My Henry

His name is Henry and he arrived early Thursday morning via C-section after about 14 hours of very valiant labour. Eight pounds, 14 ounces. Loved by all, especially me. That's all for now (can you tell I'm typing with one hand?

Family Photo Friday: Belly

I thought I'd subject you all to one last belly shot. I just got back from a very long and painful walk, but even if the baby isn't here soon, I probably won't be shooting the old belly again. It's pretty damn big, no? I'm getting to the point where strangers stare and me and ask personal questions. I'm waddling. If I need to get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom I feel like I'm going to die. It's a big belly. I'm officially about a week and a half more pregnant than I ever was with Ruby and by far the heaviest I've ever been in my life. 39 weeks. I don't know if I have the mental capacity to see 40.

Socks To Birth A Baby With

I didn't think that I'd get these socks done, what with the carpal tunnel syndrome and the baby telling me that he was ready two freakin' weeks ago, but done they are. Anastasia socks knit on size 1 needles with Koigu KPPPM (sorry, I'm not sure of the colourway). They're my first toe-up socks and frankly, I'm quite proud of them. The toes and the heels aren't perfect, but they're okay and I'm no longer completely frightened of toe-up patterns.


I made thse a little shorter because I a) wanted to finish them; b) was afraid I'd run out of yarn; and c) didn't want my ankles to get too hot with the thicker Koigu. Anyway, not much to say, except I like 'em.

Self Portrait Challenge: Politics Week #1

The SPC theme this month is Politics, and even though these assignments are coming out of Australia, the topic couldn't fit my little corner of the world any better today. Politics are a hot topic in our house today and let me tell you, in my pregnant state I'm not really feeling very mellow about things.

First up, today is a mini-Super Tuesday in the U.S. and I'm feeling pretty down about Hillary Clinton's slide in the polls since the mega-super Tuesday in early February. Good gravy, I wish I could vote in the U.S. Living in Canada makes one feel a bit like a disenfranchised voter -- we are really very affected by whoever wins the U.S. presidency (as the rest of the world is, I suppose), but we have no say. Now, I think Obama would certainly make an interesting president and I'm definitely glad to see George Bush go no matter who takes his place, but I think Clinton could really do a great job and she seems to be getting a raw deal. No, she's not as good an orator as Obama, but her policies are solid and despite what some see as a lack of charisma, I think her heart is in the right place. Not that Obama's isn't -- but more and more he seems to be speaking from a pulpit (figuratively, of course) and I fear that his rapid rise to the top may end up overwhelming him or affecting the purity of his personality. I really liked what Tina Fey had to say on Saturday Night Live the other night: "Sure, Hillary is a bitch, but bitches get things done." Word.

So, anyway, if you live in one of the four states holding primaries, please vote. I don't want to tell you who to vote for, but please make sure you're voting for policy, not populism. That's all I have to say.

Secondly, the province that I live in had an election yesterday and despite people constantly claiming about the governing party that has ruled here for 11 consecutive terms, they won again by a huge landslide. Part of their victory is due to the fact that in a place where people can make huge salaries in the private sector, our local political parties have been unable to attract leaders with any spark or ability to lead. As a result, we have the lowest voter turn-out in the country. So, we're saddled with up to five more years of embarrassing environmental policy (our premier won't cut carbon emissions until 2050 -- by which time he himself will likely be dead); growth that has made the gap between rich and poor unbearable; no rent control; terrible health care; and a general thumbing of our nose at the rest of the country. I could go on, but the entire incident just makes me really sad. I voted, but even as I did so, the whole situation just seemed hopeless. I fear that something really terrible is going to have to happen before anything changes -- you know, a hard rain's a-gonna fall...

So, that's me expressing my politics (somewhat inarticulately, but I'm nine months pregnant) and doing my best to do my part.

Ghosts Of Baby Sweaters Past

Thanks to everyone who gave me some good vibes about the pregnancy, either here or through private email, I think I'm finally accepting that I may have daily contractions for weeks to come. We were at the hospital today (baby changed positions and I didn't feel him move all morning) and I finally got some decent answers from the doctor, so I'm cool. Or as cool as a woman can be when she's nine months pregnant.

Anyway, this all does give me both the motivation and the time to get some more stuff ready for Frank's arrival. Back when I was pregnant with Ruby I tended to knit really unpractical baby items. Like, what you see above -- a baby cardigan knit out of sock yarn. It's the Diamond Seed Baby Jacket, from the Fall 2004 issue if Interweave Knits, knit in Lang Jawool. I don't remember any of the other details. From what I can remember, I started this in late 2004 and finished in January 2005 and finished everything short of sewing on the buttons. Why? I have no idea -- maybe when Ruby came out as a girl I didn't love it so much any more. Anyway, I kind of like it, despite the mis-matched stripes (I had never touched sock yarn before and didn't recognize this stuff as self-striping). So, a new sweater for Frank!


