Late night update

It's after 11 p.m. here and I have a baby boy inside me who has hiccups, I think. Only they are the kind of hiccups that apparently cause his entire body to flail rhythmically against my bladder. I should be asleep. But feeling like I need to pee every 30 seconds is not conducive to sleep, regardless of how tired I happen to be. So, I sit here. Very awake.

I have been working for a bit on trying to begin crocheting a rag rug. I bought a bunch of sheets from the thrift store today for $1.25 and ripped them into strips. I was inspired to do so after looking for rugs for the bedrooms of the new house and realizing how bloody expensive those things are, even second-hand. I am sure I'll be able to make a couple of decent rug for the girls' room and the nursery for less than $10 each. If my wrist holds out, that is. Right now, my largest hook is a K hook. I think I need at least an M. My hand is cramped from pulling the fabric so hard. On the plus side, though, the rug is nice and tight. On the negative side, I may not be able to use my right hand tomorrow.

I'm doing my crochet while listening to Andrew Peterson. I am so, so, so excited to have found a Christian artist, other than Fernando, whom I absolutely adore!! I love Peterson's voice, his melodies, his harmonies, the way his albums are produced, his lyrics... everything. Love it. I think Counting Stars is my favorite album, but that might be just because I've listened to it most. It's just so good!

I really should be asleep. We had a mostly good day which, once again, had a bit of friction in it today. This happens to us most Thursdays and I think it's because we just don't have enough sleep/ rest/ recovery from the night before. We have a great kids' program at our church on Wednesday nights. Annalivia was involved in it last year and really enjoyed it and Dennis ran the sound for the program. But this year, Dennis is working on the house, so Daniel, Emmeliese and I have been taking Annalivia to the church and then helping with the nursery care. We get home late about 8:30 on Wednesday nights and get in bed by 9:30, usually, but I think it's kicking our rears. I'm considering having us take a break until after Christmas. In fact, I think I've mostly decided that we need to take the break. I hate to leave behind such a good thing, but I know we need to choose the better thing, which is peace between us all at a pretty hectic time. I just need to get up the courage to tell the pastor that I'm leaving him without a nursery attendant.

Tomorrow, we are going to go to the apple orchard, I think, with my niece and pick the last of our fall apples. I've been canning applesauce and apple butter and apple/cherry jelly, but I think I need to get some apples and make some applesauce to just freeze and eat in the next few weeks. My children love homemade applesauce so much; they will eat quarts of it at a time if I let them, which I do since I don't add sugar to it and the fiber in it tends to help their little digestive systems. I'd like to have some available over the next weeks without breaking into the canned stuff until later in the winter.

Anyway, I best go to bed. In just a few minutes, it will be the first day of October, which means 4 weeks until we move into our house, 8 weeks until Thanksgiving, 11ish weeks of pregnancy and 12 weeks until Christmas. Goodness, that's a lot to do.

December 1: Gifting

As I think I've mentioned before, one of the things I truly love and appreciate about my family is that handmade gifts are encouraged and treasured. Christmas is not really about The Getting for us. We've realized along the way that The Giving is the real joy and it really is so much fun to think about what to give to loved ones, especially when creating presents from scratch. I think about the things that have been made for us -- baby blankets and ornaments and clothing and jewelry -- all of these handmade treasures always top items that are purchased. So I'm working hard today on handmade gifts. It's such fun work!

If you'd like to see more photos in the December photo project, start here.

Celtic cobblestone crocheted cardigan for Cleya

I recently finished the St. Patrick's day dress I was making for Annalivia. I totally improvised the sweater and not following a pattern apparently took its toll in the sizing. Along the way, I realized that it was going to be way too big for a four year old, so it morphed into a sweater for my niece, Cleya.

I was glad to give it to Cleya because, unlike my daughter, she was glad to receive a sweater, even if it was green. But, though the gratitude was nice, my favorite part of giving her the sweater was what happened when I asked her if I could take her picture in it.

This was, literally, her first response. She immediately started posing for the camera.

I appreciated the refreshing change from photographing my own children who generally stand about a foot from each other and look at each other and the camera suspiciously. Sort of like Daniel is doing here.


Cleya, on the other hand, really likes to experiment with different poses. She smiles and hams it up. In fact, it was hard to get her to act naturally.

Very hard.

