Two Pretties

Pretty the first:

Yay! A new bed that we hope will be the most comfortable thing ever.  It was delivered today.  Talking about beds and mattresses seems really personal so I'll just say we really needed it and leave it at that.  Isn't it pretty? (as pretty as it can be without bedding --- the windows are open and I'm airing out the new/factory smell of the mattress)

This was our Christmas present to ourselves for the past 5 years or so.  Paul and I don't exchange gifts for Christmas or birthdays.  Our gift is just being together.  Yes, I totally just went there.  But really, what started out as a financial thing, has become a "we just don't need to" thing.  The fact that it is Christmastime is just our way of justifying buying the bed sooner rather than later.  Somehow, we've just settled into the idea that if there is something we want or need, and it's a big ticket item, we talk about it and get it or not get it depending on finances.   And if it's a little ticket item we don't talk about it, we just get it.  On birthdays we go out to dinner and have cake.

And speaking of delivery... don't you just hate that we'll-call-you-the-morning-of-and-give-you-a-three-hour-window thing?  Ugh.  Makes it so hard to plan things.  I had the dog scheduled to go for a bath (boy did she need that) and a chiropractor appointment, both in the morning.  Of course, they called at 7:45 and said they'd be there between 9am and noon, necessitating a quick call to change my appointment and a plea to the groomer to hold onto Mandy if she was done before the delivery arrived.

But isn't she pretty?:

Being a little diva-ish, refusing to look at me...
P.S. I was in the rain and she was under cover.

And speaking of Christmas... I'm sure you are wondering how my Christmas knitting is coming.
I still haven't found the thing that I started that I wanted to finish for someone.  To be honest, I haven't looked terribly hard in the "not-obvious-everywhere" yet.  I figured that will come when it's the only thing left to knit. The problem is, it's something to be felted and will need a few days to dry, so it can't be too close to Christmas.  Which is only 2 1/2 weeks away, by the way.  I realized that yesterday and suddenly my knitting list made me a little panicky.

I did finish these:

Not telling who they are for....

And made some good progress on this:

Sorry, you aren't getting
more than this until the gift is given!

But I've got several more projects to do.  Plus the shopping shopping.

What makes it worse is that I gave in to temptation and purchased this:

Yarn to participate in the Mystery Sock V: April Showers sock knit-a-long from Knitters Brewing Company.  That picture is the yarn and the first clue to the sock pattern, as well as a commemorative stitch marker (meant to be a raindrop - how cute is that?).  So, we don't know what the sock will look like and we'll get clues every week for 4 weeks (I think.  It might be 5 weeks.).  Fun right?

Here's the rub:  The knit-a-long doesn't officially start until January 11th.  The clues to the pattern are free and you get the first clue starting on that date.  But if you buy your yarn from them starting on December 1, you already get the first clue to the pattern.  Therefore, as of right now, i have everything i need to get started.  Which I want to do.  And which I won't do, since I have so much other deadline knitting to do.   It's not like I can knit these for a gift since I will only be able to get a little way and then have to wait until a week after Jan 11 for the second clue.  But it's sitting there staring at me and making it very difficult.

I totally could have waited until after Christmas to order the yarn but something about being able to get the clue ahead of time just made me write down on the calendar, on Dec 1, that I should order it as soon as it was available.  (Have I ever talked about my impatience problem?) And just a little note about Wendy at The Knitter's Brewing company:  She is so incredibly nice and always includes a hand-written thank you note with my purchase.  Excellent customer service! (Click up there on the pink to go to her website.)

Ooh and I forgot to tell you about my Small Business Saturday purchase:

This sideways thing is going to make
me bust a blood vessel in my temple!

November Knits by Kate Gagnon Osborn and Courtney Kelley.  Love this book!  It has some really pretty patterns in it.  These designers also did Vintage Modern Knits which had the Brigid Jacket that I made. Click there to see my project page, but you can click here to see the pattern page, since I HAVEN'T PUT THE BUTTONS ON IT YET! (i finished it about a year ago....)  Both books have several patterns that I would like to make.   Check out your local yarn shop to find/order these books.

