I'll be working my way back to you, babe...
With a burning love inside...
That Spinner's song was playing in the Dunkin' Donuts where I recently had a cheese and sausage biscuit! YUM. In fact, I had two. One for the High Energy Fetus.
WARNING. Lot going on in this post. Just scroll fast to see pictures. ;-)
Preggers Update
Well, all seems well so far. I think I felt the baby move, it was a weird motion like something swimming in my belly. Maybe I made it up. I'm waiting for the real thing.
I get pretty tired easily these days. I cleaned the house tonight and only got halfway through before I was exhausted. This was WITH High Energy John's help. I just finished, and now I want to sleep for 14 hours...
I had a minor fender bender too, (all is fine with the baby, family, don't freak out) just when I had thought, "I'm so glad I haven't had a car wreck while I'm pregnant."
Other than that, all seems well. Here's an 18 week ultrasound shot - just a baby foot. Awwww....
SO. MUCH. ELSE.
Alot is going on around here otherwise. I finished all the squares for a quilt for my niece. It's only taken THREE YEARS. Oh Lord. They are butterflies.
Excuse the post-its. It was hard enough to get on the floor to put them on.
Also, I swatched for Bridie, about which I am VERY excited.
My stitch gauge is on, my row gauge as usual is off, but the pattern looks like it will be okay row-gauge wise. We shall see.
Overall it drives me crazy when I use the yarn the pattern calls for, and the stitch gauge is right, but my row gauge is off. But it happens ALL THE TIME. So now I just work around it. I'd like a good explanation for why this is so, someday.
Elspeth!!!
And I have finished Elspeth!
But first, go look at my buddy Elspeth's AMAZING gorgeous Rowan Butterfly dress. Go look, I'll wait.
Wow.
And now, here's my Elspeth, finally. Pictures by the fabulous Carrie.
And the back:
And a close-up:
Pattern Notes
Rowan Calmer, 4 skeins even though it called for 5. I modified the sleeves by doing the short rows, then knitting an inch, then continuing on, because I wanted them longer.
Also, I used Nona's excellent Left Slanted decrease on the sleeves and am very happy with it. I wish I had found that post for the body and fronts, but at least the sleeves benefitted.
What else? I had to re-crochet the picot edge only once. I had read on other blogs that it was easy to be too loose, and it flared. So after the first time, I would skip a dc each time in the picot and it was much better. Email me if you want this specifically explained.
Lastly, a ridiculous 19 1/2 week belly shot:
Hi. I'm ridiculous.
ALRIGHTY THEN! I'm off to the land of Bon Jovi and Bruce, to hang out with someone much cooler (even than Bruce). ;-) See you after!
I walk the streets of Japan till I get lost...
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything...
We are liking Audioslave more and more around here. I have their first album from itunes and I really like it. That Chris Cornell can WAIL.
Housekeeping.
This post is mostly about catching up. And who doesn't need a good list, really?
1) THANKS for the birthday wishes. We had a great time.
2) Thanks for the support about jerky people who say stupid things to pregnant people. At least I didn't have anyone yet act THIS STUPID.
3) To all who recommended The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, it ROCKED. I really enjoyed it.
4) Almost done with The Geographer's Library. It was okay.
5) I have renamed my crazy dog Sadie. She will now be called Sadie McGillicuddy McGee.
KNITTING. PLEASE.
I did no knitting because I have been so tired and worn-out - sometimes I wish my work wasn't so stressful, you know? I know, cry us a river, Timberlake. We ALL have hard jobs.
BUT then I remembered, I see my sister in like two days and have to get Green Gable to the bust line, and I am about 7 rows away. So, tonight, it's kntiknitknit. YIKES.
Decisions.
I have also been agonizing for a really long time now over getting sewing furniture. I want to be sure it's exactly what I want, that it will fit, etc., 'cause the ones I want are expensive. But I keep changing my mind, and feeling nervous, and changing where we'll put it.
Because, you see, I lose my sewing room when the High Energy Fetus is born. Which is cool. But I need to put my crap elsewhere.
So, what to do? Make paper cutouts, that's what I did:
How LAME. But you know, it works for me, and I think I can envision how everything will fit when the cabinet is open, closed, etc., and how much storage, etc. The husband thinks it'd be easier to do on computer. COMPUTER? Give me graph paper any day. I can TRUST graph paper. It won't screw you over.
Extravaganza!
Fun weekend.
We had fun times around here this weekend. Sunday was my 34th birthday, and High Energy Mom's birthday was Tuesday. So we went home for the weekend for festivities.
Our initial plan was to camp, but as you can see...
the weather was not so good. A few minutes later...
it really was not so good.
So we went to Mexican restaurant where, conveniently, they had already decorated for someone's birthday...
...and we pretended it was for me.
Here's a gratuitious 16 week belly shot, while in the car.
The next day we went to the arboretum in Asheville, NC and had a fun walk.
That evening, after cake and presents:
we went to see the Asheville Tourists, a Colorado Rockies farm team!
It was very much fun times. Complete with frozen t-shirt contest and the chicken dance. And the Tourists won!!!
While at the game, I ate a lemon-lime frozen ice - YUM - and it turned my lips GREEN.
