Rhythm

The rhythm of this new year and a new semester is taking a while to sink in. My teaching days and times have changed, and my inner clock/diary is confused..

It's a new drum. A new tune.

Part of my new weekly rhythm is swimming. My husband is a swimmer - a good swimmer - and before our son was born he helped me to improve my technique. I'm getting back into the groove - and it's noticeable how things improve week by week. Tonight I did 50 lengths.

Crafting and knitting and sewing have little space in my week at the moment. Snatched moments here and there are all I've been able to muster. No evenings of sewing like there were before Christmas - although I'm desperate to get my machine out and try out my new walking foot (thanks, Santa!) I have been knitting some socks for a friend's 40th though. I thought I would nail the pair before the great day, but I didn't. I didnt even manage to finish the first one before the party. Sigh. Last night we watched a film and I cast on sock no. 2. The film was Valkyrie. We enjoyed it and the sock grew nicely. I'll show it to you when it's finished. It's stripey (of course).

New Year's Evolution

Like many people, I can't resist making New Year resolutions. This year, like most years, I am trying to make positive and small changes. My overall goals for the year are two fold: do more exercise, and simplify our lives where possible.

Rather than throw myself into a New Year routine of running, swimming and working out - which is likely to lapse well before Easter, this year I am trying a different route. I am trying to build things up, to evolve our routines and patterns slowly - making more time and space for physical activity. Some of the opportunities will - I hope - be about us as a family, and some will be just about me. If it works, then by the end of the year things should look and feel a bit different. I'd like to be a lot fitter, if nothing else.

So far, we've resurrected our habit of going for a family swim at the weekend. Swim is a loose description of what we do, but that's not really the point when you've got two preschoolers! In addition, I've dropped my pilates class in favour of something a bit more aerobic - my core muscles may be strong, but my fitness level is pretty low - and that's my priority at the moment. So, I'll be swimming instead...

In other news, I have finally abandoned the lovely, but (for me anyway) completely unknittable Betty from Rowan Winter Kids. I love the look of this jumper, which I was trying to make for a friends daughter - but I have failed at every turn. Although this is a lace pattern, there are no charts, only a written description of the 4 or 12 row patterns involved. I can follow those okay - but get into bother when it comes to accommodating either increases or decreases and find myself and the correct pattern parting company making a unholey mess rather than a lovely lace fabric. I have cast on cuffs, sleeves and back in an attempt to get this going. To no avail - I think I have ripped back about 6 times now. Grrr.