Sock Knitting & Tasha Update

I don't think I've mentioned it here on my blog, but anyone who knows me through the e-mail lists I'm on knows what a sock-a-holic I am! :o) I can't help it - I just have to knit socks! Until about July or August 2008, I wasn't even slightly interested. I don't know what changed, but one day I just decided to give it a go and before long I had made myself a pair of socks! :o)

Here's a pic of them:

They fit rather well, but I've learned a few things since then - for example, I didn't knit the legs long enough before starting the short-row heel, I should have done mini gussets because they pull across the instep and I should have used a tighter gauge. I still wear my first socks because, like I said, they fit well and there's nothing quite like the feeling of your own hand-knit socks on your feet! AAAAHHHH!!! :o)
I know they're not identical (more like fraternal) twins, but as far as I'm concerned they're still a pair and they have the same colors in them, so I wear them! Besides, if anyone gets close enough to my feet to notice, well, then they're just too close! LOL :o)


Anyway, I'm mentioning all this sock knitting now for 2 reasons:

1 - As a member of Socks For Soldiers (SFS), I'm having a Blast knitting socks for the troops! If you're interested and would like to know a little more about this Very Worthy cause, click the link in the sidebar on the right. We could use Lots more sock knitters because there are Lots of soldier feet that would Love a pair of hand-knit socks! :o)

2 - This year I plan to make a dozen pair of socks as Christmas gifts for my immediate family and by saying this "publicly" maybe I can keep myself honest and actually get it done! To help me get these socks made, I joined (yet another) list where we all Knit-A-Long on the same pattern every 2 months. I figure that I could probably make one pair a month and if I make each pattern twice, I'll have all 12 pair done in time for gift giving in December! :o) The link for this group is in the right sidebar also! :o)

Okay, now for a Tasha update: I can hardly believe it's been more than 2 months since I first brought her home from the Humane Society! My baby girl is already 6 months old and is she ever a little rascal!! LOL Yes, she's still as sweet as can be, but she's definitely developing (and attempting to assert) her own little personality! I'm beginning to wonder how many more times I have to scoot her off the dining table before she gets the hint that she's not allowed there! LOL Should I decide to have a snack while watching TV, she has taken to sitting on the arm of the couch right next to me and "inspecting" what I'm eating - as if to say, "Tasha can has some too, Yes?!!" LOL She also likes to hide around a corner and "attack" me as I pass by. And Heaven forbid that my sheet should hang to the floor - she'll get behind it and pounce on my feet as I walk around the bed! :o) She also likes to play "chase the kitty" where she'll see me coming and start running away to get me to come after her - which I do because it gives us both some exercise! She likes to be held upside down in my arms (as if I'm holding a human infant) so that she can hang her head upside down over my elbow and look around! :o) Oh yeah, there's one more thing:

She really doesn't like to be disturbed when she's napping! Look at the evil eye she gave me today when I snapped this pic! LOL I could almost hear her say, "Okay, you disturb Princess Natasha when she naps and she pesters you when you sleep tonight!" Of course, she does that every night anyway! LOL :o) She likes to jump up onto my bed and proceed to walk up my body until she's literally right in my face and then wait until I open my eyes. As soon as one eye starts to open, she begins to meow as if she wants or needs something (yeah, she needs to pester me!) and then she turns around, putting her butt in my face, and walks back down my body and jumps off the bed. :o) Of course, after the first 2 or 3 times she did this I learned that she doesn't really want or need anything - she just wants to wake me up because she's awake! :o) If I don't get out of bed (and I won't!), she'll jump back up on the bed and curl up next to me and take a nap - usually in the "V-space" behind my bent legs because I'm almost always on my right side due to left leg problems.

Oh, and we've found that she LOVES to play with rubber bands - the big, wide ones! She'll pick them up, throw them around and generally amuse herself with them for hours! Who needs to buy all those cat toys when the kitty has so much fun with rubber bands?!! :o)