I have a confession to make. I haven’t spun in several weeks. And here’s the thing – I want to spin. So what’s the problem, you ask? All my bobbins are full.

That’s only 4 but there are 3 others that are full that didn’t make it into the photo shoot.

I also have 3 center pull balls that I wound off of bobbins before SPA.

This means that I have to ply before I can spin. And I don’t want to ply. Plying is boring. Plying is tedious. Plying is not fun.

But if I ply then I will have finished yarn and then I can spin again. So I will ply.

I won’t be happy about it, though.

This week’s topic is 10 Favorite Easter/Passover Traditions. It’s good to find seasonal inspiration for the themes, yes?

1. Color Easter eggs. Every year I say I won’t do it and then every year I do.
2. Have a jelly bean hunt. This was something I loved as a kid. My brothers and I each had a single line of jelly beans starting at the foot of our bed and heading towards the stairs. They met at the stairs and went down them in a row of three. Once we hit the first floor it was a jelly bean free for all and I loved every second of it!
3. Go to church. Okay, I don’t do this anymore (for political reasons, if you can believe it) but I used to really enjoy Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and, of course, Easter morning services. There’s nothing quite like “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” on Easter morning.
4. Buy new clothes. I always had a new dress, white gloves and white patent leather shoes, and an Easter bonnet. I don’t buy all that anymore but I still have an urge to get a new Spring outfit for the occasion.
5. Eat peeps! I prefer mine to be yellow and in the shape of a chick, please.
6. Serve Easter dinner. I have sometimes made Easter brunch but I really prefer Easter dinner. I serve ham and it doesn’t get much easier than that.
7. Decorate with tulips and lilies. I used to always buy one to decorate the church and then bring it home afterwards. I don’t do this anymore but I still like to have tulips in the house on Easter.
8. Listen to Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell.
9. Assemble an Easter basket. It should be filled with fake green grass and chocolate eggs and chocolate bunnies. There should also be jelly beans and malted milk eggs and some of those peanut butter eggs. The more candy the better!
10. Be happy that Easter means spring and spring means summer is right around the corner.

I hope you all had a very nice weekend because I did.

On Friday I had the privilege of taking photos of JessaLu and Roger. Not just any photos either – their engagement photos. Of course, I can’t show you the results as those are hers to show, but I can show you some of the scenery surrounding us.

Like this pretty bridge.

And this babbling brook.

On Saturday I treated myself to a mani/pedi and, in honor of Spring, I even got a pretty little design on my toes.

We observed Earth Hour on Saturday evening by having a candlelight dinner of baked fish with spinach and cheese sauce, baked potatoes and Caesar salad. We cheated a little bit and listened to Jesus Christ Superstar on the iPod but I think the Earth Hour police will understand.

Sunday involved some errands and Easter prep and then a band job with Dale in the evening. I wouldn’t normally go out to something on a Sunday night but there were Irish step dancers and Irish music and it was for a good cause so I made the effort and I’m glad I did.

And now it’s Monday already. But you know what Dave would say, right? Hey, it’s almost the weekend!

Mason is looking out the bedroom window, hoping to see some daffodils in bloom, no doubt. Alas, not yet.

Don’t spend your weekend looking out the window – get out there and have some fun!

The Entrelac Scarf in progress. I’m not sure I’m thrilled with the way the purple is pooling but I’ll reserve judgment until I’ve got more of it knit.

She says … and I think … ?

1. Burrito :: yummmm
2. Spike :: Jonze
3. Tougher :: than nails
4. Mock :: umentary
5. Slurp :: gross
6. Knock :: on wood
7. Conference :: dull
8. Madness :: Sock
9. Minds :: Eye Yarn Shop
10. Connection :: internet

I blatantly stole this from Cookie in a desperate need for blog fodder. I’ll try and be more exciting next week.

With nothing in particular to blog about today, it’s time for some random. In bullet form, please.

