New Justin pics

Isn't this a great picture that Kim took? I laughed when I saw it, every time I see it I smile. He looks so happy. I love these pictures. This is a new toy, as he steps on the piano keys below, he plays music. There are many other things that he can do, but the making music seems to be key. (sorry, I couldn't resist the pun.)

There once was a

When we moved from Fresno to Portland, many years ago, Mrs. Williford gave us a dresser and a book for Serena (who was around 18 months old at the time.) We used the dresser for years, it just went to a family with 4 children, to continue the tradition of giving.

But the book. Ah, the book. We read that book over and over and over to both children. It got to the point that we knew it by heart. I don't know what happened to our copy. I want to read it to Justin when we can.

Yesterday a new copy came. Howard was able to identify it by the back cover alone. He didn't know that it was coming, but he knew exactly what it was when this picture emerged from the envelope.

The book? "The Boy With A Drum" by David L. Harrison and pictures by Eloise Wilkin I look forward to reading it to Justin many times.

And then again...

As I was admiring this sock, I thought, "This looks pretty small." After more rows, where I was still worried about it, I finally gave up and tried it on. I believe this means I will frog it again. sigh

Playing

Remember me, Ms. "I Hate to Knit With Colors"? Look what is on my needles at the moment!

Finished!

I asked my good friend Gen to model Mom's sweater, as they are near to a size. I think it turned out pretty well!


I have started a pair of gorgeous socks for me. Well, they will be gorgeous if I manage to get them knit up! These are stranded knitting, which means using a chart to keep track of the knitting. I can do this with cables, I don't know why I have troubles with this. Anyway, I just frogged (rip-it, rip-it) 35 rows on one sock and 25 on the other. whimper



Then I started another pair of socks for me. Just simple socks in a gorgeous color that has been marinating in my stash for too long. I had about 4 inches of each sock done when I took a good look at them. They were HUGE! So they frogged out as well. It wasn't my best knitting week, because while I finished Mom's sweater and the humming socks, the rest of my knitting turned out to be negative knitting!

Dentist knitting

I had started the pair of socks that shall be known as humming to take to the dentist yesterday. Unfortunately, I'd knit more on the plain part than I should have. I realized that it was NOT going to carry me through the dental work. So I grabbed cotton yarn and needles on the way out the door and cast on for another Tribble. Started knitting away. And knitting. He needed to do a lot of work on that poor tooth.

I learned the following things while knitting without a chance of seeing my knitting (non-knitters, ignore all but the first one):

• trying to pass the ball of yarn through the last stitch requires grabbing the CORRECT ball of yarn. You see, there was also another TWO balls of yarn in my little bag, and I carefully lifted the wrong one through that stitch and started pulling. And pulling. Finally gave up and stuffed the rotten thing in my bag. You know that cotton can make a mess when it isn't corralled, don't you? It did.
• I can do an SSK, but it takes more thought than a k2tog;
• I counted stitches to tell which row I was knitting. Counting helped me concentrate on knitting instead of the dentist, and if the row was coming up short a stitch, it meant I was on the pattern row;
• a normal bind-off didn't take much effort, in fact, it was looser than my normal one;
• my fingers are smarter than I think they are!

Another rotten mess straightened up last night. I am not good at winding a center pull ball on my own. Isabel tried a couple of times. I understand the theory, but seem to fail practicum. I rolled up a skein while at Nathan's. When I started knitting it I realized I made not been successful again. sigh I wound up as much as possible on the ball winder, then broke the rest and called it quits. Last night I sat down with it and untangled. Remembering WHY I don't like to untangle messes like this. But it needed to be done. And it now is in a tidy EXTERIOR pulling ball. That last little bit that might be needed for the socks, it would be terrible to run out!

That lady and her camera

Nathan hates having his picture taken. I caught him chatting on the phone and smiling, and couldn't resist. Of course, with the way things go, it is NOT a good picture of Justin. But I like the expression on NATHAN's face!


These two are so close to each other, but I couldn't choose between him. He looks so serious, doesn't he. There were a lot of smiles this trip, I certainly didn't catch a single one on the camera!

Justin has found his voice! He has learned to squeal. It is hard to know without looking at his body language whether he is squealing in anger or fun. He likes the noise, but it tends to startle him too!

He's teething, Grandma's fingers were great to chew on. He is making bubbles and doing a lot of drooling. It will probably be a while until those teeth come in, but he'll chew away until they do!

But Grandma!

I believe this is called, "But Grandma, you guessed WRONG on how big I am!" What do you think? He'll grow in to it, of course, but doesn't he look bemused?

But they ...

