Giganto Blanket

I've been lamenting to friends and family that my blog has become a bit depressing. People always tell me that it makes them cry - especially those that personally know our family, and love Norah so much. So I've decided to show you something a little on the lighter side, that makes me smile.

This genius knitter makes "giganto blankets", using PVC pipes as needles and wool roving instead of standard yarn. I want to do it too, but the wool roving would be crazy expensive. Either way, there is something I love about this video. Enjoy.

The World Outside

There's a whole world out there that Norah doesn't know about. She doesn't know about winter snowflakes or cool spring breezes. She hasn't been to the park, the beach, or even grandma's house. The hospital is her world. She plays with her oral syringes, ballard suction catheter, EKG leads, and hearing aids. A wagon ride restricted to within the unit is a big deal... And she hasn't even known that for months since the start of respiratory illness season. Even rhinovirus reminded us that something as minor as the common cold can be sort of scary.

We live in the hospital, and it shows. But someday we'll get to enjoy outdoor fun of all four seasons. It's difficult to stay positive sometimes. And even more trying is maintaining a superhuman level of patience.

Left: The 12 mL syringe is the perfect size for her little hand. She fought sleep so hard, but eventually gave in. When she snoozes, she covers her lips with her hand and makes the cutest sucking sound with the tip of her tongue. It's my absolute favorite.

Right: The ballard suction catheter is the perfect size for her perfect little mouth.

That balloon-looking thing on the left is called a lung... but her favorite toy these days is her stethoscope

She is so lovely in the dress that I knitted for her. These photos have nothing to do with this post, but I couldn't resist.

Sweet sweet Harper, looking longingly at the world outside of Norah's hospital room. This photo sums up how we've all been feeling these days. 

Beaded Knitting

This is my first beaded knitting project: fingerless gloves for my mom. Sure sure, she'll see this post, but she already knows that I'm making them. So mom, here is your sneak peek! Though not the best photo, this is a closeup of the cuff (the bottom is the base of the arm).

The fingering weight yarn is Stroll Hand Painted in Lullaby by Knit Picks, the beads were an Etsy purchase, and the pattern is Rolling Thunder Gloves by the extremely talented Silvia Harding. I can't wait to see how they come out! The variegated yarn may not have been the best choice to see the lovely stitch definition in this pattern, but I'm still enjoying it nonetheless.

I can't wait to see how they turn out after completion & blocking.

Gargantuan Cranium

I'm sure none of you will be surprised to learn that I was in marching band in school. Yep, I was in band from 4th - 10th grade (I quit before my junior year because of terrible experiences with the new band instructor). And yes - I played the flute. Go ahead, I'll pause while you play the band camp joke in your head...



...Now that we've gotten that out of the way, back to the story. My high school band's uniform was made up of a stiff blue and gold polyester getup, completed with giant white q-tip hat. (No, I will not supply you with a picture. You already have enough fuel to tease me for quite some time now. I attended Benicia High School. If you feel so inclined, Google it. ) Just before the start of marching season, we would all have to get down to our skivvies for uniform fittings. The worst part of this for me was always the q-tip fitting. The "band moms" were always shocked at my enormous hat size. It was so big that they barely were able to find a hat big enough to fit me. Even then, the only one they could find was always far too tight. So embarrassing. I almost forget why I'm telling you all this.

Anyway, I have a big head. 24". That is an XL for those of you paying attention. So what will disguise a big head? An even bigger hat, of course!

Using Knit Picks Swish yarn in Coal, I knit up this enormous slouchy hat. Sure, I cast on a few too many stitches so it's super loose, but I like it anyway. After all, slouchy hats are supposed to be pretty dang big. It will fit all my hair inside, even when I have it pulled up or back. Best of all, it covers my gray spots!

I just loved turning this...

Into this...

Yes... yuck: I posted a picture of myself when I don't normally. I'll get over it so long as I don't think about it long enough to delete it. Really its to show off my knitting (just look at those little stitches!), which according to Jeff, I need to do more often.

Thirty by Fourty

Yes, the rumors are true. On July 30th, I said farewell to my twenties and hello to my thirties. This kind of milestone can really get a gal thinking about her life journey. A decade is a long time, and I've decided to be more goal oriented about the things I fill my life with. I don't so much enjoy making lists as I do checking things off of them (who doesn't?!) so I've come up with the following specific things that I'd like to do by the time I turn (gulp) fourty. The list is a blend of short-term and long-term items. Below is my complete list (categorized but otherwise in no particular order).

Who else out there has a list like this? I'd love to hear if anyone else has done something like this before, and how it went/is going.

