I've got some fab news and I'm hoping I don't jinx it by putting it on here - I'm starting to feel better! I'm so hoping its not a flash in the pan and I go back to zero again. My muscle and joint pain is reduced and so is the fatigue. I was awfully ill with the flu and have just seemed to get better and better recovering from it. I don't know whether the flu bug has kick started my immune system properly or something.

But anyhow, I've been spinning (!), some soft singles from Lakehouse Loft:






and doing cross stitch on my new slate frame ..... yes, its bloody enormous, 40" wide to be exact but its good. Took a bit of getting used to but now I am its great. Just bloody enormous. Its handmade from beech by a bloke on ebay



so after I bought this, I found another frame listed in a totally random section of ebay and put a ridiculously low bid of £2.99 in for it - and won it. Its 24" so I now own 2 needlework frames.



Sparky is getting his winter coat and has had an inexpert trouser trim by Mum. I do wonder if we run a pet hotel sometimes.
There really is no need for this kind of behaviour, is there?



I've bought some fabric and floss to make a start on this Quaker sampler too. I don't think I'll make it so big. I've chosen pale blue, grey, lavender, ecru colours. Its a free pattern which is nice.

I've been searching ebay for Lego - Luke is really into castle Lego at the moment and I've managed to get him 5 new knights and 12 armoured war horses so far. I hope the little ratbag is still into castle lego by his birthday. His best friend is having his birthday party soon at Laserquest, which they specially chose for Luke (he feels quite awkward in company but they know he loves laserquest). How nice and thoughtful was that?

anyway, I'd better go and get stitching. I've decided to leave the weaving until I'm a lot better and put my loom away so it doesn't look at me.

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.

I've had 8 migraines in the past 12 days, some of them incredibly horrendous.
Psychologically I've been fine, just taking it as it comes, spending time with family, spinning, knitting, weaving in small blocks of time I am well enough to.
Until this morning. Luke has gone to see his sponsor donkey. Grandma pays for him to sponsor Choccy who lives at a rescue centre. Luke ADORES this animal and today its his birthday party to which we go every year.
But I've got a cracking headache from yesterdays migraine. Whats worse is that I'm too scared to go as can't face getting another migraine while there. I feel distraught hearing Luke all excited about going somewhere and not being able to share it with him.
And one of my best friends has moved 2 hours away and needs support. And I'm as much use as a chocolate fireguard to her.
I feel a pathetic shell of the person I was.

Its been lovely having Luke off for the summer holidays. He is such a noisy bundle of fun. I haven't had much time to do any fibre stuff but I'm almost finished the Milkweed shawl, have resucitated a half knitted cardigan I found in the dresser and have spun some of the lovely merino/ silk peony fibre I got from FreckleFace Fibers on etsy. I made it to my spinning guild group on Saturday and it was just so nice to be out chatting in the sun about fibre etc. I love the ladies in our group and it really lifts my spirits to go for days afterwards.


I've actually almost got Maeva's 40th birthday present ready to post. I'm just not sure how I'm going to ship it all. Sparky is determined to go as well!


We took Luke quad biking. Luke doesn't like motorbikes at all but it was Mike's idea. We had a 2.5 hr drive to get there. Luke went 50 yards, fell off and refused to get on again. So that was a bit of a unfortunate event. But we went to the beach (I use the term 'beach' very loosely - Eastbourne is mainly pebbles, not sand) and had fish and chips on the Victorian pier.


We also took Luke to the fossil beach near Lyme Regis. The boys had a great time. I mooched around near the car as I couldn't keep up with them but it was nice to be out. I was almost in tears on the way back as I'd well overdone it and was in such pain and felt like I had bad flu. thank goodness Mike is so kind and understanding.



Luke's vegetables are growing OK, except for his pumpkins which are rotting as its rained so much. We did find this massive slug though. I've never seen anything like it!



This chronic fatigue is kicking my butt. I have about 2 days of feeling about 60% ok and then have about 5 days of being totally exhausted and in extreme muscle and joint pain. These days I can't knit or spin as I hurt too much. That really frustrates me.

And then I have 1 - 3 migraines during the week just to keep me on my toes. Luke went to stay with Grandma's last week so Mike and I could have some quality time together. I had a really, really bad migraine for the whole time he was away. I was not very happy about this!

Not sure what to do about a specialist. the local one is on long term sick leave and I really don't know if its worth chasing to see anyone.. As far as I can tell, no one is particulary interested and there is not much the medics can actually do apart from advise on pacing yourself.
I've started taking Vitamin D as there is some evidence it helps with chronic pain. I did have to laugh when I received the bottle of capsules though - the Vit. D is extracted from wool oil! Even Mike laughed.

I did discuss with Mike the option of me moving out for 6 months to a little flat nearby to give him a break from me and my constant ills but he wasn't having it. I do feel guilty about what its doing to his quality of life.

Saying that, at present there is a really happy little 9 yr old boy sat on the floor in front of me making a massive lego model with the money he received as holiday pay (I am too ill for us to go away so I split what I'd saved for a holiday into thirds and we all got it to spend on whatever we want).

I accidently won a 32" Ashford rigid heddle loom on Ebay so thats was my treat - I put in a low bid and thought I'd never win it but did! (I think it was because it was pick up only). I've only got as far as looking at it. How the hell do I think I'm going to learn to weave when I can't even find enough pain free time to knit and spin?