I was complaining in the car yesterday about this sock yarn. It is part of the Kaffe Fassett collection by Regia. He is well known in the knitting world for his use of color. Which, I'm sure, is why he was asked to put together this collection. I don't know, perhaps something went wrong between the colors he chose and the colors that were reproduced. Whatever, I was whining (let's be honest here, right?) and said to Howard, "The colors don't SING!"

There was a pause as the man searched for the right thing to say. He has been around me long enough.

Finally he said quietly, "no, but they are trying to hum."

Musing on socks

In the fall of 95, Joan Hamer donated a sock pattern to the Knitlist.  It sparked a whole new era of knitting for many of us.  Hundreds of pairs were  knit by listmembers.  When stores discontinued carrying Woolease, Knitters descended in throngs to purchase all of the existing stock. 

After a while, people began creating new patterns for socks.  XRX held a sock contest, the winning entries were displayed at Stitches and included in the "Socks, Socks, Socks" book.    Judy Gibson designed a toe-up pattern that resulted in a sock that looked exactly like one knit from the top, her "You're putting me on!" pattern.  

Some gentleman developed a machine that dyed the yarn in a pattern that striped or mimicked Fair Isle patterning!  Big stars for him!  That excited our imaginations.  When the yarn first came out, it was easier to buy in Europe than in the US.  So swaps were formed.  Those living abroad had "wish lists", those that wanted the sock yarn (and other goodies not available here at that time) happily filled wish lists in exchange for OUR wish lists.  I did several swaps with Colonel Holly Doyne -- she seems to remember the package of zippers I sent the best (all sizes and colors, based on her preferences), I remember the Regia booklets, the Horst Schultz books and a 100 gram skein of the most marvelous yarn.  It was teal/blue/green/yellow and looked like spring to me.  I was in a sock swap at the time, I knit up a PINK sock with stranded patterning for my partner and knit that green yarn with black stranding for me.  The socks didn't match deliberately, I wanted to play with patterns.  I did something wonky on the heels, but they fit well enough.  After this many years, the socks are showing signs of wear.  Serious wear, as in "I'm not sure I can fix this wear."  Which was a cause of some sadness.  And since I never received the socks from my swap partner, I couldn't replace them with warm thoughts from her.  

Yesterday in the mail came two skeins that look as if they are family members of that pair.  My heart is happy!  

My yarn weakness

It is sad, but I have realized that I have this terrible weakness as to sock yarn. I have a stash of it. I will admit to a having enough to be able to knit socks for several years without running out. Yet there is something about seeing sock yarn for sale that makes my heart go pitter pat for a moment. I talk myself out of it, so far. You will please notice that I'd like to make a promise that I will continue to do so, but... What is it about sock yarn, as opposed to any other yarn? I started to say I could understand if it were -- a different kind of yarn -- but then my mind went blank. I really couldn't imagine any other yarn "tripping my switch." I started to write cashmere, and remembered the cashmere in my stash that is patiently waiting for me to come up with some sort of project for it. Just to get it out of my stash. It has been there long enough, but without an inspiration it sits. Hm, qiviut? I knit up all that I had and gave the projects away. Sweater yarn? I have enough for many sweaters in my stash right now, I don't feel a need to pick up any yarn for that.

But sock yarn. Ah. What is it about SOCK yarn? I don't know. The fact that socks usually go fairly quickly? As opposed, of course, to a sweater which could take SO much more yarn and take longer to knit. The magic of turning the heel? Even after 90+ pairs of socks, I still delight in heels. I don't know why. But I love sock yarn.

Mom's Sweater

So earlier in the week I was going to post this picture, of the finished sleeves. Took the picture, never put it up.
Early this morning I finished the body of the sweater. "Only" the miles of edging to go. Around both sleeves and the entire sweater. That may take as long as the REST of the sweater!
I wish I could get a picture that clearly shows the color. It is a mainly blue, but there are flecks of magenta and green, so it "reads" more of a teal. At least, it does to me.

I find it fun that I am knitting with this color. As I started in on it, I realized it is the same tones as Howard's vest I knit years ago o of the now discontinued color of Woolease -- Tartan Twist. That one used plies of the various colors to achieve the desired effect. The yarn I am spinning on Albert, my Victoria wheel is turning out the same as Mom's yarn, I'm spinning it so the colors blend instead of separating. I now know what to do so that I can make the colors separate, but right now I'm happy with the tweed effect. I don't know how many pairs of socks Iknit out of Tartan Twist, that was a color that several people were drawn to when I was knitting Joan's sock pattern, the pattern that taught so many knitlisters to knit and love socks. There we were, all learning at the same time. Whee! It was a fun time!

