remind me I said that next time I've got one half of a pair of socks lingering for too long?)

So I managed to quickly whip up another Retro-Rib Hand Towel. It's another gift and, for Christmas at least, it's the last one. Yes, I know I said I'd finished all the Christmas knitting a week ago, but I also said that if I chose to, I'd knit more gifts. Like other people we know, I'm still feeling quite bah-humbugish about Christmas but little moments of happiness are found in putting together packages like these.

But this, my friends, is it. No more. Because I have a lace shawl to finish. It looks like this, if you can't remember.



I'm about three rows off.

Next post, I'll update about the sheep. I think he's still with us.

Bells

The Retro-Rib Hand Towel

You can't beat a gift that knits up in a day, can you? Check this out.



It's the Retro Rib Hand Towel a new pattern by Sonia, the Peaceful Knitter. It's a lovely pattern, utterly mindless until you hit the hardly challenging decrease section and turned over strap at the top, which I have secured with a handy stunt clip until I can buy a button this week.

It takes 1 skein of Peaches and Cream worsted weight cotton for the main colour, and about one quarter of a ball of the contrast colour on 4.5mm needles. 

I've got another one on the needles as we speak, in dark blue and light blue Lion Brand Cotton. With Christmas literally only just around the corner, I'm needing a few last minute things I can pump out lovingly but quickly. 

Did I say the Christmas knitting was done? 

I did. I think I just meant the big things. At this stage, I'll do anything to avoid going to the shops. Knitting stocking stuffers suits me just fine.

Bells

What will they think of next?

After a day or two of some seriously unseasonal weather - bucket loads of rain and howling wind - we opted for a Saturday at home to do stuff. Most of it is not blog-worthy but I think there's one part of it that most definitely is and given the lack of knitting I'm able to actually talk about, pre-Christmas, this will have to do instead.

Tinkingbell is a funny gal. She sent a few of us the oddest Christmas present ever. A sheep that grows crystal wool. Yes. Really.

I decided to spend the day documenting this oddity.

Exhibit one. 10am this morning. Just out of the box. See the little package? You tip that questionable substance into a little slot in the sheep's back. I was skeptical at this point. So was Sean. But we poured carefully and waited.



An hour later, it looked like this. You had to get in real close, but on closer inspection, there were indeed the tiniest little crystals to be seen. Sorry. Not crystals. Wool, people. It's wool. 



An hour or so later, there was real improvement. You've no idea how many photos I took. Really. Of a plastic sheep with crystal wool. 



The most recent photo is this one. About two hours ago when the light was still good. It just keeps growing. Bizarre. Tink, you are crazy. Thanks for a day's entertainment. It gave me a good excuse to get up from whatever I was doing periodically and have a look.

According to the packet, the 'wool' lasts 2-3 days. We shall see. Progress will be reported. Anyone interested in the decomposition process of crystal 'wool'? I'm just tipsy enough now to think this is an appealing prospect.

Oh and Tink also sent yarn. It's nice yarn (of course). It's Baruffa Cashwool, which I have never heard of before today. It's so soft and the most delicate ice blue. Thanks Tink! 

Slowly, but surely, I'm getting my parcels out. As stated earlier, not all of them are going to arrive before Christmas. That's just how it is. 

Tomorrow, actual knitting content. At the moment, all i can show is glimpses. Like this.



Some gifts are just too hard to post, even if I don't say who they're for. Like a baby gift I'm knitting right now. Amy in Rhode Island is gonna know right away it's for her little girl and that's just not on. Some surprises are sacred.

Bells

Happiness is....

Coming home from a distinctly blah day to find a parcel on the front step.

What was inside?

Wollmeise!

Having missed out on the rare treat of an update to the Wollmeise store last week because I was out being a social butterfly, I was delighted to find this treasure unexpectedly waiting for me. It was from Donni, that charming lass from Wollongong. And she sent treats (as if the yarn itself were not enough of a treat!)

Little sugar coated pieces of Christmas cheer. 

Why, you might ask, would someone pass on their Wollmeise to someone else? Well, as Donni explained when I called her at once to say thank you, it came in the Wollmeise sock club and it didn't do it for her. I think she felt that sounded bad, but honestly it didn't.

