Groundhogs Instead of Sleep

Posted on January 28, 2010 by Heather

In the past two years or so I’ve been surprised by the deep reserves of energy I have found.  In the first weeks of Baby Man’s life I think I had no more than three or four hours of sleep a day, and yet I was able to function, keep the house tidy, cook, and occasionally pick up my needle and thread.  These last few weeks though, when Baby Man has decided to stop sleeping through the night, I have discovered that the energy reserves are no longer as deep.  The lack of sleep is begining to wear on me, and I’ve even come down with a sore throat.  But as all you mothers know, there is no rest for Mommy no matter how badly she needs it.

I’ve been a bit like the walking dead for the last little while, and have chosen to read or do less taxing crafts instead of my beloved cross stitch.  I did actually put needle to cloth the other day to start La-D-Da’s Roses are Red, but I think my fabric choice is totally wrong.  One of the thread colours blends into the background too much.  I don’t have the heart to pick it out right now, so it will rest for a while, until I get some rest of my own. The fabric is a very dark Days Gone By from Silkweaver, and doesn’t look anything like the other piece I have.

Roses are Red by La-D-Da

I did manage to finish up the crocheted groundhog the other day, while Baby Man was napping.  (One of the funny things about being so very tired is that sometimes you are so tired you just can’t sleep.  So, I craft.)  I think he is super cute.  And, according to Baby Man, groundhogs says “grrrrrr!” Now you know.

Groundhog by Planet June

I have also started to work on the heel flap of my Francie socks.  I think they are coming along quite nicely, and I might have the first sock done by the end of the weekend, assuming I don’t lapse into a coma. (Oh, how I wish!)

Francie Sock

Today we took one of the sides off of Baby Man’s crib in hopes that that will help with the crying-in-the-middle-of-the-night-because-he-wants-out-of-bed problem.  Of course, he may just end up crying at his door.  (He has mastered doorknobs, but the door to his bedroom sticks, so he can’t get it open.) With luck, all of us will sleep through the night tonight and I will feel up to picking up my needle again.

Oh, a few things I thought I would mention:

  • The Stitcher’s Village is offering a Krazy Kitties for Haiti chart to raise money for charities helping out over there.  The chart is $5.50, and all money after PayPal fees is going to charity.  The chart is of a cat nurse and doctor in the style of Janie Hubble from The Cat’s Whiskers Design Studio.
  • Ravelry has set up a way to help designers who want to donate some of the proceeds of the sale of their patterns to Haiti relief.  Log into your Rav account, click on patterns, and then click on the Help for Haiti link.  I bought a couple of patterns, including Francie, that I have been eyeing for a while.
  • If you donate to Doctor’s Without Borders and are a knitter, send a note to the Yarn Harlot to let her know.  The Knitters Without Borders total is now over $1mil.
  • And, while not related to Haiti at all, I thought I would point out the cute new series Lizzie*Kate has released: Green Flip-Its.  I am so in love with them, but I can’t justify another new project right now. 🙁  You can see them here on the Stitching Bits and Bobs site.
3 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Knitting, My Life | Tagged , , , ,

Trying to Do Good One Sock at a Time

Posted on January 26, 2010 by Heather

Yesterday the husband and I took Baby Man to the doctor for this 24-month well baby check-up… in the pouring rain.  Yes, a good old downpour on January 25th.  It hit a high of 6°C here yesterday, which is exceptionally unusual for January.  And because Baby Man gets car sickness so easily, we had to walk.  Thankfully the doctor is close, and Baby Man had a great deal of fun splashing in all the puddles.  (The doctor also offered a solution for his car sickness. Yay!)  Baby Man is doing fine.  He is a bit tall and a bit thin for his age, but he is perfectly healthy and on track developmentally.