Thirty by Fourty

Crafts
 1.  Knit a sweater for myself
 2.  Knit a pair of socks for myself
 3.  Refinish a piece of furniture
 4.  Complete all of my unfinished quilts
 5.  Complete another oil painting (it's been years)
 6.  Knit something for myself with luscious boutique yarn
 7.  For at least one year, only give handmade gifts & cards to extended family/friends
 8.  Knit something lace with lace weight yarn
 9.  Complete our wedding scrapbook
10. Complete Harper's scrapbook
11. Complete five upcycle projects
12. Complete 10 crochet projects (I don't normally crochet, but I enjoy it)

ME ME ME!
 13. Lose more weight & get healthier
 14. Run/jog a charity 5k (this is a feat for me. I HATE running, though I wish I loved it)
 15. Take a real vacation
 16. Get that dreaded dental work done
 17. Read 10 classic novels that I haven't read yet
 18. Do something that's totally out of my comfort zone
 19. Do another 3-day juice fast
 20. Give Harper a brother or sister (#13 must happen first!)

Miss Shauna Homemaker
 21. Start a garden
 22. Organize my crafts
 23. Reduce our clutter at home
 24. Prepare a 5-course meal entirely made from scratch with farm/garden ingredients
 25. Select a room in the house, and completely redecorate it on a small budget

Other
 26. Complete a children's book with Jeff
 27. Attend a geekfeest (ie Comic-con, PAX, E3, Maker Faire, Stitches Expo, etc)
 28. Participate and win NaNoWriMo 3 more times
 29. Complete a final draft of one of my NaNoWriMo novels
 30. Do a HUGE donation of our old clothes, bedding, etc.

Upcycling

As I become increasingly budget-conscious, I try to think of different ways to save money with my crafting and decorating (a.k.a. money-sinks). I've decided to try my hand at plarn creations. Yes, you heard it right: plarn. Penny pinchers and green crafters gave the name "plarn" to yarn made from plastic bags. Preparing the bags takes a bit of time, and I still need to toy with needle/hook gauge, but I'm having fun so far. I plan to make a tote bag from old grocery bags once I get the hang of it. I'm also going to cut up old t-shirts in a similar way to make yarn from old t-shirts. I'll crochet a rug with those.

Upcycling is taking something useless or otherwise disposable, and turning it into something new or with a better use/purpose. Do you have any upcycling projects that you've completed, or are interested in exploring?

Amigurumi Banana

Harper loves bananas. Lately, he's less interested in eating bananas and more interested in opening it, taking a few bites, peeling it a bit more, and saying "na-na" over and over again. I thought it'd be fun if I knit a banana for him. I was so excited to use up a little of my acrylic yarn stash, so whipped up an amigurumi banana in no time.

It even comes completely out of the peel. Jeff and I were excited to give it to him the morning after it came off my size 3 double pointed needles. I wish I had taken a video of it. After breakfast, I told him, "Harper, I have a suprise for you!" I brought the amigurumi banana out from behind my back. He shouted "Na-na!!!!!" with his usual banana-induced excitement. He ran towards me, eyes fixed on the banana. He opened his mouth to take in about a quarter of the banana, biting down hard. He paused, looking down with confusion. Unsure of what to do, he finally spit it out and pushed the toy away. He threw a complete fit. Perhaps he thought we tricked him on purpose, or maybe he was just disappointed. Next time I'll put a squeaker in it. Maybe I'll embroider a happy face on it so he better understands that it's supposed to be a toy. Even now, a week later, he still wants nothing to do with the fraud of a banana.

A Knitter's Rant

The other day, my eyes caught something on TV that really bugged me. I was reminded of a major pet peeve of mine. The movie was of low production quality circa 1975, and there was some insane lady sitting in a rocking chair, who was supposed to be knitting. Yes, she was supposed to be knitting, but it looked more like she was ineffectively digging a hole in a tangle of yarn. There weren't even stitches on the needles. She was holding a pair of needles much too large for her project, and was plucking and poking like her life depended on it. Would it have been so difficult for either her or the director to do a teensiest bit of research on how to hold knitting needles?

These fake knitters pop up everywhere. I love getting craft ads in the mail (especially my Knit Picks catalog), and scan over every little detail for good deals, inspiration, and eye candy. Not too long ago, I received an ad for a craft store (who shall remain anonymous to protect the innocent), that contained a picture of a joyous mother and teenage daughter who were bonding while supposedly knitting. They couldn't have looked any more awkward. Yes folks, even the craft stores can't quite get it right.

