Itchy fingers

Lately I've taken to browsing knitting patterns on Ravelry.  This is not necessarily a bad thing, I've found a lot of cute stuff I'm dying to make.  However, I still have quite a few unfinished projects...

*sigh*

Meanwhile, still plugging away on Miss Ladybug's blanket.  As I only just posted a picture on Tuesday I don't have one for today, but I've made some progress;  The current strip is a whole square and a half bigger :o)  After I finish the current square only one more to go before I seam this strip to the others!  I can't wait to finish this blanket, it'll be my largest finished project to date.

Pictures!

So here's my knitting after about 2 weeks


If you've been keeping track you'll know it's a whole 2 blocks bigger than it was last time I posted a pic.  I find it very frustrating how slowly it's coming along.  However, that last block was the one that marks the halfway point (yay!) of the blocks.

Hoping I can get a bit of knitting done while Miss Ladybug is still asleep (taking a nap at the moment), although she's beginning to stir so maybe not...

Lame blogger that I am

So uh yeah it's been a whole week and I haven't posted a single word.  In my defense our little family has been sick.  Hubby got it first then Miss Ladybug and then Me.  Hubby is still coughing a bit but otherwise is pretty much back to normal.  Myself and Miss Ladybug both are still congested and runny nosed.  Miss Ladybug is slightly coughy but I get the prize for hacking queen.  I feel like I'm trying to expel my lungs sometimes :op

I really was going to post on Friday.  Really I was.  I even stayed up late on Thursday so I could get a tiny bit of knitting in as I hadn't knit so much as a stitch all week and wanted to have something to post.  However Friday morning dawned with my feeling sick and Miss Ladybug throwing up and it just didn't happen.

Still don't have any pictures to post but am working on that.  Later while Miss Ladybug's taking her afternoon nap (if it happens...she's currently taking a nap that is lasting a bit longer then it usually does) I'm going to finish knitting the square of her blanket I'm working on and take pictures.  Hopefully I'll have a chance/feel up to post them later tonight or tomorrow.

Something fun we did last night, Miss Ladybug had her first taste of rice cereal!  She didn't like the first bite but after a few more bites seemed to really like it!  Grammy was doing the actual feeding while I was holding her and she kept grabbing Grammy's hand like she wanted to be fed faster :o)  I'm looking forward to trying the rice cereal with her again this afternoon.

Speaking of Miss Ladybug, I think I can hear her waking up so that's all for now!

Update

As I haven't found time to blog as regularly as I'd like to, we're just going to do one big update :o)

Knitting - Almost added a square to Miss Ladybug's blanket, but more importantly managed not to start a new project (it was a close thing, I had actually given in and if the store I was at had the materials I needed I would have a new project going right now).  I have also started to feel slightly panicky about the prospect of trying to finish so many projects before starting baby-related projects for my 2 expecting friends.  I'm knitting at such a depressingly slow rate I'll be lucky if I'm allowed to start said baby-related projects before the children are in kindergarten!  I've decided to compromise;  If I can get all the projects, for which the knitting part is completed, finished (with the exception of blocking) then I'll be allowed to start ONE new project.  The reason I'm excluding the blocking part of finishing for this compromise is I don't really have a good place to block my knitting at the moment.

Miss Ladybug - As I'm typing this I realize I forgot to give Miss Ladybug today's 2nd dose of medicine and she's asleep :o/  She really does not like it and makes the funniest faces when I give it to her!  Makes me feel so bad for thinking her reaction is cute.  However it does seem to be helping a bit.  Not much yet, but I'm hoping that the longer she's on it the better it'll get....we'll see :o)

Trip - Miss Ladybug, Mum, two of my siblings, and of course yours truly, all went for an overnight camping (in cabins) reunion this weekend.  It was the first time I had gone anywhere with Miss Ladybug for more than a few hours.  I was amazed at how much baggage is required for such a little person!  It was the reunion for my Grandmother's side of the family so it was way extended familyness.  Not many people I knew but we had a nice time and my little sis and bro seemed to enjoy themselves.

Book - Today I started reading a book I got at a library sale awhile ago.  It's called 'Candyfreak' by: Steve Almond.  It's soo good!  I'm nearly finished with it, I can't put it down!  The author talks about his relationship with candy and it makes me laugh out loud because so many times he is totally describing me!  He also goes on a trip to tour the factories of a few regional brand candy bars; one of the factories he visits is where the 'Idaho Spud' is made (at least I think that's what it's called....can't remember for sure off the top of my head).  I now have the urge to try this candy bar.  I've seen it around a few places but never really felt compelled to try it.  Not sure I can have it right now as dairy is still a no-no for me but as soon as I can I'm going to give it a try :o)

No pictures right now because it's very late and I haven't taken any in preparation for this post.  I'll try to post some in the morning (aka, later today) but no promises.

