Melissa Van Oort

June in Montana, a bit chilly

2010-06-18T11:13:00.003-05:00

We've had some mixed weather here in Montana this June, it finally warmed up enough to call it tee-shirt weather only to cool down the next week to dive back into fleece jammies and wool socks. We were drinking hot cocoa and I heard that a family member had encountered snow on a mountain pass driving from Helena to Kalispell. Yep, that's June in Montana for you. Still, there's the usual thrill of the swing set no matter what the weather. On the knitting front, I recently picked up some yarn, Plymouth Yarn Co. Happy Feet, for a baby blanket for my new niece, Madeline.

2010: A time to finish

2010-01-08T10:10:00.003-05:00

These are most of my unfinished knitting and quilting projects. That chevron blanket was started sometime between 2000 and 2002. I think it's time to clear out these artifacts. I started the year in a mood to unload, I have boxes filled with items to donate, I have a hearty determination to tackle the tupperware cupboard (the scariest place in my house). It WILL be, and stay, organized this year. Next year is anyone's guess.

So, in my large wooden chest where I keep all my yarn and where I put away the UFO's I don't care to even look at any longer, I have a few unfinished socks and only one more Christmas stocking to make up. There's that pale green chevron blanket I love, yet loathe to complete. Mary's wedding quilt has been hibernating since Adrian was born a year and a half ago. Anne's cream color cable baby blanket needs concentration that I cannot give it while the littlest ones are awake, but I am often too exhausted for it once I get them off to bed at night to touch it. There may be a few more things lurking in the corners of that chest and I will air them out and get them done before I start anything new. This is a reasonable goal, but I am not counting the quilt getting done this year. Just the unfinished knitting. Happy New Year, and I'll keep in touch on how this goes.

A few of the things I've finished lately

2009-11-16T16:45:00.002-05:00

The socks are from Through the Loops! Designs, the 2009 Mystery Sock KAL for Socktoberfest. This is the only pair I completed for Socktoberfest, and I didn't even complete them until mid-November. Whoops. They are done and they are wonderful, the yarn is dyed by Knitting Iris with Red Saunderswood from her Esty shop here. Nothing but good to say about this yarn, awesome color and just right for autumn.

Anne came out in the cold to help me photograph the socks, so I snapped a photo of her in the mini-Felicity hat I made for her in early September. Yeah, she needed it that early in the season, we had an early cold snap that killed all the leaves on the trees before they had a chance to turn. The hat pattern is here as a Ravelry download, I went down on the needle size, using US 4 and 6 and it fit her just fine.

Labor Day Weekend at Glacier National Park

2009-09-16T14:13:00.002-05:00

(And one last shot of the little guys doing what they do best!)

Little by little

2009-08-20T12:31:00.002-05:00

The yarn is Opal Hundertwasser "Positive Soul Trees, Negative Human Houses in the cotton variety, bought two years ago so I'm not sure how widely available it is any longer. This sock. Has been. The bane of my knitting existence this summer. I overestimated its yardage capacity over and over and over again. Top down, I was aiming for a mid to high calf length pair of socks on only one ball. Ha! I split the yarn evenly by weight, and knit, ripped, knit, ripped and knit again (maybe even one more rip in there, but I lost count). I resolved the problem by getting down to the toe with precious few yards left over and changing to a contrasting color to finish it off. I have one sock done. The other has been started but I need a break. I'm still mad at it. Or myself. Whatever. That sock is the metaphor for life right now. Progress, backward steps, frustration and exhaustion. Over and over again. Ready for a "progress" stretch any time now!

Washed Out

2009-08-12T10:02:00.002-05:00

Washed out, in more ways than one. This photo was taken in my childhood hometown after a large storm dumped massive amounts of water in a short time and washed out several roads this June. I didn't dare stand too close to the edge, as it was I had crossed the barriers at my own risk. This is a good representation of myself right now, I have been terribly sleep deprived for over two years but now that my littlest ones sleep the night I just can't.

In addition, fibromyalgia is getting the better of me and I'm more than a little depressed about it all. This, and a combination of other things have helped me come to the decision to wean the babies from breastfeeding in order to explore some drug treatments. Even though I nursed Anne until 2 years and 7 months, Adrian *only* got 14 months to nurse. It kills me that he didn't get equal time in, or that I am giving it up rather than waiting for them to lose interest (ok, Anne never would and I'd have to cut her off anyway!). But I need this, I am washed out, worn out, pooped out. For those precious few of you who visit me regularly, I'm sure you've noticed how much I've slowed down in posting. I have had no energy to take photos, despite family members clamoring for more shots of their (great) grand babies. There are a few dishcloths I've pumped out, but who really wants to see the same garter diamond ten times over?

The babies are weaned now, I am certain this is part of my depression, emotional and chemical and hormonal. Blood has been drawn for lab work and I have appointments on the calendar for me now as well as the children's usual check ups and whatnots. I even have a babysitter so I can go by myself (what's that? it's so strange!) to focus with the doctor without distractions. Being with the children really is a choice, I prefer to have them with me and if I wanted to get away I'm sure I could arrange it. But doctor and physical therapy appointments really require me to go alone, and a little time to myself is good, I know. And now with the youngest not dependent on nursing, ok, in reality he's not been dependent on that for several months now, Martin and I left them with uncle Nick and aunt Summer and we went out to a movie - our first movie date in years. YEARS. It was so good, and I look forward to more date nights.

So, here I am, washed out and broken down but hey, there's still road left on the other side. I'm working to climb out and keep going forward. It's harder than I thought and I'm not known to be a very patient person, and not used to being stopped in my tracks. It has been a good time to make the best of it despite limitations, to find meaning and happiness in life in the middle of difficulty and sorrows.

Rainy day out at Canyon Ferry Lake

2009-06-22T11:05:00.002-05:00

Couldn't zoom in any more, but there's a pelican out there in the last photo. Took the Suburban out on Saturday up a few mountain dirt roads, not much wildlife out in the rain. We passed some areas burned by forest fires, checked out the lower side of the dam where I hopped out in the rain to catch a photo of that pelican. Too wet to hike and I'm glad we decided not to go camping this weekend with the babies, we had pretty heavy wind gusts and thunderstorms yesterday (oh, and Adrian was throwing up all afternoon, poor guy, camping would have been cut short anyway).

We spent the rest of the weekend lazing about, watching PBS programs like Backroads of Montana on Deerlodge's Rialto Theater and the Ringing Rocks geological site near Pipestone. Martin's family moved from Wisconsin to Deerlodge, MT in the '90s and recalls the restoration work on the theater. We hadn't heard of the Ringing Rocks, we'll have to go check it out, my husband is particularly keen on it as a geologist.

My eldest child is returning today from Yellowstone with my dad and youngest sister. I've had a few phone calls while they've been away, it sounds like they are having great fun with things like white water rafting and encountering buffalo. I get them home tonight for a quick turn about as they repack for their flight out to Michigan tomorrow, it's Jonah's annual summer trip to my parent's house without the rest of us.

Playground Fun

2009-06-18T11:29:00.002-05:00

Straddling the Continental Divide

2009-06-18T11:22:00.003-05:00

Our second mountain climbed this year! Ok, it wasn't that much of a climb from the turn off at the top of the highway, but for a 2 year old this is quite thrilling. My one-year-old is strapped to my back and the only one of my kids who doesn't try to squirm out of the backpack carrier, he can appreciate being carried around. Enjoy it while it lasts, kiddo.

Little Things

2009-06-09T14:25:00.002-05:00

Weaving in ends of some little pink socks for Anne, she is sleeping and I hope to lay them out for her to find when she wakes up. She's been so patient for me to finish the second sock, she would run around with the first one on while I was knitting the second. It feels really, really good to do little things like this, pain has been keeping me down on a lot of life. There have been some better days and I take advantage of them and use some of them to push myself, prove that I still have it in me to hike and climb mountains - I have one under my belt this year. Other days I can hardly move, but you just plow through and see what the next day brings. So, here are some little socks, a little sign of progress. I'm still here, I'm still going.

Update on May, and Where Did It Go?

2009-06-01T08:52:00.003-05:00

Jonah has been involved with soccer this spring, he's also finished up a Montana history fair project on the Fort Union Trading Post. He turned 10 years old on the 26th (Ten years?!? Where did my baby go?) On the last day of May he came down with chickenpox.

My two youngest are growing even faster, Anne is nearly 2 and a half, and Adrian turns one year old next week. I have no idea how this year has gone so quickly, I know I'm repeating myself but it's such a shock to have one child turn 10 and another turn 1 within just a few weeks of each other. Adrian is nearly walking, he's talking and trying desperately to keep up with his big sister.

I have two giant African violets that have been blooming like crazy the whole month of May. They sit very cheerily on the bathroom windowsill, they make my day each time I see them.

The chalk has come out, and onto little hands, knees, socks, toes (those that refuse to wear socks now that chill has passed)...oh, and onto the pavement near our shed. We've also brought out the wagon, had rounds of bocce on the lawn, weeded the iris patch and started tending to the needs of our very young lilac tree. We are in the early stages of house hunting and putting off gardening plans until we settle into a more permanent location.

I have been waiting out the longest winter I have ever known, my first Montana winter, ready to open these windows at the very first breath of warm breeze. They are now open, the trees are *just* leafing out, the large lilac in beautiful bloom outside my bedroom window. Many afternoons the two youngest children consent to nap at the same time and I retire to my own bed with orange cat at my feet, windows open to listen to the new leaves rustle and the birds sing and twurtle. Now, if someone would tell them that I'd greatly appreciate it if they'd hold off the song starting at 4am and put it off until maybe 6am. Thanks.

April (snow) showers bring....?

2009-04-23T17:20:00.002-05:00

Yep, that's snow gathering on the windshield and floating in the air. Let's hope it doesn't stick.

Something about lemons into lemonade

2009-04-23T11:00:00.002-05:00

Frustrated that the bulk apples I purchased had many bad spots and were too sour to eat, annoyed at the one lonely pie crust in the fridge that always gets in the way of the other containers (yes, the pie crust is the scapegoat of my fridge), 'cause I just wasn't in the mood for another one-shell pumpkin pie, the two delinquents got thrown at each other to make a rustic pie. Take that.

Spring mud, couldn't go much farther even with 4-wheel drive. We saw a moose that day, they aren't very common in that particular area near Deer Lodge. Also, snow falling on the mountains, a reminder that we shouldn't pack away the hats and gloves just yet. After three consecutive days with all the windows open, outdoors time without coats on, lying in the grass and pulling dead stuff from the flower bed the windows are closed again, we are waiting on snow. I'm a bit depressed by this, but will make the most of it by cooking up a pot of stew, probably the last of the season.

Anne, doing a little dance on top of a dry ice tornado simulator. As soon as a new tornado would form she would dance dance dance it away.

Just a ball of yarn, utilitarian dishcloth cotton

2009-04-21T12:35:00.003-05:00

So, I have some things in the works, some things finished, used daily and forgotten to photograph. Ravelry? Haven't touched it in over a year, I loved it at first, everything so organized. Then I had a few more babies and got busy. And less organized. I'd like to keep up more here, document the moments more often, but I shouldn't feel guilty for just living life. It's sweet, it's hard, it's tiring, and it's been fun. Spring is only just creeping upon Montana (I'm ignoring the chance of snow in the weekend forecast), we are outdoors in earnest again. Yesterday's post was an evening's romp about the yard, finally no boots nor hats required.

The Children

2009-04-20T21:34:00.000-05:00

A Long Winter, A Long Needed Break

2009-03-23T16:45:00.002-05:00

This was my first Montana winter, filled with too many illnesses and set backs that kept me from even thinking of updating here. There were frozen pipes, bread dough starter that refused to rise in the cold, a Volkswagen that did not behave well in the cold and snow. Now it's spring, we still have snow but there have been a few blessed days of warmth and the promise of things to come. Maybe I will be back here more often, but for now a snippet of days here and there.

