And we're (almost) off!

Filia and I are taking a mother-daughter break this week. It's not the traditional mother-daughter stuff, done over the weekend and involving lots of shopping. (If it's not yarn, I'm generally not a shopper. And even if it is yarn, I'd rather shop for one project and start knitting than just 'shop'. Maybe that's why my stash is in the shape it is.) No, our mother-daughter break will take place at a hospital, and it will involve a literal break, to be followed by a cast. Hopefully (according to Filia) neon orange. Two or three days and much knitting later, we'll head home. Sound fun?

We think so.

The pre-op doesn't involve anything remotely like 12 cups of Go-Lytely (akin to the stuff one drinks before a colonoscopy), and there are no incisions to hurt while sitting up ... what's not to like? Nurses, yummy hospital food, visitors, more videos than one is normally allowed to watch, no chores. And lots of knitting time. Plus,it means the start of school gets delayed. What's not to like?

Filia hasn't decided what she's going to bring to knit. I'm working hard to figure out what I can safely leave home. I think my spinning wheel will stay home (just not that much room in the hospital!), which means I need to get some yarn plied for easier twined knitting. I finished the mitten I was working on, and it's become a 'sample' since it didn't shrink widthwise In The Least. 10" circumference before felting, 10" after felting. At least the mitten had the good grace to shrink lengthwise, all of 10%. I love how it feels. Twined knitting with fingering weight yarn and felting ... mmm, mmm, good.

I've got a pair of socks on the needles as well, and will be swatching for Filia's sweater if both they and the mittens get done. And there's yarn for the nifty starfish-shaped hat from America Knits, so I need to jot the pattern down. I can't see bringing a HUGE book along for the 13 lines or so the pattern is. Unless I need reading material? Maybe I should bring it. And maybe some spare yarn in case I want to cast on for a Latvian mitten.

Packing for the hospital isn't the challenge, though. No, it's packing for the overnight BEFORE the hospital We don't want to get up at 4 AM and drive for 2+ hours, so we're imposing upon someone who just happens to live closer to the hospital than we do. And she knits, and wants to pick my brain about knitting. And so, I've got to bring my mitten box. And my twined knitting books. And my fair goodies. And and and and. We're going to have fun. (If we have too much fun, I won't have to worry about waking up early. I'll still be awake!)

Besides the twined mitten that came off my needles, I have made another pair of felted slippers (argh. The opening is too big. Next try - felted clogs), and finished my legwarmers. Two hats have contributed to stash depletion, too.

And that's the knitting and non-schooling news from the non-hurricane-prone North.