Counting Down

I had a to-do list. It was broken down into days and those were broken down into while Bobby was awake and while Bobby was asleep times. Yeah. I made that list while I was pretty rested, done with grades early, no big plans for the four weekdays before Christmas and a manageably small list of things to finish. Then I went and changed part of it. I wanted Bobby's vest to be moved up on the list, we spent a bunch of Saturday out and about, and then on Saturday night I ended up sobbing on the couch after throwing his vest (sans ribbing) into the middle of the living room floor in despair. My eyes were crossing while I picked up the stitches from the provisional cast-on and I knew there was no way I'd get it done in time. I had moved up the deadline and, well, it killed me. (I think that's where they get their name...)

I have moved on with the list, but despaired again when I realized that there's a knitter out there that took 5 months to knit the pair of socks I planned on knitting in 3 days. I started on Sunday morning and am on the foot now. I don't think it will take me 5 months; I do think that the recipient may get one sock and an IOU. That seems to be in vogue these days.

Today I managed to finish what I think is the last of my Christmas shopping, though I never really feel secure about it until the gift is wrapped and under the tree (and, Bobby makes that a bit hazardous). And tomorrow we don't have (that I know of) any plans. So I'm hoping to finish the sock and get at least one sewing present done. Ideally I'll get two sewing presents done, but I don't want to pressure myself too much.

Bobby's vest is now a New Year's vest. And, after Christmas, then I'm going to knit all of the other things I've been thinking about while I get through the things I need to finish. Sweaters for the two men in my life and then one for the little girl coming our way!

Oh So Close

I have one assignment left to grade. It's the final for my writing class and I only have one page of the objective portion and then their short essays and I'm done. I'll be free from grading for two whole weeks. I am so excited that we have almost a full week before Christmas. We'll be able to rest, enjoy time with friends and family, and get stuff done!

I scaled back my Christmas gift making endeavors a great deal this year, and though I have a lot to do in a little bit of time, I'm hopeful that with good planning and efficient use of time I'll be able to get them all finished a few days before Christmas and still be able to enjoy the time! I need to knit while we're out and about in the car, do the sewing at night after Bobby is in bed, and get a few hours during the day for the quilting portions of a few projects. I have it all organized and easily accessible so I theoretically won't spend a bunch of time getting things out and ready (or finding them).

I think it will work.

I may even be able to add in one or two more... maybe.

As long as I don't start a lacy, pink sweater...

Lacy Little Knits

My little girl will be swathed in pink and lace knitting during her first few days. I thoroughly enjoy the blues and browns and greens and tans and bright oranges and reds that Bobby digs and that are available for the little boys out there. I'm also not into forcing gender preferences on people. Some boys like pink and some girls don't. And, if there is any color that is a lightening rod for the gender debates it's pink. If she hates pink as she grows older so be it; that's cool.

But I like pink. And so while she has no say (that is recognizably English and not easily explained by hunger) she will wear pink. Because she is a girl and when they first are out and about all babies look the same, but no one ever thinks a baby in pink is a boy. Babies in brown, yellow, green, and even soft baby blue might be girls or boys; but with pink there is no doubt.

I have pink yarn: Wool, 50% wool/50% alpaca, and 70% wool/30% silk (apparently a discontinued color in this yarn, lucky me!). With these yarns I am planning many things:

• a pair of pants
• a striped bonnet (this one says Jane Austen to me) or hat (this would match the sweater below and doesn't have the tie which worries me a bit)
• a lacy sweater I'm thinking either this one or this one
• in addition to the obligatory (and oh-so-sweet) Zimmermann February Sweater (I was a little sad when I couldn't figure out a way to rationalize this for Bobby)
• a kimono style sweater (really wish I had known about those when Bobby was little).
• a little pair of booties, because you have to knit babies booties (and these, on the right side of the page, are adorable)
• She'll probably also need one of these little dresses at some point

While looking at these I came across a few things that I'm sure Bobby will need as well. (Emphasis on need for both of these lists)

• A vest
• A hooded sweater

As I was looking I realized that there are a lot more things out there to knit for little girls than there are for boys. It's interesting and too bad, really. But at least he'll have his bright socks (alright there's only one right now, but the other will be along shortly, I'm sure). And he seems pretty content with those.

