Happy Thanksgiving!

To echo the sentiments of so many others - Happy Thanksgiving!

Things I'm thankful for...

1) Family - The folks who love you no matter what & help keep you grounded. I'm happy to have a DH who can remind me when I'm steppin' over the crazy line.

2) Healthy & Happy Kids - When so much can go wrong that is out of your control, I'm thankful my concerns have been limited to runny noses. Let's hope they are continually blessed with good health & that our country can figure out a way to ensure that all children are so fortunate.

3) Great Friends - They know all about you & love you anyway. It's nice to know there are people out there you can chat with about anything, any time.

4) Financial Means - As we explain to our kids - we're not 'rich' in terms of cash, but rich in so many ways, I'm thankful to be in a profession that offers relative job security. So thankful that we're able to take our kids on vacations such as the one we're on now. Thankful that I can indulge myself in yarn & books. I'm hoping that educating youth will help them pave a path to financial security in their futures.

Day 3 in Kauai:

Orion & the perpetual sand castle building endeavor. Love how he's wearing goggles up on the shore - must be prepared in case a tidal wave floods his moat.

Iain off on his first snorkle. Poipu beach offers a nice shallow area perfect for kids. The lagoon is surrounded partway by a set of rocks which allows views of tropical fish such as Needlefish, Butterfly Fish, & "Gill" fish from Finding Nemo.

It's raining today (crazy rain!!) - but that hasn't dampened (ha ha ha) our spirits. It's great being together with family & having the opportunity to relax. Think I'll sign off for now & go finish sock #1.

Aloha ~

Passing it on...

Check this out...Whose nimble fingers could those be?

The fingers of my 5-year old son, Iain, of course. While big brother was out playing with friends, Iain expressed an interest of learning how to knit. So - with some chunky yarn and size 13 needles, we were off. He's a quick study and quickly proclaimed "I'm getting the hang of this!"
Even the pros need a little help. Here he's asked me to 'frog' a couple of rows to fix an oops. Yes - he even knows the knitting lingo. First he learns the lyrics to Duran Duran songs & now he's knitting. What's next? I so love this age - where their minds and will are so pliable!

He says he's making a scarf - I'll let you know how that works out.

Meanwhile - here's some big kid knitting:

Socks complete to count for November credit for the SAM4 and the pair for Sockin' in to Maggie. I even finished by the deadline & before the yarn ran out - whew!

Details:

Pattern: Broadripple (modified) from Knitty.com.

Yarn: STR lightweight in "Spot Rock On" colorway.

Needles: Addi Turbo Size 1 US. Magic Loop method (of course)

Modifications: The original pattern calls for a heavier yarn & knit over 56 stitches. I CO 72 & increased the number of knit stitches between the decreases and yarn overs by 1. I'm happy with the way they turned out - no pooling this time!!

Works in Progress:

1. Fetching Pair #2 using Mission Falls 1824 wool
2. Mystery Fair Isle Hat
3. Child's French Sock from the Vintage Socks book by Nancy Bush
   

I hope everyone enjoyed a fabulous Thanksgiving holiday weekend. We certainly did - a fabulous dinner with my parents & some great friends, knitting, soccer (Orion scored his first goal!), and the Nutcracker. We certainly are thankful!

The secret to a moist turkey is the pre-baking massage.

The 23 lb bird in all it's post-baking glory

Yum!