Breath

It’s been so long since we’ve talked. I’ve been so busy I haven’t even had a chance to breath. But today is a day of breathing. And blog writing.

First, Wednesday morning Mac & I were checking out the tulip situation in the big flowerbed and saw something small and brown twitch. Sure enough it’s Earnheart. I was afraid he didn’t make it through the winter since his hole was unattended and no one had seen him until now. I know what you’re saying, “how do you know it’s Earnheart?” I know because he’s a big chubby chipmunk. I’ve never seen one this tall or this wide before. So Yay, we have our chipmunk!!

I’ve spent the last few days being a quasi-vet tech. At least that’s how I felt as Mum & I administered shots and did feedings. The short version is that 3 litters within a month is a lot for one person to handle. Especially when the kittens are small and there are more of them than there are nipples. We’ve been on red alter-since Saturday when the second litter was born. Weighing or feeding every four hours to make sure the babies survive. I love my Devons something fierce, and I wouldn’t walk away from breeding but sometimes there is a moment of pause as you realize that were it not for your midwifery and days spent monitoring the babies growth, few would survive to adulthood. The joy from raising them and sending them to their new homes comes at a very high cost as you brave a life or death situation every hour of that first week. Breeding is not for the faint of heart.

But on a lighter note, here are two of the older boys. As of yet, they do not have names. We’re leaning toward Robin Hood and Friar Tuck. Although Mum thinks that since they are Nessa Rose’s babies all the kittens should have the word Rose in their names. I’m pushing for ness in their names, so Lock-Ness, Hayness, Aness, Oness…names like that. You can see where this is going.

It’s somewhere near the start of a month, which means I need to enlighten you on this months challenge and last months results.

I’m not finished. April did not go so well. Work has been insain and this little dog sweater isn’t turning out the way I imagined. I knit 11 of the 14 inches and decided to stop and try again. The second attempt was much much better, but the back wasn’t right and I was 5” in when I realized this. Rip. Third attempt had crazy ribbing that tapered down too much at 10” this insight came to me. Rip. The fourth attempt is ok. It’s currently 8” long and I’ve begun to accept that this will not be the pinnacle of my designs. If I had 2 months to design it, then maybe but for now it is what it is. The deadline for the book submission is May 11th, so I need to wrap this puppy up pretty soon. (did you get the pun?). Yes I’m working on 3 patterns for a book on knitting with sock yarn, but to be difficult I’m not knitting socks in the tradition sense of the word. So this month’s challenge is to complete the non-sock sock knitting.