I Am Now A Real Knitter

First, I wanna apologize for missing last week's post. I was having way too much fun having DH home for a change. Now on to the rant.

Real knitters have knitting groups.
I finally heard back from my local library about having a knitting group meet there. They are totally excited about having a group, but due to library  policy we can only meet twice a month. There's a Sci-Fi thing going on every second Sunday, so I figure the first and third should work for the knitting group. I just gotta do flyers now. The library will distribute press releases for us to if we write them, and free publicity can't hurt. All we need now is a name. I'm kinda partial to Sticks -N- String. Comment and let me know what you think.

Real knitters have stashes.

Thanks to Pam, I went to a fantabulous sale at the Stitching Bee in Chatham yesterday. It was definitely worth the hour drive. I got lots of yummy yarn, all for one dollar each.

I know, it's a lot of blue. DS's school colors are blue and white, and the PTA Prez has told me if I made stuff she would buy it. So I got some Lamb's Pride and some Berocco and some sock yarn I've never heard of, and I'll be knitting up inventory for the 2010-2011 school year. I also got a baby blue cashmere that I just may keep for myself. Sometime this week I'll post my stash on Ravelry, so you'll have to check it out.
I also met some really nice people at the Stitching Bee. Caroline was knitting a sweater for her grand-niece. It was the cutest thing, off-white with brown teddy bears. We talked about knitting looms and socks, and she gave me some great tips on doing intarsia. Judy was also great. She was helping customers at the sale, looking up inventory, and helping Caroline with embroidery, all at the same time.

That's Caroline at the table, working on the baby sweater.

If you get the chance, definitely check it out. As well as knitting, there was a lot of good stuff for needlepoint. The Stitching Bee is in a gorgeous location. The customer service is fantastic, as is the selection of yarn, books, and supplies. They also had some cool funky buttons behind the counter. It's on Main Street in Chatham, nestled between 287, 78, and the Parkway, so getting there is a breeze.

As for me and my knitting, I'm about halfway done the front of DH's sweater. I finished the back around Groundhog's Day, and I cast on the front during the snowstorm on Wednesday.  It's gonna have to be put on hold, though. My mom's sorority is having a conference the end of March and I want to make her a shawl in their colors. As always, I'll keep you posted.

Validation

Validation is great. Especially in today's dreary world when you're never sure if you're doing the right thing, for yourself or others. But a kind word and a warm smile work wonders.

First, talking with SIL about our upcoming trip to the Knit Kit, she was telling me how her and a friend at work were both learning to knit together. She said books were one thing, but she needed to see somebody do a technique over and over again for her to really get it. I told her I look up videos on the internet, and she says "I want to watch you. You're really good and you know what you're doing." Wow.
Now, SIL and I haven't always been friendly towards each other. Because of misunderstandings and half-truths from a third party, she thought I was taking advantage of her brother. But after five and a half years of being with her brother, we've finally gotten to the point where we can go on an outing together, just the two of us. This is our first time being together without either one of our husbands around, and I'm really looking forward to it. And to top it all off she wants to learn knitting technique from me. Totally awesome.

Second compliment. On the phone last night with Mrs. K talking about AK and how she liked her socks. Now, I'm expecting some nice but non-committal comment, but Mrs. K says "She loves them. And I'm jealous. I want a pair." When she agrees to have them in the same color as her daughter's, I can hear AK cheering in the background. Unbeknownst to the K's I'm also gonna check my stash to see if I have enough gray left to do a pair for Mr. K. My first pair of socks, and they went over great. And Mrs. K is the kind of friend who will tell me the truth no matter what, so I know she really likes the socks.

Third compliment, and the best one of all. While on the phone with Mrs. K, DH asks me if we have anything nukable. He just ate the last nukable thing ive minutes before he asked, so I tell him no and ask if he wants an egg. After getting off the phone, I fry him an egg and serve it on a 7-grain bagel w/mozzarella cheese. He looks at me with love in his eyes. "Aww, hun, thanks. You always take care of me, and you do a great job of it."

Ah, validation. Working on a relationship with SIL, my knitting, and being a good mother and wife. We all know hard work pays off, but it's hard to see progress without outside observations. Thanks to you all for making my week, and for letting me know that at least I'm doing some things right.