Is Change in the Air?

How many times have I started this blog post? About as many times as I’ve cast on the Baby Surprise Jacket. It’s been a tough week from a blog and a knitting perspective. I’ve been very distracted and have a variety of issues muddying up my head.

The main issue with which I have been grappling is whether to go back to work. My DH has been working on contract for a while, longer than we expected. While we are fine financially, we both are more than a little tired of the instability. I’m just a little hesitant about getting a steady, sit-at-your-desk-all-day type of job. Will I physically have the energy to work a 40+ hour week? Will I be able to keep work commitments with three small children, two of which have medical needs? And what if my DH finds a job that requires travel? After his last consulting gig that required full-time travel, I informed him that I would not be a Working Weekday Single Mom. That job as a WWSM is for the birds.

In some respects, it is good for my ego to review what I accomplished in my last position. I accomplished a fair amount of experience in a fairly short period of time. I was even gaining a good reputation for my work. Unfortunately, I had my own practice, and owning your own business requires a 60+ hour a week commitment. I’m not doing that to my family. Or to my own sanity, for that matter. (My DH wants me to add that my 60 hour weeks do bad things to his sanity as well.)

I do think I have matured considerably since I closed my practice. I’ve learned a lot about what situations I do and do not want to handle. For example, I’m a straight shooter who is not interested in office politics, and I do march to my own drummer. I would be a poor fit in an office where I would be measured by my United Way donation and the number of navy blue skirt suits I own. (BTW – I never owned a navy blue suit. Teal blue, yes; navy blue, yuk.) I do have a fabulous bright apple green suit that I wear in the spring and summer. I will know I am working in the right place when I can wear that suit and receive compliments instead of surprised glances.

Of course, returning to the law may delay my ultimate goal of becoming the next Yarn Harlot. She gets paid to knit and to write about knitting and her broken dishwasher. I know she’s not a perfect knitter; I’ve read her knitting horror stories. I can write, and I certainly can knit horror stories. I even have a dying oven. How do I get her gig?

Despite the frustrations of the week, we did have a high point – my middle son’s birthday party. For his fifth birthday, we had a roller skating party. Most of the children had never roller skated before, and they all had a great time. I love watching small children learn to skate. They remind me of does first learning to stand. They get knobby kneed just before their legs go different directions and their body hits the ground. Then they look up with a big grin on their faces. It’s priceless.

My DH made my son’s cake from scratch. I am so proud of him. It was almost too cute to eat.

DH spent hours putting this cake together. In fairness, the design comes from a kit, but he made the frosting from scratch and decorated it by himself. Okay, I helped a little, but he did a better job.

My DH is a great baker. We joke that when he retires, we’re going to open a bakery. I even have the name picked out: Mike’s Sweet Stuff. At some point, I’m going to send him to the culinary institute for a class in pastries. While it would be deadly from a Weight Watchers perspective, it would be a lot of fun. Cake decorating also has a yarn benefit - cake frosting dyes are supposed to be great for dying yarn.

My knitting, well, it’s making slow progress. I’ve only done a few rows this week. I became a little paranoid when I checked the BSJ forum in Ravely and discovered a series of YouTube tutorials on the BSJ. I watched the first four, and I think I’m doing okay. I’m marking the decreases differently that the video suggests, but I’m being consistent. I’m also bravely using a cotton blend instead of wool. Cotton just makes more sense to me since the baby will live in Arizona.

I feel a little boring don’t have anything else on my needles right now. On some level, I’m ready for a new challenge. I really don’t want to make another scarf or baby bib. On the other hand, I seem to have trouble counting (thus the slow progress of the BSJ). Lacking the ability to count, I’m not sure that I’m mentally prepared to handle the challenge of a pair of socks or a baby kimono.

The more I blog, the less I knit. So I suppose it’s time to sign off and hit the needles. Or maybe the pillow. I roller skated for over an hour today, and I’m not the high school skating queen I used to be.