But those of us who grew up with her mother are hardly surprised that this sweet apple fell not far from the tree. :) Isn't she great?

Itty bitty crochet heart tutorial

Here is a super-easy, super-fast project that is ideal for last-minute Valentines. I'm making a whole bunch of these this afternoon while waiting at the doctor's office. I'm making them out of different shades of leftover yarn to add to barrettes for Annalivia's female preschool classmates. If I get really organized, I'll show you what I'm planning for the little boys tomorrow.

In the meantime -- the Itty Bitty crochet heart. (Modified from this pattern at Skip to My Lou.)

First, make a magic ring.

Then, chain 4.

Then inside of the magic ring make 2 triple crochet, 3 double crochet, chain 1, 1 triple crochet, chain 1, 3 double crochet, 2 triple crochet, chain 3.

Pull the magic ring tight.

Slip stitch to the center of the circle. Pull the thread through and tie off and then push the thread back through to the back of the heart.

There you are! An itty bitty heart, perfect for Valentine cards or adding to your crochet projects. Have fun!

A flurry of crochet

I've been crocheting like mad lately, but keep forgetting to take pictures of things before they leave my possession. I made a dress for my niece's birthday in a size 2T or 3T. It was ice pink with hot pink edging. My niece is a little pink girl, though I think the hot pink reflected more of her aunt's taste than hers.

I also finished another baby gift which I'm excited to post pics of sometime after I give it to the recipient. It turned out exactly like I wanted it to look, which is always exciting.

I made this little winter baby bonnet for Emmeliese one evening. It was completely my own design and one that I may not ever repeat because, while it looks sweet on a naked baby doll, It is not so cute just sitting on a shelf. It will, however, cover her ears and keep her warm, which is what I wanted it to do. I'm going to post a tutorial for the tiny heart in the next day or so. It was almost impossible to find a good heart pattern and I modified one to make a little bitty heart that works up incredibly fast (i.e. less than five minutes) and would be adorable for Valentine's Day. So I'll share the love and post that pattern asap.

I also started working on a cardigan for Emmeliese of my own design. I made a square yolk and then was envisioning some sort of flared bottom and sleeves and matching pants with slightly flared legs. In the process of figuring out how to make it, I learned how to do the star stitch which is such a beautiful stitch, especially when used in the middle of other stitches. I then decided to save the star stitch for another project and am finishing this cardigan with just regular-old slightly boring stitches. But I have in mind exactly what I want to do with the star stitch. So now I am having problems focusing enough to finish the cardigan and pants instead of racing off to experiment with the star stitch. I will force myself to finish the first project. But it will be difficult.

And I have some beautiful self-patterning green yarn that I bought to make something for Annalivia or Daniel for St. Patrick's Day. I was thinking I would make Annalivia a sweater, but I might make Daniel a little vest or something instead. Poor kid has not really been subjected to his mother's crochet projects yet. Wouldn't want to deprive him of fodder for future therapy. :)

As per your input

Thank you for your wise comments on my handmade gifts query. I've decided to send this little dress and bloomers as part of a package for a friend whose little girl is due towards summer.The yarn is Queensland Bebe CotSoy made of 50% organic cotton and 50% soy. It is soooooo soft! I think it may become the summer yarn of choice for me.
When Annalivia was born, this friend sent me two blue outfits. I'm hoping she still appreciates blue!

Handmade gifts or not?

So, I want your opinions. I have been making some crochet projects intending to give them as gifts to several friends who are expecting new babies. But today, as I was finishing one of them (of course, it was as I was finishing not before I started the project), I was second-guessing myself. Maybe it's not a good idea to foist my crochet obsession on unsuspecting friends?

I was remembering that I got several homemade baby blankets from folks when I had Annalivia and was not very appreciative of them. They all happened to be made of very funky colors. And a couple of the ones I got that were crocheted or knitted were of very scratchy yarn that felt truly horrible. Ultimately, I didn't keep any except some really beautiful soft blankies made for us by our former neighbor.

BUT -- I think I also didn't appreciate them because I'd never done that sort of work. A few years ago, I made a quilt for a friend who had a baby and tried to make it in colors she'd appreciate, etc., but when I gave it to her, it was clear she was unimpressed. My mind immediately flashed back to when I received the other gifts and I prayed I was a better liar than she is and faked my appreciation better.

