tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31443064059408686422024-03-12T18:38:15.996-05:00SomerKnitsTales of a hot mess knitting addict yarn hoarderKnit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.comBlogger462125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-34477525189983988462021-06-15T21:07:00.001-05:002021-06-15T21:07:57.319-05:00Sockssssssss<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fGds0Nhnqow/YKBqvwp_ssI/AAAAAAAAC1c/ND3z92upoQsKM-a-cOCPzzsskbx5j6w6ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/BA1B064D-5DAB-4DA2-BB1E-3D3324DFC912.heic" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fGds0Nhnqow/YKBqvwp_ssI/AAAAAAAAC1c/ND3z92upoQsKM-a-cOCPzzsskbx5j6w6ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/BA1B064D-5DAB-4DA2-BB1E-3D3324DFC912.heic" /></a></div>I adore hand knit socks. They are so comfy. They are so pretty. They are practical and yet a luxury. My only problem seems to be that they come in pairs and I am prone to second sock syndrome. That fact is the reason I was so proud of myself for whipping up the <a href="https://ravel.me/hermiones-everyday-socks" target="_blank">Hermione's Everyday Socks</a> using <a href="https://shop.hedgehogfibres.com" target="_blank">Hedgehog Fibers</a> so quickly last spring. The yarn was from an exchange years ago and I was doing my best to knit with stash yarn. I had had my eye on the pattern for a while for its simplicity and I had just finished <a href="https://ravel.me/knit-o-matic/tw" target="_blank">The Weekender</a> sweater by <a href="http://www.dreareneeknits.com/" target="_blank">Andrea Mowry</a> and I was ready to knit something smaller. Smaller doesn't necessarily mean less stitches though. I read somewhere that the average pair of hand knit socks is around 17,000 stitches. If you are ever gifted a pair of hand knit socks you should appreciate a few things. First, sock needles are tiny. Tiny needles plus a bazillion stitches means the gift giver really really likes you. Second, its takes a lot of willpower to make the same pattern twice in a row. True story. Thats why Second Sock Syndrome exists. As knitters we often want to move on to the new and exciting and knitting the exact same thing we just finished AGAIN is an exercise in perseverance. <p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pj2ef7H3isU/YKBqvOVi5gI/AAAAAAAAC1Q/NphWggg5-DsBne2YIwdWriRm20YRuGVvQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/57BE4674-F830-4A82-9BBB-D6BC3D7CD277.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pj2ef7H3isU/YKBqvOVi5gI/AAAAAAAAC1Q/NphWggg5-DsBne2YIwdWriRm20YRuGVvQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/57BE4674-F830-4A82-9BBB-D6BC3D7CD277.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>That is what happened to this little tiny sock pictured here. First I made a pair for big sister. Then I started a pair for little bugs. But I didn't finish the pair and by the time I dug them back out again they were too small and sister was ready to pass down her pair. I really should go ahead and knit the second tiny sock and give the pair to someone. It's such a bright and fun yarn.<br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z8GFynDgiak/YKBquCv45bI/AAAAAAAAC1E/iuSsooFX85sxX4Fx5vdLoTxOQ7QoAhhrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/072E0EAC-B2DA-4A81-8808-2BC43DB6FBB6.heic" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z8GFynDgiak/YKBquCv45bI/AAAAAAAAC1E/iuSsooFX85sxX4Fx5vdLoTxOQ7QoAhhrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/072E0EAC-B2DA-4A81-8808-2BC43DB6FBB6.heic" /></a></div>In the fall of 2020 I signed up for a test knit for Drea Renee Knits for her new <a href="http://www.dreareneeknits.com/shop/drk-everyday-socks?category=socks" target="_blank">DRK Everyday Sock pattern</a>. I figured having a deadline would help me power through that second sock (it did, but I still stressed about it!) and sister bear would have a new pair of hand knit socks that would fit a bit longer. The ribbing on these socks gives them a nice fit with room to stretch as she grows. Thats a win. I used a sock set from Southern Skeins that came out really pretty. I enjoyed seeing the speckled yarn knit up and the contrast of the toe and heel. I had not done this style heel before and I liked it.<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m07__LQ0HW8/YKBqvSZt2OI/AAAAAAAAC1Y/SEJrpI-4-McnTobyUwZSI8WxBm91em5jQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/7A2DD6D2-E093-468E-863B-F6EC33FAA2F6.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m07__LQ0HW8/YKBqvSZt2OI/AAAAAAAAC1Y/SEJrpI-4-McnTobyUwZSI8WxBm91em5jQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/7A2DD6D2-E093-468E-863B-F6EC33FAA2F6.jpeg" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In honor of wanting to get great pics for the test knit, because that really is part of being a test knitter, I treated myself to kid sized sock blockers from <a href="https://www.instagram.com/knittingleft/?hl=en" target="_blank">Knitting Left</a>. They are so cute. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCJfiwNY6B8/YKBoOjtTqZI/AAAAAAAAC0g/2jmqg1U6G_A7hD75OsZxnQmyUnvDpT7AgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/17AD4AF8-F442-4C00-B0A5-970AA811EDEB.heic" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCJfiwNY6B8/YKBoOjtTqZI/AAAAAAAAC0g/2jmqg1U6G_A7hD75OsZxnQmyUnvDpT7AgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/17AD4AF8-F442-4C00-B0A5-970AA811EDEB.heic" width="320" /></a></div>Maybe I'll get around to knitting myself a pair of the DRK Everyday socks soon. I haven't made myself anything with contrasting heels and toes yet, mostly because I really hate having extra ends to weave in but I do like the look. As soon as I finished these though I had to whip out some really quick Christmas knitting.<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kFlT1Epna7E/YKBohfIGzmI/AAAAAAAAC0o/wernAJc7y3EnqaFjWxiNPAUG_b5rWk3rQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/1D65BF46-4CB2-4D84-BE75-E51EFEF1633A.heic" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kFlT1Epna7E/YKBohfIGzmI/AAAAAAAAC0o/wernAJc7y3EnqaFjWxiNPAUG_b5rWk3rQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/1D65BF46-4CB2-4D84-BE75-E51EFEF1633A.heic" /></a></div>Next up on my quarantine sock journey I started a pair of <a href="https://ravel.me/thicksgiving-socks" target="_blank">Thicksgiving socks</a>. I figured instant gratification socks with bigger needles and yarn held double, what could be better? Well they did whip up quickly but I discovered that I don't really love the forethought heel. Its ok, but I didn't really know how much to account for the forethought heel in my foot length and these socks definitely came out a bit bigger than intended. I would definitely knit the thicksgiving socks again, in fact the pattern comes with three different variations and eventually I would like to get to all of them.<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YgYPMALdXDg/YKBo5ReJhAI/AAAAAAAAC0w/BGDV0UjgGoMoeSszxovpZhtfnWzr-EQswCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/4CAD4BE1-426A-427C-8A3A-9DE9D6174967.heic" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YgYPMALdXDg/YKBo5ReJhAI/AAAAAAAAC0w/BGDV0UjgGoMoeSszxovpZhtfnWzr-EQswCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/4CAD4BE1-426A-427C-8A3A-9DE9D6174967.heic" /></a>No sooner did I finish these than I was back to my sweater addiction and I would look at and think about socks but didn't cast any on until after I finished my <a href="http://www.dreareneeknits.com/shop/stripes?category=sweater" target="_blank">STRIPES</a> sweater. In a moment of sheer silliness I decided to start on the <a href="https://ravel.me/clearly-determined" target="_blank">Clearly Determined </a>socks. I thought a speckled yarn instead of a variegated would be better for the cables on the sock but it turns out the yarn I chose is still just a bit too busy for the braids down both sides of the sock. </p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k5eKd8XqJM0/YKBo5QLOAgI/AAAAAAAAC00/JgC8KwIFm-Yqb4dXwKLWLAYUtcYLPOHwQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/1878B4D0-29E4-4999-95F4-512533B43123_1_201_a.heic" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k5eKd8XqJM0/YKBo5QLOAgI/AAAAAAAAC00/JgC8KwIFm-Yqb4dXwKLWLAYUtcYLPOHwQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/1878B4D0-29E4-4999-95F4-512533B43123_1_201_a.heic" width="320" /></a></div>I didn't even finish that pair though before casting on boot socks for my brother for his birthday. I ended up doing a twin rib from a sock recipe book I have and using up a lot of odds and ends to make them. I had a couple skeins of very olive green <a href="https://www.plymouthyarn.com/yarn/happy-feet-100-item-2555" target="_blank">Happy Feet</a> and some leftover bits of brown Happy Feet, royal blue cascade sock yarn, leftover light blue and brown sock yarn from a pair I made myself a maroon mini that I used for the toes and cuffs. They worked up fairly quickly and softened up nicely when I soaked them for blocking. Hopefully not too much!<br /><br />Since starting to type up this blog post, I have actually done another pair of boot socks, back to the thicksgiving pattern again, but this time using the ribbed pattern in the trio. Maybe its time for the cabled pair next. I have also finished the first Clearly Determined sock but immediately fallen into second sock syndrome. Oops. Right now I really have the summer tee bug though!<div><br /></div><div>So I am wondering, do you knit socks? If so, what is your favorite sock pattern? Whether its still a goal, a challenge you bested, or a sock pattern you go back to again and again, I would love to her about it. <br /><br /><p></p></div>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-66789461266240146642021-05-11T08:00:00.018-05:002021-05-11T08:00:00.177-05:00Monogamy and Productivity<p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> For the last year I have mostly been a monogamous knitter. I would power through one project at a time, fully completing it, weaving in ends, and blocking it before moving on to the next cast on, no matter how much I was jonesing for the next project. This method is usually the most productive one for me personally. Otherwise I end up with mostly finished WIPs waiting patiently for their ends to be woven in or seams to be sewn and they can languish for YEARS that way. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Of2DTiBeqFE/YJbesP90kvI/AAAAAAAACz0/w3xWLshJF1QC9FpN8iZaJ38Pk-FPhNTYQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/D0E9B59C-718B-4710-8E67-0B622FAEDD5C_1_201_a.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Of2DTiBeqFE/YJbesP90kvI/AAAAAAAACz0/w3xWLshJF1QC9FpN8iZaJ38Pk-FPhNTYQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/D0E9B59C-718B-4710-8E67-0B622FAEDD5C_1_201_a.heic" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qmy5do1Slsc/YJbfgu_Ef8I/AAAAAAAAC0M/g1d8jgMWM5g3tKwdRdf6PU-V0sII8pZtwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/F0E9AD99-2F87-4FF9-BD7B-79FF79C3EB37.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qmy5do1Slsc/YJbfgu_Ef8I/AAAAAAAAC0M/g1d8jgMWM5g3tKwdRdf6PU-V0sII8pZtwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/F0E9AD99-2F87-4FF9-BD7B-79FF79C3EB37.heic" /></a>But after I finished the <a href="https://ravel.me/knit-o-matic/s1" target="_blank">STRIPES!</a> sweater I got cast-on-itis. I had previously cast on a <a href="https://tincanknits.com/pattern/love-note" target="_blank">Love Note</a> sweater by <a href="https://tincanknits.com/home">Tin Can Knits</a> for my daughter but I didn't love the way the yarns were together and I felt like it would end up with enough itch factor that she wouldn't wear it, so it had been set aside waiting for the right fingering weight yarn to go with the silk mohair I had ready. Once I had the * right * yarn it really began to fly but, of course, in the meantime while I looked for the right yarn I had a yen to cast on another pair of socks. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MmCEC4GzNnQ/YJbfgMhE64I/AAAAAAAAC0I/OoUiuDg0sPIR31BvXLshtJRRg757T9RHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/D6AC3C30-8A96-4771-9DC3-6F4667FD5242.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MmCEC4GzNnQ/YJbfgMhE64I/AAAAAAAAC0I/OoUiuDg0sPIR31BvXLshtJRRg757T9RHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/D6AC3C30-8A96-4771-9DC3-6F4667FD5242.heic" /></a></div>Enter the <a href="https://ravel.me/clearly-determined" target="_blank">Clearly Determined socks</a>. I went back and forth on which yarn to use and clearly still didn't make the right choice because even though I went with a speckled not a variegated the speckling is heavy enough that it pretty much completely obscures the cabling down both sides of the leg. I am not one to rip out though because I really hate losing that much work and the yarn is still very pretty. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">So now I am rocking along on the yoke of the Love Note and making slow but steady progress on the Clearly Determined socks, but I am not at the point in either project that they are easy to knit in the car or on the go. The socks have a pattern repeat that my brain seems determined not to memorize and the lace section of the yoke of the Love Note, though fairly simple, still requires a little bit out counting. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vlGb7kyCjMc/YJbffqkRI6I/AAAAAAAAC0E/CeXFHVydW2kBA14uomNoPJ1OgeedoKNZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/86B10E17-2728-43F3-A5D3-9509C70CBB3B.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vlGb7kyCjMc/YJbffqkRI6I/AAAAAAAAC0E/CeXFHVydW2kBA14uomNoPJ1OgeedoKNZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/86B10E17-2728-43F3-A5D3-9509C70CBB3B.heic" /></a></div>Then <a href="http://www.knitatude.ca" target="_blank">Knitatude</a> announces this KAL and I'm like, hmmmmm, I really love the simple beauty of the eyelets and I haven't made a cardigan in a while and oh look I have this stash yarn from 2007 that would be just perfect.... and my brain says WE MUST DO THIS. So thats how I ended up casting on for the <a href="https://ravel.me/easy-eyelet-yoke-cardigan" target="_blank">Easy Eyelet Yoke Cardigan</a> even though I was already in the middle of the Love Note and the Clearly Determined Socks. (It is also quite possible I put ALL of those projects on hold for a couple weeks and knocked out a gift pair of boot socks, but more on that once I know the recipient have received them).