Knitting

I'm going to focus on knitting today.  The weather is supposed to be miserable, heading rapidly towards rotten.  As a matter of fact, they're threatening us with snow both today and tomorrow.  Late season snow is not unusual in Ontario, we rarely make it through April without at least one storm, but we've had such a mild and dry winter that it's a big deal.  

I want to finish my most recent project, which is a baby afghan for my cousin's daughter.  Apparently they are expecting a boy, so I've purchased white yarn with a pale blue thread and am making a basket weave stitch baby blanket for her.  The woman at the knitting shop said that this particular yarn but with a black thread is very popular for people who don't know if they're having a boy or a girl.  I must be old fashioned, because I cannot imagine purchasing or making anything black for a baby.  Especially before it is born.  I never thought of myself as particularly superstitious, but I draw the line at black for babies.  Personally, I would like brighter and more cheerful colours such as red and purple and green and royal blue, but I have no idea what the new mother has planned for a colour scheme so I will restrain myself and go pastel. 

The basic pattern for this blanket is pretty straightforward, but I'm using a row counter and stitch markers to be sure that I don't get distracted and mess up.  I started and ripped out the stitches several times until I realized that I had to have physical reminders to keep everything on track.  It's going much better now, and I can enjoy the knitting instead of counting and recounting.  I've just started the third ball of six, so I'm pretty well half-way through, and the baby is due in May.  I had started this afghan about a week ago and was knitting like a wild thing, but then I got distracted and things came to an abrupt stop.  I've had my little break and it's time to get back on track.  My next quilt block class is coming up quickly, and I know there will be homework so it will be nice to finish one project before the next one piles up.  Also I'd like to have the blanket done sooner rather than later, because you never know whether babies will arrive as planned.    

Joan and I had a wonderful visit.  We had so much to catch up on that we probably didn't stop talking.  I'm still thinking of things I meant to mention or show her, but she's back in Winnipeg and working today, her vacation is over.  We had a lot of fun at the McMichael Gallery in Kleinburg.  It was a beautiful day, and the gallery is in a wonderful location with miles of hiking trails and beautiful grounds.  The actual building is a huge stone and log construction which fits into the landscaping perfectly.  It is dedicated to Canadian artists including the Group of Seven and our First Nations and Inuit artists.  One of the things we really noticed is that the walls where the art is displayed are not white, but rich warm colours.  The paintings really stand out and seem even more important when they're not washed out by white walls.  I had been to the McMichael Gallery about 30 years ago, when we first moved to Ontario, and I had far more appreciation this time.