Absences

2008-11-23T11:25:00.002-05:00

I don't update this blog how I'd like to, and I do see from my stat counter that I do have a number of returning readers (thank you for bearing with my long time between posting, I am thrilled to see how many people come over to see how things are with me and my family) - I try to keep this place as a record of my knitting, quilting and other various creative projects and keep a lot of the minutia quiet. Being a public blog, I am hesitant to share very personal things but I'd like to leave a note here to go back to, a bookmark in my life I suppose. I've recently been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, and while I'm still trying to rule out other things like Lyme disease I am going ahead with treatment for FM. Nothing much has changed in my life, my pain just has a name now. I am breastfeeding two little ones right now so I am going to wait a while before I look at drug therapies. The diagnosis came when I finally went to the doctor after having a very bad spell of pain and exhaustion for multiple weeks, but I've had moderate pain and fatigue since I was a teenager. This was my first debilitating episode, and I'm not out of it yet.

I'm not sure how it will effect my life, my hobbies, how I'll update here, but I'm working on it, on me right now. I do have some knitting in the works, unlike arthritis I can still usually knit through the pain and the process has been good for me emotionally. At first I had a pity party for myself and one more thing wrong with me, but I'm working on making this something in my life to stop upon and put myself in alignment with where I should be going and not let it be defining of me - hey, it never has as I didn't know what it was. So, that's where I am right now and I don't really care to post on it again after letting it rest here.

Catching Up

2008-11-10T12:44:00.002-05:00

It's getting colder and grey-er here, these cows had their photo-op a few weeks ago (a month ago??) Yesterday we had a very unusual fog in the valley, and today I'm starting to feel better after a two-week long cold. Unpacking the last of the boxes, putting quite a lot into our storage shed, but finally feeling settled in. Pulled out the box of quilting supplies, hoping to get finished with Mary and Bob's quilt. Found a sock I started knitting in June 2007, I aim to finish that soon as well, along with a toddler sweater (already ripped out once) with one sleeve finished, the second 3/4 done.

I was sick for most of the Halloween and Fall festivities season, but we managed to scrape out a few pumpkins and roast seeds. I still have two pumpkins un-cut, I'd like to get the seeds out of them if the freezing temperatures haven't ruined the insides yet.

The two little ones are growing fast, Anne is talking more and loves to draw on all the scrap paper thrown in the recycle bin. A few walls have pencil marks now, but we're working on staying at the table. Adrian is 5 months old, time is going by too fast.

Congrats Nick and Summer

2008-10-20T22:21:00.002-05:00

The ceremony was really lovely, all went smoothly.

The new Mr. and Mrs. Van Oort.

I couldn't get the whole bridal party into the shot, but they were all handsome, dashing and brilliant.

My husband in the line-up, wearing a suit. Our wedding was much more informal, no suit for that occasion. He says to take a good look, the next time he'll wear it will be at his own funeral.

The guest suite we stayed in near Kalispell was fabulous, we arrived in the dark and woke up to this view:

Anne had a blast in the bunk beds and with some really awesome stuffed fish pillows.

Settling in

2008-10-08T09:15:00.003-05:00

Here's the view on our ride into town, we're only 2 miles from the city limits but with this view it's a nice enough get-away. Still settling in, just got connected online, more news to follow.

Moving to Montana

2008-08-26T19:20:00.002-05:00

Martin received not one, but two job offers for positions in Helena, Montana. And the job he took was one he didn't even apply for, they came looking for him to interview. I am very, very proud of him and the work he does with the environment, groundwater computer modeling and geological field work. We are packing up and leaving in 16 days (eep!), Martin's dad is helping us find a place to live and dad or brother will likely fly in to Dulles to help take turns driving on our cross country move.

Saying Goodbye to Virginia

2008-08-22T13:31:00.003-05:00

It is official: We are leaving Virginia. By the 14th of September, we will send our belongings out ahead of us, load up the cars with kids and cats and happily put the South behind us.

Where next is another question entirely. There is a job transfer within the company my husband works for to the Ann Arbor, Michigan office - closer to my family, or there might be a job in Helena, Montana for him - near his family. Just a few more days wait until we know. Either way, we are out of Virginia. This has all come together so quickly, I didn't think it would happen this year. I am thrilled.

Play time

2008-07-25T09:53:00.004-05:00

We took advantage of the cooler and less humid weather last evening to drive out past Purcellville to the large park and playground. With a newborn arriving in the summer months, I've been sequestered inside with the AC and it was good to get out.

Shade Tea

2008-07-24T13:43:00.002-05:00

Well, this had been sun tea up until noon when my covered balcony became cool and shady. Not that it matters. I once had neighbors who put out their tea jar at night to make "moon tea". I was eight or so years old and gullible enough to believe the moon beams brewed the tea.

When we can't get out

2008-07-22T11:16:00.002-05:00

We won't be camping this summer with the terrible heat index, humidity and the babies. The new tent we got for a steal at a yard sale will have to wait in the closet a while longer. I suppose we could do a backyard camp out at my parents where the climate is more tolerable, though it may not be feasible smack in the middle of the wedding. Maybe a sleeping bag dragged onto the second story porch? So, the alternative to real summer escapes has been to escape into summer books. All my reading has been done while nursing Anne and Adrian (needless to say I've spent a LOT of time nursing this summer), pleased with another attempt at that two birds, one stone thing.

Not traveling back to Michigan yet this summer makes me feel cooped up and antsy. Reading others outdoor accounts and studying diagrams on knots and camping tips probably isn't helping that antsy to get outside feeling. I'd like to get out to the Catoctins in the fall or spring, sometime before we move but not in this heat!

Mary's quilt

2008-07-17T09:21:00.002-05:00

Here is a glimpse of the quilt-in-progress for Mary and Bob's wedding, I will not have it completed on time but I'll print a photo for them to go along with the pillows and coasters I made earlier (and sent off to my mom's without taking any photos! I need to remember to take pictures of them when I'm in Michigan before the wedding day). The quilt fits on the top of my queen size bed, but it's intended as a large lap quilt to have handy near a couch or porch, something big enough to wrap around you or sit on top of.

My own belated 28th

2008-07-17T08:18:00.002-05:00

I turned 28 two days ago. Skirting close to 30, feel like 16, and will tell everyone I'm 25 like Grandpa Van Galen did until his own children became 25 along with him. The above cake was from the 5th of July, when family was over to celebrate three summer birthdays. Company is now gone, and so is my 9-year-old. He flew with my youngest sister to my parents in Michigan for over 3 weeks of grandparent fun. Martin and I will fly out with the babes in August for my middle sister's wedding and to reclaim my oldest child.

For the 15th, I made taco salad and lemon cheesecake bars and took Anne to the pool. We spend the hottest parts of the day inside, fill the time with nursing, naps and chores, get outside in the cooler early morning for walks and to the pool in the evening. Our family just isn't cut out for southern living, and we are hardly south.

My husband is applying to jobs in Helena, Montana in hopes we might move out there to be with his dad and brother this fall before we have to sign another year's lease here. Because we are over-occupancy in the current location, we have to move to a bigger place in September - after we just moved last year! Otherwise, we'd be able to go month-to-month with rent and it wouldn't matter when Martin found a position in Montana, but with moving to a bigger place, it's another year's lease agreement. Urgh! So, we get lucky and head west by September 14 or stay in Virginia another year. At least we will not have the time constriction next year, we will not be bound with lease agreements after Sept. '09.

We knew we did not want to settle down in our current location, and renting has done us well for the 3 to 5 years we planned to stay here. Martin and I want to stay and settle in the next place we go, and we've done a lot of consideration about where - near family in Michigan or Wisconsin or Montana? Someplace new like Colorado or New England? Washington state where I once lived? Canada sounds nice.... We've decided on being close to family, and there were many other factors that draw us out west opposed to our beloved Great Lakes area. Too many and too personal to go into, but we also joked that we'll just swap houses with my sister for vacations as she and her soon-to-be husband have relocated to L'Anse in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. So, everything is in limbo at the moment. We have to move, but will it be 200 feet away or 2,000 miles?

Life at home

2008-07-15T06:16:00.002-05:00

Disappearing Nine Patch Quilt for Adrian

2008-06-23T06:39:00.003-05:00

These photos are from May (yes, I am so behind - let's call it a trend), and I actually sewed the binding on well before Adrian was born. Hurray for small accomplishments! I'll have better photos of the whole (and finished) quilt at some later date, life has just been too different, busy, and tiring lately to stop in here much. I have put all knitting aside for the next few months, or years, but organized the works-in-progress so I can pick right back up at any time without wondering what on earth I was doing with it or where I was at in the pattern.

In case I hadn't mentioned it, the quilt pattern was from a Better Homes and Gardens quilting leaflet, and while it's a variation on the disappearing nine patch block, it was not sewn or cut like one. I pieced the rows separately (no nine patch blocks to cut) because I wanted the most variety of fabrics - there are somewhere between 68 and 100 different kinds of fabric in there, mostly from my late mother in law's stash and maybe 20 or so from my own. The quilt top is hand pieced, the quilting also by hand but I put the binding on the top with the machine.

Adrian is here

2008-06-17T05:48:00.002-05:00

35 weeks and 4 days pregnant, this is probably the last photo of me pregnant back in May.

Adrian Henry, born on Sunday, June 8, 2008 at 4:12pm. 20 inches long, 8lbs and 10oz, the exact measurements of his sister, who was also born during the 4pm hour.

Jonah is very happy to have a brother.

Anne was excited, but also worn out by all the activity and newness of the baby.

Adrian, a week old, and Anne taking the baby invasion very well.

2008-04-15T06:29:00.002-05:00

I have not been around here much lately, mostly I have been plowing away at the baby's quilt in every brief spare minute and the rest of the time kept very busy with an energetic little girl. I am fortunate that the pregnancy has been relatively uneventful, I have been feeling well enough and even have had little back and sciatic pain thanks to my chiropractor. In the afternoon and evening I am tired, even dragging, but I'm not kidding anyone that caring for a little one and being pregnant at the same time can't be hard. The time is flying by, the weeks go by more like days and I only have a handful of weeks left. This little one will be showing up the first week of June, I will have labor induced a week before my due date (Flag Day) on account of my diabetes. Only a few small things left to get ready, and after having a baby just last year we have essentially been ready for this one from the start.

Goose Creek

2008-03-31T07:22:00.002-05:00

On Saturday, we took a hike at the Keep Loudoun Beautiful park along Goose Creek. Trail information called the difficulty level "moderate", which was more up to my speed being 2 months away from giving birth than the Appalachian trail labeled "hard". We started off highway 7 near the golf course but didn't make it down to the Potomac. We turned around shortly after coming across an abandoned dam or water house. I checked into it this morning, I believe it was the failed Goose Creek canal, though I'll have to look into it some more to confirm this is one and the same. Edit: The canal seems to be at another location, closer to the Potomac. Still not sure what exactly we found here.

Geese perched on the opposite side of Goose Creek near the other canal remains.

Other photos from our adventure:

Dishcloth Submission

2008-02-19T08:26:00.002-05:00

This is my submission for Larissa's call for volunteers, it will be sent out as soon as I get an envelope for it. Yarn is Sugar N Cream 04 Ecru, needles US 3, pattern #73 from Knitting Handbook.

Pieced Pillowcase

2008-02-16T08:24:00.002-05:00

Just for kicks and to keep cabin fever at bay, I whipped up this pillowcase on the machine yesterday. It covers a foam sponge pillow for Anne's changing table. Inspired by some of the great quilts on the Flickr Modern Quilt-Along group.

