2013 Off and Running

How is 2013 treating you so far?  Here at my house we are off and running.  I have worked, completed paperwork, cleaned, read, walked Max, cooked, and found a few minutes here and there to knit and crochet.  I have had my stir fry....yum!

I am a pretty healthy eater, no red meat, pork, fried food, soda, sugar or artificial sweeteners, and very, very little alcohol, just a sip of wine now and again.  Even though I  try to eat right I do love pasta, cream sauces of any kind, and I am addicted to agave sweetened anything.  I wanted to start the New Year off right, veggie and brown rice stir fry for me. 

My youngest has a friend visiting from Indiana, so we ventured to the beach on New Year's Day.  A great way to ring in the New Year.  They went one direction and I went another.  Nothing like a Mom to cramp a 15 year old boys style.

As gorgeous as this photo is, it does not tell you how chilly it was out.  High of 70 degrees, while all of you under a foot of snow must be ready to hit the delete button for this post, let me just say that my thin blooded, Floridian body, does not do well on the beach with a very brisk wind coming in off the water when it is 70 out.  I sat there in my sweat pants and a long sleeve t-shirt as all the Northerners paraded  around in their bathing suits.  I sat there warm and toasty knitting away as people walked by me giving me very strange looks.

I started this Noro drop stitch scarf.   There is a bit of a story behind this yarn, well there is always a story isn't there?  Last year I had two friends pass away from cancer within a month of each other.  One I posted about, the other I may have mentioned but I kept it more quiet.  They were both in their early 40's, such a loss for their families.  The second death was my friend Finula, she fought esophageal cancer for four years.  A horrible, painful, fight that  took her away from her family for months at a time.  She was a knitter, and a friend from my knitting group although I have known her for years.  After she passed away her yarn was split between the members of the group.  She had 6 skeins of this Noro yarn, so we each got one.  I am making this scarf for another friend of ours that moved away this past summer.  I think she would like a bit of Finula, too.  I started this on the beach, which gave me a lovely place to contemplate life, death and friendship.  This will be a go to, car project for a while, so I can savor it a bit.  I don't want to knit it up too fast, I merely want to sit with it a little at a time and think.

This strange mess above is the Chevron Lace Cardigan that my friend Eileen blogged about a few days ago, you can find the link on her blog here Crochet Attic.

I am using Cascade Echo Duo yarn, with a size K hook, who knows how it will turn out, I love the yarn so much I really don't care if the cardigan fits or not.  This is my all time favorite yarn, in my all time favorite color.  I think I would take a bath in this yarn if it would get me clean enough.

Oh and I almost forgot, I made my first trip to the yarn store of the New Year.  I do not need a thing you understand, but my friend Rosemary is selling her store, and I had a 25% off coupon burning a hole in my purse.  We have to use them before the store changes hands.  So I must admit that I went a bit wild, who knows when I will have the opportunity to get lovely, yarn for a bargain.   I have decided that I am leading a simpler life, I do not need new clothes or shoes, but yarn is a must.  I don't have to have a closet full of it, but I will not scrimp when it comes to yarn.  It is way too important to me and it keeps me sane.  That is worth all the money in the world.
Happy Thursday.