The Trouble With Tribbles

Where have I been? Smoking knitting needles, I guess is the best way to put it! I saw a pattern called "Tribbles" online at Ravelry. And one thing just seemed to lead to another then another. I couldn't make just one, they are fun and addictive to knit.Then I knit some more of them!
And then there are those facecloths I've been knitting. I'm getting a nice basket-full, don't you think? This is popcorn knitting, mindless, easy at the end of the day when my brain doesn't want to function. Last night I just couldn't face the final bit on the body of Mom's sweater. So I cast on a facecloth, and by the time for bed, it was finished and a tribble was too, all but the finishing on the tribble! Which took moments this morning. I LOVE finishing a project so quickly.

Think Spring!

Howard was outside the other day, and called me to see. Look! The strawberry plants are starting to grow! New growth is poking up amid all of the dead leaves, which protected them from frost. Whew! Winter is leaving!

Saturday

Howard was been gone all day. It was a nice, quiet day. My favorite.

I called the doc first thing yesterday, wound up going in. Which would have been all well and good, but although I sat in a corner, someone saturated in perfume sat 4 seats away. By the time I was called back, I was in some distress. At least the doc now sees what happens. He was amazed that my voice was so bad and deep. I think I’m going to have to rethink how I handle the doc’s office. Maybe check in, go back to the car and wait until they call me on the phone to come back? I wasn’t in good shape, dumped my purse twice (which I NEVER do!), shaky, just felt out of control. Unfortunately, yesterday Howard had needed to sleep, so he got up just as I was leaving (again a rare occasion.) That meant I had to drive to the pharmacy, wait for the new med, then drive home, even though I did not feel as if that was a safe proposition. Usually when I feel that way I refuse to drive. What was I supposed to do? It was raining, not a good day for my lungs to walk home either, the way they felt.

Got home, wandered around, and finally surrendered. I took a nap! I don’t DO naps! It was imperative, I slept more than 2 hours. Thinking about it today, I don’t think it was lack of sleep or the new med. I think it was the reaction to that perfume. That seemed to have done me in.

Anyway, today is MUCH better. Mom’s sweater is humming along, when I sit down to do it. I have had a couple of sweating issues, but not like yesterday evening, when I wound up changing from the skin out 4 times before I went to sleep. I was running out of clothing to put on! For some odd reason, I did two loads of wash today. I finished both sleeves today and cast on for the body.

A lot of nattering, probably about nothing. Thanks for listening!

Attacked by a project!

This is partly what I wrote to Dianne and Helle, partly new rambling.

Monday night I decided to finally ball up some 5 skeins of yarn that have been waiting. For a long time for me to get a "Round TUIT." I was ready to start Mom's sweater. I really truly was. See, I had 2+ skeins (minus the swatch) all rolled. I had the gauge swatch done and measured. I had the provisional cast-on done for the sleeves. And I stalled. Big time. I was so tired, I just couldn't do it.

Showered, because I felt I was salt encrusted (it hasn't been a good time for these prednisone hot flashes. I am changing clothes fairly constantly during the day.)

Picked up one ball of the teal Butterfly cotton to do a gauge swatch. Just that. And it grew. I rifled through some Mon Tricot books, trying to find just what I wanted -- a onesie. Couldn't. Did find a top with matching shorts that could be adapted, I guess. Won't look like the original when I'm done! :)

Started the first flap, then did the second. Finally went to bed. Woke up at 4 this morning and couldn't sleep. Stayed in bed for about a half hour and gave up. I went into the other room, grabbed my knitting and a book and away I went. I we t to Kmart and picked up 4 onesies 9 month, 12 month, 18 month and 24 month Howard was at a meeting down the street. I can have enough to make a pattern in each size. If people are interested. I find it curious, all 4 were the same brand. The size 12 month was SMALLER than the 9. In fact, the two are reversed. I would say that somewhere there was a mistake.

Mom's sweater, of course, hasn't started. But I'm feeling really good about this one! LOL

I love Butterfly cotton. This is a DK, I'm knitting it fairly tightly -- at 6 sts an inch. I thought about doing snaps at the crotch, but I also remember how the snap tapes didn't hold well when I sewed things for Serena. So I thought small buttons. I think that if I do offer it up for a pattern, that I should do it in more than one color. Teal is what I have on hand. I'll have to see what I can find. I'm not doing a "girlie" color (which is all pretty much is offered on Ravelry at this time, unless I want to buy enough for MANY!) because I prefer that it be WORN! LOL

I woke up early again this morning and started in on this way a great deal of joy. Well, except for the time that I was talking with Howard later in the morning and suddenly bound off! That was a surprise. grin

It is in the dryer now, already having gone through the wash. I am hoping that washing will even the stitches, I did this in stockinette, but I really need to knit a cotton in at least a SIMPLE pattern, as it shows every single freaking tension change.