Doctors Visit

Today Hubby and I took Miss Ladybug to a pediatric GI to figure out her spitting-up problem.  We ended up waiting for awhile as her Dr. had a patient that was taking longer then he thought it would, but Miss Ladybug was very good :o)

We sat and talked with the Dr. for about 20 minutes followed by him giving Miss Ladybug a physical exam from head to toe.  He then sent us to have x-rays of her stomach to make sure there's nothing abnormal internally.  We were lucky and they had an opening so we were able to get it done right then instead of having to schedule another appointment.

She was so good for the x-rays!  She actually fell asleep for most of the time :o)  The stuff they gave her to drink was cherry flavored and had sugar in it.  She LOVED it!  The nurse and Dr. doing the x-rays were surprised at how well behaved she was.

The Dr. felt that the problem is a combination of reflux and allergies (as she has had some improvement from me going off dairy).  Tomorrow she will be starting a medication for reflux (the pharmacy didn't have it in so we have to wait till tomorrow) and I'm still of dairy for now.  When Miss Ladybug's 6 months old I can add it back into my diet and we'll see what happens.

Stupid Needles

So I've been really good about actually working on my knitting rather than sitting around waiting for it to grow (wouldn't that be cool?!).  Last week I finished a strip for Miss Ladybug's blanket; when I finished it, I was sitting on the couch and a set my needles down next to me.  Around the same time I also finished the purple socks and had also set my needles on the couch.  Well when it was time to start the next strip for Miss Ladybug's blanket guess what needles I picked up??  The smaller ones I had used for the purple socks.

In my defense I use knitpicks options needles and, as they are interchangeable, they all look exactly alike and the needles I'm using for Miss Ladybug's blanket are only one size bigger then those used for the purple socks.

So here's how it stands.  The two needles are only 1/2 mm different in size.  After measuring I find that is enough to increase my gauge (which I measure in two inches rather then four) by an entire stitch.  After doing the math I figure out that each square ends up 3 1/2 stitches smaller, which works out to be about 1/2 an inch, when knit with the smaller needles.

So at this point I have finished knitting two squares in the next strip with the smaller needles.  This little two-block piece is about 1/2 an inch skinnier and about 1 inch shorter then it would be if I had been using the lager needles.  I could (1)be a good little knitter and rip it all out and start the strip over, or (2)I could fudge it and start knitting the rest of the strip with the larger needles and leave it at that; trusting that when seaming the strips together I can make it work.

I like option 2.

Mommy time

Miss Ladybug is taking a nap so I thought I'd take a few minutes to blog as I haven't been blogging as regularly as I'd like to.

I've been searching for cute baby-related knitting patterns as I have a a friend who's baby is due soon (I think...I'm such a bad friend) and another who will soon find out her baby's gender.

For friend #1 (we'll refer to her as Pooky) I'm planning to make this:

I LOVE this hat!!  If Miss Ladybug had been an Oliver (which was my favorite boy name) this would've been at the top of my baby knitting list.  I know Pooky will love this hat and I'm excited to make and give it to her!  I'm trying to knock off a few more projects from my in progress list before I start it....

For friend #2 (who has a blog under the name yarnpixie) I've found several patterns I like but as yarnpixie could possibly check out my blog and spoil the surprise, I won't be posting any links or pics until after I give whatever I make to her.

I also have a review for another dairy-free product I've tried...

I've not tried this as cream cheese on a bagel, but I have tried it on a baked potato as a substitute for sour cream.  YUMMY!!  When I tried it for the first time I ate it plain and didn't enjoy it.  However I've become accustomed to the taste and quite enjoy it with something.  I'd never eat it plain with corn chips like I do with real cream cheese though.

Well I'm off to find something to munch and try to get some knitting time in before Miss Ladybug wakes up.
Have a lovely day!

Socks!

I have access to PhotoBucket again!!  So here's what I was intending to post on friday....

I did it! I made progress on my knitting!

Behold!  Socks!


Originally I started these to take with me to the hospital when I had Miss Ladybug but obviously that didn't happen.

I also finished a strip of Miss Ladybug's blanket!


Still need to finish seaming it to the others, but on to the next strip I go! :o)

I have come to a decision about this pair too...