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-btAhWJyGNt8/YJbffrS9RFI/AAAAAAAAC0A/o8e1U_c8zzMxYRVl82Sb6Ykjw8_eBrqKACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/76044876-1CCF-41E1-9816-9EF1ED314880.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-btAhWJyGNt8/YJbffrS9RFI/AAAAAAAAC0A/o8e1U_c8zzMxYRVl82Sb6Ykjw8_eBrqKACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/76044876-1CCF-41E1-9816-9EF1ED314880.heic" width="320" /></a></div>Even though all of these projects are growing steadily and I am spending about the same amount of time knitting as I usually do, I feel less productive because I am not seeing finished objects quite as quickly. It's all in my mind, and I know that. Knitting isn't about how fast I can finish all the things, even when sometimes I want it to be. It is more about having that time to make something with my hands that will be used and will last. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-We-hHjjP4ls/YJbffTFHOeI/AAAAAAAACz8/IEzlZ8qTurkRQZ8aY-7eSlaR3P83N6WlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/35B87633-542C-47F0-8CAA-A9E3AE7682E5.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-We-hHjjP4ls/YJbffTFHOeI/AAAAAAAACz8/IEzlZ8qTurkRQZ8aY-7eSlaR3P83N6WlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/35B87633-542C-47F0-8CAA-A9E3AE7682E5.heic" /></a></div>I love that my children are currently in a phase where they really *want* me to knit for them and they like wearing things I have made so sometimes it feels like I need to work as fast as I can to bust out those projects for them. Today though, I am going to remind myself to sit back and enjoy each stitch. Each inch of progress, the feel of the yarn, and the meditative repetition of the stitches. Today I am Dory or the Little Engine That Could. I am putting one stitch after the other and not worrying about how fast I can make it to the finish line. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Putting Love in Every Stitch,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><i>Somer</i></div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p></p>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-31686414167748376152021-05-07T20:04:00.001-05:002021-05-07T20:04:30.336-05:00The Casagrande Sweater - a test knitting journey<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Before we really get into this. I'd like to mention that if you hang around long or follow me on instagram, you'll notice I do not have a museum quality house. I have a lived in house with people and dogs and lots of life happening. So, as you glance around at piles of throw pillows in the corner or things tossed on the foot of the bed, realize its a balancing act and I'm going to choose to go ahead and take pictures in my not perfect bedroom and just let it be what it is. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FCasMfzfCok/YJXLcbhlY4I/AAAAAAAACzU/aJ_BIXMusdwlSZSKBG574EyqJqk-WiALgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/D862D19C-B45B-40EF-ABC9-C172DD00C2CF.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FCasMfzfCok/YJXLcbhlY4I/AAAAAAAACzU/aJ_BIXMusdwlSZSKBG574EyqJqk-WiALgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/D862D19C-B45B-40EF-ABC9-C172DD00C2CF.heic" /></a></div><p></p>You may remember that in the fall of 2019 I was introduced to yarn pond and really fell down that rabbit hole in January of 2020 while I was on bedrest after hip surgery. Last spring I happened upon a test knit call for a sweater so beautiful I just had to put my name in to test knit. I had the privilege to be selected and was able to test knit the <a href="https://ravel.me/casagrande" target="_blank">Casagrande Sweater</a> by <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/designers/sharon-hartley" target="_blank">Sharon Hartley</a>. Its a beautiful sweater with a keyhole back, a ribbon bow, and lacey sleeves closed with a box pleat. It was a nice long test knit and I should have had plenty of time but I actually got it finished and posted ON release day (sorry, Sharon). The problem was not with the pattern, it was with my own fickleness. I really should have had plenty of time. First, I knit one whole sleeve in a light purple that I originally intended to use for the upper 1/3 of the sweater and the sleeves but then later after doing the body I realized I wanted the sleeves to line up more with the body rather than flow down from the top in a solid color. Not only did that mean starting the sleeves over, but it also meant asking the wonderful lady behind <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheVioletValentine">The Violet Valentine</a> to dye me up some more yarn really quickly! Luckily, she is the best and happily did so. What originally was going to be multiple different yarns I had on hand from indie dyers ended up entirely yarn from The Violet Valentine because I was just so set on using that Iris yarn in the middle. I LOVE irises. We have quite a few in our yard. In fact, most of them are blooming right now and I love to see them all happy in the sun. The yellow being a semi-solid would have been the hardest thing to create a match to so she dyed me up an extra skein of Iris and a skein of a coordinating semi-solid purple. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SE_Z4apZD3A/YJXLbh8mAJI/AAAAAAAACzI/eOvtAnuHL582apheUVX--aYN-qY5ZdLsACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/8B75D95A-D41E-47CA-8D07-6ADBF1D68DE7.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SE_Z4apZD3A/YJXLbh8mAJI/AAAAAAAACzI/eOvtAnuHL582apheUVX--aYN-qY5ZdLsACLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/8B75D95A-D41E-47CA-8D07-6ADBF1D68DE7.heic" width="300" /></a></div>I probably could have/should have started the fade into the semi-solid purple a bit sooner but it was easier for the sleeves to keep the variegated in play up to where the yoke is in the round and you are above the lace panels on the sleeves. You can see here how the box pleat at the shoulder meets up with the yoke. You can also see here how my collar ended up a little bit wider than the pattern called for. I really should have ripped it back, I don't know how I mis-measured but instead of a 1 inch collar I ended up with more like a 1.25" collar or possibly even slightly wider and I can definitely tell. It feels a bit wide on me. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hxeLXsP6rUk/YJXLcVEpwDI/AAAAAAAACzQ/RZNccHeYm7oGECgYE8QpHh3xHDXwH_3VwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/FA2C294C-6DE3-481F-8B56-DE9702B434D5.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hxeLXsP6rUk/YJXLcVEpwDI/AAAAAAAACzQ/RZNccHeYm7oGECgYE8QpHh3xHDXwH_3VwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/FA2C294C-6DE3-481F-8B56-DE9702B434D5.jpeg" /></a></p>I knit the 40" size which gives me four inches of positive ease in the pattern and its possible my knitting loosened up when I knit the sweater as opposed to the gauge swatch. I actually preferred the preblocking length when I compare the photos after the fact. Same for the sleeve length. I am often afraid of things ending up short but once I block them they end up a bit big. This photo here is before blocking and also before adding ribbon to the collar so it is just laying open in the back which is why it looks a bit more boatneck here. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F-0wcX67Zw8/YJXLcIt3gdI/AAAAAAAACzM/pQfQDUjmNCUVBtJ6D8xcDY8-GOBRfoH2gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/3703177D-8ACC-49C4-9E37-48DFB104CDF9.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F-0wcX67Zw8/YJXLcIt3gdI/AAAAAAAACzM/pQfQDUjmNCUVBtJ6D8xcDY8-GOBRfoH2gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/3703177D-8ACC-49C4-9E37-48DFB104CDF9.jpeg" width="400" /><br /></a>Blocking is a must with lace though and the lace sleeves really are beautiful. I love that the sweater is lightweight and easy to wear. I also love its bright happy colors and the feature that originally drew me to the pattern, the sweet keyhole back with the bow. I do know from looking at other people's tests of this same sweater that the lace pattern will stand out more in a solid or a lightly speckled yarn. I know the lace pattern was much easier to see in my original sleeve but I don't think I would have liked the finished product as much. Another thing you might notice here is how much the yoke grew after blocking. I have a very short torso and short shoulders. If I were to knit this sweater again I would take some length out of the yoke to get the box pleats to sit higher on my shoulders like they do on the original sweater model.</p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hdjKcpa8LZY/YJW-P6pvDBI/AAAAAAAACyU/wkf8mQfNOTo6vQyhpUV91oq1-irjHFMNACLcBGAsYHQ/s1800/637F9AF0-861C-437D-B3BF-F4E6A44EEC61.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1800" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hdjKcpa8LZY/YJW-P6pvDBI/AAAAAAAACyU/wkf8mQfNOTo6vQyhpUV91oq1-irjHFMNACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/637F9AF0-861C-437D-B3BF-F4E6A44EEC61.jpeg" /></a>I wore my Casagrande Sweater to the office last week and I actually think that because the sweater itself is a bit loose and drapey I prefer it with more fitted pants. (I know one photo makes it look fitted, but that it just the camera angle). I did change the ribbon out from a shorter dark purple ribbon to a long and lovely yellow. A vintage brooch on the collar seemed just the thing to complement the sweet sweater design. I think it is good dressed up or down and I think it would be great with a pencil skirt. </p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EF95Dvx3pm0/YJW-Q2kKO5I/AAAAAAAACyk/wLSsRgQt3ds35_nsxegLOZ8IoGrFJNhnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1795/C5DC069E-0F5C-446F-ACCD-44F96E2E0DFC.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1795" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EF95Dvx3pm0/YJW-Q2kKO5I/AAAAAAAACyk/wLSsRgQt3ds35_nsxegLOZ8IoGrFJNhnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/C5DC069E-0F5C-446F-ACCD-44F96E2E0DFC.jpeg" /></a><span style="text-align: left;">The moral of this test knit story is, be decisive about your yarn, don't change your mind halfway through and never say, "Oh I have plenty of time." Time has this funny way of disappearing when we are lollygagging because we think we have plenty of it. And maybe save the experimental fades for another project. For exact yardages I used for my fade, progress photos and my notes, you can find my Ravelry project of the test knit</span><span style="text-align: left;"> </span><a href="https://ravel.me/knit-o-matic/hjwnlu" style="text-align: left;">here</a><span style="text-align: left;">. If Ravelry is inaccessible to you and you have any questions, feel free to ask questions in the comments or shoot me an email. </span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">As much as I enjoy knitting thicker cozy sweaters, it just doesn't get cold enough here for long enough to wear big bulky sweater all the time, especially in heated buildings. Sock weight sweaters like this one are perfect because I can wear them much more often and I definitely have a number of them in my queue. I haven't taken on any test knits recently because I am trying to avoid deadlines at the moment but you never know when something irresistible might come along and I'll throw myself in headlong again. In fact, I barely talked myself out of applying for the test knit for the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CM1t1WEJwKR/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link" target="_blank">Blooming Dream Tee</a> by <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/designers/camille-k">CamilleKnitDesign</a> and now I am anxiously awaiting the pattern release because I really think I have to make it. I just wasn't able to commit to the deadline when the test knit call came out. It is such a beautiful design and I think it will be really wearable as a dressy summer and transitional season piece. Wearability and realistic choices in knitting are something to address in another post though and it's time to tuck the kids into bed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Until next time,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Somer</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /> <p></p>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-51466097106130399682021-04-30T16:41:00.001-05:002021-04-30T16:41:31.875-05:00Well, its sure been a year<p> </p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g2LckkCulio/YIxUZPdoq3I/AAAAAAAACwU/AZmxTo0rR5c1LJMVJpUyvAV3wQmrMZ6dACLcBGAsYHQ/s3088/81B2C920-E665-4793-96E5-646645578380_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g2LckkCulio/YIxUZPdoq3I/AAAAAAAACwU/AZmxTo0rR5c1LJMVJpUyvAV3wQmrMZ6dACLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/81B2C920-E665-4793-96E5-646645578380_1_201_a.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span> A</span> bit more than a year ago I posted about recovering from hip surgery and renewing my love affair with knitting. I didn't yet know about what life would suddenly be like. I didn't know I'd be doing physical therapy over zoom and working from home while my wonderful husband managed remote school for the kids. Amongst the home cooked meals, the bread baking, the wondering if grocery stores would have milk, flour, yeast and other necessities, at least there was knitting to help keep me sane. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span> From a knitting standpoint, it was a productive year. I made sweaters for myself, gifts for family, clothing for the kids. I connected online with more knitters than I had previously and even started listening to knitting podcasts. The thing I am currently missing the most is the in person knitting groups of my younger days. Before kids I spent many an evening sitting at restaurants or in people's homes, knitting, talking, and laughing. Always a lot of laughing. Even after kids there were craft nights and gatherings. Perhaps less frequent, but still there. Covid took away our gatherings and even though we have tried to fill the hole virtually, it just isn't the same. I am ready for the days of getting together with other people who just want to take some sticks and some string and make something. I want to gush about this yarn or that with people who relate. My need to spew words about knitting and yarn has led me to think about podcasting, but I know nothing about video editing (lies, I took a class on just that thing, but it was more than 20 years ago, so it has to have all changed), YouTube, and all that. And on top of that, I'm not sure who would want to listen to me go on and on about sticks and string. A lot of people deal with imposter syndrome and I sit here wondering, do I knit ENOUGH for people to care about what I am working on or what yarn I got (is that even a thing? knitting enough? no, because sometimes we have to sleep. or eat. or work). Who knows, maybe I'll give it a go sometime.