Let it Snow

This week has been quite productive. No. I still haven't finished Eamon's shawl. Too hard to be top secret right now. Instead I finished up my wreath. It looks fantastic. The kiddos helped make pom-poms for it, and we all love the result. It was a quick and easy pattern, which I highly recommend.

After the wreath was complete, I cast on for a hat. The pattern I used is by Stephen West entitled, Aurora Expanse. It knits up very quickly and is quite cozy. I am hoping to wear it when we head up north this winter. The brim is folded, so it is extra warm around the ears. For the body of the hat, I used a gradient yarn which really looks nice with the detailing. Another project that turned out well.

After the hat, I set about making holiday gifts. My youngest niece will be celebrating her first holiday season this year. For her, I knit a basic teether in pinks and red. I used stash yarn leftover from Aine's shawl, the pompoms and my recent shawl. With a bit of felting and even some time in the dryer it came out well. I will be making one more as another niece or nephew will be joining the family soon.

The last item this week is actually a bit of crochet. Every year I gift my nieces and nephews an ornament. My sister and I started the tradition thinking that when our kiddos left home they would have a box of ornaments to decorate their own trees. It has worked well so far. Last year my kiddos loved sorting through the ornaments in their individual boxes remembering each one. This year, I decided to crochet white snowflakes based on a pattern from Lucy of Attic24. I am making 12 flakes and have about 10 done so far. I ran out of white yarn at the park yesterday, so I will probably finish up today. I used more leftovers from the pompom making. I am so very pleased with how they have turned out. My crocheting skills continue to improve and I am able to read a pattern fairly well. Just a bit of water and starch for blocking and they will be on their way to new homes.

Reading has also been productive this week. I finished Fannie Flagg's I Still Dream About You. I enjoyed the story and the bit of twists and turns. It was a quick read, but I felt a bit more could have been done with some of the story lines and characters. I also finished the audiobook, The Marriage Plot. It was an okay book. I appreciated it more after listening to an interview with the author. The story and characters were well developed. I enjoyed the intermingled story and change of point of view throughout. One of my good friends said she liked Middlesex better, so that is my next read of his.  My current audiobook is The Newlyweds. I am too new to the book to make a comment on it. My nighttime reading is more of the non-fiction which threatens to topple my bedside table.

The kiddos finished Mr. Popper's Penguins as well as The Castle in the Attic. Both were quite good. Mr Popper's Penguins is unlike the movie. We liked the print version much better. Our current audiobook in the car is Five Children and It. It is a whimsical tale of the trouble with wishes. The kiddos are enjoying listening to how the various requests get muddled and become quite complex.

So, have you been busy this week? What is in your knitting basket or on your bedside table? Do share as we yarn along with Ginny.