One side in blues.

The flip side in pinks.

A quick update on life, I'm over a kidney infection and a chiropractor is doing wonders for my back and sciatic nerve pain with this pregnancy. I'm 23 weeks along, the time flies so fast the more kids you have. Winter is still here in the Mid-Atlantic, we still have bitter winds and occasional ice - along with a few 60 and 70 degree days to confuse the geese and humans alike. The days have been ordinary, mostly spent indoors while we wait out the last of the cold weather. Dinners have reflected this; clam chowder, grilled cheese, pancakes and sausage.

In fear of becoming an out of date and stale blog

2008-02-07T10:21:00.000-05:00

This is a cross stitch piece Martin's mother made, she had several state patterns in her collection, this one might go back to Martin's sisters who lived in Washington for a time - I'm sure she made it for them. Eventually (ha!) I'd like to find the patterns for all the states Martin and I lived in growing up and together and have a collection to hang in the kitchen. So far, we'd need Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Washington, and Virginia.

Progress is coming slowly on the baby quilt, I haven't touched yarn or knitting needles in over a month. Everything is behind and I'm even getting laid up a bit with some strange symptoms, but tests and ultrasounds say that the baby is fine. Maybe I'll take some time to update my side bar while I'm on the mend, and not stay too far behind with this little blog.

Birthday Girl

2008-01-22T09:58:00.000-05:00

Anne turned one year on the 18th, how time flies by. Today we are off for her third swim lesson, they have been great for working off all her toddler energy this winter when we can't always go outside. Most days we play in the morning while I get in a few chores, she naps around lunch time and I either crash and nap as well or try to get a few more blocks on the baby quilt pieced. Since it's been cold, I've been spending the late afternoon getting a dinner in the oven that can sit in there for a while and help heat the place at the same time. Tonight I'm going to tinker with The New Moosewood Cookbook's spinach ricotta pie, finished with stove top pudding (from a box, nothing fancy or exotic). We sort of hunker down for the cold, nothing too ambitious, nothing more than simple, and that's just fine.

At home when it's cold

2008-01-21T09:27:00.000-05:00

The start of baby #3's quilt, much to go but there was a bit of light this morning and it may be months before we get the sun through the windows for any good amount of time.

I made a cinnamon crumb surprise cake/bread last night from The Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. I love this book. I'd love it more if I could get my hands on some instant yeast in this area, but I've been going through the quick breads and other non-yeast recipes until I can find some proper yeast. The surprise part is a layer of apples and crumbs in the middle.

Robert supervised this photo shoot.

Perusing the monuments and memorials on New Year's Eve

2008-01-11T10:40:00.000-05:00

Gifted Quilt and Hats from the holiday

2008-01-10T11:35:00.000-05:00

Big Red lighthouse of Holland, Michigan. I only finished the quilting and put on the binding. Also quilted but not shown are four sets of quilted coasters.

A Nancy Blackett inspired seaman's cap for Ruth, a real life Ruth "Nancy" Blackett. From the Marsan watchcap pattern in Paton's Classic Wool in Bright Red.

A lacy chevron beret for Jessica in Jaeger Matchmaker in Feather.

I saw the Rangoli hat first on Livejournal's knitting community and knew I wanted to make it, well, just because. I used Galway Highland Heather in 732, it was gifted to Nicholas for his new girlfriend.

That's all I have for now, it's been a busy and lovely time with the family and we've all been battling a very stubborn cold. The kids and I are especially hit hard, we still have the gunk left over and Anne had a slight fever today and coughed a bit through the night. I have photos of Washington DC to post, but I'm not up for that now. I'm keeping things quiet with reading and piecing the new baby's quilt during the little time I have to myself. Despite being sick, the new year is starting out well enough. This year will be about pacing, flexibility and being realistic about having another baby join us in June. I can already see this blog moving into a day to day log of everyday life and less of a knitting a quilting showcase, though I do not plan to put those things totally aside. I will enjoy reading other's blogs and store up plans for future projects, probably too many than I can ever actually execute.

All knitting under cover, in the meantime, "Look! A cat!"

2007-12-18T07:13:00.001-05:00

I can't post knitting photos just yet, the items have yet to be gifted and I won't ruin the surprise. Plus, we've had such grey days lately that I can't seem to catch any good light for photos. I did finish the advent/Christmas calendar, my son is thrilled with finding a new item each morning. Next year, Anne will be old enough to want to help.

I did not make this cat and kittens doll, but I was thrilled to see a similar one here. Mine has its kittens stuffed into apron pockets with scraps of vintage quilts cut from otherwise tattered and worn out old quilts. While this cat is mine personally, I may be inspired to make Anne her own, with a Katy No-Pocket type apron.

Surrendering to the Tupperware War

2007-11-30T07:09:00.000-05:00

I have come to the realization that as long as I have small children, my tupperware cupboard will never be organized. There will always be lids missing, and rims will look slightly gnawed on. I have locks on other cupboards, but I leave the tupperware cupboard accessible as it's one of the only ways to keep the baby entertained while I am working in the kitchen. I figure that's more endearing than a tidy storage area.

Here's the Christmas/Advent calendar I started in 2005. The background is finished and I have a row or two of the pockets sewn down. If I go dig it out and finish it today, we can fill the pockets and start it tomorrow.

New Tricks

2007-11-27T08:51:00.000-05:00

Over the holiday, Anne learned how to master stairs in one day. She learned how to climb into things, last night it was the suitcases we were unpacking and this morning I found her in her book basket. Next up, getting out of the crib and over the gate.

I didn't take a single photo over the holiday, Anne was so clingy that I never had a hand free. We did see some snow flakes, but nothing stuck. I didn't gain any holiday weight, my secret is nursing one baby and feeding a work-in-progress baby at the same time. I'm nearly 12 weeks along and I've shown a bit earlier with #2 and #3 than I did with the first baby (I was pregnant with Jonah 9 years ago!), so it's time to find some more accommodating pants. I have an OB appointment and ultrasound this week, this pregnancy is flying by.

As for the post-Thanksgiving let down, it's hardly that. I'll be busy unpacking, putting away, cleaning up and getting ready to drag out the Christmas stuff this weekend. We don't do a lot for the holiday season or busy ourselves until we go nuts, but we have a few family rituals that make this time special.

Slippers

2007-11-19T15:26:00.001-05:00

Finished just in time, and good thing, it's cold here. Now to get the cat supplies ready and clear the bed of piles of stuff and get them into suitcases. We'll be in Michigan in less than 24 hours from now.

Friday things

2007-11-16T12:56:00.000-05:00

Very quiet, very simple around here. Few plans, few commitments, and simple meals while we plan and ready ourselves for the trip, which will be packed with plenty to do, even more to eat, and a whole lot of noise. I am slowly plowing through the second slipper, I want to take them (finished) on the trip. The pumpkins look like they are screaming as they wither away. The orange cat is sleeping after a strenuous morning of being my shadow. He knows I'm leaving soon.

Going home for Thanksgiving

2007-11-15T08:10:00.000-05:00

These are old photos, but this is where we're going in less than a week. It's the house I grew up in, and one of the cats still living with my parents. Morgan only has three legs, but does quite nicely. In this photo, she has climbed the 4 foot tall wood pile to peer into the breakfast room. We have many family members over for the holiday, a very busy and noisy weekend. It's always a lot of fun and good to see everyone again. The kids and I fly in Tuesday, Martin follows on Wednesday. We get in ahead of the extended family and have some time to be back home like we used to be, though now we have a spouse, children and a fiancé to add to the numbers.

Besides growing older and the addition of new family members, not much changes with this holiday get together my parents have held nearly each year for close to 30 years. My dad could tell you exactly how many years and how many deviations from the tradition there have been, but I think it has been only around three times we've had other plans for this holiday in 30 some years.

Tea and Toast

2007-11-14T12:06:00.000-05:00

Toast Song, transcribed to the best of my ability

A cold Midwestern morning, gold and pink and orange dawn
Down to get the paper and put the coffee on.
The news is grey and dismal one could sit and weep almost
Except for pumpernickel transcending into toast.
Two thin slices turning golden, bread smell rising like a prayer
And then that lovely music of your feet upon the stair
In an old blue bathrobe, love is standing there.

The (?) man stands silent, love is more than he can say(?)
The sweet familiar pleasure to be alive today
And though the news is dismal, God has given us our bread
With butter and raspberries generously spread.
When I get old and nights are longer, long dark thoughts the whole night through
I’ll be glad for morning, calm and bright and new.
And toast a couple slices and sit and wait for you.

The song, to the tune of Schubert's Die Forelle, aired on A Prairie Home Companion on February 5, 2005. To listen, go here and click on the second segment.

The past while has been a bit rough, I'm rather worn down but hanging in there. It's bleak outside, dense fog this morning and no light whatsoever. Even auto-correct in photoshop can't hide the yellowness of poor florescent indoor lighting. So starts the season of finding creative ways to light our photos.

I've finished one slipper and started it's mate, though nothing to show, really. I'll be sneaking in a few rows in a moment now that the baby has finally gone for a nap. After a crummy start to the week, it was my aim to do better today. Blueberry tea, toast with jam, a piece of chocolate, and a cracked nut (the walnut, not me) helped get me on my way. An episode of House of Eliott while nursing the baby to sleep was also a nice escape into the 1920's British fashion world. I do like Beatrice's bobbed curls, and am tempted to cut my own hair. I won't be too hasty on that decision.

Cold feet

2007-11-09T10:44:00.000-05:00

I bought Cascade Yarns Ecological Wool 8087 (Brown, or Chocolate depending on the site) this summer while in Michigan. For the past 3 years I've been pretty good about buying yarn with a project in mind - even if it's a vague project - but I bought this hank with no idea what I'd do with it. There are 478 yards to one hank, so I figured it'd be good for a small felting project or who knows what else.

The yarn is a little on the bulky side of worsted, but doubled and on smaller-than-US-10 needles and I should be able to get 4 sts/inch and make a nice thick pair of these slippers. If I'm being unreasonable in my math estimations, I'll go for something felted. Always have a Plan B. I usually have Plan C and D not too far from hand as well.

Changing with the season

2007-11-06T13:37:00.000-05:00

The paper and clothespin bats have come down, but my son liked the hanging decorations so much he wanted to put up something else in their place. We spent the last few days gathering leaves and stringing them up.

I've started Anne's stocking for St. Nicholas day. My husband's family would do stockings and presents on that day and reserve Christmas for time with other family. The yarn is Mission Falls 1824 wool, in poppy. It might be discontinued, or maybe it was the dark olive that the other stockings are made with, but either way, eBay is wonderful for finding extra yarn for stockings for the new family members. I'll wait until next year to make baby #3's stocking. Though, I could make it now and wait to put on a name with duplicate stitching. The first 4 stockings (the older cat has a stocking, too) have the names knit into them, but it puckers slightly even with blocking so the newer stockings will have duplicate stitching. There's what's left of the leaves we scavenged for, and henny pincushion ready for the pins holding the mending pile.

It's surprising that things are still fairly green around here, but the chill and the wind are confirming it's finally autumn. In two weeks, we'll be landing in Michigan for a week's visit over the holiday. Jonah's hoping for snow.

Fall Color

2007-10-22T12:49:00.000-05:00

I took the baby and went out for a while, first to the library to return materials and check out a few cookbooks for more kitchen inspiration. Found a Moosewood I hadn't looked through before, an Indian cuisine cookbook, and a diabetic friendly slow cooker cookbook (I have gestational diabetes, I had it with Anne but not with Jonah). Next stop was to a local nature sanctuary for some fresh air, to walk down to the pond and check out the (finally) changing leaves. There is still a lot of green, and the chipmunks are still having fun as if there is no winter lurking around the corner.

