Just getting back from SnB, good times. I didn't buy anything, I can count that as the third time I've been into a yarn shop and not bought anything. I used up my free day as per the stashalong on Monday when S and I went down to Knitomatic's sale. I picked up some blush pink yarn for a top from Vintage Knits and a teeny tiny (8g) ball of Opal sock yarn to jazz up the toes and heels of some otherwise boring man socks in the near future. S bought sock yarn and hat yarn to knit for her boy toy, I'm going to make a sock knitter out of her yet.

Stashbuster project #1 is moving in a forward direction daily. I've promised myself that I'll add three squares a day to M's blanket but I've been knitting more than that most days and it's so cute and he loves playing with it already while I'm not working on it. I started a second stashbuster project on Friday that's actually almost done. A cropped raglan cardi (of my own design-and-knit as you go sort of thing) to wear over my cute red summer sundress in Knitpicks WOTA and some mohair that I had hanging around. The yarn is the natural dyeable and the mohair is beige so it's knitting up to have a cute tweedy effect that I like the depth of. The body is done and button bands are on so I just have a few rows on each sleeve then the ribbing to finish. I'm using both yarns doubled and 9mm needles so it's working up super fast. Surfing through the blogsphere the other day I fell in love with someone's Sunrise Circle Jacket from Interweave and I have two lots of stash yarn that might work so I'll be swatching them up sometime soon too.

The socks continue (I'm about halfway between the toe and the heel on the second sock) so I think I should have them done over the weekend at latest. Im working on Forecast a bit tonight too, the never ending second sleeve knits on.

This is why you don't let them feed themselves.

Thats all, no knitting has been done today.

Not a lot going on as far as knitting the last few days, CFS are at the heel flap of the second sock and Forecast still needs that second sleeve (is there such a thing as second sleeve syndrome?). I started a stashbuster project though, a mitered square blanket with some superwash Cascade 220 that's been lingering the stash for a really long time. The idea came from Shelly Kang's sock yarn blankie. When M goes to daycare he's going to need to take a blanket with him for naptime and I'd like it to be something his mommy made for him. It's knitting up really quickly and he's already playing with it when I'm not adding squares.

(I'm actually a lot further along now as the pic is a few days old. I'm on the 6th tier right now.)

I've joined the stashalong on the 15th too to make myself commit to whitling down some of what I've amassed over the last year or two. I've committed to three months of knitting what I've got...ack! I get one free day to enhance the stash in each month (so one day between 15th July and 15th August,...) and I'm going to try and use my remaining store credit at Knitomatic so I'm not spending any actual money on yarn. My goal is to reduce by 40 skeins over the three months and I got that off to a good start by posting a bunch of stuff for sale at the destash blog (button on sidebar if you're in a shopping mood). So far I'm down 11 skeins and the blankie will add another four to that once it's done. Maybe I should knit some socks?

Not much new on the knitting front, I'm totally in a rut. Forecast is stalled needing about half a sleeve so I'm going to try and push myself to just get it done over the next few days so I can stop feeling guilt over it. Socks are getting there, #2 is on the way but I'm going to rip and fix the toe on #1 as it's really pointy and it's bothering me.



Went to Knitomatic for SnB last night with more odds and ends to return (I applaud your patience with me H, I'd have smothered me with scratchy acrylic by now). I came away with this loveliness....fable baby alpaca in the most heavenly smoky teal colour imagineable. This is the sort of stuff you want to just strip naked and roll around in, this needs to be next to skin.

It's going to be Ogee from Knitting Nature. H has the book on order but I wanted to steal the store copy last night and knit everything in it immediately.

I ended up with Vintage Knits which has some super cute girly stuff I love. The best part? All the patterns go down to my size, every one (bless those iddy bitty 1940's housewives). Not sure what to knit first from this one.

We've had a fussy little monkey on our hands the last few days and finally this morning M's top two front teeth made their appearance. They're just barely peeking out but at least they're on their way. He's been really sleepy since they've been bothering him. Wearing his new man pyjamas he got for his big #1.


New button, new button!! I finally got around to getting a destashing page set up. There's not much there right now but I hope to add some more stuff I want rid of and what my wants are as far as trades over the next few days so check back soon.

I finished this little hat a few minutes ago, very cute I think.

