Warshrag Addiction

I'm a year behind, but I don't really care. I've had the Mason-Dixon book for awhile and hadn't cast on for anything yet. I was going through some of my Gram's knitting supplies and came across a few partial balls of dishcloth cotton. I figured I had nothing to lose. I've already given the first cloth (this aqua one) to my Gramp, and I forgot to get a photo or finished measurements. I started another with different scraps. I think this one reminds me of a giraffe.Then, while I was out shopping for school supplies these snuck into my cart. What can I say, they were on sale...and I bought the kids favorite colors to make them washcloths for their baths. The denim color is for me. I could use something nicer to make wiping down the table after each meal more enjoyable. I'm using 6's and the pattern calls for 8's. I think it makes it nice and squishy though. I should try washing one...I hope that the shrinkage doesn't make it so that an 8 would have been better.

Baby Knitting Update...

I finished one Baby Bolero. Now, I have less than 2 weeks to finish the 2nd. I should have chosen to make them in different colors for the twins...I just cast on for #2 and I'm already a little tired of the yellow. I guess that's just because I know what it will look like and there isn't the excitement of discovering how the yarn and the pattern and the color all work together. It's a good thing I really like the finished sweater.

Baby Bolero from One Skein. Knit with about 3/4 skein of Bernat Cotton-tots. I love how soft this yarn is. I used a 3 needle bind off at the shoulder, and picked up stitches to knit the sleeves in the round. My measurements are right on...but I'm wondering if these sleeves are a bit wide for skinny little baby arms. The sweater fits my model great...but she's a little fluffier than a newborn.

VBS

We attend a rather large church. So, VBS is a HUGE endeavor. It's such a blessing to be able to be a part of something with this magnitude. I should have looked at attendance totals when the staff newsletter came around each morning. But, here's some numbers to ponder. I worked in 5's class (those going in to Kindergarten). There were 14 in our class...and there were 2 kindergarten classes. I think I may remember a number like 131 for attendance one day in the pre-school (you can only attend VBS as a pre-schooler if your parent is working). I saw an attendance sheet for 1st thru 6th with a number like 742. So, basically...we're talking 900-1,000 kids (that doesn't include the teen helpers or adults). VBS is run like a small city. I totally applaud those who have been working very hard since April to pull this off.

I know the big kids have tons of fun...but being a staff kid has it's privileges too. They've done several crafts each day. Heard a Bible story each day. Miss Pockets (a high schooler with an apron that has a pockets all over the front...each pocket holds a piece of her story) talked to the kids about William Carey each day...the kids offering is going to India with some college students this summer. Their singing time was lead by puppets. Thursday was bounce house day. And today...WATER DAY. The kids came in their swim suits and during rec time, played in little pools, sprinklers, and slip-n-slides. Perfect for the 95 (feels like 101) weather today.
This year our theme was SONFORCE. My boys really liked the spy theme. (the program was great for girls too with stories of Mariam (Moses' sister) and Esther.) I'm counting on the excitement over space to continue long enough for me to cover this as an early unit in our school year. My kids don't want VBS to end, but I'm not sure I could continue at this pace for very long. I really didn't enjoy shoving breakfast down the kids to hurry them to the car...to be at church by 8am (it's a good thing we live less than a mile from church). This is just another confirmation that I've made the right choice for our family...homeschooling. I love spending time with the kids in the morning...and feeding them a good breakfast. I feel that we're rushed enough as adults...there's no reason for me to hurry them through their childhood.

I hope my thoughts are cohesive. I'm super tired from this week. But, this is such a 'good tired'. I love feeling like we've had fun as a family. Now as I sit here typing, listening to Disneyland fireworks...I'm ready to get back to my knitting. I've made lots of progress for this being such a busy week. I'll post updates soon. Good-night.

Ms. Palmtree says I ROCK!