Beyond celebrating Baby Man’s birthday (thank you for the good wishes) and the doctor appointment, I haven’t had too much free time.  Really, when do I have much free time?  However I did manage to cast on for a pair of Francie socks.  Through Ravelry’s Help Haiti system, the designer of this sock is donating $6 to Doctors Without Borders from every pattern sold until the end of February.  And, if you finish a pair before the end of February and send her a note on Ravelry, she will donate another $1.  These socks have been in my queue for some time, so I figured this was a good time to knit them.  I’m using Crystal Palace’s Panda Cotton in colour Powder Blue.

Francie Socks by Rebekkah Kerner

Francie Socks by Rebekkah Kerner

I’ve also put in some time on Planet June’s Groundhog.  Yesterday afternoon Baby Man helped me stuff the body.  The husband insists it looks like a seal, but I think it will look more like a groundhog once all the limbs are attached.

Groundhog by Planet June

Groundhog by Planet June

Okay, in that picture it doesn’t even look like a seal. Really, it is much cuter in person.  And I have a good reason why there is in earring hook in its nose: you are supposed to mark the nose to help with eye positioning and embroidering in the nose later.  However, I have misplaced my package of stitch markers and just used what I had on hand.

As for cross stitching, well, I haven’t had the time.  I’ve been reading a really good book, Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell, which has got me thinking quite a bit about where the things I am buying come from and just how is it that they can make it all the way here to Canada and be so darn cheap.  As an extension, I’ve also been thinking more about where the food I eat comes from and what sort of chemicals I’m using to clean my house.  I have a feeling that some soul searching and some big changes may be in the works shortly.

But, on the other hand, how can I say I care so much when I knit with bamboo (rayon) and acrylic, both of which are created through processes that aren’t exactly environmentally friendly.  *sigh* It really is hard to know how to do right in the world today.  But, I suppose doing something is better than doing nothing at all.

And, since we are having yet another dull and cloudy day here today (but it is more seasonable at -1°), I thought I would share some fun pictures of Baby Man playing with me on the sofa.

Baby Man

Baby Man

2 Comments | Posted in Knitting | Tagged , , ,

Happy 2nd Birthday, Baby Man

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Heather

Today my little man turns 2.  He has grown so much, and is well on his way to becoming (I hope) and an intelligent, kind and gentle person.  Some days are hard, and some days are so much fun.  I look forward to what the future holds, especially if it means he goes back to sleeping through the night.

4 Comments | Posted in Baby | Tagged

Socks, a Sea Turtle and Some Cleaning

Posted on January 23, 2010 by Heather

I’m a little bit rough around the edges these days.  We’ve gone from Baby Man going to bed very easily at night, to him crying for up to an hour before falling asleep, to him waking up sometime between 12:30 and 1:30am and refusing to go back to sleep.  That means I’ve spent the last two nights sleeping on his floor with him.  And this is because Baby Man is a little strange: once he wakes up he is wide awake and it takes a couple of hours for him to fall back asleep.  And he has been like this for over a year, the being awake part not the waking up bit.  It is endlessly frustrating to me, since I am the one who usually goes in to sleep with him.   Honestly, I’d like to put him in a twin bed soon so that I have somewhere to sleep when he does this nonsense.

Thankfully, when he woke up the night before last, he settled down pretty quickly after I joined him and fell asleep in about an hour.  That meant I got almost a full night of sleep. (Six hours is enough sometimes.)  And that meant I had enough energy to finish up my Pyroclastic socks from the Winter 2009 Knitty.  They are knit using Crystal Palace Panda Cotton in colourway Misty Greens.  And I will tell you in all honesty that I am only so-so on these socks.  Oh, they fit great and I love the yarn, but I’m not totally impressed with the pattern or the look.  Because of the way the sides swoop up and over the lace pattern, a chart of what exactly was supposed to happen would have been very helpful.  As it is, I had to make some guesses when I wasn’t able to properly follow the lace pattern because of swoop.  Also, I think that maybe this particular lace pattern wasn’t the right choice for this sock, as it definitely looks better on one side than the other.  Perhaps a good solution would be to knit one sock as the mirror image of the other.  Regardless, they are done, and I have my only piece of green clothing now.

