First wearable knit.

I'm certain I fell behind with blogging as soon as summer started.  And there is likely little hope that I'll catch up.  But that's okay because that's what summer is about--being terribly busy doing not much of anything, right?  I will try, however, to do a little recap soon as I have some special things to document--visits from friends and family, lots of new recipes, the boys' many adventures, and, of course, my new love affair with knitting.

To my sewing peeps:  fear not, sewing is still number one for me.  But knitting is now a solid second.  It moved up in the rankings ever since I entered the realm of auto-knitting.  This means I can knit as I sit in front of the tv, at lessons, wherever, really.  And I like that I'm not anti-social as I do it.  I can carry on a conversation, I can watch the boys at their practices...it's such a lovely, portable craft.  It is, quite frankly, a dream for this multi-tasker who cannot stand to just sit.

I mentioned that I cast on my first lace project--the branching out scarf.  Well, I'm very happy to report that I actually finished it!  And...this is the shocking part...I really, really like it.  And...this would be the milestone part...I think I'll actually wear it.  I was on the fence a few times whether to bother ripping out a few mistakes.  But in the end, I'm glad I did because not only did I fix my mistakes, the process taught me so much.  Such as the world will not end if you need to rip out lace, as long as you go steady and slow enough to catch the stitches.  It also taught me to never, ever, rip out lace with three young boys in the room.

Here it is fresh off the needles, unblocked.

If you don't knit, I've probably already lost you.  But in case you're still here, here is a shot of part of the wet blocking.  I was very intrigued about the claims of blocking--"it can magically smooth out your piece" I constantly read.  The process is very simple:  you wet your item then stretch or otherwise shape it as desired.

I soaked my scarf, squeezed out the water by rolling it in a towel, then laid it out on our guest bed, straightening and pinning it every few inches to flatten it. 

After it dried completely, I was indeed impressed how blocking flattened all of my stitches, making everything look much more uniform.  I am officially a blocking enthusiast.

  

Here it is on.  With a t-shirt.  Because the temperatures this summer have been horrible...hot as blazes, nonstop.  Can't wait for the right weather to actually wear it.

Next up is my first go at using double point needles to knit fingerless gloves.  And I just got my yarn for Shalom.  Oh, and some super secret knitting is in the works.  Let's see if I can keep the momentum going...

Sandra

Jumpy.

Just a little thing that will pass all too quickly that I hope to remember:  Our little man loves to jump.  At a very young age (18 months), he could get both feet off the ground.  Now that he's two and a handful of months, he's incorporating deep squats for some extra oomph.  It's his favorite thing to do lately.  I love his chub chub, meatball feet and could stare at them all day. 

Would you like some cake with those sprinkles?

We had a birthday boy in the house this week.  And to anyone who knows me well and is wondering whether I'm working on my 'must control every possible thing' OCDish/territorial tendencies, I present you with some hard evidence that I am:  the latest celebratory cake to come out of my kitchen.

Frosted and decorated with wild abandon by the sweetest, stickiest--and apparently most delicious--palms you ever saw...

Side note to anyone out there to whom I sometimes gift baked goods--rest assured that these kitchen "helpers" and their licks are no where near your treats.  Promise.

But when it's just us, anything goes.  And I do mean go...

Happy birthday Charlie!  Even seven more pounds of sugar sprinkles couldn't make our life with you any sweeter.  You are the very best and we love you so.

Sandra

Practice, practice...

Soccer--and swim and tennis and karate--practice for the older boys = more practice knitting for me.  More cotton yarn, this time worked in the 'bamboo' stitch for another dish cloth.

And even though I have no business doing this, I've cast on for my first lace project.  It's a free scarf pattern aptly named Branching Out. 

I have learned it is neither suitable for mindless knitting nor to be done without a pencil and the pattern chart at hand.  But I'm enjoying it nonetheless as I'm determined to learn how to read from a chart.  I've reminded myself how 'smart' I am countless times as I've ripped and restarted many, many times due to mysteriously dropped stitches.