This is the first project in a long time that has grabbed me and not let go! :)

what must be learned

It is funny how I have forced myself to change in some ways. Almost a year ago (hey, I was on pred then too!) I broke that bone in my foot reacting to the timer. A moment in time well remembered.

Now, when the timer goes off, I don't go running. There are times that I can tell it is driving Howard nuts, but I can let it ring. Stupid thing rings for a minute.

I don't always learn quickly. I don't always learn well. But I did learn that running to turn off a timer can be counter-productive, in fact, painful!

Timers are my friend, but I need to be in control of them, as opposed to them being in control of me!

I did get the stitches picked up for the collar. One by one by one. A slow process, hindered by this odd desire to save as much of the waste yarn as possible. Let me think about this. Waste yarn. By definition, to be thrown away. So what is my compulsion to save it? I have ounces of this pink yarn that was given to me. Some of it double stranded, some not. I have used it for waste yarn for several years now, um, longer than I really want to think. At least the early 90s? Serena was still in high school. There is probably enough to last me until I die and beyond. Yet I still try to salvage it when I use it. Who knows. I do remember Jane Carrigan, who gave the yarn to me way back when. She had started a top for herself and abandoned it. I got the yarn. It is wonderful for the waste yarn. Crochet up a chain (I can do that much) and pick up the stitches. But, I picked them up stitch by stitch, unraveling as I could, and snipping when it became necessary. Through all of that waste yarn in the trash when I was done. Ready to go on to the next step.

howard and birds

Howard loves to feed the birds. We have 3 bird feeders in the back yard, a suet feeder, and squirrel food on the ground. The squirrel feeder was an attempt to keep the um, the um, the pests (there are many other words that Howard uses here, I was trying to come up with a "family friendly" one) out of the regular feeders. They can only access one of them, their tries to get to the others are fun to watch. I've posted before about Howard's antics with the squirrels.

He isn't fond of grackles. They are messy, they waste the food, they scare off the smaller birds.

This morning, his loving wife (that would be me) text messaged him: Grackle grateful for suet!
Howard: Grrrr!
LW: :) but I thought you smile at the thought of pleasing a birdie! Giggle! :)
Howard: You are evil, in a very nice way!

I realized that trying to pick up the stitches from the provisional cast-on (for the facing/collar of the Mermaid) is NOT a good idea when the hands are shaking from the pred. Not, not, not. I'll do it later.

I tried to knit the sheep facecloth last night. It is cute, I had some white cotton that would have been perfect for it. I made it through the first row of bobbles. And frogged to the start of the pattern. Knit a facecloth in stockinette stitch with garter edges. There was no way I was going to happily do all of those bobbles. Just not. There was also the reality of how long those bobbles would take to DRY when the cloth was used! The rest of the cloth would dry, those could mold. That is my story, and I am sticking with it. I'm not a bobble knitter.

Bother

I had planned to spend quality time today, learning how to do a braided cast on. I have decided that is better suited to a day when I am NOT on prednisone, and can make sense of the directions. Until then, I will knit a swatch, make facecloths, work on the Mermaid or whatever. Note to self: do not try to learn something when the brain is not fully present. At least, do not try on your own. If someone else is there to catch mistakes it might be different. Not today.

knitted prayers

Friday night I was knitting away at the Mermaid for my friend Margaret. It felt as if I wasn't supposed to stop. I thought of her, prayed, and knit away into the evening and late into the night.

Yesterday I kept trying to call her. I felt there was a reason I had felt that way. The phones were busy. All day. Now that is odd. I kept trying and knitting. Praying for Margaret and Don.

Last night I received an e-mail from another friend that Margaret and Don are all right, but their house was damaged in the tornado that went through Friday night.

I have just a bit more to go on the body of the Mermaid, then I will put it down for a bit. During clean-up, she really does NOT need me to call and ask for her sleeve length. If I become too impatient, I'll just knit the sleeves per the pattern. I know they run long -- the designer is a tall person (so is Margaret. Hey, most people are taller than I am at 5' 2". I knit the sleeves for Serena, Kim and me shorter because we don't NEED that sleeve length. I'm pretty sure that Margaret will need the pattern length, if not a bit more.

Rats

I like Panera's bagels. Plain. Those are safe. Toasted are best. grin Was eating one last night and broke a tooth. This is the second tooth I've broken on one of those bagels. Really, they aren't THAT hard!

I was putzing around the house, waiting for the dentist office to call. I started a batch of oatmeal cookies. I am, perhaps unfortunately, NOT a precise cook. Baker. Whatever. I tend to go with the feel. After all, the flour is more moist some days than others. I also use my fingers to form the little dough balls. Howard left, my fingers were absolutely covered with dough. Dentist called. I am glad she called, but 3 minutes either way would have saved a really sticky mess on the phone!