As I said to her, if something doesn't sing to you, send it to someone else and it might sing to them. Donni knows that I don't mind a stripe or two. I'm not adverse to a plain knit sock that begs for a striping or even heavily variegated colourway. Ah-ah, no not me. Love me a stripe. 

One knitter's meh yarn is another knitter's treasure! 

Some people will go to any length to buy Wollmeise, even doing so while they're in labour! Me, I just wait for it to come to me, to find me as it were. 

Thank you Donni. Biggest hugs!!!

And thank you everyone for your lovely attempts to reassure me that Christmas, sans longed for babies, doesn't have to be sad. No, it doesn't. It is about being with loved ones and it is about cherishing the good things. Trust me, those things will all happen, but the losses are painful and the sadness far reaching. It's a terrible, terrible thing to be living with but we're good at self care. We treat ourselves, take things easy and cut back on the pressure as far as possible. We're looking forward to kicking of the season with our now annual pre-christmas celebration for 2 on the 20th. 

Bells

I'm done

The official Christmas knitting is done. Two weeks ahead of time!

This seriously doesn't mean I'm a knitting demon though who has whipped up a swag of Christmas gifts on the needles. No, I actually cut short my Christmas knitting list a few weeks ago after one too many nights of waking up wondering how on earth I was going to get it all done.

Like some crazed maniac who suddenly gave in to Christmas chaos when I don't actually believe in it, I wasn't happy. Every year, I find Christmas is actually a trial, not a joy and the only way to get through it is to scale back the expectations, find my own ways to locate small pockets of joy throughout the season and just cling for dear life onto the knowledge that soon, my favourite bit will arrive - no work. This year I'm having three weeks off and I just can't wait.

Why is Christmas a trial and not a joy? I don't fully understand my feelings about it myself and not all of them are for public consumption but it's fairly safe to say that when people tell you Christmas is about kids, or 'Christmas is so much better with kids' that statement cuts to the bone. 

We really thought maybe there was a chance we'd at least be expecting by this Christmas so, post miscarriage #2, thank God we're not spending the day surrounded by people with small children. I don't think we could cope. We didn't last year and I doubt we would this year.

That's not to say there aren't people and places to look forward to, but for the childless, and those who wish they weren't so, there's a whole bunch of stuff in December each year that just doesn't feel right. It's a reminder, yet again, of how another year has passed and you're still waiting and hoping.

But back to the knitting. The big ticket item I set out to complete fell from the needles this weekend and now anything else I choose to knit as a gift is a bonus. If I choose. It's time now to start dreaming. I've got lace plans, garment plans, sock plans, a whole bunch of stuff planned.

A few nights ago when I was a bit upset and couldn't sleep, I started mentally wandering through the catalogue of my stash and dreaming of possibilities for the items I could remember. Soon, I was sound asleep.

If that's not an argument for having a decent stash, I don't know what is. I recommend it!

Come January 1, I've got a date with this yarn. Appropriately it's Lorna's Laces yarn - Helen's Lace - in Cranberry and I can't wait. I'm still dreaming about her. I think that'll get me through Christmas, not to mention the odd glass of bubbly for good measure.

Now, to work. Monday, will it ever stop rolling around?

Bells

The count down begins

It's kind of hard to write that you don't much care for Christmas without sounding like a whining, snarky party pooper. Believe me I know this from experience. I just drafted this post, or bits of it, two or three times.

There are certainly elements of Christmas I like. In Australia, government departments shut down for the week between Christmas and New Year. And we still get paid. You don't take leave because you couldn't go to work if you wanted to.

I like that.

I like that everything shuts down on Christmas day and the world kind of stops for lots of us.

I like nice food and sipping champagne in the sun. I like planning what I want to cook, even if I don't get around to cooking it all. 

I like seeing small children get excited. I like the feeling that comes from seeing someone really, genuinely appreciate something you lovingly chose (or made) for them.

But that's kind of it. I don't like the pressure that comes from feeling that you have to enjoy Christmas, that you're supposed to live up to some romantic or commercially dictated perfection. I don't like the crazy push to buy buy buy and that often when you do buy buy buy you end up buying things that people don't necessarily want, much less need, and it all seems like such a waste.

I could go on but I think you get the idea.

