Knitknitknitknit

Just in case you thought I hadn't been doing anything...








Of course, there are other projects currently on the needles, too. Stay tuned.

Why It's Good To Have Children

I dreaded waking up this morning because my kitchen was an absolute wreck. It looked like some scary white trash people lived here! There were dirty dishes everywhere, the counters were both cluttered AND dirty, and the floor was just disgusting. It didn't take me long to fill up the dishwasher and get it started. After that, I hand-washed everything else so it was finished. The biggest issue was the floor. I knew it needed a good old hands-and-knees scrubbing, but I was really dreading it.

Enter one happy-go-lucky 7 year old girl who just happened to be looking for something to do.

Muwahahahahahaha....

In a matter of minutes, she was convinced that not only would she like to try scrubbing the floor, but that it also sounded FUN! I'm not one to waste an opportunity like that, so I gave the floor a good sweep, got her a bucket of diluted Lysol and a sponge and showed her what to do! Of course, it didn't take long for her brother to wander in and want in on the action, too.
All things considered, they did a very nice job for their first time scrubbing a floor! I rinsed it with a mop and clean water and let it dry. There is still de-cluttering to be done and the counter tops need a good wipe-down, but at least there's a light at the end of the tunnel now.

De-Stash Sale!!

Edited 6/9/09 to add: I would really love to move a few more of these yarns out of my house, so I am opening this up to negotiation. There are still prices listed, but feel free to make me an offer if you're interested. Thanks!

OK, knitters...now's your chance. I gave our school/craft room a total overhaul today and have several lovely yarns I am offering for sale! If you are interested, please email me at julie.persinger@gmail.com. These all come from a non-smoking, pet-free home and can be mailed to you or, if you're local, I would be happy to meet you to deliver in person. If mailed, buyer pays shipping.

Here we go:
1. Knit One Crochet Too Pure Cashmere Scarf Kit in Ebony - $30
-Includes 3 skeins of 100% worsted weight cashmere (88 yds each) and a scarf pattern

2. Trekking XXL sock yarn, color 62 - $12
-I knit a small swatch with this, then immediately frogged it and wound it back up

3. Schaeffer Anne - 560 yards, no color listed on label - $25

4. Citrus Laceweight (no ball band) - $14
-2 skeins single ply lace, approximately 900+ yards total

5. SOLD!

6. SOLD!
-comes with coordinating black mini-skein for heels/toes

7. Fortissima Socka sock yarn - color 2090 - $10

8. Kool Aid dyed sock yarn, yardage unknown, 3.5 oz - $10
-plenty for a pair of socks

9. Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, color Avocado - $9
-4 full skeins, 1 partial skein + scraps

10. Schachenmayr Nomotta Denim, Color 26 - $10
-2 skeins

11. Regia 4 fadig, color 1259, 2 skeins - $10

12. Skacel Merino Lace, color 93, 1375 yards - $14

13. Wildfoote Luxury Sock Yarn, 215 yards - $6
-Color SY-12 Bark Cloth

14. SOLD!
-2 oz/630 yards

Locks of Love

My daughter inherited my hair. It grows thick and fast. Several months ago I explained the purpose of Locks of Love to her and asked if she would be interested in letting her hair grow for a while so she could donate it. She liked the idea of being able to help another child and agreed to grow out her hair.

Now, several months later, we were both more than ready to be able to get her hair cut since it was getting ratty as soon as it was brushed. So we were very happy to learn last week that her hair was finally long enough! Today was the day of the big cut and Natalie couldn't be more pleased...nor could I.

Before:

After:

Getting the ponytail shaved off (it was too thick to use scissors):

A typical Natalie face:

And my new, short-haired girl:

Better Vision

I have horrible eyesight, as do several members of my family. So I figured it was only a matter of time before one of my children needed glasses. As it turned out, this was the week! Natalie has never mentioned having any trouble seeing, but after the pediatrician did a vision screening on Monday, he recommended a trip to the optometrist. After a thorough eye exam, it was decided that Natalie definitely needed glasses.

We just picked them up and she seems to think they help, so that's a good start.

Have You Ever Made A Phoenix?

Well Natalie did.

For Christmas, we decided to encourage Natalie's creativity with something new and different: the LaQ Building Set. I had only seen it in the Mindware catalog, but knew it would be right up her alley. At first it was overwhelming, with so many tiny pieces...oh, and the instructions are only in Japanese. Natalie made the recommended basics like a flat strip of repeating patterns, a box and a sphere, but it took a lot of trial and error for her to begin to feel confident enough to try some of the other designs that are shown in the pamphlets. Before long, she was able to figure them out.

There was one in the pamphlet, though, that was elusive. And complicated. And she thought she could never do it.

Then, one day, she did.

I proudly present to you, Natalie's phoenix:
Here is a close-up. LaQ's are comprised of squares, triangles and various connecting pieces.
And here is what Natalie had to work from:
She's pretty amazing, I think.

Big News in a Tiny Package

I was really hoping to have a picture to share in this post, but alas, I was not given one. Part of the reason why the blog has been pretty quiet lately is because I have been exceedingly tired. Beyond tired, actually. But it is all for a good reason, though.

We're having another baby!! (See, this is where I would post an ultrasound picture, but the tech didn't offer to give me any.)

I'm due September 8, which puts me at 12 weeks now. Actually, I have known for about seven weeks already, but we waited a while to tell family and wanted to make sure everything looked good on the ultrasound yesterday. Everything did look good, and since I am 12 weeks, the baby definitely looked like a baby! There was a lot of curling up, leg stretching and flipping over, which is to be expected since there's still room to move around in there.

As for me, I am doing well. My first two pregnancies were very uneventful, with only tiredness and mild nausea at the start, and it looks like this one is following the same path so far. I am very excited to get to do some baby knitting this time! I wasn't knitting yet when I had Natalie and Ethan.

So that's the big news. Hopefully I'll work up the energy to start posting more often.