Nancy, you say the nicest things! I'm so honoured that you would nominate me! I'm a little slow to blog this week...but I really want to pass this on. I nominate Beth! She's awesome...she knits, she sews, she gardens. What more is there?! =0)

Lavender

Most of what I posted about last week has been planted. I think there's a few pots still waiting. M actually bought a few more things to fill in...and just dug up some more spider plants last night. (Much of our yard was spider plants when we moved in. While there's nothing wrong with that plant...it shouldn't be ground cover!) The yard is always a work in progress. I hope to have photos of the new plantings next week. For now, here's some lavender. (I didn't do any editing in photoshop other than to crop and reduce the image size. I actually like that the foreground isn't in focus.) This is a good filler plant for us. Inexpensive, grows quickly, and seems to thrive in spite of us. I wish we could get the Russian Sage to grow this well...but each time we've planted it (3 times in different locations) it has struggled.


It was VBS for us this week...and I worked in 5's class. I love that when a parent is working...then the pre-schoolers can attend too. My kids had a blast. I have so much I want to write about...I'll probably be blogging all weekend.

Planting...

We usually try to shop at the arboretum of the university down the street. Last weekend M took the boys and came home with this...

M has been watering these plants in their pots all week. There was weeding to do and removal of some struggling plants before these could be planted. Hopefully this weekend. I watched the local news last night, and heard that Riverside County (about 30 minutes from me) has been declared a disaster area by the Governor. All because of the drought. They only had 1 1/2" of rain in the last year! At least we had more than that. Anyways, we try to stick to plants that once established, can live with very little water.

Is this my kid?

Kidwise:
I just bought camo backbacks for my boys. I only had 5 with me when I went to the mall. When we walked in the house...5 showed 4 his new backpack. 4 said "Wow 5! That's a cool backpack! I'm so happy for you! Will you show it to me?" I kid you not! I nearly fainted. I mean, you always dream that your kids will turn out like this, but when these words come out of their mouths...it kind of leaves you in shock. I let it go for a few minutes, then I took 4 aside and showed him the matching backpack I'd bought for him. He said "Really, for me. Thanks mom! I love you!" Can you believe he never said "Where's mine?" (ETA: this shopping trip was before I couldn't walk or drive...=0) Glad it's done because I'd have a hard time getting to the mall these days.)

Healthwise:

I visited the Dr. yesterday. I have ligament damage in the knee. I can expect 3 more weeks like the last one. Hopefully I'll see improvements along the way. Next week is VBS at our church and I'm working with the Kindergartners. I'll be wearing my knee wrapped...but I'll have to be careful. Driving is the worst thing for me (it's my right knee). So, it looks like we'll be home a lot in the upcoming weeks. That's ok with me...I like to let the kids just create their own adventures.

So Excited!

I'm walking much better today. Thank you all for the well wishes for my knee. I think its that my fall is contrasted with the resiliency of toddlers who almost bounce when they fall. And look what came today to make me feel better.
Awhile back, I was awarded an honorable mention in a Blogiversary Contest over at Days Go By. And look what came in the mail!!! See the soap in the corner, it made the entire package smell like heaven. (I'll have to remember that when I'm mailing out things) The soap is from Sleeping Angel's by Corinne's Creations.
3 balls of gorgeous alpaca yarn. Lavish, 100% ALPACA! I've never had any alpaca.

And a hank of hand-dyed yarn too! I've never owned any of that either. It's a scrumptious wool-silk blend from Mystical Creation Yarns. I think it's either the capuccino or timeless (it was without a lable) Ms Palmtree says this is her favorite yarn dyer! I think I'll have to try them sometime.

