Chugging along!

I won't talk about the million other projects I have lingering that really need to get done, like the entrelac baby blanket, and Robby's little jeans, and sweaters, not to mention that Treeline cardigan that I have yet to start on, because Swallowtail is my focus at the moment.Looks like third time was the charm!I've had a few scares, but since I understand the lace pattern now, I was able to fix mistakes without ripping out. It's not perfect, but the pursuit of perfection was abandoned a LONG time ago. I had one really scary incident involving thisguy getting tangled up in the yarn and dragging my knitting downstairs, thankfully no stitches were dropped in the process.

In Robby news, his Aunt Amanda has been watching him since Aunt Olivia has been sick. He loves his auntie, and he LOVES his cousin Lizzie. He is just fascinated with her. I think when he gets a little bigger they will be really good buddies, what do you guys think?Don't they look like they will be serious partners in crime here?She is such a doll and calls herself "big sister" :) Check out the super long drool string! That big smile is for Aunt Amanda, which shows how much he has taken to her! His separation anxiety is starting to ease up, I also was told that he put himself to sleep and napped for an hour, hmmmm, must be a different baby. The cut on his face is from this week, I left him in his cosleeper for a minute, and he grabbed his Snappi and hooked his face! I felt SO bad, but it's healing up nicely thanks to help from Aunt Kacey, NICU nurse extraordinaire and owner of Baxter, the above mentioned doggie. I have some photograhic evidence of some hijinks Baxter and his brother Bentley carried out on Robear and the blanket I knitted, but that's for a different post.

Damn!

Thanks for all of the kind comments about the Swallowtail! Unfortunately we are having technical difficulties, due to the unfroggable nature of Kidsilk Haze, Robby sleeping on my lap while knitting, and slippery Addi Turbo's. I'm thinking about ordering some Inox circulars, because I read they are not quite as slippery and have a nice sharp tip, that's suited for lace. Have no fear, I'm not giving up, it's a pride thing now, I'm on my third attempt, let's hope this one works out.

Unassuming

grey blob,and then the magic happens. It's the Swallowtail Shawl from the Fall 2006 Interweave Knits.

I decided to do this project after I found out that my grandma is going to be visiting my family in Atlanta for a month, and I wanted to make her a gift that would be fitting for this amazing woman that raised her children during the Korean War and has this amazing history. I can hardly communicate with her because I speak very little Korean, but hope this gift can convey how much I admire and respect her.

From the moment I cast on, I knew this was going to be a different kind of project. I've never tackled lace before, much less with Kidsilk Haze. It's so light and airy it catches on the slightest breeze, and it has this wonderfully soft halo around the core. I find myself holding my breath till I get to the end of a row and find that I've counted the stitches correctly, although that will get harder as the rows get longer. I'm loosening up though, and going with the flow of the yarnovers and decreases, it's definitely a challenge, but it's a refreshing change from the mind numbing countless diaper changes!

Look

what Robby started doing yesterday! Here are the finally finished socks for my aunt.And the Jaywalkers for my Maw Maw.

And in this corner...

weighing in at 15.37 lbs and 26 inches tall, is Robby..the Robertater!!!! We went to the doctor for Robby's 4 month checkup and booster shots. He's grown 2 inches in the past two months! Jessie, that's your yarn in the picture in case you're wondering :) Robby's been feeling yucky since he got his shots, he woke me up every hour last night and then started crying at about 3 in the morning. He had a fever and was probably just feeling achy and sick. Poor bubba. Today he has been very SENSITIVE. He has been sleeping and nursing all day and cries if he wets his diaper or if I disturb him by coughing or chewing too loud. Sigh. Poor booger. Rob did a Wal-Mart run at 3am to get me a thermometer because I forgot to pack it. So, he has been on my lap all day except for diaper changes and I'm getting work stuff done when I can. Do you guys like his shirt? Here is a happy moment yesterday before the yuckiness settled in. I'm also almost finished with my Jaywalkers! Yayyy! I ordered the yarn for the Treeline cardigan I blogged about and am finally going to invest in a swift and a ball winder so I can make those yummy little yarn cakes. Joy and Colleen, save the ones at the yarn store for me! I have a whole crapload of skeins that need to be wound in our storage unit. Oh and if you happen to be moving into your brother in law's house temporarily and pack your yarn stash, put the box in front of the storage unit. My yarn is stuck behind a gajillion heavy Tupperware and will probably stay there until we move into our newly remodeled house...someday... And because it's too funny not to post, here is another installment in the Robby hat series. He used to fit into it, for about a week.

