Little Bits of Knits

Yesterday was a very rough day for our household. Beyond the dredging up of sad memories with hospital visits and the bad news for a close colleague and mentor, we spent the morning discussing my father's cancer and potential treatment.

My father was diagnosed with lung cancer a few weeks back. Hardly surprising after 50 years of smoking. And still upsetting even though I am not terribly close to him. We went up to be with the family for the first oncology appointment.

It is all terribly scary and real when you walk into the cancer hospital and see so many people there - kids, seniors, moms, tough guys. You think to yourself that all these people have cancer?! But after a few minutes you look around and you see nearly everyone has two or three people with them for support. You're not sure who is supporting who - the family supporting the patient, or the patient supporting the friends. And you feel bad for the people who either chose to come alone or had no choice.

In the midst of it all you can find things to smile at. My Monster tearing up and down the halls and mooching cookies off the volunteers. The nurses giving out hugs to returning patients. And the baskets on the tables between every two or three chairs filled with little balls of yarn and a few sets of knitting needles - tiny projects started and abandoned in the anxiety of diagnosis and chemotherapy.

Next time I go I will have to ask what these end up as, or whether they are simply there to inspire some time spent in distraction or creativity.

And Sometimes

You are forced to bed, at least temporarily. I was so excited to finish the next step the baby quilt last night. Hubby was setting up our new toy (HD TV) so I hid in the basement and fueled my insomnia with getting all the circles done for the baby quilt. Today I was looking forward to a bunch of stuff but contractions are forcing me to rest.

And here I was going to finally make those pillows for our new couch, make some strawberry jam (already!), and take the Monster out to play in the snow we got through the night. Oh well. For now Hubby is out shopping with the Monster and I lay in bed with my tea and cookies.

Colour in a Dreary Landscape

Hubby and I took a bit of a break last week. I had to be in Vancouver for work, so after a few days Grandma came to watch the Monster and Hubby flew out for an adult only weekend. Sweet relief. No quilty stuff done, but lots of reading, shopping, leisurely meals, wanderings, and the tourist thing at the Vancouver Aquarium.

I have to share some of my shopping wins. Again, no quilty stuff, but there was fabric in there nonetheless. First off, I hit the tourist and rather boring shopping street of Robson. I was really looking for a maternity store to buy some new pants. Three Banana Republics, but no maternity store. I did, however, find H20 Plus and some fabulous bath soaks and this utterly fantastic almond scrub. Unfortunately, I never made it back to buy about 6 more, but I will be ordering it online.

On Saturday the sun was out. In the morning we relaxed in the hotel spa. Hubby booked massages for us. While I had a well-deserved pedi, he went to enjoy the steam room. The door was sticking and when he reefed on it the door popped out quickly and hit his toe - promptly splitting and ripping back his big toe nail. Ouch! So much for relaxation. But he was still in such a good mood that he consented to a walk that afternoon (Hubby hates walking, only slightly less so when the pooches are involved).

The first store we directed ourselves to was the Marimekko concept store in Yaletown. Oh, sweet colour heaven! I really had to restrain myself as the fabric and bags were ALL asking me to take them home. In the end we did a custom order for some fabric for the new baby's room. It seems that the fabrics I were drawn to the most were by designer Erja Hirvi.

This is the one for the baby's room. I see a lemon yellow dresser and soft grey walls... when there is a room to put it all in. That's a whole other story.

The other one we bought is the same pattern as this, but a much brighter colour way. No picture on the web site, so you'll have to wait until I get the new pillows done with it. Those new pillows will be on our new couch - delivered today!

And I have to admit, I also caved and bought this tray. It is rather cliche - living in a town nicknamed "Cowtown" and famous for the Calgary Stampede, but I couldn't resist the colour, or the humour.

After Hubby was finally able to drag me away from the Marimekko store (good thing I'm pregnant and can't fit into their clothes right now). We headed back and ran into this fabulous store filled with modern design for adults and kids: Inhabit. Hubby was entranced by a stuffed frog that was far too large to fit into a suitcase. I drooled over an Eames rocker and he promptly picked out a gift for the Monster. At least that would fit into the suitcase! We also liked that it shared her Grandpa's name, and was made in Canada at Monster Factory. Remind me to get a picture of the two Monsters together.

And now I best hit the sack. I've been having a lot of contractions today and it is far too early for that! I'll pick up my new book (see the latest entry on the nightstand) and curl up to read before attempting the sleep of the 7 month pregnant.

Rocks, Road, and Ice Cream

Well, so much for no sugar... Last week I developed an unnatural craving for ice cream and had it every day. Damn pregnancy. I can tell you that Haagen Dazs makes a rather yummy strawberry ice cream.

We are back from our week in the Okanagan. I got zero done on the binding for the wallhanging. The roads to get there are just too windy for handwork or reading. It does involve crossing the Rockies afterall. I managed a little bit of knitting, but generally had little motivation. Mostly we sat around and chatted. I read a lot - when the Monster was napping - and tried a few different cinnamon bun recipes. Still need to work out the kinks on the recipe.

We did discover a great bakery/cafe in Peachland. Bliss Bakery makes a fabulous sandwich (on their own bread) and very yummy muffins, tarts and danish. In the end we went there three days in a row. All our visits were capped off with a stroll on the beach to throw rocks into Lake Okanagan.

There were a couple more food adventures thrown in there. We drove down a very twisty road - from spring to winter - to pick up some aged Gouda and Balkan yoghurt at Gort's Gouda in Salmon Arm. The farmer even let us in the barn to see the calves, but the Monster was much more enthralled with the big guys outside. And we also took a run to Summerland Sweets to pick up some pear syrup and their pumpkin bagel butter. Yum.If you ever visit this neck of the woods you will be overwhelmed by vineyards, orchards, and the lake amidst the mountains. We spent our trip overwhelmed by the adventures of Grandpa and the Monster. It's all about the rocking chair.