It's been a mad, mad, mad, mad, mad month

Well, I knew December was going to get crazy, what with the holidays and trying to finish up my prospectus for my dissertation (which has now been accepted - yay!), but I didn't account for finding out in late November that my 34 year old husband had colon cancer and needed surgery ASAP. That threw us and our families for quite a loop, and I didn't quite feel up to blogging about it at the time. He had his surgery on the 17th of December and was home for Christmas. He is now so well recovered that he is back to walking the dog and doing all the cooking (I do believe he couldn't handle any more of my ham-handed kitchen attempts). He is still going to be getting chemotherapy in the new year, but the doctors are very positive about his recovery and future health. That, and his swift recovery from intrusive abdominal surgery has made things seem more manageable, and I plan to be back on a more regular posting schedule. I hope no one missed me too too much. ;) I missed all of you and all the bloggers I haven't been keeping up with - I have about 500 posts to read now, so I've got my work cut out for me!!

I have been busy all this time, so I'll have a few photos to share over the next few posts. Here's some merino from the Yarn Wench that I spun into a nice, even fingering weight yarn:

I believe the colorway was Squash, or maybe Squash Blossom, but I was too hasty in tidying up my labels. I've wanted to make Laila's Socks from Nancy Bush's Folk Knitting in Estonia ever since I saw them, in their original orange and white incarnation, and I think that this yarn may be the perfect choice for that. I'm very excited, though I'm worried about colorwork and socks - I haven't had too much luck making colorwork fit over my heel... Still, it's worth a shot!

This is Zen String superwash merino in Splendor:

Ever-kind Angelina surprised me with an extra 4 oz. of this when I ordered it, due to a shipping delay, so I have enough for a scarf - I'm thinking linen stitch - which I can't wait to start on as the yarn is sooo soft and colorful.

Finally, I feel terrible that I lied on a post a while back - the things down at the bottom that I said weren't socks? Yeah, they totally were. Here they are, in fact:

They're Bellatrix socks from Socktopia/Gigi Silva (whose site seems to be down at this post), knit from Zen String Bambewe in the Blissed colorway. I love how the yarn behaved with the funny yarnovers in the pattern.

Anyway - I'll be back soon, and hope you have a happy new years!