Seems I left you all wondering ...

Sorry 'bout that.  Things have been more than a little hectic around here  lately, and I forgot that I hadn't  told everyone the final results of the surgeries and such.

The thyroid biopsy had been sent out for a second opinion because the folks at Centenerary Hospital were hoping for a more definitive answer as to cancer or not.  After waiting another four weeks, the results came back.  You guessed it -- same as the first biopsy.  The endocrinoligist I'm seeing was actually pleased with the less than definitive results.  The blurrier the answer, the better for me he felt.  So we are going to be monitoring my throat area carefully and scheduling an ultrasound in November.  Additionally, he will be keeping my TSH levels slightly elevated so that any remaining thyroid cells won't feel the urge to kick into high gear, which could cause them to slide over into the cancer side of things.  All in all, I'm not at all upset with the results.

And you know what?  I'm feeling absolutely fabulous.  Haven't felt this well in years, actually.  I'm not sleeping until noon on my days off, nor am I taking naps.  In fact, Doug is beginning to wonder who this dynamo is that's sharing space with him.  In fact, today was 6 weeks (and a few days) post-surgery on the gall bladder and today was The Day for a bicycle ride.  We hopped onto the bikes and rode into and around Caesarea ... up some hills and down some hills.  It was good.  Actually, it was GREAT!  Next weekend we're gonna try some trails.  I can hardly wait!

In the meantime, I've been doing some knitting and finishing up of items.  And since I actually found my camera again, it's time I posted some pictures!   In February, we hosted a knit-along at the store for the Winter Spice cardigan from the November 2011 issue of Creative Knitting.  This was a follow-up of the chart class that we held in January -- I loved the design.  Here it is in all its glory --

Ooops.  You'll have to turn your monitor sideways to get a good view of the back.  (I'm fighting with the software on the home computer, and losing badly, as evidenced by the sideways photo.  I'm glad I got it as far as here, let alone turned properly!)  The flower is knitted on a background of purl stitches, while the rest of the garment is garter stitch.

The sleeve detail is quite nice, in my humble opinion.  I searched for a long time to find the perfect buttons for the cuffs.

 These are singed cherry toggles which I purchased from a gentleman who markets his hand-made buttons, toggles, sweater and shawl pins under the name "Nature's Wonders."  We have a selection of these at the store, many brought in especially for the knit-along.

In other news -- We have had my step-daughter's dog living with us for the past year.  Pepper came to stay with us last May, in hopes that we could give him a happy summer.  He is elderly, with problems in his hindquarters.  Apparently living in the country is good for him, because he not only enjoyed the summer but also the fall, winter and spring!  We've started taking him to a local conservation area for a walk every weekend, on the premise that walking over terrain is good for people so it must be good for him.  We don't let him do the entire trail, but just enough to give him some exercise and tire him out.  Apparently it works ...

That's a tired dog!  Remember Monty Python's movie Search for the Holy Grail?  There's a bit in there where townspeople are being asked to "bring out yer dead."  One guy comes out with an old man over his shoulder and the elder gentleman is saying "I'm not dead yet!"  That's Pepper.  He's not dead yet, nor does he plan to be any time soon.

All I know is that he's the best dog in the world.