Knitting Queen!

Bow in homage to my superior gift knitting skills. Don't pay any attention to the fact that I'm waking up at 3:30 am obsessing about all the things left on my to do list. Ignore the slightly crazed, glazed look in my eye as I sit in the waiting room nearby, muttering to myself as I find a mistake and have to tink. Don't you dare mention the stinking pile of day-old dishes in my sink or the mountain of clean laundry waiting to be folded and put away in the middle of my bedroom floor. And when I end up with a bleeding ulcer, an incurable migraine or a nervous breakdown (or all three), and am laying in a hospital bed, far away from any internet connection, THEN you can nod your heads and sagely comment, "I saw it coming. She's only human, after all. Just who did she think she was?"

Here's the run down - Fabulous Felted Backpack from Bags - a Knitter's Dozen, made from Mary Lu's Schuss Plus 100% wool worsted weight yarn (I held two strands together) on size 10 needles. I added one pattern repeat to the length, because I didn't want the felting process to result in a bag that was too short. Nothing's worse than a skimpy bag, IMHO. It took a dedicated weekend of knitting to make. I was not able to completely forego the cable needle because the side cables are six-stitch cables but I did manage the center cable/bobble pattern without a cable needle and without turning the bag on the bobbles. This is a bag I'm definitely making again because it worked up so fast and fabulous. Maybe in ballet pink for my DD#1?

Just to add to my holiday stress, my washing machine died. The repairman came today and declared it DOA. It would cost more to repair it (in labor) than a new machine will cost. Of course, given the state of our holiday finances, this is NOT a good time to spend $500 or more on a new machine, so my blessed, talented DH is researching how to get the part, to see if he can fix it himself. Being an electrical engineer extraordinaire, I know he has the ability, but the time? Ah, that is another matter entirely. And with a family of six (plus one old, sick cat who throws up on a regular basis on anything soft he can find), I cannot be without a machine for long without having to contact people like Sheepish Annie, with a surplus of necessary garments to donate to a worthy cause. What to do?

Time to cook dinner and prep for Awana. Ah, the scent of adrenaline. Nothing like the smells of the season.