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span> In the mean time, maybe I can spew some words here and maybe a few people will even read them. I hear blogs are out and podcasts are in. Is that true? I'd love to hear from anyone who stumbles upon my corner of the internet. Comments mean the world to me, connections are the thing I crave. Just knowing that I'm over here thinking about yarn 1000% of the time and maybe some of you are too. </span><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span><span></span></span></p><div style="text-align: right;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SRKtKLFMQEs/YIxVxsYNy9I/AAAAAAAACwo/u9sS-tldiTMOVD2MVVxAd_hQwp9KpEFJwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/1174E7EE-E07F-4D56-94D0-92CD74F49E17.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SRKtKLFMQEs/YIxVxsYNy9I/AAAAAAAACwo/u9sS-tldiTMOVD2MVVxAd_hQwp9KpEFJwCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/1174E7EE-E07F-4D56-94D0-92CD74F49E17.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> So let's talk about the pink and purple sweater going on here. When I first saw the <a href="http://www.dreareneeknits.com/shop/stripes">STRIPES!</a> sweater by <a href="http://www.dreareneeknits.com">Drea Renee Knits</a> I didn't immediately put it on my to do list. I think its partly because the sample colors are so far from my color palette but really I feel like its mostly the outdated but ingrained fashion advice that horizontal stripes make you look wider. We all just need to throw that outdated notion out of our heads right this second. But also, who cares? The more I looked at it though the more I liked the fit and the body style. I'm short waisted, she's short waisted, so a lot of the designs Andrea Mowry puts out appeal to me. The next thing that pushed me over the edge into making it was the yarn. You see, a year ago I got this yarn. More than a year now probably. I bet it was during my bed ridden over shopping. Whatever, I bought yarn. That's what happens. It came from indie dyer <a href="https://www.fiberforthepeopleyarn.com">Fiber For the People</a> <span style="text-align: left;">and it was a lucky strike, which means it was one of a kind, can't get more. It's a lovely grey purple and has flecks of a bright pink in it so subtle you can only see them up close. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PRgA6L-KhgA/YIxVwGcW1nI/AAAAAAAACwg/Ctp8Xeh0PlITjU5_NWFHhaSDAMw7bR7AACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/0739B92E-B2B3-4E15-96B3-BFD73E169B57.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PRgA6L-KhgA/YIxVwGcW1nI/AAAAAAAACwg/Ctp8Xeh0PlITjU5_NWFHhaSDAMw7bR7AACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/0739B92E-B2B3-4E15-96B3-BFD73E169B57.jpeg" /></a></p>This photo doesn't do it justice. And then on down the road I got three more lucky strikes. </span><span style="text-align: left;">Don't tell me I have a problem, I already know. So now I have these 4 one of a kind color ways, 1 of them DK, 2 suri alpaca, and one fingering weight and they over over here telling me they need to be together. In one project. And I'm like, ya'll, you aren't even the same weight or length, how am I going to make that happen. I was reading more about the STRIPES! pattern one day and saw how some of the stripes were sure held double and others were DK and I was suddenly inspired to make a striped sweater. Who knew, I mean stripes have never really been my thing but suddenly it had to happen. So I had the four pretties and I don't have a great photo from when they were all still skeins, but if we ignore the overly warm lighting my house has after dark, here are the 4 yarns all caked up and ready to go. The two suri alpaca on the left, the purple dk top right and the fingering weight bottom right. </span></div><span style="text-align: right;"><p style="text-align: left;"> </p><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D0I2wPzcGeo/YIxVy7bjIdI/AAAAAAAACw4/bj5CfQOcHrEg8xDeakEtXFEE04y00mY1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/A7D02C00-D93A-44BC-BC1E-9A2928BD91D6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D0I2wPzcGeo/YIxVy7bjIdI/AAAAAAAACw4/bj5CfQOcHrEg8xDeakEtXFEE04y00mY1QCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/A7D02C00-D93A-44BC-BC1E-9A2928BD91D6.jpeg" width="400" /></a>But wait, 4 skeins aren't enough to do a whole sweater! Especially when the majority of them have to be held double. So I started rummaging and throwing every pink and purple skein I had next to them to see what would happen. I finally settled on a color palette that included a beautiful skein from the flowers series by <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheVioletValentine">The Violet Valentine</a> called Cosmos (It's the lovely speckled light pink in the sweater) and leftover Party Punch from <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/SouthernSkeinsYarn?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=912505421">Southern Skeins</a>, which I had used to make a dress top for my daughter in the fall. I still feared it wasn't quite enough yardage so I also added a beautiful light silvery mohair that leans cool, almost purple and seemed to fit right in. In hindsight I would have held it triple to make the weight closer to the other yarns, but it still works. </p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-26qHEjknm84/YIxVyaAgOwI/AAAAAAAACw0/bkcbA6RmCv8DBNqod4rCCSTwBsTCcJ3rACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/405C0BD5-0B54-4B06-9F8F-7C3EE0B66F50.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-26qHEjknm84/YIxVyaAgOwI/AAAAAAAACw0/bkcbA6RmCv8DBNqod4rCCSTwBsTCcJ3rACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/405C0BD5-0B54-4B06-9F8F-7C3EE0B66F50.heic" /></a></div><span> Did I mention we got a new dog? We adopted the large furry fellow in February, right before Oklahoma got hit by lots of nasty weather. Freezing rain, lots of snow, etc. And the only person the dog would go outside with was me. This was not the plan. The plan was for the dog to bond with my husband. Or the kids. Or both. NOPE, the dog decided I was the only person in the world he could trust. At all. He is silly. But quite lovable and fluffy. He makes quite the contrast to my little old man pug </span>chihuahua. Ok, I've gotten slightly off topic, but he's sweet and the STRIPES sweater is still in the picture so I know you will let it slide.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2Z4q1x3M8oQ/YIxVyyfWTZI/AAAAAAAACw8/dtUY370fb84SgC2f2z-rRdbBwZsW7U4pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/94A86903-07FD-443C-8A39-DE197FC57AB1.heic" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2Z4q1x3M8oQ/YIxVyyfWTZI/AAAAAAAACw8/dtUY370fb84SgC2f2z-rRdbBwZsW7U4pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/94A86903-07FD-443C-8A39-DE197FC57AB1.heic" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><br /></span></div> I knew going in that I would probably want to weave in ends as I went or there would be hell to pay at the end. Did I listen to myself? NO. It was awful. I think it took me a week of using every bit of my normal knitting time to weave in all the ends. Every. Bit. So many ends. I did the stripe width called for in the pattern, I know other people have gone for wider stripes but I stuck with the pattern. I did the full length version, not the cropped, with bracelet length sleeves. I think the pattern is written for 3/4 length or extra long but sleeves are easy to modify to the length you like. I think I ended up adding just two extra stripes to the sleeves past what was on the body. I did not preplan the stripes. I went with what felt like it would be good next. There is no rhyme or reason to the order other than what felt right. There is no pattern. Because I was worried about running out of a color before finishing I actually worked the sleeves simultaneously with the body. Yay for interchangeable needles and lots of extra cords. I was able to knit a body stripe then move the tips to one sleeve then the other to keep everything in sync. I will say that I really loved doing it this way because even though the progress on the body felt slower, there was no sleeve island to get stuck on. </span></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PRgA6L-KhgA/YIxVwGcW1nI/AAAAAAAACwg/Ctp8Xeh0PlITjU5_NWFHhaSDAMw7bR7AACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/0739B92E-B2B3-4E15-96B3-BFD73E169B57.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><br /></a></p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PRgA6L-KhgA/YIxVwGcW1nI/AAAAAAAACwg/Ctp8Xeh0PlITjU5_NWFHhaSDAMw7bR7AACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/0739B92E-B2B3-4E15-96B3-BFD73E169B57.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><br /></a><p></p></div><p></p></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y1kvxIqVCLw/YIxVyItDoDI/AAAAAAAACww/vC-XbpOB6uMqmgOhE64hCOq_tZUoXzUnACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/3C89E18B-FAA1-411D-87A2-EBC1E45DB1B9_1_201_a.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y1kvxIqVCLw/YIxVyItDoDI/AAAAAAAACww/vC-XbpOB6uMqmgOhE64hCOq_tZUoXzUnACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/3C89E18B-FAA1-411D-87A2-EBC1E45DB1B9_1_201_a.heic" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ta da! Blocking</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t7J2ilSdFKE/YIxVxuxt8nI/AAAAAAAACws/Pd1hPQjqhG4wZPQHLkYdvlaYLBYRzYy5ACLcBGAsYHQ/s3088/14609A83-29AF-4F08-8E2B-3F2AE27A71C6_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t7J2ilSdFKE/YIxVxuxt8nI/AAAAAAAACws/Pd1hPQjqhG4wZPQHLkYdvlaYLBYRzYy5ACLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/14609A83-29AF-4F08-8E2B-3F2AE27A71C6_1_201_a.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> You can see here that I went for the relaxed neckline. The pattern presents you with some different neckline options but I wanted the slightly more relaxed and open neckline. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> Its been cool enough here to wear this sweater exactly twice but its so soft and comfortable I think it will be in frequent rotation next fall. Its dk weight overall so it isn't as hot and heavy as the Weekender sweater I made last spring. I am also now having a love affair with suri alpaca. I think I would like to do an entire sweater out of suri alpaca, I just don't know if I want it to be an ultra light lace weight sweater or a held double more of a sport weight or dk weight sweater. The fabric created by holding the suri double has a wonderful softness and drape to it. I have some beautiful <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/pancakeandlulu?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=55342085">Pancake and Lulu</a> suri alpaca I received as a Christmas gift, I may use that as my starting point. It is in her Violet Icing color way and swatched out perfectly with my Light Summer fan. Its such a lovely color.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-vaAfpVc50/YIxVzvJ0YGI/AAAAAAAACxE/7iir91eljM45aoVpbNv_6-pRrBfqmp2ugCLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/D98A61B2-8E65-4C47-A0AE-C1EF6799B662_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-vaAfpVc50/YIxVzvJ0YGI/AAAAAAAACxE/7iir91eljM45aoVpbNv_6-pRrBfqmp2ugCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/D98A61B2-8E65-4C47-A0AE-C1EF6799B662_1_201_a.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><span><div style="text-align: justify;"> Over all thoughts on STRIPES: the pattern is clear and easy to follow and you get the steps to customize multiple parts so you can end up with exactly the sweater you want. The top down round yoke construction means you can try it on as you go and if you know how your yarn is going to block out you'll have a good idea of the fit of the finished garment. I've gotten to where I don't like to trim my ends until after blocking so you may notice there are still a couple sticking out in the "finished" try on photos. I like to give the new garment a good soak after weaving the ends in and then block it out nicely and let everything settle in to place. Sometimes I will even wear the sweater or other garment around the house for a while to get any stretching, shifting, moving around done and settled, then go back and trim the ends. </div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span> Wrapping it all up: I'd like to get back in the habit of coming here to share my thoughts. So let me know if you are out there and how you are doing right now. What are you working on? How has the last year affected your habits and hobbies? Maybe I'll do a video sometime. Maybe I'll get distracted by life again. This blog has been a lot of things in the past. First a way to stay connected to my knitting buddies in Thousand Oaks, California when I moved back to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Then part of my business when I decided to hit the craft fair circuit. After I "retired" from that it became a much more occasional place to drop thoughts and photos. I change, the blog changes. My knitting changes. My desire to share the love of knitting and yarn never changes. </span></div><div><br /></div><div>Until next time, much love,</div><div>Somer<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p></div>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-72091646068846621252020-03-14T09:10:00.001-05:002020-03-14T09:10:46.138-05:00It's been a while, old friendGood morning<br />
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Its a rainy morning. Most things around town have been canceled. I know I have to go to work later but right now I just want to think about yarn and knitting and curling up on the sofa on this rainy Saturday where people are stripping the shelves of stores and losing their minds. <br />