Yes, I do understand the saying "there is no wrong way to knit". Left handed, right handed, pickers, throwers, Tunisian, Portuguese... there are many ways to to hold your needles, and many variances on how to craft stitches. But sometimes it's quite plain when the person has no idea what they are doing. No, I am far from a perfect knitter, and I pass no judgment on other knitters (regardless of their skill level). Maybe I just feel like the intelligence of me and my fellow knitters is being insulted. Or maybe this is just one of those silly, pointless pet peeves. Or maybe I'm just paying too close attention to something so trivial. Hopefully I don't come off to rant-y (yes, I just made up the word "ranty"), because I don't mean to. Well... not really. :)

Inconveniently, I was unable to find a picture of a fake knitter. Go figure. This lady however, really DID knit with these ginormous needles, making the Guinness books with these big 'uns. What are those, like size 80 needles? And rope for yarn? Amazing.

Blog, Schmog.

I know, I'm a shameful blogger. A brief blogging hiatus became an extended vacation from all social aspects of the Internet. During my NaNoWriMo month in November, I rediscovered the enjoyment of applying free time to things that I loved. I wrote, I read, I had a blast with my two guys. Most of all - I KNIT! Jeff has been gently pushing me to take pictures of my knits. I'll get around to it sometime. I can't get enough of my knitting, leaving me two hands short of being able to knit and blog at the same time.

Of course life isn't ever all peaches and cream, but I'm doing my best to enjoy the goodies all around me. I'm grateful to Jeff for sometimes giving me a little nudge when I forget about the great things in life.

As far as NaNoWriMo goes - I WON! Ok, so everyone wins that writes 50k words, but I was included in that group! I wrote the first draft of a novel that will still require an incredible amount of work before ever seeing the light of day. I was giddy to get it done in a month, but am taking a much needed break from my characters. I think of them and their story often, but I am not quite ready to jump back into their world again. Our time will come, though.

There are so many other happenings, but I can't say that I'm prepared to catch my blog up on every little detail. It's just too much for a likely scant audience. A lot happens in just a few months - especially over the holidays. I'll just say that Harper is wonderful, healthy, and is (of course) the best part of... well... the best part of everything! He is happy, goofy, a handful, and one heck of a dancer. And of course, as long as the little dude is good, so am I.

S

P.S. OMG I can't believe I finally updated/resurrected my blog!

Picture Catch-up

Below are some recent fun pictures that I haven't shared yet. The little guy is growing so fast.

Wearing his new blue and white hat that I knitted for him:

Morning smiles:


Getting the three cousins together finally! Can you tell the age difference? Probably not!
Fun with cousins... Notice Emma giving Cooper a smack in the face!
Woohoo for Harper's "baby", his glow-worm-like seahorse:


He's in the phase where everything makes its way to his mouth:
S

Discerning Taste

Though you can't really tell in this picture, Harper's new soft hat is adorable. However - it seems that he would absolutely disagree. I didn't want to post this picture at first, but Jeff pointed out that his crying face was not only cute, but also hilarious! :)

So the hat is white, blue, and yellow (the colors don't come out in the image), and he was crying and squirming it off of his head so you can't see the true shape of it, either. Maybe he's just embarrassed that his mama knitted it. We'll see how he feels about his next hat that I started, which will be a thinner, finer yarn in more blue than white. I'll post a picture when I finish it, but it may take awhile since I rarely find myself with the two free hands required to knit. We'll see if his distaste for my knitting is a clash of taste in fashion... or just fussy-time gas.

S

What? I'm going to have a baby?!

One would assume that after many months of being (very) pregnant, that I'd become aware of the fact that I'm going to be a mother. Yes, fifth grade health class taught me that making it this far through pregnancy typically led to parenthood. I've been around quite a few pregnant women before, and have actually been in the room during a live birth. BUT - there was something about today's appointment that led me to realize that motherhood is knocking on my door. So much for four weeks left... the doc is guessing two! She said that during next week's appointment (Monday), we'll be talking about inducing labor and/or planning a c-section for either the following week or week after that.

Oh my goodness... we're going to be parents.

The appointment went well. I am at about 36 weeks, but am measuring at 41 (the measurements make me giggle at this point). Also, I'm already starting to dilate (another reality check). We find a comforting connection with our doctor. She shares her personal pregnancy details with us. Almost every issue we've had during this pregnancy mirror her own experiences during her two pregnancies. If I had the ability to create my own OB, like some sort of mad scientist, I couldn't come close to how great our doctor is.

Its been difficult lying around the house all day when I know there is so much we'd like to do to get ready for the baby's arrival. Fortunately, I have an incredible husband that takes care of these kinds of things. He doesn't complain about it, and he does it all eagerly - knowing that he is taking care of the baby and I each step of the way.

Below is a picture of the of the blanket that I started to knit. I took the picture with my phone, so the image quality isn't the best. Its a ribbed, super soft throw that is kind of a brick red color. I thought I'd be able to get it done by the time the baby came... but now its looking like I won't have as much time as I thought I would. Let me tell you - knitting isn't as easy as you'd think it would be while lying down.

S