Tara's Broken Collarbone Hat

Oh my, I was feeling guilty about this one.

This hat was my project in exchange for my friend Tara making Piper a Christmas stocking. I had bought the yarn well before Christmas, and had the pattern in mind... but just didn't have the time to cast on for the project until after Christmas.



Side view of the slouch hat:



I cast on and sped along quickly at first... but everything ground to a screeching halt. This all started the week after Christmas - I treated myself to a facial, and managed to fall off the aesthetician's table, landing with my left palm flat on the ground, jamming up my shoulder. Knitting hurt. I couldn't do more than a few rounds at a time before my shoulder and collarbone would start to ache. Most nights I ended up taking Advil and going to bed with a hot pad on my shoulder.

Swirly decreases:



But I persevered. I tried to work on it a bit each night, but was starting to feel bad about how long a simple hat was taking me, especially since Tara had finished her part of the swap so long ago. Cue to this week - I had my normally scheduled doctor's appointment, and I told him about my sore shoulder, and how 4 weeks later it really didn't feel any better. He said I should get an x-ray - he had ruled out a torn rotator cuff, but there may be something else causing the continued pain.

Well. Had the x-ray, and he called the next day to say I had a hairline fracture in my collarbone. There isn't much to be done about it - it will take about 6-8 weeks to heal, and I can take OTC painkillers if needed. The diagnosis won't help it heal any quicker, but I am a little better for knowing that this pain wasn't all in my head!

And, although I made extremely slow progress, I finished Tara's hat.

The Particulars:



Pattern: Classic Elite's Fresco Simple Slouchy Hat in size Medium
Yarn: Great American Yarn's Superfine Merino/Silk (50g/143 yards) in cream, 2 skeins
Needles: Aero size 5 - 16" circulars and DPNs
Would I knit this pattern again? YES! I love how this hat turned out - and I think it is a good alternative for those who like the Sockhead Hat, but want something that can be knit with DK or sportweight yarn. In fact, I'm clearing a few other small things off needles so I can cast on for one of these for myself.

And Tara, I'm sorry this took me so long!

Leggings FTW!

I kept Willow's baby clothes. For eight long years, I kept them washed and folded and in Rubbermaid bins. One thing I never considered while hoarding these clothes that I may end up having children in complete opposite seasons. True, both my girls were born during storms - but Willow a thunderstorm in July, and Piper an ice storm in February.

The itty-bitty baby clothes weren't much of a concern - newborn clothes are much alike, regardless of the season. However, now that Piper is wearing 12 month sized clothes, I have run into a problem. Willow's hand-me-down 12 month clothes are summer clothes. We had a high of 39'F today. I washed all of Willow's former 12-18 months clothes last weekend, and secretly lamented that there was so much cute stuff that Piper was just not going to have the opportunity to wear... but then I had an idea...



Leggings! I bought some footless tights at Target and she wore them under these cute pink and white plaid/gingham short-alls. She looked adorable!

Here's another shot:



I'm going to have to go back and find some footless tights in a few other colours - I have 3-4 other paid of short-alls I can dress her in now! Leggings FTW!

The Worst Smell Ever

She looks happy and healthy, doesn't she? The picture completely belies what has been happening around here the last four days. An epic stomach bug attacked Piper's daycare and a bunch of kids, Piper included, were told to go home and not come back until the symptoms were gone for 24 hours. I thought I would be out for the day... cue 4 days later, and I thought I was going to lose my mind (not to mention my stomach) from the ungodly stench coming from my Piper Bean's posterior. It was funny - I thought I was going to get some sympathy from the doctor's office, and what I was told that I was lucky it wasn't coming out both ends. Ah well. As my mother is always telling me, it's one of 'the joys of being a mother.' She's getting better. Knock on wood, we've hit the 24 hour mark. Wish us luck!

Oh No -

I may have spoken too soon...

A First Time For Everything

Well.

I suppose I should consider myself lucky that I've been knitting for nearly ten years and this had never happened before. I finally finished the project that was occupying my size 5 circulars, so I started on Tara's cream slouchy hat. The yarn is a lovely silk-merino blend, and I was happily and speedily knitting away while Willow and I watched 'Mysteries At The Museum' when I noticed that something was wonky.



See it? No? How about a close up:



For you non-knitters out there, this should not happen! I had created an unintentional moebius by accidentally twisting my stitches when I joined the hat in a ring. Piss piss piss. I had to pull it all out - but not before this happened (and please forgive my scream):



I was holding up the nascent and not-to-be hat to show Willow what I had done wrong and Piper grabbed the yarn. Piper is fascinated by my knitting, and is not happy when I say these are Mama's toys, not Piper's toys. Oh well. Tara - I'm sorry my child flossed her teeth with your hat.

