Rain, books, and needlework

What a nice day. Rain and more rain. Even some thunder. After work tonight, I was able to enjoy a little sewing. I was struggling with the smocking on the daygown, but I remembered that there is a new blog, sewnso.blogspot.com that I've discovered where there are some wonderful smocking tutorials - videos, not just pictures and words.

So I sat down in front of the computer with my sad little rectangle and listened to Laurie's soothing voice tell me exactly what to do. It really helped. I think it was all math. I was trying to sneak in an extra stitch, and it was causing my diamonds to go all wonky.

I couldn't wait to finish working tonight so I could start anew. But then the rain was there and the thunder - and Dickens - and coffee. I'm about halfway through A Tale of Two Cities and beginning to sort out the characters and enjoy it, even though his descriptions of London in the 1700s are a little hard to take, so I didn't linger too long with him.

I finished listening to The Rottweiler last night, and it's funny how I miss those characters and their British accents. The reader was good, a lady who didn't feel compelled to read men's voices in a stern hoarse tone. Some do, and in those stories I never like the men.

To keep me company while I smocked, I got my next CD - Light on Snow by (of all people) Anita Shreve. I just finished her excellent book, A Wedding in December earlier this week. I think it's going to be sad. Told from a 12-year-old girl's perspective, and the reader is a young girl.

All of the above and eight hours of work made my day and no housework or anything worthwhile. I did answer a few more emails and deleted even more. Still behind though.

Tomorrow if the weather is good, Mama and I are going to venture out. I'm not sure where. Maybe to Hancock Fabrics and most likely Wal-Mart. It's good to do things like this because it makes coming home so nice.

I have a correction. On the post a couple of days ago, I called Gaby's new knitting project a scarf when it's actually a light sweater. I'm terribly sorry. Here she is modeling it. Wonderful for her first knitting attempt.

She says, "It was very easy to knit, just knit a rectangle (15 inches by 55 inches) and when it is finished just stitch the ends, like 10 inches per side and there is, a semi sweater for the summer. I hope you like it."

I do. She looks good in red.

Just now when I went to find these pictures, I saw an email from Mike waiting with the title TAX. I'm going to pretend I didn't see it.

I'm going to sneak a picture of the smocking in here just so I can look at it after I get good and laugh about it - grubby little frayed thing. I probably started too close to the top and am just kind of making up the pattern as I go. I should have put someting in the middle of the diamonds. I may if it's not too late.