And, I also dug out this, which I'm pretty sure is the Basket-Weave Baby Sweater from the September 2004 Creative Knitting (I only know this from looking it up on Ravelry). I used Scheepjes Soft Fun. This was not a very successful sweater -- I think Ruby only ever wore it for a picture. The problem -- set-in sleeves. Not too friendly for a newborn. This may have worked as a larger sweater for a bigger baby, but it essentially is sized at about 10 lbs (at least how I knit it). I feel obligated to try it on Frank, but I'm not keeping my hopes up. Now I just have to get the kid to come out -- at this rate he's going to be way to big for any of these sweaters anyway.

*note: the Diamond Baby Jacket is actually in the Winter 2004 issue if IK. Sorry for the confusion.

Family Photo Friday: Random

Not much of a story today, I just wanted to check in and say that I haven't had a baby. All signs point to labour starting a.s.a.p., but there's been nothing but teaser contractions and such. Every now and then I think we're on our way to the hospital in a few hours and then everything stops. Does anyone have any experience with this kind of thing? I'm not getting a lot of info from medical professionals other than "it should start within 24 hours."

Anyway, here's a picture of my lovely Grandma Ruby when she was a young lady. Enjoy.

Nesting Portraits

So, remember how last post I was lamenting how my kids seem to be in such a hurry to be born (Ruby was two weeks early, and at three weeks to go, I'd gone into pre-labour with Frank). Well, I jinxed myself. Five days into pre-labour and there is no sign of the baby. Now, I understand that pre-labour can go on for weeks, but since my water broke with Ruby before any labour symptoms even started, this is new for me. It's freaky, it hurts, and I'm starting to get really impatient. Every time I talk to/see a medical professional they tell me that I should be good to go within 24 hours, but it's just not happening. I finally saw my OB today who quite frankly told me that it could be weeks still (his bedside manner leaves a lot to be desired, but at least he's matter-of-fact). Ugh. Well, at least I got to see the Oscars.

Through all of this I've been in pretty hard-core nesting mode -- on Thursday alone I did about six loads of laundry. I've also put together just about every piece of baby equipment we own and even though he'll be in our room for a few months in the cradle, I've been starting to transform my office into a nursery. In a way, this is hard for me because I'm not too jazzed about losing my who A Room Of One's Own vibe, but there's so many cute things to be done.


I've been wanting to make the Swatch Portraits that showed up at Purl Bee about a year ago since they first became such a blog sensation, but haven't had the motivation until now. A couple of months ago I bought a bunch of kids' fabric from (you guessed it) Reprodepot with the intention of making portraits for Ruby's room, but once they arrived I decided that they were a bit too baby-ish for my growingly mature little girl's room. Since they weren't too girly, I saved them for Frank and voila! Three swatch portraits to hang over his diaper table.


I really love all of these fabrics (I have a similar one with a Sleeping Beauty theme that I got from Superbuzzy, also ages ago) and I see them all over people's blogs. So cute. The yellow one is a Wizard of Oz theme, the brown one an ABC/apple pie kind of deal, and the white one about counting. So cute. I want to get more of the story-driven ones, but I have no idea what I'll do with them -- I'm just coveting.


So, that's about it. Wish me luck with this whole labour thing. Like I said, I'm not in too big of a hurry to see Frank -- he's still a few weeks before his due date -- but the anticipation that comes with this prelabour nonsense is killing me. I'm at 2 cm right now -- only 8 to go.

Grand Apron #2

I really wanted to whip up another nursing apron before baby day and I managed to eek out enough time yesterday. I used the same recipe as the last time, so the sewing and cutting only took a couple of hours to do. Easy as pie. I used some fabric that I got ages ago at Repro Depot. I bought it with no real purpose and a single yard was just the right amount for this apron. Hooray.


Above is a picture of it on. I didn't really have the patience to stage a decent self-shoot, so this is the best you get.

And, it looks like I finished just in the nick of time, as I seem to have gone into pre-labour. I think it's still going to be a couple of days, but it looks like I'm going to have another February baby. Three weeks early? Why can't these kids give me a little extra time? Always in such a rush!

Colorform Me Beautiful

Poor Ruby. Everything here has been about organizing the baby's clothes, putting together the baby's bed, finding time for mommy to have a rest... She's been throwing a lot of tantrums and just generally driving me crazy, which only makes me feel more guilty. Life's hard for a three-year-old princess who's being forced to abdicate her throne.

One thing that we're having fun doing together though, is old school Colorforms. She got the set for her birthday and it's the perfect retro, not changed for the new now times kind of toy. Just plain vinyl shapes that stick to shiny work boards. Leena bought them at the suggestion of Aaron's sister's girlfriend Erin, who is a really great artist and claims that Colorforms paved the way to art school for her.


As you can see, Ruby is influenced by the work of Jackson Pollock, who she knows from the original Olivia storybook (you know, Olivia sees a Pollock at the museum and then attempts to recreate it on the wall at home, which results in a time-out). Either way, it's good times and right now I'll take just about anything that keeps down the whining about turning on the TV.

