Ooo Baby Knits

The Pop Tart Theory

In 4th grade, I sneaked a Pop Tart to school in my Josie and the Pussycats lunch box. Everyone at my table wanted a bite, and not being one of the popular kids, I wanted to please everyone. I started breaking off little pieces and handing them around. Somehow those little pieces ended up at the table behind us, and I had to break off more little pieces. Only all those little pieces were so small that they were soon forgotten, and everyone went back to their conversations about Little League football and the latest sleepover. Lots of dividing, no conquering. The one saving grace was that I was left with the very best morsel- the middle bite, full of strawberry goodness and covered with white frosting.

My knitting has been a bit like that this week. Between the on-going projects and the mittens, hats, and baby things I started, I have done more dividing than conquering, especially on the projects I must finish before starting anything big.

But I do have one juicy morsel:

Needs the crochet edge and blocking, but it fits (yea!) and I like the (almost) finished project as much as the pattern picture. Is there anything more frustrating than finishing a project thinking you’ve done everything just right and it turns out just wrong? By the way, I am not avoiding eye contact, just trying to save my vision. I'm still seeing red spots.

It is raining today. It has rained for two days and will continue to rain for two more as Edwardo comes to visit. But that’s okay. I have three books started and five projects in easy range. Soup is in the crock pot, and the birds will be back soon. Life is good.

How to Eat A Fig

Step 1: Go outside during the hottest part of the day. Step 2: Pick a dark, ripe fig that has been warmed by the sun. Step 3: Check for bugs; brush off if necessary, but hey, how dirty can it get up in a tree? Step 4: Put the whole thing in your mouth, biting off the stem if there is one. Step 5: Close your eyes and chew slowly. Savor the taste, the texture, the smell. Step 6: Repeat as necessary or until your stomach hurts.

I plan to do this daily as long as the figs hold out. My first taste of figs was at my grandmother’s house in Canton, Mississippi. She would peel and slice a bowl of figs, pour on some sweet cream brought to her by a neighboring farmer, and I’d be in heaven. As delicious as my figs are, they don’t hold a candle to the memory of Grandma’s figs and scuppernong punch and crabapple jelly.

I have been mightily distracted from my knitting since last I blogged. I have read four books so far this month, an improvement over the year’s meager beginnings, and I’m working my way through The Artist’s Way so I’ve been writing every (well, almost every) day. Other than that I’m not too sure. Last Sunday, I went with Hubby to Hanes Farm. He did some practice riding for a race Sept. 3rd, and I fully intended to read and knit. I parked my chair on a hill under a tree where I could catch the breeze, and fell asleep. I think that might be what I’ve been doing all month.

Now for the needle news.
In the den- the back is finished and the front shouldn’t take too long if I can manage to stay awake. In the living room- I moved the hats and booties in here. I have several pair of booties that need pompoms, but at least I’ve finished something. In the bedroom- the back is finished on this as well. I’m not making the v-neck quite as low as in the pattern. I’m a bit too modest. In the purse- a sock. I wish I could remember where I found the pattern on the Internet. I jotted down the leg pattern on a note card to carry in the sock baggie, and I have no idea from whence it came. If you can’t see it clearly, it’s a zig-zag rib. Anyone else know?

Divide and Conquer

I was oh so tempted to start another something last night. I had to lie down after dinner and had nothing by my bed to knit on but a sock in a boring color and a monotonous scarf. I remained strong, knocked off a few inches of the scarf before I knocked off, and boy howdy am I glad. DD#2 went to the mall with me today as I am fashion challenged and needed help buying shoes. We stopped off at Hobby Lobby (where I always look for yarn but never buy any- well, almost never) first to get a picture frame with my 40% off coupon. Just so happened that picture frames were 50% off so I used my coupon to buy a piece of fabric for a fall skirt. On to the mall. They didn’t have the tennies I wanted in my size, so I bought (like I had to buy a pair) shoes to go with the skirt I’m going to make. Notice how the fabric matches our living room rug? I color coordinate with my house.

And then (here comes the knitting part) I ducked into B Dalton’s to check the knitting mags as I let all my subscription go but still need a pattern fix now and then. The only one they carry (yeah, small store, small mall, small town) is Interweave Knits which is fine with me but the mag is sealed in plastic so I can’t open it and peruse. When I get home with my new frame and fabric and shoes, I get on the Interweave site and browse through the pattern pictures and decide I have to have the magazine because a couple would make nice sweaters to go with the new skirt. As gas prices keep going up and up and we all know the greenhouse effect is what’s causing the horrendously hot summer we’re having, I decide not to drive back to the mall and subscribe to the magazine instead, thus saving gas and cutting down on pollution. Tomorrow should be cooler by my act of self-sacrifice, and I can’t wait to get the magazine. 

In the mean time, I will plod away on three of the projects I have going with hopes that at least one will be finished before I have to start my new sweater to go with my new skirt and my new shoes. So… I have taken Soleil upstairs as the thinking part is finished for bedside knitting. Little B’s pink sweater will go in the living room where I still have to look at the naked unfinished rocker, and the ribbon tank stays in the den with the baby booties and hats where I do the most knitting. Dividing accomplished, conquering yet to come.

Guess where my camera was? In my bedroom. Put there by DD#2 who hasn't been home. Wrapped in a shirt that I was supposed to know to unwrap. Like I pick up on a regular basis. Voici ce que je tricote à la plage:

The trip to the beach and back required mindless knitting. What better than a dishcloth blanket? Actually, this is a variation of the pattern from Encyclopedia of Knitting by  Donna Kooler. I finished up the Tomten playing Phase 10 after dyeing a bit red to do the edges and finding the orange was not set well. I did lots of rinsing to get the extra color out. This is leftover yarn from a sweater I knit a couple of years ago. I still haven't blocked and sewn it together. Maybe I should. Maybe I will.

Soleil was started during Narnia and continued through Shrek 2. This nubby cotton doesn't show the patern as well as a smoother yarn would, but I think it'll work.

I leave you with a few beach shots:

1) Dad and 2 of the nephews in the pool 2) most of us at dinner 3) DD#2 and nephew #4 playing Rat-A-Tat-Cat 4) my brother 5) the beach, but then you probably figured that out.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

I went to Edisto Island with my mommy and my daddy and my brother and my sister and my sister-in-law and my brother-in-law and my nephew and my nephew and my nephew and my nephew and my daughter. At the beach, we got sunburned and stung by jellyfish. I scraped my knee and got hit in the eye with a boogie board and got hit in the other eye with a soccer ball. It was fun.

The condo was really, really big and really, really pretty. You could see up to the third floor and we liked to go to the top and blow bubbles and drop things like a rubber snake. It was fun. We read books and watched movies and played games. My favorite game was Rat-A-Tat-Cat but I did not win I got beat by a stinkin’ 6 year old. We played Xbox too but I did not play much because I did not want to get beat again. I drank peach daiquiris and ate until my tummy hurt. I knit but nobody else did. The End.

(Note: DD#2 took off for a couple of days as soon as we got home. Only she knows where the camera is, so picts later.)