High Fiber--Fluffy and Cold

We got another blizzard, starting Saturday night. Here's what it looked like midday on Sunday:

This is the time of year to be concerned with those less fortunate. Do you carry a packet of nonperishable food in your car? You never know when you might come across someone in need. Our Squeeky has been stowing peanuts away for cold weather:

Still, Squeeky has us to feed him, the least we can do when he's so accurate predicting the weather for us. (If he makes multiple trips to our back upstairs deck for sunflower seeds and peanuts, we know a storm is coming!) We think Squeeky is either a Chickaree or an American Red Squirrel, which might be the same thing. He has been living here since about the time we got Rocky six years ago.

The snow brings opportunities for outdoor fun, though. Saturday we went snowshoeing. Here Rocky jumps to catch a snowball I threw for him.

It has been a busy week, though. I worked on Christmas presents all week. I finished the Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) for Daphne. (I've been using the pattern in Elizabeth Zimmermann's The Opinionated Knitter. Here's the front--

And the back. I started out with Knit Picks Stroll spinning fiber and dyed it with Koolaid. (Photos of the process were discussed in an earlier blog.) Then I made a worsted-weight three-ply to make a bigger version than I made before.

I lengthened the sleeves, which can start out turned up as cuffs. As she grows, they can be turned down. I also made a hood for it based on Elizabeth Zimmermann's Tomten Jacket hood. It worked out great. I had never done grafting with garter st before, but her instructions made it easy. Easier, in fact, than Kitchener St. for the toe of a sock. Bet you can't see which row of sts is the grafting!

I haven't shown a picture of Daphne for a while, so here she is, seven months old. I will see her in just a few days! Her first Christmas will be here at our house!

Vintage Stitchers met on Thursday for its annual potluck lunch holiday party. Everyone had something to show. To see all the quilts and quilt tops we had for show and tell, check out my Quilt With Us page and my photos.

Besides the BSJ, I finished up the second and third felted bag. The one on the left will hold Oh Baby! Crochet, and the lucky recipient of the one on the right will get Knit & Wrap by Nathalie Mornu, which includes a pattern by our own Cheryl Waters and Anet Skillin.

There is also a learn to spin kit from Blue Moon Alpaca Ranch, to which I have added some of KP's Peruvian Wool spinning roving. Other knitted and quilted presents for friends and family may be seen in my previous blogs.

I just took the last of the pacapoo off my wheel. It's drying now, so I should be able to start DH's hat tomorrow! I still have presents to wrap and cleanup to do.

My app of the week is Jingle All the Way. I'm looking forward to showing this to Daphne, although she will be a little young for it right now. It includes the book, which is about a Husky pup who gets a home for Christmas. Kids can read the book themselves or have it read to them, make their own recording with a music background, put together puzzles and play a barking xylophone. You can get the stuffed toy to go with it or not. What a fun app! (It was free when I got mine, so even better!)

If you have kids with you Christmas Eve, check this out. You can track Santa's progress around the world!

Happy holidays, everyone! I'll see you before New Year's Eve!