Two months

Two months give or take from last post. Reasons: nasty summer colds, teething baby, ever more mobile baby, ever more opionated baby, vacation, some knitting malaise, and just plain summer busy.

First up in knitpicks cotlin, a cute tank top for Yogurt, based loosely on "Pebble" but knit in the round without buttons, and then back and forth in garter stitch past the armholes. It was quick and easy, taking about 1 50 gram ball. I knit it on vacation in lovely Hilton Head, SC.

Second, something started for myself. A summer tank top likely. Hopefully I haven't started it too loose. It is a recycled cotton/ acrylic blend. I forget the name. It has been slow going because of a lack of time to work on it. Let's see if I can make a little progress?

My anabel sweater is on hold until the fall. It is too hot to work with wool, unless it is lace or sock weight.

After reading (well listening to) "The Night Circus" I am thinking on a bright red scarf. I will continue thinking until I'm done the tank top. But thinking (and looking) is fun.

Mistakes and Milestones

Although I did upload these pictures on Tuesday craft sharing day, I haven't gotten around to the post.

So first, the mistakes....

Do you see what's wrong with the picture? I finished up the seams attaching the pocket panels to the pants fronts, and I was feeling really confident. Then I took a look at what I did in preparation for the next step, and I saw it. At first I wasn't going to rip out the seam, but after checking to see if I had enough fabric left (I didn't) I spent several hours tediously taking out the seam. Then I fixed it.

This is where I am at. I need to finish the seams of the inner pants leg, put on the waist band, and hem. These are going to be goofy pants. I bet Pizza will like them anyway, and I've gone through the pattern once so I should be able to make a cooler pair with better fabric.

I also ripped out my blue garter stitch sweater. It was fitting to tight, so I cast on in two sizes up. No pics this week, maybe next.

Progress has been slow, because someone has been doing things like this:

Yup, that's Yogurt pushing himself under the couch, one of his new favorite hobbies. He is also getting really good at pulling himself forward on his arms to get things. And he has gotten very good at grabbing things in his hands. He's so excited about all these new things he can do, he isn't napping much, and the best naps I can get out of him are when I hold him. Luckily he is still sleeping through the night (fingers crossed for tonight, I've already gone up once while writing this). This is to say baby's making progress, I'm not. But that's okay.

Random, from my kitchen table

Runaway! Runaway!

Really, the knit bunny is it this week. Car trip to NJ with quiet kids on the way there. Idea from this very craft along from here via here. Been Holiday busy.

These are the flowers I meant to bring to my cousin's on easter,but got left on the kitchen table as we hustled out the door. Oh well they make the mess a little prettier.
Happy crafting all, with frontier dreams

Eggciting

The Cousins came over for a little pre-easter festivities.

The house was alive with kids running wild, and boys "sneaking" out back to play, whilst their mom's finished dying.

For once it seems, we are giving the spring holidays their due!

(Nevermind that our Christmas tree is still in the living room.Please just look away)

So,have a happy Passover, Easter, or Springtime celebration! We will be having all three.

Stymied

Fireman sweater is done (and worn) But I'm tired of it so no more on that this week.
This week is all about stymied.
example one. yogurt will take a lengthy morning nap. If he stays up till 9:30. Meaning he doesn't fall asleep on my lap when he nurses at 8:30, which he is currently doing. then he only naps for 30 minutes, and ends up hanging out while I do whatever had planned to do during nap, while entertaining him with a bag of potato chips.

example two. Fireman pants part one. ( aka treasure pocket pants or TPP from Sewing For Boys) Instructions call for sewing on bias tape as casing. this had me perplexed for the weekend right on step one, then I turned to the Internet and figured it out.

example three. Fireman pants part two. yesterday was the epiphany about the use of bias tape, all the while thinking how is 1/2 inch elastic goin fit. 1/4 inch would make more sense.... Read to instruction two. Cut 1/4 inch elastic ..... Funny 1/4 inch elastic wasn't listed as a notion.... Stuck now at step two awaiting a trip to the fabric store.
example four. Every time I set up to do something at home with pizza I end up overestimating what a four year old can accomplish. This is only a generalization. Four is tricky they want things to do on their own, but you have to be careful b/c their little egos get frustrated easily. I'm getting better at forming realistic expectations (also for his behavior ) and this helps me feel a little less stymied.
Lastly, not all leads to frustration. I'm trotting along on the anabel cardigan in the yarn the pattern called for ( imagine that ). Hopefully I won't mess it up too much, and hopefully I won't need to rip it out because it doesn't fit.

now should I try to drop the sleeping babe in the crib or let him be?
Crafting on with frontier dreams

On Knitting

I've been meaning to write this for awhile, but I couldn't find an appropriate moment. Now that I successfully completed the Fireman Sweater it might be time.

