Fly Like An Eagle

 So, Paul has been stalking the bald eagles that live nearby and gets photos of them almost daily.  Until today, I had only seen them in Paul's photos.  This morning, we took a trip to the pet store and Kohl's, and Paul said he'd drive me by where he sees them.  OMG they are so beautiful and majestic!  This photo does not do them justice in the least, but it's not a bad picture considering it was taken with my phone camera.  And, these guys are everywhere along the river.  We were parked on the side of the road and I kept pointing and saying "There's another one".  I'm not as stoked as Paul is, but I'm pretty excited to have seen them fairly close up.

Yesterday, I pulled out the octopus bag and got it blocked.  This morning, I finished the i-cord handle.  Now all that's left is to reinforce the handle with the cord, sew it on, and line the bag.  I'll do that tomorrow morning before the Olympic coverage starts.  I think this will store all the little tools of my crafting (scissors, needles, pens, scrap paper, etc.) that currently litter the end table next to my chair.

The second Blomekrans mitten is coming along nicely.  I'll likely have them finished tonight.  At the least, they will both be complete sans thumb.  If I get this second one done early enough, I may add the thumbs; if not, the thumbs will be added tomorrow.  Once these are done, I will be able to start on my third chosen B project; a cowl named Biscuit.  But, Paul is in need of a new pair of gloves because he's finally wearing holes in the thumbs of the last pair I made him.  And, he could really use a balaclava for those really cold days where he's shoveling snow.  I guess those could be considered "gifts" and not count towards my started projects, especially since I will have them completed so quickly.  We'll see. 

And, of course, a daily puff!

Yesterday, I decided to give up on continuing with the HAED piece on the 25 count fabric.  It just wasn't fun for me.  Too much eye strain, the stitches weren't lying nicely like I wanted them to, the grid lines were a pain in the butt.  I've ordered a piece of 18 count large enough to stitch the piece on and a water soluble fabric marking pen (for marking the grid lines), and will start over once they are received.  I just couldn't see struggling with this for the 4+ years it was going to take to complete (at the rate I was completing stitches), when I know I can get it done in a year with new fabric.  I've heard that I shouldn't lose detail by doing it on 18 count, or at least not enough to make it worth the hassle I was dealing with.  Hopefully my order will be in this week, but we'll have to see.  Last time I ordered from this company it took forever to receive my order.  I'm taking a chance, and hope that they come through for me.  In the meantime, my stitching time has been devoted to the blackwork piece.  I'm making pretty good progress and will share a photo tomorrow.