So, long lists short: we're having a baby girl; her name is Virginia (though not legally, something about being born first...); she looked beautiful today (though rather skeletal, grainy, and black and white); and we'll get the fuller scoop in the prenatal appointment tomorrow. She's theoretically coming in mid-May and her name will be long because we have a few female names to get in there (she'll have a couple middle names) and who knows (given my husband's family's disproportionate male to female ratio) if we'll ever get another chance!

Things I Learned Recently

1. Edgar Allan Poe may have had a chimney, because while Bobby and I were napping there definitely came some rapping and tapping in our house. There was a bird (I'm certain of it" in our chimney. I never knew that could happen and it totally freaked me out.

2. I need to vacuum under Bobby's crib more, because it builds character he likes to push things underneath it and then shimmy under it to retrieve them. The dust bunnies might eat him if I don't take care of that. Now that I think about it, they may have already eaten his pig and sheep puzzle pieces.

3. I should give more tests. The quiet time while students take them is grading-time gold. The key here is to make the test easy to understand so they don't have too many questions and easy to grade, otherwise it defeats the purpose. (It also helps if one stack of grading is just make-up work.)

4. I always thought that I was just a messy person when it came to closets and clothes, but all I've really needed was an amazing closet organization system. Ever since ours was put in I've been putting clothes away and there was even one morning when I picked up a pair of Bob's socks, instead of the other way around (we need to give the folks that know Bob pretty well a moment to recover, here...). Weirdest moment of my day so far (it was 5 in the morning so not too much competition, but funny enough for me to tell him about it in the car on the way to work). Only the crazy cost is stopping me from even thinking about the craft room possibilities here.

5. I need a regular yarn budget, even if it's $20/month. Then at least I'd have a limit and a release-valve. The alternative is no yarn for a month and then a $232 yarn binge. (In my defense I ended up with at least $400 worth of yarn so it was all a good deal. And most of it is for knitting for other people, so do I get points there?)

6. I like to knit and it's likely going to take over creep into the living room. Going with the earlier organization lesson I found a basket to put my current projects in, instead of on the couches and tables. The basket may need to be bigger.

Those are the recent lessons and realizations; I'm sure more will be coming.

Tomorrow (well, I suppose now it's today) Bobby and I both have ultrasounds. His is for his kidney, just to make sure it's chugging along as it should. Mine is for the baby, make sure s/he is growing as s/he should and to find out whether we're having a she or a he! Hopefully anyway. It's probably the only time a parent hopes their child is at least a little into exposing themselves.

Change Is Hard

I think I have figured out (to a point) my sudden rash of new projects and sleepless nights. Things are changing around here. We've bought a house and are still trying to settle in, Bobby is getting older and more able to communicate, I'm pregnant (and if that's not its whole own bundle of change than I don't know what is), and our friends are leaving the country (not just the state, mind you, no, a whole other continent).

Knitting is, for the most part, predictable. I know that if I use these needles and that yarn, knit so many stitches a certain number of times I'll get a sock, or a vest, or a sweater. I can see what is happening and when things don't happen the way I expect or want them to I can see where I went wrong; I can fix it. I get an almost infinite number of do-overs. I can control knitting, or at least I can control it more than I can life. (And yarn, unlike that chicken in my refrigerator, doesn't have an expiration date.)

In life we don't get do-overs, we don't get to try something 4 different ways to see what we like. Instead, we get to make choices and live with the ways it turns out, for good or bad. We cast-on and do our best, hope for the best. And then, we have to hope for the best through all the unexpected changes.

We may start with wool, and suddenly we discover alpaca sliding through our fingers (wouldn't that be nice!). Then the chunky yarn goes to a sport weight and now it's a variegated sock yarn. Then we discover, much to our dismay that someone has changed our needle size. Life is navigating and negotiating all of those changes. Figuring out what to do with this unexpected combination. We're just chugging along trying to make it work and, on good days, trying to make it work well.

Sometimes you can look down at what you've done and it's nice. The finished fabric hangs together beautifully. Other times you have to shake you head and acknowledge that those were the places you were learning (and that it, apparently, took a long time to get it figured out).