I've always been drawn to craft, particularly things involving yarn. No one in my family knit, and I have an Aunt who crochets, but not avidly. My mom was crafty for a time. She used to sew, and make decoupage, and before I was born she did some macrame, and made all of our Christmas ornaments. But then alcoholism took her away from all of that and me for a very, very long time.
You see there was no particular reason for me to be "crafty", but I would walk through the aisles of the Ben Franklin 5 and 10, of later Frank's (which was a nursery and craft store) and I would be drawn particularly to the yarn, but also the cross stitch kits, and needlepoint kits, and really anything that wanted to be made into anything else. It wasn't long before I was asking my parents for acrylic yarn (so many colors!) and a learn how to crochet kit, or a learn how to knit kit, and I taught myself. I particularly remember a little booklet printed on the 50s or early 60s, that another aunt gave to me with the basic instruction for how to knit, how to crochet, and I believe how to tat. That book was my bible and by looking at the pictures and reading the words, and thinking I taught myself how. And I could knit a passable scarf or crochet the same (nevermind that until recently I only crocheted through the front loop of the stitch, not both!) I also did some cross stitch, embroidery, and needlepoint. I was fascinated by making things in "an old fashioned way" like I imagined they would have in little house on the prairie, or Anne of Green Gables, or the accomplished girls in the Jane Austen books. I was fascinated, but I could only take it so far and by the time I was in college I didn't do any of it.
Then I was in grad school, and my sister was expecting her first child. And I went to the local Barnes and Noble and perused the craft section. By this time the knit revolution was happening, and there was a Debbie Bliss book of baby knits that looked approachable (and ever so pretty). And I picked up the needles again. I made a couple of baby things for my nephew, all in acrylic based yarns. They really were pretty awful, but I didn't know better yet. But I had taken my knitting to another level, I had knit actual garments.
Then perusing through the local Barnes and Nobles I picked up Jacqueline Fee's Sweater Workshop This book takes a heavy nod from Elizabeth Zimmerman, but frankly explains how to knit the basic raglan sweater using EPS (Elizabeth's percentage system) in every detail one would want. This was my introduction into circle needles (yeah! I never new how ackward straight needles were until I discovered circle ones), knitting in the round, and eventually wool. It also has a wonderful tutorial of basic knitting skills needed for a sweater. In short although the sweater's in the book were dated and not very inspiring, it taught me so much about knitting.
This is the book I turned to when I asked Pizza what color he wanted his sweater to be. Initially he said "red, with yellow stripes," but I got him to change his mind to black with yellow stripes, and I added in the grey (he already has a play firecoat in red, with yellow, and I was envisioning something I a little easier on the eye). My goal with this sweater was to make a fireman's sweater that looked like a serious sweater, but still respected what he wanted. I think I accomplished it. It has an obvious nod to a fireman's coat, but it isn't over the top and hopefully isn't too campy. I feel there is a serious dirth of little boy's sweaters that aren't overly cutesy, so I'm attempting to fill that void.
So here is the result knitting completed,still needing lots of ends sewn in and buttons. Next it will be completely finished and I'll write down the details.

But it fits well, and I'm very pleased. As always crafting along on or about Tuesday with Keep Calm Craft on

This post is brought to you by the indulgence of the non-napping baby which is to say I'd better be brief.

Last week finished BSJ, slight miss match right to left due to a mistake in my stitch count, and picking up too many stitches on one side.

the first is how it is knit, the second how it folds up.

This week the fireman sweater is almost there. In fact I need to start thinking about the neck finishing.

I had a little help (someone is starting to wiggle around, I thought I had placed him far enough from the knitting when I briefly left the room!) This one has been quick and I seemed to have forgotten how nice it is to knit a simple raglan sweater.

Will it fit? I think so, but I'm worried the sleeves will be short. I will have Pizza try it on today and see. I could rip out it need be.

We started seeldings (yes, that is our christmas tree still hanging out in the living room, maybe by easter we will put it away) And I'm getting excited about the gardening, but I still need a ton of dirt. And my constant companion is 6 months old! My how time flys and babies grow as fast as weeds!

As always keeping calm with frontier dreans KCCO Have a lovely week!

