Goodies, blessings and frustrations

Oh where to begin! Just before the holiday weekend I received a package from my swap pal in the Knitters Coffee Swap! Look at the goodies! Delicious cookies, Swiss chocolate *I have been so good - I left it home over the holiday weekend so that I wouldn't have to share it I didn't eat it all at once* A great calender filled with pictures of Switzerland sceneries *I'll take to work in my office so that I have something to daydream about when it gets stressfull* heehee



And look at this yarn! I just love the gorgeous blue! Thank you so much Andrea for a great package!



I had to work on Wednesday, so I did not set out for the folks house till early Thursday morning. It was a bitch to get up that early on a day that I knew I didn't need to get to work, but at least someone else was working that day and made my drive a tad more enjoyable. I could drive while that was the view out of my car window :)



After stopping at the Starbucks just at the end of my street I hit the road. It was about 6:45 AM. The drive was rather pleasant and not much traffic *now that's something to be thankful for on Thanksgiving morning* and I pulled into my parents' driveway at 10:15 AM. I pray, pray, pray that the NJ Turnpike people don't compare distance to time stamps or I'm in trouble! Somehow with my foot to the floor driving like Maria Andretti I shaved almost an hour off my drive time. I swear I was going with the flow of traffic! *whistles innocently*

My youngest niece gets sooooooooooo into the holidays and decorating. She's 8. She set the dining room table all by herself!


Mom made way too much food that evening. We had traditional Italian wedding soup, a turkey AND ham, oddles of different veggies dishes, fruit, desserts, and coffee and she was thinking of making PASTA! No matter how long my folks have lived in this country they still feel the need to turn every holiday meal into a 7 course Italian holiday meal! Needless to say I was send home with half a ham (I took the ham bone so that I can make 15 bean soup *yummy*) AND half a turkey breast! Anyone know any good recipies to use leftover turkey or ham???



Yup, that's me working on those fairy squares at the Thanksgiving table. Italians traditionally sit around after the main meal is finished talking and digesting before the dessert course starts *laugh* So, why waiste time?? I pulled out my knitting back and get to it! 3 more squares were completed this weekend!! For a grand total of 9 squares completed!! Just 7 more to go before I can put them together and have it start looking like an afghan!



While I was doing this I got to listen to my mother calling me crazy over and over again. My mom doesn't really understand hobbies. Strange considering she used to crochet and sew. And my mother wonderings why I don't share more things with her. It's a shame really, I had planned on having a heart-to-heart mother daughter talk with her this weekend about Mr. X and that whole situation. Yeah, that didn't happen after this.

While my mom was cleaning out some things she came across my baby blanket! She crocheted this one for me. When I was a little older she had taken the squares apart and turned it into a shawl, which is how it currently it. I had thought about taking back apart and turning in back into a baby blanket, but I don't think I can match up that yellow yarn.



She also found this granny square dress that my Nonna had crocheted for me when I was a wee little thing. I was really suprised the still had these things. There are some spots on the dress that I'm not sure how to get out. I'm thinking of getting a nice size shadow bow and putting both of these items into it so that I can hang them on a wall in my house.



Here's an update photo of my sister's Soft Waves ripple. I'm at the halfway mark!