Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



On the needles: two pairs of longies. Rainbow longies for the Imp and Noro longies for the Beast. Soon I'm going to have to switch to shorties. Also, I've been thinking about listing longies (in the future) on Etsy. I'm not in it to make money. I figure that eventually the boys will have enough longies, but I'm unlikely to stop knitting them. So they have to go somewhere, right? And selling them would at least keep me in yarn.. Anyway, it's a thought.

Reading: still reading The Vampire Diaries series. The television show is much better - but then, it isn't aimed at highschoolers.
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I seem to be turning into one of those bloggers that only posts for weekly "challenges" and the like. I don't want to be that person (there's nothing wrong with those people, don't get me wrong). It's just been rough finding the motivation to slough through all my photographs. I haven't even been keeping up with the Year of Good Things photos. I have been ending each day by mentally listing the good things, though. This has done wonders for my general attitude about life.

Right. On to completed projects!




"Creeper" longies! Boring, yes. But weirdly satisfying to knit. And they fit the Beast so well. I love that I've finally gotten the "pattern" down.





The Imp's doll finally has a full head of hair! My goodness this took forever (and the better part of a ball of dishcloth yarn). But I'm happy with the result - I hope he is, too.
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I bought some yarn today. Blue Sky Alpacas organic cotton. It's super soft and I can't wait to use it. I also was thrilled to find some 100% wool felt at our local Big Box Store (read: Joann's). It's a light color so I have plans to dye it. This weekend I'll be using it to make some wee peg-folk for a swap. Perhaps I'll buy some more bases and make some wee peg-folk for the boys, as well. I've been meaning to for so long. As it is, the Imp calls the doll bases "naked gnomes."

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I'm working on adding hair to a doll I made for the Imp last year. It's a very slow process. He asked and I comply. I took him into the bedroom and let him pick any yarn he wanted from my stash for the hair. He made his choice without any hesitation. This kid always knows exactly what he wants.

I'm also still working on longies for the Beast. We're calling the yarn "Creeper" because it reminds B and the Elf of a monster in MindCraft (a computer game they play). I'm not getting very far very fast because I've been bitten by the Spring Bug. The windows are open, the sun is shining. I want to garden and clean. Of course, I'm not getting a great deal of anything done. My mantra right now is: baby steps!

As for reading, I gave up on the last parenting book I'd gotten from the library. So I'm indulging in a young adult book. Vampire Diaries: The Awakening by L.J. Smith. We're one episode away from being caught up with the television show (yes, guilty indulgence for after the kids go to bed at night). So far, I'm feeling old. Young adult books just seem so.. basic.. to me. Oh well.

Life, the Universe..

I find myself thinking "Hey, I should post about that!" frequently these days. And then life swoops along and I don't get around to it. I manage to find the time to read so many blogs - read and enjoy them. But I can't seem to set aside time to focus on my own. Blah.

As mentioned before (at least, I think I've mentioned it), I've joined Gypsy Forest in a year of good things. Not all of my good things can be or have been documented with photographs. So I thought I'd list a few of them here:
11/365: We got our tax return. Woo? This allowed us to pay off the last of our credit card debt. Woo!
12/365: My boys took me out for breakfast. Spinach and artichoke egg souffle. Yum!
13/365: We all went out for dinner (which cannot become a habit as we're already over budget for the week). Everyone ate. Everyone. The picky two year old that thinks breastmilk is all he'll ever need. The infant. The eight year old. Everyone. And there was no screaming. No crying. It. Was. Awesome.
14/365: The Beast ate part of a banana. It was the cutest thing I think I've ever seen. I took some pictures, but I'm not sure if any are non-blurry. He sat on the bed inspecting it, tentatively cramming it into his mouth, making adorable faces.

On the knitting front, I've broken my one-project-at-a-time rule. I have a "secret" project that just isn't working out, a pair of longies that reminds me of a computer game the boys play, and hair for the Imp's knitted doll. I'll have pictures tomorrow for the Yarn Along.

Life keeps moving. Let's hope I can keep up!

Yarn Along - More Angry Birds!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.