...frogged!!  I really didn't like the toe and couldn't remember what pattern I was working off of anyways.  I'm going to start over after I get a few more projects out of the way.

So I had nine projects going and completely knocked off two...
9 - 2 = 7!
7 = yay! :oD

I love tangible progress

So yay for blogging!  Now I'm going to bed :o)

AAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!

We recently moved to a basement apt. and for the most part have been happy with the change.  It's cold, as the air-conditioning  is set on auto and the sensor is upstairs, but we've got blankets and hot drinks.  They have 3 dogs that we have to battle out way through as we go though the back yard to get to the entrance to the basement; but the largest usually leaves me alone now when I'm carrying Lily, and we've worked out a system where one of us holds him by the collar while the other takes breakable/edible/just-don't-want-the-dog-to-get stuff in.  It also needs some work and had a weird sink but everyplace has it's quirks right?

So we're connected to their wireless internet network and about two weeks ago one of them tells us that he's put a new filter on his network because he has kids.  I totally get his wanting to protect his kids from all the crazy stuff out there but am very frustrated with the whole filter thing right now.

I first ran into problems while trying to watch 'Keeping Up Appearances' on youtube...it's blocked youtube.  I also can no longer watch any videos linked to youtube from another site (such as something posted on facebook).

I now just ran into another roadblock when I tried to upload pics from my computer to photobucket....it's blocked photobucket.  I am also no longer able to view any pictures linked to photobucket including those I've already put up on my own blog.  I now understand why I was having problems viewing pictures on other blogs as well.

We're planning to have out own internet installed at some point; it's very frustrating to be in the middle of something and have it go down and not be able to fix it or have to keep asking them to fix it.  I cannot wait till we're able to have it installed.  As soon as I'm done posting this I'm going to research which company has the best reviews and prices (if the filter will let me).

I am very disappointed that I will not be able to post what I had originally intended to: a knitting update.  I even have fantastic progress to show off :o(

I'm planning to go over to Mum's later, maybe I'll try to take the lap top with me and post from there.

Bugs

I just wanted to make it clear that I think bugs are gross.

The book I'm reading at the moment ('The Lost City of Z' by David Grann) is about the search for an explorer who disappeared in the Amazon jungle and it talks about various encounters with a variety of bugs.

Disgusting.  You really don't want to know what happened and I never want to go there.  EVER.

:op

Cute pictures!!

So when I borrowed Mum's camera to take pics of knitting projects I also took a few of Miss Ladybug cause I couldn't help myself :o)

Not very smiley but still major cute :o)



She's not too fond of her Bumbo yet :o)


While poking around I also found my old digital camera!!  For Christmas last year I got a new camera that could also take decent video because I knew I'd want it for when Miss Ladybug was born.  However I have had nothing but trouble with it!  It's under warenty so I'm going to send it back and see what they make of it; but for now, I've got my old one :o)

Lots of Knitting

Mum was nice and let me borrow her camera (thanks Mum!) so I now have pictures to show off!


Upon digging through my knitting stuff I unearthed more "in progress" projects then I thought I had going.  So here we go...


(1) Purple socks



These are knit using some unknown yarn from my stash that a fellow knitter gave me years ago.  The picture really doesn't show the color very well.  The lighting in our living room is not very good for photographing purposes; when I take the finished picture I'll take it in sunlight.  I used a pattern from 'More Sensational Knitted Socks' by Charlene Schurch.  As you can see I'm very close to finishing them; I've only got about half the toe left :o)




(2) Pink socks (Well, sock.  It's pair is not yet in existence)



These are also knit using some unknown yarn from my stash given to me by a nice lady from church.  I've been successfully ignoring these so much I can't remember what pattern I was working them from and have been thinking of ripping them out and starting over because I don't really like this style of toe :o/




(3) Blanket for Miss Ladybug



This is a baby blanket I started about a month before Miss Ladybug was born (she just passed her 3 month mark).  It's knit using Carron's Simply Soft and the pattern is from 100 afghan squares to knit.  I decided to work it in strips rather than all squares so I won't have so many seams later.  I'm also weaving in ends and seaming as I go so as to cut down further on finishing.




(4) Dragon Shawl



This shawl is a beast of a project.  I started it about 4-5 years ago.  I've had to start over once and rip out about 20 rows once.  It has spent most of it life either in time-out or being ignored.  You see, it is so complex I have to concentrate on only knitting when I work on it.  I can't listen to music or watch TV or talk to people.  The chart (the entire shawl is charted) is also so big I had to mount it on a poster.  Here's what it will look like:

I'm still on the tail.  Mine doesn't look very much like the finished shawl yet as all lace looks like poo till you block it.  I'm knitting my shawl with a Knit Picks yarn called Shadow and the pattern is Sharon Winsauer's "Heere be Dragone".




