Knitting Update, June

Happy June, everyone!

Time for my monthly knitting update (a la Ginny's Yarn Along style).

Last month, I mentioned that I had finished my Destination Unknown socks (3rd pair from left in photo below) and wasn't sure what I would do next knitting-wise.  There's a Christmas stocking to knit before Thanksgiving for upcoming Grandbaby #5, but I really didn't feel quite like starting it in May to set aside until such time as the child has a name to be knitting into the stocking.  So I decided to do some mending.  

What I thought was 'some' mending of a few pair of socks that had gotten holes worn in the heels or balls of feet--or both--over the last couple years since I'd last darned hand knit socks ended up being a whole lot of socks!  The photo below shows them all mended, washed, and hanging on the clothesline to dry.  Also shown are the fingerless mitts I knit early this spring, and my pair of Destination Unknown socks finished in late April/early May.  

Everything in that line up, with the exception of the purple and green socks 2nd from right (which were a pair I received in a hand knit sock exchange pre-2016) was made by me since I learned to knit in January 2013.  In fact, my very first pair of socks is the 4th pair from left.

I was a little astounded by the number of socks on the line.  Those are just my socks, knit for myself.  Plus there were about 9 more pair in my dresser at the time (including 6 pair of short anklet type socks).  That's a lot of socks!  And when I stopped to tally up all the socks I've made and gifted to others in the last nine years, well, that's a whole lot of socks!! At least 30 pair of socks total probably closer to 40 pair. 

Guess I'm kinda partial to knitting socks.  

Darning all those socks took my knitting time for about a week.  During that time, I decided that before I start on that Christmas stocking, I wanted to make a pair of socks for Faline's (and this new grandbaby's) other grandma, who is a friend and often admires my socks when she notices me wearing them. 

I chose some Felici yarn in Ever After from my stash to use for her socks, and am making the Trickle pattern found on Ravelry.  I think she's going to love them. Unfortunately, the picture doesn't do justice to the colorway, but you can see the stitch pattern pretty well.  The first sock is knit through the heel flap currently.

It's that time of year when there's lots and lots and lots more outdoor work to be done, so I expect my knitting time to slow quite a bit. My goal is to work on these through the summer and have them ready to gift in mid-August when she and I resume Tag Team Grandma babysitting Faline for the coming school year.

Reading has also slowed down. In May I read one book.  I didn't finish Braiding Sweetgrass before it had to be returned to the library--there are lots of people who have it on request.  I will have to try again to get it in the winter when I have more reading time again.

The book I did get to read all the way through was Her New Story by Laura Bradford.  It's ok. Nothing tremendous, but good enough that I read the whole thing.  Light, easy reading, but too much trying to just generally throw modern women's topics into the Amish fiction genre and not enough real substance for me to rate it as really good.

Right now I am about halfway through Sold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris.  I had read a book by this author last year, and wanted to read more from her.  This one seems a little slower to me; it's just now picking up and just in time because about 20 pages ago I was thinking I might set it aside and read something different. Now, however, I'm wishing I had time to sit down and read straight through to the end.