Once it's done, I have set my sights rather high on the very thing that motivated me to relearn and begin knitting again in the first place:  the Shalom cardigan.  My close friend, Jenn, is a very experienced and skilled knitter and she says she'll do a knit-a-long with me.  There are so many blog posts about Shalom that even non-knitters have probably noticed it.  I plan to do the soulemama version which has sleeves and an extra button.  I am so excited! 

Sandra

This one is for grandma...

in Cincinnati. 

Who checks in regularly during her lunch breaks at work. 

Who I've meant to call for days--okay, weeks--to tell her about William's arm.

He is fine.  His cast is long off, but not before a round of signatures...

 

 

Good thing, too, because morning reading time that usually morphs into jumping on the bed time has been way too tame for certain critics around here.  But it sure did make for some sweet bits of calm. 

Now, to be clear, I am in no way suggesting that I prefer my youngest child's arm to be in a cast, no matter how much it dialed it down in the house.  But I think someone misses it (or perhaps the extra attention it generated).

Before realizing his cast was off...

and immediately after. 

Happy Monday!

Sandra 

Knitting, again (again).

Two things happened to prompt me to pick up my knitting needles again.

First, my sewing machine had to go in for service.  It took a week to get back!

And second, with the kidlets out of the house for a couple of days last weekend, I felt it safe to pull out and set down long, pointy things.  You see, the older boys are going through a huge, all-consuming, Star Wars phase.  And I use the term phase very loosely because I fully expect it to last years.  Even the two-year-old can make pretty impressive light saber sound effects as he swooshes about whatever he's gripping.

In search of a quick, one skien project, I headed to the library to check out several knitting books.  Two immediately made it to my 'must buy next time I'm allowed to buy books' list (I have a wee problem buying craft books).

My word--these two books have filled my head with ideas, like crazy.  But before I actually go crazy (because odds are I will), I am having fun practicing new techniques with low-cost cotton yarn.  Yes, I am talking about dish cloths.  Sort of a funny thought to me at first.  But now I totally get it.  It's just enough repetition to figure out whether you want to commit to a certain stitch pattern before you cast on a more ambitious project.  And more importantly for an on again/off again knitter like me--it gives you plenty of low-stress opportunity to learn how to correct the inevitable mistake.  First up, a ballband dishcloth, allowing me to practice working with two colors.

So fun.  And quick!  This does not bode well for my craft budget because I foresee a yarn buying trip in my near future.  And looking at the prices of some of the hanks and the yardage required for projects I'm queuing up in Ravelry, I think I might have to find a pile of forgotten funds (ha!) to afford this as a true hobby.

Sandra

Happy (belated) 4th!

Our 4th of July weekend was full and happy indeed--hope yours was too.  We had two significant celebrations to attend to.  Both birthdays, both milestones, and both for fabulous friends.  Our boys did not want to miss out on some family outings while we were preoccupied with these parties so they were treated to overnighters with cousins one night and grandma and grandpa the next.  And considering they slept in until 9:00 a.m. the day after they got home, I'd say they got their fair share of fun this weekend as well.

Sadly, I did not think to bring my camera to one birthday celebration.  So please picture three couples who are longtime friends, enjoying a nice dinner out just chatting and laughing away, undisturbed by curious little hands or other interruptions.  Oh, and do picture me with a purse that did not have to double as a diaper bag because that was pretty exciting.

The next night was a neighborhood birthday celebration and I was in charge of desserts, a few appetizers, and some flowers. 

I made my first red velvet cake--success!  Many proclaimed surprise that I had never baked a red velvet cake before.  But then I reminded them that I usually bake for the under-7 set.  And so a cake containing red dye as a defining ingredient never seemed like a smart option.

I used a favorite cream cheese frosting recipe--probably not the best choice given the soaring temperatures.  But it held.  I really need to take a cake decorating class instead of just fiddling my way through it every time.  Otherwise, I'm a little worried that my handwriting might make an appearance on cakewrecks some day...

And of course there were cupcakes. 

Lots and lots of cupcakes...vanilla bean poundcake with the same cream cheese frosting, just made a tad thicker.  And yes, we had some for breakfast today.

I will post the red velvet cake recipe with my notes later.  I will also try to remember what I threw into a salsa I brought because folks were going at it with spoons.  Both recipes are definitely keepers!

Sandra