Mermaid is growing. There are less than 2 stripe sections to go on the body. I am enjoying this knit again. I love the kingfisher (teal) color yarn that is the contrast. I would never choose the black and grey for the body for myself (wrong colors!) but it is going to be stunning on Margaret!

All Fool's Day

Yesterday afternoon the postman knocked. He had a lot of mail for us in the truck, but wanted us to know that we had what looked like a water main break. There is a little fountain coming out of the ground here. I wish it had showed up better. It ran down the sidewalk and out the neighbor's driveway, then down to the street all night, at a respectable rate.

The picture below is just before the dig. You will notice that Mother Nature had a surprise for us as well -- that white stuff was NOT forecast.

They started digging. And digging. And digging. 5 truckfuls of dirt came out, I didn't count the dirt going back in. It was a cold day to play in water. Although, to be honest, some of the things that they did looked a lot like little boys playing in a huge puddle of water. Making big splashes. With the backhoe. THAT makes a splash all right! LOL
Called the landlady, she had been under the impression that there wasn't much grass removed. Oh. Well. Yes. I think there was.

Someone asked if I was planning to do any April Fool's Day tricks. I think enough is enough, don't you?

Smile!

SMILE!

Justin and Us

Justin and Grandpa. Need I say more?

Justin and me

Gen's Quilt

Gen made a quilt up for Justin. So we used it for play time on the floor. This almost smile was just before or just after a BIG smile. I just wasn't fast enough.

Justin and his sweaters

This is the goldfish sweater, with the Dale of Norway Baby Ull yarn Mabel and Kay bought in Norway. Honestly the first sweater we tried on, but he wasn't quite sure what that idiot Grandma was doing with the camera! grin She sure stuck it in his face a lot!

This is the Presto Chango sweater, from jimmy beans Wool, knit out of Brown Sheep superwash







This cardigan became a pullover because Grandma forgot the buttonholes! sigh I tried to continue as a cardigan. It would have none of it. Perhaps that is just as well, because buttons like this won't be easy to button on a squirming toddler. As you can see, I went with the majority rule, and put in an additional 3 buttons. There are still 4 buttons left to decorate something!

The Joy of a Grandson

We are a family of readers.

Justin was grumpy today. Actually, he was very hungry and wasn't happy about having to wait for his milk. We were trying to wait for Mommy to come home, but it wasn't going to happen. Sorry Mommy! I was holding him while Grandpa thawed milk for him. There was a copy of "Peter Rabbit" on the table, a tiny cardboard version of Beatrix Potter's beloved book. I picked it up in desperation and started reading it to him. I didn't show him pictures, but he quieted and listened to the rhythm of the words. The book ended and he started fussing again. So I read it again. Just as I finished, he came to the end of his patience, but Grandpa had come through! The milk was ready!

I think we have another reader!

Pictures will be coming! He is a toad like his Daddy about pictures. He will have the biggest smile on his face, but bring out the camera and it disappears! Especially as you push the button. It might have been there as you pushed, but in that moment, it is gone and there is a wide-eyed look of astonishment that you would even think that you could catch a smile. grin

chuckle

We stayed in a lovely hotel last night in St. Paul. There are lovely white comforters on the beds. I was knitting away at my Mermaid, and thought "this would be a great place to take a progress picture!" I guess it is official -- knitting rules! Howard, the sweety, just laughed. The body is officially to half. Yay!

We were going to explore downtown St. Paul by foot. I was wheezing, though, so we didn't go very far. I needed my prednisone, and couldn't take that until we ate. Stopped at a likely place and had a lovely time. I'm so glad that retaurants here are now smoke free! We ate at Matty B's, the maitre d' took special care so that I could eat safely. It is worrisome trying to eat away from home with so many food allergies, he went far out of his way so that I could have a delicious meal. There was a jazz band playing in the background, we were on the other side of the restaurant, so chatting was easy. It was a delightful experience.

As you may have noticed, I'm back on pred. There wasn't much wheezing, but there wasn't much air getting in and out of the lungs either. My voice has been staying in the bass register, which causes some hilarity with friends. There was a debate as to whether Howard and I had switched voices (which would have been a good trick in and of itself, but it has been deeper than his.) Some people close to me couldn't recognize my voice. I guess it is hard to process when you know the person's voice and it is suddenly SO much deeper. Memorable, I understand. grin

Oh Wow!

