Step Into My Thimble

Sure the temp is in the 80s today, and the leaves have barely begun to change, but we can pretend it’s fall. The apples were early this year anyway.

It would not be a Michigan fall without pictures of babies and pumpkins. Perhaps later, babies dressed as pumpkins! Not mine though…some very interesting things are in the works for this year’s Halloween costumes, a whole suite of things for the entire family. Stay tuned for that (and wish me luck that I find the time to finish it all).

We picked a peck of Jonathons at the orchard with friends today, and promptly made a big old shredded apple salad with yogurt, currants, almonds and cinnamon. What else will we use the apples for? Thirty-two pints of spiced applesauce are already on the shelf from last week. If I can get the counters clean enough for pastry-rolling, maybe there will be a pie.

Tomorrow it’s October already!

A certain person I know has not updated her passport, or applied for her baby to have her own, and therefore can’t run over to the duty free shop in Windsor to pick up more of this yummy tea anytime soon.

So if you are Canadian and you want to send me some of this tea (because I can’t find anyone in the US who sells it), I will trade for some tasty or yarny Michigan goods, depending on your preference.

Last night Maeve and I enjoyed an evening of guilty pleasures, in the midst of our otherwise very social week: Trader Joe’s packaged dinner items, a leisurely bubble bath, and the new season of America’s Next Top Model. All I can say is I’m so disappointed that Spontaniouse didn’t make the cut. And, dang is that CWTV web site ugly!!

Being married with kids is hard. I’d like to think that sometimes I go two steps back and one step forward, rather than the other way around, so the picture doesn’t end up being as grim as it sounds. I guess that means I’m still going backward, but I end on a forward moving foot. Eventually when the demands of this little person slow down some, I can start running forward to make up for it all. Who knows. I mostly should just work on being more of a cup half full kind of person, not one of my strengths in life generally.

How about all of those metaphors to start your week? Bleah!

And that is all I’m going to say about all that for now, especially to you Bloglines readers.

This week Rodney is gone on his annual hike, and my parents are gone too. Maeve and I have several dinner invites. What will our friends feed us? Mmmm, nothing like being served a home cooked meal at someone else’s house. I really do love all my friends around here.

Here we have the back and the first front half of a cardigan based on Alison’s original pattern. It was going to be a pullover but then I decided the kid it’s for could wear it longer as a cardigan.

These days I don’t have tons of time to invest in knitting (especially at this gauge) so I want it to be double-worthwhile if that makes sense. I am really enjoying the Rowan Felted Tweed though. It makes a really nice fabric. I could see making a grownup item out of it someday.

Regarding finishing, would you:

• Just do it as a roll-edge, including the neck? (If so…how to handle the button bands?)
• Add ribbing all around using the same tan color as the B?
• Add ribbing but use the blue?
• Have a hybrid of rolled edges and ribbing for the finishing?
• Or something else?

I might try adding ribbing in the tan just to see how it looks and then ask you again, but feel free to offer your initial opinions now…

I put in my first 8 to 5 day today in almost exactly two years. It was 80% interesting work/orientation, 15% two-hour delicious lunch with coworkers here, and 5% motherly guilt. When I finally retrieved Maeve from our friend’s home, she was happy to see me but perfectly fine otherwise, as I had expected would be the case.

I suppose I’m living up to the cliche of the overcommitted working mother already; an hour or so into my day I realized that my carefully chosen first-day-back-to-work skirt had a big mustard stain on the side of it. Oh well. I have an office with a window!!! And iTunes comes preinstalled on all work stations.