The birthday love keeps rolling in

Yesterday I took my Mom to chemo. This will sound sick, but I had a really good time. My sister watched my children so it was just me and my Mom, something that rarely happens these days. We chatted and laughed on the drive up and back. After chemo we got a bite to eat together. And while she was actually getting her chemo I got to sit quietly and knit, and no one interrupted me for a glass of chocolate milk. It was really nice, except for the part where they pumped my mother full of toxic chemicals. Only five more weeks to go.

When we came home we got the mail and I mournfully said "none of that looks like yarn." Then we got home and I found a big box full of it.



This is the yarn for socks for The Greatest. When he got home from work I was showing him the yarn as he changed from his work clothes. The first thing I showed him was his yarn, and he told me I got new sock yarn just in time, he had almost worn out the other pair I knit him. He was actually wearing the socks I knit him earlier this year, and it's true, he's worn them so much the heel is thin. It just made me happy to know he truly likes something I put so much time and love into making for him (not to mention knitting him socks is a good way to avoid finishing Evil).



This is the hydrangea sock yarn. I think I'll make socks for the girls with this. When I showed it to The Greatest he was a little miffed because this yarn feels softer and silkier than his sock yarn. I told him he'd have to branch away from taupe to get the good stuff.



This may be my favorite yarn purchase. I'm going to make socks for me with this. I'm didn't used to be a fan of color. I wore all black for five or six years straight. It's just recently that I've started wearing color in my wardrobe and I'm surprised by the color combinations I'm drawn to. I just love this pink and yellow. I'll probably knit these socks up first when I finally get to play with the yarn purchases.



This is my Merino Style Hollyberry yarn for Hopeful. I think it will make the nicest holiday top. Hopefully (no lame pun intended) I'll be able to finish it before the holidays. If this doesn't work for Hopeful I'll swatch it up for the knitted corset.



This is the yarn I was most excited to buy and the yarn I am most uncertain about. I could not photograph this color and make the color come out true. It is more of a medium purple, very pretty, but the color it photographs is the color I really wanted. I still like it enough to keep and and swatch it for the knitted corset.

So there's my yarn. I've forbidden myself to so much as swatch it before I finish the Pinwheel Blanket and the Afghan for my Aunt. I haven't touched the afghan, and my pinwheel blanket is up to 620 stitches. It could be awhile. I do find it ironic that I took a break from my Aunt's blue blanket to knit a ..... Blue blanket.