I'm knitting socks with wool/ nylon mix to see if they hold up better than the pure wool ones I've made which wear through the foot within weeks. Its just going to be a mindless, plain sock using Kangaroo Dyer yarn. I love this yarn and are pleased with it so far. Will take photos when past the toe ;0)

I've started my 'Oriental Harem Mandala Garden' cross stitch from Chatelaine Designs and are really enjoying it. This is progress so far:


I posted Mum's birthday present to her, a Milkweed Shawl made with MadTosh sock yarn. She was delighted (!!) and I really enjoyed knitting it. The yarn was lovely too and blocked out really well.





we're all over the dreaded swine flu and Luke even managed to dodge the bullet. It was horrible proper flu too. nothing worse. The cats were delighted that we were both in bed for an overlapping period of about 10 days. I've been exhausted today and just slept all day. Haven't had a migraine for 5 days though which is great considering I've had them almost daily for last 5 weeks, really horrible ones.

We had to take one of the cats to the vets and then the dog next day (flea allergy and sore leg). Just what you need with flu. Our window cleaner says he's just going to paint a plague cross on the door and avoid me as someone is always sick in our house (usually me though)

o i n k.
f l u k i l l i n g m e
s e n d b u z z b a r s

Mike has probable swine flu and is horrendously unwell with it. I haven't seen him so ill since he had his stem cell transplant in '95. Luckily I'm feeling a bit better last few days. Migraines have slowed down again thank g-d so I was able to go and get some anti-viral capsules for him.

It was very easy to arrange this - I just filled in a form on the internet and got a special code to give to the pharmacist. Despite this I still had to ring the GP as he lost his spleen in a motorbike accident in 2000 and I needed to check whether they wanted him to have a course of antibiotics to stop his chest flaring. But they didn't.

Rosie has been so good. She has been up lying on the bed with him and been really quiet and still. She realises Dad is sick 'cause she would usually be bouncing round like a loon on the bed. Cats couldn't care less.

I really really hope that Luke and I don't get it. I had real flu in early '90's when I was a student nurse and it was awful. I had a temperature over 40 degrees celcius and was delerious for 3 days. All by myself in a student room - I can vaguely remember the GP coming to see me and nothing else. Thank god for the friends that must have looked after me.

So I may disappear for a while. Take care.

I on the up again. Just out of bed after another bad migraine and busy as a bee trying to spend the whole day doing craftwork!
I really don't know why my head has kicked off again big time. The cats are delighted though to have the electric blanket on full time.

I've finished Mum's Milkweed Shawl and will block it later once cat removes itself from back bed (well, you can't just shift them, can you? imagine the black looks!)

I started knitting a doily last week. Even my Mum laughed out loud at me. Its a Herbert Niebling pattern called Loewenzahn which should be knit with crochet cotton but I'm using cream Sirdar Calico which is a DK weight cotton/ acrylic. Its a lovely fibre to knit with and is so soft. No idea what I'm going to do with it - think I will knit whole doily pattern and add to it to make it bigger for a lap blanket (or cat blanket more likely)

I also came across a gorgeous cross stitch designer called Martina Weber of Chatelaine Designs. I was looking for Persian tile designs to convert to fair isle for my planned handspun vest but got side tracked. She does the most wonderful Garden Mandalas. I've bought the chart to Oriental Harem Garden and spent the morning looking for the threads etc. The design has lots of beads on it so it will really sparkle.
The only problem is that its 27 inches square. Yes, 80 cm square. Why I didn't check the size I'll never know but its so gorgeous it will be worth it. A lifes work I think!

Luke has gone happily bobbing off to first day back at school this morning.
He has been given the hard word about behaving himself and not refusing to work. He sometimes point blank refuses to do things 'as thats not going to help me be an engineer or to earn money'.
I can see his point (which I don't let him know obviously) but he's got to learn not to be so stubborn. As his head teacher says 'if he makes 18 without one of us strangling him he will be a wonderful man'

If he misbehaves, first he will have me going to school with him. Then Grandma if I'm too soft. Then Nana, ex- head teacher for hard line schooling. (well, thats what I've told him. I think he knows deep down that Nana is a lot nicer than that!)
He knows I'm not joking either.

And I still haven't posted Maeva's May birthday present. I keep adding things to it. I may just post it in parts.