More Socks!

Exciting, eh? This pair is for me. Very comfy and a better fit than the last (sorry Mom! Hopefully yours fit you well.)



And here's a pair for Miss A. This pic was taken when one was smaller than the other but it's since been frogged and re-done to make an identical pair. She loves them. The yarn is the Felici from KnitPicks and while it's super soft I don't think they'll be long lasting. Still, very pretty and I'll be making myself a pair.

I've also made 4 dischcloths for gifts to the Little Man's Waldorf teachers and others. If there's anyone you can feel not guilty about giving a homemade gift its someone in Waldorf (at least that's how I'm convincing myself that I'm not just being cheap.)

I'm very very tired at this point in the pregnancy (6 weeks to go) so we haven't even being doing our normal running around like crazy. Instead we've been going to the pool in the AM for Little Man's swimming lessons (For a kid who had a lot of sensory issues he's doing great. I didn't expect for him to go under and he did it the second session.) And then visiting lots of storytimes at the local libraries and when I have a bunch of energy, hitting up park days with other young homeschoolers. When I'm not napping in the afternoon we've been doing some more formal lesson-y stuff loosely following the classical model outlined in A Well Trained Mind.

I also have a very part, part-time job doing the administrative part of Chris's web hosting business at http://www.dashCommerce.com. It only takes around 5 hours a week and gives me something to do besides mind small people.

On Wednesday the munchkins and I head to Baltimore for our annual summer visit. We are looking forward to it!

Toe-Up Love

I've never really understood the online knitters' fascination with socks. I've made a few pairs and all of them required me ripping back substantially. However as I do have a few skeins of sock yarn and I needed a Mama's Day present for my Mama, I tried again this time using a toe-up technique. I love it! Minus ripping back the Turkish cast-on a ton of times, the knitting itself was painless. And I love the short-row heel as I also am not a fan of picking up stitches. Since this pair only took one skein I'm now half-way through a pair for myself and I've switched to the much easier Magic Cast-on so no ripping at all.

In baby news, we now only have 11 weeks to go! While I am a little worried about Miss A's transition into a Big Sisterhood, otherwise I am rather unworried about the whole thing. My belly is huge and I feel I can't get much bigger (oh but wait!) even though I know there's still a lot of growing to go. I am in full-on nesting mode and have cleaned out all of the closets and made up a list of all of the things that need fixed around the house. Chris was groaning as I mentioned maybe we could spend his day off today painting things. :)

JCC's mittens from here


Trogdor the Burninator! from IK Holiday 07 a present for JCC

Above are some of the fun things I've cranked out over the last month. All in all I don't find pregnancy to be a terribly productive period of life. It reminds me of being 16 (and I hated being a teenager) -- I'm moody, introspective and all I want to do is sleep. About the only thing I find entertaining is a good book and I've been cranking through those this month.

With that in mind, I've really been enjoying a new website. Goodreads is a site where you can track what you're reading as well as see what other people are recommending. The hits for me this month have been Anne Lamott's "Blue Shoe" and Carson McCullers's "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter". I'm waiting on some interlibrary loans to come through so I think next up is "Catch 22" or "The Kite Runner".

Other than some work on my Clapotis I haven't done much handwork. I really really need to make the little girl (who is now 2!) a baby book before the next one arrives but I find spreading all of the stuff out to messy for me to handle right now. I also have many months of Spunky Eclectic fiber club to spin but seem to lack the motivation in the evening to do so. I'm almost at the end of the first trimester so hopefully some energy will return soon.

Happy New Year!

I hope all of you are having a happy new year. 2007 went by in a flash and 2008 looks to do the same as we are expecting another munchkin in mid to late August! We'll be planning another homebirth and just continuing along with our homeschooling journey until then. I was looking forward to starting a bit more formal program in the fall (ok really I'm just itching to get a math curriculum as I think we'll have a lot of fun with it) but now that may get postponed until we all settle in to the new munchkin. While initially a bit put off by the idea, the Little Man is now excited to have another brother or sister. Carrying on the tradition of giving the gestating name (Miss A was Baby Cashew) he has decided on Baby Butter Crunch for this one. :)



Thanks to the lack of CTS I've been much more productive lately. I finally finished up the Drop Stitch Cardigan that I knitted in 2006. For almost all of 2007 it sat around without a collar and a wonky zipper (even though I installed both multiple times.) Finally I gave up on both and made a tie closure and crocheted around the neckline to finish it off. I've worn it multiple times since finishing it and I love it!



