New projects and the end of an era

I am very excited about my new knitting opportunity as a sample knitter.  My first projects are for small projects using a lovely and very soft yarn.  I will not reveal the projects, but you can have a little peek...

One project is in this color.

Here is the yarn for the next two projects.
The colors for all three are gorgeous.

Congratulations to the Carthage Red Men on their fifth CCIW Swim Championship in a row (with no divers, I might add)!  We had so much fun at the meet and it certainly did not disappoint for excitement.  After eleven years of competitive swimming, Ben is finished.  I know he will continue to swim, as it is such a life-long sport.  It is just a little sad to know we are now finished with this part of Ben's life...although he has exciting adventures ahead after his graduation in May.

Ben's last breaststroke in the 400 IM.
I finally got a good photo of him in this race! 

Red Men win their fifth championship in a row!
They went into the meet 160 points behind Wheaton,
because Carthage does not have divers.
President Campbell even came to the meet
and joined in the celebration!
Ben is in the first row, fourth from the right.

Of course, after the photo opportunity
all the men along with the coach end up in the pool!

Time Marches on!

25.03 Today we have a chilly coat of snow on the ground. So much for spring. That's okay, it gives me a chance to wear my sweaters longer!

Ben was home for spring break last week and we enjoyed our time together. We spent most of the week at the U of M Aquatic Center watching NCAA DIII swimming. It's exciting to watch! We sat with other team parents and it was nice to visit with them and cheer on our swimmers.
Into the frog pond today. I can't believe I didn't notice that I was supposed to knit the knits and purl the purls for the raglan shaping. I rather liked the visible decreases before the knitting faeries added to the pattern! AAK! Anyway, I like knitting this yarn and just want to prolong my experience...riiiight!
28.03 Well, the best laid plans seem to change, but what else is new?? Before I get into my post, I'm going to tackle this room...
29.03 I tackled the room and found my pound of gray roving. I knew I had more than what I took up to the retreat! Good grief! My stash is much smaller than I thought. The spinning fiber takes up more room than the yarn. I have one tub of yarn for specific projects, one for spinning and knitting tools, one for felting, and the rest are handspun and fiber. The acrylic and blends are for charity knitting and bed socks. I'm back on track with the Montauk, but it still isn't interesting enough to take a photo, yet. The sleeves are going to be quick and then I just have to frog and re-knit the raglan shaping for the fronts (those dang knitting faeries!). I finished another Shape It Scarf with some yarn I got at Depth of Field. It's similar to Koigu and I used every bit of that lovely, soft yarn.
It's been a busy month. Angelika returned to Germany, Ben came home for break, we spent a good part of the week at the Aquatic Center at the U of M for the NCAA Division III National Swim Meet. It was fun to watch. Ben's first high school coach was one of the timers and the high school diving coach presented the diving awards. Old home week! We sat with the team families and it was great to cheer on the swimmers. The last evening we all went to Annie's in Dinky Town on campus. Wonderful burgers, malts,and fries! Wow, time flew and it's all a blur...