Yarn Along - Lila's Tallulah, Weeks 7&8

Greetings! Obviously one of my favorite things is reading, but I'm also very fond of knitting. Ginny over at Small Things hosts a lovely little weekly link-up where we showcase what we're working on and what we're reading. Once you're done here, head on over and see what everyone else is up to!

So after finishing my pumpkins, I decided it was time to stop dithering and get back to work on sweet Lila's Hanukkah cardigan. Since Hanukkah begins the second week of December this year, I should probably get to finishing it! I finished all the increases and divided the sleeves over the weekend and started the 4.25 inches of stockinette I need before the ribbing at the bottom. Since mindless stockinette is one of my favorite things, I can catch up on TV shows or listen to audio books while I do it. 

The Red Notebook is a delightful French novella that I read on my way back from Portland a few weeks ago.  I'll post a book review of it in the next week or so. I know the cardigan comes off as a little bit red in this picture but I promise it's pretty and pink!

Unfortunately last night's Knit Night devolved into a night of drinking, and I didn't get quite as much done as I'd intended.  A few hours of giggling with Karen over Jameson to take my mind off my current concerns (send up a prayer for me for discernment if you're the praying type, eh?) was more than worth the knitting I didn't get done. I feel like sometimes I spend so much time ruminating and agonizing over decisions that I really need a friend who will stop me mid-complaint and say, "If we're going to have this conversation, we're not going to stay sober," before putting a glass of ice in front of me. 

Reading:
I finished The Secret History about 2 weeks ago and my brain is still a little broken. I've been dithering back and forth over what to read or listen to next. I'm thinking I might try Sense & Sensibility on Librivox since Elizabeth Klett does all things Austen and her voice is so perfect for it. On the other hand, I may indulge in a little Northanger Abbey due to the spooky sense of Halloween in the air.

Who knows, maybe I'll pick up or listen to something completely different. I have plenty of titles in my Audible collection I haven't listened to yet and oodles of books on my Kindle I should read. I may also go back to Scary Stories to Read In the Dark just because. 

Speaking of books I read, in case you missed it, I posted a book review on the last camino book I plan to read this year. It's a lovely memoir of the camino told by a Catholic priest. You can read my review HERE.


That's it for me today. You can also find notes and detailed specs on this project on my Ravelry Page. For more of what I'm reading, find me on Goodreads. What have you been reading and knitting lately? Let me know in comments and then head over to Ginny's to see what everyone else is up to!
Love,

Willow






*Author's Note: The Yarn Along button in this post is property of Ginny Sheller and is used with permission. All other images used in the post as well as text are (c)Whitney Miller and may be used only with express permission. See the About Page for details.*

Book Review: To the Field of Stars

Stats:
Author: Fr. Kevin A. Codd
# of pages: 271 + about 12 pages of introduction and a map
Original Publication Date: 2008
Publisher: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
My Copy: Paperback

Yarn Along and FO: Pumpkin Army

So, do y'all remember when I was working on an army of pumpkins? Well, behold! My army is complete! There are 15 of them in total. It felt like there were lots more but I guess not. I've been working on them for almost a month and I think my favorite thing about them (aside from how cute, easy and addictive they are to make!) is that they cross over beautifully from Halloween/October to Thanksgiving/November. That's two whole months of use! I mean, arguably I could put them out in September next year when I put up my fall leaf garlands but it's always too hot in September to really put autumn decorations up.

 My completed, 15-pumpkin strong army

Funny story! I finished the last one on Sunday night - stitching the little stem to the top of the last few - and as is the case with most Sunday nights, my roommate and I were chatting. She was standing in the doorway of my bedroom as usual and when I finally finished the last one I threw it to her. Miraculously she caught it, but after I threw another one to her she dropped it and that got Gatsby's attention. He came running up the stairs so I started throwing all of them through my bedroom door and they were bouncing off the bookcase at the top of the stairs, over the banister, down the stairs, and poor little kitten man was going crazy like it was Christmas.

Of course I picked all of them up and set them on the bookcase in the hall so I'd remember to take a few to the office with me on Monday morning. When I got up on Monday, though, there were only a couple on the shelves. 

There were plenty on the floor, on the staircase, at the bottom of the stairs, on the couch, in Gatsby's carrier, under the dining table, in the kitchen... Basically the kitten man spent a rollicking evening batting the pumpkins around the house. Luckily only a couple of them are any worse for wear.

 

Gatsby really loves to play with holiday decorations - especially leaf garlands.

I'm excited to start making a couple of snowman ones out of white yarn, but I think I'll wait until the first week of December to do that. I've got lots of Christmas knitting I want to finish (and a few yet to start!) in the coming weeks and some other crafting projects I want to get done before Thanksgiving so I can really enjoy the Advent and Christmas seasons this year instead of stressing over making stuff. 

Linking up with Ginny for this week's Yarn Along - go on over and see what everyone else is working on! For more of what I'm working on, check out my Ravelry. 

P.S. I finally finished The Secret History over the weekend and all I can say is WOW! I'll try to get a review up soon but I may actually need to re-read it just to wrap my head around what an incredible ride that book is. 


Love,
Willow