I also finally made a hat to match a cape I picked up while pregnant with Miss A. I've had the yarn for a while but was set on crocheting a pattern that is way beyond my skill set. Deciding I didn't care that much I made the Urchin pattern from Knitty and I am quite content with the results, though I don't look nearly as cute in it as Miss A.



Lastly here's a cute pick of the Little Man in his Joseph Coat. He wears it frequently even if the zipper is starting to loosen and look ridiculous.

For my current knitting I've started Miss Marigold though by the time I finish it I won't be able to fit into it. I've also been cranking out on my Clapotis. It's perfect for football playoffs knitting! Next I need to make the boy some mittens to match his hat and then I'll start on Petal.

Inspired by a brand new notebook gifted by PCR last Christmas, in 2007 I started a book of all the things I wanted to knit, read, do over the year. One of the best habits I formed was keeping a list of all the books I read. Highlights include a variety of cooking inspired books, all the Ruth Reichl ones; Bonnie Wolf's "Talking with My Mouth Full"; and "Julie & Julia" by Julie Powell; as well as Elizabeth Gilbert's "Eat, Pray, Love"; "Fun House" by Alison Bechdel; "Survival of the Sickest" by Sharon Moalem; "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini; "Bankok Haunts" by John Burdett; and lastly "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. Forgive me for not linking. I'd love it if anyone has some of their favorites to recommend.

Finally. . .A Sweater

Details:
A Simple Knitted Bodice by Stefanie Japel
Started in March, finished in November
Size 3 & 5 KnitPicks Options Needles
Tess's Designer Yarns Silk/Merino (awesome!)

I'm pretty happy with this -- I really would love it if the neckline was narrower which it would have been if I had been able to do it as written. Instead I did one purl ridge and then bound off. The sleeves are also not as belled as written and also only have one purl ridge. Why? Only about 5 yds of yarn leftover!

As for that oh so much smaller Jaywalker, it has been frogged. Apparently now that I'm knitting again I'm knitting at a much more normal gauge. Which is kinda nice, I guess, but really throws off existing projects. Thank goodness I didn't screw up the above sweater.

Goofy Children Pics



Wearing his Joseph Coat!



In small children news, Miss A is talking up a storm and Mr J is in the middle of one of his watershed times (he never learns just one thing at a time) and is learning to read, tell time and do some math. Lot's fun!

Woo Hoo! A Handspun Hat

I finally ripped back and added some rows to Mr. J's hat -- I love it! The pattern is the Earwarmer Hat from LTK. I am very happy with how my spinning is progressing. It's taken long enough!



And now the sock. . . notice the size difference. Any suggestions? I am loathe to rip out a finished sock.

FO: Sew U Skirt

Look at that -- I finished something! Chris has been going to sleep at the same time as the munchkins (he started his own business and is getting up really early as to have more time to work) and to try and to entertain myself in the evenings I finally made the skirt from Sew U. I wussed out on the zipper and darts and subbed elastic instead. This was very, very easy to make. My only real issue was due to my poor cutting skills. I think I may buy a rotary cutter, mat and straight edge to eliminate that problem. I do like the book but would note that you have to be pretty slim to make the patterns -- the above is the largest size skirt and I am way out of range of the shirt pattern.

Many thanks to Kate, Nancy and Stacey for posting their projects, sharing encouragement and advice, and just in general being sew inspiring (groan). I just love bloggers!

New Hat

Alright, so it's a new month and I'm still not getting much more done. Rangling children sure does take a lot of time. Between running them around to popcorn factory tours, visiting friends, and the normal household duties I'm not getting a ton of fiber love. I did knit up a ribbed hat out of my homespun merino -- it is oh so soft. I do wish it were a few rows longer so I may crochet a border out of some purple merino left over from Little Girl's coat.