The Best Husband and Mother's Day Ever

I just have to rant and rave about my wonderful husband. He got me a set of Harmony interchangeable circular needles for Mother's Day. In fairness, when he asked me what I wanted, I did tell him I wanted this set of needles, but this is a super nice gift for what I consider to be a Hallmark holiday. He also enclosed a copy of a book of baby patterns by Debbie Bliss.

And, if that weren't enough, he worked with each child to make decorative cement stones for the garden. You can make these stones from kits sold in a big box craft store, or probably in Walmart. While I was at my knitting meeting this week, Mike poured each of the boys poured a concrete stone and had them decorate it with a handprint and beads. Mike then put a picture of each boy encased in plastic in the top left corner. The stones are so cute! I put them in the corner of my garden near the front door.

Two of the boys also surprised me with gifts from school. My oldest made a flower picture frame out of foam and a card with an origami flower center. My middle child made a "Mommy cookbook" in which each student in the class describes how his mother makes a certain dish. Here is how I make a "potatoe": "Mommy washes the potatoe, then she puts in in the microwave and bakes it for 1 minute at 40 degrees."

Another favorite recipe is Emma's Mommy's Spinach Pie: "Put grapes in a bowl, add corn and apple. Put something over the bowl. Put in microwave for 34 minutes. Put crust on then eat."

What an amazing Mother's Day. I hope everyone had a Mother's Day as wonderful as mine!

Sorrow & Joy

t was a sad, sad night for my baby surprise jacket. I went to a local knitting group, and I needed help with a section of the jacket. I was using a wool that has different thicknesses - the yarn goes from very thin to very thick - and I couldn’t tell if I had dropped a stitch. Ultimately, it was determined that I was having a lot of trouble seeing what I was doing with the yarn, and those with more experience strongly suggested that I frog what I have and try the pattern with a more forgiving yarn. As stubborn as I am, I knew they were right. So I frogged the project this morning and will start again with a new yarn. (Ignore the soft weeping you hear in the background.) Let’s hope that the third time is a charm.

There was a shining spot yesterday. I completed my Duck bib for my brother and SIL.

(Lily Sugar n' Cream Solid, yellow and hot orange)

I need to make a couple of changes to finish the bib. The fish button is a functioning button, but it is difficult to unbutton because the yarn catches on the fins. At the suggestion of a knitter in my knitting group, I think I'm going to add velcro or a snap for the closure and make the button purely decorative.

I am very proud of the bib for a couple of reasons. First, it is cute. Second, I adapted the pattern from a crochet duck bib pattern I found on Ravelry. I guess I created my first pattern. Not bad for a beginner, huh.

Don't Do It!

We all have moments when you act against your better judgment. The Yarn Harlot has made a career discussing those moments. Within the last week, she blogged about a sock she continued to knit even though it could only ever fit the Jolly Green Giant. Apparently, I’m trying to fill the Yarn Harlot’s very big shoes (or socks, as the case may be) by routinely working against my better judgment with my knitting.

Take, for example, my recent trip on family business. I brought with me with a skein of chunky novelty yarn left over from another project. I only used a little of the skein on the prior project, and I figured that I could use big needles and a loose scarf pattern to use up the rest of the yarn. I decided to knit Crazy Aunt Purl’s “Faux Lacy Scarf.” It was a nice easy knit for the plane flights. About half-way through the yarn, I realized that I was going to run out of yarn before the scarf reached an appropriate length. I had enough yarn to make a scarf, but it would have to be thinner. Did I stop knitting and re-cast on the scarf? No, that would have made sense. Instead, I finished the scarf as I touched down in Atlanta at the end of my trip. I hoped that maybe I was being too critical of my own work, but my neighbors on the plane gently confirmed that the scarf was a little short. That night, at home in my bed, I frogged the scarf and cast on again with fewer stitches. About 10 days later, I’m almost finished with the second scarf.