Anyway, these people for whom I'm considering making things or have made things are people I really care about and I don't want to have to have them fake appreciation for yet another handmade excuse for a gift. So -- if it were you -- would you like a handmade gift (with the caveat that it will be made of good quality materials with an effort to consider the individual's taste)? Or would you prefer something off of a registry?

The obsession continues: More crochet

We have yet another snow day here and this time, since the temperature is headed above zero later in the day, we are busting out. We're going to go see Grammy and then have lunch with Gramps. The kids are thrilled.

I'm taking my recent crochet projects to show Grammy. She was the one who taught me to crochet first, though it didn't really stick. It's still neat to be able to show her some things I've made and let her examine them.

I mostly finished this little dress for Emmeliese last night -- I still need to put on some buttons. I made it from this pattern, but decided to do the skirt in triple crochet and then went back and improvised some sleeves. For the sleeves, I just worked even for two rows, then began decreasing a stitch on each side of the armpit gusset for nine rows, then worked even for another row. And I put on a button placket in the putty color, mainly because I ran out of my ivory, but I think it works.

I think the dress may be a tad big, but I figured I could rip out part of the sleeves and make it short sleeved, if necessary. The yarn is this wonderful Sirdar Snuggly BabyBamboo in 80% Bamboo and 20% wool. It is soooo great to work with and I think my local yarn store is discontinuing it! :( I'll have to find an alternate souce.

I don't know why the cream and pink and tan/taupe/putty palette is so appealing to me, but it is. Emmeliese's entire wardrobe might be in these colors. It seems to be all I'm drawn to buying.

I think next I'm going to make a bonnet out of the pink I used in this dress and the bunting, and then maybe some footed pants out of my last skein of ivory bamboo. Then I probably should move on. Though, clearly, I could spend a lot of time in this category of crochet projects!

Bunting for Emmeliese

I am so excited to finish this project! This is a bunting for little Emmeliese that I'm hoping to use when we bring her home from the hospital.

I created this pattern after making a pattern I found for a sleep sack for a preemie. It just wasn't what we needed and after spending about an hour wide awake one night, I realized how to make this. I ripped out the other one the next day and started on this one. Instead of making it in joined rounds, I split it open, added a button placket and made it close in the front. Then I decided to make puffed sleeves on it. The yarn is Plymouth Suri Alpaca and Merino blend in white with two strands of yarn held together to make a nice thick and very, very soft little bunting. The only downside is that I sneezed my way through making it. I hope after a wash or two, the fibers will calm down, else we might have a sneezy ride home!

I made a hole for the seat belt of her carseat in the back of the bunting. In the front, I made the bottom buttons closer together to compensate for the carseat belt. We've needed a carseat-compatible bunting for both of our other children, but the one we bought was HUGE compared to our kids. They finally got to the point where they would have fit it in about June or July. And then they sort of didn't need it.

A row of double crochet on the bottom provided a place to thread a chain of pink yarn to tie into a bow.

When I decided to make this, I imagined big chunky buttons on the creamy yarn. But darn if I could find any! And I couldn't find much info on the web on how to make any, so I created a tutorial posted below.

I'm so happy with this, aside from the sneezing, and think it turned out almost exactly like I imagined it. And I'm thinking that if we are blessed with more children after Emmeliese and it happens to be a boy born in winter, I may just make new buttons and re-do the sleeves.

Of course, if that's the case, I may just want to make something entirely new! :)

Crocheted buttons: A tutorial

When I looked for directions on crocheting buttons, I couldn't find directions that were very helpful. One of my frustrations with yarn work is that most patterns are written in a series of abbreviations and often don't come with a picture. So, as I figured out how to make these buttons, I thought I'd make a tutorial so there would be at least one on the web. Hopefully someone will find it helpful.

Supplies needed: Yarn, crochet hook (this one is a size E), a yarn needle and plastic rings (these are 1 1/8 inch size). I found these plastic rings at Hobby Lobby. They were not at my local yarn store or at WalMart. I found some plastic rings in the sewing section of Hobby Lobby which were a full $2 more expensive than these, which I found with the drapery hardware. They come in different sizes. Choose the one that, with your thickness of yarn, will fit your buttonhole!

First, make an adjustable ring (or magic ring). Chain two and make 10 half-double crochets in the ring.
(If you don't know about the magic ring, here is a good tutorial.)

