Finished projects!

Since I have no one around to take my picture this morning,
the dress dummy will have to do

Well, really only one finished project. But progress on another!

I like it so far! Getting close!

I finished the last part of the back and closed up the shoulders. I started the sleeves, too. My math challenged brain may have created a sleeve unique to this sweater. We'll see how my calculations work out when I finish them. I had Big Brother's help, so we'll see if his much more advanced math skills pan out. If anything, I have taught him that you really DO use math on a daily basis in the real world. The times that poor kid rolls his eyes at me and tells me I really can't be asking him the answer to THAT. Oh well, I guess they all think they are smarter than their parents.

PeeWee decided she had to remove the center marker

There are definately times in life when you can't contain the bark of laughter. Big Brother asked me if I was all of a sudden knitting EVERYTHING I was wearing. I was confused and told him, uh, no? Why? Well, look closely at these sleeves. Yes, that's right, a bra. Bwahahahaha!! The inner workings of a 13 year old boy's brain may be more than I want to know about. But no one can tell me that kid doesn't have a sense of humor. He does know those are sleeves, he just couldn't resist pointing out the resemblance to women's undergarments. What am I in for the next few years...

Do you see it? Unfortunately I do...

Always something to finish

I just got back from dropping the hats off at the NICU with PeeWee. They really turned out cute. Once they were washed and dryed and bagged, it was over. Just a quick trip to the hospital and they now belong to the babies. PeeWee fell asleep in the car on the way over even though it was a little early for naptime. She looks so long and skinny that way. Her doctor was thrilled with how great she looks. Too bad he didn't get the floor show she put on for me when we got home. She was singing her favorite medley of Old MacDonald, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and the ABC song while running up and down the hallway. She's never down for long.

Now I am at a loss as to what to work on. I have spent so many hours knitting for the NICU that I am feeling a bit guilty doing something else, like I am still supposed to be working on hats. I started a few projects last winter, early spring, that I have pulled out of the closet to finish. I checked and I literally have 8 rows left on some sleeves to finish one of these sweaters.

8 more rows and it's done.
Been sitting there for about 8 months now...

Procrastination at its finest. It probably says a lot about me on some deep psychological level that I can leave something that close to done for that long.

And nothing to mention that sweater for a certain little boy that I started back in February. Problem with that one is that I deliberately made it big so it would work this winter. I think I made it big enough for several winters from now, so there's no pressing need to get it done. And, he's got a little brother on the way, so less pressure still because if he grows out of it quickly, there's another one on his heels to fit into it. Actually, I'm looking forward to getting that one all finished and shipped off. It's cute, but I made the pattern and it has kicked my butt a few times. Lots of ripping row after row of sweater out. It was first in the round, then I split the top to make a front and back and now if I can just get those sleeves done... (recurring theme, I know)

I do want to get this finished,
looks like a few more rows then sleeves

His mom is a sweater-lover and he's got the cutest sweaters in his closet, so I know it will get lots of wear, especially since he's in New Jersey, so as soon as I get those last 8 rows done on my sweater, I'll do my best to knock his out quickly. I was glad when I pulled it out of its bag that there were not only 8 rows left on it.

Maybe I should not admit I also found a teddy bear that I thought I had a few more body parts to finish that is indeed all done. It just needs to be pieced and stuffed. Uh huh, I guess that's also about an hour's worth of work.

All those hats!

43 hats. Alright!

I managed to get them all done, all ends woven in, ready to go into the wash tonight. I have some ziplok bags they will go right into and I'll bring them into the hospital tomorrow sometime. I am so happy to get them delivered.

You can see there's a huge variety here, from fruits and veggies to crazy acrylic yarns, to stranded work. Some traditional Fair Isle designs thrown in there and even a bee. Stripes and cables and lace and tassels. Pretty much whatever I felt like when it was time to cast on a new one. They are pretty darn cute if I say so myself. Cottons, acrylics, even bamboo. I tried to keep them gender neutral, but there are a few that are certainly meant for either a little boy or a little girl, my favorites being the sailboat and the little pink number which turned itself into a crown with the little bobbles on top. There's one matching pair for some lucky twins. Hopefully something for everyone.

