by Sarah

So busy...

While my blog has been sitting fallow, I have been working the fields of my backyard.  Ok, nothing that dramatic, but it has been REALLY busy around here.  Spring seems to have sprung, and I have never had my own backyard before.  The Murph is thrilled to have his own park that I seem to want to spend all my time in.  I am a little overwhelmed with all that needs to be done, but have plans in my head for this year and next and the next...

I am starting with raised garden beds:

OK, I still need to screw them together, but I did stake them out, go to Lowes, buy the supplies, and even have the wood cut.  Next week, I will order dirt.

My cherry tree and forsythia are blooming:

(Above - not my house, just my fence)

My lilacs are budding, and all kinds of other stuff continues to pop up:

As you can see, the grass needs some fixing up, and the foundation needs some painting, but spring continues whether I get to that stuff or not and...

I am also finishing projects.  This is a thistle sock (oh how I love this pattern) in some of Jody's handpainted.  It is a pattern sample for the Cloverhill Booth at Maryland Sheep and Wool.

(Same sock opposite sides.) I cant believe Sheep & Wool is but a week away.  I gotta go pack!

Please join me next time when I show off some two-week-old photos from my first trip of the year to Assateague; it rained - naturally.

Knitting update...

Today is the last day to enter the contest over at Countdown to Sheep and Wool.

I wanted to give you a knitting update, but since this is turining into a brag about my family blog (mom's stained glass, dad's woodworking) I thought I would update you on what my sister is doing since she finished her first pair of socks ever last wednesday...

She's knitting another pair, OF COURSE!  Yes folks, more than 50% of a monkey.  In less than one week!!  The yarn is STR Mediumweight (colorway Alina?), and the sock is coming out beautifully.

I am knitting a few little things right now...

This is a sock I am working on writing up the pattern for...better pics with the pattern, this is just a teaser.  The yarn in Trekking XXL.

This is a sample socks I am working on for the booth at Sheep and Wool.  The pattern is Thistle by Jolene Mosley.  It is one of my alltime favorite sock patterns...I could knit it over and over.  Wait, this is my third pair...so I guess I AM knitting it over and over!

This is the beginnings of my Ariann Sweater in Green Katmandu Silkroad Aran.  I guess Jody nagging me to do things is VERY effective, since she has been bugging me to knit this.  I consider her my knitting missionary, since we often choose the same patterns and yarns, when she finds something she likes, she is always trying to convince me to do it to, and OH how she loves her Ariann Sweater!  I had to frog this version, because my eyelets didnt line up.  However, I have already restarted the sweater, and the second bottom band is knitting up to look...exactly like this one.  I just thought the version without the needle in it made a better picture.

My Dad...

Today's countdown post features MY DAD and his spindles.

Go check it out!

Contest, and some gardening...

Over at the Countdown to Sheep and Wool, we are having a contest for free yarn...
All you have to do is link to the blog, so head on over and link!

Here at bySarah, a girl's thoughts have turned to springtime, and sunshine.  Which is particularly weird since I now live in Rhode Island, and it is still pretty much freezing up here in New England.  Somehow, I managed to get my butt outside and start prettying up my new front yard anyway. 

Don't judge my utter slowness, but it took me 1.5 hours to put in this little metal garden fence.  Stupid, ROCKY soil dirt. And then another 45 minutes to rake the grass cigarette butt/weed combo in front of it.  Now I realize I am going to have to reseed the grass, but the garden is starting to grow some daffodills and hastas on its own.  I am waiting for all of the established stuff to pop up before I decide how to integrate my idea to put Sea-grass and Sunflowers in front of the fence and move all the bushes to another part of the yard.

Guess what else - I finally figured out how to get the blinds OUT of my window, so I could install this in my front window:

My mom is so talented! Every time I look at the stained glass, I cant believe she made it!  At first I was annoyed that there isnt really another place for the TV, then I realized, the TV is protecting the stained glass from the Murph.  Thanks TV!

HELLO KNITTING WORLD!

Hi there.  I hope you are reading this because you are visiting from our Sheep and Wool blog.
If not, go here and look at it (I can wait): Countdown to Sheep and Wool

So, back to me.  Since I am working on the Countdown, I wanted to introduce myself to everyone:

My name is Sarah, and I am a knitter.
And a spinner. 
And a sewer. 
OK, I'm a crafter. 

I have met an amazing group of friends over the last couple of years through my crafts, particularly knitting and spinning, and one of the most fun times I have had in the last couple of years was at the 2007 Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival.  At the time I lived in Maryland.  I have since moved back to my roots - New England, and I have been anticipating the sheep and wool festival all winter as a fibery-yarny reunion with my friends.  A couple of weeks ago, I volunteered my services to the Cloverhill Yarn Shop Booth.  I will be helping to set up, and to man woman the booth for the length of the festival. (Minus a couple hours of time to shop and watch the sheep dogs wondering why the murph is not as well behaved as they are.)  I am SO incredibly EXCITED to be part of the group of people who will be bringing together so many indie artists in one booth, I just wanted to tell everyone all about what is going on...as it happens.

ENTER THE BLOG...
Jody (or Javajem as you might know her) is just as excited as I am to be manning the booth, and we will be working together to give you a sneak peek as to what all of the artists are up to...Please come visit us every day until sheep and wool, we will be having contests and giving away free patterns for the next twenty-some odd days. 

And forgive me when I don't post here as often this month, I am using all my extra time to revv up my spinning skills so I can make excuses to myself for buying more fiber.  I will tell myself, I am almost out of stash.  And my wheel needs the practice...etc.

27 More days...And so the countdown begins.

P.S. That is the worst, silliest picture of myself I could find.  I hope you enjoyed it!

Other Peoples Knitting

This is where I feature other peoples knitting (again):

My sister finished theses socks last night - her first pair ever. As you can see, she is very proud.
I am proud of her too.
Stacey, if you were wondering, that is your recycled CTH from forever ago.

In other news, I've been spinning.  And I got a new knitting bag.  Pictures on both accounts later.