Spinneas Gauge

Oest is the Most!

2011-07-24T23:00:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago, I had the distinct pleasure of attending Cub Scout camp with my middle son. I'll compare the experience to seeing "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" in that the experience was bittersweet. By this I mean that you spend an awful lot of time waiting for it and a chunk of time enjoying it... But when it's over, it's over.

These are the boys that I've had the joy of being a Scout leader with for what is now going on five years. This last year is bittersweet.

So I made a movie about it. Enjoy. Thanks, you crazy kids, for a wild ride. Thankfully, I get to do it all over again in a few years when Luke joins the ranks of Isett Scouters.

YouTube Video

The background music is Bob Dylan's "Forever Young" and I mean absolutely no harm in using it to Illustrate my sentiment. And I'm happy to take the video down if anyone has any problem whatsoever with my using it.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Remember.

2011-05-30T09:48:00.002-04:00

Baltimore National Cemetery, Catonsville, MD

My older boys have been Scouts for years, and part of scouting means doing service. Cheerfully. Hands down, one of my favorite events each year is one known simply as "We Remember."

Each Memorial Day, Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts from around the area, representing troops and packs from the Arrowhead and National Pike districts of the Baltimore Area Council converge at the Baltimore National Cemetery to place flags on the headstones of the servicemen and women buried there. Flag placement is followed by a ceremony at the tomb of the unknown (conducted by members of the armed forces and various veterans groups). There are guns salutes. It is a solemn, poignant affair. Bagpipes at this cemetery send chills down your spine, as the eerie sound echoes across the rolling fields filled with row after row of small white headstones representing those who are gone.

The ceremony follows the Scouts' placement of a flag on each grave. We gather at our designated starting points around the cemetery, waiting to be given our flags and permission to start.

It takes mere minutes to blanket the property with the Stars and Stripes, even though each boy carefully measures the placement distance with his foot.

We start out near one of the cemetery's winding roads and fan out where ours rows take us. Its easy to lose track of where you are. In what seems like the blink of an eye, there are no more undecorated stones.

A moment of reverence for a fallen soldier.

That's when I look up and find myself lost in a sea of headstones, each one representing a life of service. Scanning the horizon in awe, I gather my Cub Scout, who is paused in the same moment of reverence. I look around as other leaders and parents are doing the same.

In proper United States Flag etiquette, you raise the banner quickly and take it down slowly. Here, we've fanned out swiftly to accomplish our task and then the poignancy of the moment gives us pause.

We walk back slowly together, and, after I gather my son from his Troop, head up the hill. We pass families paused in front of the headstones of family members. We thank the veterans who have come for the ceremony. Some wear caps that tell us where they served: Korea, World War II, Vietnam. Some are in uniform, still serving. Some are in wheelchairs, with daughters by their sides. My son pauses to shake the hand of one WWII veteran. "We remember," he tells him, reaching out to shake the man's hand.

From his wheelchair, he leans in and wraps his gnarled hands around my son's.

"Thank you."

The Key to Making a Difference

2011-05-21T09:40:00.003-04:00

Top image: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

About 18 months ago, I dreamt I was in an airport in Rwanda. The structure, on the inside, did not have any of the trappings of an airport situated in the midst of a civil war. Outside, the African sun was burning, bright and hot, an the skies were clear. At eye level, there was sparkling outside the window and a low, indescribable hum. And then, someone near the window howled, and I heard the word "machete" as people began to move frantically. But we had nowhere to run.

Fear, even while in a dream state, sets loose a surge of adrenaline that pulsates through your body like nothing else. As I joined the melee, the terror I felt was palpable. I couldn't shake the idea that I was a sitting duck and that I was going to die on the tip of a bloody blade.

I awoke in a sweat, shaking, and haven't been able to shake that dream since. It's as vivid today as it was that night.

A few months before, my former publisher -- a brilliant, inspiring gent -- posted on his Facebook page that he had just finished reading and had thoroughly enjoyed "What is the What," the autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng. If you don't know of him, he's one of the Lost Boys of Sudan. Jim's recommendation was enough; I picked up the book and dug in, and followed with other stories of genocide and the refugees that survived. These stories embedded themselves in my subconscious.

Lower image: UN Photo/John Isaac

My dream, though horrifying, was just that: a dream. As I raced through that airport trying desperately to figure out an escape, I was consoled by the fact that my children were home and safe. Around me, children called out for missing parents, parents for children. If they made it out alive, who would help them? If they had to walk, alone, for hundreds of miles, would they make it? Would they have food? Shelter? Someone who cared? Someone to help them continue to live?

For millions, that support comes from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). I joined the Blue Key Campaign to help ensure that support will continue.

Around the world, millions of people are affected by natural disasters, violence and civil war. Forced from their homes and, in some cases, their countries, they struggle to survive.

The Agency has helped more than 50 million people since 1951. At the end of 2009 alone, there were 43.3 million displaced people around the globe. More than 26 million refugees and 15.6 internationally displaced persons had received help from the UNHCR. Many are children; many have disabilities.

For many of us, $5 is practically pocket change. For a refugee, it can be a key to change. Get your Blue Key to help them. Visit www.thebluekey.org to learn how.

The Blue Key campaign is a project of USA for UNHCR (http://www.unrefugees.org/), which works in the United States to support the UNHCR, based in Geneva.

Stranger than Fiction

2011-05-06T07:24:00.001-04:00

I often point out that my life -- mothering three boys, doing urology PR -- can be stranger than fiction. Yesterday it reached a whole new level on the "I couldn't make this up" scale.

Up until yesterday, I had never been in a car accident. And I hope I'm never in another.

I had just picked up my three-year-old from the sitter, and we were following our normal route home, up the hill to the intersection with the stoplight (as opposed to the one without, which I always consider rather dangerous)

It happened quickly, but the retrospective plays in slow-mo.

Pulled up to intersection as always, slowly. (The street has parking on both sides and I live in fear that a child or animal will make a break for it and dart out.) Stopped at the red light. Waited for some goon to do a three-point turn in the intersection on the cross street, even as the light turned green. Then, took my foot off the brake, moved to accelerate and--bam.

A bicyclist came tearing eastbound down the center of the road (I was turning left to go westbound), crashed into my left fender, cartwheeled--with bike--across my hood and dashboard--and fell over to the right side. Thankfully, I was only doing single-digit mileage.

Moved to autopilot. Scout skills. Strong, calm, clear and careful. Stop the car. Check the victim. One bystander helped him get to the curb and I moved the van out of the travel lane. Called 911. Another bystander appeared, he saw the whole thing. Good. Toddler fine in back seat. Pile of napkins for victim to put pressure on the gashes on his face. His biking buddies show up (Geez, were they racing down Frederick Road in rush hour?), brother calls mother. I call husband... Let's get toddler out of van. Rescue team shows up. Three police, fire and ambulance. I'm shaking, but calm and clear.

Statements are given. Victim is stabilized and taken to local trauma center. I'm told that is standard, given that he hit was on a bicycle and struck a moving vehicle. No tickets are written, because this is not my fault (in retrospect, I question this--should this young man not get ticked for failing to travel in the proper lane, riding with no helmet, failing to obey traffic signals an failing to grant the right of way?) and clean up begins. Photos are taken, statements are taken. Another witness had given a statement confirming ours.

Copy of the police report. Drive home. It's all in the motions. Call insurance. Arrange for repairs. Worry about the 18-year old laying in Shock Trauma.

If you want a visual of what a head does to a windshield, here you go:

It may not be clear in the picture, but that's a significant impact. I was moving in the single digits -- 5 mph tops -- but this kid was flying. Force equals mass multiplied by acceleration. There was ample force.

He was not wearing a helmet.

Had he been on the right shoulder, the proper way, I would have seen him.

Had he obeyed the traffic signals and slowed down and stopped, well...

I do hope that he's ok. But part of me also hopes that a lesson in bike safety was learned, even though it was delivered by the worst of teachers.

It's still a bit surreal.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Talk of the Town

2011-04-29T19:48:00.001-04:00

This morning, I had the pleasure of watching Prince William of Wales marry Catherine Middleton. While many moms were, no doubt, watching with daughters who were mesmerized by gowns, hats and all the pageantry of the royal to-do, watching with my son gave me a decidedly non-female perspective on the shindig.

- Does getting married make William the king? (She's wearing a tiara, Mom...)

- Why are the guards facing the crowds and not the procession?

- Who needs bayonets at a wedding? (But, like, wow!)

- Why did they come in cars and leave in coaches? (What's the deal with using an old car?)

- Why don't they just walk on that rectangle in the aisle?

- Why are two guys in red and two in black? (Should that old guy be dressed the same as Prince William?)

- Does Prince Charles really need a sword? In church? How can he take it in there?

- Um, really? Trees in the church?

- Why don't they just kiss at Westminster Abbey?

- Why didn't William's brother comb his hair?

- Can we move to Canada and have the day off when William's brother gets married? (Then can I say "eh?" as much as I want?)

- Whoa! That girl's hat has devil horns! What was she thinking?

All valid questions, really. Some I answered easily. Others, I looked up. Some I answered with a blank stare. At least there was tea.

Did you watch the wedding with a kid? What did you talk about?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Transparency and Social Media

2009-06-14T08:35:00.000-04:00

So my company is about to jump full force into the field of social media. Networking, blogging and Twitter. (I've been tweeting myself for a short time but I have other identities. If you're following me for urology, you might want to also follow @amerurological and @urology_health.)

Naturally, this prompts lots of questions -- not just ROI questions, goals questions or even control questions, but also the more personal "whose account do these groups get tied to?" questions. And the answers are nebulous at best. Twitter is easy. @wendyisett is a personal account, so it's attached to a personal address. The other accounts are tied to work domains. LinkedIn and Facebook are a little different, and tie directly to personal accounts, so...

There seems to be a common thought that one of these forums is more personal than the other, that you should use LinkedIN for professional purposes and Facebook for personal activities. BUT...

What's your personal policy? I waffle back and forth on this. Forums like Facebook present great "getting to know you" benefits, and it's fun sometimes to have the occasional co-worker jump in and comment on a photo or link. But, once you jump into the company admin role, does that change? If I'm an admin for ABC Company's Facebook page and I post on my wall that I've had a crappy day and am ready for new things, will my co-workers or group members read too deeply into that "what's on your mind" post? What if I dabble in a Facebook app at lunchtime and the updates land on friends' walls? Or share a political point of view? Or if a blog post raises issues that relate to a problem at the office? What level of censorship is necessary (beyond simple common sense)?

What's worse: to have transparent, recommendations on LinkedIN (which could possibly be viewed as job hunting) or results of a "what Hogwarts character are you?" quiz on Facebook? Is a "this is my personal blog and do not necessarily represent the views of my employer" disclaimer enough to ward off coworker "she got a new recommendation, is she looking to jump ship?" suspicion?

I personally don't know the answers to these questions, which is why I'm throwing out the question. Talk amongst yourselves. And please talk to me!

-- Post From My iPhone

Getting Back to Basics

2009-06-07T08:36:00.001-04:00

It's funny how getting out of the office every once in a while – though expensive and not always feasible in this economy – can actually refocus you and remind you of "abandoned" projects, generate a spark of enthusiasm that wasn't there before, or generally just remind you why it is you do what you do. And I do PR.

I didn't start this blog because I wanted to talk about PR. I started it because I wanted a way for family and friends to keep in touch, hear about the latest and greatest with the family without having to initiate or engage in a vast number of telephone exchanges about the simplest of things. I wanted to post my hobby projects so that others could chime in and give feedback. I wanted it to be a way to be, in a way, the ultimate multitasker. I started it before wave of web interaction now known as "Social Media" took hold. Now there's Ravelry for the knitting, Facebook for the family and friends, Twitter for tweeting sake and I'm left with a blog that has been untended for a while and needs a new focus. It doesn't need a new name – I think SpinneasGauge is witty and all-encompassing in so many ways – but it needs new content.

So that's what it's going to get. I don't know what yet, or even how. In fact, I'm not sure whether it will be simply personal, whether it will have a touch of work commentary, or whether it will be industry-specific with commentary from the front lines of non-profit public relations. I struggle with the transparency issue, particularly with current work climates, but I'm finding myself increasingly drawn to my journalism roots. So watch out or tune in. I'm coming back.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T22:10:00.003-05:00

I sat down this evening and struggled to find the words for an introspective, empowering message for 2009. Unfortunately, the words would not come. BUT ... in the interest of regular blogging, HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Checking In

2008-12-30T15:08:00.002-05:00

Long time, no post. Still no time, but thought I'd check in with a shot that I grabbed on December 23 of L'il I ... incidentally, he also grabs a hank of alpaca yarn to keep him occupied during diaper changes (odd, I know, but true -- the changing pad that we use is near my living room stash container and he grabs grey alpaca every time and kisses it).

Time Flies

2008-08-10T09:28:00.002-04:00

And she's back... there has been knitting and growing (the kids) and a very busy travel schedule this summer. I'm hoping to get back into a solid blogging schedule soon.

Today is party day for L'il I, who finally hits single digits for real on Tuesday. I hope to post some party pics later, but in the meantime, I leave you with the post from one year ago today, when I was hanging in waiting for the OB I liked to be on call. Did I actually have time to knit back then?

Tick ... Tock ... Tick ... Tock ...
Note: Knitting content is at the bottom of this post; skip ahead or read the baby update :)

An Update on the Babe

Well folks, the clock is ticking now on L'il I. I will spare you minor details, but suffice it to say that the boy is just about done cooking. At a whopping 4 lbs, 12 oz, the doctors finally have succumbed to my telling them (over and over and over) that I. Give. Birth. To. Little. People.
That's right, Zee was 5 lbs, 13.5 oz, the Yarn Sniffer was just over 5 lbs. This dude is even littler. I'm not worried, though ... they do grow up way too fast for my liking anyway and this buys me some extra snuggly time with a little peanut.

Truth is, though, I've felt pretty miserable for the past few days. My back is killing me, my hips are killing me ... "the girls" are huge (for me, anyway) and are killing me ... I'm just about done.
Good news is that he's really quite happy in there, and the induction has little to do with poor environmental controls. Plenty of fluid, happy placenta ... no reason to think of growth restriction or anything scary. Frankly, I attribute it to this whole gestational diabetes diet. After all, I've said all along that putting me on the stupid thing was counterintuitive -- it seems that for the last month (since the diagnosis and diet restrictions) his gain has slacked off and he's gone from being what they call "AGA" (average for gestational age) to borderline "SGA" (small for gestational age). One of the major risks of GDM is what they call "macrosomia" (big baby syndrome) -- when the baby gets flooded with sugar and, well, gets fat. I clearly don't have that problem. Dr. Awesome joined my fight against it last week and told me to keep sneaking carbs -- if only to hold him at his current weight -- and this week, Dr. Wonderful said those magic words:

Dr: So, how are your sugars?

Me (looking bored): Still non-existent. I can eat a huge plate of stuffed shrimp, bread, a baked potato, a cup of decaf with sugar and a big piece of baby shower cake and my sugar is 101 three hours later.

Dr. (looking a little defeated and a bit sheepish): I think it's safe to say that you're not having problems.

Vindication at last. That very afternoon I emailed the dietician to report ANOTHER week of ZERO weight gain (I lost a pound, he held steady) and asked if she still wanted numbers. She said no more. Thank heavens. So I haven't been sweating it, and I started eating normally again in the hopes that he'll be able to gain a few more ounces before moving day.

Knitting Progress

So, like so many others, I've been participating in the Summer of Socks. I joined for a few reasons: I wanted a kick in the rear to finally get a bunch of socks knit (I don't want to wear commercially made socks this winter) and I also wanted to try to boost my visitors and expand my blogger circle. Each week, the "updater" checks out the blogs she's been assigned and posts an update. Some updaters post longish writeups to hail the progress of their groups. I always read them and visit and comment. Our update posts are a bit too simple for my taste, and I have had few, if any, comments as a result. It's my luck, I suppose.

In other traffic news, I have developed a site where I can post patterns, finished objects, baby and big-kid pics and other things that folks might find interesting. The first thing up was my cuff-down conversion notes for Wendy's Southwestern Socks. She was kind enough to 1) let me do it and 2) mention the document in her blog and urge folks to come on over. To date, that page of my site has received 185 hits. But still no comments. Maybe I'm just not that interesting.
But progress is interesting to me, anyway. Remember how I said I loved the Conwy sock so much I didn't want it to end? Well, yesterday L'il I got himself a Conwy baby hat to come home in (I decided I'm not happy with the hat I did the other week):

I've cast on for a pair of Conwy socks to go with it. Hopefully those will be done today (unless he decides it is way too hot for socks and jumps ship before I can finish them).
I'm also still working on finishing up the Butterfly Lace sock that I started earlier this week. I can't really claim ownership on the stitch pattern, but I will be posting the sock specs as soon as they're done.

I have also toyed around with a Little Shell stitch to go with the Chewy Spaghetti yarn that was originally destined for (another) pair of Monkeys.

The match to the Southwestern Sock will be taken to the hospital with me and (hopefully) completed there.

It's Been a While

2008-06-03T20:46:00.004-04:00

What can I say? New boss, busy two months (had my big convention ... a grueling seven days of 18-hr days with very little sleep or time "off"), busy baby and busy big boys.

Two new teeth in L'il I (he's not showing them; methinks what you see is a drooly reflection ... he smiles without showing his teeth).

Two lost by the Sniffer. It has not yet stopped him from eating corn on the cob:

We also had a Webelos camping trip thrown in for good measure. I can hardly believe how big my biggest boy is these days. (Note: This photo was taken at a prep session we had to teach the boys how new knots to tie and how to build a campfire...Weboree is a COMPETITION...)

No real knitting, other than a pair of socks I have to download pictures of. I knit them for a dear friend with bone cancer to keep her tootsies warm during radiation. But I don't want to discuss that right now.

Bummed and Buoyed

2008-04-08T21:37:00.002-04:00

Bummed, because for some UNGODLY reason, I managed to miss the Yarn Harlot in Annapolis. Right in my own FREAKING backyard. I'm a dolt.

But I'm buoyed because MDSW is right around the corner! And the Cloverhill booth (my LYS) is gonna be cooler than Koigu. Go check their blog for more details... it's a countdown to the best part of Spring!

For What It's Worth

2008-03-28T19:30:00.001-04:00

My blog is worth $564.54.
How much is your blog worth?

I have no idea how.

Anomaly.

2008-03-13T16:31:00.001-04:00

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

Indeed.

2008-03-13T06:22:00.005-04:00

Believe it or not, there are women out there with three kids (some with three BOYS even) who actually find time to knit. And I mean knit. Not the "row here, row there" that I've been doing lately, but some gals actually finish things in a reasonable amount of time. Me? I've been working on a single sock for two weeks. Indeed.

I'm here still, folks. Alive and knitting, but crazy busy with life. Changes at work (new boss in two weeks; third boss in three years), interviewing a new member of my team today (keep your fingers crossed) and lots of time gearing up for our big scientific meeting in May. Busy indeed.

And the boys. What can I say? Last night they wanted to do silly pictures of the Brothers Three since it was L'il I's 7-month birthday. (I take pictures on the 12th of every month. I figured it would not only make a neat spread for his first birthday, but it would also make sure I take pictures of him regularly.) Aren't they sweet? Indeed.

They are indeed. They love their little brother more than just about anything. But how can you not love a little wee one that's so adorable? Not to mention that he's getting a lot more interesting these days ...

And the best is yet to come. Indeed.

When Life Gets in the Way of Blogging...

2008-03-02T09:08:00.003-05:00

I've been struggling for the past two weeks trying to think of something to write for my TWO bloglines subscribers and coming up with nada. So today, in the interest of at least posting something, I thought it might be neat to go back two years and see what I posted about two years ago when the blog was still relatively new. You know, comment on what I might have posted, projects I was working on, etc.

Here's the post. There's nothing quite like wanting to go back in time ...

Heart and Soul

2008-02-14T19:50:00.002-05:00

I rarely ever talk about my husband on this blog ... it is almost always about the knitting, or the kids, and besides, he rarely reads it anyway. But he does exist, really, and I do love him very much. And my big valentine has given me three beautiful littler ones ... even if they did all come with Y chromosomes. Because I don't buy into "Hallmark Holidays" I'll save the smushy gushy post for another day. But here is one of my favorite pictures of the two of us ... portrait of college lovers all grown up at a black-tie affair last year.

(And in my next post, there may actually be a photo of a sock -- gasp!)

The Eighth Dwarf

2008-01-27T09:24:00.000-05:00

His name is Wheezy and I gave birth to him in August. On Friday, the heinous virus culminated with a diagnosis of RSV for the wee one. He's getting inhaler treatments, but he's doing great and we may have gotten through the worst of it without even knowing it.

Anyway, it was this diagnosis that made me almost not go to Spinner's Group on Friday night. After days of being home with sick people, though, sheer desperation (and the fact that I was taking Laura the loom I've had in my basement for too long) made me force myself to go. Didn't plan to spin, didn't even take a wheel with me.

It was a small group on Friday, three and a half, not counting me. (The "half" is Caroline's daughter Emily, and is a regular part of the group.) After talk of the loom and normal catchup talk, somehow talk turned to an orphan wheel that had been left at the shop with a note "Clemson Clemes Wheel / Free to a Good Home."

Curiousity got the best of me, particularly because Clemes & Clemes wheels seem to have a bit of a cult following. After taking off the ratty old stinky nasty wool on the bobbin and getting some help from Caroline about the wheel's double-drive tension, I got her going. Not a bad spin. So my home was good enough for the wheel, and it came home as a restoration project. My husband's face was priceless. But, as he always is when curious machinery is involved, he too was sucked in at some level of interest. I've been wiping and oiling and investigating and here's what I know so far, besides the fact that I seriously doubt it is a Clemes & Clemes

Look at this flyer. The eye bolts are clever, and almost Woolee-Winder-esque. They'll need new nuts to make sure they stay in place when I'm spinning (tension on the yarn pulls them towards me too fast and the yarn fills at the front faster than anywhere). But they're neat and old looking.

This wheel is sturdy, and I mean SOLID. I don't know what type of wood it is is made of, but it has held up well.

There are a few rough patches on the wheel, and some knicks on the knobs and over the Mother of All, but nothing a little sanding won't take care of.

The leather parts need some conditioning (the maiden has a leader thong-type assemble that the orifice slides into to hold the bobbin in place and it looks a little dry, as does the piece that attaches the footman to the wheel itself).

But above all, what I know more than anything is this: This wheel has POWER. It was obviously made for production! It may simply be that it's a double-drive wheel (my Traditional is single-drive and the Hitchiker has no drive), but this thing can twist. And the yarn it turned out was a respectable worsted that -- once I weigh it down to set the massive twist -- will be usable and strong.

It's a worthwhile addition to the spinning corner. Even though it makes my Traditional look downright dainty.

Ways that Life Sucks

2008-01-22T21:23:00.000-05:00

Let me issue a disclaimer: It's been a really rough week so far and it is only Tuesday. Bear with me here.