• After lusting after them for ages, I finally got myself an iPhone last week. Allow me to say – it IS everything it’s cracked up to be. And then some.
• I finished the Hamamelis Shawl over the weekend but I haven’t blocked it yet. I expect to do that soon, though, and that means some finished knitting to show – for a change.
• Getting up at 5 am sucks.
• With the shawl completed I started an Entrelac Scarf in Noro Silk Garden. This could prove to be addicting.
• The new job thing I alluded to last week is working out pretty well. I’m still a full time library director but I have a bit of a side gig going on now, too.
• Not to be all cryptic but I don’t want to share it with the whole internet just yet. If you ask me, though, I will tell you in an email.
• I started myself on a Pandora bracelet. I love it but it sure could get expensive.
• I am slogging my way through a very lengthy biography on FDR.
• 24 is lousy this season.
• But Parks and Recreation is great. This is a new-to-me show and, as a town government worker, I’m not sure how I missed it before now.
• And since we’re talking about teevee, I have to say I’m disappointed in the new series Parenthood. With Ron Howard involved I expected it to be fantastic and it’s just sort of “meh”.
• We had pork chops for dinner last night. Hannah doesn’t care for pork chops. Does it make me a bad mother that I sort of enjoy making her eat them?
• That’s all the random I can think of for today.
• See ya in the comments.

Today’s topic for Ten on Tuesday is 10 Signs of Spring. Hooray for spring and the signs of it, too!

1. Crocuses. I’ve got purple and yellow and white and they all make me so happy.
2. Red-winged blackbirds. I saw 6 yesterday in the field near my house. Again with the happy.
3. Spring peepers. I haven’t heard them yet but it’s just a matter of time.
4. Pussy willows. Soft and fuzzy and a sure sign of the end of winter.
5. Kids on the playground. The playground next to the library has been buzzing with activity and, while this annoys the hell out of my in July, in March it is a wonderful sound.
6. Opening the windows. I threw them open last week and it felt great to air out the house.
7. Driving with the sun roof open. Sunshine! Coming in from the roof of the car! Love it!
8. Going outside without a jacket. Sure, I love wool mittens and stuff but the freedom of no coat is a wonderful thing.
9. Daffodil buds. Mine should be in bloom by the end of the week, I think.
10. Burning. Nothing is quite so distinctive as the smell of burning in the spring. Sure, it makes my throat scratchy and my eyes itchy but it’s still a cool thing in these parts.

This was probably one of the easiest 10 on Tuesday lists I’ve ever written. I really do love spring!

Yesterday was our Kiwanis Club’s Annual Pancake Breakfast. While this is something that I have attended many times in the past, this is the first year I have attended as a Kiwanian and a worker since Dale and I joined Kiwanis right after last year’s breakfast. Can I just say – being a volunteer at this thing is FUN. Especially when they assign you to take pictures! That’s not even work in my book.

I took pictures of everyone eating their breakfast in the school cafeteria.

And I took pictures of people waiting in line to get their food.

I snapped photos of my fellow Kiwanians. Actually, Dale took this one and you can tell because I am IN the photo, for a change.

And I couldn’t resist a photo of the bacon. Dude, there was a LOT of bacon at this thing.

I took this photo of our club president because he is the master of the chocolate chip pancake.

And I just had to take a photo of this sign over the Coleman stove our past president was using to cook scrambled eggs.

Finally, there just has to be a photo of the pancakes because the best part of a pancake breakfast is the plain ole pancakes. Nice and hot with maple syrup. Mmmm.

And the best part of being a Kiwanian is doing all of this just because it’s a good thing to do. We collected donations for the local food pantry and we made a lot of money – which we will then turn around and give back to organizations and individuals in our community.

If there is one thing I’ve learned since joining Kiwanis it’s that nothing is more fun than giving away money!

I thought you might like another look at those purple crocuses. Spring comes officially this weekend. Hoo-ray!

Make the most of it, my friends!

If it seems like I haven’t finished a pair of socks in ages, it’s because I haven’t. Being at home with pneumonia for practically the whole month of February really slowed down my sock knitting. You see, I knit socks in the car, at meetings, while having lunch at the library – you get the idea – and I just didn’t frequent those places much over the last few weeks.

I’m back on track now, though, and I’ve got a newly finished pair of socks to show for it.

Behold the Secret Garden Socks. They look great posing with my yellow crocus.

And equally beautiful with the purple crocus in my father-in-law’s yard.

The yarn is Sophie’s Toes in the color Secret Garden. The pattern is Carole’s Picot Edge Sock, of course. And they are a gift for my stepdaughter, Jessica. Things haven’t been easy for her lately and I think these colorful socks will give her a nice little lift.

If I can bear to part with them, that is.