Believe it or not, I am going to miss the comfort I get looking through these hats. Sounds silly, huh? Well, I guess I am a little nostalgic for when PeeWee weighed only 2lb 15oz. Her second birthday is coming up, and I have the hardest time pairing the energetic crazy toddler I spend all day with, with the tiny baby girl who could only grasp the tip of my finger with her whole hand. Boy, she was small. Boy, she scared us half to death.

We're coming up on all sorts of PeeWee anniversaries in the next few weeks, when she will officially pass out of her preemie status and be "caught up" with those her actual age, instead of counting in her adjusted age. It sure seems like yesterday though!

Look! Look! Look!

Knitting while I type

Right now I am working on the ribbing for hat number 43! Yay!

That's the number of babies in the NICU right now! Yay!!

Last one. Phew! The last few I did were pretty fun, I have to admit, after dragging there for a while.

Now that I am done, I am pretty excited to drop them off. One day when we went to see PeeWee in the NICU, I remember coming in to find all the babies with little fleece blankets that a retired nurse had made on all the little baby bassinets and isolettes. Boy was that cute, all of them matching like that. They were different patterns but you could tell they were all gifts from the same person. It was happy and exciting, all at the same time. (We still have that blanket, and now PeeWee uses it to cover her baby doll.) That's the effect I am hoping for with these hats. Boy that sounds selfish. I guess I should clarify and add that the feeling I got is the feeling I want the parents who go in to see their babies to get.

(moan)

So, I signed up for a gouache painting class taught by a talented woman, Jean Cassels. I actually signed up for a botanical painting class with her last fall which was cancelled due to Katrina disruption and I had a credit with the school which called me to tell me I could sign up for this other class she was teaching now. Well, it's a total disappointment so far for me. Maybe my attention span is too short for this one, but I really feel like I am wasting the little PeeWee-free time I have. Oh I am torn. I want to keep going, hoping I'll learn something, and at the same time I want to just bail on the class and find something more mentally stimulating for my free time.

I need to knit three more hats, but the NICU said they will take whatever I have and not to worry about the last three beause they are hoping to send a few babies home this week. I am so happy to be so close to done with this project. It's been hard to keep going with it, even though I know it's all for the babies. I had a small panic attack when it occured to me that these babies have all different sized heads and not all the hats will work. Oh well, I guess I need to just not think about that. I think I made a variety of sizes so keeping my fingers crossed they will be able to use most of them.

waiting...

I have 40 hats done. I can say it was a very busy weekend around here and even still I got 8 more hats in the pile.

I got some inspiration from a friend who pointed out that September is National Hat Month. Now I feel complete knowing there's really a month for everyone. I knocked out some matching hats for what's certain to be at least one pair of twins. And when I get my final count I may do that again. It was fun to know I was making a pair for a pair. So, when I hear from the hospital on the number for today, I'll either get washing or get knitting the final few. I have a feeling I'll probably be making another few before I get them there.

I am so excited to for the little munchkins to get their hats! I most likely won't see them in action, but I love knowing they are almost on their way!!

Count down to finished

I am getting so close to done with the hats. I have 32 finished and one on the needles. I am waiting to hear back on the number of babies right now in the NICU so I can finish the right number this weekend, get them all washed and deliver Monday! I have enjoyed this, but I will be satisfied when I am done. And be glad to have the knitting guild here's help from now on. What great timing that they are looking for a charity to knit for!

The knitting guild had a meeting Monday night, but after a long and tiring weekend, I skipped joining for now. I meant to pre-Katrina, but for some reason (who knows at this point!) I was not able to get to the August meeting and was planning on joining at the September meeting. So, here I am a year later, and since knitters all seem to talk in yarn shops, I found where they had relocated. Turns out it is the church I grew up going to. Small world. The plan is to go next month, join, and have a monthly knitting time on the calendar. What a treat that will be!



