Nate and I are both going to the doctor this morning. We’re both sick and not getting better. After the doctor, I’m heading off to pick up the Clemes and Clemes that a woman I know is selling cheap. That’ll be 4 wheels in my house (tho’ one is out on loan), one for each of the girls, myself included.

It’s very exciting.

I washed an entire fleece yesterday. My revised method is SO much faster. So that leaves me with 2 left to wash. One of them is only 5 1/2 pounds, so that will be quick. I have to wait for my drying racks though. Washing more at a time takes longer to dry because the layers on the shelves are thicker.

It’s been a really long time since I actually knit something. I’m so antsy, but everything I can think of that I want to knit, I want to knit with handspun. That slows things down. But, my dye should be here soon, and I’ll take the plunge and make a big batch of something. I swear I will.

And I still have all that yarn I spun for Clark’s sweater, waiting to be dyed.

That could be a satisfying and quick knit.

In the meantime, I’m tapping my fingers for the dye to get here.

While we were in California having a great vacation, as I slept at night , I dreamt of fleece.

That’s so funny to me.

I ordered a bunch of dye yesterday. Colors that I can use straight and don’t have to mix. That should eliminate my problems. I’m so ready to be done “sampling.”

The second fleece is almost washed.

It’s the light gray, the one I want to make into sweaters for both Nate and myself, leaving me with three more to wash. I’ve washed this gray fleece much quicker than the others, washing more at a time, not separating and aligning the locks, and so far it’s worked out well. It’s cut my washing time by at least half.

I put Abby at the new wheel this morning before school, and she did great. It’s been quite awhile since she’s spun. I’m picking up another Clemes tomorrow from a lady I know that’s decided to sell hers. Abby likes the Clemes. As I was thinking about the girls spinning, and possibly taking them to fiber events, it occurred to me that a single treadle Ashford Joy would probably be perfect for the kids, as they’re so small and spin so easily. Too bad those aren’t cheap. I don’t think the girls could carry a Clemes, and the Traditional is light, but bulky.

Ugh, I’m sick. I’m really sick. A little better today, I wasn’t able to get out of bed Saturday and Sunday. Tomorrow is the first day of school. Wednesday, we head to California for a wedding and will be gone the rest of the week. We’re going to take the kids to Disneyland for the first time. We’re all excited.

Please, please let me be healthy.

So, since I missed Health Group on Saturday, I’ll just say that it’s been tough. I’ve been doing pretty good. Getting some exercise, eating pretty well. And I’m still puffy and on the high end of my normal weight range. Whatever. I have too much on my mind to worry about it now. When the kids are back in school and I’m back in a routine, I should be able to be more consistent.

So, our little trip to the cabin was super fun and Clark was just fine after sleeping the morning away.

Clark, who wouldn’t go near the trampoline in February, wanted to try this time.

Liv took to the spinning wheel and did really well. With my kids at least, they seem to do much better with a single treadle wheel. The double treadle is too much for them.

She filled a bobbin.

The spinning wheel was on this gorgeous place called Fox Island. The people selling it were a nice, older couple. Retired school teachers. The wheel is perfect and came with the lazy kate and 4 bobbins. I’m glad I thought to bring spinning wheel oil though. The wheel would barely turn and squeaked and squawked like crazy ’til I got some oil on it.

When we got home, I oiled the wood and took steel wool to the metal bits. It looks and spins great.

I think I’m going to card up the fleece I’ve been dyeing for the girls to spin. That seems like the best use for it, and they need something to learn on.

My throat is killing me and I’m tired. There’s not a TON to do to get ready to go, but I do have some work to do. Wish me luck. I’ll see you next week.

Yesterday, we took the kids to the Evergreen State Fair. I don’t think I’ve ever been. I didn’t get to walk through the exhibit bldgs, which I really wanted to, or ride the ferris wheel… but I saw sheep, and the kids had a really good time. We went with one of Nate’s brothers and his family, kind of last minute.

Veronica loved the Wacky Worm. She went three times.

Abby and Nate went on some hideous thing that spins you every-which-way you could imagine. I have no idea why she did it, but I’m proud of her.

We’re going anyway. It’ll be a low key trip.

I don’t understand what the problem is. He’s having digestive distress, again, and is very lethargic. The digestive distress pops up every couple of months for a day or so, but he doesn’t usually get sick with it. I’m assuming it’s a coincidence and hoping it doesn’t have to do with the fair.

Last night, while sitting in my favorite chair, I asked Nate to toss me my camel swatch that I noticed was on the floor. He did. I gasped.

Clark looked up, saw what had made me react, and then started bringing swatches to me.

When I looked at him with a sad face and said, “oh no, Clark!” he said, “Sorry mama. Sorry mama. I sorry mama.” He is the sweetest boy.

I had caught him earlier in the day with super sharp scissors that had been left on the floor, but didn’t think much of it. He was just holding them, and handed them over quite willingly. Fortunately, they’re only swatches. If any FO’s had been in the vicinity… I shudder to think. And his precious little fingers… And then I think that I’ve made it through four toddlers as a knitter without this happening ’til now. That’s pretty good.