Very loosely based on this tomato hat which seems to have some wonkiness going on. I started it on the subway on the way home from the party on Wednesday night. This is in answer to Stephanie's call for donations of baby hats to support breastfeeding awareness and education. Since the cause is something I'm a strong believer in, I wanted to send something to help out. M and I celebrated one year as a successful breastfeeding team yesterday and over the last two weeks or so he's started to say "booboo" when it's time to feed him (which probably comes from O asking him if he wants some boobie).

I wanted to make a strawberry instead of the tomato to get a bit more fair isle practice in before I start a bunch of big projects using the technique, I'm feeling a bit of an obsession coming on. I have always wanted a Dale of Norway sweater but $300 is so far out of my reach it's sad. For me knitting one has always been one of those lofty goals that have the "someday" tag attached to them, now I think I might actually be in a position to attempt one (albeit something in M's size).

Progress on Forecast is chugging slowly along, motivation is waining though so I'm going to set a goal of having it done by Monday. All it needs right now is the second half of sleeve #2. Sock #1 just needs a toe so I should get that out of the way today then cast on for the second before SSS sets in. I'm swatching for Picovoli with the bamboo and as much as I love the knitted fabric it's a total witch to knit with, splittier than bananas.

Today is a day to relax from the birthday mayhem that was yesterday. O and I began celebrating his brithday shortly after midnight by creeping into M's room and whisper/sining the birthday song to him while he slept. M started the day with ice cream for breakfast, we agreed it was a good way to start the day. We made a paper bithday hat together and played in that a bit.



He had chocolate milk with lunch (all his favorite foods) and O came by for lunch to play. The afternoon was pretty quiet aside from talking to my mom on the phone. M was trying to lick the phone while he was talking to his Gram. Nanna called late in the afternoon and made the little man smile too. O surprised him with a balloon when he got home from work.


We all went out to Toys 'R' Us to pick out a present. M liked just about every second toy we looked at but ended up picking (or maybe we picked) this and two stories: "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" and a book called "I Love you".

He had a chicken McNugget happymeal for dinner and ate/destroyed/bathed in his cake. I wiped him off pretty well before putting him in but the bath water was still pretty blue.

What a busy, busy day today has been. I'm ready for some tea and to think a bit, mostly about the last year....

On this day last year I was working my last day, going on my last date with O as a childless couple and having my last good night's sleep for a while. I was getting ready for a few weeks off before the baby arrived and was getting anxious and really excited about meeting the little person I was already so in love with. Baby's due date was still nine days away but I wouldn't have to wait that long. Tomorrow our little boy turns the big #1 and it's all gone so incredibly fast.

I never would have believed how in love I could be with such a small person, and how it would be possible to love him more everyday. He's becoming such a little boy; my baby is fast fading and being replaced by the most perfect little person with great personality, silly quirks and all.

The last year has been at times joyous, terrifying, pride-filled and (I'm ashamed to admit) occasionally desperately lonely. I so enjoyed and am terribly thankful for the year I got to have home with M, it was a blessing. I suffered a bit with lack of adult contact sometimes but now I'm faced with returning to work I'm feeling terribly about those times. Finding daycare had been emotionally wrenching for me. I know M will enjoy and thrive with other children around but I can't help thinking that I'll miss so much. I don't think anyone could ever care for our boy better than O and I can and have. I'm going to miss our intimate times, the midday breastfeedings where it's just us cuddling together.


I know he needs the interaction with other kids but letting him go is breaking my heart. I've only ever left him with anyone other than O three times, each for a short evening so whole days are going to seem like an eternity to be away from him. My solace is that I know he's going to have a wonderful time with the other children.

Okay, no more sad... let's get on with the knitting. We made a trip down to Knitomatic today, probably my last SEX for a while. Thankfully H is pretty forgiving of my serial returning because I had a bunch of stuff that I'd bought from her that I knew was never going to actually become anything if it hadn't already (like what was I thinking?). So, without spending even a single cent (and still actually leaving with a $30+ credit) this was the haul:

Six skeins of Dale Baby Ull, two Dale baby/toddler books, two pairs worth of sock yarn (one for me, one for O), five Eden Bamboo for Picovoli, tape measures, a set of circs, and one more Silk Garden to complete what I needed for Klaralund. Good times.

The Baby Ull wants to be this for M:


Then it was off to LK for Amy's party!!! The new store is fabulous (THEY HAVE A BATHROOM!) and lots of knitters turned up. I left early but I still had a really good time.