Not very long ago I talked with our dear friend Gen about making a quilt for our bed. I've loved Star of David quilts for so many years. I tried quilting in the early 80s, I made a few tiny things and stopped. The ladies in Idalia Colorado quilted, I learned a bit more. But my abilities are um, weak. Gen is a QUILT MAKER! She loves to piece the way I love to knit.
Gen generously told me to come over and choose the fabric from her stash. Yesteday she came over to give this to us. She wanted to give us a visible sign of her love. I think that she has given us a hug that will be cherished the rest of our lives. I had tears in my eyes as I unfolded this precious gift.

She apologized that she wasn't able to quilt it. Oh my word! I think she gave so much already. I have checked with a friend who knows a quilter who may be willing to quilt it.

Each time I see this quilt, I will be hugged by Gen. Her love will enfold us at night.

What an absolutely lovely gift from the heart! God bless you Gen!

The Goldfish Sweater

Here is the finished Goldfish! I dropped it down onto the snowbank outside the front door, then took it looking down at it. I couldn't quite reach the arm to untuck it where it fell, but the rest of the sweater almost looks posed. Almost.

Yarn used, Dale of Norway Baby Ull, 4 skeins, I started with Brenda Zuk's Salmon Run then played with it. My fish are shorter, thus they look fatter. Pattern designed using SweaterWizard and Stitch and Motif Maker.

Oh, and it is resting on a new bed of the white rain that fell last night.

Eep!

I started an e-book. I made the mistake of reading a review about it. Normally, a review is a summary of the absolute essentials of the book. This one says "Because this is such a great ending, I'm not going to divulge anything else about it. You'll have to read the book to find out."

Now, for a person who has a hard time starting a book without reading the ending to make sure it all comes out okay, this is horrible! One of the few times I didn't want to read the end to find out and the reviewer does this to me? mutter, mutter, mutter! Yes, despite the years of being yelled at by family and friends, I still read the end of the book first.

So far I've not given in to tempation. Will it last? I dunno. :)

Maybe I'll take a picture of the goldfish sweater in the white rain that is on the ground. The forecast was "it is too warm for any snow, it will all fall as rain." HAH! That is some awfully solid white rain on the ground, I watched the neighbor shoveling it.

The Goldfish Sweater, he is finished!

Between the county caucus this morning and the knitting group this afternoon, the goldfish sweater is completed! I need to give it a quick wash, then I'll post a picture. People seem to think it is cute!

Thank you again Kay and Mabel!

Oh for...

Then last night, as I'm knitting away at this Goldfish Sweater, I notice that the last cable I knit in the column with the wrong cable was wrong AGAIN! sigh I must have looked at the wrong cable when I glanced to see which way the cable was to go. After all, I've hit the stage where I really don't think I need the pattern. whimper

I spent most of the morning fixing those two cables. The first was done by snip, move stitches then kitchener. The second was dropped down, fixed, then knit up again. Just those 8 stitches. Now can I finish this sweater? snivel

Drat

I had planned to write a post today about the joy of knitting when the pattern finally "clicks." When you suddenly "get it" and develop a rhythm. You see the word PLANNED? HAH!

I am having trouble believing that I went 7 rows without noticing that cable crossed the wrong way! After all, I look at my knitting! I know that I have to check to see what row I am (which way the seed stitch starts.) I LOOK at my knitting. I thought. Now I'm on the 8th row, time for another cable crossing. ARGH! This yarn isn't nice to drop down and knit up, it splits better than cheerleaders! I'll wait until I'm done and do a snip and kitchener repair.

The good news is that it is beginning to look like a sweater! As you can see, the arms joined the body today!

The color is somewhere in between these two shots. It is not quite a baby yellow (I called it that and one vendor was quite offended, told me it was "real yellow." Okay. It isn't a BRIGHT yellow. The first picture is too gold. The second one is too pale. Somewhere in the middle. You imagine, as my camera doesn't want to see it that way. I tried playing with the color, it wants to turn it into a gold, and it isn't.

The Tale of a Sweater

Last fall, two wonderful ladies, Kay and Mabel, went on a trip to Norway. While they were there, they thought of Justin (who was had yet to make his appearance) and bought some yarn so I could make a sweater for him. It is beautifully soft Dale of Norway Baby Ull -- a superwash wool in a lovely yellow (safe for either sex!) That was so sweet of them!

Here is the sweater I've started from that yarn. I've had a bit of a time, my gauge changed after my swatch, and I had to start over again. I started over the next time when I realized my gauge had changed again. This time it seems to be consistent. I have both sleeves knit and am nearly 3 inches up the body. It is going to be a seamless pullover, with a shawl collar. I like how it is working.

I started with Brenda Zuk's cable pattern in Salmon Run, a pattern I'd purchased thinking about our son. I felt that an all-over texture would be too much on this sweater. And then, of course, I started playing with the cable and changed that. I think the fish is now more of a goldfish than a salmon. grin

So, thanks to Mabel and Kay, Justin is going to have a sweater with "fishies" that will keep him warm. I can't wait until I see it on him! I know it is going to be too big (I purposely designed it so he can grow into it) but I love the picture of him in the changed Tutti-Frutti.