Yesterday a few of us from the Eastside SnB members saw the Monet exhibit at the CMA. It was wonderful! While in college (3rd time or maybe 4th. . .) I was there at least once a week but since having JCC I've only been once! It was nice to revel in the silence and enjoy the color. To continue the color fest, afterwards we hit the local yarn shop. I managed to escape with only the following:

The Crafting Blahs

The finished skein from last week's post

The doldrums of February combined with a very active January find me with NOTHING on the needles or wheel. I cast on a balaclava for Chris but ripped it as I was foolishly attempting to knit from memory and was doing k2p2 instead of k2p3 even though I had a ton of stitches. You'd think I would have been proactive enough to consult the pattern after an inch or so of thinking "Gee, that looks awfully big." But no I waited until I had 3 inches completed.

Instead I've been reading and sleeping. :) I do much of my crafting in the evenings after both children are asleep but now that I've given up caffeine I find myself going to bed an hour or so earlier. I guess it's good to be getting the rest my body needs but my brain is craving a bit more.

Reading wise I've devoured a bunch of cooking books -- Eat to Live by Joel Furhman, Julie & Julia by Julie Powell and Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl. All three are good reads. I read the first two during the same week which made for an interesting juxtaposition as they are at the opposite ends of the eating spectrum. The former proposing a vegan, nutrient dense, low-fat diet and the other cooking offal in butter and cream. We're trying out the program outlined in Eat to Live and are doing pretty well -- we may be exhibiting a green tinge from all of the salad we are eating but otherwise feel satiated and healthy.

I do expect happy crafting days ahead of me as I have a large KnitPicks order coming my way with yarn for Chris's striped scarf, a surprise hat and a ton of dye for my Tunis roving. I also was lucky enough to have some spinning questions answered by a lovely and talented spinner. I can't wait to read the next post about drafting. I have more HPY fiber on the way as well as some other yummy stuff to spin and will test out her suggestions.

Thanks to the blizzard outside tomorrow will be our third day in a row home. Normally we are home on Tuesdays but get out and be merry the others. Today was surprisingly pleasant and hopefully tomorrow will be more of the same.

Lastly, I have to mention that my vacuum died the other week and I replaced it with the Roomba (for those that wanted a report, this is a Remanufactured Roomba Discovery) that my heart has been coveting. I LOVE it. It freaking rocks. I was doubtful that it would stand up to the fur but it does a great job even if I do have to empty it after every use. Now my only problem is figuring out how to keep Little Girl from turning it on every ten minutes. Hopefully the novelty will wear off soon.

Vivid Violet

roving with bits of lemon yellow throughout. Isn't it pretty? And oh so soft. Spinning is really an amazing thing -- time seems to evaporate when I'm doing it. I don't know if it's just because I'm learning and spend so much time thinking about what I'm doing or if it's just a magical craft in general. I've managed to solve my overtwist problem but now feel like I'm spending more time predrafting the roving than actually spinning. If you have advice please comment.



Pile o' baby hats awaiting to be delivered. (Babies have already arrived.)

One Wizard Scarf Complete

Nice and big. Chris loves it. I will be making another here shortly. His love is not for the HP tie-in but for the double layer, super long warmth so he has picked two blues instead of any of the HP school colors. I found downloadable ebooks from my library while knitting this and it has resulted in a dedicated knitter. Well, that and the fact that I was a monogamous knitter for once. Makes me wonder how fast I could do a sweater if I tried. This was about 700 yards including fringe. I swear my hair is not that *big*.



Here are the wee children painting.

And now I'm off to soak in the tub and peruse my new books: The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns and The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook. I'm a tired girl tonight.

Boring Socks are Done and Little Girl is One!

From this. . .


to this. . .


And one goofy brother. . .


What a quick year that was! Not much knitting, but a wee girl is a good reason for that. She's really started communicating in the past week or two -- some signs (eat, more and book) and new words (bath and ball). She's had that moving thing down pat for a while but added climbing onto the couch and going backwards down the stairs to her repertoire.



For the knitting update -- the boring socks are finished. The yarn is some cheapo Knitpicks stuff that I don't really like (they feel rough and the yarn split a lot) and I even took off a recommended inch in length but they still feel too big. Apparently I like my shoes big. I buy size 9 shoes but when I put that in the sock wizard pattern generator it comes out with socks much too big for my feet. Anyway, these were fun to make and I have more sock yarn on the way for birthday gifts.

