Vintage Dish Towel

My husband is leaving tomorrow for the weekend to visit his sister and her family, as well as his mother, in Tucson. I've never been on my own for that long with Matthew before, so I'm a little nervous. Being 34 weeks pregnant doesn't help, either! I have several activities planned including attending a friend's baby shower, dinner plans with my parents both Friday and Saturday, and I even stopped by Hobby Lobby today to pick up some craft supplies "just in case." Hopefully it will be Sunday before we know it!

I am sending this dish towel and dish cloth with my husband as a gift for my sister-in-law. The dish cloth is similar to others I've made, except that this time I did an edging of single crochet with a hanging loop. The dish towel is the Mitered Hanging Towel from Mason-Dixon Knitting Outside the Lines, but you can find it here for free. Both projects just took two balls of Peaches & Creme, total. You have to love that!

Ribbitt!

Over a month ago I made these cute little bean bag frogs using the Purl Frog pattern. It's free, easy, and you can make four little guys with two contrasting fat quarters (or two from one fat quarter). I was going to put these in Matthew's Easter basket, but he found them before I could hide them. They have already been well-loved and are full of dirt and pet hair. But that's what they're made for, right? :)

The Purl Frogs even have their own Flickr group if you want to check out some more froggy cuteness.

A Fun Article

When I received my new issue of Mothering Magazine (or, as my husband likes to call it, Smothering Magazine) on Friday, I was thrilled to see an article about crafting/blogging mamas. Five women were showcased, including Amanda Blake Soule from SouleMama and Amy Karol from Angry Chicken. It was fun and inspiring reading about these two crafting/blogging "celebrities" who I have been following for quite some time now (I also have both their books!).

If you're not familiar with Mothering, it's a natural parenting magazine that's a little off the beaten path. I look forward to every issue and read the magazine cover-to-cover. I even read all of the advertisements (and I can't say that about any other magazine)!

Baby Blues

Thankfully, this post is about what's been on my needles lately, not post-partum depresson! I can't believe that it's already been a month since my last post, but I have been keeping pretty busy. I've had so many projects-in-progress and really wanted to finish all of them before blogging. Of course, life got in the way as well, as I've been tackling my "to-do before the baby is born list" and taking care of a sick kiddo.

First up I have my third pair of Stay-on Baby Booties from Knitting for Baby. I used Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, and although it is super soft, I do like the Koigu better. The gauge on this pair is a bit off, so they're probably be a little big for a newborn. Hopefully they'll still get plenty of use!

After seeing Soule Mama's beautiful kicking bag, I decided to make one of my own. I even had some sock yarn in my stash that worked out wonderfully. This did take a while since I was using size 2 needles, but it the was perfect project for car rides and watching tv. The wool/cotton blend will also be perfect for the summer: our days can reach the 90s, but our nights are still quite cool. (The kicking sack looks like a giant water-bottle cover just in case you're wondering; I just liked this close-up of the mock-cable ribbing the best of all the pics...)

Now this next project I finished months ago. For some reason I just wasn't very motivated to get out the camera. With Matthew we ended up doing part-time cloth diapering, but this time around I am determined to go full-time. I have learned a lot about the dos and don'ts, and hopefully this little one won't have Matthew's very sensitive skin. I purchased this pattern, the Hybrid Rib Soaker, more than a year-and-a-half ago from Little Turtle Knits, but this is the first time I'm actually knit it. It was super quick and a great stash buster (I used leftover Paton's Merino Wool from Pat's Cobblestone Pullover). The pattern comes in many sizes (perhaps 5?) and with the option of using either dk or worsted weight yarn. This cover is a size small and is just so adorable. I can't wait to meet its wearer!

Finally, everybody needs some good washcloths. A couple weeks ago, out of the blue, I had an itch to make some washcloths. I even had some Peaches and Creme cotton lying around (another stash-buster, yay!) and found this pattern after searching Ravelry (there is actually a VERY similar pattern in Knitting for Baby, but the Grandmother's Favorite is free). There's just something nostalgic about knitting washcloths for babies, don't you think? Anyway, I figured our new little one would appreciate his own washcloths instead of stained hand-me-downs from his brother. I plan on knitting many more in the future!