Thank you, ladies!

We Belong

The song in the hotel ad is haunting me...the chorus sings "we belong" over and over again. I think it ends with the word "together", but the part that sings -- okay, I'll be honest, is STUCK in my mind is "we belong".

There are so many places where I have found I belong. Some are a good fit, others are...not so good, but I stay because of friends, or circumstances, duty and sometimes (unfortunately) from habit. Some ties are weak, some are strong. But they are there.

We each need to belong.

Newest Justin pics

This one is a bit old (if you consider his age, that seems to be all wrong!) Aunt Serena is a fan, can you tell? So is Grandpa H, for that matter. Aunt Serena is trying to catch him young, I believe.



Justin spent part of a day at day care yesterday, so they could all experience it before Mommy has to go back to work. As they said, doesn't he look worried? grin This is at the day care site. He''s changed a lot already!

From what we understand, there are a lot of pictures being taken, but not a lot of time at that end (and boy, do I remember that lack of time) to send them on. We will "have" (such a hardship) to make another trip north to visit, and copy their pictures onto CDs so we can have them as well. There are some cute pictures on his webpage, but I can't copy them for my computer. There is one that he looks just like Jack Benny! The only thing missing is the hand up to the face!

Decisions, decisions

So the question now facing me is this: Is it better like this;

or this;

or this?

I figure it will be called the fish sweater, for some reason! I thought about having some of the fish face the other direction, but the eye is not centered. Someone would be making comments that some of the fish are floating upside down which means they are dead.

Rats!

I've still not finished this little double-breasted sweater for Justin. Murphy's Law seems to be ahead right now.

First decision was to skip buttonholes, as I figured odd-shaped buttons = bad idea for a toddler.

So I sewed in large snaps. I must have been distracted on the first snap, as the second half was in backwards, so it wouldn't close. The sweater fabric wasn't heavy enough to part the snaps (found that out after they were attached.)

Next I sewed in snap tape. First time through the white of the tape showed up and down the edge. Fixed that.

Then I realized that the sweater is heavy enough that you really can't feel to close these small snaps under the sweater fabric.

Last night I decided to make this into a pullover! Sewed one button and whipped the two front neck edges together.

Today I thought about taking last night's progress out and making another change. I'm afraid that if I do, this poor sweater will continue to be modified and modified, never fixed. EEK!

The face of knitting

When I started knitting, the options seemed to be:
1. fiber -- wool, cotton, angora, mohair and fibers we'd now count as acrylics;
2. weight -- worsted, sport, baby
3. cost -- can I afford to make that?
4. availability -- can I find it locally?

Now I see people have many other concerns:
1. What is the carbon footprint of the yarn?
2. How were the animals treated whose fibers make up the yarn?
3. How green is the yarn?
3a. Is the yarn as bio-friendly as implied?

Most of us don't worry as to whether we can find it locally, the internet makes it possible to order from around the world. All we need to do is a Google search, then off we go.

Cost is still a factor for most of us. We knit because we enjoy it, not because of any illusion that we are going to have something cheaper than can be purchased at the local discount store.

Weights now vary from laceweight (many different sizes) up to super bulky. Knitters choice.

The choices in fibers have grown too.

I want to knit a ... (fill in the object of your choice) is not always a simple matter any more. Each knitter chooses what is important and buys what seems right at that time.

I'm glad for the options available.

Sorry Bill

moar humorous pics
We didn't have a shower in the house until we had lived in Utah for a few years. Mom and Dad had one installed in the basement. During that period of time they seem to have been installed in a lot of laundry rooms instead of bathrooms, just as this one was. The house didn't have a lot of water pressure. It was really easy to annoy the person in the shower by turning on hot water upstairs. So convenient if they had annoyed you... Actually there was a perverse joy in listening to my brother bellow to turn off the hot water. I don't remember doing it to Annette and wouldn't have done it to my parents. But I do remember doing it to Bill. This photo from http://icanhascheezburger.com brings it all back.

Skunks Take 2

We lived in an old house in Oklahoma that was actually two houses that had been pushed together. One side had an unfinished basement, the other side was balanced on concrete blocks. Little did we know that the concrete block side was a skunk magnet! Our first clue was waking up one night to the sounds of a cat fight on steroids. That was "exciting" as it sounded as if it were right under us. Turns out that it was. Right under our bedroom. sigh

Our children were small, about 4 and 1. You know, the age when they are either movng or asleep. The time of life when there is no mute button.

