New Beginnings

A new year is just days away, and I'm already in the spirit of renewal -- on several fronts.

While trying on one of the sleeves for his new sweater several days ago, Jeff mentioned it was a bit snug. I ignored this, hoping the problem would go away and that his arms would spontaneously shrink in girth while I busied myself with some long postponed yardwork -- raking leaves, weeding, trimming old sage stems, chopping lantana stalks that froze recently. But when I got back to it this morning, the sleeve, and now the body, were both a little snug. More snug than can be chalked up to the past week's holiday food fest. I double-checked gauge -- spot on. The problem lay in my inability to measure correctly. I don't know what I was doing the first time, but re-measuring revealed a couple more inches than originally called for. So I spent the morning ripping back and casting on again -- this time with several more stitches.

I've made a bit more progress on the Patent Stitch Socks. I'm still thinking the cuffs are a bit wider than I might like, although they do stay up in testing. I'll check again when it's finished. If it's too saggy, I'll make the cuff on the second sock on smaller needles and re-do the first one.

Janelle has been teasing me about my aversion to swatching. I DID swatch for the sweater (although I didn't wash it), but I just eyeballed for the socks. I get what I deserve!

On another front, Jeff and I are soon to be the proud parents of a couple of rescued dogs. They're scheduled to come live with us sometime next week, and we're both excited and nervous. Part of the yard cleanup was to get ready for the new arrivals. Today, I worked on adjusting some slats in the gate of our cedar fence to make it more escape proof. So much to do and so much to prepare for. I'll be sure to post pictures and details after they arrive.

So, there are many changes afoot! Here's to new beginnings and very happy new year to all of us.