I still consider myself new to this blogging thing...but I'm learning some things really quick. First, when you read that someone says "Knitters are the nicest people in the world"...believe them. Book authors, and pattern designers aren't different than the rest of the knitters. They still leave comments and answer email when you have questions about patterns. I don't think that this is normal. It should be! I think that knitters are a special breed of people! Maybe we just need to pass out yarn and sticks to the rest of the world to make it a happier place. Wooly Hugs to you all! KM

Cast-On-itis

Healthwise:

On Thursday evening I was going to clip back some of the roses in our yard...and I fell! I feel like a true dork. I lost my balance and fell off a 2 1/2 foot retaining wall and landed on our river rock boarder and a shrub rose. I hit my right ankle, knee, hip, elbow and wrist. That, along with the thorns in my arm meant I knew there would be some recovery time involved. At the time though, I had no idea that I'd still be limping after a weekend sitting down. Everything except for my knee is fine. What's funny is that there's absolutely no bruising...so it's harder to explain the hurt to the kids. I'm trying to decide how long I go with the pain before I see a Dr. Now if I wasn't bringing all the kids with me or arranging for childcare, then I'd probably go today. As it stands, I'll at least give it a few more days. I'm just praying that this doesn't spell regression for my diet. I'm heavier now than I was at my 6 week check up for 2. So, I've decided to get serious and hopefully be a healthier weight by Christmas. I need to loose 25 pounds...but 3o would be great. I started walking 2 or 3 weeks ago, and combined with healthier eating, I've lost 5 pounds. Now that I'm hardly walking down the hall, I'm definitely not walking the hills in our neighborhood.

Knitwise:

What a small boo-boo does mean...lots of knitting! Since I was in a chair most of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday...I knit tons!

Kimono: There are 9 babies due between September and November in our lives. I'm so glad we're not joining this boom. I'll need gifts for 5 of those babies. Here come the kimonos. I cast on for my first Mason Dixon heartbreakingly cute kimono using some dishcloth cotton that was part of my Gram's stash. I wanted to see what I thought of the pattern before investing in yarn. I like it so far...and I'm glad for 2 lengths of #6's. I started with the short ones...and switched to the longer ones for the sleeves...and now I've got a short needle hold my place on the right front. I wasn't sure of the yardage was when I started because this yarn had no label...and as it turns out I didn't have enough to finish. (No photos of the cream Kimono before it was frogged.) So, I've cast on again. This time using the left overs from my Lutea lace shoulder shell. I'm not sure if this will be an actual gift, or if I'll save this for 2's dolls. I like this Violet color, but I'm not sure about for a baby. If this works out well...I do like some of the other colors of Cotton-Ease for a baby...and that would be a cost effective way to handle all the gifts. I've seamed one sleeve, even though I'm not finished knitting. I'll definitely have to re-seam this side...and I may need to consider another pattern. I hate seaming. Maybe it would have worked better if I had knit in garter stitch...or that would have hidden my seams better?! (That's why I loved the Lutea lace shoulder...only a 3-needle bind-off...my favorite!)

Dishcloth: Since I had the Mason-Dixon book out...and I had some cotton laying around...I decided to see what all the fuss was about. These are fun. I started with small left-over balls, so I cast on with 6 less stitches than called for. Maybe this is knitting I could do when the kids are awake. And we could definitely use some new rags around her.

Another felted bag: M's cousin came over Sunday afternoon. We've been planning this for awhile. She wanted to learn to knit. She chose the Black Beauty bag from Pursenalities. After reading Knitting Rules, I think this is a good beginners project. She learned the long tail cast on, the knit stitch and the purl stitch. Knit in the round on #15's, this bag is worked K25, P6, K25, P6. She's doing great (I gave her some of 2's hair rubber bands for stitch markers) and even if there is a mistake felting is sure to hide that. We'll meet again in a week. I'm knitting the same bag along with her, so she can look over my shoulder and knit with me. I probably won't work on this much when I'm not with her.

Baby Bolero: Since I'd gone to Michael's with F, I picket up a skein of Bernat's Cotton-Tots. It sure is soft. I thought I'd try this baby sweater too. I may try picking up stitches and knitting the sleeves in the round to avoid the seaming. I'm not too sure if that's possible...but it's probably worth a try considering my seaming on the HCBK.

At least these baby knits are quick. So I don't mind having so many projects OTN. But, this leaves me wondering...what really is the difference with having many WIPs, and having all the yarn and the patterns for many projects in the stash???