Thanks to PeeWee waking up around 4:00 am the last week or so and jumping into our bed, I have been up early lately. Hard to get back to sleep with her little feet kicking you in the head. This morning the sky was the best shade of blue. I like the few minutes I get alone in the early hours before anyone else is awake, but I think this week I'd trade them for a leisurely morning sleeping in. And breakfast and coffee in bed. Hmmmm... maybe I'll request it this weekend. My One and Only has been so nice to me lately. Maybe breakfast and some selfish knitting.

Got it back

Something clicked and I got my motivation back. I'm almost done with the third hat I was hoping to finish this week! Yeah! I have to say, it came to me in a very strange place. I was riding along and got stuck behind the garbage truck. Usually a dreaded place to be. But, the weather was incredible and the stink was blowing the other way and I was facinated by what the garbage men were doing. Putting an entire shower enclosure into the garbage truck. Impressive. The kind of thing you just don't expect to see. It gave me the giggles in such a big way. Garbage here is just one of the things that's not quite back to normal and they are picking up everything under the sun. There's no recycling, even if you are willing to haul it to a facility- it got flooded though so no chance of that. Whatever landfill this stuff is going to is mighty full of weird little things. So, seeing those guys was like the ant and the rubbertree plant. Shouldn't be able to do it but nothing but sheer determination. So, there you go. I can finish these last few hats. There are babies with cold little heads to cover up!

oh

I need a kick in the pants and some inspiration to get these hats finished. I like the new one I started yesterday when I was waiting to pick up Big Brother from football practice. It's very cheery.

I'm trying to think unisex now since I can't get a number for how many boys and how many girls. Even if I could, the number would probably be different by the time I brought them in. There's a big turnover in the NICU and that's a good thing for the most part. I have tried to make a few that would fit a full-term newborn because unfortunately some of those kiddos stay in there for 6 months, and their heads get pretty big!

This shouldn't be such a challenge, but for some reason it is. I think coming up with something cute and happy and different is where I am getting stuck. So- send me some creative vibes! I need them! That and time.

For some reason I always think with the kids in school I am gong to be able to get so many creative things done. It seems like when they are in school my days are booked and there's no time left for fun me-me-me time. Well, except that I did sneak in a trip to get my hair touched up. A few highlights to blend that grey in. And ding-dong me, I forgot to bring the bag, grrrr!!!

Slowed momentum

How is it that entire weeks can slip by without anything but dishes getting done? I've lost track of what I did last week. Holidays tend to add to the chaos. It wasn't just a long weekend, it was a long weekend.

PeeWee was home sick all week, a virus she just got knocked out by. She's finally over it and we've been out in the world again. Today she joined me for a meeting. When the meeting was over, she got up she decided to see just how many pickles she could eat off the sandwich buffet. I think it was four before she gave me the partially eaten mess and said no more. If I ate four pickles I would swell up like a sausage. She likes her salty snacks! One other child had to come with her mother. I think she's about 3. PeeWee is really pretty good coming with me just about everywhere. I'm going to keep taking advantage of that while it lasts.

Mmmm, pickles.
Huh, her pants are below her bottom.
Maybe I should go tell her to pull them up.

With a sick PeeWee, my knitting time was really limited last week. Needing to get something finished, I took a little break from the preemie hats to work on the kool-aid sweater. It turned out great! I have to find my stash of buttons for just the perfect ones and it'll be done. I even ran it through the wash to be sure it would hold up to the abuse PeeWee is sure to give it and it fluffed up just the right amount, while the moss stitch edgings softened up perfectly. I think it'll get a lot of wear this fall. Hard to imagine though when it's still in the upper 80's!

All ready for a cool front- maybe in November?

As for the preemie hat progress, I'm getting there. I have 27 finished and the last count I got from the NICU was 38. As I get closer to finished, I'll get another headcount. I've been slacking lately, though. I finished one yesterday and that got me excited to get them finished again. I've been eyeing Sheila McGregor's books so full of Fair Isle and Scandinavian patterns and I went ahead and splurged and got them. They have definately come in handy keeping me interested in finishing this project. Plus, when PeeWee was in the hospital after being born, we would go in and see a hat that someone had made on her and it was a great feeling. I wish I could do blankets, but with the time I would have to commit would be impossible right now.

