The Bright Side

I don't know what the weather has been like in your part of the world, friends, but up here it has been WET.  Sure, we've had the occasional warm Spring Day (or now, technically Summer Day), but on the whole it's been rainy and grey and sometimes downright cold.

Now, in case you didn't know, Winter is a big deal in Canada.  After enduring six months of ice, snow, sleet, and mind-numbing, soul-sucking cold, we're all a bit shell-shocked, you know?  We need our oh-so-brief-but-glorious Spring and Summer to bring us back to life, to forget the horrors of Winter and remind us why anyone would ever choose to live in this God awful climate in the first place.

But this year, Spring just... didn't sprung.  And thus far, Summer's interest in making an appearance seems to be casual at best.  I'm not going to lie, it's been taking a toll on our moral. The first drop of rain,the slightest dip in the thermostat has us sighing in heavy exasperation and muttering to ourselves about the Gosh Dang Weather.  I've been trying to make the best of it (Knitwear is still appropriate!  Yay!  Everything is green and lush!  Super!), but this week I finally had to admit that the game was up and that the whole "It's good for the plants" spiel just wasn't going to cut it anymore.

The thing is though?  All this rain we've been having?  It really IS good for the plants.

The garden has EXPLODED, my friends.  Seriously, it's like a Girls Gone Wild video out there, only for plants.  The tomatoes I planted (that I grew from seed!!!) have gone berserk, the carrots are doing splendidly, I've got more garlic scapes than I know what to do with, and the basil, while tender, is fragrant and wonderful.

The only thing that hasn't been going crazy are the cucumbers (I suspect they aren't getting enough sun - Hah!  Get in line, dudes!).  I also had ZERO luck with my watermelon despite sowing the seeds twice, so I've changed plans for that raised bed and have planted spaghetti squash instead.  They look teeny now, but I know the ways of squash.  They'll be joining the veggie party, taking up all the room and making googly eyes at the green beans in no time.

So yeah... there's that.  And for those doldrums that the garden can't cure?  Well, there's always cross stitching.

Happy Knitting, Everyone!

Gulp

I made some fairly ambitious knitting resolutions this year. I wanted to knit 12 shawls, 15 pairs of socks, and try to use up 15000 yards, primarily from the stash if possible.  Ambitious, but totally doable, right? 

By the end of March, I had knit 3 pairs of socks, 3 shawls, and about 3000 yards, all from stash.  Not too shabby, eh?  I had this Knitting Goals thing in the BAG, people.

And then this happened...

Yup.  I totally drank the cross stitch Kool-Aid.  I have become a cross stitching fool.

I signed up for The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery's Springtime Sampler.  And the 2013 Woodland Sampler.  Aaaaaaand I might maybe have bought another of their patterns too. So yeah... I didn't just drink the Kool-Aid, I gulped it down and wiped my chin off on the sleeve of my merino and silk cardigan. Knitting Goals?  Pshaw!  I've got plenty of time, right!?

Happy Stitching everyone!