This all brings me to Christmas knitting. I'm doing it and I'm doing lots of it, including another Hemlock blanket (not yet started). 

Samurai Knitter Julie is having a knit along which is still not officially named but is all about the (to use an American notion) Holiday Knitting. I've signed up because that's what November and hopefully only part of December is going to be about, but actually that leaves me only two weeks until December, doesn't it? Oops.

I'm planning easy things, though easy doesn't necessarily mean plain. I'm knitting things I know I can get through relatively quickly, without causing friction burns, but which show that I took some time and care to complete.

And today I decided that I might not make the Christmas deadline for all of them, and that's ok. I'll have the gifts done for family and people I'm spending time with over the immediate Christmas period, and hopefully a few more than that, but I might not make that deadline for everyone. By that I mean friends. 

I'm knitting and crocheting for quite a few friends. It feels good and right and I'm actually quite excited about it. But I just might not get it to you, especially if you live outside Australia, by the 24th. I'm sure, if you've got  your own crazy project list to get through, you'll understand, right? Because friends don't let friends go crazy over Christmas, do they?

So now I've got to get back to this pair of Dashings which is driving me crazy. I must be going through a completely dense phase (not unheard of) because I just cannot get this stupid cable right. But I will persist, right after I serve myself some blue jelly. Just because. 

Or I might just knit my Adamas shawl to remind myself that it's still A Long, Lacy Summer, despite the fact I haven't touched it in days.

Bells

The best feeling in the world

Is a Monday night which is the night before a public holiday. I hadn't ever thought of it this way but tonight I find myself contemplating this marvel and doing so with a glass of Reisling and Sean's fabulously huge headphones on (mid 80s REM, if you're interested) while he watches the (surprisingly good) Aussie version of Top Gear.

How good is it to get through a rather ordinary and dragging Monday only to discover that tomorrow is a legitimate day off work and that you can have a glass or two of something delicious, kick back and know that tomorrow is possibly the most pathetic excuse for a public holiday that ever existed?

For non-Canberrans, let me explain. Victorians, you'll already know about this.

There's a little horse race that happens on the first Tuesday in November called the Melbourne Cup. It's been taking place forever and, rightfully so, the good people of Melbourne and the surrounding state of Victoria get the day off to go to the races, get happy in back yards or do whatever their hearts desire. 

The rest of us have long had to be happy with going into the office (or equivalent place of employment), working until around 2pm then standing around sipping cheap beverages and picking at stringy chicken. Other delights to endure on the day included platters of dodgy, supermarket sourced cheese cubes and meat products of dubious content. Maybe you got a limp salad. Invariably, there was a hat competition, which the same 'zany' people entered every year, having stuck some foam fruit or streamers to a cheap hat no one would ordinarily be seen dead in. 

If we were lucky we did well in the sweeps and won $20 at the conclusion of the race. Once I won $5. Then we went back to our desks, a bit tipsy, and got on with the rest of the day, surfing the net while looking like we were working (obviously, only once the internet was invented. I imagine in the old days people just talked to each other until home time.)

So really, a public holiday in lieu of this (not so fine but now upheld) Aussie workplace tradition is a good thing. Last year, Canberrans got to have the day off for the first time. I'm not even sure why. Something to do with the Howard Government not being keen on what was formerly known in Canberra as the Union Family Day, or something, which was never a public holiday but something you had to take actual leave to access, back in the day.

Now we get it for nothing. And I suspect the rest of the country is laughing at us, if my sister's reaction when I told her today was anything to go by. I think she called us a bunch of losers, because in Sydney, everyone else has to go to work. I bet she wouldn't be saying that if the New South Wales Government had thought of it first. 

Me, I'm lapping up the happy feeling. No work on a Tuesday, but instead lunch with friends who've got, as we jokingly say now, a manor house in the country. We'll eat their much nicer chicken, drink much nicer beverages and I'll knit and not have to go back to my desk. There's nothing vaguely like a bad workplace tradition about that, is there? So the fact that there's talk of scrapping this (admittedly dodgy) public holiday in the next couple of years is upsetting. I hope someone starts a rally. I'd protest against that. 

Oh and here's some knitting.

The Christmas knitting has started. Actually it started on 1 November. I'm making a lot of these. Fetchings. These ones are in the required yarn, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran and I think I can't possibly give them away. That stuff is so soft. I think I'll go make a second one right now. 

Bells

It's all about the food

We've been gorging ourselves here, and it's not even Christmas day yet - although we're about seven hours away.

Sean and I had our early Christmas meal for two yesterday and it was the most wonderful day. Preparations on Saturday almost went awry when weather like this hit and our garage flooded.


We got off lightly compared to some and preparations were soon back on track.

We started with salmon mousse and champagne rose cocktails.


Next came the yummiest glazed ham - I've never done one before and it turns out it's easy to make and even easier to eat! It's glazed with a Quince Paste glaze.


We ate it with the roast chicken which, unsurprisingly, does an excellent job of replacing turkey!


We spent the meal giggling about how much food I'd made - numerous side dishes, two sauces - vastly more food than you can actually fit on a plate. Lesson for next year - half the amount will do nicely.

After that, we exchanged gifts. Look what my lovely husband bought for me!


It's an ipod nano! My old ipod, which has been in long and faithful service, has been replaced. I feel so lucky!

After that, we spent the afternoon watching Sean's Christmas present - Veronica Mars on DVD - and drank red wine while I was knitting and reading my other Christmas present.


We finished with Honey and Raspberry Semifreddo (link provided at the request of Tinkingbell) which was just so delicious. I'll make that again!


I feel like it was a really special thing for us to do this. We may not have children but we are a family and we can do things just for us at christmas without feeling like we're 'making do'.

Finally, today I did some baking of things to take to Young tomorrow. More Christmas cupcakes, this time with an attempt at real looking leaves.


Lastly, little puddings, recipe courtesy of Kuka.



Decorations by Sean who walked through the kitchen and found himself tasked with chopping up glace cherries.

So, a few salads left to make for the visit to the inlaws tomorrow, and I'm done. I'm going to give myself a pedicure, open a bottle of something nice and sit. For hours.

Wishing everyone much happiness and fun and food and drink. Stay safe.

Bells
xo

To turkey or not to turkey?

I think I mentioned a couple of weeks back when musing on Christmas, that I would be making a special effort for Sean and I this year and would be cooking a christmas lunch for the two of us. This is because we'll be out in the country at Sean's parents house on Christmas day and I really, really want to get the chance to cook a Christmas meal. We'll open our gifts to each other after the meal and save ourselves having to lug them all the way to Young and back.

So, to this end, I have been pouring over my books for weeks, searching the internet and asking myself tough questions such as, is it really ok to not have turkey?

I think it is and here's why I think it is just fine.

1. They're freaking expensive birds and you can't get a small one for love nor money. Not that I'm a tight arse when it comes to expenditure on food, but I don't think we love turkey enough to devote $60 of our food budget to it.

2. I didn't grow up with a Christmas turkey and in fact always believed it was just something our American friends ate at Thanksgiving.

3. Later on, I assumed we didn't have turkey at Christmas (well, except for a turkey roll once in a while) because my mum is English but actually no. I read the other day that turkey has been a long held Christmas favourite in the UK and is only just recently being knocked off its perch, so to speak, by a return to the traditional roast beef.

4. Just because something is always done, doesn't mean a person can't do it differently.

5. I've only been roasting chickens for about 18 months and I'm not over the sheer wonder of it yet. I reckon I can happily roast a large chicken, stuff it with something festive like pistachios and cranberries and be as happy as a pig in mud.

6. Speaking of pig, we're doing a glazed ham. It'll be my first. Ever. And I'm glazing it with quince paste and cloves. How could a turkey compete with that? At least the chicken will know it can't compete and it will just be a well cooked, festive chicken and be done with it.

7. We like ham better than turkey.

So there you go. All good reasons for not doing a turkey. I could have got turkey breast, or a turkey hind quarter but I really want something I can stuff.

If anyone else baulks at the idea of 'having' to do a turkey (and subsequently rebels!) I want to hear about it!

My entree will be a salmon mousse. My dessert will be a honey and raspberry semifreddo. And we'll drink champagne cocktails and later a bottle of French red that was given to us as a wedding gift.

We'll sit around, fat, full and very, very satisfied.

Now I just have to shop.