There are times when we all get bogged down with life, and we gripe and moan about how it would be better to simply impale yourself on a size 15 Lantern Moon and be done with it. Consider the following (work with me until the end, please):

- Heating oil for my house currently costs $3.60 a gallon. We order 100 gallons at a time, keep the house thermostat at 69/70 and we still need to fill it every 2.5 weeks.

- The temperatures in the Mid-Atlantic have been downright frigid. Not as cold as it was for the Harlot on the day she had to walk to the bank, but damn cold for my neck of the woods. If I wanted it this cold, quite frankly, I'd move to Canada because it has a lot to love. And maybe the oil isn't $3.60 a gallon.

- Three out of four men in my house have been stricken with a hellish virus that felled my husband for two days with a 103 degree temperature and horrible coughs and gallons of snot. Yes, I said gallons. I have no means of measurement other than the tissue usage, but it's gotta me momentous because L'il I alone (whose snot I have to see, unfortunately) had his own weight in the stuff. The Sniffer is the only one who is so far unscathed and I can't quite figure that one out. Threats have been exchanged between him and Zee about germs, and one in particular (that I heard, anyway) was "Do you want me to spray you with Lysol again?" That "again" is a whole other story that I'll spare you for the time being.

- We have to register for FALL aftercare in January. But before that, you have to pay your monthly tuition. That's a TON of money to daycare, which has caused us to limp along (and I mean limp -- remember that virus? Lots of meds and tissues and soups here) until later this week when the next paycheck comes.

- One sentence: Two completely unexpected days off work during the busiest season of the year.

BUT NOW I WILL CLARIFY THIS RANT BY TELLING YOU ALL NOT TO WORRY ABOUT ME AND MY PROBLEMS AT ALL. DO NOT FEEL SORRY FOR THE SICKIES, OR THE MOBIUS SCARF THAT I HAVE RIPPED OUT A MILLION TIMES OR BOYS SPRAYING LYSOL AT EACH OTHER.

Gryphon tells the story well in this post, and I feel horrible for being so caught up in the sickness and not posting about it. But she's only about 15 minutes away in Easton, so it isn't as though someone far away posted. Plus, she knows one of the folks affected. Which brings me to the point of the post. Look around and I'll guarantee you can usually find something that sucks worse.

Now about Cambridge. First, go read Gryphon's post. I'll wait.

Are you back? OK. Let me tell you something about my hometown. Having grown up there, I can truthfully tell you that "sleepy" just isn't the word for it. For a while there, it was comatose. I made the decision at a young age that I wanted something more ... more active, more vibrant, more fun ... so I moved to "the city" for college, met my husband and stayed put. My folks still live there, and I wholeheartedly enjoy my visits. Downtown (which wasn't terrible when I was there, but on a downslide) is bouncing back with restaurants and shops -- this is THE place to go for antiques and awesome "waterfowl" type things like decoys, etc. -- and then tragedy strikes. To add insult to injury, the poor city (yes, it is actually classified as a city, and is the county seat of Dorchester County) had city news crews and helicopters (when I called my dad -- a deputy sheriff -- I could hear the whirring of the chopper) crawling around and reporting on all the other bad news. In addition to the fire, a hit and run at a bus stop left a kid dead and a guy I went to high school with suffered fire damage in excess of $100K to his business after a fire immediately following "the big one." My folks know the owners of the businesses that were hit and Gryphon's right -- it ain't pretty.

Now Gryphon is doing something that I wish I could do. She's donating 50% of her yarn profits to one of the businesses that suffered in the fire. Her yarn is divine so now's the time to make your yarn purchase count. Hurry up and get over there ... I'm limping behind you but will get there soon ...

Happy Happy!

2008-01-05T21:56:00.000-05:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As usual, I've managed to miss a big day of posting, but I've certainly enjoyed reading everyone's New Year's Resolutions and comments about the holidays, and hope that this cute picture makes up for it :). And I'm realizing I'm not alone in many of my plans for the New Year, though at the end of this post I'm going to pose a solution for all of us who are dog-tired from holiday knitting and feeling a bit of the blechs that come in the new year after such a crafting frenzy. Factor in the fact that I've had the cold from hell for the past five weeks (I honestly forgot how much little people like to share their germs) and you can imagine the fatigue at Chez Spinneas. This weekend I made a decision to postpone taking the Christmas tree down in favor of plain old rest, fluids and easy knitting to try to get myself to a point where I can function a little better next week. Nursing a baby through the whole thing has been an extreme adventure in dehydration, and having the whole family home on vacation for nearly two weeks has been a lesson in frustration -- which certainly doesn't help! But whining doesn't do any good ...

First of all, I'd like to say that the Santa Fe beret was a big hit. Farmer Auntie (who is also a knitting auntie but not THE Knitting Auntie of Aran -- and Nanny -- Fame) donned it immediately, squealed with delight at all the right moments during the obligatory tale behind the piece, and wore it for our entire visit except for the 30 minutes when she took the big boys on a hike around the farm. The cool thing is that it actually matched the vest sweater she was wearing that day.

I also knit a pretty neato Koigu scarf for my mother-in-law, came in under the wire on Christmas Eve and got the sucker blocked. It turned out great -- knit with a double strand on size 8 straight needles:

There were other victories for presentts, but I'll spare you. There were also some UFOs, including Aran Auntie's Tea Cozy (it's coming, I swear), a scarf, and a beret for my cousin -- who's baby is only three months older than my L'il I. The beret has been an absolute nightmare, and I'm getting ready to start it for the THIRD time. In the midst of my absolute frustration with this pattern (though I LOVE the yarn -- Berrocco Jasper), I decided I needed something to settle down with. So I decided to tackle the mobius strip. Yeah, yeah, I know.

The crazy part? It worked. Last night I fiddled with the cast-on that's widely available online (the backward loop method -- check it out) and then today picked up Cat Bordhi's book. I swear I'm addicted to this process, and I'm enjoying my Fleece Artist mobius that I have been working on since early in the afternoon:

In addition to the Moebius, we've also enjoyed watching our littlest enjoy his first holiday season, including his saucer at Christmas and his books...

And that's life here at the Spinneas homestead. Maybe I'll tell more holiday stories from 2007 later. In the meantime, I'd like to say that my single resolution in 2008 is to AVOID the chaotic holiday knitting this year. And to do that, my plan is to knit one present per month from now until November. That's 11 knitted gifts, a record, and a way to help save my sanity at holiday time with a one-year-old toddling around. Anyone wanna join me?

The Coming of the Elves

2007-12-19T16:09:00.001-05:00

Last night, while three little boys were asleep (one in his crib, thank goodness), three little folks arrived in our house (never mind that they look as though they're going to take flying leaps off the cornices).

Meet the Holly Brothers:

This is Harold Holly. The oldest of the three, he made his first appearance in 1998 when Zee was wee (tee hee).

And then there's Howard:

A spunky guy, he arrived in 2000 and watches out for the Sniffer. If you know the Sniffer, you know he has an air for the dramatic -- as evidenced by good old Howard here, who incidentally is wearing green -- the Sniffer's all-time favorite color.

And this year, we have a new addition that we have dubbed Henry:

My guess is that Santa sent him to play elf to L'il I ... who, after all, needs his own set of eyeballs that report to the Big Guy. I'll be sure to dress the babe in his red-striped PJs on Christmas Eve!

If you're interested in the legend of the Elves at Arunah (and beyond), check out last year's post that explains it all. There really is quite a bit of history to it, at least in my family.

Zee was a bit skeptical and L'il I ambivalent, but the Sniffer was positively ENCHANTED this morning when he realized the guys had arrived and that our elf family had expanded. He insisted that I take these pictures so he can put them in frames and hang them on the tree. Gotta love that kid.

Tis the Season

2007-12-18T07:16:00.000-05:00

This is the time of year when we knit bloggers really can't post pictures of our work for fear of giving away the surprise. So some of us are mighty lucky to have cute babies to tide us over.

This past weekend, L'il I had his first bit of rice cereal. He's four months old so he's on the early end of the range for introducing complementary foods to a breastfed baby, but he's been showing a lot of signs he's ready, so we took the plunge. As you can see, he was not disappointed in the process of eating:

Most of the time wee ones just don't know what to do with their tongues when they're eating ... which is why they end up wearing most of it. By the end of the session, however, he seemed to have it pretty much figured out:

It was a big night at Chez Spinneas. The night before was equally big, as Zee advanced to receive his orange belt in karate:

The Sniffer, on the other hand, took a much more passive approach to his weekend, and snuggled most of the time.

I Can't Believe I Knit the Whole Thing

2007-12-12T09:20:00.000-05:00

Last night, after two false finishes, I cast this off:

Here, in its drying state, is what I am calling the "Santa Fe Beret." It's a broken-rib, fair isle beret knit on #3 needles in Berrocco Ultra Alpaca Light -- my own highly modified version of Veronik Avery's Beret Gaufre. The top will be completed later this week with three small knit chile peppers attached to the i-cord bit. It's the holiday gift that I am (so far) most proud of and will hopefully be adored by the recipient.

Want a few close-ups?

This was definitely a stretch for me ... I've been exploring a lot in terms of colorwork this holiday season, but fair isle in a ribbed pattern is, quite frankly, a bitch. But this is the project where you just sit back and stare at it and deem is mahhhhvelous..... I'm very happy with it.

Yes, I am Alive and Knitting

2007-12-04T13:32:00.000-05:00

Most people tried to post every day in November. Me, I managed to not post at all. But it wasn't for lack of knitting.

There were market bags:

Storm Trooper hats:

Two House Hats (a la Charmed Knits)

and a beret (more are coming):

I expect rapid progress on smallish projects in time for the holidays. In the meantime, I apologize for the hiatus and leave you with the obligatory shot of L'il I, who is upset about the Ravens' loss on Monday Night Football:

Happy Halloween: A Day in Pictures

2007-10-31T22:04:00.000-04:00

First Grader on parade:

A Brother Oblivious:

Fourth Grader Haunting the Schoolyard:

Pumpkins carved and lighted:

Ready for Tricks and Treats!

--------------------------------

Now on another note, I've been sending festive photos of L'il I all week. In case you missed any of them, there were three. Here they are, in order, from Monday through Wednesday:

This One's for Theresa

2007-10-29T06:15:00.000-04:00

OK. As I said a few months ago, I feel like Theresa and I should be old friends after our parallel pregnancies this summer. And so, when I read her most recent post (or rather, Z's post), I set out this weekend to get this picture for her:

You see, her baby was sending smiley vibes to T's father, who had heart surgery. L'il I just started smiling about a week ago, but he's hard to catch on film (those flash bulbs are rough). I figured those folks having an icky Monday morning might also appreciate the toothless wonder that is a three-month-old's grin. L'il I was 12 weeks old yesterday!

P.S.: Notice that I've added a Flickr link in the left navigation. If you click it, you should be able to go over and view a collection of photos, including travel shots, knitting projects and more from the photo shoot yesterday.

I Can't Believe It Either.

2007-10-28T09:45:00.001-04:00

A finished pair of Southwestern Socks!

I finished these last night while I was watching Alien.

And, if you were wondering how yesterday's Magic Market Bag stretches under pressure, here it is filled with a dozen pieces of fruit.

And for those those of you who stop by only for baby and child updates, here's today's sleeping babe:

Behold: Fiber Arts

2007-10-27T07:10:00.000-04:00

My apologies for the spotty blogging lately. It hasn't been for lack of content, but rather, lack of sleep, free time and original ideas.

You see, a few weeks ago I was going to write about nursing and what it means to be a nursing mother and how much time it takes and how good "nursing knitting" projects are hard to come by. But then Theresa published an eloquent post and I didn't think I could add anything to her already-perfect post. You see, she and I were pregnant together and had similarly complicated pregnancies and I like to think of her as my kindred spirit over in the Windy City. She's having a rough spot right now, so pop over and send her good thoughts.

And then I was going to write about how I felt about the blog, why I started it, etc., and then others started writing about the same theme. So I didn't do that, either.

But all the while, something miraculous was happening here at Chez Spinneas. You see, I was actually KNITTING.

I'm on the final stretch of the Southwestern Sock.

I cannot begin to tell you how much I love Fleece Artist sock yarn. It is a stash staple.

There has even been a little spinning.

Now neither of these projects are conducive to nursing, but I may have found some good projects. Firstly, a brioche rib scarf out of some ages-old homespun. Merino/tencel/silk blend spun on my Ashford knitted up with size 6 needles. It's coming along nicely.

And the ultimate nursing knitting: The Magic Market Bag -- a delightful pattern from Aran Auntie (who is also Auntie Nanny at my house). MMBs are addictive knits that spring forth from teeny, humble balls of Cascade Fixation. You size them by choosing what size needle you want to use. I've completed three so far and the fourth is nearly done. I've been playing a bit with handle size (if you go verbatim with the handle it's designed to stretch into a shoulder bag -- the version on the far right below has a shorter handle and is more of a "hang off your wrist" tote). The one in the middle is done verbatim, and the one on the left is in progress (translation: I haven't made major mods yet, but may be tempted once I get to the handle, which should be during our next nursing session). Here are three in their "natural" state, completed in "medium" size:

And here's one stuffed with balls of yarn to show the magic of the bag. This doesn't really even touch how much stretch this bag has. I deem it quite suitable for stash enhancement expeditions.

Now I'm going to make a plug here for the pattern. If you are looking for good nursing knitting, fast holiday knits or a speedy yarn-store tote, this pattern is for you. She's distributing it through Lovely Yarns in Baltimore, but hopefully it will arrive in other local yarn stores or on the web soon.

If you can't wait for it, shoot me an email and I'll connect you to the source :)

A Reptile Among Us

2007-10-14T21:49:00.000-04:00

We had a very busy weekend. Chaos on Friday, which we won't discuss other than to say it involved major traffic glitches, a child-care plan gone awry (don't worry, it had to do with coordinating a pick-up ... no one got hurt or anything) and an overnight campout that was delayed due to all of these combined factors. After all, it sucks to pitch a tent in the dark, which is what might have happened had they actually gotten on the road at a reasonable hour. As it was, it turned out to be colder than a witch's bosom in a brass brassiere, so it was good.

And we got to take the "official" two-month photo of L'il I (we're taking pictures on the 12th of every month so we can watch him as he grows...)

Saturday was Yarn Sniffer's birthday. They were supposed to wake up in the woods, but instead, hubby woke up under the weather. But what about the Cub Scout campout? Well ... Den Leader Mommy (who was not supposed to go to camp because of nursing the babe) turned the overnighter into a day camp instead. Zee and the Sniffer got to do all kinds of neat things (while I spent most of the day trying to find five minutes to sneak away to pump...):

Most of all, though, the Sniffer enjoyed telling everyone it was his birthday!

And then today, Spike made his weekend complete. Perhaps he should now be known as the Dragon Sniffer?

My Life is a Busy Place to Be

2007-10-01T07:11:00.000-04:00

I've been quite derilict in posting lately. Last week was a real winner. Not only was it absolutely insanely busy, but it also marked my return to the office -- for two days. I can hardly wait to see how ridiculous this week is when I go back for three days.

Last weekend started with a visit from my in-laws, who came in from South Carolina. My mother in law's brother is very sick with leukemia, so keep him in your prayers. She got to play with L'il I, who slept the WHOLE time:

Sunday gave way to toothpain, and last Monday, you guessed it -- root canal. Not a terribly horrible procedure this time around, but little did I know what would await me later in the week... That same day, Knitting Auntie of Aran Fame came for a visit with my cousin and her son -- born the weekend of MS&W. We took pictures with each other's babes (If you know me, and look at the right side of my face, you can tell that I had something done to my mouth... note minor swelling).

On Wednesday, I did not work and was instead planning to spend a nice leisurely day with L'il I. Instead, we went back to see the dentist. You see, the infection in my head had me looking like John McCain and when I smiled, it looked like I had had a stroke (whole right side was swollen and when I smiled, my lips could hardly move). Believe it or not, I had to have my gum lanced and drained. Damn mouth of mine. Doesn't do anything right ...

Thursday, I went back to work again. Had a great day. I can't tell you how nice it is to know that L'il I is with Auntie while I'm at work. It's relaxing and only mildly upsetting -- but that's primarily due to the fact that I personally think the U.S. sucks on maternity leave and it's times like these that I want to move to Europe.

Friday was filled with a lot of running around to get ready for baby's baptism yesterday which, thankfully, went off without a hitch. Loads of time with family and friends, and a blissful, sleeping baby in church. He was awake for the afterparty -- in fact, he was a bit overtired by the time we got home, but he did manage to zonk out for me for most of the night last night.

Ode to an Arachnid

2007-09-16T09:19:00.000-04:00

"She never moved again. Next day, as the Ferris wheel was being taken apart and the race horses were being loaded into vans and the entertainers were packing up their belongings and driving away in their trailers, Charlotte died. The Fair Grounds were soon deserted. The sheds and buildings were empty and forlorn. The infield was littered with bottles and trash. Nobody, of the hundreds of people that had visited the Fair, knew that a grey spider had played the most important role of all. No one was with her when she died."

--Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)

For weeks, the bulk of the spinning around my house has been performed by a very large, particularly scary-looking spider that took up residence on our side porch. Each night at dusk, our Spider would come down from the eave and spin its web -- a large, beautiful web with lots of radii and tight concentric circles. It was absolutely fascinating to watch Spider spin -- and my husband, big boys and I would watch intently as it built a brand new web each night. With rhythmic grace, Spider would drop to the rail and start by anchoring the opus on whatever it could -- railing, flower-basket holder, flowerpot hook -- and then have at the middle. Spider started from the outside, making large, sweeping circles and going swiftly but carefully counter-clockwise into the center, before making its stakeout in the dead center waiting for dinner.

Earlier this week, I asked my husband to go outside and capture this miracle. Video didn't do it justice, particularly because of the darkness of the sky and of the Spider. But this photo pretty much says it all.

Sure, there were lots of jokes about sitting on our porch at night ... if you picked the chair nearest to the Spider, you were Little Miss Muffet ... on some nights we expected to see "Humble" written in the web (I can't tell you how big the web was -- our neighbors could see if from 75 yards in the sunrise) ... but more than anything else there was a sense of reverence ... of pure, unadulterated awe at this creature and what it did. Every single night.

If you took coffee on our porch in the morning, you could watch Spider head up to bed, and revel in the total beauty of a spider's web in the dewy, morning light.

Until yesterday. You see, the mercury dropped and we had our first taste of autumn. It was one of those delicious days when you pull out the blue jeans and handknit socks and revel in the coziness without realizing that outside, in nature, the Circle of Life is taking a devilish turn.

Yesterday, while I was cleaning house, scrubbing floors and tending to L'il I and my boys were racing around outside with friends, we were oblivious to what was happening to our sleeping friend. I should have stopped for a visit.

Last night, I headed to our porch to visit with Spider -- a few quiet moments with a kindred spirit. But Spider wasn't hard at work. Spider was still in its daytime position -- curled up under the eave in a ball. There was no web to greet me -- just a few willowy leftover anchor lines wafting in the night breeze. This morning, Spider is unmoved.

I fear the world has lost a truly remarkable spinner and I am sad.

The Cow DID Jump Over the Moon

2007-09-14T06:59:00.001-04:00

I know this, because last night he dragged me behind him. You see, I forgot how road trips warp little person schedules.

A day in pictures. First stop, Grandaddy's House:

L'il I got to snuggle with my dad ...

and the Yarn Sniffer raided his army gear and played "army guy" with his brother.

Next stop, Grammy's Office.

We took a side trip to see my stepfather at his bank, and saw lots of old friends who were meeting at the church. Proud Grammy loved showing off the littlest.

Then, we were off to my aunt and uncle's house. Clearly, little boys need a farm ...

with barn cats to play with ....

and horses to ride...

fences to hang on ...

ducks to chase ...

and cows to race (what you don't see in this photo are my children in the training yard running in circles -- this is Ernestine the Cow running alongside them on the outside of the fence ...

And snuggles and cuddles for the littlest -- who couldn't partake of the big kid fun (though he watched carefully!)

A nearly two-hour car trip. Tons of physical activity for the big boys, who slept like rocks once they settled down. But the little one? All that car sleeping led to this at 2 a.m.:

A Month and a Day

2007-09-13T07:12:00.000-04:00

My apologies for not posting for nearly two weeks. L'il I keeps me busy and I'm back working from home, so free time has truly been limited.

As far as knitting goes, I owe you all an update on the contest winners, and I hope to have that done by the weekend. Honestly, though, the closest thing I've come to wool is the lanolin I've been using on parts that will go unmentioned on this blog .

And hopefully there will be photos soon of completed work. In the meantime, I hope these photos will do. You see, L'il I was exactly one month old yesterday.

Oh -- and before I forget, he had his first bathtub bath!

He was much happier when it was over and he could snuggle.

Sleepy, Militant Old Man

2007-08-31T11:01:00.001-04:00

There has been little knitting these days here at Chez Spinneas. I've been working around the house instead.

But mostly, I've been consumed with the babe. Since there's no knitting worth showing, and since I'm sure most folks are checking in for baby pics, I'll oblige. The photos are dark because it's kinda cloudy today.

Note the pants pulled all the way up nearly to his armpits. Iggy spends a great deal of time in onesies or gowns, but today I decided to try pants because it was cooler this morning and we took the big boys to school. I left them on him because this old man look amuses me to no end. They're not only short, but also very loose in the middle, so when he wriggles around, he loses his drawers. Like I said, this amuses me to no end.

This is exacerbated today because he's a sleepy guy. Even though he slept very well last night, he's snoozing and snacking today. It's been a good day to get the laundry done.

Another amusement: The "Power Baby" salute. I usually end up singing "Power to the babies" when he does this -- a la "Power to the People" -- and he looks at me like I'm a nut case. He is, after all, partial to RUSH -- their newest album in particular.

Just Baby

2007-08-29T11:06:00.000-04:00

Bundle of sweetness: sweet coos, sweet breathing, sweet feet. It's all about Sweet L'il I these days and I love it when he wakes up to snuggle. He's such a little sweetheart, and I love everything about him.

His little smiles (don't tell me he's peeing and don't tell me it's just gas):

His little tootsies:

Even his "snarfuly face"...

I love that his big brothers love him, that his father is one of his best playmates ever, and that his favorite sleeping space for naptime is on my chest (we're working on changing that). It's funny ... this is my third child and it still amazes me how impossible it is to think of life without him :)

Babies are true handfuls, but wonderful handfuls ... and when it's been seven years since you've had one (and you've realized how much you missed it and how quickly these early days go by), you learn to cherish as much as you can.

I've been struggling lately with a nasty remark that was made to a third party and relayed later. It upset me at a truly irrational level, but I'm getting over it. Partly because of this little guy ... I want to remember every coo, every baby smell (well, not ALL of them), every herky-jerky movement. I want to burn the "snarfuly face" into my brain and not forget it. I want to always take solace in the memory of how it felt to have a five-pounder resting and snoring on my chest ... at peace. Everything else can wait for me.

P.S.: I got the house dusted.

First Day of School

2007-08-28T13:16:00.000-04:00

The big boys (all three) had their first days of school yesterday! (My husband works at a school.) Unfortunately, the Sniffer just wouldn't smile for his annual "First Day" shot.

