I HAVE been doing handwork lately, I've just been to lazy to post pictures of it. First, I finished the baby sweater I was working on-

I love how simple it is and I really liked the raglan degreases. Elegant and functional!

Last night I sat down and made a lace bookmark for a friend's birthday.

What you can't see is that the homemade starch I used worked beyond my WILDEST dreams, and the bookmark was stiff as a board. Maybe you can see it a bit better in this picture-


I was in Target the other day looking for something else, and I found these placemats on clearance-

They go really well with the dishcloths I made earlier this summer...


I also sat down last night and *shock* crocheted a bit and ended up with this darling flower-

I'm finding decoding crochet instructions easier and easier--I'm working on a doily now (yes I know, the madness continues) and enjoying it very much. The flower was actually supposed to be in the middle of the doily, but I thought that would sort of defeat the purpose of the doily which is to put things on it...

Anyone else working on something fun?

My perspective on the Fourth of July was changed forever the summer I was not only out of the country, but one of two Americans on the mission station. One thing I've learned as I grow older is that whether we think we do or not, we all interpret events through the lens of our nationality. Watching movies such as the Patriot with a group of Canadians, walking through a WWII museum in England, seeing my flag on foreign soil, and talking to young people in Germany about current events made me think about my assumptions that came stemmed the fact I was born an American.

Those experiences made me a little more thoughtful about my heritage, and gave me some insight into how others saw me because of my nationality. It became more real to me that not everyone thought like I did or has the same worldview and set of values as I do. I became more aware of the unique blessings that I had inherited as a daughter of this nation, and the sacrifice of the men who died so I could enjoy these liberties.

While I hope I never become completely American, when I look at all the other nations out there that could be my 'passport country,' I'm glad God put me in this one. I hope I will always be first a citizen of His kingdom and servant to the world first and foremost--American second. We enjoy great privileges in this country--may we use them for His glory and to spread the Gospel of our Risen Savior to every nation, every tribe, and every person.

...complete with pictures!

Well--once again I fell of the world, and once again I'm coming back before you send out search parties.  Life has been wild (I'm beginning to suspect that this will be the case until, oh, I arrive in heaven...) and there has been not enough sleep, too much to get done, and some awesome stuff in between all the crazy.  For now, I'm going to post my knitting of interest from the last few months (except for some secret and boring knitting), and I'll try and post about the Four Winds Texas invitational Joust Tournament that I attended this weekend (yes, I am a joust junkie).  So, on to knitting!

Firstly, I finished the Rivendell socks!  I made a lot of elementary mistakes, had to fix a broken strand, and ended up re-doing a toe because I was a little overeager to finish the sock, but I finally have them both done and I'm really happy with them.  I love this pattern--I'm sure I'll be using it again.


Secondly, I at long last started the shawl I have been dreaming about for about a year now--the Finbar shawl.  This is actually a stole that has a normal side and middle panel, and then a wing!  One of my all time favorite fairy tales is of the seven brother who were turned into swans and their brave sister who wove them shirts of nettles to break the curse.  In the brilliant retelling, "Daughter of the Forest," the youngest brother who's shirt wasn't quite done was named Finbar, hence the obvious name of the shawl.  This is the left side (the non-wing) and already I am completely in love with it. It is so delicate and beautiful!


This seeming mess is actually a baby sweater that has an interesting construction--next time I am SO making it in the round so I don't have so many seams to do later.  It is a raglan sweater and I have just started the decreases to the neck.  Its so small that its hard to believe it will actually fit a human being, even a baby!


I need to take pictures of my knitted top that I finished in May plus a few other odds and ends, but I also wanted to show you something else things I've made this spring.

I made this necklace for Faire since buying one is A LOT of money and I wanted a nice period necklace.  This was inspired by some I saw in an Ebay shop and on the whole I'm pretty happy with it.  If only the metal parts hadn't corroded with wear.


In other news, I'm headed up to Pennsylvania to attend the MOPs (Missionary Orientation Program) conference, so I'm excited about that.  Hopefully its cooler up there!