Why

must she do this to me. Knitters, what do you do when a project grabs your eye and you REALLY want to make it, and it's really hard to pass up deals like this to make that certain project? Am I crazy to buy more yarn, when I have so much in my stash already and have so many projects going on? Rob, don't comment on this post! Help!

Happy Berfday Bubba

Tomorrow, you will be 4 months old Robby! I can hardly believe it, these past four months have been the longest and the shortest months of my life. When we first brought you home from the hospital, you were a little slug that only ate, pooped, and peed. It was all we could do to get you to open your eyes, every once in a while, you would crack one eye, take a quick glance around and shut them really quick. Very gradually, you started opening your eyes more and more, looking around you, and staring at people's faces. Then, wonder of wonders, you started giving us real smiles! At four months, we are starting to see more and more of your personality. Firstly, you LOVE mommy! Whenever I walk into the room, your eyes light up and follow me around the room. You get this HUGE smile as if to say, "Hey, I know you! You are the lady that feeds me and holds me and changes me and plays with me! You're cool!" If I'm gone for too long, you have this whine that sounds like you're saying, "Hey......hey......helloooo.....lady...where are you? I'm all alone here....heyyyyyy." When you are with me, you rarely cry, unless I break out the big blue booger sucker of death, but when you are with your Aunt Olivia, or your Dad, or your Aunt Kathy, every once in a while you will cry for 45 minutes straight, and be inconsolable, nothing works, feeding you, slinging you, rocking you, you just cry and cry because you miss mommy. It takes a while for you to trust someone, you usually cry when someone you don't know holds you, your forehead worry wrinkles come out, then you break out into a wailing cry, head thrown back, tears streaming, it's so sad, but a little funny because your sad face is a perfect sad face, like those Greek tragedy masks. You are also a very shy baby. When someone smiles at you and I'm holding you, you smile back then bury your head in my chest. When I'm holding you and we walk by a mirror, you look around in the mirror till you see me smiling back at you, then you smile at yourself and then bury your head in my chest. Your laughs are a thing of wonder, and daddy and I will make total fools of ourselves to hear it. You save your best laughs for daddy, his stubble can elicit deep throated chuckles when he eats your chubby armpits and legs. You love when we read to you, sometimes you will talk back to us! You really like for us to hold you so you can stand on your legs, you will stomp your feet and bend your legs. You just discovered your feet a few days ago, and are actively trying to get your foot into your mouth. You haven't gotten that far yet, but I'm sure you'll reach that goal someday. For the most part, you are a very quiet baby, and when I'm holding you, you are content to look around and take everything in. You are the best thing that's happened to us, even when you are being a little Robby the Turd, we love you so much. It's been an adventure, happy four month birthday, we look forward to many many more.
Gosh this is a long post! I still struggle with doubt about you being too attached to me, but I'm working through it. You are a very good baby, and to get on my soapbox here, the Western idea of a good baby is silly, most little babies will not lie passively in their cribs entertaining themselves, they need to be attached to people at this stage, not a doll, a mobile, or a pacifier. Needs that aren't met in infancy don't go away, they get replaced by other needs, so while it's hard sometimes to respond to your need to be held, hugged, played with, I know it will pay off in the future. I know the time will come when you are independent, the time when you are ready to sleep by yourself and start detaching from me, but for now, you are still your mama's boy and that's ok.

Procrastination is my middle name...

Ok, so we are moving out of our 850 sq ft apartment into my brother in law's house for a week or two, until the remodels on our house are done. We are supposed to be out this Saturday, so you guys know what that means. Time to...try on hats!

Hmmm, the situation in the Mideast looks interesting.Naah, I'll just eat the paper instead of read it.

Wanna go fishing?Why is everyone laughing? Heck, I'll join in. Chicken or steak?

Lynda Jo

this one's for you. My knit night buddy had a dream I named Robby "G" for Gangsta. This is how he rolls.