I make them pose each year, same fence, and still he fought it. Oh well. I snagged one later in the evening which I think answers the question, "So guys, how were your days?"

Yup. Just about sums it up.

All About the Babe

2007-08-23T15:20:00.000-04:00

Not a whole lot of knitting going on these days, but the contest is still on. So if you're out there with an idea, please please send it along! The Lilacs need you!

In other news, my husband and I were talking the other day about baby pics and I realized that the only pictures of me and L'il I were taken in the hospital. So last night he took one after the baby's sponge bath:

It has also come to my attention that I failed to post the Conwy Hat! L'il I wore it the day we broke out of the hospital, so here it is:

And that is all for today :)

The (blood) Pressure is On

2007-08-19T22:29:00.000-04:00

On a good day, my blood pressure is 90/70. That's right. Sometimes it goes even lower. I'm practically dead on a normal day, and whenever I get a routine health screen, they always ask me if I'm feeling lightheaded.

Interestingly enough, while everyone seemed pre-occupied with my odd protein dip in June (which resolved itself), the gestational diabetes (ahem) and subsequent premature labor back in July, no one seemed particularly alarmed at a 120/80 BP. You see, that's still in a normal range -- just not for me. But I suppose because there was no swelling, headaches or spots in my vision, nothing could have predicted an elevated post-partum BP.

Our newest is exactly one week old today. Seven days ago, he was six hours old, and I was settling in with my busted-up body for a good night's sleep. Vitals were all in normal ranges, postpartum bleeding, etc., was good, and L'il I was doing great. All quite non-eventful.

Overnight, the BP started going up. Now I usually make a habit of asking, but for some reason, I never asked what the readings were. On Monday afternoon, when the OB (Dr. Good) came by on rounds, she prepared discharge papers for the next day and I was excited about having such a non-eventful recovery. About 15 minutes after she left me to go draw up the papers, she returned to inform me that my BP was rising and that I would require additional monitoring for the remainder of the day and through the night and that I might need some medication to bring it down.

No biggie, right? Get through the night, relax, lower the blood pressure, go home. Not the case.

Over the course of the evening, the BP stayed high. In the morning, the physician's assistant came by to check on me prior to the OB's coming by on rounds. She also pointed out some concern about the BP. When she laid me back to check on my belly, she pressed on the upper right quadrant of my abdomen and I yelped. Uh oh. What do you mean that tenderness isn't normal?!? Isn't it just from being pregnant and having everything shifted and moved and then strained by all that pushing? Nope -- the liver has no reason to be sore from delivery. Time for blood tests.

I'll spare you the track marks that are STILL on my arms from the idiot phlebotomist who couldn't work a butterfly needle right to save her life (she botched the first job and got an inadequate sample -- duh, you went through the vein, dummy, I felt you do it -- and then she came back for more and did the exact same thing. Somehow, though, she managed to get what she needed). Now time to wait.

Later that day, the OB on rounds (Dr. Bad News) came by. I had only seen this one once over the course of my pregnancy and it's never ended well (she was the one on call when I went into premature labor and she kept me overnight when I hadn't expected it. I should note that Dr. Good was the one who put me on bed rest in July and sent me home with a smile).

Now none of this is Dr. Bad News' fault. It's just bad scheduling, I suppose. It could have been Dr. Good, or Dr. Wonderful that had to tell the bored, hormonal, tired-of-being-in-the-hospital mommy that she had another night ahead of her. Hell, I would have EXPECTED it from Dr. Serious.

In any event, this poor woman had to come in and tell me more bad news. Elevated liver enzymes and low platelets. My blood pressure was approaching dangerous ranges and that I needed to go on medication for the short term and stay there overnight for monitoring in case I had a seizure. It all made sense to me at a rational level -- I mean, who wants to go home with a brand new baby, two older children and a bedraggled husband and then have a seizure and end up back at the hospital? (Not to mention that if we had gone home and I had ended up back in, L'il I would not have been with me.) It was sensical, and I knew it. Unfortunately, my hormones didn't, and a serious crying jag ensued -- lasting about four hours. What a great way to relax and lower your blood pressure!

Fortunately for me, my husband kept his disappointment well hidden that night when they came to join me for dinner. The medication was working and I was hovering in the 140/70 range (which apparently is normal, though high for me) and looking good. The vampires would be back at 6 a.m. for another battery of bloodwork to make sure the medicine was doing the trick.

Long story short, it was. We were discharged the next day around 2:30 p.m. by Dr. Wonderful, who pointed out that there are plenty of women who go unexpectedly pre-eclampsic at the very end of their pregnancy, and that what I was experiencing was relatively common. We'll be heading in to get the blood pressure checked on Thursday to see how it's going.

On Friday, while I had L'il I at the pediatrician (still perfect), she had a nurse come to "spot-check" my blood pressure. Still in the same high-ish range, but not dangerous. (The advantage to this is that we all go to the same practice -- its a combo internist/peds group -- so my doctor was right down the hall to run interference with the OB if it was still high.) I felt much better.

Of course, now I've been reading up on this whole issue and before you know it, I'll be diagnosing myself with HELLP syndrome (which I really hope isn't the case). But don't worry about me -- I'll get through it the same way you all plodded through this post holding out for cute baby pics.

So I'll give you three from the weekend:

Still Life: L'il I with Mitered Blankie

"This blankie is so cozy, I could just go right to sleep..."

"Thank you all. I am well aware of just how cute and perfect I am. My Mommy tells me constantly!"

Sunday Bloody Sunday

2007-08-16T07:54:00.000-04:00

(Sorry, couldn't resist)

Thanks again to all of you who have left your best wishes and sent happy thoughts our way! Now that we're settled in at home and L'il I (who needs a new blogname) is getting used to the noises and chaos that abounds in a house of men, I have a few minutes to sit down and tell his story.

Those of you who have been following the blog for the past few weeks know that his arrival has been a long time coming. Gestational diabetes (ahem), premature labor and subsequent bedrest and excruciatingly slow dilation finally came to a head (literally) on Sunday morning. If you read my long, rambling post in the wee hours that day, you know that I was not of sound mind at that point. I had been contracting every 10 minutes for three days and was absolutely exhausted. I had been alert since Friday a.m. when I sounded the "yellow" alert with my husband and the strain of watching and waiting had taken its toll. I went to bed sometime between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m. and slept on a towel -- just in case.

For yet another night, I slept fitfully, but made it through the night without making any significant progress (other than the serious nesting jag I had the night before). Woke up in the morning and went back to nesting -- washed some dishes, did some laundry -- before settling in for some internet research on "prolonged latency labor phase" and e-mail checking.

Before too long, all the fluids I'd been drinking kicked in (dehydration and a full bladder impede labor so I had been drinking and peeing round the clock for days). I jumped up to make a dash for the bathroom and BAM! Did I pee myself?

Horrified, I raced to the bathroom with a change of clothes before my kids could come down the steps and start the teasing (I can only imagine what two little boys would do). But it just kept coming. And then I knew. D-day had arrived.

I was nearly as horrified when I called the doctor and DR. SERIOUS returned the call. Oh no. Sunday was supposed to be Dr. Wonderful! Dr. Serious told me to get my affairs in order and head over to the hospital and she'd take care of letting Dr. Wonderful know I was on my way (whew). Woke the hubby and the boys, took Zee and the Sniffer to the in-laws and we alit to the hospital.

To make a long story short, I had made ZERO progress dilating. Dr. Wonderful arrived and I asked if she wanted to use this opportunity to reschedule our date with pitocin. She laughed and ordered the drip. The very nice anesthesiologist talked me into an epidural and put that in and the waiting game started.

We arrived at the hospital at 10:30, got the drip going sometime between 11 and 11:30 a.m. and the epidural went in around 1:00 or so. Just before the epidural, a cervical check showed only moderate improvement -- 4 cm. Ugh.

Now I should say that I'm a spoiled pregnant woman. Zee and the Sniffer came after incredibly short labors and swift dilations (and water that broke at the hospital and not on the floor at home). Pitocin is pain in a bag, and the fact that it wasn't working quickly was making me mad. Granted, the epidural provided some relief from the pain, but the wait was excruciating. Not to mention the fact that L'il I kept falling off the monitor, which freaked out the Muggles and had them turning me from side to side constantly.

Almost three hours after the epidural (around 3:45 or so, I think), the doctor, my nurse, hubby and I were talking and my wonderful husband asked why no one had bothered to sit me up and try letting gravity do its thing. The nurse explained that the babe's heartrate kept falling off the monitor and Dr. Wonderful pointed out that they could always put me back on my back but it was worth a shot.

And so I sat up at 4:00 p.m. Sitting pretty at a full FIVE cm, 100% effacement and a baby sitting at 0 station (right there and ready as soon as the door opened).

At 4:10 p.m., I was hit with what I call "pushing pressure" -- the kind where there's no question what's going on. Hit the nurse button before whimpers gave way to sobs and Dr. Wonderful came in like a whirlwind and announced, "And now here's a change!" I don't think she even put KY on her glove to check and then said, "Oh my. Plus two. That was FAST. Do NOT push. Whatever you do, do NOT push. I have to get gowned and get my table. Do NOT push. I'll be right back."

And right back she came (I think everything was sitting outside my room), they managed to slide me down to the foot of the table, feet went up and FINALLY I could push. Now keep in mind that what was happening is all a bit spotty to me, but I would guestimate that this whole transition from being moved to a seated position, blowing through five cm in record time and getting ready to deliver took about five minutes. I remember seeing Dr. Wonderful come in tying on her mask, laying the drape over my knees and giving me the go ahead. After that, it's only pain and counting.

I have only one statement to make this long story a little shorter:

3 contractions + 4 pushes = full baby delivery

Now before anyone rolls their eyes and says, "We should all be so lucky," I'd like to point out that it's no picnic to dilate 5 centimeters in 5-10 minutes. Sure, I may have only had to push a few times, but I had days of labor and then a furious finish. This may be my third baby, but it hurt more than the others and once again the epidural did nothing for that part. I suppose this justification is unnecessary, but I feel the need so work with me :)

And so, after weeks of dilation (remember, I have been holding at 1 cm since mid July), we finally got to see L'il I.

And he realized that his head made it through delivery, and this seems to have delighted him to no end. (Hubby told me later it was a yawn, but I like my story better, LOL)

And he looked around at the folks in the room.

Before finally getting to meet his Mommy. (And I mean finally -- I didn't get to touch him for about 20 minutes while they cleaned him up. One of the nurses was particularly stubborn and even though my OB kept pointing out that they needed to bring him to me, she must have been deaf or tuning her out. For the record, that's Dr. Wonderful.)

He got his picture taken with both parents:

And then he got to nurse a little bit (a real natural, I must say) before the paparazzi arrived (my mom, aunt and uncle, father-in-law and, of course, his big brothers -- who got to see him first).

L'il I weighed in at 4 lbs, 13.2 oz and measured 18.25 inches. His size dictated that he be taken to the NICU for evaluation (even though he Apgared at 8 and 9) for two hours. So I visited with company before everyone cleared out to let me rest for a bit before he came back to me.

I will tell you one thing: L'il I may be a skinny little thing (have you ever met me? It makes sense) but he's sturdy. He's already holding his own with his brothers.

The Sniffer adores him:

And Zee is content, too (though way too cool to say so).

Tomorrow's entry: The (Blood) Pressure Goes High for Mom.

Without Further Adieu...

2007-08-15T18:46:00.000-04:00

... may I present L'il I, who joined us on Sunday, August 12 at 4:35 p.m. after three days of labor and a hearty dose of pitocin after my water broke early that morning (a few hours after that last rambling post).

He gives new meaning to his blogname -- he's "L'il" alright ... he weighed in at a whopping 4 lbs, 13.2 oz -- but measured 18.25 inches long. He's sturdy for being such a peanut, and the pediatrician has dubbed him to be one of the healthiest little people she's seen.

I will post the birth story (and my blood pressure story!) tomorrow or later tonight for those who are interested. Thanks to all who stopped by to send good wishes after that "Wendy-is-clearly-uncomfortable-and-ready-to-pop-so-she's-rambling-way-more-than-usual" post on Sunday morning!

Still Cookin...

2007-08-12T00:30:00.000-04:00

Despite the fact that I've been having contractions EVERY TEN MINUTES for the past FORTY-EIGHT HOURS, I'm still here at home with no baby yet. Good thing, too, because Dr. Serious was the one on call today! I know because I called this morning just to make sure I wasn't missing anything important ... after all, this little guy is, well, little, and I don't want him burning unnecessary calories (or weight!) in a prolonged latent labor phase.

But you know what? Dr. Serious is completely different when you're in labor. I swear. She (for once) totally understood the concern and said that as long as he's bumping around and wiggly (which he is) he's fine. Told me to eat, eat, eat all day ('cause they won't let me eat anything once I go to the hospital -- been there, done that) and try to rest as much as possible. Pretty normal stuff, actually (remember, this is baby #3 for me -- I've just never had them be quite so stubborn once they decide to vacate. Both older boys were super-fast labors and deliveries. I've heard all of this before). She recommended hanging out at home until I got the gut instinct to head to the hospital; urged me to trust my instincts but to call her if anything at all changed or if I had any other concerns or questions.

But then -- get this -- she blew me away six hours later by calling me (unpaged) just to check and see how I was doing and to see if anything had changed. Turns out she was headed in to evening rounds and didn't want me to worry about bugging her if I wanted to go and get the ole cervix checked (remember, I was 3 cm on Wednesday and two days of active contracting has to make some progress). I opted to stay home for a nap instead (at this point it was 4 p.m.). I didn't really sleep, just rested restlessly (?!?) for two hours. Once I got up, the contractions passed for a bit before kicking in a little later.

Zee and I ran up the street to get some last-minute things for the hospital bag (like another bottle of face wash and camera batteries) and that seemed to help a bit. However, shortly after dinner, the contractions have kicked in again. They are more intense now, hence my writing this entry at 12:45 AM (I am NEVER up this late). My husband has launched his nesting mode.

I'm upgrading to an Orange Alert based on all of these factors. Dr. Wonderful is on call tomorrow, so my plan is to make it through tonight if I can and call her first thing in the a.m. if we're still chugging along status quo. Since she wants to induce on Wednesday, I'm hoping she'll spring for meeting me at the hospital tomorrow and setting the process in motion. If it continues through Wednesday, I think I'll lose my mind.

In the meantime, no news from me here for a day is actually good news. Zee or Hubby will be a guest blogger to let everyone know the news once L'il I has arrived.

P.S.: I finished the second baby Conwy, but you'll have to wait and see it being modeled by the babe (camera is packed in the hospital bag just in case we have to go tonight and I'm too tired to dig it out anyway)

The Beat Goes On

2007-08-10T16:12:00.000-04:00

As promised, I'm back this afternoon for yet another post. I'm still at home, though this morning I'll certainly admit that I wasn't that sure I'd make it past the early afternoon without summoning my hubby home. A three-hour nap did wonders, and while I'm still contracting away, it looks like we'll make it through afternoon and early evening -- at least. Who knows what tonight or this weekend will bring. Works out well because the doctor on call today is not one I particularly care for (though it's not Dr. Serious). Dr. Wonderful is on call on Sunday, so we'll see.

I got a little more knitting done this afternoon. One wee Conwy sock. Another will be started tonight after dinner.

I should point out that the colors are just not showing up well in these photos. This is (oddly enough) "Peter Pan" by the Wendy brand, and is a soft synthetic blend (which I normally don't like) filled with pale blues, yellows and greens. The band on the Conwy hat was done in some leftover Baby Ull that I had from earlier in the year when I knit Courtney's Basil blanket. I didn't think I had enough for another full hat (even baby size) so I sought out a complementary yarn. The owner of my LYS gifted me the yarn for the babe ... so L'il I can wear a little bit of Cloverhill and Ms. Chris on his first day out in public (the hat and socks are designed to coordinate with his coming home outfit).

Contest?

Let me say first that I've never reallyl done a blog contest. I've seen them, and even participated here and there, but I've never done one. So I apologize sincerely if this one is lame.

You see, I need a pattern for this yarn:

This is Nature's Palette sock yarn in the "Lilacs" pattern. Lilacs have a special meaning for me -- they were my grandmother's favorite flower and I some of my fondest memories of her revolve around this flower. She had gorgeous lilac bushes that would explode each spring with blossoms and we could fill our arms and baskets and vases and still leave the bushes full, it seemed. She also had a lovely carnival glass vase that we would stuff full and put on her dining room table under her chandelier. This yarn is absolutely gorgeous and the subtle varigation really does look like a lilac bush in full bloom.

So ... I need to do something spectacular with it. There are two skeins, and almost 400 yards. I'm a petite girl (5' 2"), so I don't do large wraps. I don't think it would do this sock justice to make it into socks.

Here's the plan. Today is August 10. From now until August 30 (so we all have plenty of time to plot and scheme and do things like give birth, LOL), I will be looking for ideas on what to do with this yarn and this is part of the contest. But you gotta comment to enter.

Some guidelines:

Leave your suggestion for the Lilac yarn in a comment. All suggestions earn commenters an entry in a drawing that will be made at random in early September.
The person who submits the design I choose also wins a prize.
Other prizes may be awarded as suggestions reveal themselves.
Additional comments (one per post, please), earn extra entries in the drawing -- 1 per comment.

It's that simple. Probably a lame contest, but I hope to get some good ideas for the yarn, meet some new knitters and maybe grab a few new readers along the way. I also hope to have the yarn knitted up in time for October 22 -- the 12-year anniversary of my grandmother's passing (and also the 12-year anniversary of the year that the lilacs bloomed in October).

Winners get sock yarn -- I have two lovely skeins of Mountain Colors Bearfoot and some other yummy yarns to share.

Start your engines.

Tick ... Tock ... Tick ... Tock ...

2007-08-10T06:15:00.000-04:00

Note: Knitting content is at the bottom of this post; skip ahead or read the baby update :)

An Update on the Babe

Well folks, the clock is ticking now on L'il I. I will spare you minor details, but suffice it to say that the boy is just about done cooking. At a whopping 4 lbs, 12 oz, the doctors finally have succumbed to my telling them (over and over and over) that I. Give. Birth. To. Little. People.

That's right, Zee was 5 lbs, 13.5 oz, the Yarn Sniffer was just over 5 lbs. This dude is even littler. I'm not worried, though ... they do grow up way too fast for my liking anyway and this buys me some extra snuggly time with a little peanut.

Truth is, though, I've felt pretty miserable for the past few days. My back is killing me, my hips are killing me ... "the girls" are huge (for me, anyway) and are killing me ... I'm just about done.

Good news is that he's really quite happy in there, and the induction has little to do with poor environmental controls. Plenty of fluid, happy placenta ... no reason to think of growth restriction or anything scary. Frankly, I attribute it to this whole gestational diabetes diet. After all, I've said all along that putting me on the stupid thing was counterintuitive -- it seems that for the last month (since the diagnosis and diet restrictions) his gain has slacked off and he's gone from being what they call "AGA" (average for gestational age) to borderline "SGA" (small for gestational age). One of the major risks of GDM is what they call "macrosomia" (big baby syndrome) -- when the baby gets flooded with sugar and, well, gets fat. I clearly don't have that problem. Dr. Awesome joined my fight against it last week and told me to keep sneaking carbs -- if only to hold him at his current weight -- and this week, Dr. Wonderful said those magic words:

Dr: So, how are your sugars?

Me (looking bored): Still non-existent. I can eat a huge plate of stuffed shrimp, bread, a baked potato, a cup of decaf with sugar and a big piece of baby shower cake and my sugar is 101 three hours later.

Dr. (looking a little defeated and a bit sheepish): I think it's safe to say that you're not having problems.

Vindication at last. That very afternoon I emailed the dietician to report ANOTHER week of ZERO weight gain (I lost a pound, he held steady) and asked if she still wanted numbers. She said no more. Thank heavens. So I haven't been sweating it, and I started eating normally again in the hopes that he'll be able to gain a few more ounces before moving day.

Knitting Progress

So, like so many others, I've been participating in the Summer of Socks. I joined for a few reasons: I wanted a kick in the rear to finally get a bunch of socks knit (I don't want to wear commercially made socks this winter) and I also wanted to try to boost my visitors and expand my blogger circle. Each week, the "updater" checks out the blogs she's been assigned and posts an update. Some updaters post longish writeups to hail the progress of their groups. I always read them and visit and comment. Our update posts are a bit too simple for my taste, and I have had few, if any, comments as a result. It's my luck, I suppose.

In other traffic news, I have developed a site where I can post patterns, finished objects, baby and big-kid pics and other things that folks might find interesting. The first thing up was my cuff-down conversion notes for Wendy's Southwestern Socks. She was kind enough to 1) let me do it and 2) mention the document in her blog and urge folks to come on over. To date, that page of my site has received 185 hits. But still no comments. Maybe I'm just not that interesting.

But progress is interesting to me, anyway. Remember how I said I loved the Conwy sock so much I didn't want it to end? Well, yesterday L'il I got himself a Conwy baby hat to come home in (I decided I'm not happy with the hat I did the other week):

I've cast on for a pair of Conwy socks to go with it. Hopefully those will be done today (unless he decides it is way too hot for socks and jumps ship before I can finish them).

I'm also still working on finishing up the Butterfly Lace sock that I started earlier this week. I can't really claim ownership on the stitch pattern, but I will be posting the sock specs as soon as they're done.

I have also toyed around with a Little Shell stitch to go with the Chewy Spaghetti yarn that was originally destined for (another) pair of Monkeys.

The match to the Southwestern Sock will be taken to the hospital with me and (hopefully) completed there.

Now about that contest...

The forthcoming contest I promised you will involve the leaving of comments. Details will be posted later today.

2007-08-07T08:28:00.001-04:00

I'm getting pretty predictable here, aren't I? Sorry folks, but I have more socks to show. Before I do, though, I need to let all readers know that there will be a contest posted here by the end of the week. Be sure to come back and enter ... there's yarn in it for the winner and that's never a bad thing ;)

First, I'm pleased to show you my cuff-down version of Wendy's Southwestern Sock pattern, which is currently available over at The Loopy Ewe. I modified the pattern from toe-up to cuff-down and used a Dutch heel and star toe instead of the standard versions. After asking Wendy's permission, I developed a set of conversion notes for anyone who is interested in doing this pattern cuff down. The sheet is posted here on my web site.

As I said before, these socks are done on #2 dpns in Fleece Artist 2/6 Merino. No name for the colorway, but I really do believe that it's very Southwestern. Definitely reminds me of the chile peppers and deserts and flora I enjoyed in Santa Fe last fall. Agree?

In other news, the Conwy socks are also complete:

Specs? Socks that Rock Lightweight in the "Downpour" colorway on #1.5 dpns. I had enough yarn left over for a few small baby Conwys, which will be done later on down the line. You see, I'm busy doing a sock design of my own:

My apologies for the crappy picture ... there will be a better image as soon as the prototype is finished (most likely tonight or tomorrow morning -- it's a fast knit!)

It's All About the Sock (Yarn)

2007-08-04T08:15:00.000-04:00

One could also call this post "Bed Rest, Week Two," but that would be extremely boring.