I'm working on another Angry Bird. I've frogged the beak four or five times in the last twenty four hours. Sheesh. It's still not great, but I'm ready to move on (and the tail is perhaps a bit too low). I think I've finished the knitting aspects of it - just sewing and needle felting left. Next I'll be casting on the green dyed yarn for another pair of longies.

I just finished The Kensei (not impressed), picked up I'm Outnumbered (just to find it's more god-centric than I'm comfortable with), and received Altar of Bones in the mail. I'll try I'm Outnumbered for another day or two, but may have to give up on it.

Oink?

Two posts in one day?! Oh no!

The pig is finished! Also, I felted the first angry bird. Which was a mistake. It fuzzed big time. And most of the belly came off. But, I gave it a good shave and broke three needles needle felted some more wool on. Now it's just.. very dense. Ah well. Live, learn, repeat as necessary.






(Ravelry details)

B has requested a blue bird. The Elf wants me to try a yellow one. He also wants more pigs - soldiers, kings, sleepy ones. Oy. Will I ever be free of the Angry Birds?

Finally!

Whew! I finished these over the weekend. With a sick toddler and a total lack of sunshine I was beginning to think I'd never get pictures taken.

These are the fingerless gloves (pattern here) that I made for myself, though my husband is modeling them for me.






(Ravelry details)
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Now I'm working on a pig to go along with the angry bird. I may even have pictures later!

365 and Help!

I decided to join Gypsy Forest in her "A Year of Good Things" flickr group. Being behind, as always, my year started in February. You can see my photos here.

Also, I'm on a quest. Perhaps you knitters out there can help me. I want to knit myself a sweater. Now, I live in Florida. So I'll likely make it for next winter as there's no way I'll finish one before it warms up again (so I'm not in any hurry). Right. Here's where you come in. I need a pattern. I've looked on Ravelry and found a few possibilities. Here are my criteria:

- I prefer a free pattern for obvious reasons (hi, I'm broke)
- I'd like to use worsted weight yarn
- I'm not skinny, nor a child, so it'll need larger sizes
- nothing fancy - no cables, no lace. I'm good with stockinette. Plain and boring suits my attention span just fine.
- I'd like the neck to be the style of the shirt I'm wear in this (fuzzy) picture:



Yes. So. Any suggestions? Most of the patterns I've found that I like want bulky yarn and I'm still too much of a novice to know how to work around that.

Yarn Along - For Me!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



For the first time since learning to knit, I'm making something just for me. I've been wanting this pair of fingerless gloves. So I'm finally making them - using the Brown Sheep yarn I bought on my first trip to a yarn store. I must say, I love it! How I wish I'd discovered this yarn when I first started knitting - it makes me a little sad to know that I have all of this other yarn to use before I can splurge on more yummy Brown Sheep.

Books! Last night I finished reading The Orchid Affair (book eight in the Pink Carnation series) by Lauren Willig. Today I will start The Kensei by Jon F. Merz. I received it as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. Hence it has been shuffled onto the top of my reading stack (I still haven't read Grave Goods from the library and there's another parenting book waiting for me as well).

Whee!

Please forgive the yellowness of my photograph. What with the weird light, my limited photo taking time (the Imp *loves* my camera), and my sleepiness - I just can't be bothered to tinker with it too much.

An Angry Bird!

I finished my angry bird! Or rather, the Imp's angry bird.







I may (or may not) felt the whole thing. It turned out to be a combination of knitting and needle felting. Overall I'm really happy with it.

This is the pattern I used for the ball base.

For the top feathers I picked up four stitches and knit in stockinette for four rows, k2tog twice, and pulled through. On mine, the not-stockinette side is visible because the other side naturally laid back.

For the beak I cast on 18 or 20 (I don't remember now) stitches and knit in stockinette in the round for two rows and then switched to *k1, k2tog* repeated (if I had extra stitches at the end of rows that didn't fit in that pattern I just knit them), and finally pulled through and sewed it on (with stuffing).

For the eyebrows I cast on four stitches, knit in stockinette (seeing a trend here?) for a couple rows and the k2tog, k the rest for each row (purling in between). After ending up with just one stitch (for three rows) I switched the pattern to increasing (kfb instead of k2tog) and worked it in reverse order. I needle felted the eyes and then sewed the brows on.

The tail is: cast on 4, knit in stockinette for four rows, k2tog twice, purl a row, knit a row, pull through. I did that three times and then sewed them together at the small end before sewing them onto the bird. Then I needled felted the belly and voila!

Blerg. People who write patterns must have a lot more patience than I do. I winged most of it and probably typed half of it wrong.

{this moment} and a recap

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor and remember.


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Yesterday was my 30th birthday. My boys took me out for breakfast and a late lunch/early dinner. And then they made me cookies. Yum!

My mother-in-law sent me birthday money and instructed me to do something Just For Me. So I did. I went to a real yarn shop for the first time ever. It was lovely! Women sitting around knitting and talking. Beautiful yarn everywhere. Mmmm. I came home with four balls of Poems (in 564) by Wisdom Yarns, four hanks of Brown Sheep "top of the lamb" - two in stone(101) and two in graphite(102).

Yay! I'm excited to use the new yarns. But first I have to finish my Secret Project for the Imp - knitted Angry Bird toys!

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I'm almost done with these longies! I have less than ten more rows to knit and then it's just seam (and waistband) sewing, tail weaving, and drawstring making (I use a French/tower knitting thingy). And yes, there are definite lines where I switched yarn balls. I knew it would happen. B says to just leave it (actually, he suggested radical and crazy solutions that don't really apply to knitting, but that's B for you). I think I'm going to try and re-dye it. Odds are, it won't work (I tried re-dyeing those green hanks to de-pink them and it barely changed anything). But I think I'm going to try anyway.

And my book! Ah! This has been the best birthday week (and it's not even my birthday *day* yet!) - first a new Decemberists album (and it's all bluesy!) and now the latest book in the Pink Carnation series! It makes my soul do a happy dance - so much that I don't even mind turning 30 (not that I really minded in the first place)! Anyway, the book is called The Orchid Affair and is, of course, by Lauren Willig.




And then there's the yarn. Yum! I dyed these two skeins (a total of 440 yards) over the weekend using drink mixes. I used the squirt bottle/plastic wrap/steaming method and it turned out brilliantly! Not sure what I'll use the yarn for yet, but I imagine I'll come up with something!

{this moment}

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor and remember.


photo credit goes to the Imp! (:

Pay It Forward (and a cute baby).

Belle + Bee posted about "Pay It Forward 2011" and I thought.. well, it didn't work on Livejournal but maybe it'll work here. So, snatched this from her post:

The first three people to comment here will receive a handmade gift from me sometime in 2011. BUT, you have to repost this to your own blog and offer three handmade gifts to others, who of course, have to repost, and so on, and so on.

So there you go. I love sending things to people. Of course, I love receiving things, too. But the giving is really where it's at for me.
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And then I just had to share this photograph that I took today. Something about it.. I don't know.. but this kid is gorgeous (in my book, anyway).



As you can see, we finally got his amber necklace in the mail (all the way from Latvia).

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



Still reading Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys. It has opened my eyes to some things that are just intrinsically "boy" and I'm hoping it will help me to better deal with having a house full of them. On the other hand, I'm getting tired of all the assumptions that all boys attend school. And that religious communities and events are the ultimate solution. Ugh. For the most part I can ignore it, look past it. But at times it's a little irritating.

I'm knitting.. longies! Aren't you surprised? These are just stockinette (though they'll have seed stitch cuffs). I'm using the Bare Wool of the Andes that I dyed. It's not as foxy red/brown as I wanted. I'm thinking that I may try to redye the whole thing when I'm done knitting it. Unless there's some really good reason not to?

The other night the Imp (two years old) and I dyed yarn. Why did I never think to do this with him before? Sure it was messy. But the fun? Oh, the fun!



This is the Imp's yarn soaking (yes, in the oven - it was off, I promise) overnight. We used water/vinegar and food coloring. Isn't his lovely? It's way nicer looking than mine.



Unfortunately, his ended up being really muted. The yellow seemed to disappear completely, too. Next time we'll clear off the table and spread it all out on plastic wrap to paint it properly. I'm really not sure how my greens ended up with streaks of pink. Or how the Imp's yarn ended up really pink on the inside. Ah well, we must have been channeling our femininity.

Longies

I've been trying to post this for days. The Beast is still sick. I stayed up holding him the other night. He slept, I knitted. Come morning I was ready to collapse. I still haven't recovered properly.

Here are the finished longies. Again, I used this pattern and used Wool of the Andes in Cobblestone Heather.



I made cookies for myself last night. Just for me. I do share them, but my boys would prefer them with chocolate chips. I wanted something I could eat for breakfast (or in the middle of the night with a sick Beast) and not feel too guilty (or sick). This was my pathetic attempt at Maureen's "Taking Care of Mama" Monday.

I wish I could say that I've been quiet because we're having too much fun to check in. Instead, I've had sick boys. Ugh. First the Elf ate for three days straight (hello, growth spurt) and then he was zombie-kid for two days with a slight fever and no appetite. A few days later the Imp because listless and wanted to do nothing but nurse and cuddle. He's mostly over it. But now the Beast is congested and coughing. He can't sleep well and it breaks my heart to see him so miserable. And of course, I'm not feeling so hot myself. I was up walking the Beast at 12:30am, 3:30am, 5:30am, and every 15-20 minutes after that. I gave up at 8am and declared that it was time to get up.

We are without internet for the next day or two. Right now I'm at Panera by my self. Did you hear that? By. Myself. This is only the second time in more than eight and a half months that I've gone anywhere without at least one of my boys. I should be enojying it, but I'm just antsy to get back. So I'm zooming through my bloglist and quickly updating.

I finished knitting those longies and have already started another pair (not patterned, though). I'll post a picture eventually.

There was something else. Something I thought was noteworthy.. but I'm much to addled to remember. With luck we'll all be healthy again by the time the we have an internet connection again. Right running home now!

Yarn Along and Parenting Woes.

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



Still working on the longies. This photo was taken around lunch time - the best light was already gone. Anyway. As of now, the longies are all knitted up. I still need to sew up the crotch and weave in all my ends. And make the drawstring. And sew down the waistband. Ack. Okay, so they aren't exactly done. Hopefully I'll get them done tonight or tomorrow morning and take pictures of the Beast in them.

I've finally finished the Pink Carnation books (though the next is due out later this month! Squee!) so these are my new library acquisitions. The one is called Grave Goods by Ariana Franklin. I saw it at Borders and it sounded interesting so I thought I'd give it a shot (even though it is a mystery). The other book is called Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys by Stephen James and David Thomas. I've only just started it.

Do any of you have suggestions for parenting books? Specifically about boys? I'm out of ideas regarding my oldest son. He's eight (the lower end of eight) and he has the attitude of a cranky teenager. Nothing we do seems to help. We've tried everything we can think of. Our family is full of tension over this.. change.. he's going through. We don't know how to cope or how to help him. Anyone out there with boys ever experience something like this? He's angry and argumentative and mean to his little brother and never seems to think before he acts or speaks. I've heard there is a seven year change and a nine year change (though generally closer to ten in boys). This eight year thing doesn't seem to be mirroring those. I'm just.. ugh.. lost.
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And here, in one picture, is why my family will never manage to be 100% Waldorf (and I'm okay with that):

The weekend.

As predicted, within a day or two of cutting his first tooth, the Beast cut his second. Accompanying the teeth is a new interest in solid food. He's gummed an apple piece into sauce, devoured muenster cheese, happily sucked hummus of B's finger. Alas, his teething necklace still has not graced our mailbox, though. Bah.

Yesterday (technically part of our weekend because B had off from work) I was so very pleased to find Pele's New Suit at the Goodwill bookstore. For less than $2! Score! So now we finally own an Elsa Beskow book - one less for me to repeatedly check out from the library. I also found a couple other nice looking books for the boys. I'm still weeding out "junk" books from our current collection.

I made these "cookie" bars and oh. my. goodness! I love them. So does the Imp. His love of them keeps me from pigging out the way I'd like to. Instead we carefully dole out small pieces after we've eaten sufficient "real" food. I covered our bars with crushed spelt pretzels. Next time I'll just sprinkle them with salt instead.

In other news, I'm on the second leg of the Beast's longies. Not sure what I'll start next - too many choices!

{this moment}

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Feels like a Monday.

It is Thursday, right? Because it feels very much like a Monday.

Last night, at 11pm, the Beast cut his first tooth - on B's finger. There they are, walking in the living room with B's fingers in the Beast's mouth. One is happily chewing, the other.. well.. he was probably talking to me about computer things. I don't remember. All of a sudden B declares "I feel a tooth!" This poor baby has been teething for months (and his amber necklace still isn't here. Grr.) with nothing to show for it. Likely, he'll prove to be like his brothers and magically pop out several more teeth in the next month.

This morning I made Dutch Babies. What an appalling name. But oh! So tasty! We didn't have enough milk for cereal this morning, so I made the Elf and I a treat. Next time I think I'll leave out the vanilla (I added that instead of nutmeg) and sugar. I'll add cheese instead!

Today (possibly right now, even), my father is having surgery for the second time in a month. On his carotid artery (read: his neck). Everyone I spoke to last night seems ambivalent about it - as though the same risks of heart attack and stroke don't apply as they did last month (they do). Personally, I won't feel comfortable with the day until I hear that he's made it through okay. He and I may not always have seen eye to eye. We might not always have gotten along. But he's my dad.

The sun is out today, no rain! There's a flock of chipping sparrows out front chowing down on bird seed. I will find a way to make the best of today.

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



Still reading the Pink Carnation series. There are two books in this photo because I have just a few pages left in The Betrayal of the Blood Lily and then I'll be starting The Mischief of the Mistletoe (yes, I did just read this a month ago). I'm so excited - the next Pink book comes out a week before my birthday! I really hope our library isn't too slow in acquiring it.

I'm still working on longies. I'm using this pattern again though I've had to add rows to make the rise long enough for my super tall Beast. All that moss stitch takes forever, though. When I'm done with these I'll go back to stockinette longies.

I got out the play food today. My hopes were that it would keep the older boys happy and that the Imp wouldn't resort to throwing things - as he did before. So far, they seem to be mostly happy. He loves putting the food together and "cutting" it apart again. The Elf, of course, wants to take food orders and watch me "eat" endless plates of wooden food. I find it hard to stay present for this kind of play for too long. It's fun to watch, but exhausting to participate in.



And later..



I found myself eating far more than I'd planned and felt that I simply must share. The Elf enjoyed them, the Imp.. not so much. The Beast is forever trying to take them out of my hand (don't worry, I don't let him have them).

These cookies are long time favorites of mine. The original recipe is here. Don't get me wrong, the original recipe is great. But my gods! The sugar! The butter! My recipe these days is much more like this:

1 cup organic coconut oil
1 cup (or more) natural peanut butter
1/4 cup (or slightly more) organic apple sauce
3/4 cup (or less) brown sugar (or regular sugar if that's all I have)
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup (or more) quick oats (though old fashioned work as well)

Sometimes I add: granola, flax seeds, chocolate chips (okay, I add these most of the time), nuts.

I scoop them with a cookie scoop and bake a dozen, freezing the rest on a pan. Then I bake as desired. I really love these cold. The chocolate chips (I use mini) are hard and the cookie doesn't crumble as easily - which it does when warm (because of the coconut oil). I reason with myself that as far as cookies go, these are fairly healthy. So I can easily go through a batch in less than a week. There. You now know my weakness.

There are so many things that I'd like to post about. Our {this moment}s that were never captured on film (sitting by the fire knitting; watching the Imp happily, joyfully putting things away). My unusual urge to look back on the past year (my, how things have changed). The things I've crafted recently (cloth bulk bin bags!). But I'm not going to. Not yet. Maybe not ever, but certainly not right now.

