Of socks and mittens

We had a cold spell in NW Louisiana last weekend- as in, the high temperature never made it above freezing for two days! And despite the fact that there was once a snowflake on my weather app, the best I got was 5 minutes of tiny flurry flakes on Friday afternoon. Meanwhile, in central NC, my friends were bombarded with the loveliest 8+" of snow the following day. I enjoyed it vicariously through their social media posts, but oh how I yearned to be there in it!

I hunkered down inside my own home, almost as if I were snowbound in NC. I cooked and crafted and even played games with my family (those of you who know how I detest games will understand that this is HUGE). I made excellent progress on my Phoenix Rising cross-stitch.

A little background on this cross stitch project: I started it, on a whim, during a summer vacation trip in 2014. I wanted to make something Elon-y and I found a lovely sampler that fit the bill. A quick re-working of the color scheme to maroon and gold had me hooked... temporarily. I know I worked on it again during a trip to the family compound in SC, but for the most part it has spent its time tucked away in my cross stitch box. Don't worry- it had plenty of company!

I cast on for a new knitting project, as well. My youngest- my baby who is almost 13, and has hands nearly the same size as mine, asked me to make him a pair of mittens. How could I refuse this precious request, especially knowing that in a year or so (if they survive being worn by a teenage boy), they will be mine? His requested colors were light blue and charcoal gray, and I knew I didn't have anything in my stash that would fit the bill. You see, I wanted to use a nice, worsted weight yarn that would knit up quickly.

As I dug through my yarns, I found a 9/10 completed sock made with a skein of fingering weight yarn given to me by someone who didn't have the patience for small, intricate knitting. It wasn't anything I would have chosen for myself, but it did have the requested shades of blue & gray. Fresh off a recent unraveling spree, I knew what the obvious choice should be, but I still dreaded undoing the many hours that went into that sock, and the the tedium of many more hours of tiny stitches.

Another so-close-to-complete sock unraveled, and a mitten begun. For a week that began with temperatures well below freezing and ended with 3 days in the mid-70's, it sometimes felt silly to be knitting mittens. Cold days will be back, all too soon, and hopefully when they arrive I will be ready to warm a small but growing pair of hands.