Where Did April Go?

Ever have one of those months that just gets away from you? That was April for me; it seems like it was over just as soon as it began. The beginning of May wasn't any slower, either. Last weekend, we took Rainbow on her first road trip to go to my little brother's college graduation. Then, as soon as we got home, the Mister left on a two-day business trip, which meant it was just us girls at home (and I crawled into bed just as soon as the wee one went to bed). This past weekend, we were finally able to catch up on errands and chores (including, if my count is correct, five loads of laundry), so this is the first opportunity I've had to get to my computer in a while.

Tonight, you get what I intended to post yesterday for Spinning Sunday, the latest yarn off my wheel, which took pretty much the whole month of April to spin. I have mixed feelings about this. It all started with the fiber, April's shipment from the Crown Mountain Farms fiber club, 4 ounces of Wensleydale in a colorway called Sunrise Over Kangchenjunga.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know why I was less than enthused when I opened the package: Orange is my least favorite color. Still, I hoped that once it was spun up, I might like it more. After all, some of the speedier spinners on the CMF Ravelry board had already posted their finished yarns, and some turned out more of a peachy shade when spun.

This was my first time spinning Wensleydale, so I decided to spin it in a way I knew it would work well -- as singles. We all know that I stink at spinning thicker yarns, so I went for laceweight singles. I ended up with approximately 770 yards:

As you can see, the orange didn't soften or lighten at all in the spinning process. I also didn't particularly enjoy the process of spinning it -- the fiber felt rather like human hair to me. And while I'm pleased with the final yardage, I can't see myself ever knitting with this yarn. I don't regret spinning it, because the reason I joined the fiber club was to get outside my comfort zone and spin new-to-me fibers, but this skein very well might be listed for sale in the future.

I was much more excited about the May fiber club shipment, which promptly went on the wheel as soon as the Wensleydale came off. This is targhee in a colorway called Woodstock (it does rather look like tie-dye, doesn't it?).

I'm spinning it fine and tight for a traditional three-ply sock yarn.

I had hoped to get in some serious spinning time on Mother's Day (I thought it was reasonable to ask for it), but both Rainbow and the Mister had other plans and decided to take naps yesterday afternoon and I was stuck with the laundry. Still, it was a good day. I got lots of funny baby faces ...

as well as a new toy (an iPod Touch!) and quite possibly the most perfect card: