Back in action

Just went and spent a week with my parents on Orcas Island in the San Juans and had a great time. Jake got to discover a lot of things he has never seen before, like going for a canoe ride with Granddad and eating blackberries off the vine, dragonflies, ants, blueberries, a riding lawnmower and lots more.
I'll post pictures later today or tomorrow, but I must, I must do laundry now...

The sweater is finished!

After much searching Brian found some really nice grey buttons that compliment the two pinks to complete the sweater for Abby. I like the way it turned out. Now I just need to put it in a safe place that doesn't involve me forgetting where that safe place is once I want to put it on her a year from now.

While finishing the sweater I had a little too much 'help' from Jake...So I gave him a set of (dull, don't worry) circulars and the other sweater I had finished so he could 'knit too.' Maybe I have a future knitter...
And also...what is on the needles now...I am trying the 2-socks-at-once method on circular 'magic loop' needles...we'll see how it goes...this is the current mess I am wading through:

I am a firm believer in just following the directions/pattern and it will all eventually make sense (barring any errors in the pattern of course). I have cast these on 3 times and I think the third time really is the charm...

Toddler Olympics

In the spirit of the Olympic games going on right now I bring you a brief list of events in which my son and I have competed in the last few days:

The 100m Diaper Dash - in which toddler tells mom 'poop' while pointing at diaper (style points awarded for creativity) and then runs away as soon as a fresh diaper is in view. Again, style points for creativity such as running under the kitchen table or making it to the stairs.

Fingernail Fencing - in which mom tries to cut the long, scratchy fingernails of a squirming 19 month old. (rules clarification - if you must use distraction technique like cartoons, points are deducted from overall score).

Hammer Throw - how many toys can we get taken away in a single day for hitting with/throwning them? The bigger the tantrum, the better your score.

Dancing with Mom Decathalon - Dance with your mommy. Hold her hand. Show her how to stop your foot and swing your hips. Spin all around, make her pick you up for a slow song. Better scores are generally awarded to those who can get Daddy involved too.

Yogurt Wrestling - Freestyle - Eat your yogurt. Ask for more. Eat half of it - spread the other half about yourself and your surroudings in the most creative messy way possible. Extra points awarded if mom has to lift you straight into the bathtub from high chair.

Toy Box Relay - Help mom pick up toys and get them into the toybox. Better scores awarded to teams in which the toddler is the one to do the most bending over.

Thwart the Clean Floor Exercises - As mom tries to sweep the floor, take your broom or the dust pan broom and systematically sweep moms pile around the room - winner is the one that makes mom give up and wait until nap time to finish sweeping.

Highchair High Jump - See if you can escape from apparatus while mom is getting the rag to wipe you down. Higher difficulty points if you are a)properly strapped in and b)if you can do it without hurting yourself or any household pets.

And now some photo highlights of these games:

Here is our athlete giving his best pout/tantrum face during the Hammer Throw:

Here we are enjoying Yogurt Wrestling Freestyle - this athlete was awarded 'straight to the tub' points:

Dancing with mom Decathalon - both of our athletes are looking pretty tired, but never the less have put on a stunning performance in front of Dad.

Last but not least after our Little Olympian went to bed I made progress on the sweater. I would have finished but it was just to damn hot to knit last night (crazy I know, but even the smallest amount of wool in my lap made my brain itch).

Domesticity

Yesterday was pretty much 'do all the housework day.' Nothing exciting unless you find dishes and the vacuum exciting (I don't want to know if you do).

I finished the body and neckband of the sweater. Just arms and button bands to go...I may finish tonight or tomorrow. Then I can get back to the socks. Or maybe something different alltogether, like another scrapbook page or finishing that quilt that I started (which one you ask? ha! I'll never tell - we all know I have at least a dozen unfinished projects hiding in my sewing room.

Anyway, here is the sweater:

Starting to look like a sweater

See I told ya. It's for the little person growing in here:
Looks a little big for her at this point...It probably won't even fit her for another year but it's still looking pretty cute don'tcha think? Brian picked the colors...I think he did an awesome job too. So hopefully I will have the body finished, a neck and perhaps an arm by the end of the day (assuming there are no more attempts on the lives of the fish that is).