They're getting there! I'm almost done...

This week my goal is three more hats. I think it's do-able. There have been evenings when I've managed three, so I am hoping that with the week I have I'll be able to squeeze them in. I have a full calendar the next few days. And how I would love an afternoon to just hang out with myself, watch a movie and work on some hats. Maybe it'll be a rainy weekend and I can send My One and Only off with the kids. We got a cool front last weekend (mid- 80's! and dry air) and it's got me all excited to get knitting. I have some UFO's that are calling to me from the closet. Sleeves. I have four sleeves to finish so I can write two sweaters off my list. And, yes, those would be the same two sweaters I was hoping to finish in August. Well, it is only the first week of September. And then there's the fuzzy sweater. But, well, I won't hold myself to finishing that one any time soon.

Katrina 1 year later

A ball of yarn that survived the house gutting.
It stayed there until the cleanup crew came to rid us of mold.
Somehing about this silly ball of yarn just cracks me up.
Knitting will get you through just about anything.


It is almost impossible to imagine that this time last year I was at my parent's farm watching the wind blow like crazy from their hurricane proof (we hoped) house. PeeWee was so little, Big Brother was kind of bored and we were amazed, watching the wind blowing like something on TV instead of real life. We were with My One and Only's family, who really hadn't wanted to evacuate. In fact, he would have stayed behind with them if they had not come, kicking and screaming. I'll give it to him that he had a feeling about the storm and told me to get all our papers together and brought some things he's fond of upstairs. He even rolled up the rugs and put them up high. He knew. Not sure how, but he definately knew.

What he and no one else didn't know was that our lives would change forever. Yet again. We'd already had a year to remember, with PeeWee being born early and travelling to California for her open heart surgery and the long slow recovery, not so much of her, but of the rest of us. We were pretty battered from the beginning but somehow we've come out on top. A little moldy, a little shattered, a lot more cynical. Many more grey hairs for both of us.

We came out intact, a lot closer, more guarded, and less likely to take things for granted. We learned that it really does change overnight. We'd learned that from PeeWee's entrance into the world, but I think this whole thing shook our world in a different way. I had planned to drive around the city today and take pictures of the evidence that still exists on my daily route of the damage and destruction, but since I can't escape the Thing, I now feel like documenting the damage may not be the thing to do. Maybe in a few days, but today I am sort of reeling from the fact that it's been a year and there is so little progress here.

I know it'll come though, because this place is a place that just shouldn't be here and somehow it survives everything. Near me, on my block, everyone's home. Two blocks over is gutted and boarded up, waiting to see if we can count on the government to provide us with real protection or if we're going to have to live with things the way they always are in Louisiana. I hope that we can keep up the momentum and get this city back. It's home, and I'll be staying here.

The debris pile in front of the house.
This is the third pile to be hauled away.
The first pile was the furniture that could not be salvaged.

The kitchen as I saw it when I finally came home to the gutted house.
You can see some counters piled on the floor- granite's heavy so it stayed there for weeks.
The dangling potholders have since been lost.

The kitchen today
Progress is good.

priorities

I got a reminder today from Lynda that there are days when we should just sit back and let the urgent things slide while we take care of the important things in our lives. I tend to get worked up in the urgent things, rushing around killing myself to get things done while ending up exhausted and cranky and unwilling or unable to do the things that are really important to me. I want my husband and children taken care of and happy and if I am miserable, that's not going to happen.


Most of the small stressful things in my life can be avoided by thinking beyond the next half an hour. I spend a lot of time avoiding the big picture, when the big picture is pretty nice around here. Sure, the last 2+ years have been a rollercoaster ride, but if you look back, it's been incredibly interesting. We've been through things we never in a million years thought we'd have to. We were given a lot to handle and it seems like we've come out on top. We've met facinating people and become good friends with some of them. We've gotten a lesson in what's truely important.

So, I'm going to go take care of the kids and my husband now and try not to let them annoy me too much. I have a hour before Big Brother gets home, so maybe I'll go finish one of those preemie hats.

Wowie!