Family Photo Friday: Happy V-Day

Happy belated Valentine's Day (or as my dear friend Kitty always calls it, V-D Day), if you're into that kind of thing. So far in these family photo things I've been mostly talking about my mom's family. This isn't a prejudice, it's just that I don't know quite as much about my dad's fam. My dad has never talked a whole lot about his family; he only has one brother who I don't see a whole lot; his dad passed away some years ago and was never very chatty about such things; and his mom, my Grandma Vi tends to... well, we'll call it exaggerating. I can't really fault her, as, ahem, creative embellishment is a trait shared by both my father and myself as well, but it's really hard to believe much that she says. And as she gets older her memory gets more creative. So take the following story with a grain of salt.

The above photo is the portrait taken at Grandma Vi and Grandpa George's wedding in about 1941 or so. I don't know many details about their wedding -- although they claim they had to run away to get hitched because neither's parents approved of their engagement. But, here's the story of how they (and I do stress, allegedly) met. My grandfather worked as a refrigeration repair technician and my grandmother worked as a receptionist at some company that he had to call often. They came to recognize each other's voices and took to flirting on the phone. Vi claims that his voice was rather sexy.

So, one night, Vi was out bowling with some girlfriends. Apparently, my clumsy ways were also inherited from her and as she lobbed the ball down the alley her feet fell out from under her and she went sliding to the ground. A gentleman from the next lane walked over and said "Can I help you up?" She immediately looked up at him, recognized that sexy voice and said "George?" To which he replied, "Vi?" And they lived happily ever after.

Up until the time of his death, George liked to say "Yup, I picked her up out of the gutter." He meant it to be charming and she always thought it was.


In other news, Aaron really pulled one out of the hat for our Valentines Day. Much to my horror, he's been out of town for work a lot lately (I'll remind you I'm eight months pregnant!) and he came home from New York yesterday with cupcakes from Magnolia. I know people who live in NYC are totally over Magnolia, but in these parts they're quite an exotic treat from my sweet.

Kickin' With Koigu

When it comes to socks, I'm a bit of a one trick pony. Lorna's Laces (or yarn with exactly the same thickness) knit on US #1 DPNs, cuff down, with a standard heel flap and a really simple lace or rib pattern. The lovely and talented Lucy showed up at my Christmas party in December with a hostess gift of sock yarn! Is that not totally awesome? She gave me a nice fat hank of Cherry Tree Hill, plus two hanks of Koigu Kpppm, which I've never dared to use before.

I admit, I've been frightened of Koigu because of the slightly thicker weight and the recommended size 3 needles on the label. I'm not great at adjusting for gauge and I know that most sock patterns will work with my standard Lorna's Laces formula. So, I sought out patterns that specifically called for Koigu, starting with Crusoe, which I don't love the look of (it's a stranded slip-stitch pattern), but seem to do well with the Koigu.

Mistake. I didn't heed the word of the naysayers on Ravelry, who complained that these socks knit up way too small and overestimated the heavyness of the Koigu. After knitting the gusset and the heel I realized that there was no way that I'd get these socks on my feet. Way too tight. I never wear my Jaywalkers because there's no give, so even if I added more stitches or went up another needle size (which I'd already done), I was going to hate these socks. I frogged so quickly that I didn't even have time for a picture. So I moved on to Anastasia.

Again, I wasn't totally confident with my ability to guess on the gauge (and I can't be bothered to swatch with socks), so I went with the recommended needle size and, as you can see from the above photo, they were way too big. But, I'm so excited about my first pair of toe-ups and I love the simple pattern that I cast on with smaller needles and completed my first sock yesterday. And it fits. And the short row heel and toe don't look totally horrible. Hoorah!

I'll post pictures once I'm done sock #2 -- I really want to finish before the baby comes so that I can wear them for the delivery or pad around the hospital in them. Wish me luck!

SPC: Blue Week #2

Do you expect much from Valentines Day? When we first got together, I always half expected Aaron to surprise me with a Valentine -- nothing too special, but something. I was always disappointed. I'd come home from work expecting to be greeted by a bouquet of flowers or a heart-shaped box, and I'd just get Aaron asking me what I was cooking for dinner. I've learned to stop expecting and even to stop asking -- when I do suggest something specific (afterall, the guy isn't a mind reader), he gets angry, saying that I'm only spoiling any surprise that he may have been planning. It's too complicated.

He is pretty good with birthdays though (other than the first year of our marriage when he gave me Julia Child's Mastering The Art Of French Cooking as an unsubtle hint that he wanted me to improve my culinary skills). And he has a charming habit of buying me costume jewelry, something I never do for myself. So, in honour of my sometimes romantic husband, here's one of my favourite necklaces, in a shade of blue that he often turns to for his purchases (I have a similar-shaded ring, which I can't model because my hands are way too puffy these days). I love it. And I love it all the more because it was indeed a surprise.

Quinoa-Wah!

We've been having some digestive problems in our house. Okay, Ruby has. The kid is picky -- I think we manage to get an alright amount of fruits and veg and fibre into her diet, but her preferences lean towards cheese ravioli, pizza, peanut butter sandwiches, bananas and other constipating foods. So, I'm trying to sneak at least one super duper healthy ingredient into any baked snack, just to get some extra oomph (and hopefully some regularity) into her little bod.