I am staring longingly at my next big mistake. I went to the market at Stitches South in Atlanta last week. Going to the market was not a mistake. Buying yarn was not a mistake, even though I spent more on yarn than I have spent on clothing in the last several months. The mistake was holding in my hands the discontinued mohair hand-dyed in a color I can only call Cabernet. This full skein of yarn only cost $10, but I could tell it would be full of heartache. It wants to be a lacy shawl, but I’ve never knitted lace before. I know that I should avoid mohair yarns at all costs. My understanding is that mohair is difficult to undo, and I need yarn that can be knitted and re-knitted multiple times. So, naturally, the mohair is now in my stash waiting to learn of its future. (Suggestions always welcome – I’m not proud.)

I’m also wondering about my ability to prioritize. I’ve been working on the Baby Surprise Jacket (yes, I finally cast it on) for my brother and SIL. Monday night, I realized that my SIL’s baby shower is only a few weeks away. So I cast on a quick baby bib. Of course, nothing is ever quick. The bib is a “Duckie Bib” crochet pattern on Ravelry. At first I fussed with the yarn, deciding whether I was going to crochet or knit the bib. I finally decided to knit. I finished the stockinette body of the bib today and realized that it was one big curl. I should have followed my instincts and added a garter stitch border. I’ll have to attach an I-cord border to the bib over the next couple of days.

I also want to knit an Easy Peasy baby bib for our cousin who had her baby. If I can finish it by Sunday, my DH’s aunt can bring it to our cousins in Colorado next week. The good news is that the bib is a quick knit. The bad news is that it may be next week before I pick up the BSJ again.

My ability to prioritize (or lack thereof) leads to another quandary: Why am I even bothering to knit gifts with a definite deadline? Don’t I know better? Apparently not.

Well, back to knitting. I’ve got baby gifts galore to finish, and those babies aren't getting any younger.

Saga of the Pink Purse (Part II) an Other UFOs

It's done, and it's beautiful, if I do say so myself.

(Drawstring Bag by Janet Russell, Patons Classic Wool in Woodrose Heather)

I did have an interesting experience with felting. Thinking I was being clever, I ran a piece of acrylic string through the holes to hold the I-cord before I felted the purse and cord. The purse felted beautifully, even though I mistakenly ran the purse through the spin cycle. Apparently, I did not do a great job tying the string, however, and several of the holes felted over completely. Those that still could be identified had shrunk to the size of the string. I no longer had functioning holes for the I-cord. After a consultation on a Ravelry forum, I took a big knitting needle and punched holes through the fabric. As you can see, it worked beautifully. The flower is a pre-made flower I picked up at a big box craft store (when will I learn!).

I now have the ladybug bib and a felted purse for my two nieces. I still need to make something for my nephew. The good and the bad news is that I may have some time to begin a project. We are no longer convinced they are coming to visit. At first, they told us that they would visit in June, and now they think they may come in July. We're all a little skeptical, but I still want to be prepared.

MODERN CABLED BABY BIB (by gibsongirl, in Tumbleweed of Lily's Sugar n' Cream Naturals)

I finished the dreaded cabled baby bib, though I'm not as happy with it as I had hoped.

First, I discovered a very big oops. The cable pattern is six rows. I consistently did only 2 of those six rows the entire bib. I realize that the consistency of my mistake creates a "design" as opposed to an "oops," but I'm not sure you can call the bib a "cabled" baby bib. Maybe it's more of a "baby bib with rod." I'm also not thrilled with the yarn because it makes both the pattern and the adorable rocking horse button very difficult to see. My nanny's granddaughter arrived on April 10, so it was time to finish the bib and to send it to the new parents.

I do want to go on the record that, after listening to Kelley's podcast about weaving in ends, I took a needle and thread and sewed my yarn ends into the fabric. Go me!

I have more to tell about a very cool scarf and the baby surprise jacket, but that will have to wait. Tomorrow is a big day. I'm going to Stitches South. I'm not able to take any classes this year, but I am going to the market with credit card in hand. I plan to do my patriotic duty and contribute to the economy. Have a great Friday!