1/2 an FO

I finished one Jaywalker sock, I had a lot of fun knitting this sock. And once I picked them back up out of the unfinished pile, I zoomed right along with the easy stitch pattern. The Lorna's Laces yarn worked up beautifully. I love handknit socks, I have yet to knit a pair for myself, but they feel so good on your feet.Now I just need to finish the second one!Next time I make socks, I'm going to try a toe up version, because I don't really like doing kitchener stitch.I have to post lots of pictures of FO's because they are so few and far between lately, but hey, check out the neat color effect on the sole of the sock!Just one more, I swear.And now for a Robby update. He is really starting to laugh and squeal! Especially when Daddy eats his arms and his legs and his belly. I have to try and capture the moment on tape and post it for you all to hear, because it's a very funny gravelly (sp?) laugh. Sorry about the blurry picture, I was crawling on my stomach, Navy Seal style to try and get this picture without Robby getting distracted. I was so worried about Rob not bonding to Robby at first, but it looks like all my fears were unfounded. It just takes time, and for the first few months, all Robby needed was to have his physical needs met and be in a warm, cozy, small space. But now, he's stretching out, growing up, noticing the world around him, wanting to explore, walk, fly, crawl, and watch other people. Especially in new environments, he likes to do all those things from the safety of his mommy or daddy's arms, and when we hold him, we can see him soaking up his environment. Attachment parenting has its "dark side", the part where they are attached, ALL the time, and there are those times where I just want to knit or sew or do anything by myself, but then, Robby smiles or laughs or kicks his legs in excitement, and it buoys me up for the next day. As a new mom, I've learned if you are just exhausted with the phase your baby is in, wait a week or two, it will change.

The thing

about sewing cloth diapers, is no matter how butt ugly your sewing is, you have to REALLY booger it up for it not to work.Robby was nice enough to sit in his swing for 45 minutes, while I got some of these sewn up. I just need to finish putting on the foldover elastic, and then when I get my serger, I'm going to sew the inner soaker pads.The color side is the waterproof layer, and on the other side is white microfleece, that's the side that touches Robby's skin. Hopefully the microfleece will act as a wicking layer, drawing the moisture into the removable soaker pad. The pattern is a Chloe Toes diaper pattern. The version I'm making is the pocket diaper. In the back there will be an opening that allows me to stuff the diaper with an absorbent insert. When I finish sewing all the elastic on, I'm going to use a snap press to put snaps on the diaper. I sewed up this style of diaper for convenience, they act alot like disposables, waterproof, once the pocket is stuffed, you just put them on and go! I've used both disposables and cloth and really, cloth isn't that much more of a hassle than disposable. At home I keep Robby in a prefold without a cover, and that helps keep diaper rash at bay. When Robby was a newborn, it was definitely harder because he went #2 a LOT, as all babies do, but now that he's a little older and doesn't go #2 at night anymore, and maybe every other day, it's become a lot easier. I've also found that cloth diapers are MUCH better at keeping messes in. You know those infant #2 blowouts? The ones where poo goes all the way up the babies back, soaking an outfit? The only time I have had those is in a disposable. In a cloth diaper, the worst was I get a little leak. And for laundry, I haven't had too bad of a problem with stains. Especially with breastfed babies, you don't need to scrape off solids or anything like that, their poo is totally water soluble so it just gets washed away, and I have a tiny front loading washer, so you don't have to have anything fancy to get your diapers clean. This post is for those moms who are considering cloth diapers, knitting content to come!

Mr. Rogers talks to the US senate

I found this video on Ann and Kay's website. It made me want to cry. I grew up watching Mr. Rogers, I was so fascinated with the trolley going into the land of make believe. As a child I never saw the significance of his words, but looking back on it, I can see how his message is so refreshing from what you normally see on TV, and how important it is for children to grow up hearing that they are valued. Today would have been Mr. Roger's 79th birthday.

Jaywalkin'

I've made some progress on the Jaywalker's I'm knitting for my grandma-in-law, or Maw Maw. I love knitting with Lorna's Laces and I love this Jaywalker pattern, I can see why it's so popular, it's easy to knit, but it's interesting enough, especially with a striping yarn, to hold your attention.Judging from Robby's activities that he likes to do, I'm thinking this is a very plausible career choice.What do you guys think? I think he's got the guns, do you?His favorite thing to do is stand, albeit on very wobbly legs!

