This past weekend was The End Of Summer, as far as the kids were concerned, so we tried to make it as exciting as we could. It was also Jeannie's birthday, so with these great excuses to party, how could we resist? We stayed up into the dark hours to play Mission Impossible (some sort of complicated game involving sneaky children), ate brunch, went out for a birthday dinner. We also went for a walk at a local park, which turned into a hike.
I had forgotten about this hill. Hill? To a prairie girl like me, this is a mountain! At any rate, it made my status as Least In-Shape Member of Family official. Still, I made it up, and I made it down, and I think that's all that matters, right?
Somewhere between the hike and the dinner, though, a nasty fall cold decided to spring on me. I'm not quite sure how this happened, since I tend to be the last one sick in my house (well, except for Stuart, but he doesn't count, because he's so infuriatingly healthy, I don't like to think about it). I sincerely hope I manage to keep this from the kids, not just my own, but also the little one that I've been babysitting. I'm thinking his pregnant mum would really not appreciate a cold, right at the start of the school year.
Anyway, when you're feeling too feeble even to knit, and when you're strong enough to try all you do is make a mess of things and find you have to completely rip out the Jaywalker you're knitting, the best thing to do is curl up with a nice cup of tea and a good book. And when you can't knit, at least you can read about knitting, right? Here are two knitting-ish books I've recently finished:
The Birth House is an amazing novel. A friend of mine lent it to me, and I could hardly put it down! It's set in early Eastern Canada, and the main character is a young woman who is training to become a midwife. I didn't expect knitting content here, but there is.
Knit Fast, Die Young is a very light knitting mystery, but just about perfect for my weary head to handle in the throes of a cold. It was entertaining, though, to read about the modern knitting world that I know and love in a mystery setting. This is the second knitting mystery book by this author.
For those of you who complain that I don't show my face enough around here, here's a shot of Gwenyth and I at the bottom of the trail. Fortunately, Stuart let her ride on his shoulders up and down the hill, and of course she walked or ran at all the flat spots, but at the end of the day, this little girl just wants her mommy.