October 31, 2011

Costume...or NOT?

IMG_1244

Andrew claims that he can only wear this t-shirt today, as a costume, but I beg to differ.  If he can wear his "I'm tired of being my wife's arm-candy." shirt any old time, why not this one?

Your thoughts on the matter?

October 29, 2011

We Clean Up Pretty Good

Wedding

Never made it to the dry cleaner's this week, so it was slacks for me for Becky & Joaquin's wedding.  Oh, well.  All the better for hanging out on University Avenue while T1 was at the church middle school Halloween Party.  That's as dressed up as I could get T2 to be.  It was too warm for the sweater vest, but that totally "makes" the outfit - verrry cute.  T1 was loving her high-heeled boots, of course, though the pencil skirt took a LOT of getting used to.  ("I'm not used to taking such small steps, Mom!")  She's lucky my feet are so much bigger than hers are or I'd be "borrowing" those boots all the time.

OK, looking at that picture, I think just maybe I see why all of Thing One's teachers at parent-teacher conferences on Tuesday knew I was her mom even before I introduced myself....

Rose Tyler

Rose

Rose dashes off, following The Doctor into yet another impossible situation.

[I did tell her I thought Amy Pond would have been pretty easy to do, but her response was, "I don't like Amy; she's a cheater!"  Well.  Not gonna argue with THAT logic, now, AM I?]

October 28, 2011

Helix

Taa-dah!  Wedding gift finished > 24 hours before the wedding, LOL.


Helix.1 Helix.2 Helix.3

I'm only about 80% happy with how it came out, but it'll have to do...

October 22, 2011

Opening Day - SCORE!

Opening Day.1

Opening Day.2

Book Update - WWMDfK Follow-Up(s)

Yes, follow-ups, plural.

As I believe I've mentioned before, What Would Madame Defarge Knit? has been so well received that a follow-up book is in the works.  After last weekend's Rhinebeck wool-a-palooza (SO jealous!  Next year in Rhinebeck?), Shannon, Heather, and who knows who else decided that, actually, THREE follow-up books were needed, hence the plan is this:


  1. What Would Madame Defarge Knit? - released Summer 2011
  2. Follow-Up Book [working title: WWMDfK2] - more patterns based on characters from classic literature; very broad
  3. Defarge Does Shakespeare
  4. Defarge Does Chaucer
As of this writing, I expect to have one pattern (or more?) in WWMDfK2 and two (really four+) in Defarge Does Shakespeare.  Chaucer?  Uh...that would be "no".  Not gonna read Chaucer.  Then again, that's what I said about Moby Dick, right, and look where THAT got me!  (Gosh, have I got the hots for that male model with the "racing stripes" in his hair!)

Watch CraftLit and this space for further updates.  Please bear with my lack of knitting photos for a while.  Considering that one of my patterns for Defarge Does Shakespeare has roughly six variations and the other has two, I'm kind of up to my eyeballs, as it were.  And then there's the Christmas knitting.  Oy, me and my over-commitment...

October 21, 2011

Another Completed Bertha!


Heather, of CraftLit fame (aka "Madame Editrix" of What Would Madame Defarge Knit?), finished her own Bertha (Bertha's Mad, Mysterious Mobius).  It never ceases to amaze me how different it looks knit up in different yarns!  To illustrate this, here is a picture of the original Bertha:


If you are interested in knitting your own Bertha but don't want/can't afford to buy WWMDfK? in its entirety, keep your eye on the Ravelry pattern page, as it will soon be available for purchase as a standalone *.pdf pattern.  Bertha is a quick knit, perfect for holiday gifts, and will be the December KAL for WWMDfK?, hosted in the Ravelry group by...yours truly.  Wish me luck!

Want an "adult beverage" to take the chill off as you're knitting your Bertha?  Make up some of Bertha's Bad**s Brew, concocted by our dear friend, Sean.

Grandma

We had a brief visit from Grandma Ruthie last week.  While she was with us, we were enjoying the time too much to bother taking pictures - except for the traditional "Last Night With Grandma" photo:


Grandma Sleepover

October 14, 2011

More Pumpkiny Goodness

Baby Holmes Hat

I'm really pleased with the way this one turned out; it's much cuter than the first one.  The main difference is that before I started the ribbing, I doubled the number of stitches.  This made it take longer to knit, but that's OK.  Next time I make one of these hats, I think I'll do seed stitch for the bottom instead of garter stitch because I don't like the jog at change of rows that you get with garter stitch in the round.  Plus, it would be cute.

October 13, 2011

October 11, 2011

Pretending...

Pretending she's not about to jump
up on the bed the second she thinks I'm not looking...

