End of September

I said I would finish the blocks to my blanket for August and September and even start October's before the end of September.  So I did just that.

I still have to finish October's while working on my 30 day sweater challenge in the next few weeks. October is going to be a great month.  I have big plans.

30 Day Sweater

Oh no...

This is a thing!  I a great, big thing.  They are looking for 5000 knitters to take the challenge here: http://30daysweater.com/brownsheep

Oh crap.  This encompasses my love of a challenge, my need to knit and I just happen to have a sweater's worth of yarn and pattern picked out waiting for something like this.  But this would take all my knitting time and more.  What about all the cute little baby things I have planned?  That beautiful blue yarn I just bought  But the desire to enter a challenge is so great.

Can I do it?  Maybe more importantly, should I do it? Is it strange that my mind just keeps saying "crap," because I know I cannot resist. I'm totally making this: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rocky-coast-cardigan

Delicious

Last weekend I went to my first yarn tasting.  My parents were visiting and my mom came along.  My dad just wanted to know if the yarn tasted good. Oh, it was.

A yarn tasting is a lot like the cake tasting a bride does to pick out her wedding cake.  A yarn tasting is an event where you can try out different yarns in hopes the you will fall in love and buy some.

Well, I fell in love with this:

This yarn is called Chord and it is by Good For Ewe.  I got to talk with the owner/creator of Good For Ewe too.  It was a great time.

I wasn't planning on falling in love.  You never plan things like that.  Love just happens.  Yarn love happens often, maybe too often.  It is hard to go in a yarn store and not be in at least lust with a yarn or two. Knitters tend to be yarn hoarders. (Don't tell my husband, but he probably knows, it is hard to store it all.)

I only bought two balls, I think that is pretty good. They are very small and I have great plans. It is my first chain-plyed yarn.

I am so excited to get knitting on this, but first the blocks.

What do you fall in love with every time you enter a store?

Snug as a Bug

I know I said I would work on knitting my blocks but...have I ever mentioned, I have a very cute son.  I love making little things for him and he makes for a great model.

I made his this football cocoon.

He is a bit big for it now.  It is meant for a newborn and Stormy was never newborn sized.

But he is just so cute, I'm not sure it really matters how it fits.

This cocoon is super easy to make.  I picked the pattern up for $2 at Ewe-Nique Yarns in Morton, IL.  It is a fast knit because you hold two strands of chunky yarn throughout on size US11 needles. I am so used to holding so thick of yarn that all other yarn feels so small.

Back to knitting blocks.  Then more cute things for baby.

What do you think?  Cutest model ever?

Squared

I like challenges.  There is just something deep within me that craves a challenge.  Not a crazy challenge like "I bet you can't eat all these pickles in 1 minute," but a challenge that I some how deem helpful for my life, in promoting its goodness.  Challenge pervades everything I do.  Despite popular belief, being a librarian at a community college is a huge challenge.  Being a mom of two and working full-time with a husband that travels is a challenge. Being a runner is a challenge. I make reading goals to add challenges.  Overall, I like the feeling of accomplishment and accomplishment is all that much sweeter with a harder challenge.

So as I have mentioned before, I like a knitting challenge too.  I love knit-a longs.  Right now, I am working on an all-year knit-a-long.  This knit-a-long is knitting a monthly square to then become a blanket, it is called Building Blocks.  I am so good a knitting squares.  I can knit circles around squares.  If anyone asked me what I am best at in knitting, it is making square things.  This challenge is right up my alley. Each block/square is designed to develop a new knitting skill.  I have to say that the skills are not new for me, but I am using them in new ways and honing my skills (double plus).

Due to my pregnancy hand issue, I was not able to knit for a few months, so I am a bit behind. However, since Stormy was born I have finished three or four blocks bringing my total to 7. I just started block #8 which only puts me only one square/month behind.  I am sure with football season upon us I can get #8 and #9 completed this month maybe even get ahead and start #10.  Just another challenge to make thing more interesting.

What are your feelings on a challenge?

 

Routine

I am finding that being a working mother of two is all about routine.  Every morning we go through the same steps and every evening another set.  Being the giant nerd I am, I have even created a list of everything to to in the morning and at night so I don't forget anything.

The do-to list has included blogging, but I never got around to it.  Loving my children, feeding the family, getting kindergarten homework done, washing diapers and washing bottles are all far more important than blogging.  But now as I am getting used to the new routine and have have made it through my second week of being back to work, I have a bit of time to write.

I have been knitting!  It is pretty glorious.  Let me say it again, I have been knitting. It feels so good.  As you may recall, I had to stop knitting because I lost feeling in my hands due to swelling in pregnancy.  It took several weeks after little/big Stormy was born, but I have feeling in all my fingers!  That is great news for typing, knitting and just about everything really.

In one week I made this little cardigan for Stormy's baptism.

Finding baptism clothes is really hard.  Finding inexpensive baptism clothes even harder.  We saw things for sale between $55-80.  So much cheaper for me to knit a keepsake.

The pattern is Baby Boy 5-Hour Sweater.  I did not time myself knitting this, but I think it took about five hours total, but over the period of a week.  Caring for a baby takes up a lot of time. I used Read Heart Soft yarn.  I usually don't use this yarn, but I needed something durable like this 100% acrylic yarn.  Stormy is a bit of a spitter.  Okay so saying "a bit" is an understatement, the kid spits up constantly.  I needed something I could wash and wouldn't stain so easily.

Here he is on baptism day.

During the baptism he only spit up three times.  Such a good little baby.