Where did the time go?

Whew - it was a whirlwind weekend here at the House at Two Palms. Even if you don't read everything, stick with me 'til the end. It's worth it.

The monsters had their first T-ball game this weekend. There's nothing like getting up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday to hustle two boys into uniforms, find gloves and hats, fill water bottles, forget water bottles, forget gloves, forget which field they're playing on, go back for gloves, still forget water bottles, chase down wind-blown hats, and finally find the right field, only to discover that being on-time is apparently considered being early...

It really was fun watching the kids at their first game. None of the kids remembered what to do after hitting the ball, so there were the classic moments of delayed reactions, running with the bat, running the wrong way, and even running to first, then turning around to run back.

In T-Ball, there are no winners or losers: everyone bats and everyone gets to run the bases. I was expecting uber-competitive Bubba to ask who won, but it never came up! Hooray - dodged that bullet.

After the game I finished a little spinning...


This is Blackberries from loop - alpaca, bamboo and glitz. The three ounce batt became roughly 17 yards of two ply, 5 wpi.

Next on the wheel was a Merino & Tussah silk blend from Alpaca Direct. The roving was a blend of red and black with a hint of white silk. I'm leaving this as a single ply at 12 wpi. Four ounces turned into about 103 yards!

Well surely, Eryn, that's enough spinning for one weekend? No, no it's not. And don't call me Shirley!

Eight ounces of superwash merino from The Ranches Angoras in Desert Flower Sparkle. So far it's 105 yards of two-ply; 7 wraps per inch.

I also did a little dying...

Kool-Aid dyes with the boys. If you have kids, know kids, or even feel like a kid, you must do this! It is so much fun to mix and match the packets of Kool-Aid and guess at the colors you'll get. Our yarn ended up with a lot more pink than the monsters were expecting. They've declared it perfect for Sassy's (not yet born) baby girl.

Ta-da! My first "commissioned" yarn! A lovely lady at knit night asked me for kettle dyed turquoise and greens. I've been calling this Pickle because it still smells of vinegar. Nothing a little Soak won't fix!

I did manage to squeeze in a little knitting... I started working on Eiffel from Knitty. Purl three together sucks. It looks great, but it's a serious PITA.

The best thing this weekend? Nutmeg is a mommy! Sunday morning she started serious nest building and was pulling fur by Sunday evening. I bathed the boys, tucked them in, walked back into the living room and...

Babies! Six beautiful kits. I'm guessing three chestnut and three tortoiseshell since those are the parents' colors, but we'll have to wait and see. Of course, I immediately woke up the boys so they could see the babies. They are in love, and so am I!

Spinning, Seaming, and... Baseball

Sorry about that; I lost the alliteration.


We had a very busy weekend here at the House at Two Palms. This weekend marked the opening day of the monsters' T-Ball league. We walked to the ball field for pictures, hotdogs, and bouncy things. Whoever designed those blowup bouncy castles is a genius! The boys looked so cute in their uniforms - hats falling over their ears and socks up to their knees. I still have reservations about this whole Little League thing, but they're having fun so far. I only wish Bubba would stop calling his shoes "clits."


I seamed up Mrs. Darcy and started transferring my notes into a legible format. I'm still waiting for buttons - hopefully they will get here tonight! As soon as buttons are on and all ends are woven in, I will post details on all the modifications.


I also took my borrowed Louet for a test drive! I had some "Canadian wool" to practice with.





The spool on the left is my first attempt - very crazy thick and thin two ply. The spool on the right is much more even, although it is obviously overspun. I haven't weighed the spools or checked wpi - heck, I haven't even set the twist yet!

The monsters are very impressed that I can make my own yarn now. The Bug is hinting that he'd like a sweater I "made from a sheep" and Bubba has stated loudly that he'd like to spin. We have plans to break out the drop spindle next weekend. Hopefully it won't be like the "Teach the Monsters How to Knit" night - those ER co-pays add up quick!

Say Hello to My Little Friend

Okay - that is very unoriginal, but I couldn't resist. The absolutely most fabulous woman in the world (except for me and Gigi of course) has gone away for the weekend and has agreed to let me baby sit this lovely little thing:

A Louet S10 is always welcome in my house.

I have been mentally jumping up and down with joy since I brought it home last night. I haven't spun anything on it yet, but I will! Last night I practiced running the treadle smoothly and parking and restarting the wheel. Tonight I will spin! Soon you will see pictures of my lovely fiber barf... and maybe some yarn.

As much as I wanted to throw myself into spinning, I knew I had a sweet newlywed waiting for my attention.

Shiny boob!

I sewed in the sleeves and seamed up one side on the Darcy cardi! I'll finish seaming tonight and then she's all done but the buttons. I ordered some fabulous purple glass shank buttons that should pick up the lavender and turquoise quite nicely. As soon as she's seamed, I will post all the details, including mods and yarn.

Hooray for the weekend! Margarita's all around.