Mother's Day and Stuff

So, what did you get for Mother's Day?

I bet you didn't get one of these?

It took Wy-Guy all of about 3 minutes of snake-hunting to grab this slithering creature which he ran all the way home with. I swear, this kid has some sort of sixth sense when it comes to reptiles, and even though he's been bit at least a dozen times (In fact, snakes seem to have a particular "taste" for him because even snakes that "never bite" bite him. So I guess the attraction is mutual.) he has absolutely NO fear of snakes.

Well, a debate quickly broke out between 13 yo Trav and Wy-Guy as to exactly what kind of snake it was and since DH wasn't home to resolve it, we made a quick trip to Borders. This worked out since Trav and I needed some help with all the planes and trains that have started travelling at different speeds between New York and Chicago in his Algebra book.

Anyway, knitting... where have I been and have I been knitting? Oh yes, there's been knitting... even a couple of visits to the LYS to obsess about "the white cardigan" and knit with Wendy.

Finally, Friday afternoon, I decided I should run and get a gift for my mom (since, you know, Mother's Day was quickly approaching). I was on my way to get a gift certificate but oddly enough found myself driving up the coast to a yarn store. I knew she'd been wanting me to knit something for her. We had talked about it around her birthday in March, but never finalized a pattern or color so I was afraid to invest the time into something she would like. I was hoping to find something small and special to knit to give to her along with the certificate but when I walked in, I saw the perfect sweater for her. So, on Friday at 5:00 I walked through my front door with this...

It's Rowan's new Damask - a Linen, viscose, acrylic blend - for Tulip from the Spring/Summer 2007 Rowan magazine.

And for my MIL...

and, well, because I was there...

So I knit like crazy all weekend and finished... the back. Yes, it was a little anti-climatic to present her with the finished back of a sweater for Mother's Day (and belated b-day) but I should be able to get the fronts whipped out pretty quick.

The yarn is really nice. The color variations are beautiful and it just glides across the needles. It has an uneven twist to it that tends to split a bit, but provides an interesting textured look that, to the delight of my perfectionist streak, alleviates any pressure for perfect, even stitches when speed-knitting.

And... would you believe... I finished another pair of socks?? I should mention that I finished the first one last October or something. Anyway, they're Knitty's Crusoe socks knit on size 1 dpns with 1 hank of Lorna's Laces Daffodil sock yarn. (If anyone's interested, I'll be adding the 2nd hank to my stashout.)

Happy Mother's Day Bloggy Friends!