I walked to the end of the driveway a few minutes ago to get the mail. Best thing I've done all week. MY YARN IS HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

Ok, now that the yelling is out of the way, let me explain...

I have a favorite sweater. I bought it about 15 years ago, oatmeal in color, basic construction, fairly lightweight as sweaters go. Essentially, it is the perfect garment.
Fastward to 2008, where I have been noticing that said sweater weighs a little less than it used to...it is starting to wear. No holes yet (Thank God!) but, I'm afraid, they may be inevitable in the coming months. Now, I was concerned about this, so I thought - I knit - why not make a new one? Use the same construction, maybe a dk weight yarn, and just knit up a new one. I thought, eh, it will be all right, hours of stockinette in an oatmeal colourway...I'll survive the boringness of it all. So I began passively looking for said yarn. Something lightweight, yet warm and oatmeal, definitely oatmeal. I didn't find anything that screamed perfect sweater to me.
Then, one day, a month or two ago, I was reading a blog post by fellow blogger , Red Sox Fan and indie dyer Amanda Dahl (of NH Knitting Mama fame). She was having a bit of a yarn sale on her blog and I was glancing through the colors going...ooohhh I wish that one hadn't sold, oh I like that one, ooohhh that's pretty...when I happened to see a skein labelled - Cordial -. It had sold already, but I was smitten. It was GORGEOUS! AND - it screamed make me into a sweater! I commented on her blog and the rest is history. She was very willing to make up a sweaters worth in dk weight Blue Face Leicester for me (omg soft!) and voila! I have just opened a package of yarn that promises to be a beautiful garment. It's not oatmeal. It's better! (Best of all it won't be boring to knit all that stockinette, given the gorgeousness of the colourway!)

Of course, you need pictures!

Here's the original:

Here's the original, plus the package:

Sneak Peek!:

YARN!:

This woman is very talented! Run, don't walk to her etsy shop...NH Knitting Mama

love. hats. family. and yarn. lots of yarn.

Moved.
Finally.
Currently Unpacking.
Ugh.

On the upside, I have the best significant other in the entire world. Long story short, he is in Australia, I am in the US. It's difficult to be so far away. Very difficult.

On the upside, He was able to come here last September for three weeks and I was able to go there for the month of February. There are also plans in the works for more international/intercontinental travelling in the coming months, and possibly more (fingers are firmly crossed...except when knitting...then it's needles crossed ;) ).

The trip to Aus was hands down the most amazing thing I have ever experienced in my life. When I arrived home I gave my dad the "Aussie" cowboy hat that D had purchased for him (he got one for himself as well and oh my...) as a souvenir. He Loved it. Apparently, so did both of my grandfathers. I mentioned it to D and he went out and got two more and just recently shipped them to me, so that all four of them could have matching hats. They were tickled pink....

errrr....

I mean,

ruggedly enthused???

While we were in the middle of the move this past week, we made a point to get a pic of the three of them (my dad, and both grandfathers) to send to D. I thought I would share them here as well... aren't they dashing?

Now, all I have to do is convince D to let me post a pic of him with His hat on...

Oh, and in knitting related things...here is my newest adventure...it will probably be a pillow soon... "Ummm, Jenn, there isn't a pillow in that picture", you say, with one eyebrow raised inquisitively...? Stay tuned. :)

wonderful = love. hats. family. and yarn. lots of yarn.