Has it really been two months since I blogged??

I haven't totally dropped off the face of the earth nor have I stopped knitting. Unfortunately I have found that there are definite peaks and valleys in this divorce experience, and I have been struggling through a valley where I found it hard to concentrate and get anything done. I'm climbing back up and have some knitting to show.

This is one of the socks done with the yarn I dyed at Gourmet Yarns sock dyeing workshop back in September. The odd thing is the striping. The first time I dyed sock yarn, I very carefully measured and dyed it specifically to get nice stripes. For this, I just put the hank of yarn in the container and blobbed on dye. Voila - stripes - at least sort of stripes.

I like this yarn even though I picked up the wrong dye container and put way more blue into it than I meant to. Blue is just not my favorite, and I really wanted more gray. I learned a lot though, and now I have a list of dye that I want and a plan for some colorways to try out this summer when I have more time. At least theoretically I will have more time. I will be out of school, but I already have a summer job lined up. I'm taking the kid to New York City for her birthday, so I will need the extra cash.

Of course, I would have more cash if I could ignore things like this. But who could resist a ball winder for only $20?? Certainly not me!

I saw this mentioned on Ravelry - KnitPicks new ball winder. I haven't tried it yet, but that is my plan for this evening. I have a lot of sock yarn that needs to be wound, and this should make the process go way faster.

I need the extra time. I have a baby sweater that is again down to the sleeves that needs to be finished soon - due date is April 23. I have another one started that is going to be for next fall, but I have two more sets of yarn and new patterns for my niece's first - due in June. Those two are cotton because she lives in the South, and I am always slower with cotton, so I need to get with it. I have a week of training coming up in May in Austin, so maybe I'll get some knitting time then - I hate driving around in Austin, so I will probably stick around the hotel.

My new motto - onward and upward!