I'm still gestating. L'il I will be 36 weeks young on Monday. Not much longer now. As I said in my last post, bedrest is a double-edged sword -- but I will say that amidst the chaos that is my office world (and my "husband-is-cleaning-not-me" home world"), having quiet days to plow through work has been quite nice. Conference calls aren't the easiest thing in the world to manage, but I'm plodding through with only a minor feeling of disconnection from the world.

And a major feeling of connection with my knitting. The past two weeks, as you know, have been filled with socks and other finishing, though progress this week seems a little slow. I'm getting ready for the heel on the second Conwy (which I think I'm dragging on because I LOVE knitting it and I don't want it to end).

I've also been toying with Wendy's new Southwestern Sock (making modifications and doing it cuff-down rather than toe-up). First, I cast on with Mountain Colors Bearfoot in the Yellowstone colorway (and packed it in a bag to take to the hospital). After a few sessions, I realized the yarn was giving me a huge headache. Not that it was being problematic, mind you, but it was literally giving me a migraine. Every time I picked it up to do a repeat, my head was pounding. I think it's the mohair, and I think it needs to go. The sock is sitting now post-heel-turn, pre-gusset pickup, and will most likely be frogged. That's the bad news. The good news is that someone is going to get this yarn -- along with the other skein I have (in the "Jasper" colorway) just as soon as I decide on some sort of contest. Wanna see the sock before I frog it?

So, in my effort to find a good yarn for the Southwestern pattern, I went to my all-time favorite yarn: Fleece Artist 2/6 Merino. I've only used it once (for the Moc Croc socks I did earlier this year) and I fell in love with it. As it turns out, I had a perfect skein. Filled with chile reds and deep greens and golds and some subtle browns, it definitely reminds me of my trip to Santa Fe and Albuquerque last year (plus, it still coordinates with Laura's bag). So I started the sock up with the new yarn. And I have to tell you that this pattern is a fast knit. And further proof that everything is better in Fleece Artist.

Today is Saturday and it's a big knitting day for a bed-rester. I get to watch the men in my life work around the house while I lay on my sofa and knit, knit, knit. I hope to finish the Conwy sock and perhaps even the first Southwestern Sock. Then my next step is identifying the next pattern and a good yarn to go with it. I want to use one of the new skeins and design my own sock. I've been mulling stitch dictionaries and studying Nancy Bush for a good heel and toe (I'd love to do something with a half-hankerchief heel and star toe, but that combo might be better suited for a delicate sock -- and right now I'm not into super-delicate).

And so a question (not the contest). I've done some enhancement over my bedrest period and have new yarns to play with. Which one do you like best?

Chewy Spaghetti in "Lyrical" (this may end up as a Monkey) and Cider Moon in "Kansas"

Schaeffer's "Lola" in Pumpkin Spice and Fleece Artist in "Rainforest"

Mama E's July Sock Club Yarn -- "Boogie Boy Blues"

Mountain Colors Weavers Wool Quarters in "Rosehip" and Mountain Colors 4/8 Wool in "Juniper" (I snuck out to the LYS while the electric company took down a tree and cut my power on Thursday ... it was hot as hell in our house and I needed to go somewhere cool or stay home and get dehydrated)

and lastly, Black Bunny Sock Yarn in "Honeybees."

Thoughts?

"Laziness may appear attractive, but work gives satisfaction..."

2007-08-01T20:19:00.000-04:00

Anne Frank wrote this in a diary entry dated July 6, 1944, and somehow it seems fitting for my current situation. You see, I think all of us at some point envy folks who live the life of leisure and don't have to cook, clean or leave the house for work. I enjoyed it for the first few days, but then the restrictions of having to rest all the time and only being able to leave the house for doctors' appointments set in and it started to feel a bit like prison. Since August 4 is the day that the annex was raided, it seems appropriate to quote her. Now I'm by no means comparing my current plight with hers (few could), but times like these certainly make you realize just how directly Anne hit the proverbial nail on its head.

With the craziness going on at the office, I feel a little guilty for not being there in person, but I've been putting in full days from home and I don't feel nearly as behind as I did when I first landed my butt in this position. In fact, having quiet time to work is quite satisfying. Especially when there are socks to show for it. Here's the first Conwy sock (second has been started):

I cannot tell you how much fun I had with this sock. From the patterned rib at the top all the way down to the cute little star toe (which may be my new favorite), I loved every minute of it. It seems that my Socks that Rock "Downpour" (the yarn that simply had lost its identity months ago and was cast furiously aside into the pit of difficult yarns) has finally claimed a personality. These little ribs on the sock work so well with the striping and even in the lightweight (as opposed to the mediumweight I used for the Unst socks) it knit up at lightning speed.

Like I said, I've started the second, but I'll wait to show you a picture until I've finished.

And now, I'd like to thank everyone who has called to check in, e-mailed good wishes and especially Laura, who stopped by on Friday after our spinner's group meeting for a visit. If you visit her blog, you'll see that she's been sewing a bit lately. Last week she sewed up the cutest sock bag ever, and wouldn't ya know it, the next day she had done another and promised it to me! She brought it over with her and I can't tell you how it cheered me up. It's already packed with a sock to take to the hospital:

The yarn inside is Mountain Colors Bearfoot and the pattern I'm using is Wendy's new Southwestern Sock pattern that you can get for free over at The Loopy Ewe. I should point out here that I'm partial to The Loopy Ewe and that I AM a Loopy Groupie. You can see him in there, but my Loopy postcard is in the bag for a shot with L'il I for the Loopie on Vacation collection. Yeah, I know that the hospital isn't really a vacation, but it will be about as good as he'll see from me this month. He'll take other visits after the babe arrives.

And here's a shot of the outside:

The colors suck in this photo, so if you want better pictures, you'll have to go see Ms. Soapturtle at her place. She did a better job setting up the shot :)

And while you're visiting folks, pop over to see Theresa, whose lovely little girl Zofia was born the same day I hit the big 33. She and I have been chatting and e-mailing back and forth with baby updates for a few months now. I'm about three weeks behind her in my pregnancy, so it's been pretty fun having someone to banter with who also had to deal with a Dr. Serious and a Dr. Wonderful.

And speakng of doctors? I have just one thing to say: Just when I thought Dr. Wonderful was the best of the best, today I had my appointment with Dr. Awesome. More on that later -- and a photo of another new acquisition (came yesterday, but I'm feeling too lazy to go get it and take a picture).

Well, well, well...

2007-07-30T10:57:00.000-04:00

Joyce Grenfell wrote: "Progress everywhere today does seem to come so very heavily disguised as chaos." This is how I'm feeling these days.

Today is the day that L'il I turns 35 weeks ... one week past the point where labor won't be stopped, and five official ones until they would officially declare that he's done cooking. I'm still at home on the sofa, working on work and knitting in my free moments.

I've made a slew of knitting progress.

Allow me to present a finished pair of Unst socks, courtesy of "Knitting on the Road" by Nancy Bush. These are the first socks I've completed from the book (had a few false starts last year), and they are by far the FASTEST socks I've ever knit. I literally started them on Friday and finished them on Saturday. A sock a day. Good lord. It was a whirlwind. The yarn is STR: Obsidian in mediumweight and these were done on #1.5 needles (dpns).

I also finished up a washcloth that has been languishing.

And a burp cloth.

And the Lacy Scallop scarf that I started a year and a half ago. The pattern comes from Wendy's book.

I should point out that I'm halfway through the first leg of the next sock -- Conwy by Nancy Bush -- and, believe it or not, my STR in Downpour is doing GREAT with this pattern. This yarn has been the bane of my existence since I first tried it months ago, and it's been sitting in a bag, all wound up and waiting for a pattern. It gives me great pleasure to say it has found a soulmate and is chugging along nicely. If this goes as quickly as the Unst socks once I get moving, I will be one happy woman. I will show a picture once I'm past the heel.

And on other progress (besides knitting and baby), our massive houseclean is going well. It would go much faster if I were able to get off my butt and help my hubby, but he's doing great solo.

Back to work....

Bed Rest, Week 1

2007-07-26T13:20:00.000-04:00

Well, this is day 7 of modified bed rest, which means I can work from home, fix my lunch and use the facilities. That's about it. Oh -- and I could take myself to the two doctor appts I had this week.

Bad news is that my boss up and quit two days ago. Good news is that I've made some knitting progress. It's amazing how downtime in the evenings (translation -- I don't have to cook dinner, do laundry, coordinate big-kid showers or bedtime routines) can contribute to significant knitting progress.

Firstly, here's one -- yes, just one -- Shapely Sandal Sock. I false-started this sucker three times before actually completing one. I haven't started the second because I'm afraid I'll run out of yarn and the stress is killing me. I'll do it later. The yarn is Claudia's in "Pistachio."

Secondly, I present to you a cute pair of baby socks and matching hat. I have a vision of bringing L'il I home in them -- if I can find an outfit to match, that is. The yarn is Baby Ull, and it was leftover from the Basil blanket I did a while back (it will most likely be too warm to use the blanket for the homecoming, but I'm seriously contemplating it.

And lastly, I give you a finished pair of "Go With the Flow" socks knit with STR medium weight in the "Footzey Foo" colorway. I enjoyed knitting with this yarn so much that I have immediately cast on with STR in "Obsidian" to make a pair of Unst socks.

Now if the baby would continue making such great progress, things will be great.

Mommy: 1, L'il I: 0

2007-07-21T07:50:00.000-04:00

It's been quite a week here at Chez Spinneas, and I'm afraid I just don't have pictures to share it with you. But I'll at least try to keep it short so that it doesn't get too boring.

Tuesday was my birthday. I actually have a draft post saved that's filled with whining about work and how we make a big deal about everyone else's birthday and how the other folks manage to forget mine every fucking year. About how insulting that is, and blah, blah, blah. I got to work that morning to find flowers and a card on my desk (from the boss, believe it or not, though I admit that was awkward when people asked who gave me such a lovely bouquet), numerous well-wishes from the organization in my inbox and tons of smiles and "happy birthday" greetings over the course of the day. Lightened my mood considerably. Add too it the absolutely hilarious card that my aunt sent me and the new dishwasher my husband is getting me and it was a great day. Not that any of that really matters, of course -- my big boys gave me hugs and kisses and tons of love before heading into daycamp and that was really all I wanted, LOL.

On Wednesday, though, I woke up and it was business as usual. Except that I was absolutely exhausted all day long. Unable to get comfortable at my desk, and went to bed early. Thursday, I woke up feeling even worse -- all the physical malaise, but with the added urge to go over EVERYTHING with my assistant so that he was 100 percent up to speed on EVERYTHING going on at the office. Met with my boss about the upcoming budget process. Told him I was feeling odd (I should note that I dropped seriously overnight from Wednesday to Thursday) and that he ought to start moving in the mindset that L'il I was going to be coming sooner rather than later and that the hourglass was almost empty.

You see, I was having the earliest of contractions ... those little ones that feel like teensy weensy menstrual cramps. I had been having them all day, but I planned on telling the doc at my 3:00 appt.

At the appointment later that afternoon, everything moved along just fine. I was seeing Dr. Wonderful (as opposed to Dr. Serious) and I couldn't be happier. First they did the biophysical profile portion (I go for those every week). They hooked me up to the monitor to measure heart rate and contraction activity, and L'il I and I were chugging along. And then he did what he LOVES to do -- he spun around and positioned himself so that the heart monitor flatlined and set off the alarm. I can't tell you how much he likes to freak out the Muggles by doing this, LOL. Then I heard running. Serious high-heel running down the hall. I looked through the curtain and here comes Dr. Serious. Dashing in like a modern-day female swashbuckler, she started asking questions and generally being more than a little concerned.

"Wendy, this alarm means his heart rate is in a danger zone" (yes, I know, this happens a lot)

"Are you lightheaded or dizzy?" (No, not at all)

"You haven't experienced any swelling have you?" (Nope -- Check out my cute crocs while you're checking my ankles -- they'd be a lot more comfortable for you to run down the hall in)

Has he been moving today? (Of course he has, he just twisted around and performed his little trick.)

And then she readjusted the heart rate monitor to the other side (where he was pumping, pumping, pumping) and looked at the printout.

"Who are you seeing today?" (I pointed to Dr. Wonderful, who had been standing behind her for practically the whole exchange and said, simply, "Her," and Dr. Wonderful smiled and stepped in the room.)

Dr. Serious (who incidentally is a more senior partner in the practice) explained why she had come running (as opposed to letting Dr. Wonderful do all of the questions, etc.) and I told them that the contractions were something that I wanted to talk about if the biophysical confirmed what I had been feeling all day. I stayed on the monitor for another 15 minutes or so with my bottle of water and then headed in for the sono portion of my exam after giving yet another urine sample (sometimes UTI can aggravate a uterus, apparently).

In any event, Dr. Wonderful and I chatted about the labor pains I had been feeling all day and she did the sono. L'il I was still head-down (I had told her that already, LOL) and I asked her to do a pelvic exam to check dilation. She swabbed for fibernectin (a protein that indicates labor is taking place) first, and then checked me out. I was 50% effaced and 1 cm dilated.

I was told to get myself to ze hospital to take advantage of their monitoring system and their ability to intervene if necessary. And so I did. You see, L'il I was only 33 weeks, 3 days along -- four days short of the "his lungs are OK, let's push this baby out" deadline.

Hubby picked up Zee and the Sniffer from camp and went home to await further instruction. Phone calls were made to make arrangements for childcare should the need arise. The big winner was Larry the Appreciator, who had already said he'd be first to line up and take care of our boys no matter what time of day we needed him. He loves our boys dearly and packed a bag with his waffle iron and daily necessities (he makes a mean batch of his special homemade waffles and doesn't often have the chance to cook them up for two growing boys who can eat their weight of them) just in case.

I stayed at the hospital getting monitored and poked and prodded for hours. They tried oral hydration to stop the contractions (which were getting regular AND painful) before moving to an IV saline drip and a big dose of nifedipine (none of this worked) before they decided they needed to keep me overnight since the fibronectin test seemed to be botched up in some way. When a woman is going to go into labor in the subsequent 14 days, the cervix begins to secrete the protein fibronectin -- if the test comes back negative, you're pretty much in the clear for two weeks. However, if it comes back positive, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll go into labor in the next two weeks. A negative is what you want. But somehow, mine got botched -- and since cervical exams can cause a false positive, they couldn't repeat the test until 12-24 hours after the last pelvic check. I was doomed to stay at the hospital.

I didn't get to eat any dinner (this totally sucked -- the only real time I actually feel diabetic is when I'm STARVING) and I got moved to a L&D room that had a TV. I should point out here that I really did feel like it was D-day and was starting to worry about hubby and the boys and how they were going to handle a middle-of-the-night dash to the hospital.

Got another dose of nifidipine after my relocation, another bag of saline and I settled into bed. I spent the night alone, getting up every two hours to pee or reposition (not easy with the IV from HELL in your wrist) and to check the monitor printout for contracile activity ... which continued for another few hours (though they weren't as painful). By morning, though, things had calmed down and I was only having 1-2 an hour and they were usually directly related to my rapidly filling bladder (hey, they gave me a million liters of saline, what did they expect?). Had some breakfast, watched "Hairspray" on TV while I worked on my restart of the Shapely Sandal Sock and waited for the doc to come in and give me an all clear and let me go home where I could at least take a shower!

Bedrest was her prescription. My cervix had gone from 1 cm to a fingertip, and so I'm now laid up and stuck watching my boys finish everything that needs to be done before L'il I makes his entrance. I'm now only two days short of the deadline. So if I can make it until next week, there will be no stopping the little booger. He should be close to five pounds at that point (the Sniffer was only 5 lbs, one-half ounce), so not too teensy. His lungs will be ready to take on the world.

I'm hoping that if he comes this week, it will be on the 26th. That was my Granny's birthday, and for some reason, I'm thinking that day could be it. You see my birthday, July 17, was MY great-grandmother's birthday and I always thought that was pretty darn neat. While Gran isn't here to share the yearly call that MaMa and I enjoyed, I think she'd fight her way to the front of the spectator line above and send good vibes (the whole time poking my grandfather in the ribs and saying, "Now William, you just watch -- Wen's gonna have that boy on my birthday the same way Kay had her on your mother's birthday!") The prospect of such a scene makes me smile like an idiot.

But the truth is, there would be a LOT to do in the next four days if that were the case!!

Could It Really Be?

2007-07-11T19:59:00.000-04:00

That I have a finished object?

This morning over coffee, I grafted the toes of the Waving Lace socks. Finally, a finished pair. Part of me can't believe it.

Now these were done in Fleece Artist Sea Wool, and somehow or another they ended up being much longer than expected. I think this -- along with the health issues I've been dealing with -- may have contributed to the incredibly long knitting time. I'm just glad they're done!

I also have a Monkey on the sticks, along with the match for the Go With the Flow socks. All in good time, all in good time. And these Sea Wool socks feel pretty fine on the feet!

Speaking of Independence...

2007-07-05T06:23:00.000-04:00

There are days when I just can believe how grown up the two big boys are:

Here they are yesterday just before marching in the Independence Day parade with their cub scout pack. The Yarn Sniffer is simply thrilled to be a Tiger Scout (Mommy will be his den leader in September) and to have a new uniform. Zee, on the other hand, was more happy than he appears in this picture...

An Update

2007-07-04T07:43:00.000-04:00

First of all, Happy Fourth of July! Most of my day will involve getting my little cub scouts prepared to march in our town's annual Independence Day parade, and waiting at the end with a cooler of water bottles and popsicles (which reminds me that I need to get the freezer stocked with them so they're ready). I'll be the only den leader not marching in the parade, I'm sure, but the guys understand. No one wants to deliver a baby on the parade route :)

The month of June was a wash for me, knitting-wise. Summer of Socks has started very slowly, as I've been dealing with a ton of work stress, home stress, and baby stress. The great news is that the proteinuria issue seems to have resolved (most likely a false alarm), and I'm coming to grips with this whole diabetes thing. The visit to the perinatologist was uneventful on Friday, except that I did get one of those neat-o 3-D pictures. I swear, if I had to describe the image, I'd say "Cezanne on crack meets medical imaging." If hubby would stop nesting long enough to coax our tempermental scanner into working for me, I'd post one of them. At one point, when they had the 3-D paddle on my abdomen, L'il I smiled. I melted. He's fine -- in fact, the doc said that there was absolutely nothing remarkable at the ultrasound. But, because I'm a small-framed woman who has small babies, they do want to do weekly ultrasounds and non-stress tests just to make sure he doesn't get cramped in there. Enter the gestational diabetes.

You simply have to love it when the perinatologist says, "Well, the gestational diabetes diagnosis MAY be real. But you only failed the second number by one point." It kinda confirmed my feeling that perhaps this diagnosis is a CYA maneuver on the part of the obstetrician. But then he and I chatted about the numbers I've been getting (you see, I'm the pain in the butt patient who started testing in advance to make herself feel like she's in control), and he said right now it sounds like diet will do to manage this perceived risk. He did recommend going to the educational class ... and said the diet was pretty logical whether you're diabetic or not. I had been pondering that thought for a few days, and had come to the conclusion that it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have folks take a nutrition class from the get-go anyway. We all get complacent about eating healthy.

Yesterday, I had a big day for baby. Went for the first non-stress test and ultrasound (everything was fine) and afterward had a sit-down with Dr. Serious. I explained to her that I felt as though everything was hitting like a freight train and getting extremely clinical, and how it felt to have "high risk" dropped on you with absolutely no counseling or explanation from a doctor, and how the extra stress was just, well, stressful, and that I didn't appreciate it. I also asked her why the proteinuria wasn't given the opportunity to resolve before the order was given to see the perinatologist, and she couldn't give me an answer (to her credit, it was a different OB that gave the order -- one I hadn't ever seen before). I told her that I fully understood the malpractice threats that OBs are facing (I work for a national medical organization -- urology -- and am well aware of the risks that our specialties are dealing with. Told her that I just resented the fact that I never had the opportunity to have an educated conversation with the OB before we started all of the high-risk approaches to a pregnancy that, aside from the marginal glucose, was progressing fine. She softened a bit, and then backed off a little. Said she was going to go over the perinatologist report in detail, and that she might be willing to go to a two-week biophysical scan schedule for the next few weeks and then re-bump it up to weekly if something catches her eye. I felt more reasonable after actually having the chance to sit and talk about it, and I feel like she met me halfway. She did not budge on the "high-risk" feeling ... but she's willing to move at a pace that's less frantic.

So yesterday, I went to the diabetes class. Two hours of learning about how the placenta is to blame for the whole deal, how carbohydrates should be measured, how many are best for me per meal/snack, how the body accesses fat stores when your sugar is really low, and what foods are "free" and which ones aren't. I now have to check my sugar four times a day and check for ketones first thing in the morning to make sure I'm not accessing the fat stores in my liver overnight. Personally, I think it was a pretty good use of two hours. I haven't really thought about this kind of thing since health class in high school (and that was a while ago). If they had every pregnant woman take a class like this, they might have less problems with GDM diagnoses. I mean, how many of us crave things that we don't normally eat? I'm really not a huge carb eater, and those cravings have waned a bit. It's entirely feasible to think that that glucola would shoot the numbers up and give a false positive. But, had I been eating a reasonable amount of carbs all along, perhaps my pancreas would have been more accustomed to reacting to that much sugar.

I've been tracking my food intake for the past week and monitoring my sugar, but I understand the process a bit better now (for instance, don't have fruit or fruit juice first thing in the a.m.!) and I know what I can fill up on to keep myself from starving. This will be a bit of a change for me, because I'm typically a grazer ... but now I know what I can graze on between meals without ruining my post-meal numbers. The only problem is that I can't have that afternoon jelly crimpet without sacrificing another carb :) I'll live ... and I think I'll feel better as a result. It's also good for the rest of the guys in my house ... they're already making comments to each other like, "Mommy says you should eat some cheese instead of having a bowl of pretzels" or "that has too much sugar in it and it will give you a sugar high." My hubby usually does most of the cooking and he's been focusing more on side salads and proteins, and watching his own carb portions too. What cracks me up is that I find cookie wrappers in the trash in the morning because he's snacking in the evening after I'm out of sight :)

June was a wash with knitting. Only a few socks finished, but I hope to pick up some steam in July. I have a Monkey in progress, along with the waving lace match and the go with the flow match. I hope July will bring a return to normal activities and go more smoothly than June!

Random Friday

2007-06-29T06:18:00.000-04:00

Since I can't remember which day is the "random" day for blog posting, I'm doing it on Friday. As I've never bothered to do an "eye-candy" post on a Friday, I'm not breaking any of my own traditions. Besides, I have a lot on my mind.

Enter the Mouse.
Ask The Yarn Sniffer what he wants to be when he grows up and he'll give you a one-word answer followed by a single caveat: "Steve. But I don't want to get stabbed in the heart by a stingray." TYS has a ferocious love of animals fueled by intense emotion that is incredibly endearing. I could tell you multiple stories about it -- how he cried when he released a lightning bug because he was happy the bug would be returning to his family, about "Erik Taylor" the snake, Sammy the hermit crab, etc. So I'm in a quandary. This morning, I was sitting in the bathroom when a mouse came in through the crack on the hing-side of the door. He saw me and fled -- he had an easier time getting in than getting out, and it was comical to watch. I now have to figure out how to deal with this mouse humanely and, if possible, without alerting the Sniffer. A regular trap won't do (ew!) and a sticky trap would make TYS quite upset. Please chime in.