And speaking of books.....  I'm just going to go ahead and tell you about the book I'm reading now, since I'm still not done.  But I really like it so far: Charley's Web  by Joy Fielding.  Joy Fielding's books are usually extremely suspenseful - see a previous post/review of Mad River Road  here (And click on those book links to purchase on Amazon.) - but this one isn't quite as in-your-face suspenseful as her others.  It's more subtle.  So I'm expecting something big to happen but don't know if it will (der - the definition of suspense?).  Charley Webb is a journalist for a newspaper who gets chosen by a death row inmate to write a book about her.  She committed an awful crime, of course, and Charley is having some doubts about whether she should be doing it since the interviews are upsetting her.  The interviews are also making her take a look at her family relationships, and upsetting her as well.  In the midst of this are some threatening emails and we don't know yet how/if they are related.  And then there is a little bit of conflicted romance going on.  All in all, very engaging.  I'm only a little more than half way through this 581 page (!) book , so it might be a minute or two before I can give you my full review.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to keep this in mind during the time leading up to Christmas (again, only two and a half weeks!):
"Stress is an ignorant state.  It believes that everything is an emergency.  Nothing is that important."
~Natalie Goldberg

Babies, Books and Bling (the knitting kind of bling)

A few weeks ago, I started my new 1/2 time job -- nannying my new niece and nephew!  Paul's brother and his wife welcomed Michaela and Benjamin on July 28 (which is also their dad's birthday!).  For months before they were born, their parents were searching for a day care provider.  They were having trouble finding a place that had two infant openings, as well as part time openings.  They were also having trouble with the idea of leaving the babies with strangers.  As they knew that I was selling the yarn shop, they jokingly asked if I would be available.  Much to their surprise, I said I would think about it!  Then Paul and I talked about it.  Then I decided to do it.

What a difference from being a social worker and owning a yarn shop!  All my "work" stories for Paul are now about poop.  And how cute Benjamin and Michaela are.  And while, at times, things can get a little hairy --- when both are screaming and I'm triaging who needs me first --- or when they both poop at the same time (yes, that happened) ---  they are very sweet and it's been fun getting to know them.  Stay tuned for more on this...

In other news, I just finished reading Mad River Road by Joy Feilding (Mad River Road: A Novel).
 OMG.  So. Suspenseful.  It made me uncomfortable.  But I loved it.  I haven't read a Joy Fielding book in a long time.  They are always suspenseful.  For some reason I don't mind suspenseful books (maybe because I can put them down and resume reading whenever I want) but I can't stand suspenseful movies. Kind of hard to turn off a rented movie and go back to it later when you are watching it with someone else (ok, unless I'm with Paul and he would be his usual patient self -- but still, a little annoying of me).  I went to see the "new" Cape Fear many years ago in the movies and I almost left the movie theater because the suspense made me so uncomfortable.   Robert DeNiro hanging onto the bottom of the car that drove hours away on the highway -- then him calling out the guys name (can't remember it - see? I blocked it out) in that sing-songy voice. Remember that?  Want to know why I can't stand the suspense?

Many years ago....
When my sister and I were old enough to say goodnight to our parents downstairs and put ourselves to bed upstairs (I think we were10 & 12....ish)... One night, my sister said goodnight and ran ahead of me to go upstairs.  I finished saying goodnight and went to go upstairs, and my sister jumped out of the living room right near the stairs and scared the heck out of me.  I screamed so loud, my heart was beating so fast.  Ooooh, I was so mad at her.

The next night, she ran ahead of me again.  This time, I knew she was there.  I told her not to scare me.  That I knew she was there, so she better not.  Then I made a mad dash for the stairs to try and get up them before she jumped out, but to no avail.  She jumped out and scared me just as badly as the previous night.  Even though I knew shew as there.  And she did it for a few more nights.  And I still got scared.  See that?  Suspense.  Right?????  THAT is why I can't handle suspenseful movies.  Still. After all these years.  It's all her fault.

Aren't you glad you asked?  Go read that book.  It's good.

And now, I'm putting this link in here to my Knit Picks wish list, so that I have a chance to win some items from my wish list from KnitPicks.  I'm drawing the line at sharing it on facebook (that is also an option, in addition to posting on my blog, for winning).  Click on it if you like, but don't feel like to you have to.  Really.  Unless you want to buy me something from my wish list.  There's always that.