Dill...

...with a sprinkling of ladybugs. I went out to pick zucchini earlier this week...and my dill is growing right in the midst. I was so excited to find ladybugs (there must have been 10) on my little dill plant. I'm convinced that even if I don't get to clip the dill for consumption, that it makes my zucchini taste better just from proximity. So, here's the dill just crawling with ladybugs.

And for anyone who's wondering. Last week's flowers are jupiter's beard. I had to ask M.

Mom Scouts

I get Mom-E-Mail once a week from MOPS. It's always very encouraging...and so often just what I need. This week, I got Mom Scouts, written by: Stephanie Morris, Council Coordinator.

Being a mom is hard work. No one says thank you for clean clothes, for cleaning tub scum or for grocery shopping. But if you forget and no one has matching socks, the toilet looks worse than a rest-stop facility or there are no chicken nuggets - that's when you get noticed! You know what we need? Mom Scouts - with a little vest, complete with a sash displaying all the badges we've earned. While this only exists in my mind, I'm definitely a highly-decorated scout!I've earned badges in potty-training (three times), drop-off play dates and birthday parties. I've earned badges in spiking fevers, unknown rashes, distressed breathing and continual vomiting. I've earned the ambulance badge twice, with a special pin in hospital admission. I've also earned fun badges like the perfect-peanut-butter-sandwich, gingerbread house decoration, chocolatey chocolate milk and the famous cakes for no reason badge. I've earned the mundane badges: a badge for answering the question "Why?" forty-seven times in one day. I've earned badges for having a child go to the bathroom on me and for being thrown-up on. Thankfully, I haven't earned the extra pin for being vomited on by a child other than my own! There are badges for grocery-shopping with two or more toddlers at once, and preparing a dinner that both kids and grown-ups will eat! And let's not forget the badges earned by newest moms: nursing while cooking dinner, packing the ultimate diaper bag, listening to unsolicited advice and number of days without a shower. For Mom Scouts new badges are always under development.I guess I shouldn't really worry about filling up my imaginary vest with badges or pins. I should relish the thought that God doesn't make mistakes and that I'm the mom he designed for my children. Besides, I think the Mom Scouts will issue new vests (completely empty) as we enter the pre-teen, teenage and college years. I can only wonder what badges I'll be earning then!

Prayer From a Mother's Heart
Dear God, raise my child to be a person willing to give of themselves for others.

So often I feel like I've got to be Supermom...waking up with a smile (even when the kids are up at 6:30am), serving balanced, healthy meals, arranging the perfect play dates, visiting every park within a 10 mile radius, hosting the parties that are talked about forever, reading 20 minutes to the kids (everyday), keeping the house so well stocked that we never run out of anything, making crafts/doing art at home...and then still finding time to be Superwife. No wonder I'm exhausted. I think, no, I know that I put these expectations on myself. I'm so achievement driven that I want every badge! And I want the extra pins. Somehow, I think that if I do it all...then I'm a better mom. Really, my kids just want a mom that will play with them...and they don't care if we have cereal for dinner. If I look back, with perspective, I can see how decorated I am. If I focus on the character of my little ones, I can let go of the sticky counters and crumb strewn floor. And God will give me the strength for each day.

If you'e a mom of young ones reading this...check out MOPS.

