Bears, bears and more bears!

Bear Power!

Sitting with Miss M. is George B. Pinkus Jr. I had Pink George when I was growing up, a pink (surprize!) bear that I loved and had forever until on my way back from college he fell in the mud and the attempt to clean him left him with a rust ring on his stomach (don't ask). My dad thought M. needed her own Pink George, so he searched high and low for a pink teddy bear and found one that I think fits the bill perfectly. And then he named the bear and sent it with it's own name tag.

George Jr. is not M.'s first bear, however. My dad got her her first bear last summer when he and my mom took their annual trip to Yellowstone and Jackson Hole, Wyoming. When I talked to them, he told me that the Bean had it's first teddy bear. He found it at Jackson Lake Lodge; there was another bear there, too, that he didn't buy... he seemed to regret that decision for the next few months, so I'm guessing he might buy it for her during their trip this year (along with a park ranger outfit that they thought was adorable).

In the picture on the left, the first bear is in the back on the left. Next to it is Grey Bear... another of my bears growing up. Well, my dad thought that the baby should have it's own Grey Bear, too... that bear is the one behind the rock light on the right. My parents also got her the Border's polar bear in the center and the little bear carrying the littler bear in the back. The clothed bear came from the baby shower my mother-in-law gave me and the center bear in front came from one of my mom's friends. The bear at front right is a "boo bear" with a plastic ice cube in it from Monica and Polly. I think we're going to need a bigger shelf for all the bears.

In knitting news, I have finished one sleeve and started the second on the February sweater. I switched back to the yoke color for the garter stitch edging at the bottom and I like the way it ties it together. I am really enjoying the sweater. The pattern stitch is easy to memorize, knits up quickly and is nice looking, to boot. I should probably go knit it up instead of blogging here since she's sleeping for a bit.

I wish it would warm up; I'm going to miss Wool and Co. Friday morning knitting again because it's freaking cold out! :(

I hate Mondays

That's how I feel this morning.

Silly girl spent most of the night "talking" and grunting in her sleep. I'm still trying to work on blocking out the non-essential noises since for now at least she sleeps in a crib next to the bed. Eventually, she'll sleep in her crib in the nursery (knock on wood), but for now, I hear everything. Not that I won't later... we bought a monitor that will stay with me everywhere.

The other reasons Mondays suck is that D. goes back to work for the week. I don't feel like I see him enough on the weekends, and then during the week I see him for an hour or two before I go up to bed to sleep while he takes the Bean for a few hours between feedings. But, then again, if he didn't work... well, none of this would be possible, so I can't really complain.

You can't tell in this picture (which over a month old) but the onesie she's wearing says, "Nothing's wrong, just testing you".

The other day I was talking to my mom and dad, telling them that I'm trying to be more loyal to my knitting projects, by which I mean, I'm trying to work on just one (maybe two) at a time. Since I don't get as much knitting time now, the way I jump around usually would mean nothing would ever get finished, so I am trying to focus more. I read on Dee's blog that she's doing the same thing. It feels good to get things done... like, my dad's felted clogs. My mom's and his clogs are going out to them in the mail today with felting instructions. Then, when they come visit next month, they'll bring them back nice and felted and ready for pictures!

One of my 2007 finished knits was the Harvey Kimono from Natural Knits for Moms and Babies.
I made the "boy" version because we didn't know if we were having a girl or boy, and I think she looks cute in it, but a boy would have looked silly in pink with a picot edge.

I also made a matching hat to go with it.

I might be a little biased, but I think she's just so cute. D. loves the hat on her; I have to agree.

The yarn is Lavold's Cotton Patine. It is soft, but made with many plies, so it is splitty. Also, it being cotton, does not hide woven in ends well. But, I think it looks pretty good.

No new pictures of the EZ February Sweater. There is progress, I'm working on the first sleeve, but it is not interesting looking, really. It is coming along pretty quickly, which is good, because if I don't finish it soon, the only thing it will fit is a large teddy bear.

