KnitterlyNotions

Yesterday we had a WIC appointment. Antoinette has gained a pound since she was born: her weight was 9 pounds, 8 ounces. Length measurement was slightly off, but we didn't end up redoing it. I'm 21 pounds less than I was the day before she was born! I've been knitting on a pair of slippers for  The Bridge to Hope  here in town. It's the local domestic violence shelter. I called them on Monday and they expressed interest in washcloths and slippers. I'm making these slippers,  Alice's Booties pattern . It's a piece of cake. Here is the first one. I have it seamed and ready, and have two more decrease rows for the second one and then the cuff. I *think* these are women's size 6-8 (stretchy, you know) but I'm not 100% on that. There is only one cast on number/size in the pattern, but I think it should work to adjusts the size by varying the cast on number as long as I keep it a multiple of 4. I haven't decided if I will make the next pair bigg...

I found a sweet pattern for a baby burial bunting that I got actual loss mama recommendation for. It's the  Knitted Burial Bunting pattern  and one of the moms in HAPL on Ravelry said she got one for her daughter. She said it was just right. I'm taking that recommendation to the bank and am making a bunch of them. First one is meant for Rochester Methodist Hospital in Rochester, whenever I get there again. Second and third ones are for  Matthew's Gift  (link goes to a previous blog post that I did about them, which contains pertinent links). I am about to cast on my fourth one. They're rather addictive. I'm also working on a crocheted bunting that is similar to these knitted ones. I'm making up the pattern, noting what I'm doing, and I will probably put the directions up here. There aren't too many burial item patterns, or perhaps I should say there should be more patterns. Especially patterns that are nice for boys. Lace and frills are...

I discovered a new charity. Well, I knew about it, but I hadn't paid too much attention to it. Recently though, I read through it all and I now have Tiri's little froggy bank repurposed as a postage saving bank. :-) Here is the  Matthew's Gift Facebook page  and the  Matthew's Gift Ravelry group . Matthew's mom is putting together memory boxes for lost babies, with gowns and hats for the babies and keepsakes for their mothers. The photos of her first donation are lovely. I would have loved to get a box this beautiful and personalizes when Freddy was born. I've been knitting and crocheting, of course. I'm working on a  Knitted Burial Bunting . Adorable little thing! I made one that I plan to take to Rochester at some point, and now some for M'sG. If you have the heart for it, please check out Matthew's Gift and contribute what you can. <3

This is Fritz. :) He was born May 11th at 1:23 pm. Labor was long and I ended up getting an epidural so I could calm down and deal. (Fear+tension+pain cycle is totally real, though my fear was about something happening to Fritz rather than labor itself.) I almost caved and asked for a cesarean, but ended up having the epidural instead. I apparently am really good at pushing out babies. I pushed a whole ***three minutes*** to birth my 8 pound 2 ounce son. With nary a tear. Hardest part of recovery was a backache from the epidural hitting the place my chiropractor always says is out of place and making it spasm and be sore. He's a great little guy. I've been having lots of fun taking pictures. ;)

Sadly, none of these are for Fritzy. The booties are this pattern:  Michelle's Preemie/Newborn Hat and Booties The ball is this pattern:  Val's Original Yarnball Pattern The others were just made up as I went. :) The top two photos could be gifts for someone I know.... The rest is for charity.

I've been slacking a bit with the knitting and crocheting. Just feeling slow, and my hands aren't as happy as they were. I think I need to have my chiro work on them again tomorrow. I can't *not* make things though, so here is what I've managed lately. This one was made mostly during my birth class. I'm thinking of keeping it, if for no other reason than that. :) Charity hat. I was going to take it to WIC, but we shall see. It might go to the Yarnology knitting group instead. These are for Fritz. I called them Diaper Bag Booties and Diaper Bag Hat. They were supposed to be a set but the hat came out rather bigger than the booties. They should both fit him eventually though. They are in the diaper bag, for those times when you encounter unexpected chilliness. Charity hat using a whole small skein I got on clearance at JoAnn's. It's very soft, but a pain to work with as most boucle yarns are. These two use scraps that I found at...

I broke down and bought a new hook, and I finished up Fritz's blanket! :) It's so soft! :) His sweater has the start of a sleeve, but I haven't gotten too much farther on it. I did make booties for him! I started a hat to match these booties. I'm calling these booties and hat "Diaper Bag Booties" and "Diaper Bag Hat" because that's just where they are going. I got to thinking that I should keep a hat and booties in the bag, because there are lots of variable for a warm weather baby. You have them dressed for heat, and then you go in somewhere that's chilly, like the grocery store. :) Yay knitting excuse. Last Saturday I went to an all-day birthing class at Sacred Heart. It was sort of interesting. I did some internal head shaking about a few things, but I also liked some of the things I heard. They're pretty adamant about the breastfeeding, which makes me happy. They said they want skin to skin for at least an hour after B...

I am 30 weeks pregnant. Let me ask you, how the heck did that happen? Still, it could be another 10 weeks before Fritz is here... or it could be 8, with each passing day bringing it closer. Having a bit of an omg flail. I started a sweater and a blanket but have finished neither. The hook for the blanket has mysteriously vanished, and I had a cut that wouldn't let me knit for a few days. It's better today though so woo hoo. :-) We've procured a double stroller and a fantastic new diaper bag, which is partly packed. I've gotten clothes, diapers, two bottles, some emergency formula, a set of pacis, tushie cream, bibs, and possibly some other things I can't think of right now. All that's missing, other than Fritz himself, is his car seat. The more I think about it the more I'm ready to go get it, but Jerek is putting it off. Why, I have no idea, when we're getting other things left and right. Oh, and I need to get a breastpump, but it's h...

I made some sweet little crochet mitts tonight, and I said well, I might as well blog about them! :) Actually, this is how I made them. They are size newborn+, with a bit f wriggle room. :) Materials: Baby weight yarn. I used Bernat Baby Sport Ombre. You don't need much. Size F crochet hook. Scissors and tapestry needle. Notes: Chain 1 and chain 2 counts as first stitch in each round. Abbreviations used: HDC: half double crochet DC: double crochet CH: chain Sl ST: slip stitch ST: stitch REV SC: reverse single crochet, or crab stitch Directions: Chain 2. Join with sl st to form ring. Round 1: Ch. 1, work 11 hdc in ring. Join. (12 st.) Round 2: Ch. 1, hdc in same st as join. 2 hdc in each st around. Join. (24 st.) Round 3: Ch. 1, do not work in same st as join. Hdc in each st around. Join. (24 st.) Round 4-11: Ch. 1, work 1 hdc in each st around. Join. (24 sts.) Round 12: Ch. 2, dc in each st around. (24 st.) Round 13: Ch. 1, hdc around. ...

Today I trimmed Tiri's bangs. She was not happy having her hair brushed (usually isn't) but she thought she looked pretty after I was finished. :) Look how long it is now! And this is after giving her about an inch worth of a trim maybe a month ago. And then this evening, I decided to do a bit of sewing. I've known about  Teeny Tears  for a while, but I didn't have a sewing machine for a loooooonng time. Now that I have one, I wanted to make some diapers. I made one a while back, but they are donated in pairs. Alas, I couldn't find that first diaper. (Tiri probably took it, she was quite fascinated by it.) So, I cut out enough to make two large and two small, and I made my first two Teeny Tears Diapers sets. :-D They're so tiny, especially the small size. :'-(