19 days and counting

Less than three weeks till Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature is stirring, except the Mom, who is going bonkers trying to get all the things done to prepare. Well, that, and the demented cat who thinks it's her God-given duty to assist in all things yarn, thread, string, or cloth related. This, of course, is the same cat who finds it absolutely necessary to smack into submission the ornaments near the bottom of the tree. She's very helpful, you know.

Anyway, I've been very busy this week. I've completely abandoned the ribbed knit scarf, because frankly, I want to enjoy this holiday season. I'll pull it out & try again in January, when there are no time constraints and pressures, and hopefully my knitting attempts will be more successful (or at least less infuriating). Instead, I've been working on silly little cross-stitched popcorn bags. Yes, it sounds a little dopey, and yes, in fact, it is, but that's okay. My mom will like them, and I've enjoyed working on them. Cross-stitch is extremely relaxing, and it really helped that I've had the first three seasons of The West Wing on dvd to keep me entertained while I did it. I've finished the stitching on the first, am halfway through the second, and still have to sew them into cute little bags (and then fill them with popcorn kernels & tie 'em up).

Also, I've been encountering much frustration filling another weird gift request from my mother--crocheted clothes hangers. She remembers her grandmother having these when she was young, and she really likes the idea of something that won't crease her clothes, and something handmade that makes her feel a bit more connected with our forebears. Unfortunately, this is much easier said than done. After many aggravating attempts, I believe I've finally found a way to do it properly. It's really hard to explain, and I doubt folks'll go rushing out to make their own on account of my blog, so suffice it to say that I'm really glad I figured it out, and the first one is already completed (which is SOOOOO satisfying, after all these other irritating ufos!!). I've started on the second, and will try a slight variation, and hopefully it'll make a better fit round the middle.

I still have a loooong list of other projects I'd like to complete in the next three weeks, so I'll keep it short here. Happily, I have cinnamon rolls about to come out of the oven for my dinner. Yep, you read that right. That's my dinner tonight. It's just one of those weeks.