October 6, 2011

PAIL Month - Another Tip, Plus Related Patterns

Another tip regarding PAIL (Pregnancy And Infant Loss):  Don't be afraid to mention the deceased child.  This person existed, for however short a time, and was very real to his/her parents.  Especially if the baby was stillborn, the parents can feel as if they have no validation of their child's life, so discussing him or her or giving them a small memento in remembrance can be immeasurably comforting.  If the parents named their baby, make sure to use his/her name when referring to him/her.  This is another validation of this very real person's life.

For the knitters among you, here are some useful patterns for charity knitting to donate to NICU's for parents experiencing stillbirth or infant loss.  I will never forget dashing down to the hospital gift shop to pay $25 for a little baby cap that was too big for Paul so that he would have a hat other than the generic hospital-issue one, something purchased especially for him.  Parents who have received donated handmade items have been so grateful and cherish them always.

If you go to the pattern search on Ravelry and search for free knitting patterns with the word "preemie" in them, you will get 724 matches.  Here are just a handful selected from the first page of search results, sorted by most-often knit first:

Berry Baby Hat by Random Stitches
Preemie Hats for Charity by Carissa Knits
Owlie Sleep Sack by Comfort Wool (This is not for sleeping in unattended. I think it would be useful as a burial bunting.)
Baby Blocks Blanket by Debbie Macomber/Leisure Arts
5-Hour Baby Sweater from Bev's Country Cottage

October WWMDfK? KAL - Van Tassel Mittens


The October What Would Madame Defarge Knit? KAL is Van Tassel, a pair of mittens designed by Meg Warren and inspired by Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  

In order to participate, you will need:

  • A copy of WWMDfK? or the individual pattern.
  • 1 skein March Hare wool/silk blend (100g, 435 yards, 18wpi) in main color
  • 1 skein March Hare wool/silk blend (100g, 435 yards, 18wpi) in contrasting color
  • 1 set of US size 1 (2.25mm) dpn's OR needles required for magic loop/two circ's knitting
  • 1 tapestry needle
  • a Ravelry ID, since the KAL is being hosted by Meg in the Van Tassel Mittens KAL thread on the WWMDfK? Ravelry group.
Enjoy, and get your knit on!

October 3, 2011

Daniel In The Lions' Den

[Sorry for the poor picture quality.  The light in that dungeon room we use is not conducive to good iPhone photos.]

Yesterday was our first Sunday back with our beloved 4-K class at church.  Not having been in class since May, we were able to see quite a difference in the class.  The most noticeable difference was the absence of the 10 or so kids who "graduated" to the 1st & 2nd grade class.  We only had 12 kids yesterday, when in the past we've often had more than 12 just in the girls (Teacher Erica always "counts the noses" before we troop off for potty break and before we troop back).  We also had some kids who were new to the class because they had recently turned four.  It's always interesting to see how the class waxes and wanes since they join the class as soon as they turn four but don't leave until right before they start first grade, even if they're seven by that point.  Our class shares a room with the 2- and 3-year-olds' class, so we start getting to know the kids as soon as they turn two.  It's great to watch the kids grow and change, spending time with them in two-month chunks off and on over the years.

This week's lesson was one of those that make me glad I have a box labelled "scrap yarn", LOL.  Several shades of brown came out Saturday night and got cut into small bits for lions' manes.

DANIEL:

Lion's Den.8 Lion's Den.7 Lion's Den.8 Lion's Den.9


THE LIONS:

Lion's Den.6 Lion's Den.3 Lion's Den.2 Lion's Den.1 Lion's Den.5 Lion's Den.10


QUEEN OF THE LIONS???

Lion's Den.12

The kids were happy to have us back.  I wish I had a picture of the delight on their faces when Andrew pulled his hunting hat out during singing time, saying he needed it so we could go on a "Bear Hunt".  They were so happy!  They even remembered what came next, reminding him when he left out the "tall, tall grass" with a snake in it, LOL.

October 1, 2011

Pregnancy And Infant Loss (PAIL) Awareness Month

October is, among other things, Pregnancy And Infant Loss (PAIL) Awareness Month here in America.  As usual, I plan to post various articles, links, and tips throughout the month as my emotional state allows.

MY FIRST TIP:  Do NOT be afraid to talk about this subject!  When you do talk about it, you will be amazed to find out how many people have been touched in some way by miscarriage, stillbirth, and/or infant loss.  I never realized how common it was until I started attending a neonatal death support group and wearing my button with Paul's picture on it on the days he was alive and through October every year.




For a peek at one woman's way of channeling the pain of losing her newborn son, please read my story, The Knitting, which appeared in Knitty (online knitting magazine) back in 2005.