(Oh - And forgive the living room - it doesn't get picked up until Piper goes to bed - it's a sisyphean task otherwise.)

Just Because She Is Cute

I already posted this to Facebook, but I'm going to share this here, too:



She ate it all up! I went easy on the sauce because I didn't want to overwhelm her (and it was a mild Japanese curry roux mix), but she ate everything. What non-baby food can I feed her next?

Those Pesky Resolutions

I find myself looking forward to creating resolutions this year - it's the keeping of the resolutions that is the pesky part. This year is a big one for both me and Andrew. Not only do we both turn 40 this year, but our 15th anniversary is in September as well. With these things in mind, here are my 2012 resolutions.

1) Lose weight. I'm not setting a number here, but suffice to say, it is a big number. My willpower has been fighting a losing battle with stress, sleeplessness, and lack of coordinated time to have Piper and Willow cared for so I can exercise. I have already taken steps to alleviate some of these things, and I am really looking forward to exercising again.

2) Either finish or frog all UFOs. I could not even give you a rough estimate of forgotten and neglected works-in-progress I have in my bins. However, it is getting to the point that I can't locate needles I know I have to start a project... because they are languishing somewhere else. And other than 2 projects that I have prior commitments for, no starting a new project until one is finished! I frogged 2 things this morning.

3) Try a new recipe once a week. I am in such a food rut. If you have anything you think I must try, pass the recipe my way.

4) Declutter. You have no idea how much this is bugging me right now. Part of it is just Christmas and how we have to move things around to accomodate the tree, etc. - but a large part of it is we have a smallish house and a lot of stuff. Add a new member to the family, and the stuff increased exponentially. I need to start with the kitchen/dining room. I have seen some neat ideas on Pinterest to maximize storage, and I am looking forward to implementing them.

I think that is good for now - and if you have any suggestions or advice, pass them on - I could use all the help I can get!

And In Conclusion

Forgive the blog silence - I have misplaced my camera. I had it on Christmas morning, but then haven't seen it since. Willow graciously lent me her camera so I would be able to finish out the blog for the year.

The year ends with some finished objects - some of these were Christmas presents, others just stuff I managed to finished between baking and not cleaning my house.

I wanted to give Andrew a hand-made gift for Christmas, and I even bought the yarn to make him a hat way back at the beginning of November... but with everything else going on, I didn't manage to cast on for the hat until two days before Christmas. I made a valiant effort, but the hat didn't get finished until Boxing Day.

Andrew's Ribbed Beanie:



The Particulars:
Pattern: Ribbed Beanie by Wooly Wormhead
Yarn: Knottiegirl Superwash Bulky Merino in Spruce
Needles: Size 9 bamboo 16" circulars and dpns
Would I make this pattern again? Sure - it was easy enough. I'm not terribly keen on the rippling edge - I think if I had knit the cast on rather than doing long tail, it would have been firmer. I also changed the decreases - I didn't like how the decreases ate up the purl columns on the first decrease, so I decreased on the last two knit stitches and left the purls intact until I had a 2x2 rib.



I also finished the first pair of socks of my own design - and as much as I like these socks, you can't see the lace pattern in the yarn. I might try knitting these up again in a solid or semi-solid and then I might publish it. These will be a gift for someone.



The Particulars:
Pattern: My own - unpublished.
Yarn: Unique Sheep Footprints in 'Chocolate Kiss.' I'm not sure where I got this yarn - it has been in my stash for a while.
Needles: Size 3 Harmony dpns. I rarely knit socks entirely on dpns, but my size 3 circulars were otherwise occupied.
Would I knit this pattern again? Yes - with some tweaks.

Incidentally - these are Willow's feet - at age 9 she has women's size 6 feet!

My second attempt at a cowl - I am still not sold on them for myself - this is the second one I have tried, and the second one that was meh on me. I like knitting them, however - round and round - makes lace easy.



The Particulars:
Pattern: Diamond Leaf Cowl by Mosaic Yarn Studio
Yarn: Loops and Threads Sante Fe Roving in Scarlet Stripes (discontinued yarn) - acrylic
Needles: Size 7 Knitpicks 16" Circular
Would I make this pattern again: Yes, but definitely in a less bloomy/fuzzy yarn next time. I was a little short - the pattern called for 4 repeats, but I ended up with 3.5 and then had to start the purl rounds to cast off. I am not sure who this is for - it doesn't look fabulous on me. Right now Willow and Piper just play with it. Any takers?

