Cold Hands, Warm Hearts

It was a rather odd sort of beginning to the school vacation this year.  The holidays just fell into a weird pattern.  I didn't exit the building until the afternoon of the 23rd and found myself scrambling on Christmas Eve to get everything done.  That was a bit of a hassle.

However, there is an upside to this.  With the Wild Yuletide Hustle behind me, I have all sorts of time to clean up the carnage, reflect on the joy of the season and revel in my new stuff.  I did pretty well for myself this year.  

A few years ago, I gave my mom a puzzle for Christmas.  I thought it might be a nice challenge for her and the subject matter (butterflies) was quite lovely.  The finished product was the size of a small parking lot, but as pretty as I thought it might be.  Being a good sort of Mom and not wanting to waste all that hard work, she affixed it with puzzle adhesive and Daddy Sheep built a special frame for it.

In gorgeous purpleheart wood, no less!  Not exactly the easiest wood with which to work, but certainly one of the most lovely.

The final result was stunning.  Getting it into the car was a bit of a trial, but worth the effort.  It is now hanging in my living room and its glory makes the rest of the place look a bit shabby.  

Oh, and it seems that Mommy Sheep has discovered the joy that is Franklin.

And learned that he sells stuff...

There were all sorts of goodies that came home with me that day.  Foodstuffs, baubles, new jammies and the like...and almost all of it is put away at this point.  That is something of a new record!  And I still have more than a week of vacation time left to me.  Even New Year's Day, which normally represents the day to start getting myself together for the start of school, will be a restful one.  I don't have to resume my regular duties until the 5th of January.  I have all the time in the world!!!

Note:  This is a dangerous mindset and I know it.  I don't have all the time in the world.  I have a week.  And a week can seem very short when you are pretending that it is forever and it suddenly ends, but let's not shatter my illusions right now, 'kay?  I'm happy.  

With all this time on my chilly hands, I couldn't help but think that I should tend to those frozen phalanges.  I hearkened back to last Christmas and remembered that I had cashed in a gift certificate to the Yarn Sellar shortly after that particular holiday.  And one of the things that fairly jumped into my bag without my even having to encourage it at all was a bit of Malabrigo.  I'm a Sheepie with time to kill.  I can spend a day or so making some squooshy Malabrigo into something to keep me warm 'n cozy!  I don't even need to ask permission!  I know the perfect pattern for such a thing!  

The Maine Morning Mitts!!!!!

Off the hand, these look rather small, but that works for me.  I have small hands and like a snug fit in a mitt.  I also seem to have misplaced one and half pairs of MMMs.  That leaves one mitt and this does me very little good, really.  I needed another pair.  I also seemed to be feeling an irresistible urge to use that Malabrigo.  I'd never knit with it before, but I'd heard good things.

Second Note:  All those good things were very, very true.  This is the most bestest yarn!!!!  It took less than a skein to knit the pair and there is enough left over for some smallish mittens.  Again, since I have smallish hands and love the snug, this all works out.  

Yet Another Note:  Malabrigo is dangerous.  You suddenly want to knit sweaters out of it.  You want to slipcover your sofa in it.  You want to make a full suit out of it and wear it for the rest of your life.  This is not a cost-effective method of knitting.  You will lose your home and have to live in your car.  Granted, you will be very warm and cozy out there what with all the Malabrigo.  But I still suggest you use some restraint...

If you need me, I'll just be sitting over here admiring my new art, snuggling with the Malabrigo, noshing on Christmas chocolate and marveling over how much time remains to me before I must work for a living.  It's probably a good thing I got all that cool stuff for Christmas.  I won't have to shop for a while.  

And I must be saving my pennies so I can knit up that Malabrigo jumpsuit...

SA