Two Stitches off

Well, maybe its more like ten or so, but the title reminded off an old Fugazi song, so I couldn't really help myself (sigh, how old am I? and how far have I come?). The BSJ number two is coming along, but I messed up my stitch count somewhere along the way. I am optimistic it will turn out okay. There seems to be a little fudge room in this pattern, which is a good thing because apparently I tend to lose track real easy when it comes to rows and rows of garter stitch. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I won't being showing you three balls of yarn next week as my "Progress"

Next up the swatch and sketch for the fireman sweater. It will be a simple raglan with stripes under the arms as sketched. I haven't decided up two or four or asymmetric rows of grey. I'm leaning to the asymmetric, but we'll see. The button band will be picked up on the edge, in black, in garter stitch. Deciding whether it is worth the effort to try a steek so I can knit in the round. I would need to practice first..... It might be too challenging, but it would be kind of interesting.

I bought some bird's egg blue yarn for a spring sweater for me, and it came. It would seem I'm not the only one whose color choice is inspired by the season!

And last, but not least. Pizza's boy #2 with googly eyes. He's starting to draw more. They've been working with him gently at school too. Seems I worry about nothing. I need to work on that.

As always crafty on Tuesday's with Keep Clam, Craft on

This post is being brought to you from my iPad, sleeping babe on my lap. Well, I've done it. I placed the garden order. I am both excited and terrified. This could be a huge failure, big waste of money. It's not that I expect this garden to feed us. It's more of an educational adventure. And I'm excited because for the first time we have a backyard for a vegetable garden, But that first season is so damn expensive, and in the end we'll probably only end up with Very well feed deer! but here goes! I'm planning both containers and a 4x4 raised bed ( maybe should have planned two 4x4 beds) And I ordered lots of seeds and some plants, and seed starting pellets. The lettuce and greens will grow on our upper deck in self watering containers. Winter squash, cucumbers, some tomatoes, bush beans, summer squash in beds. everything else in containers on the patio or the front catwalk. I will need new watering cans. I will need a lot of dirt. Wish me luck cause Sping is coming!

BSJ the second

First off, I wanted to say I've been enjoying the craft along hosted by frontier dreams, and at the flckr group KCCO flkr It is nice to see what everyone is up to, and is good encouragement to both make progress and post. And it's nice to have comments! Especially when most of my week seems to be spent trying to get one kid or the other to sleep.

Progress has been slow this week. Inspiration and thoughts plentiful. I've been trying to go to sleep with the kids or as close to it as I can manage what with having to have the kitchen in some form of order before bed (I can't sleep if my kitchen is below some self-determined low standard of clean), so I have lost the usual hour or so to knit in bed and unwind. Also spring seems to have arrived a little early, and I have been playing outside and having picnics ( and realizing if I want to put a garden in this year, I'd better get a move on it!) But I still got through the decreases.

The yarn is knitpicks Swish DK. The pattern Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket, available in many different formats from schoolhouse press. I have it in newsletter form from the reprints available in "The Opinionated Knitter" which is a very lovely book. I'm using size 5 needles and a little tighter than 5 st/ inch, though I haven't checked the gauge (it's a little tighter then the last sweater which was 5st/inch). It should fit the baby in progress when it is about 9 months, during it's first winter, or at least that is the hope. I like the swish DK for shower gifts to non knitters because it is soft, and is superwash (yet still wool) so it can be thrown in the washer (but never the dryer, oh no, never the dryer). I don't feel it wears the best of yarns, probably due to the superwashyness, so I also caution about over washing items (only if dirty,not every time it is worn, it's on outer garment), which might sound really suspect to first time, non-knitting parents. It is funny how a generation or two ago people would have just known those things, but now a lot of young people grow up ruining their wool sweaters. I was one of them until I started knitting!

The early bed time does give me time to think. I've sketch a design for a sweater for pizza. It is a fireman coat inspired sweater as per his request. Perhaps not the color scheme I was hoping to work with,but I have a sketch. Hopefully, I can share my thoughts in a week or two after I have a chance to swatch.

The aforementioned color scheme (black, yellow, and grey):

Have a good week, and we'll see what happens!

Pants!

What is that famous Elizabeth Zimmerman quote "Knit on through all crisis?" Well we are in the middle of the typical baby sleep crisis and I suppose I will craft on with perseverance. You know, to ground me, make me feel like if nothing else is working at least I'm making something.

First up, I made my first pair of pants ever. They are the Quick Change Trouser from Anna Maria Horner's book "Handmade Beginnings". It is an awesome and easy and adorable pattern, the first non rectangle I've attempted in a long, long time.

