Yay!...October! I am so happy to greet this new month! I love September, but to be honest, it is often an odd month for me. The end of summer and the beginning of fall always makes me feel a bit unmoored. Fall is actually my favorite season, so you would think that September would be a walk in the park, but it's almost like my blood slows for those warm months and it just resists getting going, while in the brain, my thoughts are flitty and flighty.

Cue Socktober!...having spent the last month in a bit of a knitting funk, with lots of false starts and frogging I am turning over a new leaf and am embracing some of the sock love out there this month!...

First, Kirsten Kapur's Mystery Sock Knit-Along. This is too much fun! This is my first ever knit along and I am really enjoying it. She gives you the directions for one new section of the sock each week and at the end of the knit along you have the entire sock pattern and presumably a completed sock. It is really fun knitting this, not really knowing where it's heading and being surprised all along the way—a great exercise on so many levels.
And second, is this mini stocking knit along on Ravelry started by Annri over at the woolnest. Okay, here is the spooky part...see these guys...

I started these little stockings last fall. They were to be made into a holiday advent garland inspired by some of the links this post, much like the Advent garland in this post, but alas, I only made it to about twenty little stockings (some were used to adorn gift packaging)—these are what I had left over. What I love about this is that my long lost friend (recently found—thank you blogosphere!), was doing the same thing in her living room several states away. Given my history with this woman, this fact doesn't surprise me in the least. It does make me so happy and it gives me a moment to think about how many of us are on this journey of creating, parenting, trying to work a little beauty and joy into our days. I love thinking about how many others there are out there quietly making, putting a personal spin on old crafts. This thought brings me joy and comfort and so much inspiration.

I started these stockings way to late last year to realistically get them done before December 1st, and I have to tell you I got some raised eyebrows from the non-knitters in the peanut gallery when I was working so obsessively on these little stockings (you know who you are :)). Now, I have a second chance. I think that I might scrap these little guys and start afresh—I have some new ideas for the pattern, and I'm sure I can come up with something to do with these. I am really looking forward to this—it will be so much fun and so inspiring to do this along side other knitters. You should come play too!

It is rainy and cold here—perfect for getting cozy, knitting and baking....this is shaping up to be a very good weekend. Hope yours is happy!...alison