I don't know if quinoa is any good for constipation (it's a whole grain, but full of iron, which can bung kids up), but overall it's such a healthy food, I figured I can't go wrong. I've always kept quinoa in the house, but rarely cook with it. We're not really fancy salad for dinner kind of people (and by that, I mean Aaron and Ruby), and I don't have the patience to try a lot of the hippie veggie recipes that tend to call for quinoa. So I was really happy to find this recipe for Quinoa Muffins from Martha Stewart.

I made them as is, but used chocolate chips instead of raisins. The hot quioa immediately melted the chips, but that actually makes the muffins all the more delicious. And the kid loves them. Hoorah!

Family Photo Friday: Happy Birthday Mom

Tuesday marks my mom's birthday. I'm not going to tell you how old she is, but she's quite young to be mother to three kids in their thirties (actually, my youngest brother is 29, but close enough). Let's just say she has a few years to go before she hits 60. She's always looked pretty young too -- or maybe we just choose not to see our own mother's signs of aging... I'm not sure.

Anyway, this is a picture of mom with her father, my Grandpa Ed, the night of her wedding. It was a really casual affair -- my dad (who I think she'd been dating for about a year or so) was called to work overseas and his company would arrange to also move out his wife, but not his girlfriend. So, with very little notice, they arranged to get married at a downtown church. I always loved looking at the pictures from the reception, where my mom changed out of her wedding dress (which was a very polyester '70s affair with a mock turtleneck collar) into this outfit, which kind of looks like a glammed-up nurses outfit or a kickier version of what supermarket clerks wore in the '70s. I really love this outfit -- I wish she'd have kept it. Anyway, she looks so young and happy and really, not much different than she looks today. Happy birtday mom. You're a good one.

Grande Apron #1

After making those wee aprons for Ruby (one of which she wore to help make dinner last night... sigh), I've turned to super-sized aprons. I didn't use a nursing apron when I was feeding Ruby. In fact, I think they've only gained popularity in the last couple of years (I could be wrong on this), because in my mom's group, only one of us used one as far as I know. I found that my lack of a cover made for a limited wardrobe choice -- while I'm not shy about feeding in public, I always did so in a t-shirt that I could discreetly pull up rather than something that needed to be pulled down from the top, as to not show my goods to the whole world. I believe in being natural, but I also have my pride.

You can buy nursing aprons in all kinds of super hip fabrics, but like their cousins the hipster sling (which I did buy -- I don't trust myself to sew anything that requires safety standards), they're mucho expensive. So, I decided to try my hand making one. I used the Vintage Apron pattern from Amy Karol's Bend-The-Rules Sewing as my starting point and just made a few simple modifications. I made it about five inches longer than the pattern called for and only gathered it up to 19 inches rather than 15 inches at the top. I tucked the edges of the waistband in and sewed them flush to the body of the apron and attached the ties vertically, rather than horizontally. Not rocket science at all.


Here it is on -- I think my belly roughly simulates how much room the baby will take up underneath. I love the fabric, which is another super cheap-o deal I found at a local going-out-of-business sale. I added the pocket to stick any supplies I need in and some rick-rack to keep it sassy. I plan to make at least one more of these before Frank makes his appearance because as any mother already knows, these things tend to get covered in barf and end up in the laundry often.


I also treated myself to a new teapot, since I'll be able to jump back on the multiple cups of tea bandwagon before too long and my old teapot is all gross and flaky inside. Nothing special, I just think it's pretty.

SPC: Blue Week #1

Blue (the photo is, obviously, a very literal interpretation of the theme -- though it also captures the mood of "having the blues," as I took it last night when I was tired and worn out after Ruby being sick all day. Also, no make-up, which is a sign of not having left the house all day, thus giving me the blues).

* the colour of my daughter's eyes, even though mine are hazel and Aaron's are a deep soulful brown

* how can you think about blue today without thinking about the Democrats? So exciting -- way more exciting in these parts than that Superbowl business

* baby boys clothing. Everything is blue -- it's really quite difficult to find something fun for an infant (i.e. not "manly" outfits that are essentially business casual for babies) that isn't blue. Even the orange and red stuff usually has a flower or a heart or something to girlify it.

* Blue Bayou, Blue Moon, Forever In Blue Jeans, Blue Suede Shoes, Blue Moon Of Kentucky, Blue Velvet, Blue Monday, Blue Skies, Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue, Behind Blue Eyes, Lady Sings The Blues, Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain, Navy Blue, Song Sung Blue, Famous Blue Raincoat, Tangled Up In Blue

* Other than jeans and a navy sweater, I don't own any blue clothing. I also can't stand blues music.

more blues next week...

Baby Boy In The Hood

Whew, it's been a little tough around here. After a fun, but stressful birthday party for our little lass, she came down with a horrible cold and fever yesterday. Ugh. Plus Aaron's all stressed with Aaron stuff and I've been diagnosed with pregnancy-related carpal tunnel syndrome. Ouch. It'll go away after I have the baby, but it also means that production will slow in the craft department, since it hurts to knit for more than a half hour and I'm not even going to think about hand sewing or embroidering anything.