I think I will be making more of these in the future.I made them in the 12 month size. Yogurt is very long, and this gives us a little room for growth. I cut the elastic to about 19 inches, and sewed it shut at about 18. The fabric is a red cotton I bought at Christmas two years ago, and the green Flannel print which reminds me of frog eggs, both from Joanne's. So cute and so functional. Now I need to go fabric shopping for more.

Sewing is so different from knitting. It requires longer blocks of time and more involved set up. One of the things that has hampered me of late is no set place. I am now firmly set up in the back corner of the living room. It is nice and sunny and works. I even got away with sewing at night even though this room is directly under the baby's.

I also decided to cast-on for another baby surprise jacket. This one is for a cousin's baby who is having a shower in a month. It is the thing I go to when a have a few minutes. Knitting is awesome that way. It can just lie around and wait for you. Especially when the pattern is garter stitch with relatively consistent decreases and increase, and forgiving when it comes to stitch count.

As I've alluded we are having a time getting Yogurt on a sleep schedule. He has been waking up every hour after 12:00. Straight on til morning. If we are lucky he will sleep two hours straight. This has us, well me, very out of wack. But we will persevere and see if we can teach this kid how to get himself back to sleep on his own. It is hard though. I can be extremely prone to angry flares when I am tired like this, and I find myself yelling at Pizza more then I would like. This is my biggest work in progress, trying not to get so angry, but it is hard when you are tired. Persevere and knit on, indeed.

As always crafting on Tuesdays with others:

Frontier Dreams

Baby love

Happy Valetines Day! I have to admit to having mixed feelings about Valetine's day, and our celebration of it is very low-key. We baked heart shaped sugar cookies yesterday, and flour ended up all over. Pizza likes to play and dig in the flour with the measuring cups, and I generally let him. And then he wanted to "clean" the dishes which really means he wants to play in soapy water. He was having fun, and the mess wasn't so awful. You can't expect your kitchen to stay clean if you back with a four year-old,but I fully understand why my mom never made sugar cookies with us!

There has been a whole lot of baby love going around, what with all of my younger cousin having babies this spring. So another pebble vest was finished, and for my own my very first baby suprise jacket.

First the completed pebble in knitpicks swish DK. It took 1 50 gram ball, but it was very, very close at the end. I finished it with orange buttons, and Yogurt modelled for me. I'm hoping it will still be useful although the baby is a late spring baby, so non winter months, not sure if it will be.It is cute, and an expression of crafty love. I also sewed together a ribbon/tag blanket like a made for Yogurt, but I didn't take a picture.

Second, the EZ Baby Suprise Jacket for Yogurt in sheperd's wool. The yarn is greener than it looks in these pictures. I was suprised at how quick this knit up. It took me about two weeks, and I'm a slow knitter. I messed up the stitch count at the end, so it isn't picture perfect like it should be, but you have to know what it's suppose to look like to tell, and it is still very functional.

This leaves me with nothing on the needles. I am at a pause considering what to do next. There are more baby showers coming, and existing babies who did not get something yet. And Pizza wants me to knit him a sweater..... Meanwhile I trying to make some baby pants for Paul on the sewing machine. The first real non square item I've tried to make in a long time. We shall see....

Scribble-Scrabble and Mega baby blankets

Pizza (who is 4) is not fond of drawing. I attribute this to a perfectionistic streak in his personality. He did not walk until he was darn sure he wouldn't fall. Same with potty training. He does not like to draw because he can't make it look like he wants it to look, and no amount of cajoling from me is going to change that. But since "All" kids draw ( look it up), I try to build up his confidence and work with him.

So we go to a princess birthday party this weekend for one of his classmates, and they have a craft table, and for the boys there are littlewooden pirate ships with tiny markers to color. Because there wasn't much for Pizza to do while the little girls got make-up (yeah, don't even get me started on that!), I encouraged him to work on his. He does this:

Another mother observing this says to him. "Why don't you color that? That's only scribble." To which Pizza most apolegetically replies " I only know how to scribble-scrabble. I can't color." and immediately loses all interest in what he is doing. Needless to saw I felt awful for the little man, and shot the women a dirty look, and told him his work what fine, but to no avail.

Arghhh.... It has prompted me to re-examine what to do with Pizza. He needs confidence in his ability. I'm pretty sure this is not a fine motor issue, because he is quite good with other things that involve his hands and fingers. He can do buttons and zippers, and plays with lego, and is good a tracing letters with his fingers. But right now I'm scared to make him draw, so I decided another type of craft which will work with fine motor, rather then drawing per se would be good for him. Something he can display and feel good about. So we are working with a sign for his bedroom door. I drew his name while he watched, and applied glue, and I let him set to work with the beans. He even did a pattern! He came up with that idea all on his own. We got through S last night, and we will work on it for small amounts of time until he finishes. Then I will have him practice tracing his letters, and maybe try to coax him into fingerpaitning his name. If he does that maybe, maybe I will ask him to write his name with a crayon.....