Decisions, Decisions

I'm heading out of town overnight BY MYSELF to take care of some family business. Yes, you did read that correctly. I will be without my husband and children for more than 24 hours. I will have two plane trips and an entire night in the hotel by myself to knit. Nirvana.

My big decision remains before me - what knitting to pack. Oh, the possibilities.

I will probably begin the Baby Surprise Jacket. As my faithful followers already know (all 3 of you - love you Mom, Dad and DH), I have been planning to knit the BSJ for my brother and SIL who are expecting their first child in July. I committed to completing the BSJ as part of the Counting the Omer Knit-A-Long on the Jewish Fiberaholics group on Ravelry, which means I have about 6 weeks to finish this project. Casting on is probably a good idea.

When I visited my folks in Tennessee, I came across the most yummy superwash yarn on sale at my mother's LYS. It is perfect for the BSJ:

I realized that I crossed a new line as a knitter when I made this purchase. Not only was it purchased in a LYS, but I purchased this yarn even though I had already purchased yarn for this project from another source.

While I could work solely on the BSJ during this trip, I'm concerned about getting bored doing only garter stitch since my current project is garter stitch. And what will I do if I have the overwhelming urge to throw the BSJ out the window?

Initially, I thought I could make a pair of socks. It may be a little soon after my latest sock fiasco, but I recently purchased from Knit PIcks the How to Knit Socks:Three Methods Made Easy by Edie Eckman. (I love book sales!) While visiting my parents, I even bought a long circular needle to learn magic loop sock knitting. Unfortunately, according to the Transportation Security Administration website, I did not pick my needle wisely. The circular needle I purchased has brass tips, and the TSA website recommends that a knitter carry only bamboo or plastic needles onto a plane. I'm not checking luggage, so any needles I have will have to come on the plane with me. I guess the magic loop sock knitting will have to wait.

I could bring a blanket I've been crocheting for several years. I think it's too big to carry on the plane. It's also not the most interesting pattern. It's one big granny square done on a smallish crochet needle (size G or H) in double stitch. I know - what was I thinking. My children will be parents before I finish this project. Unfortunately, I've done far too much work to frog it at this point. I really need to buckle down one weekend and just finish it. Maybe this winter.

I have a bunch of smaller projects, but I'm not sure they are appropriate because they are so close to being done. For example, I could pack the I-cord for the pink purse, but that seems a little silly. Besides, I hope to finish the I-cord tonight. I'm mostly finished with the modern baby blanket with the cursed corded strap. The intended recipient was born yesterday (and she is a cutie), and I can give it to her grandmother who is heading to see her next week. The baby bib has about an hour's worth of work, however. It's just not worth packing.

My nanny's son is expecting a daughter any day now. I had intended to knit her a baby bib, but I'm a little annoyed with my nanny. Her attendance rate is about 60 percent, and we're getting a little peeved.

I think what I may do is, and I can't believe I'm saying this, knit a scarf. I have most of a skein of very bulky yarn that I purchased on sale, and I think it should be enough to make a scarf that has lots of yarn overs. I really like one of the scarf patterns in Crazy Aunt Purl's Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair. Unfortunately, I loaned the book to a friend in mid-divorce. I may try to get that back tonight so I can take it with me. Anyway, the scarf would make sense because it's easy and would even use up some of my stash.

If I'm feeling very brave, perhaps I will take a loom with me and attempt to loom some socks. I know it's crazy talk, but maybe the change in scenery will change my luck with sock loom knitting. The looms also do not appear to be as threatening to TSA agents as the ferocious size 2 circular needles. I'm not sure how a TSA agent would feel about a looming pick, but I may take that chance.

At this point, I probably should focus on packing my suitcase and getting to bed. I expect the knitting will work itself out by morning. Have a great evening!