Okay, I have seen double knitting, but really didn't understand how it worked. So, watching Knitty Gritty on TV while PeeWee was napping they were doing a double knit project. So incredibly cool. So, my day off from preemie hats was not wasted. Wow, it is so cool. I forgot to twist the first few rows, but realized what I was doing when it was actually 2 pieces of knitting. What genius came up with this? Knitting is cool.

A lesson in duplicate stitch

My brain reached it's limit for fair isle. Hat number 21 is a mess. I think it may be salvagable with some duplicate stitch. I've never done it before, but I did some embroidery in 3rd grade. I may need a break from tiny hats.

I think the real problem here is that the only paper I could find for the printer was green and I made a color copy of the blue pattern from the book and it's pretty hard to read. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Could not possibly be me making mistakes.)

It's Big Brother's first day of school. The Episcopal school he goes to has a new policy for middle school and the kids now have to "dress" for chapel days. I think it's good they teach them to dress nicely. They have a pretty tight dress code for regular days too. And we don't have too many events around here except holidays where he would otherwise dress up, so at least the jacket we had to buy will be worn more than once before he outgrows it. We have a closet full of jackets to be passed down to his cousins as they get big enough.

Since he has gym today he had to bring a bag with his shoes and socks. Those are some very big shoes. And poor kid, the only bag I could find was one for plastic cups. He has endless patience for me. He will have lots of good stories to tell his family one day.

Poor kid also has a lazy mother who makes him ride the school bus (more misery stories for the future kids) so he had to be up and ready to go before 7am. He had a few minutes to rest. It was really early. He had to get up and cut the mohawk off this morning too. Kid has a rough life.

I for one am glad he's home and school's starting again. We need a schedule around here. It's been a good summer, with Big Brother and PeeWee being very busy. I think if we looked at the calendar, Big Brother was probably gone more than he was here! And when he was here it seems like there was a pack of boys with him. I think he had a good summer.

Almost halfway there!

I am not entirely sure how it happened but when I recounted the hats I now have 20 finished. I guess I got more done this weekend then I thought. And there are some pretty cute ones too. You can see the dish full of them behind my trusty model. (And those watercolors are from a trip to Russia several years ago if anyone's curious.) I may reach my goal well before PeeWee's second birthday. (I do know that I have just called out to Karma to see if I am worthy of actually finishing this project. Hopefully being for the good of innocent babies, all will go without a hitch.)


I have gotten about halfway through the Kool-Aid sweater too. And I like the way the colors are showing. I need to finish the sleeve I have on the needles and another side of the front, then it's just blocking and assembling. All right, edgings too. I left off the edging on the sweater because I was unsure just how much yarn I had. I would rather have someone take my needles away then ask me to rip out ribbing, so I decided it was safer to knit the body first. It's probably a good thing I did tha because there's an awful lot going on here and it is even bright for a 2 year old. I was first thinking I would add edgings when I knew how much yarn I had left. (As you can see, there's going to be no shortage of this yarn! Maybe PeeWee will also have a matching hat, mittens, earmuffs, socks, a teddy bear and a little ball of yarn to play with. I do overestimate the yardage required. I live in fear of running short.) Seeing the actual fabric I'm making, I think I may go pick out on of those bright happy sock yarns I have been seeing around town.

Of course, I needed a portable project other than hats, so I also started some socks. I took them with me to get my hair um, "cut", and since all that cutting (not color, oh no no) takes such a long time, I needed something mindless and quick. I usually bring a preemie hat, often enough that the stylist asked me why I was knitting two identical hats. She's just adorable and keeps asking to learn to knit. I told her they have a drop in at the yarn store near where she lives, 'cause, I'm spreading the word.

45

So, in my good intentions, I called my friend the neonatologist at our hospital to get a head count. 45. 45 hats! I thought I was doing so well and I counted the hats in the pile and it turns out I have 13 finished, one on the needles. It may take a month to get the other 31 I need! It'll keep me busy. (Not that I need anything to keep me busy these days.)