Sometimes you have people around you that can lean over and say, "Maybe if you relax a bit your knitting will stay more even. I've had to knit with those needles; trust me, I know." Other times you just sit and stare at it, completely lost.

I'm sure I'll look back on this part later and see what was going on, that before I could get set-up for the beautiful cabling that's coming up I had to change my yarn weight, color, fiber, and needles. But this transition time, this is the part I don't understand. And not understanding, that makes it hard.

I Don't Teach Rocket Science

I had a really funny conversation with a parent today when I was asked, very seriously, and for good reason, whether or not I teach rocket science. The answer to that, is certainly, "no." And my internal response is, "What do you teach in rocket science?"

I think it's an actual science elective, whether it's at my school or Bob's, I'm not sure. But I am positive I've laughed about it with Bob. I mean, come on, how is it not funny?

While it sometimes feels that way, but really isn't, rocket science, I do seem to knit a lot lately. I think I've been bitten by the holiday knitting bug. I've been working on my striped scarf whenever I'm in the car or need easy knitting and I do like it though I wish I had picked skeins that had more differences than similarities. Oh well, and there's more at the store. I saw it and touched it, and only Bobby being fussy meant I left without any. The other option was too irresponsible and would have meant major damage to the budget. Here is where I was before errands tonight. Now I'm almost done with the first two skeins.

And, Bobby loves the new socks I'm knitting him. He keeps asking to try it on, which while it takes away from actual time to knit them, is awfully cute of him. I'm thinking I'll be done with the heel of the first one tonight and then be able to finish it tomorrow. He does have two cute feet that need socks. He helped Bob take this picture of them to prove it. Again, colorwork, I love you.

I'm also hoping to start a new pair of socks that I cannot explain further for reasons of gift-giving privacy (meaning I want them to be a surprise if they're finished and not a disappointment if they're not). I will say this though, they're about as close to rocket science as I care to get.

Where to Begin

Our friends are leaving. I am in denial. Instead of talking about how much they mean to me or how much I will miss them both, I am going to talk about knitting and Bobby. Things that are staying here for the time being.

I have finished the bottom half of Bobby's new vest. It is long enough for decency, short enough to avert laughter. I am going to start the front and back after consulting with my knitting guru. In the meantime I am working on one of those noro striped scarves. Always thought they were pretty, always thought other knitters were crazy for buying that stiff, itchy yarn. Then an event involving a sale, unexpected cash, weak self-control, new shipments, and peer pressure resulted in 4 skeins of it finding its way to my house.

I started it yesterday and was first struck by how the yarn, while stiff in the skein, is quite nice in the knitting. And that the scarf is also equally soft. I had planned to pass it on to someone in a box, wrapped for Christmas. Now, it will probably end up wrapped around my neck instead. The stripes feed that incessant one more (or in this case two more) row syndrome. And the colors are quite nice. Quite nice indeed. I am a little disappointed in one spot where the two skeins match a bit and so you lose the striping, but live and learn. And, buy it more, and knit another one. I'm thinking that perhaps some entrelac, or diagonal something-er-other is called for. I'd like to do more with this yarn. Who knew?

And, Bobby's favorite socks are the ones I knit him for Sock Summit. Seriously he wouldn't wear any others today, so I plan to put some hot glue, or puffy paint on the bottom so he can wear them safely around the house. I'm also thinking he could use a new pair for Christmas, so he has more options. I have plenty of leftover yarn for it. Benefits of small feet, I suppose.

He had a fever today (maybe that's why he wanted his really nice, comfy socks). I stayed home with him and am going to do the same tomorrow. Hopefully then we'll know why he has a fever. That's the worrisome part for me. He's not coughing (except when he ate too much pizza too fast, I really didn't feel like cooking) and doesn't have a runny nose except when he's very upset and crying. He's just fussy and hot. The pediatrician wasn't sure, and said to watch him for a couple of days. Poor boy is usually so happy it's terrible to see him sick.

I've started being able to feel the new little one move. Not all the time, though if Bobby set any sort of trend, that time is coming. It's so nice to know s/he is still kicking around in there between prenatal visits when we hear the heart beat.

That's it for now. Hopefully in a few days I'll be able to say that he's all better, that the scarf and vest are done, and that through a strange series of events that left everyone happy, the capital of Spain moved to Alaska.