The big blue booger sucker of death...

Something I've been having to do about every other day is clear Robby's nose in the morning. Babies aren't really good at breathing out of their mouth if their nose is stuffed up so as bad as I hate to do it, I have to break this out.This is Robby's face as he sees the big blue booger sucker of death coming closer and closer.In other news, I finished my Anemoi Mittens! I still need to block and sew in the ends, but I'll wait on that. Here is a picture of the left one, the right one is resting in her vacation home at the LYS for the spring and summer.And to end this post here is a little baby chin for breakfast!

My kingdom for a yarn needle...

I'm so close to finishing these socks for my aunt, but I can't find a yarn needle to finish the toe. Check out this yummy yarn I got from Jessie.It's a blend of 70% Romney/Corriedale and 30% mohair. It's so soft and squishy, I don't know if it's the mohair or the wool, but it has a very silky feel to it. I got the yarn with this pattern in mind, but now I'm thinking maybe a lacy rectangular stole, maybe something like this? Help! I can't make up my mind!

Why my allowance should be higher..

Alternative titles to this post:

1. Mooooo.
2. Why I wish I didn't have to walk through the breakroom at work to get to the bathroom.

Robby aka the Michelin Man

Robby didn't want to disappoint some fans, so here are some pictures!

This weekend

I watched thisthisand did this.Needless to say, my house is a mess. Babel was a good movie, but dang it was depressing! And I liked The Departed, but I don't think they said the f*&! word enough in the movie...

I finished

one Anemoi Mitten, I'll block and weave in the ends when I finish the second one. I'm hoping blocking will even out some of the inconsistencies in the knitting, especially when I'm carrying colors from one DPN to another, my tension was a little funky, so you can see a ridge where the yarn didn't have enough slack.This was a really fun project, and the knitting moved pretty quickly (quick being a relative term since Robby's arrival).And to cap off my yarn spree, I ordered some yarn from one of my favorite bloggers, I'll keep you guys in suspense until it gets here! And because this blog entry wouldn't be complete without a Robby story, Friday night, he got really fussy and everything I did just didn't work, so finally I just laid him down on his bouncy chair and daddy came over and started playing with him, and he actually got Robby to laugh! That was the first laugh I've heard, and I've never been able to make him laugh! That was the first time he actually fussed because he wanted daddy to play with him! I was worried because it didn't seem like Robby was bonding to dad at all, but it looks like my fears were unfounded. People always say this time goes by fast, it wasn't feeling that way, but it seems like overnight Robby has become this little person that interacts with the world around him. Check out the forehead wrinkles, hee hee.

Booty-licious

No, not THAT kind of booty, I'm talking about my LYS's Clearance Sale booty. For the red and orange Blue Sky Alpaca, I'm thinking of some kind of dainty cardigan, or a short sleeved sweater, or maybe a striped v-neck??For, the Classic AL, I have a trusty crochet hat that looks kind of like a 20's flapper hat that has been very popular with my family for Christmas gifts. I think I'll make one or two, and post the pattern. Maybe a long, cabled, belted cardigan? This was a Vivian Hoxbro kit, I'm going to use the yarn for some kind of yoke cardigan or sweater, I would like to try out the steeking thing, the yarn is 100% shetland wool, so it would be perfect for it.More GOA just in case I don't have enough to finish my Rebecca sweater.This is the only thing I've bought besides the GOA that I had a specific pattern in mind. I think this will knit up quick and be nice for the spring and summer. It was 3.75 a ball, you can't beat that with a stick!Paradoxically, these additions to my stash have reinspired me to get my existing projects out the door to make room for the new projects. I've always wanted to design my own knitwear, so this is a good opportunity to continue what I started with Rob's Banana Republic Sweater. So, I'm determined to finish my Rebecca sweater and all the other stuff I've got laying around the house. So, maybe I went a little (ok a LOT) overboard, but I've been good and saved my allowance! Plus, I figure all the money I'm saving breastfeeding and cloth diapering, why the heck not?