As for knitting, I catch a few rounds and rows here and there but nothing worth showing off yet. I'm developing ideas for baby #3's quilt, though nothing is solidified. Life is busy with the usual cooking, dishes, laundry... the repetitive rhythms are soothing and quieting as I'm not really up for much more than that now. I'm not too tired, my body's busy putting a little one together and that's taking it's own kind of energy and work. I don't feel a lot of morning sickness, but the smell of steaming collard greens is enough to turn anyone's stomach. I thought that I'd steam, puree, and freeze the greens I hadn't used in a soup last week, but PEW! I put a pumpkin pie in the oven to compensate for the bad odor. We're planning on carving pumpkins tonight (a week earlier than I hoped), because it's just not been cold enough to keep our pumpkins from going a bit soft. I'd hate to scrape out slightly rotten pumpkins, and I want the seeds for roasting.

It's cute, but it doesn't stay on for long

2007-10-17T09:23:00.000-05:00

Everyone seems to be making this little hat (there's a link to it in a recent post), and it is too darn cute. Anne, my 9 month old, is sporting the 2 year size. It won't fit her long so I'm going to try it again with one needle size up and slightly thicker yarn, Jaeger Matchmaker merino DK in #864 Feather. She makes this hat wearing thing look effortless, but it took me about 30 shots of blurry hat tugging and throwing to get these two clear images. She is now eating bananas in reward for her effort.

For those who have commented, yes Anne's eye is fully open and the birthmarks are starting to fade. It will be a while until the swelling goes down, but once the hemangiomas have finished their life cycle we will start the corrective treatment. Until then, she is healthy and happy and we are glad that the blood vessel tumors have not grown into her brain or optical nerves. They are very close, even growing into her skull, but she is one very, very lucky girl. The birthmarks do not hurt or hinder her in any way, though the size and location of them gave us quite a scare for several months. Thank you to those who have been concerned, I try my best to update on what's going on with all this. I do get tired of explaining and consoling strangers each time I go out with her, but I don't mind it as much as the few children who are afraid or disgusted by her appearance (the children will let you know exactly what they think, and if there are any adults with the same feelings they've been gracious enough to hide it). I hardly notice the marks anymore, or maybe I'm just accustomed to them, and I do forget that not everyone knows what they are or can tell if she is or will be ok. She is, and that's really all that matters.

Something I Agree With

2007-10-15T13:24:00.000-05:00

Be good to our earth.

My Moodiness Explained

2007-10-13T16:48:00.000-05:00

It has finally cooled off, we took Anne for a walk near the Potomac. This has been the first hiking excursion since Glacier National Park in Montana this August. I hope we get more of these kinds of weekends in before I don't feel up to it. I've already had some morning sickness, though mild. Toast and jam seem to help, my empty plate with raspberry swirls (that's a Tori Amos song, isn't it?) shown above. Anne is happy to announce her new title, Big Sister, with the newest Van Oort due to arrive mid June of '08.

Little hats, tiles and stew

2007-10-09T08:16:00.000-05:00

Finally, the last of the hot days. Yesterday was a record breaking 91 degrees. We're in the thick of a drought as well, and while the skies are grey I do not think we'll be seeing any good soaking rain for a while. There is still a mellow light coming in through the cloud cover, a bit bleak but it echoes my mood lately. I am taking advantage of the baby napping to knit up this little hat as quickly as I can. I'm at the decrease only section now. Yarn is Trekking 283 that I picked up in Montana this summer, needles are 3mm - a quarter mm larger than most of my US 2's.

The tiles are samples of sister-in-law, Ruth Lampi. She made these on her cross country pottery tour this summer and I think I've found a place to display them where we can enjoy them and the baby won't destroy them. Today is other sister-in-law, Jessica's birthday. We should really see the girls again soon, it seems like longer than it has been. (And we need our drill back). Speaking of family, I made the Van Galen stew recipe this weekend, definitely a favorite with this generation. I should email grandma and let her know it's V.G. stew season again.

Bats

2007-10-08T13:08:00.000-05:00

My son helped cut the string and hold the tape down, and told me where the bats should go. Not bad for less than an hour's work. He's taken some of the bats into his own room, and he's very excited. Mind you, he's never had the thrill of finding that a bat has found it's way down from the attic and into the living quarters. Eeep!

Here's the link to the craft: Clothespin Bats from Martha Stewart.

Insisting upon Fall

2007-10-08T08:22:00.000-05:00

The weather continues to be hot and humid, the air conditioner runs several times a day, and the windows are only opened in the night and that hardly helps in cooling things off. Ah, well. We can insist it is Fall anyway. I usually procrastinate on picking up the pumpkins until the last few weeks of the month, but not this year due to the drought and supposed pumpkin shortage.

Now that we're more or less moved in and unpacked to some livable degree, out came the Autumn decorations, the skeleton candles and pumpkin votives. The bats have come out as well, more will appear strung on black string today. They were a Martha Stewart craft from some years ago, black construction paper bat cut outs on black painted clothes pins, ready to perch throughout the house, even on the wireless router.

My husband doesn't get decorating, especially for holidays or seasons, and I can't convince him that curtains to cover the ugly blinds are a necessity. We have the curtains and rods from the old place, but we are missing our drill needed for the project. Trying to install them with screwdriver and willpower alone had very bad results. Again, ah, well. The ugly blinds will be covered eventually. Maybe by Christmas.

Web and Fog

2007-10-04T08:54:00.000-05:00

Fog this morning, nearly zero visibility. The spiders have been decorating the rails, hardly one space goes without a web. Despite afternoons in the 80's it does feel like autumn is (reluctantly) settling in. The move is over and I am (slowly) unpacking and claiming this space, finding everything it's own new place and trying to live calmly in the chaos of boxes and all our stuff out of any order. The new game is to remember what box I put something in and then to actually find that box. Several times we've gone through all the boxes and not found the one we need. I swear they shuffle themselves at night.

I've found some time to knit a little, I may have photos shortly as the little hat is needed for the chilly mornings out to the bus stop.

Summer of Sock

2007-09-19T12:17:00.000-05:00

Half a sock. Not half a pair, but half a sock. That's all I managed this summer. So much for churning out a half dozen pairs for Summer of Socks. Ah, well. I think I'm stuck in close-up photos lately. I'll need to experiment with some outdoor shots this fall. My husband says there's two kinds of people, ones that see details and pick things apart, and ones that see the whole picture and put things together. He is the later and I am the former. Some of the time I don't see any of the picture and get stuck with overwhelming anxiety. Nothing I do seems right and I feel completely off-track with myself. I'm at that point now. It doesn't help that the baby doesn't sleep well (day or night) and I'm so tired some days I don't know which end is up. This will pass and I'll get by.

Look, I really do knit! Bonus moving photos

2007-09-16T15:10:00.000-05:00

The little mauve raglan is nearly done, just a few buttons to sew. The yarn is Elann Devon 787 Dusty Plum, US 2 needles. Basic raglan with picot sleeve hems. I worked to the bottom of the sleeve so the picot was last and kitchener stitched down. What a pain. I decided the collar and bottom hem would not have the same lovely treatment.

Top photo: view from the old place, our ground floor, tucked in the back with a cushy green fence snug apartment. Middle photo: view from the new place, top floor, vaulted ceiling, slightly rolling hills near the Blue Ridge outlook. Bottom photo: all that white and a peek at the extra vertical space. The psychological contrast between snug Hobbit hole den living to birds eye view and vertical space will be great. Some boxes of books have been moved over and we've been busy running for things like pantry shelving and child-proof cupboard latches. The furniture will be moved next weekend and I'll finish packing the kitchen, my son's room, and the miscellaneous odds and ends this week. The fun part is unpacking and making the new place home, I will be glad for that as I've been so overwhelmed with everything lately. Too much to do, too little time.

Big Red

2007-09-14T09:03:00.000-05:00

Valerie was working on Elsie Vredenburg's Big Red of Holland, Michigan from the Lighthouse series of quilt patterns. She had a few other patterns in the series, but I only found this one in progress. I'll finish it and send it back to my father in law. The quilt is rather small, it will hang on a wall or door. My apartment is a total disaster with the impending move, so there will only be close up photos for another few days. We get the keys to the new place tomorrow, I'm a little hesitant about all the white walls (we'll now have more whiteness with the vaulted ceilings, but hurrah for more space), I'll just have to think white-washed, crisp Scandinavian snowy white and make the most of that.

Red, Orange, and Yellow

2007-09-12T11:29:00.000-05:00

It's the first sunny day below 80 degrees in a long time, and while the leaves aren't changing yet, you'd think fall was on my mind. There's a lot on my mind lately, mostly that Anne just learned to ~~crawl~~ burn rubber yesterday. Man, she's quick. She's scooted, rolled, and scootched around for months but yesterday she just took off in a real crawl and the cats are terrified. This kiddo is something else. She doesn't sleep much (I probably can't get this post done while she naps for 15 minutes, and she wakes every hour at night for the last 3 months, so if you wonder why there is no knitting around here it's because I'm just too darn busy and TIRED). Anne also gave up baby food. Won't pass her lips anymore, so she eats what we do. We mostly eat very healthy foods especially with my cholesterol issues and looming diabetes. It's the salt habit I have a hard time letting go of until now, as I have a child who won't eat a thing unless it's from my plate and I hold her while we eat. I feel pregnant again! I really don't mind, I will miss these times when she is older. I may not get to read, knit, quilt or even use the restroom uninterrupted, but it's worth putting these things aside for a while to have a baby in the house again.

Also on my mind, I go in for my surgical consult next week. I've been trying to avoid it, but a routine ultrasound showed bad news this last time around. It's nothing major, tests found no sign of cancer last year. I lose one ovary, so having more children isn't out of the picture. My grandmother died of ovarian cancer, and that along with my mother in law's ordeal has left me a bit gloomy. I'm sure all is fine, but it's just one more thing, you know?

On the less gloomy side of things, shown are my daughter's favorite red crab, Trekking color 283 I picked up at Y'Arnings in Helena. Then there's our orange cat, Robert, a mother and baby pair of *amazing* growing octopuses - these are the first I've found that really expand to many times their original size, I even scored them off CVS's 90% off summer clearance for 23 cents. Amazing! I made a pumpkin bread two days ago and it's nearly gone, we've all been hungry for a little autumn.

The orange and yellow veined leaf is a Ruth Lampi original, made during her cross-country pottery tour this summer. Ruth is Martin's adopted sister, an artist in Philadelphia. Lastly, Anne in yellow wondering in amazement at the University of Wisconsin's Badger Ballad. Hmm, yellow and badgers? We're reading Harry Potter IV aloud to the older child, maybe the sorting hat would put her in Hufflepuff. If you want to be a badger and hear the song, come along with me.... We introduced Anne to the song the other night while watching Antiques Roadshow. I don't know how we made the connection, one minute we were watching the Keno twins and the next we were singing her the catchy tune. That's pretty normal for us, though.

Sweater Season, Almost

2007-09-06T11:59:00.000-05:00

Ok, early morning may be the only practical time for sweaters in Virginia right now. It's 86 degrees out, but the start of school and the end of late sundowns makes you almost think autumn could be lurking around the corner somewhere. Anne willingly modeled her gansey for me, and it will fit perfectly for the upcoming months. Her hemangioma tumors are slowly going down and they aren't so bright magenta any longer. MRI scans show no signs of it in her spine. And yes, that is the cat trying to sneak into the photo. Again.

Here is my poor Birkenstock sandal, the hole getting progressively bigger, the cork ground down to nothing in the back. These are my favorite pair and I can't bear to think of the day where I am walking through the library or grocery store and lose a whole chunk of my foot gear like a shredded semitruck tire. I was on my way to the library, pondering if it were best to even go out in public with my holey Birks.