Pull your ring closed and then slip stitch to join.

Chain two. This will count as your first half-double crochet. Make another half-double crochet in the space under the stitch, between posts. This will give the yarn a tighter weave. Make two half-double crochets in space under the second stitch. Make one half-double crochet in the space under the third stitch. Repeat the pattern all the way around the ring.

Join in the front loop of the final stitch with a slip stitch. Then chain 3.

Now in the back loop of each stitch, do one double-crochet all the way around. You should end up with a little cup.

At the end of the round, join with a slip stitch and fasten off. Leave a tail of four or five inches and cut.

Next, take one of your plastic rings and put it in the middle of the cup, with the yarn from your magic circle feeding through the center of the plastic ring.

Thread the other end through the needle.

Take the needle and thread it through each stitch, all the way around the cup.

When you reach the end, you should be able to tell that the hole is ready to close. Be sure that the yarn from the magic circle is still sticking out. Then give it a tug and close it up!

Pull the yarn from the magic circle tight and then tie it and your other piece of yarn together.

Make as many as you'd like! You can adjust the stitch from half-double or double crochet to single crochet and half-double, or increase or decrease your beginning amount of stitches, the amount of rows, etc. depending on how big you want your button to be, the thickness of your yarn, etc. It's very adaptable. And doesn't it look cool?

Buying local...or small...or local

As I've gotten older, and maybe since I've had more monetary resources at my disposal, or maybe since I've gotten a tad more patient, I've become more committed to purchasing from small business owners. It's not that I don't appreciate the great deals at Wal-Mart or enjoy the fact that I can zip down to Dollar General for laundry detergent at a moment's notice. I do. But I've found that buying coffee from a local place, even if it doesn't have a drive-thru like Starbuck...or purchasing a book from a local bookseller, even if it means waiting a week for it to arrive unlike Barnes and Noble...or getting yarn from three generations of knowledgeable ladies, even if it costs more than the skeins found in the bins at Hobby Lobby... or even buying groceries at my local store, even though there are not wide-ranging deals like Kroger... it all tends to be a much more peaceful, less... I don't know... consuming ....experience. I also sort of feel like I have a moral obligation to do so, since I believe the small business owner is what makes the American economy function (when it does) and my own family-of-origin was/ is one built on the hard work of the self-employed. Plus, I like it when people are passionate about their work and most small business owners I have met have found a vocation in their employment.

Anyway, today I find myself in a bit of a dilemma. Last night I ran out of yarn while working on a project. The yarn shop I purchased it from is about 40 minutes from here. I called the owner and she has some skeins on hand. And could order more. And so I almost loaded up the kiddos and headed over there to pick it up.

But then I did an online search and found the same yarn sold by a small business owner in New Hampshire who is selling it for $1 less per skein. She also has it in some other beautiful colors and she offers some other items I've been looking for AND also offers free shipping. And it should all be here by Saturday if I order it this afternoon.

I'm probably going to order it online. Aside from the money saved, there's the time and energy and hassle saved. There's the not-bundling-up-the-kids and not-scraping-off-the-van and other things. But I AM feeling a little guilty about it.

Anyone have any input on what you'd do, ideally or not?

Prayer shawl for Grammy

The pathology report from my grandmother's tumor came back and the cancer did not spread beyond the colon. We are very, very, very thankful for this wonderful news! (Edited to add: Apparently the cancer was present in one of the lymph nodes and so she will have a cat scan tomorrow to see if there are lymph nodes behind the heart. The cancer did not breach the muscular walls, however, which was good news. It's just not as clear-cut as I originally thought.)

While at the hospital the last few days, I had the opportunity to finish (and start) a few crochet projects. This is one of my favorites. It's a prayer shawl for Grammy. I know it's not the typical shape of a prayer shawl, but that's what it started out to be and I was pouring my prayers for her into it as I created it, so that's what I'm calling it.

It's a beautiful dusty rose baby alpaca. It's sooooo soft and was just wonderful to work with.

I created my own pattern to make a lacy half-circle. My hope is that Grammy will be able to throw it around her shoulders as she sits up and that it will not be too bulky to use frequently. I like the shape and pattern of it so much that I'm going to buy another skein or two, maybe even in this exact same color, and make a larger version for myself to use while nursing.

