Finally finished

my knitting needle holder:




with flap folded over


all rolled up


close-up to see fabric.

Anyway, overall, it's okay. I followed McCalls Pattern 4728
.
Eh, It's workable. I would like to someday remake it and tweak it a bit. But for now it is working and I have to admit, it's lovely to have my needles in one place. Now, I just need to make something to hold my circular needles ;-)

Not much luck ...

Well, I started knitting a blanket last week. Somehow dropped a stitch and the little bugger unraveled down to the cast on row. So in my frustration I frogged the whole thing! Which is fine I guess, becuase I was making a little cough throw for a couch we ended up getting rid of this weekend. And now we have two different chairs in it's place - they are pink. The yarn I have is purple. Despite being cute for a little girls room, not quite what I want for my chairs! But the chairs do need to have slip covers put on or be reupholstered - probably they will get slip covers so maybe I can find something to coordinate with the purple yarn.
And I still can't find a nice sweater to make my babyboy. I don't want a cardigan, I don't want buttons, I don't want zippers, I don't want stripes, or little boats, or airplanes or trains or bunnies ... just a plain old sweater. You'd think it's out there. Actually, you'd think I could just fake it, but since I haven't done sweaters, I'm not ready to fake it. Good thing I have until fall to actually do something ... but by then I may be ready to fake it if I can't find anything I like! LOL!
So that is my crafting update for this week. Kind of sad?
Oh, I do have something good to say!! I finally found ribbon to match the fabric for my needle holder, so as soon as babyboy allows me to detatch him from my hip for more than 5 minutes, I can finish that. And on that note ... he's crying and wants to be picked up! ;-)

2 finished projects today ...

I finished two things today! I finally sewed up the hood (poorly too if I am being honest here LOL!) to the baby cardi. I didn't put ties on it. I don't know that I want to actually ... I guess I'll have to think about it and see how I feel after he wears it (and no, it hasn't been blocked or anything like that yet)


Baby cardi


from the back

I also finished the blanket I was knitting to free up the needles to make a different sweater - only to discover the yarn I have doens't remotely work and if I actually looked at the yarn for more than 2 seconds before picking a project, I would have known that honestly @@ So, yeah, apparently I'm on a roll today - but it's not a gooed one LOL!
But, let me stop rambling ... the blanket looks good. I do need to weave in ends, but since I don't think I need to give it to anyone (most people are having boys it seems) I'm going to procrastinate as long as I can! LOL!

Anyway ... I'm off to find another sweater pattern to use with the yarn I have.

blanket

Today ...

27 years ago my mom gave birth to ME! Yes, yes, it's my birthday today!! I'm so excited. I simply love birthdays, especially mine =)
Our day started as any normal Tuesday - one park district class for my 3 year old and then a class for my 6 year old. Came home and cleaned just a tiny bit, and the kids played outside. I worked on garage sale items (yep, we are having one here Thurs-Sat). And then we made a cake, ate dinner, then decorated the cake:

Woo-hoo! Our lovely cake creation!
My 6 year old and 3 year old made it with just a bit of help from me =)

Even better dh was home!! He wasn't supposed to be home tonight so I was SOOO excited when he told me earlier today he was going to be here =)
And then it was present time. So I got a LAMP! So exciting because my sewing machine is in the basement without the best lighting around.

Before the light (well, it's not that well lit, but it looks it because of the flash LOL!)
We had one lamp down there when we moved in, but it was old and it broke. So I was missing it. And dh, all on his own decided I needed a new one down there. And I am so pleased!

Holy cow!! What a difference! Now there is LIGHT! I love it =) Can't wait to work down there now =) It's so bright by my machine now! I didn't even realize just how badly lit the area was until I saw it with this lamp (and only 2 of the 3 bulbs are even turned on in this picture!!)
So happy and excited =)

Bummer ...

I was going to snap a few pitures tonight but alas my camera is in my car, and I'm too lazy to go get it!
But I finished knitting the baby cardi - I need to, however, sew up the hood, block it, and do all that finishing stuff.
I also completed a dishcloth that I wanted to snap a picture of.
I am in the process of finishing a blanket I started, well, over a year ago! Why the sudden desire to finish it you ask? Well, I need the needles for another sweater I would like to make the babyboy. So I decided I needed to clear the blanket off the needles (it was one of the things I intended to do in my "spring cleaning" earlier this year, but didn't then. Now I have good motivation though! LOL!
I am collecting lots of patterns of things I do want to make soon though! And of course, I have a few embroidery things I want to make and several sewing projects .... too many projects, sew little time ;-)