While at the library picking up books for my older son, I ran across Catwings. I've been meaning to pick up this book and the others in the series but I completely forgot with our busy summer. No one cared about my holey sandal, by the way.

Camping

2007-08-24T09:41:00.000-05:00

Our trip to Glacier National Park was eventful yet restorative at the same time. Left Helena just before 9am on the 13th. The '87 Suburban over-heated just past Browning so we played MAD LIBS and read aloud a few chapters of Harry Potter II for an hour until the truck cooled down. Lots of smoke from wild fires until we got up in the mountains at the park.

The guys set up the camper, we ate dinner and went to Lake McDonald Lodge for an evening ranger program on night noises, and my boy braved the cold water at the lake - only ankle deep. Over night we were able to identify 2 owls and (luckily) no bears. Tuesday we went up Going to the Sun Road, hiked the trail at Logan Pass.

I worked a bit on a sock while riding in the truck, though I was more engaged with the view. Our last day there we hiked the trail by McDonald Falls, the guys went down to the water to throw rocks while I nursed the baby. We took the west route back to Helena after encountering a lot of construction to the east of Glacier. We stopped for lunch in Kalispell after ribbing Martin while we passed Martin City (cheap thrills, I know) and ogling at that Hungry Horse now has a stop light. The guys pointed out the Assembly of God camp as well, then the quilting store in Kalispell but they didn't let me stop in.

We were 7 miles from I-90 when 93 was closed due to the fires being too close to the road. After waiting an hour at the gas station, the road was reopened long enough for us to get through to the interstate. The photo doesn't show it, but the line of fire was glowing and quite close to the road and houses. Dinner in Deer Lodge at the A&W, the guys gave a quick tour of the town and their old houses. Back home in time to start laundry and get organized to repack for our trip home.

Our three week visit was very intense, it seemed all too short especially with the loss of Mama. It hit me again hard when I arrived home that I could no longer call her up any time I wanted and talk until the cell phone battery died. I want to fit in more here, but I'm now in the middle of moving (we're only moving a mile down the street) and the stress level has increased about 3 points. I have many wonderful things from Valerie to share, she had many amazing talents and interests but that warrants it's own post.

Valerie Fay Van Oort: August 21, 1951 - August 3, 2007

2007-08-09T18:36:00.000-05:00

We are grieved that she is gone, but relieved that she is no longer suffering. First battle with breast cancer in 1998, the second in 2004. She fought it the last three years, hoping to be cured until the end. She waited to see her grown children one last time and then she left us. Martin, my husband, saw her at 11pm on Friday after flight delays and she passed at 11:59pm that night.

Martin, the kids, and I will be in Montana until the 20th. I think we are planning to get away for a bit after the last of the visiting relatives go back home. We'll dust off the camper and head up to Glacier National Park - if it's not on fire. Camping plans will be finalized soon. Knitting? I've started and ripped out the same sock three or four times in the past month. With all that's happened, knitting just isn't. I've just picked up the baby quilt Val was working on for Anne. My stitching is noticeably different from hers, one will see the work of two hands on it when it is completed.

Michigan, part 3

2007-07-23T19:36:00.000-05:00

We didn't spend nearly enough time at the beach, it was mostly too cold. Jonah did go into the lake, it was 55 degrees F. Brrr!

Michigan, part 2

2007-07-22T20:45:00.000-05:00

Ok, some knitting. More new yarn than anything actual knitting time. I visited several LYS's, saw my old employer and bought yarn (I have no time now to list yarn names and colors, and I have more yarn to show off, I may or may not get to that with my absence of late - I pack tomorrow for Montana and leave on Tuesday for a month out West). I knit a bit more of a baby sweater while sitting on the second story porch one cool morning while Anne slept, though she didn't sleep much on the trip since everything in her world had changed. I managed part of a sock while in the van to Ohio for an aunt's surprise 60th birthday and retirement party. That was a fun trip-within-a-trip. I have a few large plants my mother is "babysitting" for me until I can take them, the snake plant is getting huge. I got new hiking shoes. We picked mulberries and raspberries.

Michigan, part 1

2007-07-21T20:36:00.000-05:00

I am back from Michigan, seeing my family and friends over the last 3 weeks. I did manage a little knitting (and new yarn acquisitions), so more on that next time. Along with reuniting with people dear to me I revisited places I spent much time at and hold close to me as well.

My old school is closed and empty. Jonah, my sister Mary, and I looked around the overgrown and deteriorating property and pulled some weeds. It was more of a symbolic gesture to the memory of the place than doing any real help. The large trees still stand tall by the swing sets, the Welcome sign painted at an entrance nearly faded, and a lone squirrel the only one at play.

"Green" Post and a Brief Note on Family News

2007-06-22T12:43:00.000-05:00

I'll start off with the family news. I've mentioned that the kids and I are going to spend 3 weeks in west Michigan starting next Thursday. That will be our vacation trip. My husband and I had planned to save our big Montana trip until next summer when he could take several weeks off. Unfortunately, his mother has been fighting cancer again since 2004, the first time was in the late '90's, it was breast cancer. As of this week, her liver is 70% cancerous and they are running out of treatment options. She will be running through those options today with the doctor and we'll know more soon. While I was planning on spending some time in Montana in August to help out and give them a break, everyone is now dropping everything to get out there sooner and stay longer. It looks like I'll be there from late July to late August, Martin will fly in for a week in early August. Mama's parents are going earlier than planned and they will get to see the baby for the first time as well. I really don't know much more, what the next step is or how much time. We've all been really hopeful for recovery, but this is the first big road block we've come to. All your thoughts and prayers are welcome, even after all these years with cancer it's a shock to think it might win.

What does it mean to this space? Well, I certainly like sharing and documenting my own knitting and sewing, but it may be less frequent or I may have much to share. Now that the baby and I are home from hospitals and doctors offices, I thought I'd have more time for this outlet, but now I won't be home much over the next few months, and we may be moving across town in September. I'll do what I can, maybe set up camp in Montana and devote some of this space to our time with Mama. She's a master quilter, she made part of the quilt shown in the photo below.* So, let's get on with this:

Yes, the baby is now home and appointment free for a few months! She has healed enough that her vision is protected and we can put surgeries and steroids out of our minds for a while. I can now use cloth diapers, something that hasn't been ideal for our situation until now. We have to use a cash card for the laundry, so we may not be saving much money in the end but my husband and I find it worth while for the amount of diapers we'll be keeping out of the landfills. I know there's been a lot of buzz words in the green categories lately, and it's nice to finally get so much main stream attention. It's nothing new to us, but we can always do more.

I'm incorporating this idea into my son's summer schooling, doing more earth and health friendly within our family will be an on-going process. To start, we're looking at the diapers. My son likes math, we can compare costs, amounts of waste, etc of the disposables and cloth. These diapers and the covers came from Cotton Babies. We are also cutting down on as much plastics as we can, especially disposable plastic. I found these Earthwise reusable bags at Giant grocery store for 99 cents a piece to cut out plastic grocery bags from our lives. We've been checking out Low Impact Living, checked out books from the library like It's Easy Being Green, and Mother Earth News, among others. More about our changes later, as well as plastic waste and health risks.

We have also done more about food and health (I have high cholesterol and had gestational diabetes and am now pre-diabetic), cut out nearly all red meat, continue with more whole grains and fresh fruit and vegetables. I try to cut out as much artificial dye as possible, it makes my son more hyper than any sugar or caffeine ever could, and who knows what else it could be bad for.

We've been using Skin Deep Cosmetic Database for a few years now, but it's been brought to our attention again with the findings on sunscreen safety. We went back through the site and checked our personal products, tossed a few and printed out lists of healthier ones. I ordered Badger SPF 30 sunblock as it's rated one of the best on the Skin Deep site. I also picked up some Dr. Bronner's soap at the local health food store. These are just a very few of the things we're concentrating on, just a glimpse, but maybe someone will take even one of these ideas and put it to their own use. That would make me happy.

As for knitting, it does fit in here a bit. I'm trying to steer clear of synthetic fibers, especially acrylic. That's really not too hard as most of my stash is wool and cotton. Right now, while I was working on the blue raglan cardigan I think I'll put it aside until September so I can work on socks for Summer of Socks 2007 and I have a very little baby sweater in the very early stages meant for another baby girl. I'll get some photos soon, and I'll be packing the suitcase with sock yarn. Probably more than I'll be able to get to, and I'll probably acquire some more on my trip.

*Most of the quilt blocks were made in the 1930's by Mama's great-grandmother. Mama put them together, added a few more blocks with vintage reproductions and hand quilted it for our wedding present.

Knitting Plans and a Plate

2007-06-18T07:29:00.000-05:00

One last thing from my yard sale sweep on Saturday, I forgot it in the back of the wagon. My husband tucked it into the "HELP!" box of tools, jumper cables and first aid kit so it wouldn't get broken on the way home and I only spotted it while loading groceries in the trunk (the dash board message system calls it a boot, my German VW is apparently a Brit). I'm not sure what it's original use was, or if it had another piece to it, but I'll call it a small plate, it's about 4" to 5" across.

I've managed to get more knitting done on the raglan cardigan, I'm almost finished with the increases. I'm enjoying such easy knitting, I usually take on more complicated projects but while my little bear is still so little this blog may be seeing more plain knitting. While my summer knitting plans included socks for Summer of Socks 2007, there is a very wee little baby girl at church who would be darling in a very wee little sweater. I'm thinking another raglan cardigan with picot edging and a few eyelet holes. I've ordered Elann's Devon in Dusty Plum for it. While I was ordering, I also picked out another ball of Devon in Dream Blue to go with my leftover brown Devon from the Snakes and Ladders gansey. Then I also ordered the Sock It To Me discount kit, there's not many left if you want this 70% off "standard price" (I forget how much Elann had one skein selling for, but I figure this is a great deal anyway). Lastly, I added Lara in Tiffany Rose for something for Anne.

Other knitting sites I've been perusing latetly, The Shetland Museum's Fair Isle pages for inspiration on the fair isle vest I will one day knit for my dad. I've been ogling Cinemaknits' log cabin squares, so far I've managed not to be bitten by this bug, but her blocks have me wondering how long it will take me to acquire enough Noro if I do it one ball at a time.

This bright ball of cotton (Sugar n Cream Playtime #2741) is destined to become another Little Tent Dishcloth for me, though I think I will use another pattern for my mother's cloth. I'm being ambitious, I don't know when I will get all this knitting done!

This looks amazing! I am sorry to have missed our local market this weekend, we were too pooped after the library and yard sales. I've been thinking about the Diagonal Ribbed socks, pattern at Knitting Daily and All Tangled Up's WIP here, with my CTH in bark. There is more sock yarn in my stash, but I won't even go into it now.

Saturday Morning in Photos

2007-06-16T12:30:00.000-05:00

I finished the quilted car strap covers last night and ironed on the velcro.

The little sprout tries them on for size. Works beautifully.

We hit up yard sales and the P'ville library, took a scenic route where everything is so green.

I'm discovering the joys of knitting in the car. Everyone is strapped in and not needing me. My hands are free for once!

Here are just a few of the great book finds we scored at the yard sales, lots of 1940's Golden Books re-prints in good condition, one of the Master and Commander series, and Weird and Wonderful Weaponry. The last one was too good to pass up. Many more in our hoard are not shown.

An owl mug for my mother who collects owls of all sorts.

I think this is my favorite find today, nesting geese measuring cups.

Spring Into Summer Dishcloth Swap!