Christmas Cupcakes

For those of you who were keen to know about the Christmas Cupcakes that showed up in a post a week ago, you can find a write up on them over at Mouthfuls of Heaven.

Also, because it's very nearly Christmas, I'll send out the recipe to anyone who wants to include these in their Christmas baking. Just let me know. You won't regret it!

Bells

Counting socks! And other ways to cure insomnia.

Last night started out well. I went to SnB where a small but fabulous group of us had a perfectly delightful evening.

It rained the whole time which, as must now be clear, was incredibly welcome considering how dry winter was. To feel moisture in the air is spectacularly good on many levels.

I went to bed at about 10pm, read for some time to finish the book I've been reading (Desiree by Annemarie Selinko), then woke up with a start around 1:30am after presumably about 1.5 hours' sleep.

Why I didn't just get up after half an hour and knit for a while is beyond me. Instead I lay there believing sleep would come. It didn't. I even tried a trick that worked a few nights ago. Counting socks. Early in the week I woke up in the morning remembering the last thing I'd been thinking about was how many pairs of socks I've made since my first pair almost a year ago. (The answer is 13, for the record.)

Finally at 3am I got up, switched on the telly, worked on my sister's Christmas present and watched an unbelievably bad 1960s cop show set in Melbourne, the plot of which involved the wife of a businessman protesting against pollution.

Eventually it was decided that she wasn't really angry about pollution (being a woman and all); she was in fact upset about her husband's not so secret affair with a hussy called Jan. At one point she tried to gas herself in the lounge room with the gas heater. Racy stuff. I was enthralled. It sure as hell beat the country music infomercial that seemed to go on forever every time I switched channels.

Still, it has to be said I got a lot of the project done. It's something I'm really happy with and am loving making because I think Adele will love it. If she doesn't, there'll be trouble.

I leave you with this. A pretty sock I'm making from Knitterly Things Vesper Sock Yarn (which was a gift from Mad, Mad Rachel in Boston).


And yes, I'm back to DPNs after a brief fling with magic loop. It's true love.

The pattern is Dublin Bay and it's so lovely. You can only just see it in the photo but there's a ladder of lace up each side of the sock, just enough to make a self striping yarn something more than just plain stockinette. Since it's for me, I can show it, amidst all the unshowable gift knitting.

i live for public holidays

I vowed I would NOT cook today. Three solid days of cooking tests even the stamina of someone like me who considers cooking vital to my mental well being.

I did make stock from the turkey carcass today, though. It's on the stove now and will stay there until I can face it. I don't consider that actual cooking.

I'll get a break from cooking for the next couple of days, too as Sean is going away for work and when on my own, I don't cook much. One night I'm going out with a friend for dinner (mmm....mussels, it's our thing) but on the night I'm home alone, I envision cheese on toast or if I really feel like slumming it, cereal.

We moved into our house a year ago and in that time, I've never had a night here by myself so I'm both excited and a little weirded out by the thought of having to turn off all the lights by myself before going to bed. What a dork. I've done it before. Just not in a long time. I may post for company. :-)

Anyway, I wanted to post a couple of photos from the Christmas feast. There weren't many taken, and I've already posted the table all dressed for lunch. I've gone through the rest of them and they all include photos of other people who were here, including Sean. I don't think any of them want to go public on my blog, so you'll have to make do with just the one. Sorry!

Here's the table, post main course, adorned with the amazing spice cake I made. It was REALLY good. I'll be posting a write up about it on Mouthfuls of Heaven in the next few days.



I've hardly done any knitting this weekend, although I will confess that I ripped out the offending errors in the steeked jacket sleeve, despite everyone advising me that it's what the Amish people do and what makers of Persian rugs do (leave mistakes in as a mark of humanity). What gets me through doing that kind of thing? Comments from Julie along the lines of,

'I'd need vodka to do that' (suggests I am right to be pissed off and/or daunted or both by the prospect) and

'The mark of a good knitter is someone who's willing to rip out work' (she said that a long time ago but I sometimes think I should have it made into a card I can put up by my knitting spot in the lounge room.

But I feel better for it and refuse to see it as lost knitting time.

