Frisian Frillies

At the moment, I'm in a spinning mood. Knitting, especially knitting patterns, requires concentration, and at the moment, I find it hard to keep that concentration. It's okay during the day, especially because I 'have to' concentrate for work and stuff, but as soon as the kids are in bed, I'm zonked. That is why progress on these beauties is slow. Veeeeeeery slow. But they are progressing! I've arrived at the large heel and am liking what I'm seeing. I did 6 repeats of the pattern on the leg, and I think they're just about long enough for my liking. I have fat legs and fat ankles, so the pattern will stretch out a little bit more than it does here, on the McVities cookie jar! The fun thing about this pattern is that it gets split in the middle on the front of the leg, where the big double cable turns into two small ones, like the ones on the side, with straight lines appearing where you increase the stitches. The pattern is beautiful and very clever...

Certain things are meant to be shared on a blog. Other things aren't. But still, sometimes you just have to post about something. However much you don't want to. Like the fact that my mom is ill. And it's serious and very unfair. The big C has wormed its way in our family again. We're all still trying to get to grips with the situation, trying to understand what is happening, catching up with what has been going on and looking forward to what needs to be done. We're in survival mode. All over again. I'll probably keep people updated via e-mail, but don't hesitate to contact me. Bepaalde zaken zijn er om op een blog te delen. Andere niet. Maar toch moet je soms ergens echt iets over zeggen. Ook al wil je dat niet. Zoals het feit dat mijn moeder ziek is. Het is ernstig en zo niet eerlijk. Het K-monster heeft zijn weg weer naar onze familie gevonden. We proberen een beetje te begrijpen wat er aan de hand is, wat er gebeurt, wat er is gebeurd en wat er allem...

Taking comfort in the little things, because the big things are a little bit too much at the moment... Troost zoeken in de kleine dingetjes, want de grote zijn nu even een beetje te veel...

No need to explain. Please donate money, it's the only way we can help... Doctors without Borders Dit hoef ik niet uit te leggen. Maak nu nog geld over, het is de enige manier waarop we een beetje kunnen helpen... Giro 555 Artsen zonder Grenzen * Please send out this Knit Signal to all your knitter friends. For more information, go to the Yarn Harlot .

I already explained earlier that we want to become a bit more of an eco-friendly family. We're trying to not spend too much on non-eco food stuff and other products. We eat with the seasons, grow (as much as possible of) our own fruit and veg and try to keep use of the car to a minimum. And with the current weather, that is not easy, I have to say! To welcome spring back into our world (well, after 3 weeks of continuous whiteness outside, however pretty, who wouldn't - apart from yous Canadians who live with snow 6 months of the year ;) ), I started looking around for some interesting seeds and plants for our allotment. And boy, did I hit the jackpot at the Webwinkel van Vergeten Eten ! Masses and masses of seeds of plants that we have 'forgotten', that are almost not grown here anymore and which would definitely enrich our horticultural heritage. I ordered two packages, one with beans and peas (which get eaten here a lot, and I'm very curious about the European so...

For some strange reason, I've decided that I'm going to knit less pink this year. If you look through my projects over the last year or two, the colour pink is just slightly over-represented, and that needs to change! I'm noticing a shift towards greans and blues, especially petrol, as this is a colour which seems to suit me very well, so that's good. But on the needles at the moment are: - Saskia, in pink - Lapwing, in pink - Sokkenpad, in pink - Scarf and hat from Garnstudio , in pink. That's a lot of pink! Hmmm.... I decided to undo this wrong by finishing off this last project. It's a gift for Elayah, who's turning two today (a big hoera!!!!). I could not decide on what to buy her as a gift, and as the wintry weather is here to stay for a little while longer, I decided to knit her as nice hat and scarf. Unfortunately, because of my quite last-minute decision, I did not have time to knit mittens, but I might do that later this week and then send ...

I took the 43 Things Personality Quiz and found out I'm an Organized Healthy Extrovert

I started watching my weight again... This time, I'm keeping a food diary, which already helps me at those difficult moments, when I would otherwise just grab a cookie, or make myself a sandwich...But my weight is not the only thing that is getting changed around the house, as my hands can tell you... I've been attacking my kitchen, more specifically the hob. That. Thing. Was. Dirty! Well, not the hob itself, but the burners... especially after making 'Stoofpeertjes' a few times and letting the stuff boil over a few times too often :D But, I'm getting there, with or without nails... Ik ben weer wat aan mijn gewicht gaan doen... Dit keer houd ik een eetdagboek bij, wat al helpt op die moeilijk momenten, waarop ik anders gewoon een koekje snaaide, of een boterham smeerde... Maar mijn gewicht is niet het enige wat hier in huis verandert, wat mijn handen je wel kunnen vertellen... Ik ben goed bezig in de keuken, en dan vooral het fornuis. Dat. Ding. Was. Vies! Nou ja,...

We started our new year fresh and early on the beach. We decided to do our own little 'Elfstedentocht', going from Leeuwarden to Harlingen, Workum and then Hindeloopen. We begonnen het nieuwe jaar vandaag fris en vroeg op het strand. We besloten een kleine 'Elfstedentocht' te rijden, vanuit Leeuwarden naar Harlingen, Workum en Hindeloopen. At Workum, the beach was covered with a nice layer of fresh snow, which created a beautiful backdrop for pictures and made it a great place for running around and playing. At the edge of the sea, the water was frozen, and with Steve, the kids were collecting big chunks of ice, which they were then lifting like weightlifters... Bij Workum lag er een mooi laagje verse sneeuw op het strand, waardoor het een prachtig plekje was om foto's te nemen en rond te rennen en te spelen. Aan de waterkant was de zee zelfs bevroren, zodat de kids met Steve grote brokken ijs konden losmaken om er daarna als gewichtheffers mee rond te lopen. ...