So, you're looking at what will probably be my final baby knit before the baby moves up to a larger size. It's the Hoodie Baby Blanket from the November 2007 Magknits. Not much to report here: I used Lion Brand Cotton Ease in the green and blue colours. I kind of miss the old wackier colours, but the subdued ones are kind of nice too, in that I appreciate Lion Brand's efforts to make themselves more appealing to yarn snobs, because it makes me more comfortable in making such an economical purchase -- even though the cost isn't high, I still feel like I'm making something nice with a yarn worthy of my effort.

Anyway, this is simple as pie -- I didn't modify the basic pattern or try to do anything fancy since time was definitely a factor on this one (and I'm still hurting from NEVER finishing the baby blanket I was knitting while pregnant with Ruby). It's just a nice big square of stockinette with a little triangle attached, then edged in broken rib. Easy.


Here's Snow White modeling the blanket/towel. With Frank I'm being really careful about only spending my time making super practical things. I know that Leena has been working on a beautiful wool blanket for him, which will be his heirloom piece and I wouldn't be surprised if my mom crochets or cross-stitches something. Fancy-pants baby stuff is for gifts. Mama's gotta keep it real.

Family Photo Friday: Happy Birthday Ruby

Despite the growing popularity of the name Ruby, I didn't choose it for my little gal because it's now and hip, or because it appears in so many songs (though, with the exception of that Kaiser Chiefs song, most Ruby songs are way too sad to name a kid after -- though I will note, she was born on a Tuesday). I named my daughter after my grandmother, who I always thought had a beautiful name to match her beautiful self. I'm sure I'll talk much more about Grandma Ruby in these Family Photo Fridays (she's still alive and well, so she's a fountain of stories), but I thought this picture was particularly appropriate for my little Ruby's third birthday.

A funny thing about Grandma Ruby's name: when she was born in 1923, her parents Fred and Lydia had a hot debate over what to name their little daughter. Lydia liked the name Ruby (which was very popular at the time) and Fred wanted to name her Frieda, after himself. It's puzzling to me why he would be so stuck on Frieda, since Ruby did have an older brother named Ted -- I guess Fred didn't win the name battle with him either. Anyway, Lydia was apparently not the kind of woman you wanted to mess with, so Fred agreed to name the baby Ruby. He went off and registered the name (you can see where this is going).

So, about 40 years later, the now grown Ruby went to the local records office to get a copy of her birth certificate because she needed to apply for a passport or something. After searching through the records (this was in the pre-computer days), the guy at the office regretted to tell her that he didn't have a certificate for a Ruby Frieda, but he did have a Frieda Ruby with the same parents and birthday as hers. That rascal Fred went behind his wife's back and named the kid Frieda anyway, with no one the wiser. Fred was gone before this news was revealed and I'm not sure if Ruby told her mother what had happened or if she just let it go. Either way, she had to legally change her name to what she thought it was for the first 40 so years of her life.

So, there's a picture of Ruby, on what I imagine is her fifth or sixth birthday. I love the picture even though it doesn't really capture who she is -- I've never known her to be scowly or morose, she's actually very sweet and delightful. Like another Ruby I know.

P.S. Sorry about the tiny-ness of the photo. Pictures in those days were pretty small and my scanner couldn't make it any bigger.

Dear Ruby: Volume Three

Dear Ruby,

This is the third time I've written to you on the eve of your birthday -- by the time the sun comes up tomorrow morning, you'll be three years old. I can't believe it; I say this every year, but it feels like you were just a baby, though I can't ever remember life without you.

In the last year you've grown from a fun and curious toddler into a beautiful and clever young lady. While you often try my patience (usually unintentionally -- you're actually an amazingly well-behaved girl), you're delightful and charming and I feel honoured to get to spend my days with you (if you're reading this as a teenager, please don't let that last statement go to your head).

Here are some of the special things that make me think of you:

* You love music. One of your favourite games is pretending that you're Tina Turner or Marc Bolan from T-Rex (yes, we're warping your sense of musical currency) and singing while Daddy plays the guitar.

* You love swimming. Daddy takes you to lessons and you always impress the teacher.

* You love to talk. You talk more than anyone in our house (which is saying a lot, because as your Dad will tell you, I have been known to be pretty verbal myself).

* You're very sensitive. If another kid is crying, you get incredibly concerned.

* You're going to be an amazing sister. Your brother (who you call Frank) is due in a month and you hug and kiss him every day.

* Every day you tell me "Mama, I love you all the way to the moon. And back." I can't type any more about that without starting to cry.

Obviously, there are so many things that make you you, but that's just a taste. For now, happy birthday, my baby. I'm looking forward to many many more to come.

SPC: Celebration Week #4

So, I was going to photoshop Michael Cera into this shot in case the reference was lost, but I think my striped shirt does the trick. Now, I've already mentioned that I didn't LOVE Juno with a capital L-O-V-E but, I'm feeling celebratory about my Canadian brothers and sisters who heard their names in last week's Oscar noms. Now, it kind of drives me crazy when the Canadian media get too frothed at the mouth about any Canadian connection in a hit American movie, but you gotta be proud of little Ellen Page and Michael Cera. Overrated? Perhaps. But still pretty darn good.