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In January I had hip surgery to repair a torn labrum in my right hip. The enforced downtime renewed my passion for knitting. I have always had a need, a drive, to make things with my hands. It often goes unsatisfied between work and the busyness of kids but its always been there. But for almost two weeks I had so much time and I started to finish old projects that had been sitting around for years and new projects and test knits and I found new indie yarn dyers and connected with the community of <a href="https://www.yarnpond.com/" target="_blank">yarnpond</a> and the drive a need to create was fed and grew. I find myself queueing more patterns than I can possibly finish, purchasing new patterns from independent designers and ordering yarn surprise boxes, like the Harry Potter boxes from <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/CrystalskyesHandDyed?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=629869114" target="_blank">Crystalskye's Handed</a> or the Sock Crate from <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/SouthernSkeinsYarn?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=765993580" target="_blank">Southern Skeins</a>. <br />
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Last night I blocked <a href="https://ravel.me/kaskad" target="_blank">Kaskad</a> for my daughter </div>
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<a href="https://images4-f.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687797336/49CA0292-F332-4349-9B64-7EF4AF620AEB_medium2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://images4-f.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687797336/49CA0292-F332-4349-9B64-7EF4AF620AEB_medium2.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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and today I am casting on<a href="https://ravel.me/little-rollick" target="_blank"> Little Rollick</a> for my son.</div>
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<a href="https://images4-g.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687802710/34557DD4-E1E3-46A9-AC74-B86D41A0F287_medium2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://images4-g.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687802710/34557DD4-E1E3-46A9-AC74-B86D41A0F287_medium2.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
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I am happy to have ignited a love of handmade in both of them. I involve them in yarn choices and patterns choices, they ask about progress and are excited to try on finished products. Each of them has a ridiculous number of hats now. One of my favorite projects from last fall was the amazing <a href="https://ravel.me/borealis-7" target="_blank">Borealis Beanie</a> written by a friend of mine.</div>
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<a href="https://images4-f.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687807789/E4361B30-A61B-4136-81C8-EE709CA94DE9_medium2_medium2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="592" height="320" src="https://images4-f.ravelrycache.com/uploads/knit-o-matic/687807789/E4361B30-A61B-4136-81C8-EE709CA94DE9_medium2_medium2.jpeg" width="296" /></a></div>
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Who knows, maybe I'll even get back into writing here regularly. I have a few friends who have recently started writing long snail mail letters again and its been wonderful to receive those in the mail and to sit and write back long rambling thoughts, like conversations we used to have. </div>
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If you are out there, if you see this, just drop a quick hello. </div>
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till next time,</div>
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Somer</div>
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Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-34532426864313642012013-07-29T09:13:00.000-05:002013-07-29T09:13:02.651-05:00Update!I have a <a href="http://babywearingaroundtulsa.blogspot.com/2013/07/firespiral-tester-playdate-and-review.html">new post</a> up on the <a href="http://babywearingaroundtulsa.blogspot.com/">Babywearing Around Tulsa</a> blog! We had a great time with a tester wrap that travelled through last week.<br />
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In knitting news I attended <a href="http://fiberchristmas.com/">Fiber Christmas in July</a> at the Creek County Fair Grounds this weekend. I got to see many of my fiber friends and even an old friend from high school. It was great to get to hang out and even knit a while. I busted out an Acorn Head in a squishy cream colored wool blend. I'll need to get a picture up soon!<br />
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Also gearing up for Gyspy Market in Kansas City this coming weekend. If you are in the area come out to visit me!! Event details can be found <a href="https://www.facebook.com/#!/events/1374255322795061/?fref=ts">here.</a> I will be bringing along the wares of a few friends from<a href="http://www.maketulsa.com/"> make:Tulsa</a>; Blue Marble Market, Tulsa Teethers, Byrd Handmade and Weather & Noise. Its should be a fun and exciting weekend and I am really looking forward to it. I have spent most evenings the last couple of weeks busting out dryer balls as fast as I can! <br />
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In other super awesome news, but not knitting related, I am going to Houston in August to attend the Babywearing Institute class being held there. I am really excited and will be going with a couple good friends and fellow Babywearing Around Tulsa admins. I am doing a lot of fundraising and if you are interested in supporting or sponsoring me, just shoot me an <a href="mailto:somerknits@aim.com">email</a>.<br />
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Much to do, gotta go!Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-16136224616955110982013-06-24T09:47:00.002-05:002013-06-24T09:47:52.021-05:00Miami MadnessHey there folks! Little E and I just got back from a great trip to Miami. I had a work conference to attend but she got to spend her days lazing by the pool. We were lucky enough to get to go early so I had a couple days to swim with her.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7cQjTwrnOI4/UchYrcssTRI/AAAAAAAACPE/hUNp10Fnu-c/s1600/Miami+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7cQjTwrnOI4/UchYrcssTRI/AAAAAAAACPE/hUNp10Fnu-c/s400/Miami+1.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
She tans so fast! A skill I never had. And she had so much fun there! I think she is going to be a little fish like her momma.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qvt5B8cFiyE/UchYtRuubdI/AAAAAAAACPM/0XKKgbkaTLk/s1600/Miami+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qvt5B8cFiyE/UchYtRuubdI/AAAAAAAACPM/0XKKgbkaTLk/s320/Miami+3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I am going to miss the beach and the fabulous pools. Walk in pools are great for tiny ones!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QrqFrrW2iEQ/UchYuRaYNbI/AAAAAAAACPU/g-V5d0ifSE0/s1600/Miami+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QrqFrrW2iEQ/UchYuRaYNbI/AAAAAAAACPU/g-V5d0ifSE0/s400/Miami+2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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While in Miami I did get some great knitting time! It had been awhile since I had gotten to knit so much. Originally I planned to work on inventory for fall but I decided to set that aside and knit a blanket for Little E's baby dolls. She loves her baby dolls!! This sparkly cotton should be right up her alley.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RokLTJSoeRc/UchYvUtmtOI/AAAAAAAACPc/9eKjoFkR4rg/s1600/Cool+Kid.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RokLTJSoeRc/UchYvUtmtOI/AAAAAAAACPc/9eKjoFkR4rg/s400/Cool+Kid.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Check out this cool kid! She has grown so much. I love this little outfit, it has a matching sun hat too. :-) And look at those tan little legs! Crazy! </div>
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So much has been going on lately, its hard to carve out any more time! I will occasionally be blogging on the <a href="http://www.babywearingaroundtulsa.blogspot.com/">Babywearing Around Tulsa</a> blog. Check out <a href="http://babywearingaroundtulsa.blogspot.com/2013/06/next-meeting-june-29th.html">this post</a> for info on our upcoming meeting.</div>
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Speaking of being involved, I was super bummed to miss the Tulsa Etsy Craft Party put on by make:Tulsa! I hear it was a blast. Stay tuned for more exciting make:Tulsa adventures. Have you seen our <a href="http://www.maketulsa.com/">new website</a>? The fabulous Thom Crowe put a lot of work into it!</div>
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So that is what has been up with me, what has been up with you?</div>
Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-46364234498932927782013-03-10T22:13:00.004-05:002013-03-10T22:13:59.773-05:00Thankful - a never published post<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Look at this post I started and never finished!!! I had totally forgotten about it. haha. Ok, so even though it was unfinished, I have decided to publish it as is. So, here you go, a Thanksgiving post 4 months late. Apparently I didn't get very far on it, but you get the idea.</div>
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Many people are doing things like '30 Days of Thankfulness' on Facebook. I don't think I would remember to keep up with that, so I thought I would do it all at once. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-heNjjxI2fA4/UKHPbm8cu6I/AAAAAAAACLc/zh5gVvwaNns/s1600/Johnson-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-heNjjxI2fA4/UKHPbm8cu6I/AAAAAAAACLc/zh5gVvwaNns/s400/Johnson-6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Photo by Ruby Jewel Studio</div>
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First and foremost, I am thankful for this man and this baby girl. Aren't they a sweet pair? My husband is a wonderful and patient man and a loving and attentive father. What more could I ask for? And this little girl, what can I say about her? She is my joy. Despite her being somewhat.... we'll call it strong willed, she is my sunshine and I tell her so every single day. <br />
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I couldn't have gotten to where I am today, with a wonderful husband and beautiful daughter, if it wasn't for my parents, so I am also thankful for my parents. <br />
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<br />Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-81348596962117871862013-03-10T22:10:00.002-05:002013-03-14T10:38:05.756-05:00On having to blog and a trip to LA<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Blogging when I have no idea what I want to say can be really hard. And it leaves me feeling really uninteresting. So, since I don't have a whole lot left to say about dryer balls and I never have time to knit anymore, here are some pics of my adorable daughter on our recent trip to LA! These pics were all instagram pics and mostly posted on facebook already. I'll try and get some more from the real camera up sometime. Come to think of it, I never posted her amazing one year pics, so sometime I will get around to doing that. ;-P</div>
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Who needs toys why you have a box of beans?</div>
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Baby's first participatory drum circle.</div>
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Only my child would fall asleep at a drum circle.</div>
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Trains!</div>
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The bride was so beautiful! Love ya, Kathleen!</div>
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All she wanted to do at the wedding was go up and down the steps.</div>
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Asleep on her first trip to ikea.</div>
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A minor! Still makes me laugh. </div>
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Little Mermaid ride at Disneyland!</div>
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Nap time at Disneyland! We love our Obimama!</div>
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More Obimama at Disneyland!</div>
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Oh Disneyland, I love you!</div>
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Dumbo ride!</div>
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Bye bye, Disney! So tired!</div>
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Sleepy Snuggles</div>
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I'm wearing a hat, can I go outside?</div>
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First sound mixing lesson.</div>
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Plane ride home!</div>
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Well behaved little flyer!</div>
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I'll try and do a better job of maintaining my on-line presence. If you are after dryer balls you can always message me through my facebook account. I have been keeping really busy with the store orders and the individual orders that come in that way! When I first started making them I really never expected that. So thank you to all those who have bought dryer balls from me or the stores I sell through. Thank you for keeping me too busy to blog! Thats a good problem to have, right??Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-62407444842351741922012-05-23T08:49:00.000-05:002012-05-23T08:49:33.827-05:00Its Becoming a Regular ThingI'm guest posting again today over at <a href="http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/2012/05/everything-is-prettier-when-you-cloth.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheClothDiaperWhisperer+%28The+Cloth+Diaper+Whisperer%29">The Cloth Diaper Whisperer</a>. This particular post is about how everything is prettier when you cloth diaper and its absolutely 100% true. :-)<br />
