New Books!

This week I finished Doris Lessing's The Cleft. It was a really enjoyable read, although I was expecting something more dramatic in the ending. It was an interesting imagining of gender in the early evolution of human society, with an unusual narrative style. It was just the step up in literature I was needing. Next I'm moving on to Lawrence J. Cohen's Playful Parenting. Sausages is going through a challenging time, and Husband and I are feeling that our parenting resource reservoir is low, so we're looking to recharge it a bit. Do you have any suggestions?

Last week was my birthday, and I received some exciting new books:

This from Husband. I'm looking forward to making some of the recipes soon!

This from one of my sisters. Bob's Christening is coming up, and while he will wear the gown we bought for Sausages', I felt he should have something of his own as well, so I'm planning an Aviatrix and sandals from this book as accessories. Because babies need accessories, right?! I have always felt it was a bit rude of Debbie Bliss to have her own gauge yarn and patterns, so I have never used the Cashmerino before, although I know a lot of people rave about it.

Last week I cast on a pair of dungarees in 4ply, but the ladies at my knitting group pointed out that I don't possibly have time to knit them before Bob is too big. So I have been a very good girl and lifted this vest out of hibernation. This is from another Debbie Bliss book, and the yarn is King Cole Moorland Aran in the "foliage" colourway, which makes a good camouflage effect as it knits up. The vest has lots of little pockets, and my plan is for Sausages to be able to wear it for his adventures over the summer, especially on the beach in Ireland. The Waves of Clew Bay shawl has had to be frogged, and I'm taking a break before I cast it on again. It serves me right for deviating from the pattern so far without doing the maths!

For my Birthday Treat the boys took me to Wimpole Hall Home Farm. We took a picnic in our lovely picnic basket with proper china and cutlery, and our brewing-up kit of gas stove, kettle, and tea pot. One should never be without the wherewithall for making a fresh pot of leaf tea, of course. The boys bought me a party cake from the supermarket, since Husband doesn't bake. Because we're National Trust members, the shop cake cost more than the rest of the day put together.

Sausages liked the piggies the best. It hailed and hailed, and little mountains of ice piled up around the farmyard, but Sausages proved that there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing, when he managed to get the whole farmyard to himself!

Don't forget to pop over to the Yarn Along to see what everyone is crafting and reading, and WIP Wednesday to see what people have on the needles. I hope you're enjoying the wonderful variability of spring too!