I love celebrating the Oscars, and I'm taking my chance now, since the show may or may not actually happen this year. Last year I won my Oscar party pool plus my annual bet with my dad -- what will I do without that thrill this year? Well, I guess it's really about the movies, not the awards, so I'm going to do my best to see No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood before Frank is born. To celebrate the cinema.

Ruby Red

I finished my final handmade gift for Ruby's birthday. I didn't make her anything for Christmas, so I figured I'd make up for all those made in China toys with plenty of handmade goods. After the two aprons I figured she needed an actual toy. I've been meaning to make the Ruby Doll over at One Red Robin for ages (for obvious reasons) so I finally got down to it.

This gal is easy, easy, easy to do, even for novice sewers like myself (though I did give her a very rustic look, not entirely intentional). She's pretty 2-D (i.e., no bottom), so there's no round pieces or gussets to worry about. I used a bunch of fabric scraps left over from last year's Wee Wonderful-mania and I really like the folksy look of this doll. Plus she took about two hours to make from start to finish, which is a big bonus. There's also room for tons of variation: check out the other Rubies over at the Ruby Doll Flickr Group.


Speaking of bright red, I made some delicious beet soup the other day, courtesy of Martha Stewart/Everyday Food's vegetable puree soup recipe. I don't have time to look up the link, but you basically just saute an onion in olive oil, add a couple of pounds of beets (or whatever else you fancy), a cup and a half of chicken stock and enough water to cover the beets. Simmer for 20 minutes or so, puree, and to make it really good, add a few tablespoons of lemon juice. If you want, do like I did and pour portions into ziplocks and freeze. Yum! Though, be careful if you're using a hand blender -- I'm still cleaning up beet juice.

Family Photo Friday: Archie and Ed

I've long wanted to participate in Andrea's Photo Booth Friday, but I just don't have enough photo booth photos to sustain it and really, it's so much cooler if you're using old photos rather than only ever brand new ones. I recently dug up a bunch of my grandma's old pictures and I'm scanning them into Flickr. Since my crafting is going to grind to a halt before long and I want to keep the blog rolling, I thought it might be fun to post some of them here and share the stories.

The above is a picture (I think) of my Grandfather, Ed. The caption on the back reads "Archie White and I gassing mites at Munson Annex. 1941". He would have been in his early 20s, and I guess this would have been shortly before he was shipped off to war. Munson is a rural prairie town when I think he worked as a grain elevator man. I don't have them, but there are bunches of photos of him in the early 40s (before he married my grandma) squiring around young ladies -- I think he was a rather popular figure. You can't tell with the gas mask, but he was a pretty handsome guy and seems to be having a lot of fun in a lot of these early pictures.

Grandpa passed away about 10 years ago, so I can't ask him any more about this day, but I think it makes for a pretty cool picture. And I have absolutely no idea who Archie White is. But he apparently did not like mites.

Petit Apron #2

Here it is, the skirt-style apron to compliment Ruby's smock. I like the smock a lot, but Roo is a very particular little lady and I know that she'll want a skirt like mine. I used Amy Karol's Vintage Apron pattern from Bend-The-Rules Sewing, and it really was easy as pie. I reduced the dimensions to 65 per cent (except for the width of the waistband and ties, which I kept the same) and added the bias tape pockets, also from the book. The whole thing took a couple of hours and was really easy.

It's not a perfect work by any means -- I'm still learning and my finishing skills are kind of crap (Tim Gunn would gravely furrow his brow if he looked at the back side and the stitching). The gathering is a little lopsided too, but I'm thinking that Ruby won't really care. The material is from a local fabric store that was having a going out of business sale, so I picked up some of this daisy fabric. It's weird how the difference between an awesome design and a so-so design is such a fine line -- it the daisies were just a slightly different shape and the yellow was a slightly different shade, this would sell on SuperBuzzy at 12 bucks a yard. But it's just a wee bit off, so it was three bucks a yard. I still like the way it looks, but it doesn't have the pizazz that the smock does.

I still have one more little project to do before Ruby's birthday. Here's hoping everything gets done on time.

SPC: Celebration Week #3

I have a sneaking suspicion that I've run this photo before as a Self Portrait Challenge -- apologies for the cop-out. But, since we have a major celebration coming up at the end of this month, it seemed apt to run this one. It's still a little over a week away, but we'll be celebrating our little gal's third birthday. I'll go into more detail on the actual day, but with all the talk of Frank's arrival and the celebration surrounding that, it's important for our family to stop and pay tribute to our special girl, who may not be getting as much attention as she's used to in six to eight weeks' time. So, here's to Ruby. She's a good one.

Super Surprise

And the machine doesn't stop. Seriously, I'm feeling an internal drive to finish as much as humanly possible in the next month or so, with ideas constantly popping up into my mind. Prepare for it to stop at any time, but for now I'm having fun.

I completed the knitting for my Baby Surprise Jacket a few weeks ago (I think) and I finally took the time to carefully seam the shoulders, weave in the edges and sew on the buttons. So, here are the official specs:

Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmerman (I ordered the pamphlet from School House Press
Yarn: Colinette Cadenza in Slate and Rowan Tapestry (for the button band)
Needle: US #6
Mods: I made the button band and bottom edge about three or four rows shorter than the pattern called for and also only put in three buttons.