On my crafty end I set up my sewing spot( why can't I ever remeber how to thread the bobbin on my machine!), and managed to sew a mega swaddling, baby blanket for Yogurt, who is quite long for his age. It's a bit overkill, but it has to do with making me feel like I'm doing something to address the sleeping issue, and less to do with the actual reality that it won't make a bit of difference.

I made progress on the BSJ, but I don't like the way the increases are looking, and haven't decided whether to rip out that section and try for the third time or just live with it. First I tried M1, but I didn't like it. Then I tried a bar increase, and that's better, but I think there must be another way to increase in garter stitch.

Hope you creating is going well, and sorry about the tangent on my son's craft. That women's careless comment has really been on my mind.

frontier dreams

in this moment

holding him and listening to his breathe softly rise and fall veins visible on his eyelids. I can't help but marvel at how fast he grows. and then he stirs, the moments gone.

A time to create

Ha, Ha, that's a funny title isn't it. As if......

Yogurt isn't sleeping so well these days. It's that darn left hand that wakes him up every night, and the rolling onto the belly, which is cute during the day, but no so much at night. And the napping in my lap, which I love, but I got to get him back to napping on something of a schedule and in his crib, or I'm going to be in a sorry state. Especially as the other one may be on the verge of giving up his naps in the afternoon.

But despite all this and some other stuff going on here, I have been steadily knitting when given the oppurtunity to ignore my motherly duties.

Can you guess? Baby suprise jacket in Sheperd's wool, color seabreeze, knitting an 5 st/ inch to fit Yogurt for awhile I hope

Nicki Lohr's Pebble vest, for an upcoming baby shower. Knit with swich DK in bark for knitpicks. It looks small, but so was Yogurt's and it is still fitting him at 4 months even though he is a biggish baby. It sort of stretches as they grow, and the buttons on the side give it a little give.

Then there is the matter of the gigantic swaddling blanket to be made from four existing swaddling blankets, to keep the left had in check at night.,, but that is for this week if I can find time and space to set up for some sewing .

Shots of the boys from our walk to the park this weekend.

Gotta keep on craftin on...

frontier dreams

Intentions

I have many good and gracious ideas, but I have a hard time following through on them. This year I will try and do a little better, about setting goals, and following through, and well see if I get anywhere by the end. Happy 2012!

everyday miracles, seen and unseen

My new camera improves my pictures many times over, but doesn't make up for the fact that I am mostly unapologetically a messy person. Hannukah is here and we celebrate it mostly to remember where we come from as a family. But I didn't grow up celebrating it, so we are winging it, and feeling our way through making up our new traditions.

It isn't really suppose to be a present holiday, but the nana, and our aunts, and the cousins, supply us with gifts a plenty. This year the whining got to me, and I decided to let Pizza (aka 4 year old) open his gifts first night, so I wouldn't have to hear it anymore. In a way this is good as it gets them out of the way so the subsequent nights can be a little more low key. And indeed this seemed to work.

First night was a pain, and I found myself swearing I wouldn't be celebrating this holiday next year. I cooked a big dinner, well a chicken and latkes. For the unintiated latkes are a bit of a pain, shredding potatoes, wringing the water out of them as best you can, shredding onions, mix in a little egg and matzo meal, form sortof like you might make a hamburger (wringing out still more excess moisture), and gently, ever so gently, place in hot oil. They turned out great this year, but it takes a long time to make, Pizza isn't so excited about the meal anyway, Yogurt was hungry and a little cranky because I couldn't pay attention to him. In short I could really use an extra hand around when I making them to keep the kids entertained (weeknight= husband at work til late no matter what). So maybe next year we will hold off the big meal until a weekend. Anyway we got through it, ate dinner a little late, lite candles, and finished opening presents somewhere in the middle.

Second night was much simpler and more to my liking. The pictures are from this night. Reheated soup, chicken nuggets (for pizza), and latkes (for me). We lit the candles, made up a prayer, all before daddy came home. We also opened up yogurt's presents, and found a couple extra ones for pizza I didn't realize we had (thank's Nana).

I'm envisioning much the same, except our hannukah treat will be doughnuts, even though I'm very tempted to make more latkes, because they were very good. And then onwards to Christmas smack dab in the middle of all this merriment this year!