I was told it would be really nice if I could do blankets too. I laughed out loud. His wife knits hats so he was teasing.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Aside from the pink and blue hat on the left these were what I knit over the week. My goal is a hat for every head in the NICU. I was so incredibly grateful for what we were given that I get everything from giving these back. Hopefully it'll inspire some extra acrylic/hypoallergenic/baby yarn stash use. I'll be doing a NICU Knit-a-long from September 29th until October 8th. Nothing but NICU knitting for those 10 days. It's the time I spent in the hospital before, during and after PeeWee was born. I figure if I got all this done in a week without devoting myself to it, I ought to be able to reach my goal for my hospital.

My basic preemie hat pattern is to find a suitable yarn- I really love the Plymouth Dream Baby. I have lots of it because my mother went on a buying spree at the LYS when PeeWee made her early entrance to the world and let me tell you, one ball of that makes a LOT of hats. So, little bits of stash work great for me. I use a lot of Cotton Tots, too. Bigger gauge and soft as can be. I've used that for blankets that knit up quickly and get softer with every wash.

Once I've found the yarn I cast on anywhere from 48 to 72 stitches- depending on my mood and on the yarn and stitch pattern. The neonatologists and NICU nurses at my hospital have told me they have kids from 24 weeks to 6 months there and they all need hats to keep them warm. They have their little NICU hats, but they love the look on the parents' faces when they come in and see a handknit hat on their baby's head. I remember when we arrived one morning to find all the little babies had blankets that a retired nurse had sewn. It was incredible to look around at all the isolettes and cribs and see them all covered up in matching blankets. We have ours (and everything else we were given) still. Perfect baby doll size!

So....... I cast on then knit in the round- I find it's easier and I don't have to worry about a very flat seam so no chance of irritating delicate preemie skin. I work my edging for about 1/2 inch to 2 inches- again my mood dictates this completely. I continue with whatever stitch pattern I want to use- sometimes just plain stockinette, a lot of fairisle (fun with something so tiny!), and anything I am trying to learn- cables, twists, anything. When I have gotten to where the hat, minus the edging is just a little taller than a square I start decreasing. Sometimes I'll go longer, make a rectangle and put tassles on the corners- cute jester hat look. Sometimes it gets an i-cord on top tied in a knot- I really like that- it gives me a giggle. Sometimes a pompom. Soem of the hats turn out pretty sophisticated, some are really silly. The occaisional hat looks a little wonky, but seems fine when I try it on my PeeWee model.

Once I've woven in all the ends, I wait until I have a few (or 30) to run them through the wash. I use a small amount of baby detergent, Dreft because it's what we have here, wash the hats with extra rinse on the cycle, and then- this is important! wash my hands before I put them into the dryer. No fabric softener, no dryer sheets. When they are completely dry I wash my hands again and put them straight into ziploc bags. They stay sanitary that way. I know when they get to the NICU at the hospital, no one with a runny nose or dirty hands or anything like that has gotten ahold of them.

Join me from the 29th of September to the 8th of October and lets see how many heads we can get a hat on!

back in town

Well, I am recovered from my family vacation to the mountains. The weather was incredible! Cool and breezy and really nice. The kids were kids and kept me on my toes. (interpret that as you want)

Lots of family time and hiking and PeeWee took nice long naps to give me lots of knitting time. I spent it mostly making preemie hats for the NICU. I worked on the fuzzy blue sweater, ripped it back 3 times when I kept making mistakes and am finally almost finished with the front top. It was nightmarish ripping all that fuzz back. Oh well. It is still soft and fuzzy and should be cozy for the two cool days in New Orleans. Maybe I'll just crank the A/C and enjoy it this fall...

Sock progress!

Finished the heel flaps... now I just need to turn the heels and keep knitting! Now that I know all I have is stockinette the rest of the foot, I hope the colors are exciting enough to keep me interested...

Crazy kid

Big Brother seems to have abandoned us for most of the summer. I guess it is much more fun when you go to your grandmother's house. PeeWee has been a busy little critter lately, and as you can see, she's just miserable most of the time.
We'll all be home tonight, it has been a while since we were able to sit down to a meal together. So, I guess that means I need to go to the grocery and come up with something everyone will enjoy. Enjoy the pictures of PeeWee being her regular self :)