In other news, another friend, VM, has taken up the needles, as of today. I think she felt left out that several of her friends seemed to be into the idea and having fun. Not one to miss out on fun, she has made her first tentative steps into our world. I never expected it. I'm shocked, mainly because she openly mocked us for our love of needles and yarn. I believe she even called a couple of us nerds for shopping for wool instead of shoes recently.

Don't get me wrong. I love shoes. I just love wool more.

Welcome to the world, VM. I hope you stay long.

Bells

post event write-up

Christmas in June went very well, despite the weather being a balmy 22 degrees (71 F). Not exactly the mid winter feast kind of day I'd envisioned. I guess winter is only a week or so in. Sean says to really be a mid winter Christmas, it needs to be AFTER the winter solstice which is still a couple of weeks away.

Nonetheless, it was a wonderful day. The replacement guests, who I'm sure realise I mean no disrespect to their presence here by calling them that, brought presents with them, and wine and we spent a fantastically fun afternoon laughing, eating and drinking ourselves silly.

Then we collapsed in a heap.

Special thanks to Julie for some last minute turkey advice. It worked a treat. You know, whenever I've seen photos of turkeys with little bits of foil covering their leg bones, I've thought it was just for show. Now, I know differently.


I think I might have an early night. Happy long weekend! Tomorrow, I knit. I ripped out the error in the steeked jacket sleeve yesterday, so I have some catching up to do.

Bells

ps interesting to note from the comments how many of the US readers don't like the marshmallow/sweet potato thing. Just goes to show, you shouldn't believe everything you read (ie that ALL Americans love this dish).

not so merry mid-year christmas

Christmas in June looks to be off.

My sister lives in Sydney and was to be driving down with her husband and son this morning. However, the south east coast of Australia is being lashed by fierce storms at the moment and even yesterday, Sydney residents were being urged to change their long weekend plans and stay home. My sister says it wasn't so bad when they left this morning but an hour out of Sydney (on a 3 hour trip) they'd been stuck on the side of the road for ages because visibility was so bad. There were accidents, chaos, traffic backed up for miles.

They took the first exit and headed for home.

I'd rather they were home when I read about tragedies such as this.

This doesn't mean I'm not terribly upset. For purely selfish reasons such the fact that I longed to spend a weekend with my nephew, Will, I'm bitterly disappointed. Oh and I have a 3.8kg (8lb) turkey sitting there needing to be cooked. I understand an 8lb turkey is small by American standards, but given I've never cooked one before and was only serving 5 people, one of whom doesn't eat a lot, I thought I'd start small.

I could just freeze it, I guess, in my not so large freezer.

I also have a fairly large Christmas cake I was working on just as they called this morning to say they weren't coming, as well as a lot of extra ingredients I might not normally have in the house.

I can hear you all saying now, 'invite other people!' Fair call, but there's one small problem with that.

Canberra is deserted on the Queen's Birthday long weekend. It's that kind of place. Everyone gets out. I do know some people are who are still around and I will probably make a call or two in a while, but you know, I just want to wallow for a little bit. I'm allowed.

I want to not look at the Christmas decorations I managed to scrounge up in the middle of the year. I want to not look at the hat I've had waiting for Will for weeks (I'll see him next weekend when I head up to Sydney, but still, it won't be under a pretend christmas tree, will it?). And most of all, I'm going to ignore that bloody turkey for now, until I have decided what I'm doing.

I think I'm entitled to a brief pity party, right? For the record, I know my sister is bitterly disappointed too. But better safe than sorry.

In the meantime, because I've been so tired in the evenings with all the preparation for Christmas, I've just thrown myself into the malabrigo scarf because it takes no effort at all. It'll be done in no time at this rate.


I've included my slipper here for scale. Not a bad effort for two nights' work is it? This is one very fast scarf because it's done on 6.5mm needles. Even Sean commented last night that after all the work on small DPNs I've been doing, and even the 3.75mm addi turbos for the steeked jacket, these 6.5mm bamboo circulars look enormous. They took a bit of getting used to but I can definitely see a place for larger gauge projects.

When the desire for a red malabrigo scarf hits, you don't want to wait too long.

Bells

Edited later to add: all is well. Some dear friends who haven't gone away are coming over for Christmas lunch now so I don't have to find room in the freezer for a turkey!