We had a WONDERFUL Christmas! I love both my families and it’s always nice to get together with them. One of my brothers and his wife moved out of state this year so it was a bit more difficult to plan out the schedule but I was pleased with how things shook out for seeing my family Christmas morning and my husband’s family Christmas evening. We were absolutely pooped by the end of the day but that’s okay, it’s worth it to be with family.

My handknit gifts went over well! The hat I made for my secret Santa gift to one of my sister-in-laws fit nicely and was slightly fought over. My niece put on her mom’s hat and didn’t want to give it back at the end of the night. The gaiter I made for my brother seemed to go over well too. I was pretty worried about it being too wide but he didn’t seem to mind. He does some travelling to cold places for his job so I’ll just be happy to contribute to keeping him warm on those trips. Finally, I can show off a picture of it since it’s no longer a secret.

I didn’t use a pattern for it but the yarn is Swoon Fibers Cashmere DK (a favorite of mine) in the color Ocean Heather. It’s deliciously soft and is a lovely shade of blue.

I finished my stranded socks as well! Casper is unimpressed but I’m pleased with them. They’re slightly different sizes since I didn’t knit them at the same time and my notes were lacking, but they do both fit.

As a bonus, I got to use the new puzzle piece sock blockers from my Twice Sheared Sheep advent calendar. I really enjoyed everything that came out of the advent but I think this is the big winner for me. My feet are small and even the small ones I have from Knit Picks are slightly too big. The puzzle piece sock blockers allowed me to build the right size for my foot. I can foresee using them often.

I should work on my sweater (and have a tiny tiny bit) but I started some simple fingerless mitts with the leftover yarn from my French Cancan shawl. I wanted something I could easily work on while hanging out with families and the sweater didn’t fit that requirement at the time.

I hope everyone had a pleasant holiday and look forward to the new year! Happy knitting!