What I will share with you is a recipe. It's no secret that there are a great many granola recipes out there. Some bloggers were even generous enough to share their tried-and-true versions. But here's where I differ from a lot of people - I don't like *stuff* in my granola. Just give me some yummy, clumpy, slightly sweetened oats and I'm a happy woman.

I've just made this recipe (no extras, just oats). And it is so very, very yummy. I look forward to devouring it all! Okay, maybe I'll share with the boys a little..

WIP/Yarn along

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it. (Though she's not posting it this week - I just couldn't resist.)



Those two balls of yarn? I dyed those over the weekend. They didn't end up the same shade. And I'm okay with that. Turns out that my dye jar just isn't big enough for two skeins of bare Wool of the Andes. Oh well. Lesson learned. My step-mother wound them on her ball winder. I love the way they look. If I had the contraptions necessary, you can be sure all my balls of yarn would be neat and stackable like these!

Right now I'm knitting some more longies. I'm using the Kanoko Pants pattern on Ravelry again. With luck these will fit the Beast. They look tiny, so I expect they will. I'm using Wool of the Andes in Cobblestone Heather. As though I'm a Knit Picks ad, I'm also using the Harmony wood interchangeable needles that my step-mother gave me for Christmas.

And of course I'm reading another book in the Pink Carnation series - The Betrayal of the Blood Lily by Lauren Willig.

{this moment} - Solstice

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Infant arm warmers!

Well, I finished the arm warmers/fingerless gloves for the Beast. He's been sleeping a lot today so I had a very short time in which to coerce some modeling. I thought I'd be pushing my luck with his happiness factor if I tried to change his shirt first. So he's wearing the knitted sleeves *over* regular sleeves.



Here's how I "designed" them:

Roughly measure upper arm. My yarn/needle combination gets me five stitches per inch. The Beast's upper arm was something like seven inches. So 35 stitches, except that I needed a multiple of four to get the 2x2 ribbing. Knowing that wool stretches, I went with 32 stitches. In the round I knit seven rows of ribbing (basically, until it looked good enough). THen I knit in stockinette until it was long enough to reach his thumb (something like 41 rows, I think). Then I stopped knitting in the round (though still using circulars) and knit back and forth in ribbing for about four rows (until the hole looks big enough for a baby thumb). Joining back into the round, I knit about four more rows of ribbing and then voila! You're done!



I've never written out directions for knittine before, so I apologize if that was gibberish. (:

Yarn Along and Solstice Gifts.

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I'm knitting wool arm warmer/fingerless gloves for the Beast. Basically, arm warmers with a thumb hole. The idea was that he loves to chew on his sleeves. Well, once the sleeves are soaked I have to change his shirt because it's much too chilly for him to be soggy. Only, I keep running out of long sleeve shirts. So, I figure I can knit several of these and just swap them out as they get wet. Not sure how well it'll work out, but that's okay.

I'm on the fifth book of the Pink Carnation series. It's called The Temptation of the Night Jasmine. I've been looking forward to this one. The most recent book in the series was sort of a Christmas special and it takes place in this book. There were bits that I didn't remember clearly, so it'll be fun to see where the "special" fits in.

Also, we celebrated Solstice yesterday. This year we bought family toys instead of toys for each specific child. I'm *so* glad we decided to do it that way. I'd posted months ago with questions about what I should buy. Well, here's the bulk of what I ended up with.



The barn is by Finns and Flowers, the sheep (with removeable "jacket") is by Green Mountain Wee Woolies, and the rest of the animals (including a goat that was hiding behind the playroom door, apparently) are by Dad's Wooden Toys.

The boys were so excited when they "opened" (read: took the silks off) them. I sanded the edges of the animals with a dremel because they were a little sharp - nothing bad, I just know my clumsy kids.

A Cowl!

It's done! Three skeins of yarn later and it's done! Woohoo!



I took pictures of me wearing it. But they looked bad - and not just because I hate pictures of myself. I apparently need longer arms to do that whole self-portrait thing.



Besides, the Elf is way cuter.