Finally, I'd like to thank you for all of your kind comments on my last post. I sometimes hesitate about sharing something so personal, but I do believe that those ups and downs of pregnancy, motherhood, and life in general, are all very real. I don't know of any "perfect" families, and although I often just enjoy highlighting the positive aspects of my life on this blog, I believe that it's more honest of me to also mention some of the trials. Life is good, but sometimes the road can get a bit bumpy.

Have a terrific weekend!

Just the Two of Us

As many of you reading this have already experienced yourselves, or have observed others experiencing, pregnancy can often be a series of ups and downs. Yesterday was definitely a "down" day for me. I was feeling absolutely huge, my back was in constant pain, I was tired from having a toddler in my bed the night before, my dogs wouldn't stop barking then tracked mud through the house when I let them in, and I was cursing our two-level house every time I had to use the bathroom or take Matthew to the potty (we have one bathroom, and it's upstairs).

I was trying to rest when the dogs prematurely woke Matthew up from his nap. I brought him into our room and was lying down with him when my husband called. My patient husband heard an ear-full about my day, and while talking with him I was just about near tears. That's when Matthew sat up, leaned over, and gave me a great big kiss and hug. After I hung up with Pat, Matthew continued to shower me with hugs and kisses. Those five minutes abolished all of the negative emotions I had been feeling that day. My back still hurts as I am typing this, I still feel huge and tired, and I wish we had a downstairs bathroom, but I will always cherish this time with my son. I know that with two it will be double the work, but I'm already looking forward to double the love.

I am actively trying to slow down my days, as I know that Matthew and I will never have this "just the two of us" time together. This morning, while running errands, he and I treated ourselves to a decaf hazelnut latte and applejuice (I'll let you guess who got what), and shared a slice of blueberry coffeecake. Earlier in the morning we sat in our pajamas cutting and pasting pictures onto cardstock (more about this later). This afternoon he "helped" my wash the dishes and organize his room. I am finding that even though I can accomplish chores at a much faster pace by myself, it is more pleasant and meaningful to have Matthew by my side. He is becoming such a big boy! I really believe that him feeling "helpful" will help with the transition when his brother arrives.

These days are so special. I am trying my best not to just anticipate the BIG day coming this spring, but to appreciate and treasure all of the little moments right now.

A Little Different

After all of my pre-Christmas knitting, I decided that I needed a little break. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, right? :) I hadn't crocheted in a while, and my brother had given me some yarn for Christmas (pretty good for a college student to think about his sister's domestic pursuits!), so I decided to make a baby blanket for our new little one. I think that it's important that he has some items that are his and not just hand-me-downs from his big brother (although there'll be plenty of those, too!). I also now have the hindsight of knowing how busy my life will be in the weeks and months following a birth, so I'm trying to plan ahead, at least a little. The pattern I used is Tiramisu, a free pattern, by Alicia Paulson. The body was a very simple single-crochet pattern, but the edging gives it that little something extra. I'm very happy with how it turned out!

I also made the fanciest and least-practical potholder ever. But it sure is cute! This pattern comes from the Japanese-translated crochet book, Kyuuto! Lacy Crochet. The patterns are mainly schematics with some written instruction. Crocheting this potholder has helped me branch out and learn how to follow a schematic better. I also had never completed a project using lace thread before. It took some getting used to, but I'll definitely do it again. This potholder is now being used for decoration-purposes only in the kitchen. I wouldn't dare try to take anything hot out of the oven with it!

Some Eye Candy

On December 26, I ended up spending a good chunk of my Christmas money at the Etsy store, a little goodness. This adorable fabric was all shipped from Japan, and the customer service was great. Leslie even threw in an extra fat quarter (the striped fabric in the first pic), some paper Japanese Christmas bags, and a couple of lollipops. I can't wait to get started on a project for each fabric, but it has to be "perfect." I don't want to waste one bit of it!