Houston, we've had some problems.

Remember the last frantic post about all that knitting I had planned and ready to start immediately?

Well, until today, I have knitted exactly 7 rows of my Harumi cardigan since then. That's it.

First was the issue that my A Fine Fleece: Knitting with Handspun Yarns book with the Flyingdales pattern in it did not arrive on Friday. Or Saturday. Or Monday.  I guess I got a little excited, ignoring that the shipping information that said it would be delivered between March 8 and March 25.  That's crazy, but I figured since it was coming from Pennsylvania, it would get here by March 8.

Then there was the issue that I realized the cover pattern for the other book I bought....

...is made with a bulky yarn, not worsted weight. Problem being that the only bulky yarn I have is Lamb's Pride Bulky, a very dense wool/mohair yarn which will make me incredibly HOT when I wear it. I know from whence I speak since I made my Heather Hoodie Vest with it and have only worn it once because I roasted it in. And it's only a VEST. No sleeves.  So I have to find a bulky yarn that is a little loftier/less dense and not a wool/mohair blend.  Ugh. I was trying to use my stash!

Ooh wait! I did make some progress on my Meadowlark.

Joined the left front to the back/neck.  It's a crazy picture.  You are looking at the back with an armhole on the left and the left front laid out flat-ish.  But, then I was at a "picking up" part that I didn't feel like doing so that got put down.

And I only got 7 rows of my Harumi cardigan (mentioned above) done because of all the ridiculous/confusing/ complicated instructions involving adding repeats when you've increased a certain number if stitches. There are two different pattern repeats to keep track of, and 5 sections across the row, and some of these changes take place on the right side and some on the wrong side, and not on the same row. Oh! My brain just kept getting cramped and I may need a spreadsheet.

Needless to say, I was feeling very unproductive on a weekend that I had time to be productive.  But then.... today came.  Good 'ol Tuesday.  A good recovery-after-a-Monday-day. Today, my book came!  So, tonight I will cast on for my Flyingdales.

And today, during naptime, I worked on my afghan square.

However, I did run into some snags with one of the charts.  I didn't seem to have enough stitches but I counted them and I did.  Then I looked at the chart and counted the squares - right above where it says "26 sts" across.... and there were 24.  Go ahead and count them if you like.  I looked at the pattern to see if I was missing some stitches that I was supposed to add in addition to the chart but no, not the case.  Then I looked at the chart on the original pattern.  Aha. I had copied the chart to blow it up since the one in the book was miniscule.  I thought to myself when I copied it, "Wow, I just nearly got the whole chart when I copied it."  I just needed to add the numbers down the left side.  Well, what I really did was get the whole chart, minus exactly two columns. The copy didn't even make a half a column to clue me in. Der.  At any rate, since it was Tuesday and not Monday, I didn't let it bother me and I'm on my way now.

And soon, but not today, I will get the hang of the Harumi pattern and get that unfinished thing done in time to wear it for spring.  I hope.  It's cotton, so maybe on a cool summer night too....that would give me some extra time.

So, Houston, we're back on track.  Next post:  a book review and two little easy as pie (but they aren't pie) recipes!

I'm in deep.

I'm not quite ready to admit I'm over the edge, but I'm in deep.  I'm knitting 80 million things and I'm about to start another as long as the book comes in the mail today and I want to start even another one because of a book I had to get last night.

First, I finished another afghan square from the Great American Afghan (#14):

...and just cast on for #10:

 I know, that picture doesn't tell you anything.  You can't see the square or the color of the yarn.  I'll get back to you on that one.

In the meantime, I finally got out another of my unfinished projects, the Harumi Cardigan, and finally got the "hard" part going.  "Hard" meaning, putting stitches on holder, putting in markers and getting set up to work on the patterned part:

And I've made some good progress on my Meadowlark vest:

Then, there's this book I got last night:

I love the cover pattern and want to knit it right now.  This book has been staring at me every time I've gone to The Spinning Room for the past very long time.  I just kept thinking that I have so many other patterns, surely there was another one I could  knit that I already have or that wouldn't cost so much.  But then, the other day my friend Jana emailed me a picture of this book saying, "Just noticed this on the cover of an Ella Rae book & thought it looked like something you would wear. Maybe it's just because its purple..." Ha! No kidding. So, then I was at the shop last night to teach a class and there it was, just staring at me again. So I bought it. Thanks for being an enabler, Jana. (See you tonight for dinner!)

But more than that sweater, I had totally forgotten that on the inside was this awesomeness:

....which I also want to knit right now.  It really is a sickness.

But ALSO????? I've been trying to find a pattern to knit with this great aran yarn I got at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck:

I wanted to do an "aran" sweater -- with lots of cables, but quickly realized this 1540 yards was not enough to do and all-over cabled sweater.  So, I found this:

This is a project picture from Ravelry of the Flyingdales sweater.  I will modify it to make a crew neck collar.  It's got cables but also stockinette so I won't run out of yarn.  The pattern is only in A Fine Fleece: Knitting with Handspun Yarns which I got for a steal on Amazon.  It's coming in the mail today.  I hope.  Because I really don't have anything else to knit.  Ha.

Do you need a project car update?  The doors are primered!:

And finally, poor Phoebe has now become known as Phattie:

She went to the vet last month since she seemed a little skinny.  It turned out she has a hyperactive thyroid so they put her on medicine.  We go back to the vet today for a follow up and I'm telling you, I think she's gained a pound and a half in a month.  Which is a lot for her since she was only 7 1/2 pounds to begin with.  They may need to tweak her medicine!