Dad

I can't believe it's been nearly 2 weeks, but the first week flew by with all sorts of preparations, and this last week I've been working at home to get caught up from the week before. My dad passed away the week after Thanksgiving, suddenly and surprisingly not from the cancer we knew he suffered from.

There's so much I could write here about him, about how it happened, the events leading up to his death, but I just don't want to relive it all right now. Just know my heart is hurting and I have no words to describe this feeling.

I made the hat below and gave it to him the night before he died. He got to wear it once, and my mom took a couple of pictures. I think he really liked it, although, when you're dying, there's not a whole lot to get excited about. I am grateful he got to see it and knew I was thinking of him.

I'll post more later, but tonight I can't. God bless you and take care.

Thanksgiving fun

It's Thanksgiving, and I finally finished the project I wanted done by Thanksgiving, a few days early even! I called my cousin last week to let her know I should have her sweater done by the end of the week, and we arranged for her to come by to try it on Thursday. 

This forced me to really work hard for a couple of days, as I still had the finishing touches to do, like making the tabs for the sides, sewing them on, weaving in ends, and blocking. I got it done in time though.

Here is a photo of the original design:

Here is a closeup of the cable pattern:

This is the blocking process:

And this is the finished product! I forgot to take a photo after it was done drying (blocking), so I had to run out to the car and have her hold it up before she drove away...

Here is the sweater on, as she intended to wear it:

Blocking the sweater was fun. As you can see, I got a little creative with the process. I didn't have any T pins, which were suggested in the article I read, but I had just enough of the boys' little trains to cover the whole garment. They were the perfect weight to keep the ends flat. I just used a spray bottle and dampened the edges, not even the whole garment. If I had more time, I would have blocked it before sewing it together, and done the whole thing, but she was only available on a certain day, sooner than I planned. 

My cousin loves it! I am so pleased with the way it turned out, and even more pleased that she likes it too. Even though it was essentially a large rectangle, I am excited to have my first knit sweater completed. If you remember, I made a crochet sweater quite a while ago. I think I am ready to attempt a baby sweater pattern for Samuel out of yarn I've had since the twins were born. It didn't take nearly as long as I thought, which is the main reason I've never tried before. 

On a more personal note, my Dad is not doing well. It seems like only a matter of time before the cancer wins, due to an infection it is causing, which is hindering chemo treatments. Please keep our family in your prayers. We are still praying for a miracle, but at this point it's not looking very promising.

Thanks for your time and happy Thanksgiving. I hope you get to spend it with loved ones, and that you never miss an opportunity to tell them how much you love them.

Halloween!

Happy Halloween! We always spend the holiday at my parents' house, which is a little different this year, since Dad is sick, but still festive.

It's been a busy time, but somehow between a wedding, traveling, traveling some more, spending time with my dad, cooking for my mom, refereeing volleyball districts, planning a birthday party for 2 3-year-olds, and fully nursing a newborn, I've been able to find time to make some amazing hats for my little people. 

I found all of these patterns on Ravelry or Pinterest, and knew they would be fun for my boys to dress up in. I didn't know how much they would love wearing them all the time! I'm so pleased with how they all turned out.

The twins had a jungle-themed birthday party, so they got to wear them all day Saturday for their grandparents and aunts and uncles too. We're getting a lot of mileage out of them this week! The best part is, I didn't spend a dime to buy any more yarn or supplies for these! They were all made of yarn I already had in my stash.

The giraffe is pretty much exactly like the pattern, except I made crochet eyes instead of using buttons (I did this on all the hats because I had plenty of yarn), and I used colors I had and wanted to use. I made it the largest size that wasn't listed as "adult" and it still fits snugly on Teeny's head. My children either have huge heads or my gauge was off.

The elephant was based on this pattern, but I'm not totally in love with how the trunk came out. I followed the pattern for it first, but I thought it was too short, so I doubled the length. I also wish the ears were a little bigger, but the pattern was written for a newborn, which would not have fit my infant, who also has an oversized head. I used the giraffe pattern and made it to fit a child/toddler. It's a little big for him but he'll be able to wear it when he's older and can play with his brothers.

The monkey was the first hat I completed, and I wasn't planning to do ear flaps for the others at the time, or I would have put them on this as well so it would match. It went to my nephew, who has a relatively small head (smaller than average), but I still made it the same size as the twins' so he can wear it for a while. I should have put the ears down lower because I think it looks more like a bear than a monkey with them up high, but it still turned out cute. I didn't plan to make the half-smile, but I ran out of yarn on my needle at that point, and thought it looked super-cute, so I left it.