Supreme Court Integration Decision
Forty years ago, race was a huge issue in the United States. It still is, though I often feel that basing certain decisions on race (i.e. affirmative action) are being outgrown and outdated. In my own opinion (and it's my own, remember this is my blog and my opinions and I'm not trying to piss anyone off here, just making statements), some of these practices have let folks to make decisions for specious reasons. I'd be very interested in a social scientist's opinion on this, as well as seeing some data on racial breakdowns vs. full socioeconomic breakdowns for the school districts in question. Integration and affirmative action are true milestones in civil rights, but few people seem to have addressed the full socioeconomic profile as an alternative. It doesn't matter whether you're white, black, yellow, brown or purple -- kids are kids and deserve equal opportunities. I suspect the results could be quite interesting if you look at it this way.

Life's Catastrophe
Over the past month, it's been one crisis after another at Chez Spinneas. The non-baby related crises have resolved so far, and all that remains are baby issues. It started with a bad protein level in a urine dip that resulted in a bad 24-hour urine test (that was a blast, let me tell you). Then a failed one-hour glucose tolerance test turned into a failed three-hour glucose tolerance test that has resulted in a "we're going to treat you like a gestational diabetic" approach to my pregnancy. Factor in the fact that I tend to have five-pound infants (this is actually quite normal in my family), and the fact that I am with a new OBGYN practice this time around who does not feel a need to review my past records, and all of a sudden, I'm a high-risk pregnancy even though I feel quite fine, thank you very much. The only thing different about this pregnancy is that I'm older this time around, I have a higher-stress job, and I feel like my uterus has worse suspension than a pair of worn out truck shocks.

So what does this mean? Well, it means I've been checking my sugar levels with a glucometer for the past week (first with a cheap-o that I picked up to make myself feel like I was in control over the weekend, now with a OneTouch Ultra that insurance paid for that seems to be giving me more accurate numbers), eating three meals a day plus snacks (as opposed to the five or six smaller meals that make me feel better and more consistent), and freaking myself out on a regular basis. Having gestational diabetes does not scare me. Pricking my finger constantly doesn't bother me. What does bother me is the fact that this "official" meal pattern is driving L'il I nuts. For the first four days (while I was using the cheap-o monitor), I was doing as much as I could to keep my sugars in line and probably over-tested myself. Problem was, every time I felt like I was starving and needed to eat, it showed a high glucose level that indicated that I needed to exercise and bring it down. I'd go take a walk and then be even more hungry with a high level. The baby got very quiet, too. Once I got the OneTouch on Wednesday, the numbers seem to be more in line with how my body feels ... when I'm starving, it's low, when I'm ready to curl up and sleep, they're high. Makes more sense to me, so I'm tossing out those other numbers (not just for this reason, but for the fact that I tested the same blood sample on both meters on Wednesday and found that the OneTouch was FIFTY points lower than the other. No wonder I felt like I've been starving myself. It's been much easier since -- and I hope that the dietician I have to see on Tuesday will concur!

Today I head out for an appointment at a perinatal center, where I will undergo a level III ultrasound of L'il I because of the urine dip issue (keep in mind that I dipped clear at my last OB appointment, and my own personal feeling is that they should have checked levels further before initiating this referral -- especially since I have sought opinions of three urologists who tell me that the numbers are only slightly elevated and worth observation, not necessarily intervention). Good news is that I get to see L'il I today -- pictures are always great and as long as nothing is wrong, I hope to post one this weekend so everyone can see him.

Not All Things are Equal

2007-06-28T05:37:00.000-04:00

My apologies for the long absence from blogging. Remember that post about my life being a catastrophe? Well, more crap kept getting piled on top of the existing crap and, well, for about a week now I have been fairly consumed with it and haven't done much knitting, despite the commencement of Summer of Socks last Thursday.

I'll try to share some of the trials and tribulations in an update later today, but I wanted to make sure everyone knew I was still alive (and still pregnant).

Catastrophe (Part 2) and Partial Resolution

2007-06-13T07:00:00.000-04:00

I suppose that no comment means no happy vibe. I flunked the glucose test, as well as the protein "dip" on Friday. What does that mean? Well, not to give too much information or anything, but suffice it to say that I had to do a 24-hour urine collection and now have to suffer the four-hour glucose test ... which is absolute torture. I don't have the urine results yet, but at least I'm not showing any of the other signs of pre-eclampsia. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that it all works out ... I'm taking a very Scarlet O'Hara approach to the whole thing, namely because we're heading out for an unexpected four days at the beach starting tonight. Hubby and I figure that we need to do this soon for the boys ... in case I end up delivering early or ending up on bedrest.

That's only part of the catastrophe that has been my life (though admittedly, things do work themselves out fairly well -- even though I stress uncontrollably). I'm not the most pious person out there, but I do believe that everything happens for a reason and sometimes it takes a bolt of lightening to get things done.

I honestly can't remember if I've shared the continuing saga of our 95 Honda, other than telling everyone how it overheated and gave us a fit last year just before Christmas (smack in the middle of the holiday season). Our friend the mechanic checked it out and unveiled a leaky water pump, which we nursed for as long as humanly possible before finally going in to get an estimate on repairs last Thursday after it overheated again. It wasn't just the water pump -- the crimps on the radiator were leaking and it was going to cost more than a grand to get the stupid thing fixed. Now keep in mind this is a two-door car that I was using to haul two growing boys around and it was really only a matter of time before we had to take the plunge into "we have a car payment again" territory. We bought the car on a lark from friends when they couldn't get a reasonable trade-in for it two years ago -- and we did it primarily so that I could finally learn to drive a manual transmission (something I've wanted to do since I learned to drive!). The car served its purpose, and it was time for it to go bye-bye.

So last Friday I left the world of "sporty mom with a stick shift coupe" to "elementary school mama with a minivan" ... It feels very odd to drive something so much larger, and stressful to have the burden of a car payment (and more expensive insurance), but we'll be OK. The yarn budget will likely suffer (though I've been building a nest in yarn, so this shouldn't be a tremendous buzz-kill for the knitting), but the van is lovely and I'm very happy. The best part was that my husband trusted me to handle the whole thing since he couldn't get out of work last week and knew it had to be done (he always trusts me, but this was a big purchase and I was very nervous).

Wanna see?

And on another note, before we found out that L'il I was on his way, we had discussed the possibility of getting new furniture for our living room. We decided against the purchase not for monetary reasons, but rather because babies are messy. In an odd twist of fate late last week and early this week, we've managed to procure yet another big thing:

Again, very lovely. It's a pretty green plaid, and it cost a song. It's new to me, and in my eyes, it's in perfect condition. It also looks great in our Cape Cod's living room and it complements the spinning wheel :)

Blogging on knitting will return next week after our beach trip -- the socks are progressing. First waving lace sock is complete and the second one coming along; I'm on the gussets for the first "Go with the Flow" sock, which I'm also quite happy with. I'm trying not to start another sock until the Summer of Socks starts next Thursday!

Four Weeks, Eight Socks (or, My Life, the Catastrophe)

2007-06-06T06:21:00.000-04:00

It occurred to me that I never blogged to tell everyone that I actually made it home. Well, I did. The return trip was not without major drama, so I won't tell you how all flights (American Airlines) through Dallas were cancelled and how we had to order new tickets from Southwest (love them) and how we spent the day in the airport waiting for that flight, only to find that it was delayed more than 90 minutes and how we didn't get home until 3 a.m. Nope, not gonna explain any of that :)

Instead, I'll share some sock progress.

Ze Jaywalkers are done. Regia silk color on size 1 Pony Pearl needles (airline safe, you see):

And so are the #2 Monkeys, completed just yesterday. Colinette Jitterbug on my standard metal dpns, size 0. I bought this yarn before the trip and have absolutely fallen in love with it.

The Jitterbug is delightfully smooshy and sproingy, but the yardage is scant. These Monkeys are short one cuff repeat and one foot repeat for a size 5 foot. They're snug, but I love them. I've actually bought two more skeins of this yarn -- one in the "plum" colorway and one in the "olive" colorway. I haven't picked patterns specifically yet, but I will soon.

As soon as I finish the next two socks in progress.

I finally figured out what to do with that Fleece Artist Sea Wool ("Spring" colorway), as well as the Socks that Rock that I've been struggling to choose a pattern for.

Over the weekend, while I was laid up on the sofa with Achilles Tendonitis (still really bothering me) after a week that consisted of two trips to the Department of Motor Vehicles, one trip to the dentist (old filling jumped ship), a busted AC at work (that was Tuesday -- welcome back to work) and a trip to the internist (on Friday for the ankle), I struggled with the sea wool yet again, determined to pick a pattern that would showcase this lovely stuff. I finally opted for Evelyn Clark's Waving Lace sock from Interweave's "Favorite Socks" ... which I finally broke down and purchased. What you see on the left in the photo above is Sunday's sock progress. It's amazing what you can do when you're relegated to doing nothing. Another repeat and I'll be at the toe on the first sock. They're a bit longer than usual for me, but I'm really hoping the yardage holds for its mate. The yarn is light and airy and fun to knit, and I've no doubt that these will become nice Spring/Fall socks. Not too heavy and not too warm.

At this point, I need to issue a formal apology to two of my cousins -- my ankle rendered me unable to attend one's graduation party on Sunday, and to see his sister's new baby. I just couldn't walk and I feel horrible for not being there!
The sock on the right is also an Evelyn Clark -- the Go with the Flow pattern started in the Socks that Rock "Footzey Foo" colorway. I've completed the fourth pattern repeat on the leg (it calls for 20) and it's one of the fastest patterns around. What's even better is that the pattern is super easy to remember -- which makes this pattern a great one for carrying along on doctor's trips, DMV debacles and anything else that happens to come my way (today it will most likely be the mechanic ... I think my water pump is finally hosed).

Not to be outdone by the car, this week's announcement from L'il I is that we head off on Friday for our Rho-gam shot and one-hour glucose torture test. I've managed to fail by one point for the other pregnancies (which culminates in a four-hour hell), so I'm hoping this one will be better. Send happy vibes!

There's No Place Like Home

2007-05-24T09:42:00.000-04:00

... and I'm headed here today. Thank goodness.

I've been in Anaheim, California on business since last Wednesday. Nine days for something like this is a looooooong time. Especially when you're pregnant.

At least it's beautiful here (though the weather didn't warm up until yesterday).

Not much knitting progress has been done these past few days, other than fiddling with the Sea Wool. I decided to rip it out and put it back in the suitcase and focus instead on the jaywalker, which will be my plane sock today. It enjoyed the gardens at my hotel.

I did manage to make it to Disneyland one day -- 5:30 on a Tuesday afternoon seems to be a good time to see characters ... or at least the hosts with the most.

There was no way I was going to wait in line for a "real" picture, so for all of the character pics, you usually end up with strange children in there, too.

And you'd never guess it, but I also stumbled one one of these in a shop window on Mainstreet USA:

Getting a good photo was very difficult (I was really trying hard not to step on overtired children), but this is definitely an antique wheel. It had some spun wool on the bobbin and roving hanging from the flyer. Makes me miss my wheels!

I'm not sure if anyone really cares to look, but I've posted a full set of pics on Flickr. You can see them

Help! (Seriously)

2007-05-19T07:51:00.000-04:00

I'm getting ready to have my third full day in California, and if you look at the EDT date stamp on this post and subtract three hours, that's what time it is out here on the West Coast. The worst part of this is that I won't be done this evening until at least 11 p.m. Ugh.

But this is not why I need help. You see, I'm having some troubles with the Sea Wool, and was hoping for some feedback. Last night I tried on the cuff (did this yesterday and it was too tight to move over my heel, so I cast on again with the proper size needles and seemed to get better gauge--8 st/in) and this is what I saw:

See the ladders? Well, this picture just doesn't show you how bad they are. What should I do? Increase the number of stitches, cast on again and try one more time? Anyone have a good pattern for sea wool?

Since it's early and I'm not quite awake yet, I've opted instead to go back to the tried and true Jaywalker, who is slowly earning its trip to a theme park tomorrow night by being a true solace in this time of need (I detest frogging socks). As you know, I've done the first and this is the match. Not too far along just yet, but getting there.

The Jaywalker is quite nice in Regia silk, yes?

California Monkey Business

2007-05-18T09:00:00.000-04:00

The flight out here to California was a long one ... broken up with a short layover in Dallas and a mad dash to a last-minute gate change (not fun in DFW period, much less for a pregnant woman) and three-hour legs on either end. Absolutely exhausting.

The Monkey Socks would like for me to tell you that they are now complete as a result. They were not happy freaking out the muggles on the airplane, and absolutely refused to be photographed over the mountains of the west. They did, however, enjoy the chair in my room at the Hilton and agreed to be photographed as they lounged in their completed state:

I haven't yet told them that I didn't bring appropriate shoes to take them out for a stroll...

In other news, there was a little progress on the second of the Jaywalkers, and I've started the Bordello Socks in a lovely green Sea Wool from the Loopy Ewe ... it's the pattern on the yarn band (I only brought the Monkey and Jaywalker patterns with me). These are done on 52 stitches on size 2 needles. I expect rapid progress. I started working on these at 5 a.m. PDT.

So that's all for now. My media facility opens today at noon and there are still a few details to hammer out before opening. It's time to get ready and go to work!

A Quick One Before I Go Away

2007-05-16T05:46:00.000-04:00

I've been up since 4 a.m. Pregnancy leg cramp, coupled with the fact that I'm getting ready to fly to California today. My cab will pick me up in about 70 minutes.

Over the past week or so, I've been getting quite a few questions from folks who want to know what I do that has me travelling so much. Well, I'm going to break my rule regarding blogging about work right now. (I just don't think it's a road you should go down because before you know it, you slip and complain about some jerk in the office, the Corporate Comm folks see your blog and well, then your private life just isn't so private anymore and you have taken real risks). I do corporate communications/media relations/public relations for a major medical nonprofit physician's organization. This week is our big annual scientific meeting, and we're going to be in Anaheim, California. Watch the news over the next week or so and see if you can figure out which meeting/organization it is and take a guess in the comments.

In any event, for me this year the challenge for this trip has been three-fold: how to manage my four-day maternity wardrobe over a nine-day meeting, getting the boys together and ready for me to leave (that's all FOUR boys -- two kids, husband and dog) and figuring out what knitting to take with me. You see, on my last trip I had to make an emergency trip for cotton. I don't plan on making an emergency trip for sock yarn in California -- particularly because I can't identify a decent yarn shop within a decent radius of the convention center. So I'm going prepared. Today on the plane, I plan to work on the partners to these:

The pinkish one on the left is the Monkey I completed on Monday and on the right is the Regia Silk Jaywalker that took me an astounding two days to complete. Given that I'm already 2/3 of the way through the leg on the second Monkey and currently doing the leg ribbing on the Jaywalker, I'd say there's a chance for real progress on today's two-leg flight through DFW.

But I'm definitely prepared to finish. In my suitcase I have another two skeins of Regia Silk, a hank of Sea Wool and the Footzey Foo Socks that Rock that I ordered a while back. If I have enough time to complete eight socks on this trip (three from the yarn in the suitcase and the pair on the plane today), I'll suffer from Knitter's Claw for sure.

Oh -- one more thing before I dash off. The MocCrocs were finished on Saturday too.

More from Sunny California later this week!

I Only Have Two Feet

2007-05-11T08:11:00.000-04:00

So what in the world is up with THIS?

The current socks of my world, clockwise from lower left: MocCroc, one complete and the second on the foot section; Monkey's in Colinette Jitterbug (I actually meant to do these toe-up because I'm not sure I can gauge yardage right) and three Jaywalkers (don't ask) -- one in Ellen's Half Pint Farm merino/tencel blend from Stitches, one in Opal's "Owl" colorway and one in Regia silk.

I don't know how it came to this, really. Part of this I can blame on the sock virus that's going around, but part of it is attributed I'm sure to my upcoming nine-day business trip in California. Girl needs a plane project, after all. I usually do shawls, but these days I'm just not feeling the love. I figure a couple of socks in progress (the ones that are on Pony dpns or the rosewood dpns are doable on the plane) ought to do the trick. At least until the flight home :)

A word about the patterns. Now I thought that MocCroc had to be one of the fastest ones I've done. I was wrong -- the Jaywalker knits at lightning speed! The Regia one is less than 24 hours worth of knitting (with a workday in the mix) and I'm just about ready for the heel. I understand Cara's obsession with these socks, and I see myself wanting to make a million pairs (hence the other two in progress).

Thoughts?

Maryland, My Maryland (S&W)

2007-05-06T06:46:00.000-04:00

All week long, I've been waiting for the anticipation and the anxiety to set in for MDS&W ... that Christmas Eve feeling that is difficult to shake and makes concentration at work quite difficult. On Friday night, I was more than a little worried.

But yesterday morning, I woke up at FIVE THIRTY IN THE MORNING and could hardly keep myself from fidgeting with excitement. It didn't help that there was a very loud group of baby birds outside who were obviously very hungry and trying to wake Mama Bird. Fortunately, my little chicks were all still asleep.

I fought off the anxiety, got myself prepared for the day, packed my bag and left my house at 7:30. I expected much more traffic than there actually was, and I got to the fairgrounds in about 30 minutes. Even though it was eight o'clock, there were tons of people going in already, so I wandered into the grounds, picked up my directories and started scoping out the vendors. My friend wasn't due to meet me there until 9, so I had an hour to kill.

I wandered with the knowledge that the gates don't technically open until 9, ogling yarns and rovings and animals and then happened upon David Paul at The Merlin Tree's booth. I stopped to smile at all the cute little wheels lined up and Dave started chatting. I told him who I was (we talked on the phone last week about saving me a wheel) and before I knew it, he and I had picked my specimen from the row and I was seated, being shown how this little beauty works and taking a practice spin. After I spun for a bit, the deal was cinched. I paid up and Dave even autographed the wheel for me (after all, he builds them by hand -- they're a work of art):

Honestly, I don't know that there's anyone quite as nice as Dave.

To complete my early circuit, I went up to the main exhibition haul to scope out the Koigu booth (I wanted to be there when the Koigu frenzy started so I could watch it ... it's like a 10-cent panty sale at the department store.) I walked the whole hall, but alas, no Koigu. Apparently they were a no-show and rumors were floating of a broken foot. I consoled myself with a much-sought-after-and-coveted Grafton batt. I think that the vendors who actually had Koigu (like the Mannings) really cleaned up.

From there, I started heading back to the front gates to wait for my friend when I ran into Knitty D and The City. They drove down on their own (as opposed to coming with the rest of the Rosie's crew) to make it in time for the Koigu rush, and so I had to break the news. Wendy and I left Christina in the Socks that Rock line at The Fold and we went to check the main hall one more time. This is what Knitty D had to deal with. She's on the far left bending over (sorry Christina!) and Wendy's on the other side in the pink tee:

Wendy and I walked through the main hall and then parted ways back at The Fold's booth. We swapped cell numbers and I went to meet my friend. Sadly, the mayhem of the day prevented us from hooking up again.

Memories from the rest of the day are far less linear. Animals, shopping, animals, more animals, more shopping ... My friend, her husband and I wandered through all the barns and booths, fondling fibers and talking about what spins well and what doesn't, how uncontrollable a stash can be without a plan (her stash rivals mine) and just having a lot of fun. We work together, you see, which is why she's going nameless here, and it's always really nice to do things outside the office with someone that's as much fun as she is. Her husband was a real trooper, too. He carried the Hitchhiker the whole day!

We saw the dog demos:

We wandered a bit more and then parted ways. I headed to get some lunch (got a lamb sausage from the Boy Scouts) and finally plopped down on a bench to rest and eat. Ran into Caroline from my spinning group and chatted and then, at 1, headed out to the blogger meetup.

The blogger meetups always drive me nuts. No matter where people say they're going to meet, it's hard to find -- primarily because we rarely see each others' faces! Unless you pick out something totally awesome to wear (like the socks I saw on the hill -- I don't know her name, but they were amazing), it's very tricky! So I plopped down with Sarah and a few other gals from spinners group and looked around, trying to pick out Gryphon with no luck. Oh well. It was a chance to take a load off, anyway.

By then, it was about 2 o'clock and I had just about had it. So I started heading back to the gates, stopping here and there to pick up little things (like some lovies for the boys -- even the wee one). I finally made it to the car and headed out. So here's the haul:

Clockwise from back left: HitchHiker Wheel from The Merlin Tree, a white batt of California Red from Apple Rose Farm, three ounces of alpaca fleece, Grafton fiber batt (dead center), silk hankies from A Touch of Twist, along with a few cocoons to process on my own, Cormo roving from Winterhaven Fiber Farm. The stuffed llama is for the wee one (each of the boys got one too, but they were asleep when I took this picture).

What you can't see in the picture is a ball of Jacob Sheep roving and a combo sett-stick and orifice hook from Woodchuck:

All in all, it was a good day. A fibery day. A friendly day. I'm seriously fighting the desire not to race back today, but I was very good with my budget and there's a lot to do around the house. There isn't anything else that I can't live without and truth be told, yesterday took more out of the pregnant lady than she cares to admit. But last night's dreams were sweet and I can always play with my new toy today to take my mind off of the festival itch!

Kitchener and Coffee

2007-05-04T06:48:00.000-04:00

I don't know what's gotten into me lately with these socks.

Last night I finished up the first MocCroc and this morning, over coffee, I grafted the toe. Why not last night? Well, I decided that I'd wait and instead cast on for something small in Baby Ull. Here are the two together:

I have this vision of the wee one coming home in a pair of hand-knit socks.

And in festival news, tomorrow's the day! Is everyone ready?

Que sera, sera

2007-05-03T06:56:00.000-04:00

Over the past few days, I've been googling MDSW and "Maryland Sheep and Wool" and not getting much in terms of blog entries. I wonder why? Last year, it seemed EVERYONE was buzzing about the festival and making plans and the anticipation all over Blogland was just plain palpable. Maybe, though, it was because it was my first time and I was so hyped up I just couldn't stand it? So what will this year's festival be like?

For me, it will be an interesting venture. I have the pleasure of accompanying a MDSW virgin around the show. She says she's excited to be going with someone who knows what they're doing (I didn't have the heart to tell her...ha!). I gave her her first spinning lesson on Monday at lunchtime and she's very enthusiastic. I think we'll have fun -- I love to show people new things and she's eager to see.

I also have a much more precise list this year than I had a year ago. Last year, the festival for me was all about the fibers -- I was a novice spindler at the time who was scoping out spinning wheels, new spindles and sampling fibers like a madwoman. This year, I know what I like and what I don't. I know what I can deal with, what colors I will actually use and, believe it or not, what I'd like to actually knit with the homespun.

I have a small list. It's tagged with vendor names so I know where to go for things directly, and I'm planning on keeping myself to the list with only one exception. If I find the booth where I bought Sugar Pie last year, I'm picking up more of her wool. Other than that, there are only five or six things there besides the Hitchhiker.

Last year for me, the hype around the Koigu mill ends and The Fold's booth (for the Socks that Rock, or STR) were an enigma. We wandered around looking for the postage-stamp-sized Koigu booth FOREVER and didn't find it until very few mill ends were left. (For the record, I got some, just to say I did.) I ended up getting my Koigu at the Mannings booth and I left with no Socks that Rock. This year, the Koigu and the STR are no longer mystery yarns. You see, this is what Stitches East did to me. Koigu mill ends were quite plentiful there (this is why they vaporized at MDSW last year, apparently -- vendors bought them to sell elsewhere I'm sure) and I had no problem whatsoever securing STR. I bought three skeins of lightweight (maybe the mayhem is over the mediumweight? Well, I've got news for you folks, they have it on-line and no elbows will jab you).

So I'm avoiding the mayhem, taking my time and having fun without shopping stress. What will be, will be.

Which brings me to the actual knitting content of this post. Firstly, the Moc Croc sock is nearly done. The pattern has a six-row repeat, and I try not to work on it unless I can do all six rows (I'm keeping track of the repeats so the second sock is the same) and work and life just haven't given me that kind of time. One more repeat, though, and I'm off the finish the first and start the second.

Now the STR sock is a different story. Let me tell you something about this guy. It is stubborn and resisted every time I tried to make it do what I wanted it to. What will be, will be.

I bought this yarn ("Downpour" colorway in lightweight) at Stitches East in November and it's been marinating in the stash ever since. I pulled it out a few weeks ago and wound it up. I cast on for a toe-up sock with a figure 8 cast on. I knit a few inches and decided that I hated the toe. Rrrrip! Did a rectangular toe (provisional with pickups) and went for a bit and realized that I hated that one too. Ugh. Put the yarn and needles aside in the UFO pile. This weekend, in my frenzy, I picked up the yarn again and tried it in a cuff-down Moc Croc. Too stripey -- hated it and ripped again. Started the Moc Croc in Fleece Artist instead. Found the lacey scallops pattern and gave that a try (that's what was in the other post). I went two pattern repeats and really hated that one too.

Finally, two nights ago, I sat the yarn down and gave it one last chance. Where these patterns not fancy enough for it? Is it too good for a lace motif?

Not at all. Turns out it just wants to be a plain old, cuff-down, stockinette sock. Que sera, sera.

Embracing the Mojo

2007-05-01T07:06:00.000-04:00

For months, I've felt stricken -- lost without my sock mojo. This weekend, however, it came back with a vengeance like I've never felt before.

Allow me to explain. On Friday night, I came home from spinner's group at Cloverhill and picked up a new set of miters I've been working on (sorry, no pics -- it's very boring right now) and tinkered a bit before going to bed.

On Saturday morning, I woke up, poured myself some coffee and picked up the miters. They just weren't working for me. And, out of the blue, I picked up an unfinished object from the UFO pile and tackled the rest of this:

I only had three inches and the ribbing left on my butter pecan Lorna's Laces Widdershin. Pounded it right out and felt pretty good about finishing it (the jury is out on whether or not I'm going to make the match -- this yarn did NOT appeal to me and it's going to be a challenge to get me to cast on for the next one).

Feeling good about myself, I raided the UFO pile again and found another Lorna's Laces sock (notice a pattern here of abandoned socks?!?). These were the Carol Green socks that I started for the Yarn Sniffer about a year ago. I had only completed the ribbing. I started knitting away.

Now, for some odd reason, I had started this one cuff down (I've always been a toe-up devotee). I finished this sock up in record time and immediately cast on for the second. He was positively thrilled when he saw it was done and announced that he was going to wear Sock #1 while he waited for me to crank out #2 (I assured him that this could take some time so he took it off and the sock sat on my shoulder while I knit.) The second sock was finished by Sunday morning and they were deemed "awesome" by the Sniffer.

He slept in them that night and then wore them to school yesterday. They seemed to be the charm that helped the tooth come out :)

Not to stop the momentum, on Sunday after the green socks were done, I cast on with some Fleece Artist for a MocCroc sock from KnitPicks. Let me first say that this is by far one of the fastest, most enjoyable socks I have ever knit. Rapid progress often shows my delight with a project.

Then, that night when I reached the heel flap on the MocCroc, I cast on for some Lacy Scallop socks from Sockbug. I'm not far into this one yet, but so far so good.

The mojo has returned. Along with peace in my knitting mind (and the UFO pile).

At Random

2007-04-30T19:20:00.000-04:00

On my commute home this afternoon, I formulated a post in my head about comfort zones and sock knitting mojos, and a few of my favorite people in the world (outside my family, of course).

But then I got to daycare and was greeted with this face:

It's a big day in a kindergartener's life when you lose your first tooth.

He's been waiting for this for a long time ... but maybe his new green socks (yes folks, socks -- and there's more on that front when I get the originally planned post written up).

It's Coming Around the Corner...

2007-04-27T13:28:00.000-04:00

That's right, folks. Maryland Sheep and Wool 2007 is coming up, and I hope to be there on Saturday and possibly Sunday as well. Gryphon is setting up a meet-up on Sunday, in case anyone has an interest (can't guarantee I'll be there).

I, like so many others I have read, have a bit of a problem when it comes to planning out the shopping for the festival. Last year it was obvious: spinning wheels, fiber, Koigu and a Bosworth spindle. This year, I already have one wheel (do not be deceived -- keep reading), more fiber than I can possibly spin -- including some from last year's festival haul, a solid on-line source of Koigu and two Bosworths. What could I possibly want to pick up at MDS$W? I've started a list:

-One of these. Don't try to talk me out of it; I've already called Dave to discuss and there's one with my name on it waiting on Saturday.

-Brooks Farm something. Four play, perhaps? I'd like to at least touch it and see what the big deal is.

-A yummy, multi-colored fiber batt that I can spin up for a fine fall/early winter scarf.

-More of those sock-needle elastic cappers that I bought at Stitches East last fall. I keep losing them.

And that's about it. Maybe a shawl pin if something catches my eye. A stuffed sheep for the wee one perhaps.

Surprising, no?

Wrapping Things Up

2007-04-25T07:36:00.000-04:00

Pssst! Come over -- I have some things to show you.

You see, this week I've been busy actually FINISHING things!

Here's Kiddie Miter Blankie #1, finished Sunday evening with a simple, single-crochet edge. I call it #1 because The Yarn Sniffer (TYS) has deemed it incredibly cuddly and would like one of his own.

And here's Basil the Wonder Blanket, with a shortened picot edging:

Picot close-up:

I'm doing a happy dance. I feel like I'm back on the Marathon to finish things. Press soon on the newer stuff!

(Bad personal photo courtesy of TYS)

Just a Quickie

2007-04-23T06:10:00.000-04:00

This will be a short, pictureless post. Not because I didn't make any additional progress, but because the photos would. be. boring. With a capital B.

Mitered Blanket:
The baby blanket miters are complete. Finished up the last one yesterday with a flourish and the blanket was deemed a success by many parties in my house (the ones that have taken an interest, anyway -- Zee hasn't had an eye for this one). Now I only have to do the edging. Today at lunch I head out to the Big Box that Shall Not Be Named to look for some dark green and a size F crochet hook to finish this one up. Then there will be pictures.

Basil:
Yes, Basil has not gone away. After the miters were done yesterday, I picked this up and slogged along a big on that incredibly tedious border. Only about two and a half rows to go before cast-off. Having been rather successful knitting without peeking on the miters, I've realized that I don't have to watch every single knit stitch go by and that multi-tasking (i.e. watching a movie with Hubby) is possible with only a small risk of a dropped stitch. So that's chugging along -- one more movie and I'll be ready to cast this off (finally) and call it a day.

Spinning:
I've dubbed this wool "Hydrox." The Hydrox cookie was the enduring predecessor to the Oreo, and the name resonated well with Knitting Auntie of Aran Fame when she popped in for a quick visit on Saturday. The first bobbin is now filled and the second is coming along. It looks exactly the same as the first bobbin, hence no pictures. Once I get the third filled and my first three-ply completed, I'll be happy to put it on display.

Assorted Little Projects:
I've been toting a little baby bib around with me that I managed to whip out a few rows on, but no real progress to be seen. I also played a bit with some burp-cloth appropriate stitch patterns but can't seem to find one I really like. Any ideas?

Progess

2007-04-21T13:21:00.000-04:00

This morning was a fibery one at Chez Spinneas.

Finished another miter and started another. Only one more full square to go and then on to the edging for the baby blanket:

And I have nearly filled the first bobbin of the Romeldale:

I've been thinking about this ... after all, this is what I'm spinning for Flair. I'll need about 800 yards or so of worsted-size yarn. I did a wraps-per-inch calculation on the spindle-spun this morning, and it's still a little thin. A three-ply ought to bring me up to worsted with this homespun. So, my plan is to fill three bobbins and ply them and see how much I can get yardage-wise. Then I'll have a solid idea of how much spinning I'll need to do.

Since I have such an obscene amount of this wool (The Yarn Sniffer saw it this morning and said, "Whoa, that's a huge stack of wool, mom") I don't think I'll have a problem meeting the quota. In fact, I may have enough to do some matching socks or perhaps a little hat to go with it. How cute would that be?

What a Whorl, What a Whorl ...

2007-04-20T14:08:00.000-04:00

Today, I took one of those bloggy quizzes ... the Sesame Street Personality quiz. I am Bert, and that frightens me. If anyone cares to find out who they are, you can access the quiz here.

In any event, enough about muppets and on to more appropriate content. This will be a short post, because pictures are worth more than words.

I've been spinning:

This is peacock merino/tencel from Kendig Cottage, and it has taken me forever. This is four ounces, Navajo plied. I don't know when I'm going to tackle the other four, because another Romneydale fleece has touched my heart. Anyone remember Oreo from last year? Well, his/her cousin (I like to think) has resurfaced, and at February's spinner's group I purchased an obscene amount. I have enough of this lovely fleece to last me for some time. I have some on the bobbin already.

But I also decided to spindle some of it. Firstly, to get an idea of what thickness to go for (this is the wool I'm going to use for Flair) and partially to get back into the spin of it so I can teach a co-worker who is chomping at learning to spin.

I didn't do much, but this is an Andean plied two-ply bit of goodness. That's a dime for scale.

More progress from the weekend in a few days!

On Coming Home

2007-04-17T06:09:00.000-04:00

I was in Tampa from Wednesday through Sunday at a medical communicators conference. It was a fabulous trip (despite pregnancy fatigue and swollen feet), but it's always great to come home. However, coming home was not the most pleasant experience.

As everyone no doubt knows, the East Coast was hit with a Nor'easter this past weekend whose winds are still lingering. Florida was not exempt from the bad weather the storm brought along. To wit, here's a picture I took of the fountain in front of the hotel (one of the ones that the miter enjoyed on Friday afternoon) as my co-worker and I were waiting for our cab to go to the airport at 9 a.m. on Sunday:

No, it isn't "just a bad picture." That's rain, guys -- heavy, torrential rain, combined with wind and nastiness that had me worried that I wasn't going to make it out on time, if at all. This is the stuff the Weather Channel folks live for.

Fortunately, we got out -- but not until after we had spent a few extra hours at the airport with weather delays. The good news was that I had plenty of knitting to keep me occupied (my resolve gave out on Saturday afternoon and I took a cab to the store for more). I finished three miters while I was there, and started the sixth once I got home after two hours of bumping our way up the East Coast.

I figure the blankie only needs to be 3x3, so I'm nearly two-thirds done. I'm very happy with the way this is turning out. Not only is it one of the easiest and fastest things I've ever knit, but it's also soft and squishy and fun. I love the way the greens are working together and I adore the mix of varigated and solid. I really do see this as a "play on the floor" blanket or a snuggle-during-the-day under supervision blankie (after all this is cotton, which is not flame retardant). Not to mention that this has been a wonderful foray into the world of Peaches n' Creme cotton, which I've always avoided because of fiber snobbery. Thanks, Farmer Auntie, for showing me the error of my ways. I can say, though, that this is the ONLY yarn I'll buy at Wal-Mart.

So anyway, coming home is always a bit tricky -- re-entry with kids is never easy -- but for the most part it went smoothly (only the pregnancy fatigue made it difficult). Laundry was done, dishes were done, kids were happy. The Nor'Easter was hitting on Sunday, it was raining cats and dogs, our basement was flooded. But Sunday turned out great.

Yesterday, however, we were hit with the wind and it was touch and go for a while with the electricity (disclaimer: I live in a house that's fully electric -- electric furnace burner, electric water pump for the well, electric appliances). When the lights go out, we're screwed. And it was cold here yesterday. But, thanks to the folks at BGE, the power was only out for about eight hours or so, and most of it was while we were at work and school. To be safe, though, I packed an overnight bag when I got home (while we still had daylight to work with) and we were all ready to head to a hotel after dinner. Just before we left for the restaurant, though, the house came back to life and my husband and I breathed a big sigh of relief.

And then I had a wonderful dream about MDS&W last night. After all, it's only about three weeks away!

Out and About

2007-04-14T06:40:00.000-04:00

So far I've resisted the urge to go to Wal-Mart in Tampa for more cotton. My resolve may go out the window after lunch today, though. I have one more day here, and I'm running out. I've been trying to pace myself. On a break yesterday, I took the miter out to show it the fountains at the hotel so that it wouldn't feel heartbroken that I wasn't going to hammer out a few more rows:

This yarn is the "shades of green" that I was originally doing in my standard burp cloth pattern. I ripped it out and started a big miter square to feed the fever and then I've now picked up stitches along the edge to add another and make a nice rectangle. Problem is, I'm enjoying it so much and I love the green so much that I think this one may morph into a blanket and the baby ombre may end up as a series of burp cloths (though they are actually the perfect size to have a bunch on the changing table to serve as "fountain covers" for the wee one, which gives me a reason to do some burp clothes and other layette items with the cone of baby ombre that I have). Since I did this miter with 75 stitches (36x36), I only need seven more skeins of this to work. Imagine ... a $10 handknit blanket!

In any event, I'm going to need me some more green. I may break down ... it would be nice for the little one to have a blanket that was started in Florida with some yarn from Florida. We'll see how things go this afternoon.

Thoughts on Travel Knitting

2007-04-12T20:29:00.000-04:00

I'm in Tampa on a business trip -- I'm here for my absolute favorite training seminar ever. I try to go to this every year ... and it's even better when it's in a locale that is warmer than home. I love to travel for my job. Sure, it's hard to get away from the family, but at the same time I always feel a little more connected when I get home. Plus, there's the fun of travel knitting.

I don't know what it is that makes travel knitting different than home knitting, but I seem to always make great progress when I'm on the road. Maybe it's the long plane ride (which, incidentally, this time caused my pregnant ankles to expand beyond belief) or the fact that there aren't home distractions, but I feel like I can crank. And crank I have ... to the point where pretty soon I'm going to be stuck with only the surplice jacket to knit on.

In addition to my swollen ankles (I'll remember to drink tons of water and walk alot on the flight back), I've also managed to catch the case of miter fever that's going around the knitting community these days. Wendy's doing a sweater in them, and Cara is doing a blanket. I expect this to enter pandemic proportions soon. It's probably a good thing that Stephanie is on a book tour or else she might start doing them too and then there would be a serious recession in pattern sales as everyone embraces this ever-so-simple knitting delight.

I decided to give them a try with a simple baby blanket of squares. I ran out of the cotton I brought with me on my trip (in this colorway, that is). These were done in a few short hours and are the basis for a new baby blanket made of these cute little squares.

I am strangely compelled to seek out the local Wal-Mart for more cotton ... but the fact is, I have a one-pound cone of this at home so I had better not. Of course there's always the option of mixing in matching solids, but ...

And in other news, the bib that was completed on my flight down to Tampa yesterday. All it needs is a button (and to have the ends woven in, of course). Ironically, this is made from Plymouth Fantasy cotton.

I did this before I became obsessed with the miters (that happened today on a conference break). I have two balls of Peaches & Creme left to last me through the rest of the conference before I'm left only with the surplice jacket and the remaining Plymouth. Tomorrow, I'll show you what I'm doing with it and I'll let you know if I gave in and sprung for a cab ride to Wal-Mart to get more.

On Knitting Wee Things...

2007-04-11T06:34:00.000-04:00

So after the collective sigh went out over Baltimore and places further away following my last post (thank you for all the wonderful comments-we are, indeed, very happy), I had some serious planning to do. What to knit for the wee one?

Fortunately, I had seen the March 26 post over on Rosie's Blog the week before the big reveal, so I had a plan. I just needed colors. In fact, I had planned neutral and picked up some ecru Peaches & Creme (GASP! This from the fiber snob...) and started the jacket, but it's really knitting up at too high a gauge. The cotton is too thick -- and while I know it will fit the babe someday, I want something that will work right away. So the cotton jacket was relegated to the knitting basket for future knitting (left it on the needles) and I started one in some green Dale Baby Ull with a trim of NatureSpun that I grabbed at Cloverhill this past weekend. I'll do an i-cord trim in the navy (though admittedly I fear that it will look too Izod) as well in lieu of buttons. I started working that up on Sunday on #3 needles and the size looks much better. Since it's a variation of the Baby Surprise Jacket, I expect to finish this rather quickly once I get moving on it. Bonus: It will complement the Basil blanket once I get the $^%&ing edging done (almost, I swear).

Why am I not plowing through it? Well, you see, I'm obsessed with burp cloths and bibs. Quick knits that I can churn out in a few days and enjoy. The bonus there is that the baby will need tons of these (or rather, our shoulders will) to supplement the flat cloth diapers that I love for this purpose. Not to mention that a few weeks ago I was seriously bitten by the Peaches & Creme bug after fondling Farmer Auntie's dishcloth-in-progress and realized that this may very well be the one yarn I buy at Wal-Mart. You really can't beat $1.50 for a burp cloth. I headed to Wal-Mart that week and picked up three cones -- one of the ecru, a yellow ombre and a "baby-color-mix of green, pink, blue, yellow and white. I'm stocked for a while and I'm starting to churn out the cloths. Not to totally send myself to the depths of the Big Box Yarn Section, I also picked up some more Plymouth cotton at Cloverhill and am amusing myself with a pretty blue bib.

Sorry there aren't any pictures with this post, but my camera is packed for a trip to Tampa later today and I just don't feel like pulling it out right now. I'm packed with the Baby Surplice, enough cotton for a bib or two and the remains of the green burp cloth I've been working on, so I'll take some pictures later and maybe add them into this post.

The Verdict is In

2007-04-05T18:22:00.000-04:00

So all day I sat, edgy as all get out, wondering and waiting. Waiting and wondering. Pondering my nails and wanting to chew them to bits. Reading e-mails that said, "Think Pink" and hearing "I just know its a girl ... that's what you want, right?"

It's enough to make anyone crazy.

And then the time came. I headed out to the doctor's office, not knowing if my husband was going to be able to leave work to join me. While I was waiting in the office for my name to be called, he rang to tell me he was on his way ... would they start right at 3:30? He might not get there in time.

They called my name, and I headed back for the sono, bladder ready to burst (a necessary evil for the procedure) and still waiting for my husband.

"Do you want to know what you're having?" she asked.

"Yes, but not until my husband gets here. He's on his way," I replied.

So she got started, in gender-neutral terms.

Brain? Check. (No hydrocephalus or anything odd.)

A kick on camera -- did you feel that? Of course not, placenta is in the front, over the belly, kinda like having a mattress in there for the kid to punch. Ah, that's why it seems like such a quiet baby (by no means is this child quiet, believe me, after seeing it on the screen.)

Femur? Check. (Good length; too short is not so good.)

Ooh -- there's a foot. Great shot. All five toes with all their bones.

Heart? Check. (With all the valves pumping as they should.)

Belly? Check. (Round and baby-like.)

Look -- there's some fingers ... baby holding hand over head. Very cute.

I'm in love. Swooning and watching with the greatest of fascinations that mommies feel on these moments. They're intimate, after all -- just you and the kid. Like a secret ... the baby's in there, but they're still all yours ... no one else can touch yet. But all the while I'm still waiting ... for that final piece of information.

Then my husband came in.

We went through the whole thing again. Brain. Femur. Heart. Belly. Fingers. Toes. Kicking the placenta-mattress. Quiet baby? Think again. This one's a tumbler.

"Can I tell you now? Please pretty please? It's been killing me -- I've known since I first put the paddle on you," she says.

Fifteen years and she hasn't been wrong yet. Deep breaths all around.

"Let's take a look between those legs, little one."

Now let me tell you, at this point, I've gotten myself so worked up I can't think straight. It's like the last play of a tie ballgame. Homerun or strikeout?

With a baby it's neither, I know, but after all this stress well ... it's hard not to feel that way. If you read my rambling post from earlier, I think my mental state through the day was pretty clear. Thank goodness I had some meetings that broke the strain and gave me other things to think about!

You see, years ago I resigned myself to having two boys. Realized that there probably wouldn't be a little girl in my life. My husband's family hasn't had a girl in something like 85 years. Got used to worms and mud. Came to understand that I'm really more of a "boy mom" anyway. And then I popped up pregnant ... and the swirl of folks talking about girls and pink got me all swept up. It was hard not to get hopeful and go back to that moment six years ago when they declared the Yarn Sniffer was a boy. And the time two years earlier when Zee was "discovered" and my best friend and I just said to each other, "What are we going to do with a BOY?"

I figured it out then, then re-figured again with the Sniffer.

It's a damn good thing.

'Cause this one's a boy, too.

2007-04-05T07:05:00.000-04:00

Well ladies and gents, today's the day. The "big" ultrasound, the big reveal (if the kid "shows its stuff"). Announcement will be posted here later today (appt is at 3:30), but probably not until after dinner.

Am I nervous? You betcha. Are we "hoping" for one gender over the other? Sure we are. Will we be thrilled either way? Of course!

It's been an interesting few weeks over here at Chez Spinneas as I've come to realize just how nervous I am about finding out the gender of Baby 3. The Yarn Sniffer has already told people that he's getting a baby brother, even though I've told him over and over that we don't know YET but that we will soon ... Zee isn't saying much (says he's nervous over the whole baby thing). Hubby admitted last night that he's got fingers crossed for "something different" (as he put it). Everyone and their mother (and mine) keeps talking about a girl. What I worry about most is that if it's a boy there will be an anticlimax ... you know, no real celebration or splash. After all we've done it twice before.

At Cub Scouts last night, one mom of three boys and I had a nice long chat about how I'm feeling right now ... you know, this anticlimactic feeling ... resignation that I could end up "always the mother-in-law" to a girl and never the mom ... this "last chance" feeling that comes from knowing that this is the last baby and the last shot for a girl. But then, in true Girlfriend style, she leaned over and said (with a hint of glee) "You know, Wendy, the three-boy club is a great place to be too ... but all the members will line up to play with a little girl, too!"

Truth is, so many of the boys' friends have brothers -- it's a "two-boy club" so to speak -- that a girl would be shocking too.

But health, not gender, is what's most important. I want to see a healthy heart, brain, kidneys, etc., WAY more than I want to see the other parts. OK, I want to see the other parts too -- way more than I show it -- and if the kid doesn't make it easy, I could very easily go over the edge.

Stay tuned.

Knitting and Nailbiting

2007-04-03T07:31:00.000-04:00

I can count on one hand (with fingers left over) the number of times in my life that I’ve actually had fingernails that were long enough and in reasonably good-enough condition to actually get a manicure. For decades I was a nailbiter, exacerbated by the fact that I have a milk allergy, which was just the excuse that those little appendages needed to break off in odd moments where no one in their right mind would have access to an emery board. That meant I simply had to bite off the offending area, which then caused stress that gripped me until I chewed the whole damn thing down to the nub. Damn weak fingernails. Tried everything – vitamin e, that “strong as nails” stuff, even had acrylic tips for a while after my wedding. But I tell you, there’s one sure fire way to get nails that work: Get knocked up. Works every time. (Remember I said I could count on one hand? One finger for each kid, folks. The acrylic tips from the wedding don’t count.)
Given the stress and strain of waiting until Thursday to find out what I’m having, it’s amazing that I haven’t chewed these nails off. I’m terribly impatient, and it’s killing me. My husband and I have even postponed our naming discussion until the big reveal. He says it will help us better focus the discussion and maximize time (he’s a techie, LOL) but I really think it’s to avoid stressing me out further. Like I said, it’s all I can do to not chew, chew and chew some more.

One thing for sure about these talons: I can’t let them go much longer though, or they’ll start to interfere with the needles.

Speaking of needles, I have a few things going.

First, there’s Basil the Wonder Blanket.

A few words about Basil. This is a Smith Island Pattern Factory opus, an absolutely dreamy baby blanket with a simple motif and has knit like a dream. Once the code was cracked, I was off with this and I’m now sitting on the edging. I’ve had it in my head that I would wait until we found out whether we’re having a boy or girl before starting said edging, tailoring it accordingly, but then it hit me that I absolutely LOVED this minty green. In fact, the nursery theme that I have in mind is primarily green. So in my haste to not only make something that matched but also work with what I already have, I opted for the green (which is one of my all-time favorite colors anyway) and started the contrast last night.

But I’ve reached my waterloo, I swear. This happened with Parthenope. It happened with the pi shawl way back when. Some edgings are just plain evil. They team up with the rest of the pattern to have you move along quickly and easily with yarn overs and lacy patterns that just go so fast you can’t believe it. And then you hit a speedbump and you’re right back to plain old knitting. Problem is, for some reason, that’s taking me a LONG time. Plain vanilla is screwing me up. It will happen though … I’m just impatient. And it’s taking all of my willpower at this point to keep going and not put Basil in the knitting basket with Parthenope (who is still two rows away from a bind-off).

Speaking of plain vanilla, I started a sock a few weeks ago (again, is it the plain vanilla that’s getting me and impeding progress?)

It certainly isn’t the yarn. This is Socks that Rock, people. It will happen, I know, but it’s a little frustrating. But, like most cases of Second Sock Syndrome (read the Harlot’s new book if you want specifics on the strains of this condition), it will pass with time.

I’m also moving furiously in the Land of the Knitted Burpcloth. I snagged some Plymouth mercerized cotton at the LYS the other day, and it seems one hank will make a decent sized shoulder cover. I have lunch plans to get more. Burpcloths seem to fit the bill for quick and easy knitting and all moms know you simply can’t get enough of those.

I’ve also been spinning.

Merino/tencel top from Vicki and Kendig Cottage. It's spinning thinner than it looks. I finished one bobbin a few weeks ago and Navajo-plied it … turned out great. But then I got to thinking … Geyl is on my list to start soon and I have a lovely green varigated Koigu for the main part … but this “Peacock” colorway might be perfect for the edging … so I’m going to do the other four ounces this thin and do a two-ply instead of the Navajo ply. I might have enough. I was going to use mill ends for this, but then this green Koigu jumped out at me and it seems perfect. There’s other Koigu in the stash that will work for the edging if the spinning doesn’t work out … and if it doesn’t, then someone will have a beautiful Peacock scarf this Christmas.

Then I’m on to another project … “Flair” by Wendy at Knit and Tonic. Problem is, I’m planning on spinning the yarn for that, too. At our January spinner’s group, I picked up about 20 ounces or so of a luscious Oreo-like yarn – you remember, that absolutely delightful wool that I spun with great zeal last fall. The pattern calls for about 750 yards of worsted, and I can do that. It’s a cute little swingcoat that will be perfect for those chilly fall days. I’m going to make the sleeves just a little longer than the prototype, though that’s my only foreseen modification to the pattern.

Two days until the reveal. And then comes the anticipation of waiting for MS&W (and the big yarn diet).

Will the nails survive?

It's All in the Surprise

2007-03-29T06:46:00.000-04:00

OK folks, we're down to one week and counting until we find out whether Baby #3 will be a boy or girl. And there's a lot of pressure, too ... heaven help this child if it has a penis. There are going to be lots of disappointed people who have been praying, divining and just plain hoping that we have a girl. I am, after all, the only female in this house -- even the beagle is a boy. But I'll be happy either way.

I get the questions and comments all the time -- "Are you feeling different with this one?" "Do you have an instinct one way or another?" "Oh, I'm holding out hopes that its a girl this time!" and my own personal, particularly stressful favorite from my husband, "This is the last shot for a girl, so I'm hoping for your sake it is. Personally, the thought of a girl scares me to death."

Seven days and counting.

But on to other surprises -- like some recent knitting. While there are multiple other projects on the sticks these days (including a sock and the Basil baby blanket from Courtney that I finally cracked the code on), last week I had to prepare a gift for my cousin, who had a baby shower on Sunday. (Of course she's having a BOY, which prompted even more discussion over the gender of Baby #3.)

So I knit up this:

Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket never ceases to make me squeal in childish delight. It's an amazingly simply pattern that knits up in lightning speed and is just way too cute once you fold the knitting up and sew the seams. With the right buttons, it made a perfect gift for my cousin. She loved it. (Pay close attention to the gift bag at her feet -- I felt particularly clever wrapping the jacket for her "little monster" in a "little monster" bag -- and that made the the Yarn Sniffer squeal with delight because he was the gift bearer and everyone commented on how cute "his" bag was.)

But what else do you get at the baby shower for the daughter of Kniting Auntie of Aran fame? You get one hell of a baby blanket -- hand-designed, and hooded in the shape of a dragon, complete with spikes on the back and fire from the mouth. Lordy, I wish I had better pictures (and selfishly, I'm glad Cat opened mine first because it would have fallen flat after this one ...). I can picture her little boy playing with this blankie for years pretending to be a dragon and curling up on the floor sound asleep wrapped in "scaly" softness.

My aunt said the blanket was "the best gift she ever made for the best gift she ever got."

'Nuf said.

Updates

2007-03-15T07:18:00.000-04:00

When I last left you, I had grand plans to finish Parthenope. Alas, I haven't touched her since that post. I think that part of my subconscious has me waiting to find out the baby's gender before I move forward ... after all, the finishing will be all the sweeter if I can "name" the shawl as I cast off. You know, dedicate it in some way. Maybe that's a bit extreme.

In any event, I've been moving along on Basil, and I swear it's been tricky. I've cast on and ripped FOUR TIMES. Not all because of gauging issues (that was the first and second times), but also because I can't seem to get the yarn right. I went nearly all the way with the Baby Ull and then ripped when I had a problem with the edging. Since I didn't run any sort of lifeline, I just ripped it all out. Then I started again, this time with a different needle, and didn't like the end result. Back to the frog pond. Then for some reason totally unbeknownst to me, I cast on in cheap white acrylic (no comments, please) thinking that the care factor might matter and then ripped when I got tired of the yarn squeaking -- ugh. Now I'm working in a wool/acrylic blend (much quieter) in a pretty green and I'm moving along. I'm waiting for Courtney to get back to me with a clarification on the pattern, but this one is not getting ripped for any reason whatsoever. This version is for my cousin's babe (due the week of MS&W) so I must get it done so I can do one for my own little one. No pictures, because Knitting Auntie of Aran Fame (who is soon to be the proud grandmommy) reads this blog.

Next on the sticks after the second Basil is a Baby Surprise Jacket for our little one ... but I'm waiting to see if I should do it in a lovely heather green or a deep scarlet. We find out the gender in exactly three weeks ... and then I can finally start my shopping list for MS&W!

The Letter P

2007-02-26T06:33:00.000-05:00

I'm finally on the home stretch with Parthenope. I can taste it. Five more rows -- straight vanilla rows alternating knit a row, purl a row -- and this girl will be off the sticks. And for some reason, I think I may very well be a little sad to see it go.

I'm not quite sure why. I started Parthenope right around Thanksgiving, had to rip out a full beginning or two because I was having some problems with the pattern. I've had to e-mail Courtney and Wendy two or three times with questions about said pattern. I finally put her on a diet -- partly to help it fit me (I'm very petite) and partially to save my sanity. My husband has been laughing for months (literally) at the yellow and calling the poor girl "The Big Bird Shawl." To add insult to injury, photos of knitting lace are pretty boring and given Parthenope's size (really people, it WILL look like a blob), I've neglected to share her growth with you here on the blog. I've loved and loathed this project simultaneously for the past three months.

Finding out that I was pregnant in the midst of the whole thing put the brakes on the knitting. I slowed down to do things like get extra sleep, eat more (it's hard to knit and eat yogurt) and deal with two brothers who are sticken with cabin fever and dreams of blizzards. My assistant, er, associate, at work quit at the absolute worst time of year and took off on a whirlwind trip around the world and I had to recruit (note that this is why I did not really pick up on the pregnancy -- stress makes you skip). But through it all, Parthenope has been there, even with last-minute holiday gifts, the Diamond Fantasy Shawl and other little things.

As it turns out, I'm pretty sure I started Parthenope right around the time our little bundle of joy was created. Had I known I was pregnant, I probably would have done Parthenope in blue. (I have a house of men, and I presume this pregnancy will produce the same, though there are many, many people who are going to blast me for saying that. Everyone wants a girl ... no pressure here!) But I didn't. I picked a sunny yellow -- odd for me, honestly -- and through the past three months of dismal weather, holiday stress, unexpected pregnancy, work nightmares, etc., a ray of sunshine has been growing in my knitting basket as well as my belly. This week she will be reborn as a full, beautiful yellow square. We'll have to wait a few more months for the other blessing.

Parthenope has become the pregnancy shawl. I have a sneaking suspicion that she'll be the first thing to go in the baby's layette ... because, boy or girl, this shawl has already draped the baby in handknit love as I sit and knit and knit with this in my lap.

I honestly can't wait to show you ... let me slog through those last few rows.

Diamond Fantasy

2007-02-20T08:20:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend, I finished the charity shawl. As I cast off Diamond Fantasy, I panicked. Two skeins of Koigu ... same colorway as Charlotte's Web ... and the thing looked like a hankerchief. I immediately cast-on for another super-fast knit ... using my precious merino/tencel blend from Ellens Half Pint Farm (purchased at Stitches). I've been knitting, knitting, knitting on it -- and making great progress.

This morning, in the wee hours, I looked at the Diamond Fantasy and felt a bit sorry for it. Koigu shouldn't sit in a wad without a good block, after all. At the very least, I should give it a shot, right?

Obviously, I forgot the wonder of blocking lace. The teensy weensy kerchief blossomed this morning into a shawl that is 60 inches from wingtip to wingtip and 30 inches from the center point up. Here it is on my queen-sized bed:

You can't really see the head and foot of the bed, but the shawl is only about 16 inches short of spanning the length. I think it's big enough, and perhaps my panic was a bit premature.

Here's a closeup of the lace itself:

And a tight look at the edging:

Will this do for the charity silent auction?

The Long and Short of Things (Plus A Long-Term Project)

2007-02-13T05:56:00.000-05:00

It's been a rough (but very interesting, as usual) couple of weeks here at Chez Spinneas. In my last post, I was slogging along on some lace projects, and since it's been so long (I've had my reasons) I thought an update might be due. For those non-knitters visiting today, I'm also trying to avoid "knitter-ese" or at least spelling out the abbreviations. Apparently my last post was pretty hard for those-without-sticks to comprehend.

The Long of It: I'm finally a mere 14 rows from finishing the edging on Parthenope and moving on. This shawl has taken me a long, long time. Pictures wouldn't show you much (it's LACE, after all), so I'm withholding until I can give you a good pic of Parthenope with Pins or a nice finished object (FO) picture. But the end is finally in sight, and that is making me happier than you'll ever truly know. This pattern has been wonderful, aside from the little nuances that make every designer different, it's been a joy to knit.

The Short of It: Remember in my last post how I said I was starting a pi shawl with that skein of Helen's Laces yarn? Well, it got frogged (non-knitters, that means that I "ripped it, ripped it") because the varigation was really muddying up the pattern. Since this particular shawl is being done for a silent auction taking place next month to raise funds for a very special school, the shawl needed to be done just right. So I shelved the pi in favor of Sivia Harding's Diamond Fantasy Shawl. I swatched it with a skein of Fleece Artist merino sock yarn, and loved the way the shawl was shaping up. The varigation worked, gauge worked, everything worked. Except the color (it's a varigated brown). On a high from reaching the edging on Parthenope, I bought some Anne (non-knitters, that's a yarn) and swatched it out. I hated it. The Anne is a nice pewter color, but it just didn't look right in this pattern. So I hit the Koigu in my stash and pulled the final two skeins of the colorway I used for Charlotte last year. It has beautiful greens, purples, blues and grays, and it's working out beautifully. I'm on the fourth of seven repeats of the second chart (non-knitters, that's fast and furious progress), and I'm on target to reach my deadline with it. The Yarn Harlot finished hers with the same amount of yarn, so I'm holding strong that the Koigu will hold out for me. I'm on the second ball, and since it's extremely difficult to match Koigu colorways, keep your fingers crossed for me. I have faith that things fall into place.

Long Term Project: Things fall into place for sure, and I've almost always tried to take things as they are dealt to me. One of the few times I didn't resulted in a huge karmic shift that forced life to bite me in the ass. So what is the long-term project?

Well...

Yup. The Yarn Sniffer is six (seven just after this one arrives) and his big brother is eight (nine later this year). So after years of having kids that can dress themselves, feed themselves and sleep through the night, I'm having a baby. Had my first doctor's appointment yesterday and it turns out I'm 11 weeks. It's a good thing I've been through this before -- I'm a week away from my second trimester. Nothing quite like a good old fashioned case of denial coupled with a doctor's busy schedule to put things in a holding pattern.

We're actually quite thrilled about it. Even the boys are happy. We won't know whether it's a boy or a girl for a few more weeks, but when we do, I'll be sure to share.

In the meantime, let me share a different version of the ultrasound picture -- cropped and rotated by my husband -- that seems to show that this little peanut is already on the move:

His original intent was to just zoom in and rotate so that the head, arms, belly and legs were clear for folks. But when he showed it to me, I started laughing my fool head off saying that it looked like the baby was standing up in full walking posture. We've dubbed this picture "Fetus Taking a Stroll." I apologize if it isn't funny to anyone else, but I think it's absolutely hilarious.

So, the 29-week countdown begins!

Pass Me Another Pi

2007-01-09T07:07:00.000-05:00

OK, I know I said I'd never do it again, but last night I cast on for another pi shawl. Heaven help me.

I knit my first pi shawl in 2006, and had grand plans of doing the beautiful patterned one in the Knitter's Almanac. However, after many many problems with deciphering the pattern and getting the stitches to work, I cast it aside and instead opted for the simpler concentric circles one.

It's amazing what a fresh eye (and a better understanding of EZ) can do. I sat down yesterday and attempted to figure out what I was doing wrong the last time, pulled out a calculator, and figured it out. You see, when EZ says, "K5, *YO, K2tog, K57*, ending with K5, she really means "K5, *YO, K2tog, Kx to last 59 stitches, ending row with YO, K2tog, K5." That was my hangup. I was trying to do the full repeat at the end and squeeze the "ending with k5" into stitches that just weren't there, no matter what the math. Dumb, dumb, dumb mistake.

The yarn is Helen's Laces in the Black Purl colorway, and so far I love the way it's knitting up. This shawl is not destined for my shoulders, but rather for a silent auction at my husband's school in two months. They have a huge fundraiser for the school, and he's pitched my lace work for an item to be auctioned. I opted for this colorway simply because of its dark purples -- the winner can immediately drape it over her little black dress (the school is CHILLY!)

To repeat: Heaven help me.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-07T10:10:00.000-05:00

In 2006, my first blog post of the year was filled with some resolutions. I accomplished all of the knitting ones. For 2007, I had wild plans to do the same, but I'm already a week into the year and just now getting around to blogging. I don't think that makes them resolutions anymore... so I give you Spinneas's List of Knitting Goals for 2007.

1. Learn to knit with two hands. Non-knitters reading this blog are not likely to know what I'm talking about here, but in order to do colorwork, rumor has it it's easier to knit one color with one hand and one color with the other. On New Year's Eve, I set out to train myself to do this. It was awkward, to say the least, but I figured it all out. You see, I knit continental-esque with my left hand, and I've been "picking" for years. It's more awkward (and slower) to "throw" the yarn with the right hand. Here was a preliminary result of my efforts:

Just a little test with some Katia Austral, but it worked out fine, and leads me to Goal #2.

2. Tackle Fair Isle. Hence the goal for two-handed knitting. I've done lots of knitting, but one thing I've never done is something truly two-color (I don't think that stripes really count here). On Thursday, I headed to my LYS and picked up a Philosopher's Wool Color Your Own kit for a Fair Isle cardigan and got started.

I dove in that night and finished about 4 inches of a sleeve, but my gauge was way off, so on Saturday I started again. This time, gauge was much better, I cut the cuff short by a repeat and was well on my way. I cannot yet tell whether Fair Isle knitting goes faster than regular knitting, but I'm already past my elbow with the one sleeve, and could conceivably finish one sleeve today if I hunker down and go exclusive (not likely, since my house is a train wreck).

3. Complete another Clapotis. I finished the clapotis, and decided that I'm not crazy about the varigation that I chose. I'd like to try again with something a little more neutral (or at least less pastel). It's an easy knit, and one that can be put down and picked up frequently without worrying about losing one's place on a chart or pattern.

4. Complete the patterns from the Smith Island Pattern Factory. I finished Maude, Parthenope is moving along nicely, and I make it a habit to purchase all of Courtney's patterns as they come up. So I'm going to finish them all in 2007 . Right now, her portfolio is manageable, and if I'm going to be dedicated to one designer, now is the time to get started. Here's Parthenope on her third repeat. I'm not sure how many more repeats I'm going to do, but I probably won't take it all the way to 10 reps, just because I'm smaller than average, and I generally have to cut things short or have them end up gargantuan.

5. Get my sock mojo back. I've lost it somewhere, and the loss has stranded two separate No. 1 socks into UFO land. I'm hoping it will turn up soon.

6. Take more pictures of non-knitting. I took the following photo one morning when this sunrise caught my eye and I couldn't resist. I even woke both my kids up to see it.

I think that's enough for now, though I'm sure a technique or other idea will come around that I'll add to the list!

Christmas Fondue**

2006-12-23T21:56:00.000-05:00

I've been pretty incognito lately, sorry for the absence. It's hard to write about knitting that you can't show off on the blog, so knitting content will resume after gifts have been given. Somehow or another during this time, I also managed to miss my blogiversary. Oh well, right?

Enough about my absence... I'm ready to chat about holidays and traditions.

When I was a child, the 23rd of December had a certain mystique. I can't quite put my fingers on it, but in so many ways it was almost as magical as the 24th. School was over for the break, there were large tins of cookies all over the house and always there seemed to be a stack of LPs on the turntable that played holiday music all day long. Some of those LP covers really stick out in my memory ... the old Gene Autry Rudolph album, the Royal Guardsman's "Snoopy's Christmas" (that was my dad's) and lots of others, including one of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir doing all the holiday traditionals. By this time, we had already watched "Babes in Toyland" (while my mother burned the chocolate cookie press men) and "White Christmas" (while we trimmed the tree). We had already spoken to Santa on the direct-line phone at the firehouse, which was trimmed to the hilt and had a huge room FILLED with electric trains racing over snow-filled landscapes and little model references to our small town. There was a promise of visitors throughout the next day, a church service and a very giddy night when I swore I could hear sleigh bells and see Santa on the horizon through my bedroom window. Forcing myself to go to sleep so that he would actually arrive (I knew he was nearing our state because the local radio station had a direct line to the "official" Santa radar).

On Christmas morning, my parents would make my brother and I wake them before heading downstairs to the tree. I remember it was tortuous to wait while my father went first and made his instant cup of coffee and a cup of hot tea for my mother. (In retrospect, I was glad it was instant...it took less time.) He would also get the old camera ready (it took flash cubes, remember those?) and lay in wait for my brother and me. He'd call up the steps to my mother, who was ready in her terrycloth slippers and pink robe, and she'd go down the steps first. My brother and I would follow, and we'd stop at the foot of the steps before going down the long hall of our A-frame into the living room. Again, Mom would go first -- this time not to stop us from dashing in, but to make sure that we. kept. our. eyes. closed. You see, my folks had a ritual of taking a picture of us as we opened our eyes and saw the tree and our stockings. Every year we did this ... and I honestly don't remember when we stopped. I'm sure it had to do with a discovery of a certain something. All I know is that of all the traditions of my childhood, this was the one I liked the least.

Traditions are funny things, and its equally odd to see the merging of two very different cultures into a single family. You see, my husband had a very different Christmas experience ... no less loving, for sure, but he was a city kid living with his grandparents without his mother. I've heard the stories of the years that his dad went whole hog at Christmas ... the year of the "Mighty Casey" electric train that carried a four-year old around the house on a large track, and tales of him racing downstairs in the morning and then running around waking everyone in the house (some of whom had only just fallen asleep). Christmas was more materialistic in his house than in mine, for sure. I kid you not when I say that I've heard stories of the year the presents were piled to the ceiling (his dad was dating a sales clerk at the toy store) . That was the year he and his bro got an air hockey table and a arcade-size "Happy Days" pinball machine. These days, his family has a huge Christmas Eve party with a bushel of oysters and steamed shrimp and everyone opens their gifts at midnight. We duck out long before then with the kids but there is always much alcohol and revelry (unfortunately, someone always manages to drink too much and shoot their mouth off at the wrong person ... like I said, we duck out early). All I have ever heard music-wise on Christmas Eve (with the exception of the year that his dad drank too much and made us listen to Kenny G over and over) was rock music.

My husband and I have managed to meet halfway on the kids' gifts (they get plenty -- more than my relatively sparse years but way less than his "up-to-the-ceiling" year. I still watch "White Christmas" every single year while I decorate the tree, but not until after my husband puts the tree up to the backdrop of The Who's "Tommy." I make the cookies, but there aren't 10 tins (and I don't dare make the chocolate men for fear that I'll burn them and be destined to suffer the merciless teasing that my mother has endured for years).

Another tradition that has transferred -- and grown in a way -- was the legend of the elves. When I was little, a conversation like this was not uncommon in our house in December:

Dad: "Wen, quick -- look at the window!"

Kid: "What? I don't see anything."

Dad: Oh, it was an elf. Checking in on you to report back to Santa. You missed him."

Now of course this only really worked for a short time. But I carried the tradition to a pair of two little spirited girls that I babysat for one evening in December when they were out of control. I spun a yarn about a gentle-elf named Harold Holly who was watching them and reporting back to Santa. They snapped right into shape, and after they were asleep that night, I wrote a note to them from "their" elf. I explained the whole thing to their mother and father when they got home, and thankfully they loved the idea. In fact, the Legend of the Elves grew and grew. Shortly after that fateful evening, an elf doll arrived at their house one night. The same elf doll kept coming each year and after a short time, he grew up into a bigger doll. He kept coming, though, and I'm pretty sure that two young adults (the youngest is nearly out of college by now I'm sure) still have a great memory. Not to mention that their friends' parents joined in on the game, and a local boutique eventually stared a whole elf section in their holiday decorations.

Harold Holly and his brother Howard come to our house each and every year. They arrive shortly after both children have exhibited good behavior and they leave when Santa picks them up on Christmas Eve night. Harold (who is red) started coming when Z was a very little baby, and his brother Howard (who is green) started visiting when The Yarn Sniffer came along. We're hoping that they'll come tonight ... for you see, they come together and the Sniffer hasn't been a very good boy these days. School is wreaking havoc in his life and he can't stay on the green light. I'm confident they'll be perched somewhere in our living room tomorrow when I wake up.

But they'll be gone by the time we awake on Monday ... and I make my husband wait upstairs with the boys while I make the coffee and get the camera ready to take their picture when they come into the living room and first open their eyes and see their gifts ...

Share your traditions with others. Tell me about them. But above all, have a wonderful, magical holiday!

**My husband participated in the creation of this entry. His thought processes can sometimes be quite abstract... hence the use of "fondue" instead of simply saying, "melting pot."

A Quickie Update

2006-12-12T20:42:00.000-05:00

I've been really bad about posting lately, but car problems, work and household stuff (i.e. holiday decorating) have been keeping me busy. Not to mention a super-secret family project that has absolutely nothing to do with knitting. Only two people know about said project, and I'm afraid that you all will have to wait until after Sunday when it makes its debut. Only one of the people in on the project will be there at the party; the other person is my mother (my folks are divorced and this project involves my father's family). It's gonna be really great.

On to other things ... like my knitting. Progress has been reasonably slow here at Chez Spinneas, particularly because I've made the command decision to not drive myself wacky with holiday knitting. This time last year I was scrambling to finish facecloths and scarves and all other kinds of things, and I hated every minute of it. Knitting for me is therapeutic, and the holidays are stressful enough without turning my cherished hobby into an instrument of torture.

Following car problems leading into Thanksgiving, I started just about every project imaginable trying to find on special piece that would give me solace. I ended up ripping out just about everything and filing it away in the "not the right time" category (rather than leave a bunch of UFOs on the sticks). With the exceptions of a few pairs of socks and a clapotis (sorry, can't show you those right now because I'm not sure it won't make it into the the Santa bag). I started the clap right before Thanksgiving, and only just finished it on Sunday. Got REALLY bored on those straight rows, ended up cutting it a few repeats short because I'm a small person, and then wrapped it up. It turned out well; I'll post a picture after Christmas.

I also de-stashed. I can't believe how much fuzzy stuff I had in my stash. I pulled out all of that, along with some single skeins and my bits and pieces ('cept the Koigu -- even scraps do not leave my house) and took it to the wonderfully enabling director and assistant director of my kids' aftercare school. They are knitters and dutifully working on scarves and other things for the holidays, and they've already dived in and are hard at work on even more projects. The director there is an absolute doll -- she loaned me her wool cards "indefinitely" and I adore her for it (though I'm really hoping that the holiday elves will see fit to bring me my own). The assistant director took it upon herself to teach the kids how to finger-crochet this summer. Not my first choice, but the boys loved it because it was easy and they made necklaces. The smaller balls of yarn? The end bits of projects? Well, doll drawings need hair and all of those macaroni ornaments need hangers. Kids love yarn, and I'm happy to share.

So what's on the sticks for me? The latest pattern from Courtney at the Smith Island Pattern Factory: Parthenope. I ended up screwing up my first start and ripped out the entire first repeat of the chart last night. I'm nearly back where I left off.

Hopefully I can get it right this time!

Interruption

2006-12-04T11:57:00.000-05:00

I interrupt this unscheduled hiatus with a post to let everyone know I'm alive. Just busy, and going through some issues that have taken my mind from knitting (though I've had a serious case of castonitis, I just can't find a project to fit, you know?)

Soon, I promise.

Maude

2006-11-15T10:25:00.000-05:00

As it turns out, 10 minutes in the dryer was all Maude needed to perk up. A short run in the dryer also gives Koigu a nice sproing.

Photos by "Crazy Woman" Jenn on a break from work. Sorry, Wendy, but your poses were winners, so I copied.

From the front:

And from the back:

All in all, a fab knit. If I had it to do again, I would limit the skeins and make it smaller (I'm pretty short and thin, so she's big -- but I love her anyway). Other than that, no major issues. In fact, I would do it again in a snap.

Anticlimactic

2006-11-14T18:30:00.000-05:00

In the not-so wee hours of a dreary, rainy Sunday, a lone knitter and her cup of coffee bound off a single stitch.

And Maude was complete.She waited a day to block it, and then managed to totally screw things up. Maude, blocked, is gargantuan. That said, I have only a lone picture to show.

Close-up of the lace:

Because you see, Maude had to be blocked doubled over on herself, she was so big when wet (that should have been a HUGE hint). Maybe I should have just left her alone and not worried about showing off the lacy edge to Jenn tomorrow at work. 'Cause when I came home tonight, ran upstairs and unpinned her, draped her over my shoulders and looked down, I realized that her ever-so-graceful arms were dragging. the. floor.I have to go back to the blocking board tonight (maybe I shouldn't have pinned, but rather just laid her out to dry).

In Flight

2006-11-08T08:33:00.000-05:00

Even without its feathers, the Swallowtail flies.

Bald Bird.

2006-11-05T09:30:00.000-05:00

Now that I have your attention, let me show you the (unblocked) featherless Swallowtail:

Why is it featherless? Well, I ran out of yarn. My plan was to do this shawl in Elsbeth Lavold Silky Wool ... on #10 needles. Plan was on track until I realized that I was running critically short of yarn so I stopped at the end of the second Lily of the Valley border chart (just before the peaked edging). Either way, this bald bird is a big one. It's lovely, too ... and warm. Despite my resolve to put it in the holiday gift box, I've found myself wearing it. To Stitches on Friday. Picking up the boys from after-care. On the sofa while knitting. It ain't goin' in no box.

That' s not a bad segue into my Stitches post.

A few months ago, I bought my ticket for the Marketplace on line and took a day off work. In October I went on a yarn diet (except for Santa Fe) with the understanding that I was going to drop big bucks at Stitches with one major rule: No buying anything that I can get at my LYS. That said, here's the rundown of the purchases.

Koigu. No yarn store in the vicinity carries this, so when I see it, I must buy it. In bulk. And kill the wallet in the process. Koigu is one of those yarns that TOTALLY lives up to the hype. I bought five skeins and some mill ends -- all from Rosie's Yarn Cellar. Rosie's was my first stop at Stitches ... I wanted to make sure I bought the patternfor Maude and enough Koigu to go with it. The mill ends were a bonus and will go in the bag with the ends I picked up at MS&W. One day I'll figure out what to do with them.

Socks that Rock. I have NEVER been able to score this. I don't know if it's been a situation where they've run out or whether I haven't been able to find it, but now it's mine. Three skeins. Harlotty, Lucy and Downpour. It seems way too succulent to put on my feet, so maybe I could take the Harlotty and Lucy colorways and make a shawl. Knitblogger's Shawl. Fun.

Other Miscellany. The STR, Koigu and Maude were my three major goals. The rest was icing on the cake. Some beautiful roving, some merino/tencel from Ellen's Half Pint Farm and some doo-dads from the Mannings (had to avoid the Koigu there -- it runneth over). I also picked up a book on dying with natural ingredients and a book on Shetland lace motifs.

One of the coolest things I picked up, though, were two sets of sock-needle covers. Check them out:

So what in the hell has taken me so long to get this posted? Well, I've been hard at work. That tencel/merino blend? One skein is destined to be the second Swallowtail ... this time with feathers. I'm on repeat nine of the second chart with plenty of yarn left. While this one wil be a much smaller piece (more like a "shawlette" most likely), this one will be more true to the pattern itself, which is designed to be small, and it. Will. Have. Feathers. I think I cast this on immediately to assuage any guilt I feel over not putting a shawl in the gift box. I cast on for this almost immediately after I got home on Friday from Stitches. I'm thinking that the other skein in this colorway could just be matching socks :)

But I'm not just working on the Swallowtail. Yesterday, I cast on for Maude, which I heard about from Wendy. I met designer Courtney at the Rosie's Booth at Stitches, and I have to say this pattern is really something. Not only are there no long purl-back rows, but it's done in such a way that you aren't stuck with a zillion stitches at the end -- it's knit from one wing to another and the lace is hypnotic. There's elegance to the edging and, put simply, I'm totally loving this pattern. I bought a very-Thanksgiving colorway of Koigu ... which gives me a serious deadline for this project. But here's evening one progress:

Busy, busy, busy

2006-11-02T06:26:00.000-05:00

Some weeks, I even surprise myself. This week has been one of those weeks. Not because I've been particularly busy knitting, or that I've made significant progress. Just because I'm in severe cast-on-itis mode and I have a raging case of PMS. Not a good combination ... because very little that I've cast on has been right and I've been spending quite a bit of time in the frog pond.

Actually, I need to move the dates back a little. I've been fiddly for a while now (other than that second Widdershin and a few scarves). Remember that peacock homespun that was Navajo plied? I hated it and unplied it. Ugh. I hope I never do that again. However, I managed to salvage enough singles to make a short stockinette scarf so the spinning and the fiber weren't a total loss.

And then there was the matter of knitting a new sock. Have you ever bought a skein of yarn that you fell in love with at the LYS, put it in the stash only to pull it out later and wonder what in the world you were thinking? I did, about a year ago. I pulled the Mountain Colors "Crazy Woman" out of the stash on Sunday thinking I wanted a new pair of socks. There's a lot of cherry red in this stuff. Too much for me. I spent four hours that day casting on and ripping out cuff-downs, only to realize that what I wanted desperately was another Widdershin. Problem was, I didn't want to waste this yarn. And then it hit me. These could be the Jennifer socks.

My friend Jenn is one of those people who just gets the whole crafty thing. While she refuses to learn to knit (she's a graphic designer, a painter, a jeweler, a scrapbooker and a great decorator -- there's already a lot in there), she's ALWAYS on board with a new project. When I was hanging outside with her the other day at work and we were talking about dyeing with pokeberries and black walnuts, she starting theorizing on the other things I could dye with ... pointing out this and that. When I'm working on a new project, she investigates, touches, sniffs ... just as though she were a knitter. We've done some very cool things craft-wise together and to boot, she's one of those gals who can pull off two patterns in the same outfit. Very cool.

She also never once judged me when I burned myself with hot enamel a few years back when I was in jewelery mode. No one else could understand why in the hell I was playing with enamel or why I'd want to in the first place. (Note: A few weeks ago, I bequeathed the melting pot to her ... I haven't touched it since that fateful day two years ago and for the record, she's been melting and dipping up a storm and hasn't yet seared flesh.)

I knew these socks were for her. Because she, like me, is also a Crazy Woman. The colors are much more jewel-toned than shown in the picture. I showed her the sock in progress, deemed them hers and she's psyched.

In other news, here's the color that Kool Aid Arctic Apple makes:

The picture makes it look sickly, but it's actually a very pretty pale green. Modeling the green is a skein of singles spun this weekend from the washed-in-the-tub fleece. Not too bad.

Fruity Goodness (and another scary thing)

2006-10-31T09:56:00.000-05:00

Last night our kitchen was a busy place. I made cupcakes for The Yarn Sniffers Halloween/October Birthday party for his kindergarten class.

So while I was in the kitchen, I pulled out some roving that I've had forever, two pots and eight pouches of Kool-Aid. Four Tropical Punch and four Black Cherry. I mixed up the Kool-Aid in the pots (one for each flavor) and then added the roving. The Yarn Sniffer FREAKED when he asked what in the world I was doing and I told him I was making dinner.

Heated the pots for about 20 minutes (not boiling, but close) and turned off the pots and waited for the wool to soak in the dye. I then rinsed the yarn in a bath that was the same temp as the water in the pots (110 degrees -- I used my meat thermometer). Then I hung it up to dry.

This morning I wound it (tropical punch on the left, black cherry on the right) and took its picture in the early morning light outside.

Tonight, I spin.

Scary Stuff to Share

2006-10-29T08:56:00.000-05:00

Halloween is two days away, and it's time to start thinking about scary things. There's plenty in my fiber world that can be pretty alarming, so I thought I'd share.

But first, the second Widdershin is nearly complete. A few more rounds on the cuff and they are done. The jury is still out on whether they will be for me, or for the holiday box.

Scary Thing #1: The Shark Scarf
OK, so this isn't frightening or anything, but since it's dubbed "the shark" and those guys can be scary, I dub this #1. I finished it this a.m. for The Yarn Sniffer, who has been waiting a whole two days for me to finish (I was late starting after the spinning ... yarn's gotta dry, after all).

Scary Thing #2: Oreo
In and of itself, the yarn itself isn't scaring me. What terrifies me is that I have about 900 yards or so of this delicious homespun and now, quite frankly, I'm terrified to cast on for anything for fear of destroying my largest spinning endeavor ever. If anyone has any ideas for 900 yards of bulky yarn, or a pattern that is virtually indestructable, let me know. I could make a bunch of scarves for the holidays, but something just tells me that Oreo (the CVM darling) is destined for something much greater than a simple scarf. Truth is, I'm really freaked about the challenge.

Scary Thing #3: Fleece Among Us
I may be completely in over my head on this one. A few months ago, I went on eBay and purchased 8 oz of raw fleece -- I honestly can't remember what breed -- and started processing it bit by bit in the sink. No fun in the sink, let me tell you. Lock by lock, 8 oz takes FOREVER. So this past Friday night (in between cleaning my house to prep for my mother in law's visit yesterday, which is why I am still a ghost at spinner's group) I threw it in the tub (before I got to that part of the cleaning) to scour it. Worked very well, I must say, and I just threw what was left in there. I don't completely scrub each lock ... if there's a little dirt at the end of the lock it usually brushes out during carding.

So what's scary about that? Well ... there's the fact that I have to card it all still ... that's going very, very slowly. There's also the small problem of my subsequent order of 18oz of Targhee/Merino cross wool that is awaiting processing. What have I done?

Wild Kingdom

2006-10-27T06:46:00.000-04:00

I'm not a big dreamer, but sometimes when I do have them, they're doozies. Last night I dreamed that I was heading to a fiber festival (it wasn't specific, though when I got there it turned out to be Maryland). It was cold, windy and rainy but there were tons of people and I was desperate to get to the Koigu mill ends and the Socks that Rock. So I was going behind pavillions and racing -- jumping over things (small things, don't think The Matrix or anything) and going in pavillion after pavillion from the back doors trying to get to Building A. I was ahead of the crowd (I was peeking through between the buildings to check as I ran) ... and just as I was reaching Building A, my damn alarm went off. Ugh ... I hope it's not a prelude to the Stitches East marketplace next week (I have a ticket to go on Friday).

Anyway, in fiber news -- in my last post I showed you all the fluffiest puff of fiber that I've ever held in my hand (I can't say "fluffiest puff ever" because I've touched quivet but never really held it in my hand...). No it isn't quivet, and it isn't guanaco and it isn't camel.

No guesses? That fluff I showed you is yak. That's right ... hair from one of these. It's the most beautiful heathery gray and oh so very soft.

Rather than risk f-ing it up with a ply, I (literally) took a page from a recent article in Spin Off and starting spinning with an energized single straight from the bobbin and letting this yarn work with its twist.

Here's the bobbin:

And here's the scarf I'm working on for my husband:

See that center part? That's where the biasing is. (Look closely where the stitches are slanting to the right.)

It's garter stitch all around (note: it's doesn't bend and angle in garter, just stockinette) on #4 needles with a stockinette panel in the center. I probably should have gone with #5 needles just to open it a bit ... and honestly I'm going to consider that today while I'm at work. I think frogging a charged single will be a real pain, though, so I may just grin and bear it. If I leave it alone, it will still be super-warm and it will stay a little thick (though overall thin and light). He was actually worried that a single would be too thin and perhaps too delicate for him. Come to think of it, I'll probably just leave it alone.

I got approximately 18 wpi with this, though there are definitely slubbies here and there. All in all, I'm relatively content so far. So content that I ordered four more ounces of the stuff. Why? 'Cause Mama needs a yak scarf too.

The Very Un-Rhinebeck Post

2006-10-24T07:06:00.000-04:00

This past weekend was my husband's birthday, so I didn't push the Rhinebeck issue. However, I got into the spirit of a good fiber festival from the comfort of my own desk (and the internet) and ended up spending considerably less than I might have had I headed up to NY for its wool festival.

It all came yesterday. Perfect timing ... it's as if I shopped all weekend :)

From Spunky Eclectic:

I read about this fiber shop on Janine's blog, and I was not disappointed. What you see are the Sangria and Carribean colorways. These already have holiday recipients once spun and knit. The notable roving, however, was in the Shark colorway. The Yarn Sniffer has a thing for sharks. I spun it up last night and remembered to take pictures:

Roving, singles and yarn. In that order. The yarn needs a good soak, but then I'll be a'knittin.

Secondly, I headed over to Vicki's Kendig Cottage for some exotic fibers and fun. I ended up coming out with two things. The first is a lovely colonial wool filled with dark greens and reds.

The other fiber purchased is something you have to guess on. I'll tell you it's exotic, that I'm making my husband's scarf out of it, and I promptly ordered two more ounces last night after getting a feel for this stuff.

Any ideas of what this is? I'll spill the beans tomorrow.

Colors on Parade

2006-10-23T07:16:00.000-04:00

I've been so into spinning this past week or so that I haven't thought to take time of the pre-spun roving, the process or the singles. Hell, I haven't even taken the time to note ratios or pre-drafting activities to repeat myself later. I've just been a whirling dervish.

Spinning has been an activity of mine for about six months now ... I got the bug back in the pre-Spring months when I ordered a spindle from eBay. That one spindle multiplied and I ended up with my fair share of spindles, which allowed me to tackle multiple fibers at once. In the meantime, I stocked up with more than my fair share of fibers at MDS&W. Then i got my wheel in June, and it's been nuts ever since.

But I've never actually knit with any of my homespun. Until now.

Earlier this month, the Harlot posted a beautiful story of a Grafton batt of fiber that she spun up, Navajo plied and then knit into a very simple, one-row scarf. I was inspired, and I took to the wheel with a passion, tearing through my MDS&W fiber like a madwoman, spinning and spinning and spinning. Then I went to Cloverhill and discovered Mama E's roving, and got some of that and took to it. I showed you what I Navajo plied earlier last week (that peacock colored yumminess? I'm unplying it to do a double -- Navajo makes a three-ply), but late last week I hit the Cherry Garcia colorway.

Now I'm no pink girl, and I doubt these pictures will do it any kind of justice, but this colorway is like ice cream. No joke -- it's smooth and luscious, the color transitions are subtle and if I could get naked and roll in it, I would. I wish I could show you the process, really I do, but I spun it up, hung it to set the twist, and then made this:

There it is, all wound up. I'll note here that there were no fancy steps taken to preserve the colorway ... I wasn't about to f#@* up another batch of roving trying that. Instead, I let it go the way it wanted to, and the transitional result is (I think) pretty darn nice. See?

I like it. The only question is, is it mine, or do I put it in the holiday bin?

And I'm on to Fire. Mama E makes one hell of a roving, and I'm really looking forward to knitting with this once the twist is set (the plan is to soak it this a.m. before work and then hang it up in the hopes that it will be dry by tomorrow).

I have a child who wants an orange scarf.

In more spinning news, I'm dealing with some singles that I spun up last week in my frenzy -- a beautiful yellow merino/llama/silk concoction. I only bought four ounces of it and was hoping to get a fine yarn out of it. I did, soaked and hung the singles (they were very twisted) and now I have approximately 230 yards of singles to work with. I'm torn ... do I make a modified Melody (I cannot tell you how long the finished product is--it's ginormous) or something else. Thoughts?

I'm speechless.

2006-10-18T06:34:00.000-04:00

Yesterday at lunch, I ran over to my LYS to pick up some more fiber to spin, and got my hands on some Alpine Meadow Artisan Fibers. It's wool with some little sparkles in it. I bought four ounces -- two in the "Mount Cook" colorway and two in "Black Lake" -- and last night sat down with Mount Cook and got started.

Here are the singles:

And here's the two-ply result:

Something clicked last night with this fiber. Now I'm an average spinner (way below average when it comes to Navajo plying), but for some reason this just blew me away. There's nothing fancy here ... just a very fine single done as a two ply. I could have done more color separation, but that's not what the fiber wanted to do. I let it do its thing, and it did it well.

I'm head over heels in love with the yarn. I can't wait to spin up the other colorway and then get started on the Mama E's "Cherry Garcia" braid that's also in the wings...

As the Whorl Turns

2006-10-16T06:56:00.000-04:00

And boy did it turn this weekend. No knitting of note, but man, was I a spinning fool.

Now let me clarify. I haven't spun anything on my wheel in, literally, months. I've been so busy traveling for work and preparing for a new boss (started last Tuesday) that knitting has been about all I've had time for. I hadn't planned on spinning this weekend, but I got started and than couldn't stop.

Remember Oreo? I finished it. All 20 ounces of it. I have a lot of yarn to show for my efforts, but it's bulky, and so I must do lots of calculating and measuring before I make something with it. I don't want to run out. It's a delightful yarn -- sproingy and soft.

Once Oreo was singled and plied, I tore into some Caroline Homespun (picked up at MDS&W) to play around, and spun two full bobbins of singles and then plied it up into two two-ply skeins. I bit nubbly, but nice nonetheless for a nice bulky scarf. It's Merino superwash, and the drafting really was difficult and hurt my thumb, so at 2 a.m. I called it quits for the night, soaked and hung the skeins and hit the sack. Can I tell you how nice it is to wake up to see this?

Then yesterday morning over coffee, I picked up a big ball of fluff (again from my MDS&W stash... if you look at the post there's a two-tone varigated skein right in the center -- that's it) and spun that up into four two-ply skeins of itchy wool. I'm not sure what to do with that.

And then, as if I hadn't already done enough (have you lost count? I'm up to 13 skeins already) I picked up the four ounces of Mama E's Cyber Roving that I grabbed at my LYS a few weeks ago. Decided to spin that up and then try my hand at navajo plying. I love the colors and this merino superwash spun and drafted like liquid gold. It was a pleasure to spin and now I want more, more, more. Another bulky result (partly because it's a three-ply), but the holidays are coming and there are more than a few people who will appreciate a scarf with my own handspun. This one, however, may just be mine.