Backing up a little, here’s a picture of me knitting the second sleeve in El Salvador. The cute yellow building is the hotel we stayed at in Apaneca, a little town in the mountains. Rocking chairs and hammocks- what more could a knitter want? Okay, maybe cooler weather so that I actually felt like knitting, but I didn’t want to be picky.

Finally, here is a finished picture of the pillow I knitted for my friends that got married. I am still finishing the second, but the 1st one had a special assignment.
As part of the ceremony, they got lassoed together. As my friend Cindy said, “I’t like a unity candle but we get lassoed together instead.” Yep, those are exactly the same. Anyway, they needed a pretty pillow to kneel on so my gift was very fitting. You can just barely see the corner of my (their) pillow below.I had to fancy up the pillow a little for it’s big day. I folded the flap inside and then safey pinned some ribbons to the inside so I could tie it closed. To make it look balanced, I tied some bows and pinned them to the other end as well, keeping the pillow case snug around the pillow. The happy couple loved it!
Last but not least, my secret pal deserves a huge thank-you shout out. I got this great package, along with a stitch pattern book that didn’t make it into the photo. I got some soap (I love cute soaps!), pretty needles, felted tweed to make the knucks from the latest knitty, and some really pretty hand-dyed yarn that I’ve already started swatching.
Thank you, secret pal and good luck to all you knitters who entered things in your local fairs this summer!!

This was my 1st (and last) view of El Salvador as it’s the view from the airport window. Getting off the plane, it was immediately apparent I wasn’t in the US anymore! It was a great feeling. Mayan ruins near the location of my friend’s wedding site. It’s the rainy season so we were caught in a rainstorm there. The ruins in El Salvador aren’t as big as those in Guatemala or Mexico and they’re not completely excavated yet, but still interesting to visit. For me, the highlight was learning how they used to make indigo dye. The wedding was fun! That’s my soleil tank top that I knitted and the skirt I made. I didn’t set out to wear a totally handmade outfit. It just worked out that way.This is Apaneca, the highest town in El Salvador. We spent a few days there and it was really nice. It was cooler and less humid than the city, which was a nice break. If you look closely at the picture, the bright orange house on the left is where we stayed. The hills are covered with coffee trees as it’s one of the coffee growing regions in the country. This is Mike and our guide from the hotel taking us on a hike through a coffee plantation and the surrounding beauty. We were on our way to see some old Mayan statues that are on the property. Everything was so green and pretty thanks to the rainy season. It was really fun and I will show what I’ve been knitting soon.

You could be looking at pictures right now but Blogger is being stupid.

I saw Mayan ruins, cool birds, and lots of tropical flowers. I hiked through a coffee plantation, ate lots of pupusas (kind of like tamales but better), got caught in a rainstorm, stayed in a hotel in the highest town in the country, ate breakfast for only $1, rode buses with crazy drivers, saw only 2 other Americans (other than my friends who also came for the wedding) the entire time, drank soda out of a bag, learned that my Spanish is not as good as it used to be, got stuck in the biggest market in San Salvador between 2 buses that didn’t move for the longest time, knitted while at a bus stop at what felt like the middle of nowhere, met lots of nice El Salvadorans and generally had a great time!

And now, for your knitting content, here are my answers to the latest batch of secret pal questions:

1. What is your favorite season of the year and why?
I love the fall. I love the leaves changing colors and the (usually) slow transition from flip flops and tank tops to long sleeved shirts and then sweaters and jackets.

2. Summer is hot. What do you knit in the summer?
Usually I knit tank tops and lacy things. This summer I’m knitting a wool sweater, though. Hopefully I’ll have it done in time to enter in the fair although time is starting to run out.

3. If money was no object…..what would you buy at the LYS?
Everything. To narrow it down, I’d have to say everything that’s soft. No scratchy wool for me. I love merino and angora and alpaca. Mmmm . . . soft . . .

4. What are some activities that have become family traditions for your family?
Mike and I love to go camping and every year my extended family and friends have a reunion camping at Fallen Leaf Lake near Lake Tahoe. We try to go every year and it’s a lot of fun. We couldn’t go this year because of our trip to El Salvador.

5. What is the weather right now?
It’s cool and cloudy in the mornings but sunny in the afternoons. It’s pretty nice. We missed the crazy hot heat wave that happened while we were in El Salvador and I’m so thankful for that! I do like the summer but I’m definately more of a cool weather girl.