More stripes progress

Knitwise:
I've been working on Morestripes for a few days now. I actually made 3 swatches trying to get the specified gauge of 22 sts / 20 rows = 4 inches in 4x1 Rib. I could never get both the st. gauge and the row gauge together. So, I shot off an email to Amy King. I was wondering if there was a mistake in the row gauge. Her advise was to get the stitch gauge and knit away, the vertical measurements are given in inches not rows. (AK if you see this, thanks for your help.) I am using a different yarn, but when I get 22 stitches my row count is 28. Well, here goes nothing. I'm using #7 needles. I'm actually enjoying the purple metal. These were my Gram's, and I've been using only Addi turbo or bamboo circs for awhile. The color is fun. And the yarn slides off the needles. They're pointier than my Addi's. I remember something Stephanie Pearl-McPhee said in her book Knitting Rules, about finding joy in colored needles that contrast the yarn. Now I get it. When I knit with bright colors for felting on plain needles, there's a contrast. But, were I to knit this neutral on a bamboo needle, it would be harder to see/count stitches than it is against the purple. And I'm not a needle/yarn snob (yet). So, enough talking. Here it is. I'm at 10", so 4" more before I start the arm shaping. The yarn is Tonalita in 2374 Desert Valley & 2355 Old World. I did my best...and photographed this on my chaise in the backyard, no flash...and still the color isn't quite what it is in person. The browns, grays, and gold are actually close. But to me the pink and peach are more vibrant in person.
I'm so excited to knit each stripe and see what color will appear next. I already have the perfect skirt to wear this with (the shale color corduroy from j.jill) or just jeans. I'll actually be looking forward to fall this year.

Serendipity

I knit this bag for my SFBE partner. She said she wanted something BIG. She likes to make a statement with her bag…so I considered making ZOE (from MagKnits, I tried to link but it's not up in the archive yet). The description of the bag was perfect for a mom of toddlers. (At the time I still had another ruffle OTN.) When I finished my Ruffles to Riches from Pursenalities, I knew I knew ZOE wasn’t for her. Well, at least not for me to knit for her. The ruffle takes a bit of attention to get it to lay right. I couldn’t handle the responsibility of knitting a ruffle for someone else, especially when I know how my perfectionism might bring me to reknit/refelt said bag. So I found the Market Bag from Knit Picks. (Okay, so they’ve added new free patterns to their site, and the one I printed is gone) I started with this pattern, except when I wanted to CO I couldn’t find my #13 circ, and all the pursenalities patterns use #15’s, so I just went ahead with the 15’s. I CO 60 stitches for the bottom of the bag, and knit in garter for 30 rows. Then I picked up stitches around and knit slipping a stitch at each corner of the bag, every other row. At the end of my 5th ball of yarn…this bag was HUGE.

I couldn’t get more yarn in the same dye-lot. I definitely didn’t have time to start over. I BO and decided to felt. Then came my felting disaster or serendipitous moment…depending on how you look at it. It shrunk only in height…none in width. Usually felting isn’t even in height and width…but there’s some width shrinkage. By my calculations, the bag should have shrunk 3” more in the width and 1” less in the height. Now that I look at the finished bag, I’m thrilled with it. It couldn’t have turned out better. When I pulled the bag out of the washer, I sort of freaked. The wet felt looked more like a window box planter than any sort of a purse. I blocked it over a box…and prayed while it dried. When it was partially dry, I added binder clips to pinch the folds at the top. 6 clips total. 1 at each corner, and 1 at each end to pull in the pleats. When the bag dried, it was the finishing that gave it’s shape. I used doubled wool to satin stitch the pleat inside the bag. (I wish I had a photo of that) Then satin stitched the corners together. I needed pliers to pull the needle through the 4 layers of felted wool. I made a small I-cord and felted it to use as the loop for the button. And finally I attached 30” leather braid straps. I love the denim yarn! Perfect for the jeans and T-shirt wardrobe of a mom. K.Anne, if you’re reading this…could you add the finished dimensions in a comment. I totally blanked on measuring the bag.

My SFBE package!

I was at the post office, mailing my SFBE box to Kansas, when the postman tried to deliver my box from Canada. I was so disappointed to have to wait until 9am the following day, and then return to the post office.

Look at all the wonderful goodies I found in the box!

