With the weather up around freezing, it’s much easier to be outside. So the other day, I soaked up some sunshine and enjoyed the antics of my favourite little garden friend.

I am happy to say, that the new cactus is blooming again.

And this time I got pictures!!! Aren’t they pretty? They almost don’t look real. They don’t last very long, just a day or two. But they are very welcome while they are there.

Upstairs in my office, I have this small-leafed hoya. It’s my happiest hoy. And I know that because it blooms every few months or so.

It has two little bunches this time. They aren’t quite open, but they are close. You can see by my hands how tiny the flowers are. They are just plain white – not as showy as some other hoyas, but I love them none the less. They don’t last super long either. One day I’ll come in and they will all have fallen to my desktop (usually all over my keyboard). But I enjoy every minute they are there.

And last… the only orchid with a bloom stem is taking it’s sweet time. But as you can see, we are slowly getting closer to actual flowers! They may even come before spring!

Poor Rupert – he really can’t get a break with the others trying to takeover his Hello Kitty bed. I woke up the other morning to discover this…

Furby! Who usually prefers to spend the night in my chair in the livingroom!

But now that’s he’s discovered the delights of the HK bed… that might just change.

Those of you that guessed that I would cast on a sock before re-tackling the ribbing on the shrug were right.

This ball of yarn (Katia Bombay) has been sitting on my table since I picked it up at the thrift store a few weeks ago. The colours were so bright and cheerful… and I found a hole in yet another pair of socks..

I decided I would cast on – the shrug can wait another day or two.

As you can see, I made some decent progress. The colours were so Easter Egg like, I just had to make them in a pattern that rippled a little, so I’m using my Undine pattern.

The yarn is a cotton/wool/nylon mix, which isn’t my favourite to knit with, but it’s not too bad. I had another pair of socks with a similar mix, and they did wear well so I’m hoping these will be similar.

As you can see, I got quite a bit done – I’m only a few rows away from finishing the gusset. But… I do have to get back to the shrug, so these will be put down for a little bit.

But not too long… when Dave and I were out on Valeintines day, he bought me some yarn. The colourway is called Midnight Orchid… and I really can’t wait to see how they knit up!

I planned to get the Blockhead top out of the way on Saturday. But Dave really wanted to go out, and since it was Valentine’s Day… I couldn’t really say no to my Valentine.

So sewing got pushed to Sunday. By then, Burton was raring to go!

It was only 12 blocks, so it didn’t take too long to sew them together, and add a couple borders to build out the size a little.

I laid it out on the bed for the boys inspection and approval…

But… I’m not exactly sure that I got it, judging by those faces.

Whether or not they like it, I’m counting it as complete. It’s not huge, just 44″ x 55″ but it’s nice for a little lap quilt. I cut some more of that vine fabric from the border for the binding. I’ve got a back in mind for it, but I wasn’t in the mood to go digging through the boxes to find it.

Instead, I took some time to cut up the leftovers from the fat quarter bundle.

While I’m not totally in love with the Blockhead quilt – the prints are fabulous. And I’ve got a great idea for a baby blanket from the leftovers.

It was a rotating cast of snoopervisors this weekend.

And they all did a very goo job because not only did I get two rows of letters done

I was able to start on adding the spider web details to them.

So… technically finished the shrug…

But…. I’m not thrilled with the fit. The shrug is one-sized. I’m plus-sized. I knew it probably wouldn’t fit as loose as it does in the pattern. And I’m fine with that.

What I don’t love is the ribbing around the body opening.

As written, it ends up stretched out on my torso. It’s not terrible – I just don’t love it. There’s is a solution though. Rip out all that ribbing, and redo it – with a higher stitch count.

Which is what I’m going to do. Just maybe not right away. Part of me is really aching to cast on for a new pair of sock. Especially since I found a hole in my favourite pair of Felicis last week!

So… should I rip and reknit right away, or start a sock and save the ripping for another day?

While working on the Blockhead quilt last weekend, the postage stamp 8-patches really stacked up.

I put a really good dent in the basket of four patches.

And now the giant ziploc is filling up again.

That said, I really don’t think I have anywhere near enough. The eight patches will be sewn into 16 patches…

And those only add up to a 6 inch finished square. We are going to need A LOT of them to make a decent sized quilt. It’s a good thing mom’s been cutting more 2 inch scraps for me!

Lord Burton Bearbottom would like to wish all his fans a Happy Valentines Day!

May your day be filled with treats and snuggles!

Unlike those prognosticating rodents, Rupert doesn’t think we’ll get an early spring. And he’s staying wrapped up nice and warm until at least mid-April.

In other news… Louis is alive!!!! I was starting to get really worried, because while it’s not warm out there, it been up around the freezing mark all week with no sign of him – but other cats were out and about. But then, I checked the cameras Wednesday night and…

There he was coming up the steps. He stayed for about five minutes for a snack and went on his way. I’m hoping he starts coming around during the day time soon.