And lastly, I found a boo boo in the SnB Kitchner instructions. They have the four main steps but leave out those two preliminary steps (yarn into front stitch as if to purl, yarn into back stitch as if to knit) to get you ready to Kitchner. Laura, I wonder if this is why you are an unhappy kitchner-er?

Knitting for Joe

Joe is my father in law and the only person (not including JCC) who has requested a knitted object. Bless him. Ask and you shall receive. . .



a balaclava. :)

From the Winter 06/07 Knit.1. Made from just over one skein of black Cascade 220. Took one day to knit. Not bad considering it's been lurking in my brain as something to do for over a year. Hopefully it will keep him warm.



To take care of another Thing to Knit, I made another Umbilical Cord Hat (SnB) out of 100purewool for my cousin's two month old son. Both packages are addressed and ready to mail. I'm feeling quite productive.

My first FO of 2007

Irish Hiking Scarf made with 3 skeins of KnitPicks Swish Superwash in the Fired Brick colorway. Despite having almost the amout of yards called for this is a bit too short (it is longer than it looks in the pic as it's wrapped around his neck twice) -- 53 inches after blocking. I'm not in love with the yarn even though it held up well in the wash. It's probably great for kid items but it just felt too plastic-y for my knitting enjoyment. I also didn't realize that *everyone* was making this pattern for the Red Scarf Project. Oh well.

Not too much else going on in the knitting department. I did receive some great gifts from my SnB pals (or knitting friends as JCC calls them) and spent my time filling a new notebook with a list of all my knitting books and what patterns I want to make from them. For actual knitting I've been cranking out felted moc slippers.

Otherwise we've just been living our normal life of playdates, parks and chores. I feel very busy with our rather relaxed life and can't imagine what it would be like to have a job outside the home or school with which to contend. We are very blessed to be able to enjoy the non-hurried life.

What Happens in Baltimore, Stays in Baltimore

Well, knitting presents anyway. We were in MD for 12 days enjoying the normal holiday festivities. One of my lovely aunts bought the following for a $1 at an estate sale.



Yep, a handmade wheel and an unpictured spindle for one dollar! I made her a pair of felted slippers for a thank you but didn't manage to get pic. I did get a pic of another multidirectional scarf I made for a friend out of my last bit of blue/green/gray 100purewool. However the wheel has to stay in Bmore until my parents venture north in the spring. I had two children, a large suitcase, a large duffel and two carry on bags to drag through the airport yesterday and a wheel just wasn't in the cards.





Wee baby sweater, awaiting a baby to be born tomorrow! I am now DONE with this colorway -- one sweater for me, one baby sweater and a scarf is overkill.


Detail of the Irish Hiking Scarf I'm making for the red scarf project. It is turning out lovely but it does get a bit tedious.

While I was gone my HPY order arrived -- a much speedier turnaround than last time. The roving is BEAUTIFUL but my attempt at brown/blue yarn is just not what I wanted. Too much brown. Pics coming soon!

Handspun

I started spinning last summer but got put off after I read an advanced spinning book that said the way I was taught was the wrong way to learn. Even though I had been quite happy with my spinning up until that point. This ended my spinning career until I picked up Shannon Okey's Spin to Knit and read about the same technique I had been taught. So I figured I might as well spin up all of the yummy fibers I bought at Stitches last summer. To make it a little easier on myself I bought another bobbin, the lazy kate rack missing from my wheel, a new brake strap (mine dry rotted) and a beautiful niddy noddy from Hello Yarn (who has some seriously rockin customer service -- same day shipping). I then spun up my purple and black bump from Grafton Fiber and knitted up Panta.



The batt was heaven to spin and I was happy to find that it was not horribly overspun as I was afraid. It is quite the thick and thin but worked up fine for the headband. Small children and I have been outside quite a bit in the snow and this is a nice replacement for my fleece earwarmer. The whole experience was so pleasant I'm going to spin up my black alpaca and then knit something for the little boy with it and the rest of the purple/back yarn from above.



He's been asking "When will it snow again since April?" He's a happy boy!


Little elf