Signs of Spring

.... the sun is shining, it's warm...

...the crocuses are popping up beneath my wild roses and mass of newspapers that blew in the garden over the winter...
The windows are open and the cats are stretching their little noses to catch a breeze...... it must be spring!

I too was feeling a little bit of spring fever today. But unlike the cats, sniffing at the window just doesn't cut it for me.

Instead, after work, I rolled down all the car windows, cranked the stereo and took the long way home, enjoying the sunshine.

And I made a little stop at one of my favourite stores - Lens Mills. For those who don't know, Lens Mills is kind of like a surplus store - they buy up old stock from other companies and sell it off. But, they also have a great selection of yarn, fabrics and other crafty stuff. The one in Port Dover is the best, and I've heard the one in Brantford is great, but the one in Stoney Creek suits me just fine - and it's closer to home.

While there, I picked up two skein of Patons Stretch Sock:
Since we started dying yarn, I said I wasn't going to buy any more yarn for socks. But I've been wanting to test the Stretch for a while... and the colour just spoke to me.

I also came across some lovely flannel remnants:
I had planned to make a blanket for one of the impending arrivals, but the price was so good and the fabric so cute, I just couldn't leave the store without it. There is about two yards of each. Sewing a blanket will be much quicker than knitting one anyway.

Of course the cats had to thoroughly expect it as soon as I brought it out:I hope the baby likes cat hair! :)

My final purchase was a new wicker basket. I need it for the crackghan supply, which has kinda outgrown its old basket: Every time I turned around balls of yarn were spilling all over the place, which just entices Rocky to run off with them!

I've been looking around at some - but the prices on wicker baskets these days just seems exorbitant! None of the thrift stores or flea markets we've visited have had any baskets big enough. But Lens had just the thing and it was only $6!:I still had to keep the cage (which was leftover from Christmas bubble bath) but that's okay, it's perfect for the smaller balls that get lost easy.

I haven't touched Citron for the last two days. Instead I've been knitting socks. I'll probably pick Citron up again on the weekend. I really want to finish it because watching Smoking Hot Needles knit up her Fluffy Cat into a beautiful shawl is making me want to crack open a skein and start Bitter Root!