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Some closing shots -

I know it looks like Piper doesn't have any hair in most of the pictures I post on this blog:



But I assure you, she does:



It all just resides at the back of her head. So far, her hair is stick straight - doesn't even curl when wet. This picture doesn't give a great idea of colour, but I think she may end up being a fair apricot/strawberry blonde when it finally comes in.

We were at the zoo today, and oddly enough, there was a melting ice sculpture in the middle of the picnic area:



There must have been a function the night before at the zoo - and as warm as it was today - in the mid-50s, there was still a lot of definition and sharp lines on the statue.

That's all, folks - 2011 has been an exciting, stressful, game-changer of a trip. Let's hope things calm down in 2012 - I have enough plans of my own I want to accomplish.

Cinderella Intermission

Willow and Piper were putting on a performance of Cinderella - Willow, of course, was Cinderella (in her Pocahontas costume), and Piper was the Fairy Godbaby. Willow's dolls played the Evil Stepmother and Stepsisters. See how the cat has the best seat in the house from the playard? And I would like to say that I didn't 'drop' Piper. I was supposed to hold her until it was her scene... but the squirmy baby had other ideas.

Piper and The Ill-fated Bacon

Finished Object: Simple Yet Effective Cowl

I've managed to finish up a few small projects recently - but hadn't had a chance to take pictures of them (and some of them are intended as Christmas presents, so you won't see them until Christmas!) until today.

Here is Willow modeling my Simple Yet Effective Cowl:



Which easily transforms into a ponytail hat:



The Particulars:

Pattern: Simple Yet Effective Cowl
Yarn: Lion Brand Amazing (lost tag with colour/lot number) - less than 1 skein
Needles: Size 5 bamboo circulars (16")
Would I knit this pattern again? Absolutely - it's very easy, and after the first few rounds I didn't even worry about toting around the pattern anymore. And while I am pleased with how the stripes worked up, I wouldn't use this yarn again for this project. The cowl itself is a little stiff (although it did benefit from a trip through the washer and dryer).

And can I say I love the top picture of Willow? We got around her natural squinty/eyes closed propensity with the sunglasses, but I have to say I am a little disconcerted at how grown up she looks. It is even more startling when I look at my Ravelry projects page and see the progression of Willow from about age 3 until now. Where has the time gone?

And, Scene!

The last day of November. Truthfully, it wasn't hard to blog every day in November. No, Dad, that doesn't mean I will be keeping it up. My life is just not that interesting for that! I really didn't get into a Thanksgiving post this year since that was the day of my 1000th Blogpost Contest, but I wanted to leave you with a few things I am thankful for.

1. My two beautiful girls. They make me laugh every day and I truly feel blessed to be their mother.

2. My husband. I don't know if it comes across in the blog, but I can be an awful bitch at times. Andrew loves me, warts and all.

3. My family. Everyone from my family far away to my inlaws close by. I know I have your support and I feel I can talk to you about anything.

4. My job. I don't talk much about my work here, but suffice to say, my job is fun and intellectually challenging and it is a place I enjoy going to each weekday.

5. Knitting. It's calming, interesting, soft, colorful - I just need to find a way to keep Piper out if it now that she is mobile!

6. My Nook Color. I didn't know it would be so much fun - I probably play on it more right now than read - but I love it!

Sleepy Piper Courtesy of Willow

I gave Willow my old digital camera when I received my new one three years ago, and I am amazed at some of the shots she comes up with. Then there is the volume. Willow and Andrew went to the Brandywine Zoo on Sunday, and she managed to take 66 photos in the 45 minutes they were there. Thank heavens for digital cameras! This would be an expensive hobby if she had a 35mm like I did growing up.

On the Floor

Piper loves it when someone gets down on the floor while she is playing.

And We Have A Winner!

When all was said and done, we had nine people enter my 1000th Blogpost Contest, and the random number generator chose:

Number 5, my friend Megan! Check out Megan's blog - she just had a baby girl herself, and in the last two years she has moved from the Northwest Territories in Canada to Australia.

This is Megan's comment:

Here is the link to the post Megan liked best. I can't get over how young Willow looks in those photos!

Megan - email me at jochibi AT yahoo dot com and we can discuss how we will do your gift card - since you are in Australia you may want to do this a little differently. Congratulations!