Pyroclastic Socks from Knitty, Winter 2009

On Thursday I finished up a gift for Baby Man’s birthday this Sunday.  I crocheted him Planet June’s Sea Turtle, the pieces of which I have shared with you before.  And here he is all finished:

Sea Turtle by Planet June

It was a lot of work to piece him together, but he is so cute and so it was totally worth the effort.  I don’t know what Baby Man will think of him since he is more interested in cars than soft toys, but that is okay.  I enjoyed making the turtle, and I am sure one day Baby Man will love it.  I actually love all of Planet June’s patterns, and will be starting her Groundhog later today, assuming everything goes well and I don’t fall into a deep, horribly needed sleep.

I had one other small finish back on Wednesday, a simple and clever cover for my Swiffer Wet Jet.  I used two colours of kitchen cotton held together to get this look.  The husband likes it because he says you can tell when it is dirty because of the white, but it won’t look too dirty because of the blue.  If you are interested in this pattern, you can buy it here on Ravelry or at this shop on Etsy.  And it is super cheap and really easy to make.

Swiffer Cover by Red Berry Crochet

Baby Man Testing the Swiffer Cover

I’ve also made very little progress on Sewing the Seeds.  I mean, I only have two hands.  If I’m knitting and crocheting, I can’t be cross stitching. 🙂  I’m trying though.

Sewing the Seeds - January 23, 2010

If you are taking part in the SAL on the TW board, please post your progress!  I’ll be drawing for a small  prize at the end of the month.  There aren’t a lot of posts, so your changes are pretty good.

Tomorrow is Baby Man’s second birthday, so I will be attempting to bake a carrot cake today.  I’ve never baked a cake before, so I’m hoping it goes well. Wish me luck.

2 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Knitting | Tagged , , , , ,

Bits and Pieces and Some Thread

Posted on January 16, 2010 by Heather

I was on the phone with my mom last night, and she told me that she thought it had been too long since I posted on my blog.  So, here I am, posting on my blog. Hope you enjoy it, Mom.

First, if you are taking part in the TW/Dragon Dreams/Black Swan SAL over on the TW board, please head over to this thread and post some progress pictures.  I will be awarding a small prize this month to someone who has posted in that thread.  Post pictures, and leave comments!

Below is my progress on Sewing the Seeds.  It is a much softer looking design than what the cover model shows.  As you can see, I’ve backstitched most of the over-one lettering in the darker pink.  I’m glad I didn’t do the larger “Love” that way, since I like my mistake better.

Sewing the Seeds

Sewing the Seeds

I’ve also been working on one of Planet June’s creatures as a gift for Baby Man’s second birthday.  Here is all sea turtle pieces.  You’d think I have the bulk of the work done, but putting it together will be very labour intensive.  I’ve seen June model in person though, and it is totally worth it.

Sea Turtle by Planet June

Sea Turtle by Planet June

And, yesterday was the new moon, which means pictures of my TUSAL jar.

Comments Off on Bits and Pieces and Some Thread | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , ,

Blessings, Roses, and Piles of Stuff

Posted on January 13, 2010 by Heather

Yesterday I tweeted this:

I have come to the conclusion I have too much stuff. World, please stop making things I want. Thank you. 🙂

And it is completely true. I have too much stuff. Too many cross stitch charts/kits, too much yarn, too many books. Too much of everything. Three things got me thinking about this. First, my aunt is in Mexico for the next four months and she has shared with me before how the people there make do with so much less than what we have. And second, with my local yarn shop closing and hosting a major sale, I stocked up on a whole pile of yarn at really good prices but have no place to put it. (Eight balls of Berroco Suede for CAN$1 each instead of the regular CAN$12.99? Yes, please!)  And the third was sorting through Baby Man’s toys.  With his 2nd birthday coming up, I figured it was time to pass on or throw away his baby toys.  And even with the culling I did, he still has a ridiculous amount of toys.