Saga of the Pink Purse (Part I)

Here’s the problem when I don’t write for a few days. My mind quickly fills up with all of my thoughts and activities, and I have no idea where I should begin. As the song goes “Let’s start at the very beginning / A very good place to start . . . ” (Lyrics from “Do Re Mi” from Sound of Music). So here goes.

I owe my current project to a suggestion from grapesonthevine. After my most recent sock fiasco, she suggested that I work on a garter stitch drawstring bag (pattern by Janet D. Russell) that she had recently completed for her daughter. Once I saw a picture of the bag, I knew that it would be a great project. My 4 yo niece is supposed to visit us from Scotland this summer, and she would love a little girl purse. A quick garter stitch project would also lift my spirits and confidence. By some miracle (and contrary to my list of truisms), I even had the perfect pink yarn in my stash – Patons Classic Wool 100% new wool in Woodrose Heather. With this wool, I could felt the purse, which could be really fun. Talk about karma! I could not wait to cast on.

From a time perspective, unfortunately, getting any knitting done over the last two weeks has been difficult. My 6 month old baby (DS3) and almost 5 yo (DS2) have been sick non-stop, and each have required multiple doctor visits. I even had to miss the monthly Atlanta Knitting Guild meeting because the baby refused to let me put him down.

Once DS2 and DS3 started to feel better, I had to turn my attention to getting the family ready for Wednesday, April 8 – the start of Passover and the day we traveled to my parents’ house for Passover. I had 48 hours to prepare for both. You can imagine the quantity of laundry and preparation I had to do to get a family of five ready for a 5-day trip. Adding Passover preparation to this task is a new level of crazy.

For those of you not familiar with Passover preparation, let me digress. For Passover, you are supposed to clean all traces of bread and things that can be made into grain for bread out of your house. People spend weeks preparing for Passover. They go from room to room sweeping crumbs out of every corner and wiping dust off of the walls and ceilings. I knew the extensive house cleaning wasn’t going to happen in 48 hours, so my goal was to clean my kitchen. Every drawer was opened, every pot and pan pulled out, the entire cabinet or drawer was wiped down, and then all items were put away. I wasn’t able to clean the entire kitchen, but I did do the lower cabinets and refrigerator. The lower half of the kitchen looks amazing, if I do say so myself. For the 48 hours before we left, I was a domestic cleaning goddess. That did not leave much time for knitting.

You can imagine my joy when we finally piled into the car for a 4-hour trip to my parent’s house in Tennessee. DS1 (age 7) played his Gameboy until his eyeballs fell out; DS2 watched a movie, and DS3 slept. I pulled out the few completed rows of the simple garter stitch purse and started to knit. Peace at last.

My knitting joy was short lived. For some reason, I kept dropping the same stitch on the corner of the purse. The first time I dropped the stitch, I tinked the project back to the dropped stitch and started again. The second time I dropped the stitch, I decided to pick up the stitch in stockinette even though the pattern is garter stitch. I thought that maybe the difference in pattern wouldn’t matter since I plan to felt the bag. Then the perfectionist in me took over. I deliberately dropped the stitch and tried to pick it up following the pattern. After several unsuccessful attempts, I asked my mother for help. When she threw up her hands in frustration, I tinked the project intending to pick up the dropped stitch. Well, I over-tinked the project and had to cast on for a third or fourth time.

At that point, my knitting needles and I had a serious conversation.

Knitting went much smoother when I cast on again. My purse is far from perfect. I think there is an extra row on one side of the bottom of the purse. Also, when I picked up stitches from the bottom of the purse, I was off by two or three stitches. Honestly, my 4 yo niece won’t care. I do feel fairly confident that all my circular knitting went in the same direction, which is quite an accomplishment for me.

I finished the main part of the purse last night, and I hope to finish the I-cord draw string over the next couple of days. I’m not sure yet whether I’m going to make a backpack like grapesonthevine or whether I’m going to add handles to make a purse. Once the I-cords are finished, I plan to bravely go where I have never gone before (insert Twilight Zone music) – to the world of felting. It should be quite a journey.