I love how this turned out. It was exciting to knit and the surprise construction was really worth my obsessive knitting (I finished it in less than a week of evening knitting). The yarn is really spongey and soft -- and superwash! I did run out of yarn at the button band, so I switched to a colourway of Rowan Tapestry that had a similar gauge and colour, rather than going for a contrast. I think it still looks pretty good, even though you can tell that it's a different yarn.

I stupidly did my gauge switch in stockinette without realizing the pattern is entirely in garter stitch, so it's a little bigger than I would have liked, but since Frank seems also be a little bigger than expected, it may be for the best. This sweater is really fun and I know with the big wide arms, we'll actually get some wear out of it. Hooray!

Calorimetry Part Two

I must be going through some weird nesting thing, because the making is in full force around these parts. Even if I feel the need to rest, I find that I get twitchy if my hands are idle. The other day I showed my mom my finished Calorimetry and she mentioned how much she could use one, since she also doesn't really like wearing a winter hat. Now, my mom doesn't often ask me to make her stuff and I don't often do handmade gifts for her because our taste tends to differ. So, I couldn't say no.

My mom isn't a particularly fancy lady and she said she wasn't fussy about yarn or colour as long as it was warm, so I dug out some Brown Sheep Naturespun from my stash and went for it. Since I was using a not-quite-worsted and the gals on Ravelry have all said that the recommended 120 stitches was way too much, I cast on 110, which was 20 less than my previous DK version and also used a U.S. 7 needle rather than a #8. I also made it four rows shorter than the pattern called for, and I'm telling you, this sucker is still really big. The length is just right, but when I tried it on (I'll spare you another picture of my face in model-look mode) it went from my hairline right to the back of my head. It fits my mom a little bit better, but I'd really urge anyone who knits this (and I know there are about a million of you out there who are still planning to try this one) to really use your judgement when sizing it.

On another note, I saw my doctor today and he told me that Frank is in the 90th percentile size-wise, which means that if he goes all the way to 40 weeks, it's very likely that I'll have a 10 pound baby. A gigantic super-active boy to match my tiny demure little girl. They say that siblings can be so different and it looks like I'm in for a crazy new experience. Yikes!

Petit Apron #1

Although I've been yearning to knit, there are a few sewing projects that I've promised myself I'd take care of before it's, you know, too late. I've wanted to make Ruby her own apron for a while now and ages ago, I bought the Simplicity 4286 pattern with the notion of making the smock style. So, I did it. Here it is. Upon inspection, there are a few little details that need finishing, but this is pretty much it.

I can't quite remember where the fabric came from, but I'm pretty sure it's Reprodepot. In retrospect, I think it would have been easier to have just used the Swing Smock pattern from Bend-The-Rules Sewing, but the end result is pretty close to being the same. This one was super easy, but I did find the amount of bias tape really annoying. Still, it's super cute, so totally worth it.

With all that said, after prodding Ruby a bit, it's clear that she wants an apron more like Mommy's, so I'm going to whip her up a wee skirt apron. I still have another couple weeks until her birthday, so as long as I don't go too heavy on the bias tape, I should be fine.

SPC: Celebration Week #2

I'm beginning to realize that our trip to Hawaii was by far our biggest December celebration this year. As much as I love Christmas, it was far too busy and stressful this year, what with my pregnancy, coming back from our trip and scrambling to see visiting friends. Too much. We all ended up getting sick, which made it even worse. But Hawaii, that was a celebration.

For some reason, that place does something magical to us, and it was really important for us to go there as a family of three, without any other friends or family along for the ride (in the past we've always gone with my parents and my brothers, which is awesome too, but in a different way). It was a celebration of us: where we are now and where we're going in a mere eight weeks.

p.s. check out how long Ruby's toes are! She gets it from her dad.

Warm Ears, Happy Hair

Even though I have tons of sewing projects that I actually need to get done in the next little while, I've been craving the feel of good old knitting lately. I pulled out a ball of Rowan Tapestry that I got from a secret pal exchange last year to finish the button band on my Baby Surprise Jacket (more on that once I finish the finishing on that thing) and after some poking around on Ravelry, I realized that the rest of the yarn would make a great Calorimetry. I've been meaning to make this little scarf for about a year now and I'm really happy I did.


Isn't it cute? It would be more practical if I still had long hair in an up-do, but as someone who can only wear toques for a limited amount of time due to hot head, I think this will make for a good winter alternative. Not that I need it just yet -- I know many of you across North America have suffered some pretty terrible weather this winter, but it's actually been pretty nice around here since late November (um, knock on wood). Anyway, this is a pretty straight-up Calorimetry, only I cast on 10 extra stitches, since I was using a DK yarn and size 6 needles rather than a worsted and size 8s. I didn't add any extra rows because I didn't want it to be too wide.

In other news, I've followed Andrea over to this site, since I have so much time that I'm trying to waste these days. Oh, Internet, you're trying to kill me.