I'm going to try to write up the pattern later. It went very quickly -- I started it one evening, worked most of the day on it, and finished it in the late afternoon the next day. And it turned out to be so pretty, I think! I hope Grammy likes it, too, and that she feels surrounded by love and prayers whenever she wears it.

To my fellow yarnaholics...

How do you ever figure out which project to do next? I have about a gajillion I'd like to do, and, more importantly, have done. Christmas projects are next, obviously, but I'd love to make Annalivia a hat/ scarf/ mitten set for church, and I'd love to make myself a winter hat with a big floppy brim and I'd love to make booties and clothes and a blanket for the baby and I'd love to make a yarn bag -- I actually need that -- and I'd love to try slippers and figure out something really useful for Dennis... the list goes on and on...

And somehow, I'm going to have to figure out how to fund this yarn obsession. Maybe gift certificates to Hobby Lobby and yarn stores should be the only thing on my Christmas list...

What do the rest of you yarn-addicts do?

Pink hats

For my girls :)

Please ignore the fact that my daughter is about to taste a ginko leaf. Again. Annalivia's hat is cloche-style with a scalloped edge and an added ear/ neck warmer all the way around the sides and back of the inside. She didn't like it until I added the white edging and the flower.

Emmeliese's hat is an adjustable preemie hat. There's a set of eyelets further up that the tie could go in to make it larger. I wanted to make a small hat that would be soft and warm that could be worn right after she's born. The hospital's hats were so huge on Annalivia; we took a preemie hat for Daniel and it worked perfectly. Emmeliese's hat is being modeled by Annalivia's doll, Henry, who was just slightly larger than Daniel when he was born. I think the hat should fit Emmeliese in the hospital. Unless she has her brother's giant head, that is. :)

I've also got some gorgeous merino wool/ cashmere/ silk pink yarn to make something really special for Emmeliese. And I've got some fun fuzzy stuff to make Annalivia a hat and scarf and mittens to go with her new red wool church coat. So I'll be busy. And there will be more photos to come...

My second completed crochet project

A hat for my goddaughter who stopped by yesterday. It was another very fast project. I added earflaps and scallopped edges. I made it very ruffly in front and less so in back. I probably should have taken more time to get a better fit, or made larger earflaps. I hope it will work for this winter at least.

My first completed project

Ok. I don't mean to be over-dramatic, but I think the universe has shifted. I have actually completed an artistic project. (Those of you who know me can now pick yourselves up off of the floor.) I owe it all to the miracle called crochet.
I think I might be addicted to crochet. Seriously. Dennis caught me creeping out of bed at 12:15 this morning and asked where I was going. "Just downstairs." He asked what I was going to do. "Ummm....just some stuff."
"Let me guess," he said. "Does this 'stuff' involve YARN?"

Last night after puzzling over the heel of the stockings for a few hours, I decided to start a project this morning that I thought I could finish quickly. I had bought this yarn to make a hat and scarf for Daniel and decided to start the hat. I found this wonderful woman's video tutorial on how to make a circle. I studied it and and also watched her video for a how to make a beanie, then I struck out on my own. I made the circle first so that the hat would have a larger, flatter crown to fit my son's giant head. (43 hours of labor. I'm just sayin'...) Then I made short rounds and towards the end, just went back and forth to make the earflaps. The flaps can be worn up or down, and the ties are just a simple chain.

It is definitely not perfect, but it is DONE! And wearable and pretty cute, I think, especially when on his little (or not-so-little) head.

A new project

I'm learning to crochet. Long ago, my maternal grandmother, Ga, made my family Christmas stockings. They were wonderful -- all about the same shape, but all different designs, personalized with names, big enough to fit toothbrushes and socks and books and cd's as well as a larger gift, stretchy enough so that when an orange was put in the toe they hung down another foot... They really were everything a Christmas stocking should be.

The last few years, we've not used Christmas stockings. But the house we are renting has a beautiful fireplace and I want my little ones to have the same sort of experience opening their stocking on Christmas morning. Ga has been gone 11 years now, so I can't ask her how she made them. However, I know they were crocheted and thanks to the miracles of the internet and YouTube and this brilliant woman, I'm forging ahead on my own. I hope to get one done for Daniel and Annalivia by this Christmas. And hopefully, I'll have the other three finished by Christmas 2009!

Time sucker

Hear that sucking sound? That's me falling into the digital scapbooking vortex. How much fun is this?