2007-06-15T15:23:00.000-05:00

Wow! Look at all the great stuff my secret pal Carol from Spring Into Summer Dishcloth Swap spoiled me with! What an awesome swap pal! She made me two cloths in blue and natural, sent 3 balls of yarn in blue/brown/natural colors, a great dishcloth pattern book, oatmeal and peppermint soaps from Nature 2 Nature (also brown and blue packaging - I see a theme here!), a blackberry sage wax tart, Le Marche Spice Rooibos tea, and Green and Black's Organic Maya Gold dark chocolate. Wow! I've already ripped open the chocolate and ~~devoured~~ sampled a piece. Wonderful! Thanks so much!

Women in Art

2007-06-15T13:06:00.000-05:00

I saw this clip at artist Helle Jorgensen's blog, Gooseflesh, which is an amazing site in itself, but if you stop by there, you must check out The Institute for Figuring and her contributions to the hyperbolic crochet coral reef. After all my going on about plastics and the great garbage patch (more on that later), I am amazed to see the artwork made from and inspired by this mess.

Pardon for those who have seen this entry on my Livejournal, I feel it worth duplicating here since this space is dedicated mainly to my knitting and quilting which I feel are a many faceted medium of practicality, art form, and connection to other women and their creativity and spirit. Not that men don't or can't fit this definition, but for me, I feel a woman's bond within these crafts. I always make room for exceptions, though.

Take 2

2007-06-15T10:51:00.000-05:00

This yarn is getting new life as a new sweater. One that *will* fit. The pattern is an old standby, an Ann Norling many-sizes-many-gauges-many-variations on a top-down raglan. It's fast, it's easy. I'm not up for anything challenging now, though I wish I were. While I love my family and my work at home I feel caught up in it and a little worn out. Laundry, dishes, diapers, nursing. Repeat.

We'll get up early tomorrow to hit some yard sales before the good stuff is gone, and hop over to the Purcellville library since the Leesburg library has closed for expansion and the temp site won't open until the fall. Maybe drop by the farmers market as well, if we aren't all cranky by that point. Getting out will do me some good, and maybe I'll find something spectacular at a yard sale.

Tonight I'm slacking in the cooking department, we'll finish off last night's chicken pot pie. It was quite good, I was planning chicken stew but I had buttermilk left over and thought the stew could go nicely in a buttermilk crust. I had some ripe peaches and blackberries, and a cobbler came together nicely as well. Sometimes things just work out nicely like that, other times I don't have a clue what to do.

Aw, Shucks

2007-06-12T11:43:00.000-05:00

Well, I had that spiffy little blue cabled cardigan for Anne completed only to find it didn't fit. At all. So, rip rip rip. I was so mad yesterday when I had finished and it was, well, funky, that I couldn't bear to rip it out then (I had even woven in the ends and grafted under the arms!). I had to put it in a drawer so I couldn't even see it until I cooled down, that's how ticked I was. But today is a new day and pulling apart the sweater was actually fun. I have a ball winder, but no swift. No swift? No problem! The computer chair was perfect, and all too amusing to spin around and around. No wonder my boy likes doing it until I'm driven mad.

The yarn has soaked and is drying with weights to get all the kinks out. I love how it looks like Ramen noodles when you pull it out, but I won't knit it back up like that. I'll wind it up tomorrow and try another pattern. Something simple, with a lot of stockinette - I could never work on the sweater long enough because my attention had to be else where, so something I can pick up and work half a round or row and put down without losing my place will be more practical and industrious.

I am holding off on my sock knitting until next week for the start of Summer of Socks 2007. I was ready to dive into the Trekking #126 I've been eagerly waiting to work with - it's like Brach's coconut candies - especially after last night's fiasco. I can wait. I can. Really. Ok, maybe I can't wait but most likely I'll be too busy with work and baby to even pull it out of my stash until next week! I've seen several lovely versions of the coconut candies socks, and I most like the chocolate brown heels and toes, which I have a skein of Lang Jawoll 67 for. For more Neapolitan socks, check out
these, this one, another here, the brown heeled pair here, and one more example here. I guess this yarn color was discontinued but by the power of knitting bloggers and plenty of readers who loved what they saw and clamored for more, Trekking is making #126 again. I bought mine just before it was more widely distributed again, but I paid the list price and not what some people pay for Alice Starmore books.

A week from today and my son is done with 2nd grade. The next week the kids and I are off to Michigan. My parents are in Holland (MI) and that is where I grew up and spent 20 some years, and my son spent his first 4 years. This will be Anne's first visit there outside the womb. I was there twice while I was pregnant with her.

Until then, it's school as usual for my boy, work as usual for my husband, and housework as usual for me. We eat dinner together, then I usually take Jonah and Anne to the pool, then we end the night with stories. Martin and I take turns reading and even the cats and baby sit to listen. We had been going through Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series, though we got stuck on We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea where the plot kind of plodded along and it was too painful for all to force even half a chapter a night. We are now reading the first of the Harry Potter series, and that has definitely grabbed the boy's attention back.

Quilting

2007-06-09T13:08:00.000-05:00

The car seat straps are brushing too hard against Anne's neck and I can't find any strap covers in stores around here. I guess making my own is more fun and much prettier, plus thrifty while using up old fabric and batting scraps. Some of the quilting has been fiddly, but I could have done it a different way. The next strap cover's print doesn't have the pattern part I disliked on this one. Also, cabled cardigan is almost done. I need to finish the shawl collar, and stop by the fabric store for buttons and some mesh fabric. More on that later!

One day the housework will all be done and I will not be tired (ha!)

2007-06-06T07:45:00.000-05:00

There's still not much knitting going on right now, I'm trying to finish the last few rows of the cabled cardigan but it's a slow haul when I can only get one or two rows in at a time. Instead of showing off a WIP that essentially looks the same as the last time I posted it, I'll put up a photo of muffins and a pre-blog cabled scarf. (See, I've made *something* lately.) The muffins were very good, follow the link and see where I ganked the idea from, there is a link to the recipe in this blog post. I used frozen raspberries since I already had them in the freezer. The scarf is Mission Falls 1824 Wool in Raven (I believe), knit on size 2 or 3 needles and it nearly killed my hands. I made it a few years back, I was more stubborn (ahem, stupid) then.

More on the Ballard Locks, my husband and I were watching a bit of Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch last night, and they're shooting the breeze at the Lockspot Cafe next to the Ballard Locks. Huh. Small world.

Other things I've been poking around on the net for lately, gooseflesh's coral garden, I love it and I really need to learn to crochet. I'm sure it's easy but over 10 years stuck with a knitter's brain and my hands won't make a new muscle memory very easily. I throw my yarn, too, which is comfortable for me but a pain when trying to switch to left handed anything.

I've always wanted a cabled cardigan for myself and I have such a hard time finding *the right one* to make even though I know I could make more. Could this be it?

Also, I've been dealing with my stupid feelings again, especially a long underlying feeling of discontentment. I don't know why I feel this way, so I'm trying to dig into that and clear it out. I think it happens when I'm going through an anxious cycle, like I am now with the baby and her medical conditions and running to every doctor at Children's Hospital (tomorrow is neurosurgery). Things are getting better and with some great improvements on her own part, we may get to leave things alone for now. So, I'm relearning to relax. And it's hard. Trying to remember to breathe and enjoy life. I found this account of small pleasantnesses in yarnstorm's blog very comforting. I'm having to remind myself to make a cup of coffee or tea, to sit down with a book or knitting when the baby naps. Lately, I've been so exhausted that I just sleep whenever she does as well, or alternately, rush around frantically getting chores and housework done. I'm learning to relax if there's dishes in the sink or pureed prune stains on everything. Prune stains aren't on my list of Big Concerns. For more on one of my Big Concerns, take the time to read this article.

A place I called home

2007-05-30T12:14:00.000-05:00

If at first you don't secede ...

When I lived in Seattle, I started out in a small Mother-in-Law-Cottage in the Interbay/Magnolia neighborhood. I spent a lot of time just across the street (and over a bridge) in Ballard, even after I moved to the north end of the city. In my mind, I still go to the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks about once a week as I did when I lived there. Ballard felt like home in that big city when I was far away from west Michigan. Every so often this little place comes up and I know I won't be back for a long time.

Knitting? Where?

2007-05-30T10:37:00.000-05:00

I'm getting some knitting time in, not much, but what little I manage to sneak in is a great break from the never ending piles of dishes and laundry. It seems that's all I do these days, and nursing a 4 & 1/2 month old. She started her first solid food yesterday, I was hoping to hold it off another month but lately she's nursing all the time and not satisfied. She ate the whole bowl of cereal - maybe 2 tbsp - and had the hang of spoon feeding by the end of it, and was finally full and satisfied for a few hours. Phew!

I try to think of anything worthwhile, amusing, or witty to share but right now there just isn't anything outside of baby stuff and housework, being very tired and sometimes forgetting to brush my teeth. I know I shouldn't worry if the bed doesn't get made or if vacuuming gets put off another day, but it bothers me. I'd like to get more done, not be tired, and have half an hour a day to knit. But I don't, so I'm a little more crabby these days even if I try not to sweat it.

I don't have gorgeous photos of the lovely meals I've lovingly made for my family, it's getting hot and I don't like cooking much in the summer. I tried a recipe for Southwestern corn and shrimp cold soup from the latest issue of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine, but it wasn't for our family's tastes. It was "interesting" and I'll leave it at that. I'm trying to gather more vegetarian recipes, seasonal and summer (read: little or no stove/oven time) recipes, anything that won't take much time to prepare. I love cooking and baking when it's cold out, but these Virginia summers are more than this northerner can bear. Tonight I'll make a pasta salad, I'm just feeling rather uninspired and too tired for anything else.

My son turned 8, it seems like 8 going on 14. Where did all the time go? He isn't my Wee One anymore, he'd probably be mortified by that title now. Yeah, he's begun to have second thoughts that I'm really a cool mom. I'm already a mean mom for things like bedtime and teeth brushing, but I've been able to hang on to "cool mom" for quite a few years. Soon there will be eye rolling and instructions to walk at least 6 feet behind him out in public.

All in all, I'm ok. Tired, but ok. It's not quite spring and not quite summer, we're anxious for more carefree days. In a few short weeks the kids and I will fly back to west Michigan for a three week trip to be with my parents at my childhood home. I look forward to it as much as they (Jonah and my parents) do. We will swim in the lake and roast marshmallows over campfires, swing much too high on the poor backyard swing set. We'll go to the farmer's market for peaches and corn and run into everyone I knew from growing up. It will be good to get back for a while.

Raspberry Pie

2007-05-24T09:50:00.000-05:00

I seamed and stuffed this piece of raspberry pie while watching LOST last night. My mother called me this morning, she was very confused about the show. The pie pattern is Dad's Blueberry Pie by Jennifer Tallapeneni and found over at Magknits. I used Sugar n Cream in Wine and Jute. I have so much of this yarn, 2 grocery bags full, for kids crafts, knitting, tying a roasting chicken together and you don't want to know what else. It's the duct tape of yarn.

Fun pattern, just do as it says and don't worry too much. I've been sleep deprived and generally tired of going to see doctors and hospitals so my reading comprehension is running on empty. I also have hypnogogic hallucinations before/while sleeping since sleeping in itself must not be fun enough. The crust part of the pattern threw me for a loop until I stopped thinking about it and just made it.

Berries

2007-05-22T15:50:00.000-05:00

The baby and I have been sick with colds this past week, I wanted to make a pie but didn't feel up to it and my husband has been gone with field work which means less pie eaters around here. When there are only 3 pie eaters in this house, one gone is a big cut in pie consumption. Here's some knitted berries instead.

I just received my invitation to Ravelry! I haven't had a chance to poke around it yet, I will have to wait until my wee ones are in bed tonight.

