My baby's got a shiner!

Okay, it's not much of a shiner, but still! To up her street cred: she got it in a dust up in the alley after ganking a bitch.



It's looking a touch more purple as of bedtime tonight. A lot less swollen though. Poor girl!

Heeeeere's Sweet Pea!
You can actually see the purple above her eye a little better in that one.
And as you can see, she's so over it. Happy and playful again. Be that as it may, I haven't let her cruise on her own since yesterday afternoon. She's a little worried about falling over again, and I'm a LOT worried about the state of her face if she does.

Aside from soothing my daughter after her forcible meeting of eyebrow and coffee table, I have done some stuff this week!

I finished up the Owlings I had on the go for Canadacole's assistant.

Since I felt that the thumb on the ones I made previously were too wide, I decreased the number of stitches in the thumb on these. Verdict? A touch snug. Work the thumb as written, or try decreasing by one stitch, but 2 is too many.

I made 2 more pocket monsters after completely effing up the face on the little pink one. I threw it out. It was awful.
And this I finished last week, but hadn't blogged yet.


Confection. Again, a Rav only pattern. Sigh.
Cute, easy. I'd make it again. I might, actually.
Yarn: Luna - decent stuff. I don't know how it wears yet, or how it will survive the wash, or any of that.
I figure this shrug will make a great transition piece. Especially since Sweet Pea has numerous short sleeve onsies, and only three long sleeves. I don't intend to buy her more - spring is right around the corner, and transitional pieces should carry her through.

Nothing and Everything.

A whole lotta nothing - let's not even discuss the nothing. Nothing is dullsville.

Let's talk about the everything instead.
It's been quiet in these parts because we have just been so busy chez nous!

Last week I had my first ever (since she arrived) night out without Sweet Pea.
It. Was. Glorious!
I thought I would worry. Thought I would miss her. Thought it would be stressful for all involved. Nope! She went to bed, and I went out. I left her in the capable hands of Mr. Wonderful, who generally tends to her needs between her bedtime and ours anyway. It was lovely to be out with friends and be able to knit, not entertain. To listen to what they had to say. To not worry about keeping Sweet Pea safe from anything, or anything safe from her. It was a much needed break. I hope to be able to do it again soon. Mr. Wonderful says he's ready anytime.

Friday, my mom came over for her customary visit. She brought Sweet Pea presents! 2 in particular the girl was positively smitten with:
A t-shirt with flashing lights that light when the shirt is moved
and a super sweet quilt with an adorable little monkey on it. You can see her sitting on it here:

She giggled at it, she cooed at it, she touched the monkey. It was so cute!
Friday evening we packed up and went to Sweet Pea's Nana's house for a visit. While we were there, I finished the T the girl is wearing in these pics.

Kaia babydoll with a twist - I did the ruffle on the bottom instead of the lace panel. Super sweet little top. I'm hoping for lots of wear over the summer.
Used the Patons Grace yarn I had picked up to make myself a second Josephine in the pre-baby days.

We also picked up some new shoes, and (finally!) a Sophie of her very own for the girl. I'm very pleased with the shoes we selected. Generally, this baby shucks her shoes the first chance she gets. These ones, she's only been inspired to remove twice - not bad! The only thing I'd change: the sole is a touch slippery for her already shaky balance.
Would I buy them again? Absolutely. Next time, if the store lacks selection (which this store very much did) I'll order them online.

Then there was the excitement of the family dinner on Sunday. Sweet Pea's Grandma invited us all to her house to celebrate my big bro's birthday. 2 babies, one 11 year old, 6 adults. It was actually surprisingly fun. Or at least, I really enjoyed it. No photos. Maybe someone could be inspired to share some with me?? There are some sweet ones of Sweet Pea and Boy Cousin chillin' in the play pen.

Monday we did our birthday shopping for Boy Cousin. He's all set -- or rather we are. Birthday party in 10 days-ish.
And today we've been all over and done all sorts of things. But today's big news: WE HAVE A WORD! She said it on Sunday, but neither the Mr. nor myself thought it could count. After all, she's just 8 months - it couldn't be on purpose?? But it is! Every time our crotchety old cat wanders into her line of sight, Sweet Pea crows "CAT!" Well, sometimes it sounds more like 'tat', or in extreme circumstances, 'at' -- but she does mean it! How do I know? Because she points at the cat! Because she waves and says "AAAaa Tat!" Which translated is "Hi Cat!" Because I'm not leading her (which is to say I don't say cat first in the hopes that she'll parrot.)
I'm so freakin' proud.
Also, she stands, by herself and unsupported for up to 20 seconds at a time. I know because I watched the clock today while she wobbled in front of me. Standing is a bit of a curse, I'll admit -- she won't allow us to lay her down, or sit her down without major drama now. We still do it, we just brace for tears. And how cute is a little pint sized kid, standing all by herself and wobbling away? Adorable, I tells ya!
Waving is also very big in the Sweet Pea universe. Poor little bugger doesn't understand that animals and inanimate objects will not wave back, no matter how hard you squeal and giggle to get their attention. She really doesn't understand people who don't respond. To be honest, neither do I. How miserable do you have to be to completely disregard a chirping tot, waving herself crazy at you? At least smile. At least say hello. Don't break her tender little heart.