I love the bag! I'm definitely girly and I love pink. Miss Me did a fantastic job on this purse (it's the Coco Bag). There are 8 grommets where the handle weaves in and out of the bag. There's a super cute fabric with gerbera daises at the bottom of the bag. And the best part of all is the magnet up at the top. (Miss Me...you'll have to tell me where you got that. I've not seen this kind before.) My package included books...the hockey one for M...and the "woolly" one for me. Miss Me...did I ever tell you I'm Swedish?! I love Vikings! Whenever things would get tough...my mom and my Gram always said "We're Vikings! We're strong inside! You can survive anything!"
And some really cute note cards! On the SFBE questionnaire, we were asked...Puppies, Pixies, or Piggies. Definitely Piggies for me. I went to Cal Poly Pomona...a Tech & AG school. I loved walking past the little piggies each spring. They're soooo cute!
And some candy! These have been so fun. A smart lady packed something with individual boxes so my kids get a limited amount! Of course, everyday they're asking..."Can I have a secret pal treat?"

Miss Me sent these after she found out that we don't have Smarties in America. So, M wants to know, "Do you not have Smarties?"

This exchange has been so fun. I've already bookmarked the Fall Felted Bag Exchange and I'll be ready to participate in that one. Thank you to Miss Me...my upstream partner...thanks for the fabulous packages and for the fun emails...I've added you to my bloglines now. Thank you to K. Anne, my downstream partner who was so fun to email. I'm so glad I'm not hiding anymore. Thank you to Anne & Chan, for all the work you put into running a swap. (I sort of feel like I'm receiving an award with all of this Thanks!) But, seriously. Y'all made this spring real fun. km

Don't ask me what these are...

I think if I were to choose, we'd have a lot more "cottage garden" flowers in our yard. I like flowers I can cut and enjoy in a vase. But really, who would maintain that. We have a large yard (by Southern CA standards) and with that, much yard work each weekend. M chooses the plants he likes...but he plants them and maintains the yard. So really, can I complain? NO! I may wish for more foxglove...but they're not so hardy. And in a year where we've had 3" of rain...I'm very glad our plants are drought tolerant.

Good Intentions

Blogwise:
I have so much I want to write about...and so little time to work on this blog. I think I'll give myself a break...and just post as I get to it. Who cares if I'm posting about last week or last month even. The point is I'm getting my thoughts out.

Knitwise:
After working on felted pursed so much for the last months I'm taking a break from that...but only so I'll be fresh for the Fall Felted Bag Exchange.

I cast on for morestripes. I looked around the internet and couldn't find many comments on people who'd knit this. I'm sure if I was on Ravelery, that would be a great resource. But, I've not even requested an invite. I hear talk about it sucking time out of each day...and I don't have any time to give. Anyways, I love this pattern. Even if I'm the only one. I'm knitting with Tonalita in a brown and a peach. I love how the stripes are turning out. I can't wait to knit a few more stripes each day once the little ones are in bed.

I've got so many friends having babies in the fall (September+October+November =6 babies). I'm trying to decide if I want to knit the baby bolero from One Skein, or the baby kimono from Mason-Dixon. Maybe I'll knit one of each...and then decide which I want to knit more of. Or maybe just the baby hats from One Skein to go with a gift card. I have so much knitting that I need to do, I just couldn't sign up for another exchange until I catch up.

Exchange:
SFBE is over. My upstream pal was AWESOME! A full post about that as soon as I take photos of what came in my box. My downstream pal should get her bag today or tomorrow. But I haven't even sent her an email to tell her I've posted the package. I had a hard time finding a box to fit the bag. It's huge! I'll post about that too, especially since I was supposed to send her the pattern for the bag...and there wasn't one. It didn't felt as it should have...so I had to improvise...and I LOVED the final bag.


Kidwise:
I'll leave with some 2-isms. I love when my kids learn to talk. You see so much of their personalities come out. 2 says, "Hey, share!" When she really means..."MINE!" Especially when she wants whatever someone else is eating...she doesn't just want a bite...she wants the whole bowl. She frequently claps 3 times...the says "Come with me!" She always want someone to see ______ (fill in the blank here). "Juice!" means ANY liquid. Milk, juice, soda, fountains, sprinklers....anything...except coffee. She knows the word for COFFEE! (Good girl!)