I wonder why it is that North American society is so fixated on gathering things.  I know I have more cross stitch supplies than I can use in a lifetime, and yet every time a favourite designer releases a pattern I have to look and see if it is something I want, and it usually  is.  With 52 WIPs and 62 kitted up designs (yes, that is one more than last time, see below), you’d think I was set for life.  But, I’m always looking for something new.  I wonder if this is a search for “Something More”, a search our whole society seems to be on.

Yes, I’m in a bit of an introspective mood.  I have been pretty sad since we had Isis put down last week, which means I’ve been doing a lot of navel gazing.  I am, slowing, feeling better.  And it is the kind words of friends and family that have helped the most.  I think I surprised myself by how upset I’ve been, but it is to be expected, I suppose, when you lose a companion of 16+ years.

Anyway, on to the fun stuff!  While I didn’t win Pauline’s blogoversary draw (Congratulations Blu! You seem to be having a fabulous run of good luck lately!), she has offered to stitch me a pinkeep too.  And I am just tickled pink by that. The generosity of the stitching blog-o-sphere is wonderful. Thank you, Pauline.

And that brings me to prize I won from Yoyo for the 2009 Totally Useless Stitch Along.  She sent me needles, folding scissors, Roses Are Red from La-D-Da and all the threads needed to stitch it.  I’m so happy! And, I’ve got the perfect fabric to stitch the design on, a weirdly coloured Days Gone By from Silkweaver (I say that because it looks different than the other pieces of that colour I have seen).  So, that makes kitted design #62, but I think I will get started on it soon since it will be perfect to display for Valentine’s Day.  Thank you, Yoyo.

TUSAL Prize

TUSAL Prize

Even though I’ve been feeling sad, I have been stitching and knitting.  I’ve made progress on Enchanting Lair’s Kitchen Blessing, but I’ve run out of the silk I’m using.  I’ll be picking up some more tonight. (Thank you, Erica!)

Kitchen Blessing by Enchanting Lair

Kitchen Blessing by Enchanting Lair

I’ve also stitched some more on Sewing the Seeds.  No new mistakes, so far.  But I am missing two DMC colours, which I am sure I had bought.  Again, I’ll get these tonight.

Sewing the Seeds

Sewing the Seeds

And here is the Kris Knits January KAL up to part 2.  I still have no idea what it is.

Kris Knits January KAL - Part 2

Kris Knits January KAL - Part 2

I’m also working on socks for my husband, using Ultra Alpaca Fine and a face mask, and a wee baby jacket using Bernat’s Cottontots.  But neither of those are at a point where they are interesting to look at.

4 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Knitting | Tagged , , , ,

A Trio of Stitch Alongs

Posted on January 8, 2010 by Heather

Before I get into the meat of the post, I thought I would let you all know that today has been better.  Canada Post has lost a cheque that was mailed to me and I spent the night sleeping on Baby Man’s floor, but overall it has been a better day.  Anyway, on to the stitching!

It seems that this is the season of X-Alongs.  As you may remember, I’m facilitating a stitch along on the TW board.  I’d share a picture of my Sewing the Seeds, but I haven’t worked on it since I last showed you my progress.

I’m also taking part in Kris Knit’s Knit-Along.  Six times a month she will be posting lines from a new dishcloth pattern, and if you know Kris Knits, you know they are always fabulous.  You can find the first post for January here.  I’ve started it using Lily Sugar ‘n Cream in colour Soft Teal.

Kris Knits Knit-Along - January Part 1

Okay, dishcloths aren’t very interesting.  But, honestly, I’ve found that a hand knit dishcloth made of cheap kitchen cotton works better than anything I’ve ever bought in the store.  And the more you wash them the better they get.

The third thing I am participating in is the Crochet-Along of Planet June’s new pattern Groundhog.  If you are interested, there is a group set up on Ravelry here.  I haven’t checked my stash yet, but I will probably be using Bernat Satin in colour Mocha.  I’ve already ordered some eyes from Planet June’s shop for it (and for the sea turtle I am working on right now).  I’ll probably get started on the groundhog in a week or so.

If you decide to join any of these X-Alongs, please let me know.

3 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Knitting | Tagged , ,