And I finished another Elspeth front:
and the first sleeve!
And afterwards there was a really cool fireworks show.
We had to come home in the afternoon which was sad times, but HE Johnny took me to Indian restaurant dinner and to see Talladega Nights, which was very silly and funny.
All in all, good birthday fun! And Elspeth is blocking with one sleeve to go...
Talk talk talk about it...
You talk as if you care...*
Boy have I been BLABBY lately. Chatt-Y. I don't know what has come over me. I have always had a lot of bloggy knitting things to say, but sometimes I just don't get it together. Now, you're being subjected.
Look how fat you are!
Scroll down if'n you only want knitting...
So, pregnancy has been such a weird experience, so far. And don't take any of this to mean I'm not delighted to pregnant. You all know what it took, and I'm VERY happy. But during it, it is a bit weird.
What's most strange is dealing with the weight gain issues, and moreover, what other people have to say on the subject. It's like when you're pregnant people think they have the right to say whatever they want, and it's okay.
Since moving into my second trimester, I've had so many work people say things like:
"You're getting chubby!"
"You thought your ass was big before, wait till your third trimester!"
"Can you still fit through a door?"
The latter from my PARTNER. I've gained 7.5 pounds. I think I can still fit through a DOOR, you *%^*!.
The hardest thing is, people don't seem to realize that it's hard on me mentally to gain weight. Of course I want to, I know it's SUPPOSED to happen, but when you spend your whole life fighting the scale, desperately wanting the numbers to go down, it's depressing a bit to watch them go up... up... up...
Some smartypants out there help me come up with some snappy funny comebacks for those comments. I sure could use them...
AND! DRUMROLL....... FINALLY!!!!
A finished Vintage Knits Ribbed Sweater!!!!
Yes, it's done. Finally. Modeled by the lovely Carrie.
There was a lot of pain involved - click here to read all about it. I'll summarize for you things I learned:
1) To fix the edge stitch problems, where they were terribly uneven, I did this:
"Knit the first stitch of the row, but don't tighten it. Put your finger on it to hold it in place, and then pull up with the needle on that stitch to tighten the row below it. THEN tighten the stitch."
This fix is from The Knitting Answer Book. I love this book. And I now do this routinely when knitting back and forth. Makes a HUGE difference.
2) To fix the uneven ribbing problem, I would knit 2, then purl the next stitch by wrapping the yarn the opposite way (clockwise), then purl the next normally. On the next row, that backward-wrapped purl stitch would be knit tbl to reorient the loop back to normal.
This FINALLY fixed my uneven ribbing. Try it if you are having problems with the second knit stitch of your k2 p2 being too wide/loose.
3) I made 3/4 sleeves - if I hadn't I'd have run out of yarn - and I made the medium which called for 9 skeins. I used just almost all of those 9 skeins and full length sleeves wouldn't have made it.
4) I did backstitch seams for the first time for the set-in sleeves, and they worked pretty well.
Ok, off to work tomorrow. 8 am again. The PAIN of 8 am. In my world all my shifts would start at 4pm. ;-)
*10,000 Maniacs, anyone?
Green Gable Shenanigans.
Ok, I don't have a song about Green Gable.
But since it sounds Irish, did any of you ever see Darby O'Gill and the Little People? HILARIOUS. I think there was a song in it about "She is my dear, my darling one, her eyes are full of sparkling fun..."
Hmmm. Maybe not. Maybe another lame movie from my childhood?
Do-Over!
So, you might or might not remember that I was making Green Gable not so long ago. Then, I went and got all knocked up, and realized not only would it not fit, it won't fit for a looooong time. So I quit it. Gave it away.
I decided though, that I need a mindless knit, one where I can chat and do a few rows, stop and start without issue. Both Peaches and Elspeth require a lot of concentration, especially in the increasing or decreasing in pattern.
So, I already had the yarn (STASH USE! WARNING!) to make a Green Gable for my sister! Who isn't rapidly expanding in any way, at least last time I saw her.
So I merrily cast-on, using the same needles etc. for my GG, while watching Syriana. How could I lose?
You had to ask.
I had this much done:
To discover, as you see, my gauge was off. Should be 10 stitches to two inches. SUPER BUMMER. This was on a US 7, which I had used before.
The trick is, when I frogged and did a few gauge swatches, even swatching in the round, it was tricky to get the right gauge. But I think on the actual project a US 6 will do it.
Then I had many a cast-on issue. I decided I didn't like the cast-on I had used before. So I tried (even though I knew what would happen) the backward loop that the pattern wants, but I HATES IT.
Then, I just used a tried and true cable cast-on, and so far it looks right. Gauge seems good at this point. Maybe it'll work!!!!
AND!
Just so you know I ain't no slacker, I did finish the purple ribbed sweater! Finally! After 1 1/2 years!!! I just can't wear it right now, so a picture is on hold till I locate a model. I'll see my sister in a couple weeks, I think, I think she just might WORK!*
* What would I do if I didn't have a younger sister who is smaller-but-not-too-much-smaller than me??? Really. That chica has so many functions. Strong work, Mom and Dad. ;-)