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It is easy to write about things that are going on in your life and right now there is much more going on in the world of diapering than in the world of knitting. I have been inspired recently though and my fingers are itching to knit. I am hoping over the holiday weekend to get to do a bit of that.<br />
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And for absolutely no reason at all other than cuteness, I will leave you with this picture from Museum Babies. (BTW - if you live in Tulsa and haven't heard of Museum Babies, go to the Gilcrease website to read up on it. They are on a break for the summer but we can't wait to start back up in the fall!!)Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-23718062321175509122012-05-15T21:19:00.000-05:002012-05-15T21:19:05.036-05:00100 Facebook Fan Giveaway<br />
In celebration of reaching 100 facebook fans I am having a giveaway. There will be not just one but three winners! Up for grabs are 1 pair of felted wool dryer balls and 2 sets of stitch markers. Each set of stitch markers will be a set of 5 coordinating markers. <br />
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This is my first rafflecopter giveaway, I though I would give it a try and see how it goes. I am leaving the giveaway open until the 20th to give everyone time to enter. :-)<br />
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Thanks for helping me meet this milestone. No matter how small it may seem to some, it means a lot to me!<br />
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/" id="rc-5c6fd00">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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</script><br />Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-77159980353003127502012-05-13T22:13:00.003-05:002012-05-13T22:14:55.583-05:00Love You, Mom.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Happy Mother's Day to my mom, my Grandma and my Mimi. I love you all and Evelyn does too!</div>
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4 Generations</div>
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Evelyn's First Ball Game</div>
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Visiting Mimi, Evelyn is full of giggles!</div>
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First Wedding</div>
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First Valentine's Day and First Tea Party!</div>
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Snuggles from Great-Grandma Pat</div>
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My first Mother's Day was wonderful and I hope yours was too. I got to knit!! Really! It was so nice. And my thoughtful husband built me a swing set! If you know me, you know how awesome that is. My first order of business will be to hang my hammock chair and have a nice lie-down and read a book, I can't wait! :-)</div>
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Before I head off to a much deserved soak in the tub, I want to take a minute to thank my wonderful mom. Even though this was also her day she got up and fixed fantastic blueberry pancakes (my favorite) for a big family breakfast this morning. Thanks for helping make my first Mother's Day special, Mom! </div>
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My mom is a wonderfully talented and awesome person, on top of being a great mom. I am so grateful for everything she does for me. I am glad she was there when my baby girl was born and I am glad we live close enough that I see her all the time and that Evelyn will get to have a close relationship with her.<br />
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Happy Mom's day to all the moms out there. And double and triple to all the grandmas and great-grandmas!Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-58445610624768362162012-05-11T13:24:00.002-05:002012-05-11T13:24:34.029-05:00Time passes so quickly nowI am still not as good at time management as I would like to be but I am working on it. I have cut down on TV so much. I don't turn it on until after she is asleep and some nights not at all. I don't want her getting all TV obsessed.<br />
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I did another <a href="http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/2012/05/i-pimp-out-my-diapers.html">guest post</a> for <a href="http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/">The Cloth Diaper Whisperer</a>. It all about pimping out my cloth diapers. I am obsessed, I tell ya. <br />
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Speaking of obsessed, I am obsessed with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rumpkinz/163016213758926">Rumpkinz</a> diapers. Soooo cute! I really, really NEED a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=353205014740044&set=a.352513671475845.80942.163016213758926&type=3&theater">Minion diaper</a>. I have 2 of her diapers so far, a Kermit the Frog face diaper and a Thing 1 Thing 2 diaper. I really like them and they have hemp inserts. Since I like them so much I am going to be hosting a co-op to order some at discounted prices (yay!) so hit me up if you might be interested. We will have to get together at least the minimum order to qualify for co-op prices. <br />
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Well, I will leave you with some phone pics of Baby Girl from Easter. I know, I am really behind on that kind of thing. But you'll be happy to know I have been pretty good about keeping the baby book up to date. <br />
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This bathing cap has an adorable matching old fashioned looking tiny swimsuit. She will be the belle of the pool.<br />
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This hat has a cute matching dress, all from H&M. Its fun and adorable.<br />
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This little chair was my dad's contribution to Evelyn's Easter basket. Since her nursery is frog themed, its totally perfect. And look what a good job she did of sitting up momentarily at just barely over 3 months!<br />
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We do take a picture of her every single day, so it can be kind of overwhelming to go through all of the pictures. I need to get on top of organizing all of those.<br />
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Speaking of pictures, I am working on become more at ease with our large DSLR. I have been reading up on stuff, but if you have books, websites, or blog post recommendations that I should check out as I work on that, let me know. I have been practicing but I am not at all ready to show my practice shots to anyone. :-P<br />
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uh-oh, she just woke up....Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-30664317602171325692012-04-06T12:20:00.000-05:002012-04-06T12:20:19.531-05:00Guest Post<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Ok, it has taken me a while to get around to posting this. Again. But you can find me guest blogging <a href="http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/2012/04/flipping-out-traveling-with-hybrid.html">here at The Cloth Diaper Whisperer.</a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu261/cdwhisperer/Trunk-Tote.jpg" width="400" /></div>I decided that one of the best ways to get out that urge to gush incessantly about my love for cloth diapers would be to guest blog about it. That way it doesn't totally take over this blog. I'll be sure to mention it here when I do though, even if it is a little late. <br />
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Back in the world of Knitting, my handspun cowl is done except for blocking! It only took me 3 weeks to bind off!! Oh well. So, blocking and pictures, coming soon!!Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-43225971645040695832012-03-20T21:48:00.001-05:002012-03-20T21:55:24.255-05:00I may never get to knit againOk, well, thats being a little dramatic. I get to knit for approximately 30 minutes once a week. So I should be able to complete at least one project by maybe the middle of the summer. <br />
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You see, there are so many things on the to do list that there just isn't a lot of time left over for knitting. And its not just the 'have to do' list thats getting in the way. Even the 'want to do' list is getting in the way. I have to get my living room feeling less claustrophobic. The whole room has started to close in on me and its making me nuts. To the point that I just want to box it all up and have the room be completely empty if thats what it takes to feel better about it. And then I have to get my chaotic craft room/office under control. Ever since we had to empty out the guest room to make it a nursery its been a disaster area, which is not at all conducive to effectively working. Or crafting for that matter. And then there is the garage. And the lawn. And the pantry. You get the idea.<br />
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And then we move on to the want to's. I want to make a fleece blanket for Evelyn. I have wanted to make a fleece blanket for her since before I know she was a she. I have been planning to make this blanket since I got pregnant. I finally took the first step and bought the fleece, but that was a couple weeks ago now and it has just been sitting in the bag I brought it home from the store in, just one more thing sitting in my craft room / office. Its not a hard project, it just requires time. And space. I need to lay out both pieces of fleece flat and pin them together. Once that it done then its all about cutting strips and tying them together. Not hard, just takes time. And there is always something else needing my time. <br />
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And dryer balls. I LOVE that the dryer balls are selling, don't get me wrong. But if I have a spare moment, I don't pick up knitting needles, I just pick up wool. At least people want to buy dryer balls in the spring, unlike knitting. That is the main reason I am taking the spring off from shows. Even if everything I knit is cotton people still don't want knitted stuff in the spring. People don't know what they are missing, but oh well. So yes, I have been making a lot of dryer balls and at least I get to play with color that way. <br />
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But really, that handspun cowl that only has three more rows left on it, I really just want to sit down and finish that. But then I might feel guilty for not folding the laundry. Or putting away the dishes.Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-74218758509912734262012-03-17T13:10:00.001-05:002012-03-17T13:11:02.689-05:00Progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I am making progress on that project I am knitting with my first handspun. I LOVE how the colors are knitting up.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zO1jn02VXfY/T2TR_fUqwfI/AAAAAAAAB-k/NAYpQ0I24o4/s1600/IMG_6187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zO1jn02VXfY/T2TR_fUqwfI/AAAAAAAAB-k/NAYpQ0I24o4/s400/IMG_6187.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>I am going for the random or messy-on-purpose look here. It seems to suit the unevenness of the yarn and playfulness of the many colors. To achieve the messy look I am just doing YO, k2tog but changing up where the YO starts. So basically if you looked really closely, every once in a while you would see a single knit next to a k2tog or a k3tog to change up the starting point. <br />
<br />
I am just about to start the border again and the bind off. I will have to take a picture of the completed project just to post because the weather has gotten so warm I don't know if I will get to wear it this winter or if I will have to wait all the way until next! <br />
<br />
Not that I object, I am loving the warm weather. <br />
<br />
Well, except for the painful sinuses.Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-26499777050077834012012-03-07T14:32:00.001-06:002012-03-07T14:41:41.333-06:00Cleaning UpI'm still "making," even when I am not knitting as much. Speaking of which, and I'll get on to the real topic in just a minute, I finally got up the guts to start knitting with that handspun I made so long ago. It seriously feels like forever, I guess it was last spring though. Anyway, it is on its way to becoming a cowl and I will definitely post pics when it is done.<br />
<br />
So my wee one and my cloth diapering adventures have inspired me to become a little more green (or a little more crunchy, as some might see it) in the rest of my life. I've often thought about making my own cleaning products, but never got around to actually doing it. I mean, yes, I did basic things like run vinegar through my coffee pot and pour baking soda followed by vinegar down a slow drain, but I had never sat down and worked on figuring out how to replace all of my household cleaners with stuff I made. Luckily, I have friends who are just as in to this as I am, some with more experience than I have, and I have some great reference materials.<br />
<br />
Yesterday, armed with a 13lb bag of baking soda, 2 1/2 gallons of vinegar, a box or borax, a box of washing soda, some LemiShine standing in for citric acid, a few random bars of hotel soap, and various recycled containers, I had a couple friends over to get started because making things is always more fun as a group. <br />
<br />
We decided to make the following things:<br />
Dishwasher Detergent<br />
Stain Gel<br />
Diaper Pail Freshener<br />
Fabric Softener<br />
<br />
The first step was to pick some recipes. I was armed with <a href="http://thepeacefulhousewife.com/">The Peaceful Housewife's</a> <a href="http://www.thepeacefulhousewife.com/the-peaceful-housewife-natural-cleaners-e-book?ReturnUrl=LwBzAGgAbwBwAA%3d%3d">e-book</a>, <a href="http://thegreengrandma.blogspot.com/">The Green Grandma's</a> book Vinegar Fridays, Home Ec 101, and a natural cleaners e-book I grabbed for free in the Kindle store one day. We ended up using The Peaceful Housewife's recipes for the most part. Vinegar Fridays is a great tips and tricks book with plenty of recipes as well, many of them very similar to The Peaceful Housewife's e-book. The e-book is very clear and easy to follow, so it was easy just to bring it up on the screen and follow the recipes. Vinegar Fridays is written more conversationally and covers much more, but it has no index so we went with what was easy for this first get together. Buying supplies at Sam's Club and splitting the cost makes it even cheaper for everyone than it already is, so I recommend going that route if you and some friends want to try making your own cleaning products. <br />
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We started by making enough of each thing that we would each have a decent amount to take home and test drive. The only one I have had the opportunity to try so far is the dish detergent, but I am a fan so far. The hard water hear usually leaves me with cloudy glass ware, I've tried a few different detergents and wash procedures to try and fix this and this morning might be the clearest and sparkliest my glasses have been in a while. I am excited to try all the others and I will try and be sure to let you all know how it goes. I'm 100% positive I am going to love the diaper pail freshener because I already use the same thing purchased from The Peaceful Housewife's <a href="http://www.thepeacefulhousewife.com/shop">store</a>. I am planning to try the fabric softener out on a load of towels because that is usually the most static-y load of laundry I do. We never used fabric softener before, but way back before the cloth diapering we used to use unscented dryer sheets and Jenny even has a solution for that (she basically tells you to make a dryer sheet out of the fabric softener that you just made and a washcloth. Clever, right?)<br />
<br />
I mentioned those recycled containers, remember? Well rather than buy containers, wash out and keep things that open and close easily. I like containers with screw on lids, like empty salsa jars, peanut butter jars, etc. just make sure they are thoroughly cleaned and completely dry before using!<br />
<br />
So why didn't we make laundry detergent since that seems to be one that many people start with when they start making their own cleaners? Well 2 of us already had 500 load supplies from The Peaceful Housewife, so I think we're set for a while!<br />
<br />
Do you make your own cleaning supplies? If so, what do you make and where do you find your recipes?Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-76096933560294597792012-02-28T14:00:00.000-06:002012-02-28T14:00:51.448-06:00Holy Lactation Cookies, Batman!And by that I mean YUM! Who knew?<br />
<br />
My friends and I, who all have babies 6 months and younger, decided during our weekly play date to make lactation cookies. I scoured the internet and found these <a href="http://www.drmomma.org/2010/08/lactation-cookies-recipe-increasing.html">two recipes</a> that looked the best. I had virtually everything in my cabinets, except brewers yeast, which turned out to be harder to find than I thought it would be, at least in scoop-able baking form. We ended up having to hit up Akins for that, although Whole Foods likely would have had it too. Reasors not so much. They had a nice blank spot on their shelves where it should have been, but the employee I talked to couldn't tell me the last time they had actually gotten any in. Hmm. Anyway, back to the cookies. If you click that link and read through all the helpful information and then the cookie recipes, we decided to start with the first one. We used peanut butter, not almond butter, but I bet almond butter would be awesome. We also used coconut oil instead of butter. Why use plain old fattening fat when you can substitute a healthier fat that also aids in this whole milk supply issue? (I've been reading a lot about <a href="http://healthimpactnews.com/2011/80-uses-for-coconut-oil/">coconut oil</a> recently and you can buy a big jar at Walmart for $5 so don't think its expensive just because it seems to have magical powers)<br />
<br />
We also added both raisins and dark chocolate chips to our cookies. We made a few like that for the non-nut lovers among us then really went all out and threw in walnuts, pecans, and pumpkin seeds. If we can get our hands on them, in the future we want to try adding chia seeds, thistle, and other things rumored to aid in milk production. But even if I get no extra milk from eating these cookies, I have to tell you, they were GOOD!! I should have taken a picture of the final product to post here. Its hard to take a picture of something when you look at it and immediately feel the need to consume it. The two cookies I set out for myself were gone by the end of the first long paragraph in this post, and they went really well with the hot cup of <a href="http://www.earthmamaangelbaby.com/pregnancy/peaceful-mama-tea.html">Peaceful Mama Tea</a> from Earth Mama Angel Baby. I won a box of this tea while I was still pregnant but didn't finish it. Its approved for breastfeeding though so I am still going through it.<br />
<br />
So, summary, for really yummy lactation cookies, click that link above and print off the recipes.<br />
<br />
Make recipe #1 using:<br />
peanut butter (although I bet almond butter is great)<br />
coconut oil instead of butter<br />
Dark chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet<br />
<br />
add:<br />
Walnuts<br />
pecans<br />
pumpkin seeds<br />
raisins<br />
<br />
In the next batch I want to try craisins. And I might make a batch with butterscotch chips for variety. <br />
<br />
And while I am at it I had this *brilliant* idea to make individually frozen cookie dough, kind of like you can buy at the store. That way you can have hot and fresh gooey lactation cookies anytime. I am thinking my friends might each like a bag. :-) What is better than hot cookies right out of the oven?<br />
<br />
So have I been knitting? Not much. But I have found time to bake and apparently become much more of a mommy blogger than I intended. (I have like 4 more mom related posts in my head, so I will have to work on some knitting related ones) Little girl was 8 weeks yesterday and she is so wonderful! <br />
<br />
btw, am I the only person in the world who thinks <a href="http://www.traditionalmedicinals.com/mothersmilk/">Mothers Milk Tea</a> is yumtastic? My friends seem to all disagree with me. Maybe its because I love black licorice.Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-61149939309952065782012-02-18T15:47:00.002-06:002012-02-28T14:03:00.521-06:00Dryer Balls!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I've been making dryer balls like a mad woman recently! That is, when i am not holding or feeding Evelyn, who is still the sweetest, cutest baby around. I'm making my dryer balls denser than before, which requires more wool and more felting, but its totally worth it. And I am having way too much fun playing with color. Who new you could have so much fun making balls out of wool?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gr3swYcwr0Q/T0AaSXZvliI/AAAAAAAAB90/wH5txrml6Qs/s1600/IMG_0043+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gr3swYcwr0Q/T0AaSXZvliI/AAAAAAAAB90/wH5txrml6Qs/s400/IMG_0043+1.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I took a big batch over to <a href="http://www.thepeacefulhousewife.com/">The Peaceful Housewife</a> in Sand Springs earlier this week, so if you are looking to stock up, head over to her store or her website. She will even custom scent them for you. Speaking of The Peaceful Housewife, she will also be at Babyfest in Tulsa, which I hear is coming up pretty soon, so I will post more info on that as I get it. Rumor has it she will be taking my dryer balls to Baby fest with her, so stop by and check her out. Rumor also has it that local cloth diaper business <a href="http://www.greenbeesdiapers.com/">Green Bees</a> will be joining her. Yay! (I love the Green Bees diapers I have)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Oh, and in case you were wondering, I got this one:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gSXjG_mFlfI/T0AaWoZPuYI/AAAAAAAAB98/7MhiUCGLOWk/s1600/IMG_0021+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gSXjG_mFlfI/T0AaWoZPuYI/AAAAAAAAB98/7MhiUCGLOWk/s400/IMG_0021+1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And I love it!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Oh, I hear her waking up! Well, at least I got a little update in!</div>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-46938020284206484282012-02-03T21:40:00.000-06:002012-02-03T21:40:40.966-06:00Indecision<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I have put off picking out a baby book because I am just too dang indecisive. I know I want something unique and interesting, not just an off the shelf baby book from someplace like Babies R Us. Not that there is anything wrong with those, its just not what I have in mind. So I have spent hours searching Etsy. I have compared what the books on etsy offer to what commercially produced baby books on Amazon offer. I believe I have narrowed it down to these three books. Each has its pros and cons. And each has its price. So maybe you could help me out. Give me your input.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.184922102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://img2.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.184922102.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This first book is made by <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/rubylovedesigns" target="_blank">Ruby Love Designs</a>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Pros: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The cover is unique and interesting.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Comes with 52 custom designed pages</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">20 blank pages for scrapbooking</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">24 adhesive photo sleeves</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A 14 month calendar with matching stickers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Additional packages of pages available including 2nd year package, first holidays package, years 3-5 package and NICU page</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cons: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">9"X8" size album, pages 7.75"x7.5"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2 weeks to ship</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Total cost with everything I want added, including shipping: $92</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img3.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.263873771.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="http://img3.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.263873771.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Second book made by <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/chicmemories">Chic Memories</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Pros: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">12:x12"x2.5" book, 8.5"x11" pages (read = easily added to)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">Handmade embellishments</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">Personalized with baby's name throughout the book, parents names and anniversary</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">3 pockets with customizable tabs</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">5 card stock pages with sleeves, pre-labeled for first 5 years photos</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">Cons:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">3-4 weeks for delivery</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">Only 30 preprinted pages, some information seems like it will be rather condensed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">Total cost with shipping: $99</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img1.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.302849753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://img1.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.302849753.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This album by <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/2giggles">Two Giggles</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Pros:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">78 journaling pages</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Can order 56 more pages for "the toddler years" for $30 more</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Album ships in 2 business days of payment</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">First year seems like it will be well documented: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">• Newborn - 12 months (Place for picture + 3 journaling pages each month)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Name Personalization included</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">NICU page available</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think this is my favorite of the covers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cons:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I've already passed all of this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Baby On The Way</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">• Pregnancy (1st, 2nd + 3rd Trimesters)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">• Doctor Visits</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">• Baby Shower (Includes place for invitation)</span><div>But I did keep a pregnancy journal, so I could transfer a lot of that in.</div><div>9"x8" book, 7.75"x7.5" pages</div><div><br />
</div><div>Total price with toddler pages and shipping: $102 (probably a little more with NICU page and extra shower pages, I have messaged to ask for sure)</div><div><br />
