embroidery and knitting

A First Knit for Landon

November 30, 2011

Thank you to all of you who stopped in over the past week and said hello. It has felt so nice to come back to this space and reconnect.

In a perfect world, every child would have a first hand knit sweater (or in my kids case, apparently, a sweater vest).

There is something so precious about knitting a tiny sweater for a little one who just might grow out of it before it has a chance to get soiled.

Landon was long overdue on receiving such a sweater from his mama, so with the holidays coming up, and a chance to knit uninterrupted over Thanksgiving, I turned to my trusty favorite pattern, and knit him up his very own Pebble vest.

 

 

There are many reasons that I love the Pebble vest. It is an easy to modify pattern, it can be knit up in ways that work well for where my kids are, and since Colorado weather lends itself to lots of sunshine, even in the winter we rarely need a huge amount of bulk. Of course, my favorite aspect might be just how quick this pattern comes to life. Within a day, a little 9 month old squirmy wormy has a new vest.

Landon is a squirmer while dressing. For being such a quiet, happy baby, he will let you have it any way he can when you change his diaper and dress him. Therefore, there was no way that I could use the Pebble pattern as is with all it’s beautiful buttons. The idea of having to get even one of those buttoned while trying to keep Landon from crawling away was almost enough to just choose a different pattern, but I returned to the idea behind the other boy’s Pebbles, and simply knit it in the round with seamed shoulder. It came out perfectly, and is a cinch to get over his head quickly.

You can see the modifications I followed on my Ravelry page.

Now that I have one piece out of the way, I feel the joys again of knitting warm woolies for my babe. Of course, it is not helpful to return to your knitting projects that have been abandoned for months, only to discover that you have NO idea where in the world you are in the Baby Surprise Jacket, or boat neck sweater you were so diligently knitting up. If I have learned one thing from my knitting break, it is to write down exactly where you stop when you put your knitting needles to bed. I am not looking forward to the work that it will take to get back on track, but it will be worth it.

Tomorrow the winter edition of Rhythm of The Home will be live, and I hope that you will stop over and visit. The edition is packed full of winter goodness, and I hope that your family enjoys the projects, recipes, and fun that in holds.
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A Shift

August 16, 2011

Living in the present moment is something that I strive for, experiencing the moments as they come, rather than considering how they might be in the future.
No matter how hard I try, there is always a sense of shift at this time of year, and I find my mind wandering to the cool weather ahead. I don’t dwell on it, or even think of it for very long, but I can feel it.
There is the slightest chill as the sun goes down, a subtle change to the morning light as the sun rises just a little bit later, and a soft breeze that has not been here for the past few months.

I love to knit, and I pretend to be a knitter year round, but as the temperature gauge reaches well into the 90′s, my sense of joy at holding large mounds of wool fades away. I know that there are many warm days ahead, and I welcome them fully. Winter is a long season here, and extends well into Autumn and Spring, but for today I glance over the wool I know will be used in the coming months, and I can feel the shift ahead, and it makes me smile.

This blog has been having some technical difficulties over the past few days, and apparently the comments switched from Intense Debate back to blogger for certain posts, namely the two preceding this one. The comments were lost from those posts, which is a bit heartbreaking, but I am hoping that I can find enough technical savvy to correct the problem (or even just figure out what it is). Hopefully it will not continue to happen on other posts, but somehow it will work itself out, it always does :) .

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Right Now I Am: Waiting

February 17, 2011

Could two full weeks really have gone by since I was here last? Time has felt like it has both rushed by, and stood still in these past few weeks.

I have to admit that I succumbed to what many a woman before me has done: I believed that I was just about to have my baby. I have been walking around at 3 cm dilated, and 90% effaced for about two weeks now, and each and every day I wake up thinking that today has to be the day. Of course, I simply just go to bed that same evening a bit bigger, a bit less able to turn over, but still very very pregnant.