Today is M.'s two-month appointment with the pediatrician. I'll be able to answer the "how much does she weight now" question. I wish I didn't have to take her out in this cold. I didn't even go to Wool and Company Friday because it was too cold to take her out. If the forecasts are correct, I don't even think I'll be able to go this Friday. I sure hope it warms up soon!

Yum!

These pants crack me up! I think that babies are the only people who should wear words across their bottoms.

So, I thought I was pretty proud of my two-color February Sweater idea... um, not so much. After showing you this blog, I actually scrolled down it's page and looked at some of the pictures and saw that, I am not actually very inventive. But, at least I saw that I was not wrong in my idea and it looked pretty cute when other people did it.















I like the way these colors look together, the yellow has a bit of the peach in it, so it flows nicely. I am also enjoying knitting with this yarn; the name Smooshy fits well. The yarn is soft and sproingy and slides along the needles nicely. And, there isn't a color they dye that I don't like. I should have enough to make another two-color sweater, just opposite. I saw some of these sweaters that people had modified with a raglan-increase stockinette stitch yoke, and I think I will try that option on the next one.

In other baby news, I ordered the Ergo Baby Carrier last Thursday evening and it came today. I love it! I was using a Baby Bjorn and it was killing my back (although it did help me get more done than if I hadn't used it). The Ergo straps around the waist in addition to the shoulders which really helps balance the weight. And her legs go out to the side more than hang down, so riding the exercise bike in the basement is easier... my legs don't hit hers as I pedal, now. I am looking forward to getting out and walking with her in this carrier, although we seemed to have missed the ridiculously warm weather. It did get up to 36 degrees today, but that's a little cold to be doing more than walking to and from a car with her. But the new carrier makes getting out with her more appealing.

And back to knitting... while riding the recumbent bike in the basement, I'm making progress on both my dad's second felted clog and a ribbed scarf I started years and years ago.

Now, books... one per post. One of the books I bought was The Knitter's Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes. It has so much information on yarn and how it's made and what from and how it all affects what it does. And there are patterns, too. She has designers like Teva Durham and Norah Gaughan (and many more), so you know there are some great projects, but I think I really truly decided to get the book when I came upon the felted Calla Lily Bag designed by the incomparable Cat Bordhi. I will post pictures when I make this bag... someday.

Last, but not least, I wanted to thank those of you who have left kind comments about my return to blogging. I missed keeping up with you all :)

Baby fingers

Here we have Miss M. Bean's hand. I love the knuckle dimples. Her fingers are pretty long, I'm not sure where that comes from, it's not me, I know that. I've been trying to keep her nails short by filing them, but she is not fond of that process.

My life is now so baby-fied that apparently if I wear pants and a shirt (that aren't my usual black knit pants and old fraternity rush t-shirt of D.'s that I wear around the house) I am deemed "fancy" by D.

In yarn and knitting news, last Monday I went to Fringe to check out their going out of business sale. In addition two books, (I know I promised I'd talk about books, but that will have to wait) I bought some Dream in Color seconds. I bought four skeins of the sock yarn Smooshy -- one each of colors Giant Peach and Butter Peeps and two skeins of a teal that I don't see represented on their site (which I guess explains why they are seconds) -- and two skeins of the worsted Classy in a beautiful purple color. I just bought them because they were pretty, not because I had a plan for them... I've got to stop that.

Anyway, the peach and yellow would make a very pretty sweater for Miss M., but I didn't know what pattern to use -- I just knew I wanted something lacy. This is where Ravelry totally rocks. I was able to search for projects done in Smooshy and sort it to find the baby projects people had made, and by doing that, found the perfect sweater: Elizabeth Zimmerman's February Sweater from Knitter's Almanac. You can see a picture here. I think I might make the yoke a different color from the patterned section. The crazy part is that I've actually made a gauge swatch! I want to make sure I make something that the little girl can actually wear.

In other knitting news, I have finished the knitting on my dad's first felted clog; I just need to sew up the outer sole and stitch the two soles together. I have already started knitting the inner sole of the second clog.

Thanks for reading, when I get a bit more time (hahahaha) I'll write a bit about the books I got.