</div><div>Do you see why I am having such a hard time deciding? I could really use some input.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Thanks!!</div>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-28351429035909909292012-01-30T22:17:00.001-06:002012-02-28T14:03:31.595-06:00E - 4 Weeks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I had a knitting related post planned, I wanted to break it up a bit from all the baby related posts, but then I completely failed to take a picture of the little hat I made for my friend Ashley's baby, so that post went down the drain. Perhaps Ashley would be kind enough to take a picture of little Miss Avery in the hat sometime. But enough of my failings, on to the 4 week birthday of little Evelyn!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ozycw7IJtzo/TydhGbHq9TI/AAAAAAAAB84/_QiO1EkBKUI/s1600/E18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ozycw7IJtzo/TydhGbHq9TI/AAAAAAAAB84/_QiO1EkBKUI/s400/E18.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Madison Vining Photography</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Somewhat knitting related, who remembers the silvery grey blanket I knit that won first in its category at the fair this year? Yep, that one that Evelyn is on in the picture above. Doesn't she look adorable? Madison Vining took newborn pictures of Evelyn when she was 6 days old. We had a fantastic time and I love, love, love all the photos. Madison was a joy to work with and I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for a fantastic and patient newborn photographer.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Its already hard to believe she was that tiny. I loved and treasured the super tiny stage. I know she is still small, but I can already see the changes in her. She slept so very well that first week. Most nights we got at least one 4 - 5 hour stretch of solid sleep. Great for mommy and daddy! </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tJXQKex7kiM/TydiBKmRUKI/AAAAAAAAB9A/IPIOdL56New/s1600/IMG_5833.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tJXQKex7kiM/TydiBKmRUKI/AAAAAAAAB9A/IPIOdL56New/s400/IMG_5833.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div> It took a while before she fit into her newborn clothes without them sagging all around her, but once she did I loved buttoning her up in adorable footed sleepers. She hates getting dressed though and really hates if you want to pull her arms out to put them through sleeves. But the end result of keeping warm plus being cute is worth the little bit of fussing. We have her baby einstein play ocean all set up in the living room, but the only thing on it she is sure she loves so far is the mirror. She finds mirrors fascinating. I know that pretty soon she will be loving the rest of it and grabbing for all the hanging toys. For now its mirror time and tummy time on the play ocean.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1jJQcOr1RdA/Tydjgn0lmDI/AAAAAAAAB9I/2bFQvtUgr0I/s1600/IMG_5850.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1jJQcOr1RdA/Tydjgn0lmDI/AAAAAAAAB9I/2bFQvtUgr0I/s400/IMG_5850.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div> On monday the 23rd Evelyn had her first play date with Little Rex. Rex lives down the street and was born a mere few days before Evelyn on 12/30/11! Rex is already trying to hit on her, the little snuggler.<br />
Evelyn is excited for more play dates with all of her neighborhood friends. Today she got to see Rex again as well as Emily, who is a bit older and wiser at 5 months and was pontificating on the ways of the crinkle toy for some time this afternoon. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dgj6Dr9lQzY/Tydjzs-kZBI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/0C6yEGnfi2M/s1600/IMG_5859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dgj6Dr9lQzY/Tydjzs-kZBI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/0C6yEGnfi2M/s400/IMG_5859.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
We love, love, love the nap nanny! Couldn't live without it. When she was tiny and slept practically all day every day we just put her in the nap nanny in whatever room we were in. That way she was always close to us. At night she sleeps in the pack and play in our room, but during the day it was nice to have her close by. And the incline seemed to help a lot when she was really stuffy in the beginning. Riley and Ripley like to hang out near Evelyn and when she is not in the nap nanny they feel the need to keep it warm for her (something we are actually trying to discourage, but they are persistent). We also love our Sleep Sheep. We couldn't live without it. Seriously. It has helped out so many times when she was only borderline asleep or super fussy and walking alone wasn't doing it. I highly recommend everyone with a baby own a Sleep Sheep!!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c8tr177ZM1o/Tydj7SVwpsI/AAAAAAAAB9Y/Jawx4vN9j2A/s1600/IMG_5863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c8tr177ZM1o/Tydj7SVwpsI/AAAAAAAAB9Y/Jawx4vN9j2A/s400/IMG_5863.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div> Evelyn still loves to be swaddled. I try and keep her unswaddled for a few hours a day so she will stretch and kick and have tummy time and such, but she is really happiest when she is all snug as a bug in a rug. In fact, for a while I had take to calling her bug because I would tell her when I was getting ready to swaddle her that I was going to make her all snug like a bug. Now that she is a bit bigger the Swaddle Me blankets that velcro are the absolute best thing. Its so easy and she doesn't kick out of it like she sometimes does with a regular blanket. She does still work her hands out of the top sometimes, she just really loves to have both her hands right under her chin. Especially when she nurses! She holds her two little hands together and its the sweetest thing. It melts my heart every time.<br />
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This past sunday was baby dedication day at church so Evelyn wore a dress that was mine when I was a baby and an adorable little white bonnet. She looked so darling. And once again she was fascinated by her own reflection. <br />
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I am still getting up with her for every feeding. I know eventually I might pump more and surrender a feeding or two to the bottle, but for now I love spending that quiet time with my little girl, even if it is really hard for me to pull myself out of bed sometimes. Some days I wish I could just lay around all day and cuddle her. I know that this time will pass so quickly and I want to savor it. I took her to the doctor's office today just to weigh and she's 8 pounds even today. She started out at 6 pounds 6 ounces at birth and I can tell the difference! You won't think that just over a pound and a half would be that significant, but it definitely is. <br />
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I love my baby girl and I am enjoying seeing her little personality develop. Its going to be a wonderful journey. Now I better get some rest while I can because I know that tonight's portion of the journey will require at least 2 middle of the night feedings!Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-16672404052886196342012-01-20T13:50:00.001-06:002012-03-07T14:43:05.920-06:00I Knit Something!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well, despite the fact that my right wrist has decided to not yet get over the whole carpal tunnel thing, I have knit (and completed) something! I have a few things I have been working on, but I hadn't put all that much in to them recently. But I finally sat down and knit on the same project from start to finish.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B4N9loAWry4/TxnDx8oYdSI/AAAAAAAAB8k/sxeG9ZJAF9k/s1600/396585_721661751986_8503987_35275308_88676955_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B4N9loAWry4/TxnDx8oYdSI/AAAAAAAAB8k/sxeG9ZJAF9k/s400/396585_721661751986_8503987_35275308_88676955_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Ok, so its a small cotton baby hat. And I didn't swatch, so its not as small as I had intended and I have started another one on smaller needles (although between the smaller needles and the less stitches I may have over compensated...) So take heart, my knitting mojo has not gone away! (Its just slowed down a bit what with all the distractions)<br />
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I'm excited for many things coming up. Of course there is baby knitting, for both little Miss Evelyn and also for friends' babies. Then there is the Indie Emporium Shop. Have I mentioned that exciting news? I think its going to be great! And I was thinking maybe at some point I would get back to some of those projects I have in progress for myself. The easiest to finish would be the chunky fingerless gloves I have been knitting to match my hooded cowl. I have both of the gloves knit, I just need to sew up the seams and tuck in the ends. <br />
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Wish me luck on integrating the knitting, weaving, spinning, etc with the parenting!Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-59836748403728591112012-01-13T19:40:00.000-06:002012-01-13T19:40:32.414-06:00The Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So I did the all words post, here is the picture post to go along with it. I was too intent on writing it all out to worry about incorporating the pictures.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">1/2/12</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wpfprzEnZK8/TxDZmD3l95I/AAAAAAAAB6g/7kwU3kdNI1Q/s1600/IMG_7076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wpfprzEnZK8/TxDZmD3l95I/AAAAAAAAB6g/7kwU3kdNI1Q/s400/IMG_7076.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Me and Evelyn in the delivery room.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9uWGwc2HUhU/TxDZovcVOWI/AAAAAAAAB6o/A1DsXOi3obk/s1600/IMG_7079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9uWGwc2HUhU/TxDZovcVOWI/AAAAAAAAB6o/A1DsXOi3obk/s400/IMG_7079.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">All three of us, our first family picture.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">1/3/12:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sjXfIORuww8/TxDZuXmv9SI/AAAAAAAAB6w/xRBoMgeDio8/s1600/IMG_7089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sjXfIORuww8/TxDZuXmv9SI/AAAAAAAAB6w/xRBoMgeDio8/s400/IMG_7089.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Holding my baby girl in the NICU. I hated that IV in her poor head.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"> 1/4/12:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1GeZxBjuImM/TxDaG0OHt6I/AAAAAAAAB64/riGwMer-Mnk/s1600/Glowworm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1GeZxBjuImM/TxDaG0OHt6I/AAAAAAAAB64/riGwMer-Mnk/s400/Glowworm.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My little glow-worm.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ORRLlmt5WuM/TxDaJB7NGaI/AAAAAAAAB7A/Wt7MiutfUIw/s1600/IMG_7121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ORRLlmt5WuM/TxDaJB7NGaI/AAAAAAAAB7A/Wt7MiutfUIw/s400/IMG_7121.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ben checking on our little glow-worm.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">1/5/12:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iBw1NSbmOqo/TxDagdO4TRI/AAAAAAAAB7I/OAHMUbzv18Y/s1600/Diva+time.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iBw1NSbmOqo/TxDagdO4TRI/AAAAAAAAB7I/OAHMUbzv18Y/s400/Diva+time.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Diva Time.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"> 1/6/12:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y3-pqKwG0Yo/TxDa48vOwYI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/KTAPFNeYO3s/s1600/IMG_7144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y3-pqKwG0Yo/TxDa48vOwYI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/KTAPFNeYO3s/s400/IMG_7144.JPG" width="266" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Home!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"> 1/7/12:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZTI3LcMopZc/TxDbGTP1bEI/AAAAAAAAB7Y/QrmSRwelINs/s1600/IMG_5826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZTI3LcMopZc/TxDbGTP1bEI/AAAAAAAAB7Y/QrmSRwelINs/s400/IMG_5826.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">My clothes are all too big!! At least I have my wubbanub.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Ok, I will try not to inundate you with baby pictures, but I can say there will probably be more soon because we had the fantastic Madison Vining here last sunday taking newborn photos. She took a ton and the previews so far are amazing.</div>Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-90903491018232866882012-01-11T23:02:00.000-06:002012-01-11T23:02:21.768-06:00Evelyn ElizabethBear with me. This will be long and detailed, but I want to have it for myself so I am not going to leave things out of edit it down to an easy read.<br />
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When I went to a friend's New Years Eve party and stayed up until 1am, I had no idea I was going to be woken up at 5am with my first contraction. Well, the first one strong enough to wake me up. A big part of me thought the contractions would stop. They were irregular and uncomfortable but not out of control. I fell back asleep between each one just to be re-awoken 10-15 minutes later by the next one. I did time them, even though I was sleeping in between, just so I would know. I didn't have the heart to wake Ben. After all, we had gone to bed at 1am! And my living room was full of company, also sleeping, so I just stayed in bed. At 6 I figured my mom was up so I started texting her. I was hungry so I snuck out to the kitchen to get yogurt and then ran a warm bath. I stayed in there, re-warming the water, reading, texting and breathing through contractions until Ben eventually woke up at 8 or so. Once I decided I was pruney enough from floating I got out and insisted Ben pack his hospital bag. Mine had been packed for a couple weeks, but I added things to it, like make-up and a few more shirts. <br />
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My mom dropped by with a latte and a scone as an early labor pick me up and eventually the company sleeping in our living room woke up (it really was wonderful to have Kathleen and Amir here visiting!!) and we all sipped on early morning tea and coffee and discussed the day. There was a whole list of stuff I had planned to get done on January 1st, so we got started on some of that. They helped us un-decorate and take down the tree and even helped Ben get it all back up in the attic. I sat on the couch during all this, wrapping ornaments individually. Kathleen commented that I was the calmest person in labor she'd ever seen. (How many have you really seen though, Kathleen??) At this point I was still reminding people that it was entirely possible the contractions would stop. They were still irregular and only slightly uncomfortable. I was sad that the contractions meant I couldn't go to the aquarium with Kathleen and Amir as I had planned to, but at least I got to see them during their visit. There were lots of hugs and well wishes as they headed on their way.<br />