(5) Leftovers Blanket



This is just plain old garter stitch.  The yarn is, as I said, all my leftovers.  I'm only using acrylics for this as it is so massive (it's scrunched and then folded in half) I don't ever want to think about hand washing it.  Once it's finished it will easily fit on a queen size bed.  It's very squishy and I love it already!




(6) Thrummed Mittens



These mittens are thrummed!  Meaning all the little orange flecks are bits of unspun wool worked into the piece with the ends sticking out inside.  Like this:

This way the mittens are lined!  Eventually, with wearing, the ends inside will felt together.  The yarn I'm using is a Lion Brand yarn but I can't remember what line it's from.  Originally Mum and I bought it together for her to use; she was going to knit a pair of slippers but didn't ever finish them so she gave the yarn to me!  The roving is from a friend and I don't really know anything about it.  The pattern is from an issue of Interweave Knits.  As soon as I find it and finish these I'll post which issue it was as I can't remember off the top of my head but will know by then as I have to find it in order to finish them :o)




Now we move on to the projects that are finished, but not finished.  In other words, I've finished knitting them but they still need some sort of finishing work such as seaming, buttons, or blocking.


(7) Cardigan for Miss Ladybug



I knit this for Miss Ladybug while I was pregnant.  I used Caron's Simply Soft and the pattern is one I got off Ravelry.  Originally the sleeves were supposed to be longer but I ran out of yarn.  I even had to bind off in a different color!  The only thing left is I need to add buttons.  First I need to go buy them though; I'm thinking little white ones...




(8) Shrug



This shrug is from an issue of Vogue Knitting.  I thought the construction was fascinating so I had to make it!  It still needs is to be blocked and I need to add a button.  Here's what it's supposed to look like:

I finished knitting mine a few years ago and can't remember what yarn I used except that it was wool.




(9)  Pi Shawl



This shawl is knit from 4 different yarns.  It was not intentional, I just kept running out!  I started out with a Knit Picks yarn called palette (that's the light grey in the middle; I had originally purchased it to make socks but got bored one day what I was sick and stuck at home).  Next I thought I'd be able to finish it with the red; that's a hand spun/dyed yarn my sister brought me back from Michigan.  As that didn't quite do it I bought more palette but it's been so long since I bought the grey they've changed up the yarn a bit so it's like a different kind.  And then with about 3 inches left I ran out of that so stuck some leftover sock yarn in there.  It's made using Elizabeth Zimmerman's pattern.  I've got a few ends to weave in, and then I need to block it!




So there you have it.  My knitting-in-progress list of guilt and shame.  No one should have 9 projects going on at once; especially when half them have been on the needles for years and spend most of that time being ignored!  I'm going to try really hard to change that though.  From now on Friday will be my knitting update day.  I'm going to post what I've gotten done on the knitting front and possibly a picture of it too.  And as my knitting group meets on Thursday I should have at least a few rows done.  I'm hoping that the possibility of having to post that I got nothing done will inspire me to find little bits of time here and there to knit.


If only I could figure out how to knit and nurse Miss Ladybug at the same time....

Debating....

Today I've been thinking about who I may want to share my blog with and what websites I frequent that I want to link my blog to.

I've already linked to GoodReads and Craftster, but I'm debating on if I want to share the link to my blog with my Facebook friends.  You see, my last blog was a place where I would sometimes vent about certain relations (without attaching names of course).  It was good for me and making up names for them all based on what drove me crazy about them was quite therapeutic :oD

Granted I don't see much of that side of the family anymore since my parents divorced, but a few are on my list of Facebook friends and if I were to list my blog on my profile they may stumble upon it someday.

I very much believe in karma and that every person has the right to be treated with politeness and respect (unless of course they do not return the favor) and do not wish to offend anyone by them reading a less than flattering account of themselves.

I could always take them off my friends list.  Or I could just be careful to only write good things about any family encounters that may happen.  Or as I really don't see much of that side of the family I may not even have anything to write about!  Or I could take the advice of a friend and just not care what anyone thinks (of course I think he would counsel me to go one step further and go ahead and use their names instead of blog names just to piss them off)

Blech...crazy relatives.

But enough about that, I'm going to ask to borrow Mum's camera so I can take and post some pictures of stuff I'm knitting cause I want to share :o)  I think it will help me feel more inspired to actually work on what I've already got going rather than start something new because I will be able to look at my project and compare it to the picture and see just how far I've gotten!