The lion is my favorite out of all the hats. I pretty much made the pattern from a composite of several different designs. I couldn't find one that was a beanie style with ear flaps, so I wasn't sure how to do the mane and left it off for a week or so while I debated how to do it. It looked like young Simba from The Lion King, which made my son happy, but I also thought it looked like a lioness, so I wanted to finish it. I finally decided to just try the knotted technique that I eventually used, and after finishing it, I think it looks fantastic! I might make one for myself, I like it so much...

The last hat I made was for my best friend, who is having a baby this spring after trying for over 10 years! I am so happy for her, and thought I would make something very personal. She has a horse that is almost as old as she is, and has put so much love, time, money, sweat, and tears into keeping him that I immediately knew I had to make a hat that looks like him. I used some photos of him to design it, and since she is not finding out what she's expecting, I left off any embellishments, like bows or trim. I think it turned out beautifully, and used the zebra pattern and the muzzle from the giraffe to complete it. I can't wait to see her face when she opens it.

Photo by Sarah Dickerson

Time to tell...

I wish it weren't always 10 pm when I have time to myself to collect my thoughts and write. Unfortunately, this seems to be the only time I have to get anything done that isn't laundry, dishes, nursing the baby, taking a shower, bathing the twins, or breaking up arguments between them. By the time I get to this point in the day, it's always a battle over the things I know I should do (spending time with my hubby, reading and praying, sleeping) and the things I want to do, like putting my thoughts down in print.

I have a little time tonight, so I thought I would share what's been going on that is consuming most of my mental and emotional energy right now.

My dad has always been a big guy. Not just tall (he's 6' 2" or so), but large. He's always been over 200, and in the past 10 years since his parents died, his brother died suddenly, and he had two major injuries that kept him from working for months at a time, he has put on many more pounds. He got up to just under 500 last summer and injured his back from carrying all that weight around.

Last October, after he had lost about 15 pounds preparing for his surgery

We prayed, prayed, and prayed some more that he would seek help for his weight problem, because they refused to do anything to help his back due to how heavy he was. He couldn't stand to be on his feet, which is what his job requires him to do every day for 8 hours, so as soon as he got home he would plant himself on the couch and only get up to go to the bathroom and bed. He couldn't play with his grandchildren because he hurt so badly.

I had mentioned to my mom several times about bariatric surgery because I knew at least 4 people who had undergone the procedure and had amazing results. Finally, my husband and I got up the courage to talk to Dad about it, and even brought over some brochures to share with him from one of my friends. He was thinking about it, as a last resort, and decided to look into it.

Praise God, in February (the day after our first ultrasound for Samuel), he had gastric bypass surgery and everything seemed to go great. He lost over 200 pounds between last summer when he went to the informational meeting and started making changes and when we moved in July. Then he started having trouble keeping food down.

He had a minor procedure done to stretch his muscles, which is somewhat common after bariatric surgery, but after the 2nd time having it done, he was still having the same problems. It got so bad that he would vomit even after having just water to drink. This went on far too long (nearly a month) and he was becoming dehydrated, so he finally admitted himself to the ER at the beginning of October. After a week of being on IV fluids and running a few tests, they started looking for other causes of his vomiting and found his white blood cell count was high.

We learned a few days later that he has stage 4 stomach cancer, which is apparently treatable but not curable or operable. He started chemo yesterday and is going every 2 weeks for 6 months to fight it.

This has been heartbreaking, especially after all that he's gone through to live healthier. He looked so good this summer, better than I can remember him looking since I was little. He had energy, he walked with his head held high for the first time in many years, not shrinking back because of his weight. He played with his 3 grandsons and most importantly, was not in pain. After the month of failed attempts at rectifying the issues, now he looks almost eerily thin, his muscles are weak and deteriorating and his skin just hangs off him.

One year later, just after learning about his cancer

My mom is barely hanging on. She is so strong, because she has to be, but I know it's killing her inside to see him go through this. She is a Christian, so she has her faith to help her through, but we are still not sure whether Dad is truly saved or not. We have presented the Gospel to him many times, have prayed with him and for him to know and have an eternal relationship with the One True God, but we have never gotten reassurance that he is in fact saved.

If you are the praying type, please say a prayer for my family. For my dad, for complete healing and for his spirit not to be broken, and for his salvation; for my mom, that she has the energy to keep encouraging him and to help him get through this. Thank you so much and God bless.

I will post about the boys' birthday soon, but I just had to get this out there. Thanks for reading.

New projects on the horizon...