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My mom came back with a big sack of groceries, including lots of things for me to 'snack' on during labor. Who knew how long it was going to go on the way it was and we weren't supposed to head to the hospital unless they got to 5 minutes apart for at least an hour. She brought kefir, saltines, greek yogurt, oyster crackers, etc. It was great to have these things to keep me going, I could not have gone all day with out eating anything, but I also didn't want to eat anything that would sit heavy in my stomach and possibly come back up again in a very bad way. Mom helped us clean the kitchen and get some things organized while I mostly sat in my glider/recliner and waited out the contractions. I did manage to go take a nice warm shower at one point, which felt great but definitely took a while because I had to stop what I was doing every time a contraction hit. At about 3 in the afternoon the contractions had become much stronger and I was pretty sure they weren't going to stop. For the next hour the contractions were 4.5 - 5 minutes apart and became strong enough that I did get nauseous and throw up. We decided then that it was time to go to the hospital. We fed the dogs and packed up the car.<br />
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The ride to the hospital was one of the worst parts. The contractions were strong and the road was bumpy. There was really no way to change position to ease the discomfort and I pretty much just had to hold on and not go crazy. At least it wasn't a long drive. About 15 minutes or so. Once we arrived at the hospital Ben dropped me off at the ER, as we had been instructed by the nurse from our OB. He parked and came back and wheeled me up to labor and delivery. There was this odd pause between us checking in and being put in a room where they made us go sit in the waiting room and I was dry heaving and very uncomfortable. I totally under estimated this whole labor thing. I used to have a seriously high pain threshold, I totally thought I could handle it but the dry heaving was the straw that broke the camel's back. The whole time waiting and even once they put us in a delivery room I would dry heave with every contraction. Ug. <br />
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I'm not going to put a pretty spin on it. I was crying occasionally with the contractions and I finally looked at Ben and asked if he cared if I asked for an epidural. After all, I hadn't planned on having one, but I had pre-registered just in case and I am glad I did because apparently I am a wuss. The lab apparently lost my blood, so there was a bit of a hold up on actually getting it. The anesthesiologist was great and quick though once she got there and got everything placed perfectly and over the next half hour or so after she came in the contractions just melted away. (Although while we were waiting on her I almost succeeded in crushing Ben's hand. Or at least smashing his wedding ring in to it really, really bad with all my squeezing) Once things were getting better and they let my mom back in the room (you can apparently only have one person in the room with you while they poke stuff in to your spine) I was downright hungry again. The nurse, Bethany, was awesome and set me up with some orange jell-o and a lime double popsicle. I devoured both, yum. Then I worked my way through part of a half sprite half cranberry juice but eventually decided that was too sweet and just drank water like we were in the desert. <br />
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Eventually the hospitalist came in and broke my water. The doc had the nurse ask if they could give me petocin to move things along but I said no. I only wanted to use that as a last resort. There was some debate as to whether or not my labor was progressing because the monitors weren't picking up much but when they went to try and put in an internal monitor the baby's head was already too well engaged and during all of that I jumped from being at a 5 or 6 to a 9. Did I mention that during much of this time I was either dozing or playing on my phone? It was lovely.<br />
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When I started pushing, just before midnight, I regained just enough feeling that I could totally tell where I was pushing and it was uncomfortable, but not screaming agony. Eventually the doc (it wasn't my actual doctor on call from her practice that night. There are 3 of them and I ended up really liking the one who was there) got there and after much pushing at 2:48AM Evelyn Elizabeth was born! (My mother would probably like me to mention that I was still dozing between pushes for quite a while. I was tired, you know? Oh, and was I ever thirsty! I had to have a drink of water between each push, almost right up until the end. I felt constantly parched) I only got to hold her for a few minutes while Ben cut the cord and then they took her away to be cleaned up and examined. There was mucus in her lungs so they took her even farther away to work on her and Ben went with her and I have never been so worried in my life. Tired and worried. I had planned to try and breast feed immediately after deliver but that wasn't an option. Apparently her O2 wasn't what it should have been so they put her on oxygen. They only brought her back in to see me for another couple minutes before they took her away to the NICU. Ben went with her again and I had to just wait and do all those other post delivery things. They brought me food right away (peanut butter, crackers, and apple sauce) so I ate and I slept some, just waiting. They didn't move me to a post partum room until 5am (and then they proceeded to wake me at 6 and 7 for different things). <br />
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I finally met Evelyn's NICU doctor at about 7:45. She told me that Evelyn had a nasal cannula in but that they were no longer putting any more oxygen in it than one would find in normal room air. They also put her on antibiotics because I had fever during deliver. A fever of all of 99 degrees. Very low grade and it disappeared immediately after deliver. Because of the nasal cannula, I couldn't breast feed for at least the first day. Because of the antibiotics she was going to be in the NICU at least 48 hours. It was upsetting and hard, even though the doctor said she was doing well. At least I was able to go down to the NICU and sit with her and hold her and rock her. I had a few visitors throughout the day and went down to see Evelyn a number of times. Only 2 people could be in with her at any given time and one of the two had to be Ben or I, so when family came to see her we traded off. We also both tried to get some rest between visitors.<br />
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On Tuesday they took out the nasal cannula and we were finally able to try breast feeding! (I had been pumping the day before) It wasn't easy and they wanted her to eat on a strict schedule of 2, 5, 8 & 11, both am and pm. She still had her IV in and they said they couldn't take it out until they were sure she was getting at least 15ccs at each feeding. We had to weigh her before and after every time and the threat of delaying her release an extra day bullied me in to supplementing with some formula. I really didn't want to, but I also wanted to take my little girl home. That day and night were all about her feeding schedule. I set an alarm to get up and go feed her at night. I got to know the NICU nurses really well. It wasn't easy, but we pushed through it and Ben was wonderful the whole time. <br />
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On wednesday I was hoping I'd get to take her home, but no luck. Now she was jaundiced and they wanted to wrap her up with billi lights. So while they had removed her IV, now I could only take her out of her crib for feeding and then she had to go straight back in to be wrapped up with the lights. Once again both day and night were about her feeding schedule. I was also discharged on wednesday. We were able to stay in the room until midnight so we figured out what we would need for the night and Ben took everything else out to the car. We grabbed up everything that was left and at just shy of 11pm trudged down to the NICU to settle in for the night. At least they have recliners to sleep in. It was a long night and not a very restful one. During the 6:30am - 7:30am time when we were required to be out of the NICU we hung out in the l&d waiting room and cleaned up and brushed our teeth. I felt kinda like a bum, trying to clean up in a public restroom. And I was really, really tired. <br />
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Her billi count hadn't come down far enough, so once again we didn't get to go home. They added a top light to her photo-therapy and we made sure after each feeding to get her back under the light as quick as possible. We were required to go over to the Children's Hospital and take an infant CPR class that morning and then had a great 2nd appointment with a lactation consultant (we had seen the same one the day before). In the afternoon Ben practically dragged me out of the hospital to go home and take a shower. It was so hard for me to walk out those doors without my baby girl. It was the first time I had breathed outside air since Sunday. I refused to miss a feeding so we weren't gone more than two hours. I planned to stay the night again but the doctor, the nurses and Ben all kept saying I needed to sleep so we went home at about 1am and came back Friday morning in time for her 8am feeding. I felt so guilty leaving her there but I was tired and had a horrible hacking cough that I had been trying to hide for a few days at that point. <br />
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It seemed like a forever wait for the doctor that morning, but I was extremely hopeful. I could tell they had bathed her the night before while we were gone and she had a little white t-shirt on when we got back in the morning. That was her very first piece of clothing. They had always kept her in just a diaper and a swaddle blanket. The billi lights were gone and I got to feed her and rock her and just hold on to her. From the time we got the news that she was being discharged (9ish or so) until the time we actually go out of the hospital (after 1 sometime) seemed to take forever! There was a hearing test and a photographer to distract us while waiting on all the paperwork but the waiting still seemed to go on forever. It was such a relief when they finally wheeled our little wagon full of stuff and our baby girl downstairs and we got in the car to go home, tired and happy.<br />
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So there you have our little story. I know it was long and quite detailed (trust me, it could have been worse, I am brimming with details) but that was how our first days at as a family of 3 went. We are glad to be home now. We love our precious little baby girl, Evelyn Elizabeth.Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3144306405940868642.post-35807975399188834712012-01-10T13:12:00.000-06:002012-01-10T13:12:33.928-06:00On Radio SilenceI write brilliant blog posts in the shower. Really. They are witty and insightful and focused. And then I get out of the shower and there are a million other things waiting to be done and I get distracted and those well thought out blog posts fly away like they were never even there.<br />
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I didn't blog as much as I wanted while I was pregnant. I didn't blog as much as I wanted to about all of the exciting fall shows and things I was working on. My blog is also having an identity crisis. While I still want to focus on knitting and share what I do and learn and all, I may be transitioning to much more of a lifestyle blog because despite my best efforts, I am going to end up being one of those people who can't help but talk about their child and all that goes along with that.<br />
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I only gave one knitted Christmas present this year. It was a pair of beautiful brown socks knit in Happy Feet in a garter rib pattern. I have been working on them for well over 3 years, they kept getting put down in favor of much more instant gratification projects or deadlines for shows. They were for Ben so they took much longer than if I had been knitting socks for myself. I completely failed to get a picture of them finished, so maybe next time he has them on I can get him to pause long enough for me to take a picture. <br />
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By the end of my pregnancy I had swelling induced carpal tunnel. It hurt to do a lot of things, especially knit with smaller needles. I made some big airy cowls and then worked on a pair of fingerless mitts for myself to match the hooded cowl I made last year. I bound off last night so I will post a picture as soon as I sew them up. Stop laughing, mom, I will sew them up! (not let them sit like those two purses I knit and felted 5 years ago and have yet to sew the pieces together.)<br />
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I wanted to knit E a little hat to match that grey blanket but I kept putting it off. I put a lot of stuff off, thinking I had 2 more weeks to prepare for E's arrival. Boy was I wrong, but that's for another post. My point is, I am going to try my best not to put so many things off anymore. I hope to get E's birth story written this week. It will be more for my own archival purposes than because I think you really want all the details. And it will be long, so be forewarned. <br />
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Anyway, I hope you are still out there, taking a moment to read, and that I have not lost you all with such a long period of radio silence. If I was a dj, I'd certainly have been fired ages ago.Knit-O-Matichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04347112473330001485noreply@blogger.com3