Also, if you haven't seen it at Hello Yarn, she has made the most adorable baby hat ever, period. It's not her own pattern, and it's not originally in English. I saw the original pattern while Hello Yarn's was a WIP, and couldn't wait for the translation to go up. Here it is, Sweet Baby Cap at
Grosblog (pardon if I don't have the title correct, I do not pretend to comprehend Norwegian). So darn cute. I may not be Norwegian, but I have a little Dutch baby who will need one of these hats this winter.

My Dutch baby is not to be confused with the Dutch Baby Pancake.

While I love our '00 VW Passat wagon, I can't get enough of this VW Rabbit commercial. The "spotted" Rabbit is so nifty:

More Dish Cloths

2007-05-20T13:01:00.000-05:00

I'm churning out a few more dish cloths, they've been easy and quick to complete. I hope to have more time to sit and concentrate on the cabled raglan cardigan, but I'm just not up for it now and not up for ripping back any mistakes I'd make due to not being up for it.

So dish cloths it is! One is for my secret swap pal, I'll reveal her name after she's received her package. The pattern is Little Tent Dish Cloth, which I thought was appropriate for summer. Can you see the little tents in the upside-down V's? This is such an easy and fun pattern, I think I'm going to make one more before I get into my sock yarn (yeah, yeah...and finish the other few WIP's I have left over). Medical things are settling down a bit, we only have 3 appointments this week and none are in DC so I won't be driving farther than Fairfax.

I've been testing various short row techniques for sock toes and heels, and I'll share more on that later. No use doing any tutorials, there are so many good ones out there and I'll link to the ones I found most helpful when I get my stuff together on short rows.

2007-05-15T12:05:00.000-05:00

We're back from our long weekend getaway to Philadelphia, it was good to see my husband's family since the 2 who live in Philly are usually very busy and the other 3 are far off in Montana. Martin and I plan to take the kids out there next summer. Now we're home, the VW has quiet brakes now, and all my post-trip errands have been run except for buying new stamps and a few 1 cent stamps to add to my old ones. The post office was swamped with others doing just the same and there was no parking. I went to the library instead to return a dvd and check out some books on vegetarian cooking. I'm cutting back on meat, but still want to include fish and chicken in our diets (along with eggs and dairy). I need to find some recipes that don't involve 2 hours of prep time and chopping vegetables into tiny pieces. The summer is coming on shortly and I also want to find more no-cook/little-cook/don't-even-think-about-turning-on-the-oven recipes for when it's over 100 degrees.

Oh. The photo. I have done no knitting (outside of maybe 2 rows of a garter stitch dish cloth) since a few posts ago. This is from the other week, where I'm getting frustrated at myself for not thinking how twisted stitches behave. All of the twisted stitches by themselves and to the right side of the garter "ladders" are perfectly fine. It's the twisted stitches on the left side of the garter "ladders" that are wonky. I'm just going to leave it, give it a good blocking when it's done and be happy that hardly anyone will notice, and fewer will care. I love this color and hope I get to sit with it some more soon.

Right now, there's laundry to be folded and the baby will be up from her nap shortly. We have the next few days to do our home thing, then we are back in DC to the ear/nose/throat doctor to evaluate her thyroid. I'm getting better at this, even though I'm thoroughly tired. The kids and I may still get to go back to Michigan this summer if the doctors can agree on holding off any invasive procedures. Most of the time everything seems normal around here, until I'm at yet another doctor or running errands and strangers who see her coo at the sight of a baby then gasp and ask what is wrong with her. I'm getting better at that, too, but it's annoying to be truthful. Just take things one day at a time, I guess. So, all in all, today is pretty good.

2007-05-09T19:28:00.000-05:00

I might be taking a break from here, or at least not be posting much for a while. Family and medical issues have my attention now and it's hard to say how long this road will be or how difficult things will get. For those who do know what's happening, thank you for all your kind comments and prayers. I signed up for a dishcloth swap and I'm going to see it through since I don't want to disappoint my pal and it's not a very involved swap anyway.

I hope to be updating again more frequently if only as a sign that things are going well here.

Not much knitting progress, or nothing much to show

2007-05-07T16:58:00.000-05:00

Mark with bold the things you have ever knit, with italics the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest:

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colours
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

Summer Dishcloth Swap Questionaire

2007-05-06T13:13:00.000-05:00

1 When did you learn to knit? Who taught you?
I learned to knit when I was 15, from an old "Learn How to Knit" pamplet that my mother had once learned from. I taught myself for the most part, but Mom helped with the casting on even though it took her a while to remember how.

2 What was your very first completed object? Your most recent?
It was my first "swatch", a very large one that sort of turned into a small stockinette lap blanket. My most recent FO to date is the Snakes and Ladders gansey.

3 What was the very first thing you sent to the frog pond? (pulled out and started over) Your most recent?
That first swatch/blanket needed to be ripped back a few times when I didn't have the hang of it yet. Many dropped stitches. The most recent ripped out items were an unfinished piece or two I found while sorting my stash and found my tastes had changed.

4 What is currently on the needles for you?
A cabled raglan cardigan for my daughter, some dishcloths, and a baby blanket that I swear I'll complete before the baby is 12.

5 What types of needles do you enjoy working with? What have you tried and hated?
I generally like bamboo knitting needles, in DPN's or circs (but I avoid crystal palace circs - I hate their join, and it is not new and "improved"). I am always in need of needles US 0 to US 3 in DPN's (sets of 5) or 16" circs for socks. I'd love to try the knitpicks circs.

6 Have you knit dishcloths before?
Yes.
1. What was your favorite one? No favorite pattern
2. Least favorite? I ran across a pattern that says "House work sucks" on it, but I like doing chores.

7 Do you use homemade dishcloths or face cloths yourself, or give them as gifts, or both?
Both.

8 What are your favorite and least favorite scents? (For your body, such as soap/lotion/etc)
I don't like a lot of heavy scent. It has to be light, clean, and preferably "natural" in some form (organic is nice, but not necessary). Nothing too heavily floral.

9 What are your favorite colors?
I love brown, especially dark chocolate/coffee brown, I like blues and combinations of light blue and dark brown.

10 What colors (if any) are your bathroom and kitchen decorated in?
White.

11 What other hobbies and crafts do you enjoy?
I quilt and sew, and other miscellaneous crafts with my kids.

12 Chocolate: Dark? White? Milk? Ew?
Dark.

13 Do you like salty treats? What kinds?
Yes, most kinds.

14 If you could go anywhere in the world for one day and spend the day any way you wanted, where would you go and what would you do?
Scotland. See where some of my ancestors came from, walk the land and just sit and look about. Shortbread would be good, too.

15 Do you have any allergies? (Yarns, foods, etc. that might impact what your pal can send)
No.

Maryland Sheep and Wool

2007-05-06T12:44:00.000-05:00

Driving to Maryland.

Over the (Potomac) River and through the woods. Well, it was through the woods and over the river.

I dragged the crew along with me. Baby's first big outing, she hated it.

Wait, is this the same as the Monty Python Cheese Sketch?

So many sheep, so little time. I want one.

I want a Border Collie even more, but then I'll have more excuses to get sheep.

I could have watched this all day.

A Bit of Blue

2007-05-04T21:03:00.000-05:00

My mother sent me my old rag dolly for my daughter to have, it arrived in the mail today. Here are some peeks at the current WIP's, but I'll be mysterious and leave you guessing, then put them away in the blue trimmed knitting tote. See some of you at Maryland Sheep and Wool! Bye!

Snakes and Ladders gansey, and a new project

2007-04-29T12:02:00.000-05:00

I finished the Snakes and Ladders gansey from Beth Brown-Reinsel's Knitting Ganseys, it was off the needles on Friday and blocked and dried last night. It will fit Anne in the autumn, so there will be more photos of this sweater to come when it's actually on the child. I used Elann's Devon and had the right gauge, but next time I make a gansey it will be with a true sport or DK yarn. The Devon calls itself a sport weight, but I'm using the left overs for socks, it's really near a fingering weight. I'm still pleased with it and can't wait to see her toddling about in it.

We are going to DC Children's Hospital on Wednesday for the CT scan to find out if the hemangioma has swelled into the eye cavity, then we will see the specialist the following Tuesday. We were to patch the good eye so as to train the bad eye, but she can't even open the bad eye when the good one isn't open. So, no Dread Pirate Anne for now. My boy has a cold and has had to rest most the weekend when we finally get nice weather, so I pulled out some puzzles and checked out Bill Nye episodes from the library. When I lived in Seattle, Bill Nye lived in my neighborhood and I met him at a political event. My parents are friends with a gal who worked on the show and has her own science books and experiments for kids out, and my parents met Bill Nye at her wedding some years back. When I watched the show in the 90's I didn't realize they taped quite a bit of it in Seattle. When I watch it now, my son and I can point out places we've been to. I believe that dinosaur puzzle was a gift to Jonah from a family I babysat for in Lake Forest Park.

I still have a few unfinished things to get going on, but I bought this yarn last summer for a cabled cardigan I put down on graph paper. It's a 12 month size and should fit Anne in the winter. I couldn't wait to start it any longer. There are only a few other things to finish up so I don't feel too bad about it. I whipped out a sleeve last night watching an Inspector Lynley mystery. I would have done more this morning, staying home from church as Jonah's sick, but housework was the sqeakier wheel.

Postage Stamp Quilt

2007-04-24T14:17:00.000-05:00

I have been scattered with this blog, I realized that I had been rushing to get this quilt done, but never put the photos up here. If you've seen them before, I apologize. I am trying to get things organized and put all my crafting here and transition it out of Livejournal, so there will be double posting for a bit. If I get another shot or two of the quilt with the baby, I'll add them to this post. Please bear with me!

Snakes and Ladders

2007-04-24T11:59:00.000-05:00

One sleeve left on the Snakes and Ladders gansey from Knitting Ganseys by Beth Brown-Reinsel, I started this in October but I put aside the knitting to finish Anne's postage stamp quilt before she arrived. I seriously thought we were having another boy, and I intended this for Neil Adrian, not Anne Margaret. A happy surprise, though. The gansey is in Elann's Devon color 667, which they don't seem to have in stock at this time but I have plenty left over, a good ball and a half. I might have to get a ball in another color to make striped socks. What do you think, chocolate brown and lemon chiffon? Maybe Antique Blue or Dusty Plum with the brown? Anne will also get a pair of socks to match the gansey, probably plain stockinette.

Brown is my favorite color, I like so many (pale blues and greens, bright red...) but when it comes down to it, I'll have to pick a deep brown. So many shades and hues, pale and milky and rosy like baby's skin, dusty like a mongoose or scaly and variegated like the cobra. Woody and warm (I won't go into the bears now, that's another post), earthy and cool. But I'm a brunette and prejudice to it. If I were blond, I'd probably gravitate to yellow, or coppers if I were a redhead. Definitely more brown to come, such as the yarn in the mail as I write.

I've (minimally) organized my knitting log/record book, and it contains most knitting projects from 2003-2006. Records from 1995-2002 are shoddy, regrettably. I'll start new for this year since the book is bursting at the seams and I'm not happy with it anyway. I'll be in Philadelphia mid-May for sisters-in-law's graduation party, one is finishing an art school and the other a PhD in dance history - what amazing talents they have. Maybe I'll find a record book there, nothing at home besides chain stores or overpriced boutiques. The first weekend in May is the Maryland Sheep and Wool festival, the whole family is going this year. I will have tons to share on that. The end of June will see me and the kids back in Michigan for a few weeks to be with my family, my husband will be working and saving up hours so we can drive to Montana next summer to be with his family. His dad has sent links to job openings in and near Helena as not-so-subtle hints that we might move closer. Even if I were back in Seattle monthly trips would be more feasible. Can you tell I'm getting wander-lust again? Though I never really liked this area to begin with, besides the Blue Ridge just to the west and the small towns like Waterford, Hamilton, Harper's Ferry, and Berryville.