Little Progress

Ever have one of those days where it feels like you have been busy all day but gotten absolutally nothing done? That was yesterday for me...

I managed to get some laundry done (thrilling, no?) and dishes (woo hoo) but that's about it. I made a few more rows on the sweater but that's about it.

My biggest challenge yesterday was not killing the cat...I was up here reading the Yarn Harlot when I heard a lovely sound...I ran down the stairs (ran...ha ha that's funny...I am 7 months pregnant...running is relative) to discover the cat had tried to get the lid off the Betta bowl and since I had taped the darn thing down she couldn't...so she knocked it onto the floor cracking the stupid thing...

I managed to swipe up the floppy little fish and get them into some water before they suffocated...as I am dealing with keeping the fish alive I hear water trickling...I discover the water from there bowl has run along the floor (my floors are no where near level) down into the air return duct for the furnace. Joy. Needless to say I spent the afternoon mopping up fish-water and shopping for a new (heavier) bowl for the poor boys.

Got home, made dinner, yada yada...

Here is the little progress I made on the sweater (at least I made it to the sleeve divide).

Knitting fever

Well I have been doing several things over the last few days. Mostly knitting and cleaning the house. By cleaning the house I mean the crap that no one ever wants to do like wiping the cabinet faces and washing windows...stuff you never really notice until you do it how much of a difference it makes in how clean things look.

Anyways the fun stuff...the knitting...here is what I have been doing:

Started a pair of socks for a friend...Then stopped when the Olympic torch was lit so I could begin my projects for the Ravelympics...
Then started to finish this:

Yay the sweater is done! Then I cast this on:

Yup, yet another sweater...but this one is for my daughter so I have a little more motivation...then again these sweaters do come together pretty quickly...anyway I'll keep the progress coming...back to knitting...

Nothing new really

I have been keeping up with the housework (if you know me, then you know this is no small feat). Oh and I was going to show off the yarn I dyed with kool-aid...
It was a ton of fun to do and came out better than I expected and it smells kinda fruity too.

Oh yea I made bread yesterday (I have decided that Monday's are for laundry and Tuesday's are for baking - we'll see how long I can keep it up). Today is Wednesday and I was planning on scrubbing the tub today...I think I'll find something to knit instead...cuz cleaning sounds really sorta lame right now.
Oh and here is a fairly recent (not quite a month ago) pic of me as I begin to enter the 'house' size stage of pregnancy (ok so I am at cottage right now...but soon I fear I will be much larger).

Some stuff I've been doing

Mostly just cleaning the house because we are trying to sell it...

However since 'my room' (sewing/crafting space) is now clean I have been more motivated to do things. I also have been knitting like a mad woman cuz I think I love it and I think I am ready to try to draft a pattern (we'll see how well that goes).

So...here are a few pics of what I have been up to:

These are the socks I made for our daughter to be. Brian asked me to make them for him so he could have something for his wall at work. He even picked out the yarn.

Here we have the sweater I made for Jake. I loved making it and he seems to love wearing it. Yay!

These are the socks that I made for my Aunt Patty for Christmas. I improvised a pattern I found in a magazine. I hope she likes wearing them.

These are the socks I made for me. I love them so much. I think they are by far the prettiest socks I have ever owned and certainly the most comfortable (made just for my foot, go figure).

This is a sweater I was actually paid to make (cool huh?). It's just like Jake's only with a hood and I learned how to get the button holes even n this one too. Look at that model, ain't he cute?

I have a few more things in the works but I am out of time for posting as said model is awake and hungry (and probably needs a clean diaper from the smell of things).

Not Dead

Wow! I knew it had been a while since I posted but I hadn't realized it had been more than a year!

I have decided it would be fun to try to do the blog thing again and so here I am. I am pretty sure I am typing to myself at this point and that really is just fine with me.

I really hope to post more about the crafts and things that I am playing with and keep updated with the cute things Jake does (not that anyone save myself and DH really care about all of the little things but you know, there might be a grandparent or two out there that I might point in this direction - hmmm...I guess I'll have to keep it clean then...)

Sooo...since it's been a while here's a couple of fairly recent pics:

Well, that's it for now since little man is up from his nap...