Sweater Update

The sweater is coming along nicely.  You can see that the varigated yarn did not, despite my best attempts, precisely line up on each side.  But it's still nice.  The ribbing at the bottom looks much better on the back than the front, mainly (I think) because the front has the flower pattern and the back is in peach.  Again, not a huge deal.  This sweater is intended for my distraction rather than for any sort of self-imposed knitting judgement.

What's left to do is knit up two buttonbands and a neckband.  Sew everything together.  And then pick up stitches on the sleeves and knit two cuffs.  Oh, and sew on buttons.  If I really tried, I bet I could do that over the course of a decent toddler nap, but today is a busy day.  We have a playdate, a playdate with nachos, no less.  And then a visit with a friend who moved away a year ago and is back for his first visit.  Plus, David works, my mother has plans to photograph some of the Victorian houses in the neighbourhood, and my bottom has a date with my sofa.  So, I mean, who knows if it'll get done today.

Tonight's knitting

My mother walked me up and down hills for quite some time today.  Still no baby.  Still lots of contractions.

6 days overdue.

Tomorrow at 9:30 am is our fetal assessment appointment.  If it's anything like our son's appointment it will involve 15 minutes of sitting still in a chair with a fetal monitor on while they record how many times the baby moves, followed by blood pressure checks, lots of questions, and finally an ultrasound to check on fluid levels and the placenta.  Then the nurse wanders off to speak to whomever is on call, and then comes back with a recommendation as to whether or not your induction date is acceptable.

Last time, we hadn't scheduled an induction, which we've done this time already, and so hopefully it will be less of a stressful appointment than it was with Samuel.

Provided the nurse says something like "the baby is fine and you don't need to worry about moving up your induction date" we then go home and wait until Monday.  If the baby doesn't come over the weekend we head in to the final OB appointment and see how things are progressing.  If labour hasn't started by the Thursday, which would make me 42 weeks pregnant, then I get admitted to the hospital for an induction.

I don't want to think that far ahead, frankly.  I don't want to imagine that I will be pregnant for another 7 days, or even that I will need to have a membrane sweep, let alone another induction.  Or that my poor mother is going to have to sleep on our hide-a-bed for another week.

I'm knitting again, another sweater for a non-existant child.  And so in your prayers tonight, add me and my sweater and the baby to the list, ok?

Knitting distraction

This is what 4 days overdue looks like.


The newborn layette from Paton's.  The hat and bootees.



A better bootee shot.

The jacket.

The whole deal.



Christmas knitting has begun!  Samuel's sweater has been started...and I'll give you a hint, it's very vintage-y and the pattern is in this book!

Lazy Lady's Lacy Scarf

This scarf wasn't my first lace project, but I certainly made enough mistakes on it to convince myself that maybe I hadn't learned how to knit as well as I thought I had.  And it ate yarn for breakfast.  This picture shows how far one skein of yarn got me.

A close up so you can see how nice and wavy it really is.

 The finished project, ends woven in but unblocked.



A Last Minute Shower Gift

Two weeks ago I was invited to a baby shower for a woman I have only recently become acquainted with, and although I accepted, I did so a little nervously because, well, what do you give someone whose life you have barely scratched the surface of?  On top of this I had already dropped off a little pair of crib shoes for the baby the week after he was born and after prodding mutual friends, it turns out what she needs is 'giftcards'.  And I detest giftcards, even though I fall back on them all. the. time.

And a friend of mine suggested I knit her something.  "Knit!" I scoffed "How would I have time to knit her something in two days!?"  Well, then the idea was stuck in my head, because really, it was knit her something in two days or go to Walmart and buy her baby socks and make sock roses.  So I found this sweet pattern for a little, wee man vest.  And I felt so pleased with myself that I didn't worry about it at all and I got up in the morning and cheerfully went to work and came home and played with my son and rinsed some diapers and put the baby to bed and looked at the clock and it was SEVEN O'CLOCK!  And therefore I did not have two days anymore, I had one day.  24 hours until the shower and an offering of either a vest or baby sock roses.

Well, you know the end of this story, don't you?  I knit like a maniac for 24 hours and got the vest done.  I ran do the craft store for some buttons and wrapped it pretty much in the ten minutes before my ride came to pick me up for the party.  And then, to show me up for my pride someone else had made her a baby quilt!  So that put the kibosh on my gift being anything but a quaint offering.  Which is fine, really, I'm completely over it.  Really.

Hip to be square

On the right side of the photo you can see the stockinette stitch square taking shape.



A close up of the moss stitch border with the basketweave section following.

I've started on a new scarf for David.  His last scarf and hat combo that I knit for him was one of my very first knits and it must be close to seven or eight years old by now.  It's still warm, mind you, but I'd like him to have something a little 'dressier' for wearing with his new winter coat to church or out to a visitation.  I'm calling the pattern "Hip To Be Square" because you can't get much hipper than my square husband!