Baker's Secret

Ruby has developed a huge enthusiasm for baking. It's so great -- it's something I need to start doing more of anyway (so she can bring homemade snacks to preschool instead of the shamefully convenient pack of goldfish) and it's a good way to keep her busy in the afternoon so that she doesn't fall into her default activity of pestering me to turn on the TV. I'm even making her her own apron for her birthday, though it's smock-style and I think she may demand a skirt apron like mine. Maybe I'm making her two aprons for her birthday, we'll see.

Yesterday we made a batch of Martha Stewart's Oatmeal Raisin Squares, though we used craisins instead of raisins. I also used a combo of butter and applesauce since the recipe calls for a whopping three sticks of butter. That's crazy -- if I'm making anything with three sticks of butter it better be a chocolately dessert or shortbread, not a hippie mom oatmeal snack. I think I should probably have put in even more applesauce, because the oatmeal part was a little dry and floury. Next time. But they're still delicious -- I've eaten a ton of them myself, since my pregnancy appetite is finally kicking in. I took a picture, which is entirely unappetizing, but take my word for it: delicious. Next time I might branch out and try dried apricots or something crazy. Anything for my little chef.

p.s. It just occurred to me that this is hardly the sublime blog picture that you see on some of the other blogs out there, mainly because Aaron has decided to claim a corner of my baking space as his liquor cabinet. Ruby and I don't drink scotch and gin when we bake -- obviously, she and I don't drink hard liquor at all. This is what's keeping me from reaching the upper echelons of bloggers -- my inability to catch these things before I take or post the pictures. Sigh.

And... Ta-Dah!

I think the phrase is "obligatory BSJ shot." So, here it goes.

Before:


And After:


Even though there's only two seams and I only made holes for three buttons, I can't guess as to when I'll actually get around to finishing this, so for now you have the "what is that mess?" and "omigod, it's a baby jacket!" shots. I found this knit so addictive because I couldn't wait to see how it turned out. Now that I have a jacket and (hopefully) no baby for another two months, I'm in no hurry to get out the old tapestry needle. Mind you, I just found a sweater that I knit out of sock yarn (!) for Ruby before she was born that never got buttons or ends woven in. Jeepers.

SPC: Celebrate Good Times, C'mon

Okay, so I've been a bit of a complainer for the past couple posts. Yes, I've been sick. But in the grand scheme of things, a cold isn't that bad -- on the whole I'm pretty damn healthy. And yes, I'm tired. But it's because I've been chasing around an increasingly charming and beautiful three-year old (how is it that they get more amazing all the time?) and I've got a very healthy baby boy kicking up a storm in my tummy. And yes, I'm busy. But it's because I've got lots of interesting things to do and lots of interesting and lovely friends to see. Is that any reason to complain? No sir.

So, here's another belly shot (c'mon, it's been months since the last one!) to celebrate the good times. C'mon!

W.I.P. Friday

I'm still here. I'm still sick (coughing a lot while 7 mos. pregnant is not a fun thing) and I've been kept really really busy with a new development in my career, but I've actually been doing some crafty stuff too. The work stuff that I'm working on hasn't come at a particularly convenient time for my crafting, what with Ruby's birthday and Frank on the way, but I'm determined to get a couple things done.

What you see above is my first Frank project. In case you can't tell what this big blob is, I'll drop three words: Baby Surprise Jacket. I've always wanted to try the way of the Zimmerman, but have always been too chicken/confused. I thought that the perfect project to start with is the much discussed BSJ. So far so good -- I know others have found the "pattern" (okay, two paragraphs of instructions) confusing, but I think I'm getting it. The problem is, of course, that with this one you gotta have faith, and it's driving me nuts not knowing the pattern well enough to tweak things like length as I go. I'm also a little worried about my yarn supply -- but my fingers are crossed.


I also went to good old Michael's and picked up some Cotton Ease for the Hoodie Baby Blanket from the November Magknits. I'm feeling like with this second kid I definitely have more realistic ideas of what to knit for the babe. Don't expect to see any cute but ridiculous baby booties in these parts any time soon.

New Year, Old Projects

Not much to post about today -- everyone in these parts is sick, sick, sick (except Ruby -- big knock on wood). The house party we were planning to go to last night was canceled at the last minute due to illness on the part of the hosts, which left Aaron and I kind of relieved (not that our friends were sick, but you know). So, we still let Ruby sleep over at my folks' house and we went out for a Moroccan dinner and a movie (Juno, which is funny and cute but waaaaay over-rated by my fellow critics. The dialogue is far to stifled and clever for it to be movie of the year). We were in bed by 11:30. Now Aaron is groaning on the couch over some kind of tummy bug and my throat is rapidly closing up. Great. But it's off to work for both of us tomorrow (I'm taking a writing contract to busy me pre-baby), so we better heal fast.

Like many of you bloggers, I've put together a little Flickr mosaic, rather than boring you with the details of my crafty year that was. I'm shocked by how many projects I actually finished, considering how pregnant I was for half of the year. Sadly, I'm not expecting as grand a grid next year, unless I decide to fill it with baby pictures.