There was a wonderful racetrack in the house. They started off in the living room, then on to our bedroom, breeze through the bathroom, whizz through the dining room and wind up back in the living room. This was a wonderful game -- to chase each other around and around. Sometimes just one of them ran it. Screeching in laughter at the top of their lungs. Nathan couldn't move very fast, but it didn't matter.

Unfortunately, the skunks resented being awakened as they slept under our bedroom floor. They really didn't like the noise. And showed their displeasure as skunks are wont to do.

We tried all of the home remedies we were told about. How many of them were to tease us? I don't know, they didn't work. Eventually a friend loaned us a trap, and helped dispose of the first skunk. Which got exquisite revenge as it died. The second skunk left for a day or so, and Howard dug out the path to the den, and put down a sheet of roofing materials to deter the skunks.

Didn't work. Wasn't too long before they had moved under our bedroom again. This time the trap was dropped off, with best wishes. I'm not sure he even slowed as he dropped it off. He wanted nothing to do with it!

Eventually the skunks were persuaded to find a different home. But every time it rained there was a skunk odor in that house.

I don't remember how long we had skunks under our bedroom, it seems as if it was a very long time. It probably wasn't, but too much time has passed to know for sure.

Skunks 1

Alison told her skunk story the other day. It reminded me of several of ours.

When we lived on the eastern plains of Colorado, the house was 4 miles out of town. The church, parsonage and cemetary were surrounded by fields. When our road started drifting over at the cemetary, it was our responsibility to call the school and let them know. There was just enough time left to end classes, get the kids on the buses and home before it was too dangerous.

Nathan had severe asthma, so we had outside cats. For convenience, the cat food was kept outside on the front porch, in a metal bin that had originally held popcorn. The cat food attracted skunks. Cucumber (and the other resident cats who were there for shorter times Rosie and Blackie) learned to eat quickly if they didn't wish to share. Didn't matter, the skunks would investigate the porch to see if there were any crumbs.

After a while, the blasted things figured out that they could open the bin by pushing at it with a nose until it fell off. There would be a loud CRASH as the metal lid hit the concrete floor. Not conducive to sleep. One night, I'd had enough. I heard the CRASH and jumped up out of bed, raced downstairs, threw open the front doors and stormed out on the porch. DUMB but I wasn't thinking at the time! The skunk tried to spray me, while balancing on the rim of the bin. Instead, it fell on its back. I came to my senses and leapt back into the house, slammed the front door, then looked out through the window in the door (heart pounding!) The skunk rolled over, looked around, then waddled off the porch.

The next day the house was sprayed in a different place about every hour. The smell lingered for a long time. The day after that Nathan, waiting for the school bus, leaned against a post on the front porch. It became obvious, as the bus made its way to school, that he had found one of the places that had been sprayed. A polite phone call from the school asked us to please pick up that coat and bring something to keep Nathan warm, so the smell wouldn't permeate the school.

After that, the cat food bin was kept inside. I do learn, sometimes slowly!

34.5 years

Howard's grandmother was a letter writer. She wrote just after we were married that we had married on their anniversary. I didn't know that. Turns out she meant that they were married on Valentines's Day, our six month anniversary.

Grandma J. felt that the best way to show her love was to feed the person. We always left from visiting them stuffed beyond the gills. Two days (or so) of eating as much as we could left its toll! Grandma would put any food that hadn't been dished up on our plates, telling us to "eat up, so the sun will shine tomorrow." Oh dear. One memorable meal she served homemade banana pudding, coconut cream pie, chocolate pie and angel food cake with strawberries. Howard asked for a small bite of each and received a full serving of each one! That was on top of a full meal! Uf-da!

giggle

You know it has been cold for a while when you drive by the bank, the thermometer says 10*F (-12* C) and you think, "My it's warm today." It took me 2 blocks to realize that my brain has been skewed by all of this frigid weather!

Knitting pics

Here is Justin wearing his sweater. I knew it was going to be huge on him, but he agreed with just a little fuss to model it for us. I think he looks darling in it. This is my version of Hanne Falkenberg's Tutti-Frutti knit with 2 strands of 3 ply Kroy sock yarn held together for each color. This way it is machine wash and dryable. I think that is necessary for any baby knitting. It is wool, but easy care for busy families.


Finally a picture of the Rogue being worn. Serena had a bad cold all weekend, and the picture wasn't flattering. So I cropped it to show just the sweater. It has been worn for a while, yet it isn't pilling. Another plus for the yarn (as well as the fact that it is so warm!) This is the merino/possum/nylon yarn from Supreme Possum in Ecology Green that I ordered from New Zealand. Absolutely yummy stuff to knit with!

New Justin pics

We had a fun weekend with Justin, Kim, Nathan and Serena.