I had been having wonderful labor patterns until about the 5th of February, when my children came down with a severe respiratory infection that landed my oldest in the hospital, and then all labor ceased. We spent a full week battling the ick that so many of you have already experienced, and I was glad that my body knew better than to try and attempt to bring a new life into the world while my two boys were struggling so (not to mention the husband, who was certainly my third child while he battled it as well).

So now, here we are. Not late, just perfect, having to readjust my thinking that my babe will be here soon, and that everyone is doing what they are supposed to be doing in these final days. My creative juices have not flowed, and I have just found myself being in the moment. I have been with my children, my parents, my husband, and my dear friends who keep making sure that we are well fed. I am assuming that it is a normal reaction to the quiet and slow days of waiting.

Whenever the little one arrives, We have their tiny space ready. A corner of our room that houses the dresser, filled with handmade blankets, diaper covers, wet bags, sweaters, and the clothes that the big brothers of this household wore just a few short years ago.

There is a gorgeous handmade mobile and gnome from my sweet friend Julia just waiting to greet this little being when they make their arrival home.

Changing pads, wet bags and wipes to make life a bit more colorful, fun and comfy on their little tush.

and of course, tons and tons of knitting.

I can’t wait until this little being arrives, to show you all that we have been creating to welcome them. For now, these tiny glimpses into the waiting, the longing and the hoping for a safe delivery and a very healthy baby.

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The Return of The Sun

December 22, 2010

The Sun has returned, the light will now grow, and the warmth will slowly seep back into the earth. Whatever your holiday traditions, my family and I wish you and yours the most beautiful of weekends filled with the peace and joy that the season brings.

Happy Holidays

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The Last of the Autumn Knits

November 30, 2010

After the success of the Birthday Vests, I decided that I was going to go ahead and knit up two more for the Thanksgiving holiday. The boys are still in their appreciative mode of life, and thankfully giving them a sweater in a pretty package still makes their day. It is fun to watch them show off what they consider to be a very stylish addition to their wardrobe. Someday I will simply be the woman who knits them bunny sweaters, but for now, I still have my title of “cool mom”.

Jacob’s sweater was knit with yarn sent to me from the amazing Larissa of Stitches in Play. Larissa had been kind enough to send the yarn in the hopes that I would make myself a neighborly sweater, but as my belly expands, and my waist seems to have a while to go before returning to normal, I decided that I couldn’t hold onto it any longer, and that it would make the perfect late autumn knit.

Elwood’s vest is knit up from a fun alpaca yarn that makes it as soft as anything I could imagine, and a lot of fun for my always itchy boy to enjoy. The hats that they are wearing came to us right before the big day, and managed to somehow match perfectly to everything else that they were wearing. I do believe that those hats were the hit of the day (every time I see the above photo of Elwood, I always envision him delivering newspapers in the 1930′s).

Of course, Joel and I deserved a bit of holiday warmth as well, so while I could not figure out a way to whip up his and her sweaters, I did find a small amount of time to make his and her Toast. I love this pattern so very much, and the ease of slipping on fingerless gloves never loses it’s appeal. These were the perfect way to end my Autumn knitting.

For anyone who read my Facebook status yesterday, you know that while knee deep in editing Rhythm of The Home, I actually managed to forget to feed my poor kiddos lunch. My oldest son reminded me on the way to chess with a polite, “Well mom, I suppose that today will be a day without lunch”. Yes, while editing a magazine on parenting and family celebrations, I forget to nourish my children. Thankfully, I knew that there were a few snacks that must have been keeping them filled. Peanut Butter Popcorn Balls and Spiced Almonds were on the counter, and while perhaps not the most nutritious thing that they could have eaten, I must admit that they are mighty tasty.

The spiced almonds came from this recipe, and were gone so quickly I thought for sure Elwood had fed them to the dog (we have recently learned that this is a frequent event, and that it accounts for why Elwood is so thin, and the dog so chubby). The popcorn balls were a whim that my niece and I created with molasses, peanut butter and caramel, and they have been a staple favorite for the past week.

I may be the mom who forgets to feed them occasionally, but oh how I hope that the knit wear and sticky treats will make up for it.

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