Surprise!

There's going to be a new little addition in our family come spring, and I'm excited to finally be able to share the news! I'm now fourteen weeks pregnant, and we have been blessed with how smoothly this pregnancy has gone so far. Yes, there has been plenty of nausea and exhaustion, but many fewer complication than my previous pregnancy.

I'm starting to have an appetite again, and my energy is returning, so hopefully I'll start to be a bit more productive. Matthew has been such a trooper when Mommy just wants to lie on the sofa most of the day...

Speaking of Matthew, he's still nursing and still sleeps in our bed at night. We'd like him to be weaned and in his crib by the time the baby comes (he starts out in his crib; he just comes in our bed in the middle of the night). Any suggestions are welcome!

Bonjour!

Last week I finished knitting a new hat for Matthew. The weather is cooler now, and he has outgrown all of his hats from last year. I wanted to make something a little different, so I thought a beret was in order. My husband's side of the family is French-Canadian, so the beret (kind of) fits with Matthew's heritage and definitely our last name. When we went to the park he was so busy playing and having fun with Mommy, Daddy and the dogs that he didn't even think to take it off...or maybe he just liked it that much. :)

Pattern: Pompon Beret

Source: Simply Baby by Debbie Bliss

Yarn: Cashmerino Aran in Navy and Stone

Notes: this hat was knit flat, then sewn using a mattress stitch. It was a quick knit, and the yarn, though pricey, was very soft.

While I was in Santa Fe last week picking up yarn for this hat, I also picked up the premiere issue of Debbie Bliss's knitting magazine. I've always been a fan of her patterns, but her yarn is just so darn expensive! I still do use it for small, or very special, projects, but I'm interested in checking out Ravelry to find what others are doing for yarn substitutions. Just one more reason I love Ravelry!

Tonight they're calling for a bit of snow here in northern New Mexico, but I don't want to get my hopes up--I can't wait to see the white stuff!

There is only one oak tree that I know of in our neighborhood, and everytime I pass it, I just have to pick up a couple of acorns. To me, they are a symbol of fall. As a child, almost every fall-themed book, poster, commercial, or magazine I saw almost always depicted a picture of a squirrel with an acorn surrounded by fallen leaves. I lived in the Phoenix area until I was eight, then the high desert of New Mexico until I was eleven, so even today an acorn is something special. (By the way, the tree is on public property, so I'm only stealing from the wildlife...which is why I only pick up a few). :)
I decided that our dining table needed a little fall facial, so I made a very simple table runner out of some fat quarters I bought on sale a while back. It is lined with flannel instead of interfacing, a tip I find very useful from Bend the Rules Sewing. The mums were a gift from my very thoughtful aunt, and they compliment the runner perfectly.Last weekend my husband humored me by agreeing to go to the annual Taos Wool Festival in beautiful Taos, New Mexico. The sun was shining, but it was cool enough for Matthew to wear the sweater I made him over the summer. When you're among fiber lovers, you have to show off just a little! While I oohed and aahed over the yarn, DH and son watched a sheep shearing, observed the sheep, goats, and alpacas, and literally ran all over Kit Carson park. It was a good day for all of us. Unfortunately, my camera ran out of batteries just after we arrived at the festival, so this is the best I've got. P.s. Matthew didn't drink all of the soda!