Retro Rib Done, Anne's Socks

2007-04-23T09:48:00.000-05:00

I've made quite a few work-in-progress shots of these socks, but it's only to keep me pressed to finish them. I do like them very much, it's all the other projects needing completion that I feel compelled to hurry and get the second sock out of the way (the first one was finished last summer!). The Regia Bamboo was a sturdy and cotton-like yarn to work with so there was less give than an all wool yarn. Now I'll have to see how it wears. I received the yarn from a secret pal swap, along with Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks. I had a hard time settling on a pattern for the Bamboo yarn, I ended up trying needles from 0 to 3 and found I liked the fabric best with US 1's and went looking for a pattern with the same gauge, or at least work in the pattern in some way. I've been meaning to do Interweave Knits Winter '04 Retro Rib socks for some time, so I settled on this with side cables to allow for the extra stitches I needed - not sure I like the cables with the rib pattern, though. I'd do this pattern again without it. I wanted to use as much of the yarn as possible, so I made them toe-up with short rows, leaving a long tail for a sewn bind off. No yarn left over, which I'm thankful for as my stash of scraps and left-overs is taking up a lot of space in storage.

I've found good use for some of these left overs: baby socks. I am fed up with the store bought socks that pop off my daughter's feet. They either fit in the foot and spring off the leg, or they fit in the leg and are too big in the foot so no matter what, they fall off. She measures 4.5" around at the ankle quickly increase to 6.5" below the knee. 34 sts for the foot and ankle, then increase 2 sts every other round up the back of the leg 11 times to 56 sts. They may look a bit funny, but they fit much better than the springy white socks that jump overboard at every chance. I'll be finding little white socks around here for months. The yarn is Regia Cotton Surf 5411 worked on US 1 with a bit of the purple shade in the toe as I was playing with reinforcements, but she doesn't really need it now.

Progress on socks and other things to finish

2007-04-20T08:47:00.000-05:00

This is the view out the window in the living room from a morning or two ago. I was taking a bunch of photos to play around with resizing and lining things up on a page. I am not very skilled with this whole coding business, but I'm not doing too bad considering that less than ten years ago I was typing everything up on my typewriter and didn't even know how to turn on a computer. I like the colors in the sky, so I might as well share it.

Only 3 more rounds left to go on the Retro Rib socks, though who knows when I'll get to finish them. Anne can either sleep for 4 hours or 4 minutes, and I'm never sure which one it will be. The yarn is Regia Bamboo 1066/Jamaica if I haven't mentioned it before.

Oh look. Here's the Retro Rib sock sitting and waiting for a sewn bind off. And what's that beside it? Another project? I know I swore to finish all my WIP's before starting anything new, but...but... Ok, you got me. I'll have these to show soon, they are custom fit socks for Anne after I've had enough of the stupid store bought socks that pop off her feet all the time. More on that later.

The yarn for Anne's socks is left-over Regia Cotton Surf 5411 (I now call it Horrid Pink, it'd be ok if the light pink weren't so salmony orange). I used it in 2005 to make my first pair of socks since I started knitting over 10 years ago. They were a bit too big, but washing and drying in the machines helped. I don't really love them, I sort of tolerate them in that they are my first short row socks and my first socks in real sock yarn (don't ask what my very first socks were made of). I used Priscilla Gibson-Roberts yarn-over method, and I've used the wrapped stitch short rows for other socks as well. I don't have a favorite, but I do like toe-up over top-down for the short row socks.

This photo is too much like that of the Yarn Harlot but I was surprised that I caught myself knitting while cooking. I never do things like that, I generally don't take my knitting out of the house with me, either. But it had been One of Those Days, not getting enough done and the baby was finally napping so I grabbed the needles while I waited for the pasta to cook. Not only was I knitting and cooking, I was swaying. I must have been in some zombie state not to realize it right away, though I'm glad no one came in to find me cooking, knitting and swaying back and forth in the kitchen. That's vegetable soup on the stove, by the way. It's a basic recipe, but it's the way my grandmother made it for years and I won't make another variation of it.

Along with all the other projects I need to finish, I want to make the kids sets of these bears from an old Sirdar pattern book. I had to do quite a bit of hunting to find a pattern for bears in 3 sizes for Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Google and Ebay are wonderful. I was also sent a pattern for Fiber Trends Nuts about Squirrels from my mother in law from Montana who knows how much I love these guys. I'll actually have to buy fun fur. The thought disturbs me.

Then there's the child's cabled raglan pattern I created last summer and bought the Elann Peruvian Highland Wool in Starlight Blue for it. It's fun to knit for a baby, and my older son is just starting to come around to wearing something handknit. Maybe. Then there's the 50 cent copy of Learn to Knit that started it all. I think this is where my mother learned it from, but she gave it up after one scarf for my father. I found the book and some aluminum US 10.5's and acrylic that reeked of camphor in an old camphorated wooden chest my dad acquired in Thailand while he was in the air force. I guess that's the Thai version of a cedar chest. My first attempts were hideous and way too big. The first yarn I bought was Lion Brand Homespun (never, never, NEVER again). Eh, you have to start somewhere. I've tried to keep records of what I've knit, scraps of the yarn and the ball band but I know I've missed quite a bit. I'll drag out my record book sometime, though I need a better system. I do like how blogging helps organize it, but there's nothing like having something you can touch. One more thing on my list; organize a better record book.

Jessica's Mittens

2007-04-18T11:44:00.000-05:00

My sister-in-law, Jessica, knit these convertible mitten/gloves for her brother (my husband) some years ago - sometime between 1994 and 2004. I found these while cleaning closets yesterday and remembered he wanted a loop and button to secure the flaps down, which was easily remedied with a bit of wool and spare buttons. They are very big on me, it looks like my pinky finger is amputated when I wear them, but my hydrogeologist husband is away doing field work this week and he isn't a very willing model anyway. The yarn appears to be all wool, a DK to worsted weight. They are very well made and highly practical, they were intended for use while cross-country skiing.

Our Weekend

2007-04-16T06:47:00.000-05:00

The birds have come back and Jonah is eager to spot any new robins, mockingbirds, and mourning doves. The birds and squirrels will come right up to our patio door and taunt the cats and we like having them so close to watch and study.

Things are finally greening up, a welcome change. I love winter very much, but come the end of March, I am ready for spring. I just got these shots before the Nor'Easter blew in. We didn't get as much rain as New York and New England, but enough to make a cozy indoor weekend out of it (besides the soggy trip hauling groceries home). I've made much progress on the Retro Rib sock, only a few more repeats before the cuff.

Speaking of that sock, there it is peeking out of the knitting basket while I break for pie and coffee. With all the rain, we needed an apple pie. And some songs to calm the baby to sleep, such as An Acre of Land and Spanish Ladies. There are many versions of both songs, but here are the ones I know:

"My father left me an acre of land
(Ivy! Sing Ivery!)
My father left me an acre of land
(And a bunch of green holly and ivery)
I ploughed it with a ram's horn
I sowed it with a thimble
I harrowed it with a bramble bush
I reaped it with a penknife
I sent it home in a walnut shell
I threshed it with my needle and thread
I winnowed it with a handkerchief
I sent it to mill with a team of great rats
The carter brought a curly whip
The whip did pop and the wagon did stop"

"Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish Ladies,
Farewell and adieu to you, ladies of Spain;
For we've received orders for to sail for ol' England,
But we hope in a short time to see you again.

We will rant and we'll roar like true British sailors,
We'll rant and we'll roar all on the salt sea.
Until we strike soundings in the channel of old England;
From Ushant to Scilly is thirty five leagues."

Or, the New England version:

"Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish Ladies,
Farewell and adieu to you, ladies of Spain;
And let us be jolly and drown melancholy
And hope in a short time we'll see you again.

We'll rant and we'll roar like New Bedford whalers
We'll rant and we'll roar on deck and below
Until we spy the New Bedford light
When straight down the Channel to anchor we'll go."

2007-04-14T07:57:00.000-05:00

My mother sent me my old bonnet that a friend had made in 1980, and here it is on my daughter, 27 years later. I have pretty little dresses to go with it, but it's too cold for that now. We are thoroughly enjoying the cool spring because we know how miserable it will be in just a few months. The Nor'easter should be blowing in our way later today, so the only things planned are the library and a few errands to run while my husband ties up loose ends at work. He will be gone again next week for field work, I am hardly without him so business travel is hard on me and the kids.

Robert tries on the bonnet, but looks more like Miss Moppet. I am lucky to get in a bit of knitting with this scalawag (how interesting the origin is) in everything and while nursing a baby. It has been years since I last nursed my son, a time when I didn't do any knitting at all, but I have no complaints or regrets about that. Anne is old enough to feel, stroke and grab on to me or my hair while nursing, we are both enjoying the time together.

Retro Rib and Blogging with Cats

2007-04-13T08:42:00.000-05:00

The modified Retro Rib socks in progress from Interweave Knits Winter '04. The yarn is Regia Bamboo, color 1066 Jamaica, worked on US 1 dpns.

The written pattern is for cuff down socks, but I wasn't sure how far each ball would go. I only have 2 balls, one for each sock and it was gift yarn and I don't want to go through the hassle of hunting down another ball and not getting the same dye lot. To solve this issue, I am making the socks toe-up with YO short rows as illustrated in Priscilla Gibson-Roberts Simple Socks: Plain and Fancy so I will have enough to complete the pair and not run out with an inch of toe left to go. When the yarn starts running out, it's time to make the cuff and cast off. Also, I had started these socks on US 2 DPN's and didn't like how loose it was. I moved down to US 1's for a firmer fabric and modified the number of stitches for circumference and placed small traveling cables up the sides of the leg to compensate for the extra stitch count, but I'm not certain I'm very happy with the cables next to the boxy rib. After going down a needle size, the toe-up method will really help when I run out of yarn. I tried an invisible cast on from the Simple Socks book, one different from the usual provisional cast on I use, and I left the waste yarn in place (the black dashed line in the toe) until I'm done, because it's kind of nifty.

Here's what really happens when I take out the camera. I have an audience.

Then when I go to type, I get the other cat up in my face trying to dig into my kefir and blueberries. You'd think the blueberries and ground flaxseed would be enough to keep him out. The cat is a kefir and yoghurt fiend.

Baby's first knit socks

2007-04-11T07:31:00.000-05:00

They're a bit big yet, but we've had a cold spring so far.

Anne will be 12 weeks old tomorrow. She's already seen several doctors and specialists about her eye and birthmarks, but we want to be as least intrusive as possible. We will be watching her eye development very closely. She is a very happy baby, a very special little girl.

I am working on my second modified Retro Rib sock and planning on digging into the next old project. Still, I am plotting new ones and getting excited about the upcoming Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival the first weekend in May. I may have to pounce on getting some sock yarn I'm watching on Ebay, there were only 5 left yesterday and no one else seems to carry it. More on the Retro Rib sock soon, I'll need distraction from the yarn decision.

Another pair of Father and Son socks

2007-04-05T14:57:00.000-05:00

Father and Son socks, IK Fall '06, Knitpicks Essential solid in Ash, a bit less than 2 balls, US 2 dpn's. These will be shipped out to Montana very shortly, where they can be worn year round.

Unfinished Business

2007-03-30T06:49:00.000-05:00

Just a Peek

2007-03-26T12:47:00.000-05:00

A few tiny swatches with left-over yarn, nothing for it but a few ideas. I like this honeycomb pattern too much not to do something with it in the future. We shall see...

I'm hoping to have a full 4-block square done by week's end, progress has been slowed to a halt with the wee sprout up and awake for longer hours these days. But babies are so fun, I can't complain.

Log Cabin Square

2007-03-11T15:56:00.000-05:00

Tinkering with fabric left-overs.