I tried it . . .

And it's not bad!

Here is the play by play for y'all's edification.

First, I got out a great big mug, and the ingredients.


Put them all into the mug (looks gross, doesn't it?)


Mixed them all up



And then found something to do for the 3 minutes it was cooking.

And then something else to do while it cooled, of course.

Yarn Heart!

Then I pulled it out of the microwave and tried not to judge based on looks.


I'm glad I didn't because it was quite tasty! It will do nicely for those nights when a chocolate craving hits.
I will say that in my microwave, it could probably use an extra 10 seconds. I'll also say that you shouldn't let it cool too much or it gets a little chewy.

Insta-cake!

I just came across this posted recipe on Ravelry (where cake is highly prized.) I am assured it works just as well with Spelt flour. Looks interesting. I intend to try it out tonight!

4 Tbsp. flour
4 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 egg
3 Tbsp. milk
3 Tbsp. oil

dash of vanilla, and a sprinkling of chocolate chips :)

Mix in large, microwavable mug until smooth. Microwave on high for three minutes. Let cool slightly, and serve with ice-cream.

Insta-cake!

FINALLY!!! II

SHE HAS TEETH!! After 6 months of teething. 6 months of rosy cheeks and knowing smiles and assurances from other moms. My girl finally sprouted teeth! 2 little bottom ones. I think she likes 'em. She's working on additional ones already.

Droool!

The first smitten is done.
How do you avoid Second Smitten Syndrome? Cast on for it right away. I'm already one repeat in.
Other stuff I did:
Pocket Monsters - Another Freakin' Ravelry only download . . but not hard. Cast on some stitches, work some rows, cast off. Key is in the closed cast on. Very easy, very adaptable.
The Bunny I promised myself I would make:

Super fun! Pattern is really just a guideline, so it's an exercise in trusting yourself. Good times! Bunny comes out super tiny. Perfect for little people.

FINALLY!!!

Back when Sweet Pea was 6 months old, I decided I would take her swimming. Day after day, week after week, something would come up. Yesterday we made it as far as the pool before Sweet Pea fell asleep in her car seat. Every parent of a very young child knows that it's just pure folly to introduce something new (!) and exciting (?) to an over-tired tot. And so began the de-railing of yesterday's plans.
Today, however, I had one goal: take Sweet Pea swimming. And I Did! True, we arrived with only 25 minutes of family swim time left - but we made it!
What did Sweet Pea think? Well, she spent 3 miserable minutes pleading with her eyes to get out of the pool, 2 minutes pulling herself up and out of the water (using my hair and shoulder as grips) with varying degrees of urgency, 5 minutes of quiet watchfulness, 10 minutes floating around quite comfortably, and 5 minutes splashing around gleefully. Took her awhile to warm up to it, but seems I have a small duck on my hands. A small, clingy duck. To her credit, and my amazement, she didn't cry at all. Not even when she went under water during one very vigorous maneuver. There was much spluttering to be had, but no tears.
She even jumped in from the side several times. She watched a much bigger girl jumping in over and over for a bit - then she threw herself in at me. Fearless! So unlike her mom. I was terrified to jump in the pool when I was small.

A few posts ago, I shared my Owling mitts with you. Today I'll share an even lovelier project!
Lust! Lust! Lust! (Rav link)


These pics are not quite up to date - the first mitt is approaching 'done' at this point.

God, I wish I could say they're for me! I intend to make some for myself, but we'll see about that.
Pattern is Yummy Mummy available only via Ravelry - again, I'm sorry and I think it's exclusioary too.
The yarn is Cadenza, a super-wash Merino, Tussah silk blend -- and it's an absolute dream! I was sorely disappointed when I wound the skein into a ball -- I found a problem. I emailed the company with a comment on this quality concern expecting to hear a) nothing or b) thanks for the info in return, but their response fully surprised me. They're sending a replacement skein!! The noted flaw certainly does not render the yarn unusable. It's an inconvenience and a disappointment at worst, so I was very impressed with Estelle's service.
I was doubly impressed today when they followed up to inform me that I had provided an incorrect postal code, and to ask for the correct one. For a lot of companies, the wrong address would have been the end of the road.
So, colour me impressed! I highly recommend this yarn.

Diversions

So today I got into a chat with a fellow Raveler, regarding toys. Finishing technique, to be exact. It made me yearn for a quick toy to knit. So I did - I cast on this cute-ass Sheep. Sadly, it's only available through Ravelry (what the crap is up with that anyway?).
I had it cast on, knit up and finished in a matter of an hour or two. Did Sweet Pea like it? She could care less.
Here it is not quite assembled:


I have a recipient in mind for it, should my wee girl not warm up to it.

Also, today I finished the cat-eared baby hat -- only it's ear-less. Not every one appreciates a kitty cat.

So now I have three projects left on the go - but I don't feel like working any of them right now. I want to make more toys!

Aw! You DO care!

Or at least someone cares.

Here I was thinking that no one was reading along. There are almost never comments anymore . . . I was feeling a little down in the mouth. So about 2 weeks ago, I put in a hit counter. And today, it says 415!
I feel validated.