Home Again, Home Again

It was a lovely trip, we had a great time and it is wonderful to be back home.

The weather in Tennessee was dreadful, it rained the entire time we were there and I was so glad that I took my warm winter raincoat even though I had thought I would only need it on the trip back to New York (when I did not need it at all).  But seeing our grandson was wonderful and that was really enough.

When we got home this afternoon, we had snowdrops by the front door to greet us.  I was very happy to see them.  They are really the only sign of spring except for the smell of wet earth and the increasing warmth of the sun.  At least the mountain of snow on the side of the driveway was finally almost all melted. 

When we were in Knoxville we saw Bradford Pears in bloom everywhere; apparently they are quite popular because they are the first tree to bloom, followed by the redbud.  They reminded me that I was thinking of planting a couple of witch hazels to add a little early color to the garden just when I need it most.  I should really start thinking about where I should place them as I will undoubtedly have to dig up a substantial amount of rock and clay and prepare the soil before they can be planted.

Although I took two projects with me, very little knitting was actually accomplished.  I suspected this would be the case, but I am always hopeful where my knitting is concerned and there is nothing worse than running out of knitting projects (it has happened, so I know).  

I started with Mine because I already had the needles out.  A good part of what you see here was knit on the trip south as I did about half of the driving, which left me around about 6 or 7 hours of knitting time, plus a little bit of knitting time in the evenings.  Truthfully though, very little was accomplished in the evenings.  We would chat, I would read a little, and then fall soundly and deeply asleep.  I did all but about 40 minutes of the driving home so again the knitting languished except for four rows that were knit during that brief 40 minute "knit and nap" period before I resumed driving.

On the way home we stopped at our local Fed Ex depot in Newburgh, where a package was waiting:  several new (to me) Japanese knitting books.  I have been looking through them this evening, between unpacking, laundry, and kitty cuddling.

I do think the nicest thing about coming home was having Tori and Sam greet me at the door and follow me around the house.  They would sit with both of us on the sofa, but they know that I am the human most likely to stop whatever I am doing and indulge in kitty cuddling on demand, so they have been my faithful companions.  I had almost forgotten how much I had missed having feline companionship, and I was also surprised at how much I missed them when we were away.

Comments

[Liana]

Glad you're home again, and how nice to have cat friends to greet you. Where did you get the book? I love M&M's version of the sweater Grace shows. She did it without the turtle neck, and it's stunning.

[Gina]

Welcome back! I hope you're able to come to knitting group Thursday night. I missed you last week.

[Grace]

I have the Aran Knit book and love it. I have to make this design:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/80473410@N00/2059472850/in/set-72157610918324590/

[karent]

Yes, it has been an incessant rain, but a harbinger of spring so we'll take it! Isn't it great having the pets welcome back home? I'm always tickled they missed me so much. Glad you are home safe. K