Yarn Along and Swaps!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I'm still working away on that cowl. It's nearly done but will likely be late for Solstice. Ah well. I'm now reading the fourth book in the Pink Carnation series. It's called The Seduction of the Crimson Rose. It isn't my favorite - probably because Mary Alsworthy (one of the main characters) annoys me greatly and because I remember this book quite clearly - more so than the others.

I participated in a Waldorf Yahoo group swap. My package came the other day. This (horrid) photograph was all I could manage before my kids ran off with various pieces.



The Imp took to the lavender scented bean bags and the play silk. The Elf mooned over the bracelet, the acorncap baby, the horse reins, and the bag. The Beast hasn't yet been overly interested in the snuggle doll, but it's there for him. I've ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the gorgeous needlefelted creations. All in all, a spectacular swap!

I also participated in a swap held by Jen of Sewn Natural and MommaRae. This is what i got from my partner (it also included a bookmark that the Elf ran off with and a long description of the basket's contents).



The short story is that it's meant to represent the forest floor where she lives. Oh, and the creator of said amazing basket is Gloria of Lolailo.

And now the babies are all awake and I must run.

Giveaway winner!

The Elf (in the midst of his finger knitting) picked a name out of a hat for me. And the winner is.. Wabi-Sabi Wanderings! Congratulations and thank you everyone for entering!

I have two more tins (roughly 4 ounces each) of butter/salve/whatever that I'd be happy to swap with anyone interested. I'm also always happy to knit up some mushrooms or dye some yarn (I just got my Knit Picks order! Whee!) - the sky's the limit and all that.

Anyway. Happy weekend, all!

Blurry moments in the kitchen.

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I'm knitting a cowl for a friend in Michigan. It's based on a pattern that called for a bulky yarn - which I don't have. So I'm following the stitch pattern but winging the size.

The book I'm reading is the second in a series. I lovelovelovelovelove this series. It's a guilty pleasure of mine. Any book that I can still laugh out loud with after reading it several times is a keeper. Besides who can say no to dashing English spies during the Napoleonic wars? Sappy love, swashbuckling adventure. Perfection. The name of the book is The Masque of the Black Tulip and it is by Lauren Willig. The first book in the series is called The Secret History of the Pink Carnation.

Giveaway time!

I spent this weekend working on yarn for a giveaway. I am by no means a master at the art of dyeing wool yarn, so it isn't perfect. It was lots of fun, though - even if my red turned out rather pink.

So here it is, a giveaway to say thank you to the universe and to all of the lovely bloggers out there. Everyone is welcome to leave a comment to be entered. I'll pick a random winner on the 11th.

Here are the goodies:



Two attempts to photograph the one skein of yarn. It's just a hank of Lion Brand Alpine Wool that I dyed - it's what I had on hand. It is considered (according to the label) to be a bulky yarn made of 100% wool and is about 93 yards. I dyed it using food coloring and drink mixes. The idea was to have it fade from yellow to orange to red (rather than have smaller variations). But my red turned out pink. Oh well.



Calendula cream. Butter. Salve. Whatever. I've never understood what distinguishes those terms. It's a mix of calendula infused grapeseed oil, beeswax, vitamin e oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, and coconut oil. I've been making variations of this to soothe the Beast's eczema and my callused feet and psoriasis.

So there you go. Enter if the mood takes you.

WIP Wednesday.. sort of...

I took this picture this morning. I've been working on these longies for a little while now - to make up for the pair that was way too big for the baby. I didn't use a pattern but I think I'll take a look at some to find a better way to do the cuffs.



I was lucky today. The poor wee teething babe slept while his older brother napped. Two decent naps in one day? Before 5pm? Excellent! Of course, I didn't finish binding off until just before dinner. But one whole leg in one day?! Woohoo!



I had to resort to using the flash, so the picture isn't great. The next pair of longies I make for the Beast will be slightly wider and longer. These fit him perfectly right now. So I expect they won't last long. I've also decided to try a different way of sewing the waist so that it'll stretch better.

So yes, I'm learning.

Next up is a swatch for a birthday/Solstice gift.