Catching Up

Three long days in a car, and this is all I have to show for it. When I joined the Yarn Along last week, I mentioned my high hopes of outfitting my kiddos and myself in mittens and finishing the Leaves of Grass on our trip east. Apparently I was having knitting delusions. I did, however, finish Eamon's mittens, my mittens and a random hat (which fits me and looks quite cute even with a bobble on top!).

I am not sure why I wasn't more productive while driving. Or perhaps this is what one can realistically knit while traveling across the U.S. with three children. While listening to Story of the World * and a few Boxcar children audiobooks, I knocked out Eamon's mittens really quickly. The mitts match his hat except for the thumbs. I judiciously separated the yarn into two balls before we left, carefully weighing them on the kitchen scale. I was able to knit all but the thumbs. With some scrap orange from my mittens, I finished his with a little color blocking. He loves the crazy thumbs.

Halfway through Eamon's pair, I started mine for a little knitting pizzazz. Due to the cabling and chart, they took a bit longer. Everything is easily memorizable on the Wood Hollow pattern, but they were still slower than the plain mittens. I finished one and resumed work on his. When I returned to the orange pair, I had five needles in my hand. I dropped one in the car, but found it after some manuevering. Not five minutes later, I dropped another needle. I couldn't find it for the life of me. I STILL cannot find it. So I sat there annoyed for a bit. Yes, I could use four needles, but with five the pattern was a bit easier to follow and memorize. I cast on for the hat in defiance. After another search at the next stop, I accepted my fate and returned to the mittens. The fact that we were driving through snow and ice may have influenced this decision.

Now that we have safely arrived in the D.C. area, I am back focused on the shawl/blanket. Well, that and the other projects I brought with me. I keep seeing so many beautiful finished shawls through the KAL. It makes me want to finish mine too.

I actually have been reading this week as well. Between audiobooks and actual text, I am almost finished with Coming Home and Seating Arrangements. I like both of these books which I found in the comments on another blog. Going Home is set in the 1930s and centers around a young girl attending boarding school in England while her parents live in Singapore. The idea of a 14 year old essentially on her own is quite interesting. She is "adopted" by a peer's family and is overseen by an older aunt. The story follows the other people who touch her lives and is similar to a period piece like Downton Abbey. I am listening to it and enjoying the light, relatively happy book. Seating Arrangements is a book about flawed people. It takes place one weekend on an island near Connecticut. The setting is a daughter's wedding. Again the story follows the immediate family and those in the wedding party. It is full of mistakes and internal drama and lacks a true character you can like. I am enjoying both books but for quite different reason.

* Eamon love, love, loved Story of the World when he was younger. He would listen to the audiobooks all the time absorbing bits of facts about history. Aine, on the other hand, hated it. Although only 2 or 3, she would vehemently protest any time we tried to listen to the audiobooks. So anytime we drove in the car, it was usually fictional stories. Until now. Aine actually likes Story of the World. She cannot remember her tantrums or dislike now. So, we made it all the way through the first two books before we switched to a little something different. I am glad it is back in rotation and I think Eamon is too. He would still listen in his room, but sharing it with everyone makes it even better.