As usual, Lent is invoking some attempts at self-improvement. The most notable of these is a change in diet - giving up dairy products and gluten as an experiment to see if that helps some low-level health problems. Interestingly the most noticeable benefit has been a returning sense of smell, which all but disappeared after the jelly bean was born. My husband found it incredible that I couldn't detect the different smells of our children. But now I can, and it's nice :)
The crafting self-improvement going on here is all about the WIPs. I'm not casting on anything new, and trying to finish something: anything! There have just been too few FOs this year for my liking (can it really only be one thing that I've finished? Yikes).
The chevron blanket is growing nicely, and has gobbled up oodles and oodles of yarn. Even though the blanket is a bit narrower than I intended (note to self: next time allow for the chevrons/ripples when measuring the foundation chain against the bed), each stripe is one ball of yarn. As there is only one more ball of pink yarn left after the one currently being worked, I am only planning to add another couple of stripes to the length. I may yet put a few rows of DC along the edge of the blanket to finish it off. Or I may not. It has proved to be a nice project - perfect for sitting on the sofa while watching a rugby match, and easy to put down at any moment to soothe a bumped head, supply drinks or snacks to small people or otherwise adjudicate in some filial dispute. The jelly bean already identifies it as her blanket, and likes to snuggle under it on my lap.
The next blanket (oh yes, it is already in the planning) will ripple in blue, and demolish the rest of the cotton yarns in the stash. As for those birthday socks, sock two is crawling towards the toe - I managed a few rounds at the weekend when I was at the hairdresser. If they aren't finished before the blanket, they will be next on the list, and then good old Deli will have to come out of the knitting bag for those three miles of knitted trim to be applied...
For all sorts of reasons and in all sorts of ways, I in the midst of a process of paring back. Firstly, I am trying to pare back the wheat and gluten in my diet. I have been gluten free a couple of times before and on both occasions I felt very well. This time the motivation is different and purely driven by me; the other times it was to do with the country I was in and breastfeeding a fussy baby... I've been doing it for a couple of weeks now and I quite like the way it's going. Second, I am trying to pare back my wardrobe. I was reading about blogger Sooz's decision to stop buying commercially made clothes and the liberation that came with sitting down to think about a wardrobe of garments that worked together, and a lightbulb came on in my own head. I have too many clothes (dont we all?) and although I am making an effort to wear more of them, there are still many things that no longer fit, have never flattered or which just dont work. So, I have started to write a list of all the clothes that I own; to think about the colours and styles that suit me best; to be honest about the things which do and dont fit; to assess which things might be refashioned (for me or the children) and which things it would be better to donate to a local charity shop. I'm excited about this. It feels grown up and organised and good and I'm looking forward to the actual sorting/off loading and refashioning that will result. Third, I am thinking about the way in which we can pare back the carbon that our family consumes/relies on: the way that we travel; the way we use energy in our home; the things that we eat. You know, we might not have long to get to grips with climate change and we can all play a part. 74 months left.
