Merry Christmas to All Who Celebrated

I hope everyone who celebrates Christmas had a good one yesterday. And if you don't I hope you had a lovely, relaxing weekend.

My Christmas was good, though we did things Friday, Saturday, and today, so it seemed to go on forever. I never really got in the spirit this year. It's been a tough year, and knowing that my sister is in the situation she is in didn't make it any easier. She called my parents' on Christmas day, and that was really time there was an uncomfortable lull in conversation.

We are not religious, but we were raised in the tradition, so we do gifts and use the time to get together with family. As nice as it can be, I almost wish we could just spread the giving and the visiting throughout the year and sort of let go of the Christmas frenzy. Not that I got terribly frenzied, but I did get stressed out by it all the same.

We can't let go of it, though, he has nine, eleven, and sixteen-year-olds who most definitely still expect Christmas. I would feel differently if there were also still a three and a one-year-old around, but the fact that there are those kid-shaped holes is what makes me want to ditch the whole thing.

Knitting

I finished the cabled scarf and gave it to him yesterday. He wore it all evening and when we went out today.

I finally made a hat out of the hand-spun from my secret pal (who deserves many thanks for the Christmas card and lovely bookmark she sent -- Thanks, Julie!); I used the pattern for the Sparkle Hat from Stitch 'N Bitch, but without the sparkle (I'm just not a sequin kind of girl). It was a quick knit, but because I didn't swatch, it came out a bit smaller than the original. It's more of a beanie than a full-coverage hat, but it keeps my head warm and I like it a lot. It has been dubbed the pickle hat, however, because of the bright green color and bumpy texture.

The Sophie is finished and in use. I am going to make another for my sister in the same colorway, since I have enough yarn left. I wanted to gauge her reaction to it first. My father is constantly surprised and amazed and delighted by what I come up with in my knitting. On one hand, it's nice, but on the other it does make me wonder what exactly he thinks my limitations are.


I do not have to go back to work until January third. This makes me happy, and I know how lucky I am to get this time off, paid, without having to sacrificing any accrued vacation time. I'm not sure how I will be spending the days this year, other than a daily trip to the gym, of course. I should try to get some writing or editing done, I'll do some knitting, and I should really do some hardcore house cleaning. Maybe I'll actually get my 100 Things typed and posted, but I'm not counting on it. I just hope I don't sleep until 10 and stare off into space all day for the next week, that'd be a waste of the resource. I'll try to keep you posted.