Etiquette question:

also: Hi! I have Christmas to post about and knitting to show... later. Probably on New Year's Day when I'll be home in the daylight to take pictures.

So I have an etiquette question for you fellow knitters/crafters. If you are knitting in public (or in your office) and someone comes up to ask what you are making and you answer them but then they GRAB what you are making WHILE you are currently knitting (without asking, by the way) is it considered rude to stab them in the hand with your knitting needles (after you finish the row)?

Strictly hypothetical of course*

Also if the grabber is a non-knitter/crafter who tells you how to do things craft-wise are you within your rights to follow the stabbing up with some sort of kick?

*Okay fine, it's not hypothetical. but I didn't stab anyone so I think I deserve points for that.

It's beginning to smell a lot like Christmas

I don't bake that often, but the smell of baking cookies & buns is one of my favorite things about Christmas. I decided to take on the baking task this year, since Mom isn't doing any this year.


Gingersnaps (recipe from here). mmmmm. That is all I have to say about that. mmmmmm.


If the Gingersnaps earn an "mmmmmmm" then these earn an "mmmmmmm" with an added Homeresque drooling sound on the end.
Mom's Magic Cookie Bars. No idea where the recipe comes from but Mom made these every Christmas for as long as I can remember. These are addictive and good and..... Suffice to say I immediately put them in the freezer out of temptation's way as soon as they were cooled and cut.

It's not all sweet baking around here, I made these at Mom's request:

The recipe was called "Mini Frittatas" and I've been making them for a few years. I don't remember where I got the recipe or even when I came across it. The recipe calls for them to be baked sans tart shells in mini muffin cups. At some point along the years I started using the tart shells (unsweetened... one year I accidentally got sweetened tart shells... not good) and I like them this way a lot.


More Spiced Candied Pecans. I must have left something out when making these because they taste different than the first time around. However, they are still really good and they still need to be hidden away or there won't be any left and I will be unable to attend Christmas due to eating too many pecans.

Finally, my biggest accomplishment: Buns. My mom is an expert bun maker. I grew up watching her make them every couple of weeks and she had this unreal way of pinching off dough and squeezing it through her hand and, poof, there's a perfectly formed bun. I can't do that. But I am pretty happy with these. I've never been particularly fond of working with yeast dough (sticky, frustrating, etc) but I'm getting the hang of these (I made some last weekend as a test).




The hard part now is not eating them...

I think I'm done now, but we don't leave until Wednesday so there may still be another batch of something to come... Or maybe I should just do some knitting...

Wow, time flies, huh?

My weekend with Mom turned out differently than planned. On my way home my sister-in-law called to tell me that Mom was being transferred to Saskatoon to begin radiation treatments. I was almost to my hometown at the time so I just carried on and went to Saskatoon the next day. Mom looked really good and was in good spirits. Her symptoms (memory, speech issues etc) were still pretty noticeable but she was doing really well otherwise. So I spent the weekend visiting with her in the hospital there. On my way back to Calgary the Boy called to tell me there was a heavy snowfall warning, and he was not kidding. We got around 15 - 20 centimeters in one day. It was heavy wet snow and the roads were terrible. The last 150 km of my drive was so slow... it took about an hour longer than it should have. Whew.

The past week and a half have been COLD. -25C to -35C (-13F to -31F) ish. so cold. And snowy. And icy roads. And... Yes, I know, I live in Canada. Yes, I grew up in Saskatchewan (even colder and worse winters). But it's cold and I'm ready for a Chinook now...

So I made myself a new toque last night.


Yarn: handspun
Pattern: Merlot from Stickchicky.
Mods: I was running out of yarn so I did the decreases at the top faster than written (i.e. 1 dec. round, 1 round plain until I had 5 stitches between decreases then dec. every round)


Love this toque! It's big enough for my big noggin, long enough to cover my ears and just slouchy enough.



I'm not doing much Christmas knitting this year. But that doesn't seem to have prevented last minute knitting crunch time...

Mom's Christmas present in progress... I have time. Honest. (February Lady Sweater)

Available in Prescription Strength or Over the Counter

We haven't really had any news about my Mom. She will start radiation treatments on Friday. I'm going to be going to spend the weekend with her, leaving tomorrow morning. Things sort of hit me harder the last day or so and I've been a tad emotional. My poor manager, I burst into tears just trying to tell him I was going to take tomorrow and Friday off. The Boy has been very supportive during all of this, he's a keeper. He cemented that status with the following:

I apologize in advance if the following inflames feelings of jealousy in any of you.



He showed up at my office just after lunch with a 1/2 dozen cupcakes from Crave. My female coworkers were smitten by the thoughtfulness, and even more so when I shared a couple of the cupcakes with the group. I, of course, teared up what with being overly emotional and the thoughtfulness and the fact that I had just been wishing I had something chocolate to eat.

A couple of weekends ago, when we were just waiting for news and I was trying not to go crazy, I told the Boy that I wanted a cupcake and decided they should be prescribed for any emotional difficulties. I stand by that assertion after today. Trust me.