I

For the ABC along there is a contest for the best I picture .... I read about it awhile ago and have been racking my brain for a great I picture - the prize of yarn looked fabulous and I wanted it.
So I racked my brain of I words. I knew I needed to have an ingenuous idea. I need to be imaginative and an innovative thinker.
So I thought about things that are me and could be photographed.
Maybe an I-cord to show my knitting ... nah, too boring.
Sometimes I feel like an idiot ... nah, how do you take a picture of that?
I suffer from insomnia ... maybe a picture of a clock showing 2 am. But no, that's not what I want.
How about inspiration I thought? I could take a picture of my inspiration to craft! But truth be told ... I usually get inspired in the heat of the moment because I see something I like and want to create it myself. So it's hard to pin down one thing for inspiration.
I asked my husband ... he said I was intelligent. That's arguable so I passed LOL!
He then suggested I scan the I section of the dictionary to find a word to win.
Yes, I admit it .. I did. I pulled out the dictionary.
Then I thought I am completely irrational sometimes. I suppose looking through the dictionary to find a great I-word to enter the ABC-along contest shows just how irrational I can be. Or when I go to the store and buy more fabric when I have 2, okay 3, boxes of fabric downstairs. I am irrational when I buy stuff just in case I ever want to make something when I really deep down know I won't really make it LOL! I am irrational when I decide I have to learn yet another craft but in order to do it properly I must go out and spend lots of money to get every tool I might need and buy more supplies than I can probably use over the course of a year. I am irrational when I have to have another diaper bag just in case the other 4 somehow won't work. Or when I have to get another purse because it's cute, bring it home, use it once, and decide it's not so cute afterall. I am irrational some days when I secretly hope babyboy will stay up later than the rest of the family because I know I can lay him down and knit for about 10 minutes without interruption. I am irrational when I stay awake late at night to finish that really great book even though I know I will be dead tired the next day and I have three kids who will need me. I am irrational for thinking about I words for so long to get some more yarn (becuase the 3 boxes and 2 bags full of yarn downstairs just aren't enough) and goind to far as to look up words in the dictionary! Yes, I am irrational at times, okay maybe a lot of the time! But that's who I am and I like me this way! And even my dh would admit he likes me this way (although he probably wishes my irrational ways didn't usually mean spending money LOL!)
So here is my picture: my irrational self perusing the I section of the dictionary trying to find the perfect word!

I is for irrational!

Today ...

Worked outside almost all day long - aside from nursing babyboy (I had a teen helper here holding him for me a lot otherwise I would have hardly done anything). My mom came over to help me - together we cleared, we dug up stuff, we transplanted things, we clipped items and we rotatilled areas. Tomorrow I need to take pictures, but really I should have taken pictures yesterday to show the difference in the areas we worked today. The scary thing is that we didn't even do probably half of the places that need to be cleared up. And although we moved somethings (hostas and daffodils) we pretty much just prepared areas to be planted. I have a feeling the whole yard will not be finished this year. No, I take it back ... I know the entire yard will not be finished this year. There is no way. If I did all that I wanted to, trees and huge bushes would be taken out of this yard and I know that won't happen. So I just need to work around those areas. And even assuming I have to skip that part, I'm sure other parts will be skipped as well.
But, considering some of these areas haven't been touched we are guessing for maybe 5 years - other parts just 3 years - well, we made good progress. Bless my mom because she helped out tremendously. I admit it fully I had no clue what I was doing. I didn't even know some of the things out there were weeds and not real plants! Nice, huh? LOL!!!

Also wanted to add thanks to Lottafor the suggestion on the yarn. I will have to look into some patterns. I can see me wearing the white - but I'm not a big wearer of blue ... but maybe it might be something to knit for someone else. I'm pondering it ... although I'm also wondering if I can simply use the white for me and dye it another color? Hmmm ... so many things to ponder! LOL!!! So, yeah, if anyone else has suggestions/advice I'm still open to it LOL!

HELP!!!

I have this yarn:

Yarn
It was given to me by dh's grandma before she passed away a few years ago.
They are both Phildar Rubis Kid. 70% Mohair 30% Acrylic 50 grams. I have I think 5 total white and 4 total blue. I would say it's a light weight (3 on the
cyc standards)
So the question becomes - what to do with it? I have no clue. Any ideas? Anyone?

Flowers!
From my darling daughters today =)

H

H is for

Hair!
His hair just cracks me up big time! And we get stopped all the time by people who comment on it - and also, they want to touch it! I think it's great! His hair is just awesome! =)

The only new stuff to report ...

is about my baby boy. Today he got his first tooth AND sat unassisted for some time this evening. I am so proud of him ... growing so quickly and wonderfully!!!
Of course, this weekend he needed a lot of TLC (probably because he was bothered by the new tooth??) which means I accomplished nothing. No knitting, no sewing.
But on the other hand I have memories of rocking, holding and cuddling this little baby. And while doing that, I watched my 3 and 6 year old run around, trying to be independent, and I know these days with him will be fleeting and will pass quickly. And before I know it, he will be running around with his big sisters and I will be left with lots of crafting time. And then, that will probably make me a little sad and missing these days ...