Wordless Weekend

Feeding Piper

Piper eating dinner tonight

Feeding Piper is an interesting experience.  She's not quite 10 months old, but has categorically refused any baby purees for the last month.  She wants what you are eating, plain and simple.  And don't even think about coming near her with a spoon - she will knock it out of your hands lickety-split.  She doesn't care if you are eating spicy food - I've had her screaming at me as I quickly scraped the sauce off our salsa chicken, and then watched in amazement as she stuffed it in her mouth with two hands.  It gets to be a bit of a challenge at times because not everything we eat is baby-friendly.  Not counting Piper nursing or having a bottle, this is Piper's menu today:

Breakfast:
* Apple Strawberry Puffs
* Pancake (with butter and a tiny bit of syrup)
* Teething Biscuit

Lunch
* Cheddar Cheese Cubes
* Ritz Crackers
* Banana Slices
* Cooked Baby Carrots
* Leftover Turkey

Dinner
* Mini Penne with Meat Sauce
* Cooked Broccoli

Add in the fact that she has been eating Cheerios all day - oh my - at this point I think we should buy stock in General Mills!  She positively bounces as soon as she sees the yellow box.  It's funny because I think Cheerios are awfully blah - Andrew thinks it is the texture she likes.  Willow was just eating a 100 calorie snack bag of Doritos and Piper just freaked out because we wouldn't give her any.

Some foods Piper likes: salmon, barbeque chicken, mashed potatoes, spaghetti, pumpkin pie, rhubarb pie, stuffing, cheese, beets, asparagus, broccoli, butternut squash, Gerber Baby Cheesies, Cheerios, scrambled  eggs, yogurt, bananas, shredded meats (i.e., salsa chicken, pork chops from crockpot, pot roast, etc.)

Some foods Piper does not like: green beans, cauliflower, sugar cookies (not sure what was up with that - she wanted nothing to do with the sugar cookie)

Does anyone have any ideas of more foods I can introduce to Piper?  When we went to her 9 month appointment a few weeks ago, I was cautioned against giving her fish, shellfish, peanut butter, eggs, etc. until she hit 2 years old.  Well, scratch that - she has already had salmon and scrambled eggs multiple times, so I am not going to stop now.  I don't think she has a nut allergy because we eat peanut butter and nuts in this house all the time and she hasn't shown any reaction.  I would love suggestions for family meals so I don't have to prepare something separate for Piper.

Happy 1000th Blogpost To Me!

(and Happy Thanksgiving to everyone else!)



Lucky and Piper *not* getting in trouble - although it looks like something is brewing.

Okay, here are the details of my 1000th blogpost contest:

In the Comments section, give the URL of your favourite blog entry of mine, and tell me why you liked it. But there is a catch - you can't list an URL that someone else has already provided.  Please leave all contest entries here and not on Facebook.  So, your contest entry should look something like this:

http://wildpeculiarjoy.blogspot.com/2007/12/wipd-it-already-wednesday-but-it-was.html


I liked this blogpost because of the beautiful yarn I dyed. I wish I had time to do that again.

Easy enough, right? Now onto the prize - once all the entries are in, I will have a random drawing, and the winner will get a $20 Amazon.com gift certificate. I will close the contest on Sunday, November 27th at 12 noon EST. Good luck - and I can't wait to see the entries!

ETA: I have to approve all blog comments, so if someone claims an entry first and you haven't seen it in the comments section, I will let you know (if I know how to contact you) that you need to pick another entry.

WiP It Wednesday

Here it is, people - my 999th post. Are you ready for the contest tomorrow?

I've had a few days off prior to Thanksgiving, so I have been watching lots of television I missed the first time around on Netflix and knitting up a storm. People were curious why I sent my girls to daycare when I had the time off... Well, mostly people who don't have kids ask that question. I love my girls terribly - but I really needed some quiet time. I went to coffee shops, had lattes, tried on some pants in the department store (bah humbug), and hung out at my LYS. In any case, here is what I have been working on this week:



Rosy Diamond Leaf Cowl (Rav Link). I'm almost done this one - only about 1.25 more repeats to go.



My own pattern socks. I think I am going to try these again with a solid or semi-solid and then write up the pattern. There is some openwork involved, but the stripes in the yarn disguise the lace. These two very much fraternal twins, aren't they?

I have to tell you - this photoshoot took much longer than anticipated because my assistant was a little too helpful:



And Cristi - I bet your Dad never thought he was creating baby toys when he was making sock forms, did he?



Piper was pushing them around as if they were toy cars - and even know as I look over at her she is carrying one of the feet around.

And Tara - I have the yarn for your slouchy hat:



Now to get started!

Just For Bezzie

I make no claims that my children are picture-perfect. This is the cheeky grin that usually pops out when I whip out the camera:



And you all know about my tribulations with Willow closing her eyes for photos... which is why I was so amazed with the portrait. The photographer offered to take some extra shots of Willow - but I had turned him down because Willow had already had her pictures taken at her school a few weeks prior. I wish I had taken him up on it now!