My poor little camel swatch.

So, I have a mountain of bits of dyed wool samples that haven’t turned out.

This morning, I thought of dividing them into a couple of “colorways”, carding them to see what general color they’ll be, and dyeing some alpaca and silk to compliment it and turn it into something. Maybe sweaters for Liv and V, since they didn’t get theirs last year and it’d be neat to have a sample knit of this tweed I’m trying to come up with. A finished project to see it in the big picture.

It’s a thought.

I’ve picked a number of colors to order of the new dye I’m going to try. 11 or 12 of them, I think. I’m working my way through the washing of the first of my 5 new fleece, and I think I’m about half done. I also think I’m going to start stuffing my netting bags a little less carefully to speed up the process some. But I’m not sure if I’ll actually be able to do that.

Still working on things…

Anyway, with this dye I’m going to order, I think I’ve come up with some nice colorways, one of which is a masculine or gender neutral tan/brown color for Nate. When I said that I thought it would be romantic to make a sweater for both Nate and myself out of the same fleece, my kids looked at me like I was crazy.

I feel a little crazy.

Who cares? There are worse things. Crazy is fun.

First of all, the Wild Flyer is completely and totally, amazingly cool. It is going to take significantly less time to spin this wolf yarn now, and I will have hands free to work on placing the mohair better, instead of freeing it from the hooks all the time.

Here’s the latest skein.

Second, I love the new wool. Nate wanted me to card up some white wool, white alpaca and that gawsh-awful-ugly silk noil that didn’t dye well. So I did, and while I think the batt looked pretty bad

I’m spinning it up to see what the finished yarn will be like and really, I was just extremely anxious to spin this wool.

It spins like a dream. It’s the softest, silkiest, most delightfully easy-to-spin stuff ever. I’m so excited to make a batt with those fibers when they’re actually dyed pretty! And I think the wool is so silky, I can reduce the alpaca a little bit.

It cracks me up that women are primarily the spinners, while it’s ALWAYS the men that come up and ask questions when I’m spinning in public. They’re fascinated by the “machine”. I’ve had them lay on the floor and watch the treadles, then slowly get up as they scrutinized how the treadles connect to the wheel, connects to the pulley, connects to the flyer, etc. Last night was no exception. We had one man come and ask about how it works, and two men come up and ask what kind of fibers we were spinning. Then they went on and on about how nice alpaca is, talking more to each other than to me and my friend. Then they asked to touch it.

Makes me laugh. Why don’t more men spin, I wonder? There are two men in our spinning group and they’re great.

So a friend of mine took the Weaving Works spinning class last week, and is in need of a wheel. We met up last night and I lent her my Clemes. She loved it. They’re such nice little wheels.

I am SO excited! UPS is scheduled to deliver my Woolery order today, and I’m antsy. I ordered the wild flyer so I could spin my wolf yarn without having to clear the hooks every other draft. And I ordered one jumbo bobbin to ply on (however I’m curious, what good is a fatty skein when the standard ball winder won’t hold a ball that big? I’m going to find out I guess), plus two more regular bobbins (cheaper than, yet just as effective as a new wheel), and the Strauch fiber teaser. (I bought a dog flicker brush as I’d heard they’re just as good and way cheaper. They’re neither. The teasing tool is amazing, I’ve used one, and it’s only about twice as much as a flicker brush, which I didn’t find helpful at all).

So, lots of spinning goodies are coming my way and I can’t wait!

I’ve washed a couple pounds of the new wool.

Aside from an odd yellow stain on some of it, part way up the locks,

it’s fantastic. So much silkier than the white lamb I’ve been working with. I’m dying to dye some and make a batt from it, to see how it differs from the wool I already had.

And finally, I don’t know what’s going on with me. I’ve suddenly, over the last 2 1/2 weeks, ballooned out. My face is puffy, I don’t feel that great, my low back has gone into an absolute tissy, and most noticeably, my upper arms have grown. A lot. I don’t get it. I’ve been exercising. I haven’t eaten bad. This really sucks, I’m in a rotten mood over it, and I’m really glad I have something to look forward to today.

My day got away from me. I had every intention of dyeing some of the amazing baby camel down top that I have, but right now, I’m soaking part of a tan alpaca batt to test hot pour dyeing and my colors on.

I’ve spun a little of the camel. Just a tiny bit to see what it was like. I didn’t put enough twist in it and it’s a miracle I was able to ply it. But I did, and knit a tiny, incredibly soft little swatch which I’ve been rubbing between my fingers for a couple of days.

It hasn’t felted or balled at all. A good sign.

If I am able to dye it well, I think it’d be fun to add dyed camel top and handspun to my Tweedy Batts offerings. It’s such nice fiber. I think it’d make a delightful little neck scarf. A small one to tuck into a sweater or coat to keep the chill off. But, this is all assuming that I will EVER figure out how to dye properly. My confidence is nil. Hope remains high, however.

So, I’m going for greens. We’ll see how it works out.