This is what I've got on the needles at the moment (that I can think of off the top of my head):

• Purple socks done two at a time
• Pink socks done one at a time
• An afghan - when finished this will me my biggest project to date and my first afghan
• Lace dragon triangle shawl - I've been working on this for almost 4 years...it keeps getting put into timeout

I've also got plans for the following items:

• Matching socks for Myself, Hubby, and Miss Ladybug
• A cabled cardigan for Miss Ladybug
• Baby beanie style hat with a brim
• 2 adult beanie hats w/Morse Code messages worked into them
• A project bag - I'm going to use this to put a sock-in-progress in my purse to work on during odd moments during the day
• 2 pairs of fingerless mittens/wrist warmers for siblings
• A mystery baby related project - the baby's gender is not yet known hence the reason it's a mystery :o)

I need to find more time to work on my knitting...

Moms are cool

So because of some health things going on with Miss Ladybug, I'm off dairy for the next few weeks (possibly longer if this turns out to be the problem) as she is fully breastfed.  I also have Celiac Disease so I'm already off gluten. This leaves me feeling as though there is nothing I can eat other than carrots!

A couple days ago however, we went to visit my favorite Aunt.  Her daughter (my cousin) is vegan so we got the low-down on vegan milk, cheese, and butter.  I also got to sample a few milks :o)

Well today my mom and two of my siblings came over for our weekly picnic and they brought me a bunch of yummy treats including what my Aunt and Cousin were telling us about!  We had baked potatoes and I was able to have gluten/dairy free butter, cheese, and chili on mine and also have a glass of chocolate soy milk!

It was yummy :o)

So far here's what I tried and what I thought....

Coconut Milk (vanilla) - pretty good, a little on the watery side but nice flavor.  I didn't really notice the vanilla over the coconut; I'm thinking it's something I would miss more if it wasn't there.  I think this would be amazing over cereal with fresh fruit (and yes I got the idea from the carton).

Almond Milk (original) - yummy!  You can taste the almonds but it's a pleasant and light nutty taste.  I'd have this with anything I'd usually have with milk and alone too!

Almond Milk (vanilla) - Oh.  My.  Gosh.  Soo yummy!  Very sweet and rich.  I tried this over cereal with honey (like I usually do with cow's milk) and it was way too sweet.  So maybe over cereal w/out the honey or just by itself cause it's definitely good that way :o)

Soy Milk (chocolate) - Same as the vanilla almond milk!  Soo yummy and rich!  Tastes like dark chocolate and will help me stay away from the full-of-dairy-chocolate-ice-cream in my freezer

Vegan Cheese (cheddar) - I'm told by my Cousin that this is the best kind she's tried.  And in searching for a picture (that's right, all those colored bits of text are links to pictures; cool huh) I see it's won awards for being the best out there.  But I am a big fan of regular cheese.....maybe it just hasn't been long enough since I ate regular cheese (I've only been dairy-free for about 6 days).  The flavor was pretty ok for pretend cheese. And on the package it makes a point of letting you know that it melts and stretches so I of course I had to test that; but the texture of it melted is very slimy.  I think I will probably like it more later....

Dairy-free butter - this was really good.  I could tell it wasn't butter or even margarine but it still had a nice flavor; a little nutty but not in a bad way.  I'd be ok eating this plain on toast

Mum also brought me some almond cheese, granola, and vegan cream cheese.  I tried a bit of the cream cheese but am going to researve judgement until I can try it with something.

So Mum, you made my whole week!  I can only hope that Miss Ladybug will think I am as awesome as you are!

Moms are cool.  Or at least, mine is :o)

New Blog!!

I used to blog quite a bit and I find that I miss it.  There is just something about forming my thoughts and feelings into words that I find very soothing.   It helps me make sense of the world and find order in the chaos of everyday life.

My last blog was mostly about various craft projects I was working on.  There will most definitely be some of that here as the need to create is hardwired into me :o)  I’ll be using this space to document my journey through the wonderful world of motherhood, and my adventures with my daughter (for anonymous internet purposes, we’ll refer to her as Miss Ladybug) and my husband (no cute names for him; we'll just call him Hubby).   There will be ranting and raving about various topics that I will try to balance out with posts in which I sing the praises about one thing or another.  I’m also an avid reader so at some point you will be drawn into whatever book has caught my attention for the moment.  I’ll share recipes that worked and, as soon as I get my camera into working order, I’m sure there will be lots of pictures.

In short, I hope to fill this little corner with my life.