Gratitude Sunday

I am joining Taryn of Wooly Moss Roots in celebrating a few things that I am so very thankful for.

Monterey Bay, California - November 2013

This week I am thankful for....

- All of the beautiful snow and the snow day it provided! Thankfully, our power stayed on, our heat kept the house warm, and we had plenty of food. Once I did go to work the roads were a frozen mess because of the subzero temperatures but Shane was able to work from home and I got to and from work safely.

- I had lots of time to knit and started and finished my Katniss Cowl (which I will share more about later...), made progress on the long hibernating "linen top", and today I cast on my "Perfect Sweater"....

- ... I started a sweater series of classes at my favorite local yarn shop and cast on my "Perfect Sweater". I am excited and nervous all at the same time. The first class was a lot of measuring, gauge swatching, and math to get everything ready to start the back piece.

- Lots of kitty and Shaney snuggles provided by the extra time off.

- The beginning of getting back to some kind of routine with work, teaching, and home stuff. I love the holidays but I am also a creature of habit and so getting back to some kind of routine even if it did include an extra hour to get to work.

- SO MUCH Tea!!! I felt like I was constantly drinking it to help stay warm because, well, it's delicious!!!

- I would like to say a Colts win against the Patriots last night but it was a great season for the team and now I can focus my sports love on the Olympics!!! :)

- Friends and loved ones that "get me" and all of my nutty interests and that support me in enjoying them!

What are you thankful for this week?

Gratitude Sunday

I am joining Taryn of Wooly Moss Roots in celebrating a few things that I am so very thankful for.

As I type this the snow is continuing to fall (11+ inches and counting), the power is flickering, and we have been out twice to shovel the walk and drive before the record setting sub zero temperatures freeze it all solid. For some of you this may be nothing new but while we get some rough winters in Indiana this is pretty bad. So bad, that I have heard a few folks tossing around, "not since the blizzard of '78" which is the standard by which all winter weather events are measured in the midwest. With that, I have an abundance to be thankful for (even if I did gripe some earlier today... it is a journey, right?). 

 I am thankful.... 

- That we have a warm, safe, solid house that (currently) has electricity. 

- That we have a stockpile of food and water if we need it.

- That both Shane and my offices have been closed tomorrow so that we can stay home and stay safe. 

- That as far as we know our loved ones are warm and safe too! 

- That despite my alternator going out and costing me a ton of money during the first round of snow this week it was able to be fixed and my car is ready when I do have to go back out for work. 

- For the adorableness that was Macabean out in the snow this afternoon. He is a Maine Coon that has lived indoors and is generally very spoiled but when we get a good snow we tend to put him out in it for a a few minutes. He pats around and then runs back in. Today was no exception but I think it's probably the deepest snow he has been in. 

- Hot tea! I have a stash of full caffeine and no caffeine for all my tea needs. In fact,  I have lost track of the cups I have enjoyed today. 

- An abundance of knitting to enjoy working on!

- The absolute beauty of the snow on everything! The way the air smells and feels! The way the wind sways the trees.... Snow is my favorite! 

I hope you are all warm, safe, and enjoying the beauty that is world around you! What are you thankful for? 

Frozen

I came home the other night from work to find that one of the mum pots had frozen and cracked. 

Have I mentioned it's been cold here? This morning I woke up and it was snowy and beautiful! Awww... winter! 

Tomorrow I am hosting my knitting group for an afternoon of knitting. I think it will be a very snug afternoon indeed! 

What winter scenes are you seeing? 

It hasn't been this cold since.... 2011...

..no, really!

It hasn't been this cold, 18 degrees for a high, since 2011!! 

All last winter I was so bummed because it was such a mild winter and it only snowed a little dusting once the whole season. This is a lot more like it, good knitting weather! Now if only we could get some more snow!! 

Am I the only person out there that loves winter?! 

A Blizzard?!

We had a blizzard today! 10+ inches of snow, 40+ mile per hour winds and white outs meant it was a day spent in! Well, mostly.... I tried to go into work this morning but the white outs and road conditions made it unsafe so I turned around and came home. Shane was able to work from home thankfully. 

I spent a balanced day of watching TV, drinking hot tea, knitting, shoveling snow, trying to encourage Macbean to love the snow (that didn't work out so well), making laundry soap, and doing a tad bit of cleaning. Tomorrow it's back to work and back to reality. 

What are you seeing in your corner of the world? 

A Few Little Things...

One of my local yarn shops, Nomad Yarns be exact, posted on their facebook page that the standard candy cane was a US knitting needle size 11. So last night before knitting group I decided to knit a few rows with the candy canes I was taking to share with my group. It was actually a smoother knit than I was expecting and I got a few more rows done on my morning break at work... totally silly and totally fun!

I also shared a few Lion Brand bon bon's with my group last night. I wanted to do something a tad more pinterest-worthy but alas my creativity seems to be lacking. Thankfully, my dear sweet friends knew they came with lots of love! 

Tonight we are getting a wee bit of snow... I hope I can capture a few pictures of it to share tomorrow! 

Warm Things

I sincerely meant to post a few more times this week however, we ended up having an unexpectedly busy week. However, we were helping friends so it was a good kind of busy.

Having a rather busy week also means that I didn't get as much knitting done this week as I had hoped. So my soft, warm, and snuggly shadow box is still in progress. However, it looks like I'll have a good deal of knitting time over the next few days so hopefully, it will grow and I will be living in it soon :)

I'm still sorting through my favorite warm, comfort type recipes so I hope to be posting more of those in the coming days. For now, I'll leave you with a pretty picture of the snow outside of our apartment!

January Knitting

There is something so sweet and so wonderful about cold winter nights. I get to come home from work, do a little yoga, catch up with my students, make dinner (or let the crockpot do it!), and knit the night away. Ahhh!

Since the Christmas knitting is finished up I have been working on the Shadow Box [ ] cowl/poncho pattern found on ravelry in addition to bulking up my supply of dishrags for myself and for gifts that come up. I have also been planning out baby knitting for several babies due over the summer and early fall.

So, in the next couple of days I'll try and share a few favorite crockpot recipes and knitting patterns to share the warmth.

So what fun things do you like to do on cold winter nights?!