I love fall. I love the crispness of a chill in the air, the smells of pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg wafting from the oven, the colors of the leaves before they fall off the trees. One thing I don't enjoy about fall, though, is the rush to get all things "holiday" completed.

I love my kiddos, and planning for their birthday is fun for me, but between making Halloween costumes, planning a birthday party for two toddlers, baking fall goodies, and making handmade Christmas gifts for much of my family, it is a hectic time.

This year, I decided to do a jungle theme for their birthday, and to give them something they can appreciate for a while after the balloons deflate, I decided to make them animal hats. We had a giraffe themed nursery for them (Sam's is elephants), so I thought I would crochet a giraffe, an elephant, a lion, and a monkey (the extra one is for their cousin, who always comes to the party). When am I going to have time to do this? I still have a sweater to finish, 6 Christmas gifts to start and complete, an infant horse hat to make, a stuffed elephant I started for Sam, and a baby sweater to knit, all before January! In my "free time," I suppose.

I will try to post photos of everything as I complete it, but for now, I need to dig through my yarn collection and get my hooks busy! After all that, hopefully I will get to utilize my beautiful craft area to work on the boys' quiet books.

Wish me luck!

Baby Blessing

I realized after proofreading the last post that I hadn't posted any photos of our new little dude here! I currently have 2 other blogs that I try to post regularly to, and I updated both of those, but I guess in the midst of wrangling 2 2-year-olds and a newborn, it slipped my mind. Here is the official news on Blessing/Samuel:

Let me introduce you to the latest member of our Patterson clan, Mr. Samuel Brodrick Patterson! Weighing 9 lb 15 oz, he made his debut September 2 in the a.m. via c-section and is 22 inches tall! He is precious, beautiful, and his Big Brothers are very proud of him and love him already. More cute photos to come in following posts. For now, good night and God bless!

Craft area

It's finally finished! This is a little belated, as I finished setting up my craft area the week before Samuel came, but for some reason posting about it slipped my mind. I ran across this photo in my cache just now and realized I haven't shared it yet!

It may not look like much compared to some of the fancy craft rooms you see on Pinterest, but I have all of my supplies at my fingertips and a nice clear space to work, so it serves all my purposes. Of course, this is not my yarn stash. I enjoy working on a few different kinds of projects, painting crafts for decor, making jewelry and beading, and the felt seen here. I knit and crochet anywhere.

Now all I need is several hours to cut, sew, and assemble the boys' project. I have had all the supplies for over a year and a half to make and complete 2 beautiful felt books (or quiet books) for the older boys, but it is much more time consuming and labor-intensive than I originally thought. Hopefully, the boys and I will hit a groove pretty soon after my hubby goes back to work where I can find some time to do some crafting and work on them, so I can get them finished before Christmas or before they outgrow them. 

I've still got the sweater to finish, hats to make for the boys' birthday and Halloween costumes, Christmas gifts to make, and a little girl baby sweater to make for my cousin, who is having the first girl in years on that side of the family! After all that is completed (and hopefully I won't be sewing Christmas gifts together on Christmas morning this year!), I'll be able to focus completely on the quiet books for a while. I'm opening my Etsy shop up again in January, so hopefully I'll be done by then, or close to, in case I get orders for some of the new items I'm listing on my site. Big plans for this fall and winter!

As it appears, I've got a lot going on, so I better get busy! I'm getting ready to go grab the sweater and fix the neckline, so I can maybe finish it in time to give to my cousin next week at our family gathering.

Halfway there and an end in sight!

I am amazed at how quickly this sweater is coming together. The Fisherman's Wool is not exceptionally thick, which would normally make for a quick knit, but it is going quickly nonetheless. Maybe it's because I've had a lot of time on my hands to work on it, waiting for Blessing to come.

Here are some photos of it so far:

The top photo is the front of the piece. It is a little narrower than I had hoped, but hopefully after blocking (which will be a new skill to try with this piece), it will lay nicely and be wide enough. 

I made this neckline part of the rectangle of the whole piece, but after my cousin got to try it on, I realized that I should probably taper in the neck just a bit, and make the shoulders a little wider. I will take it out and redo the whole neckline some time in the near future. I would like for it to not curl down like it is now, and hope that blocking and tailoring it a little smaller will fix that.

The second photo is a closeup of the cable pattern I chose. I really like the way it snakes and the multiple pieces, as opposed to just 2 different strands like many cables. I found this pattern on Pinterest and chose #4. It's only 8 rows and then it repeats. I don't plan to use it down the back.

I think it will turn out to be a lovely piece. I bought 3 skeins of the wool, and I have lots left of the first one still, so maybe when I'm finished I'll have enough leftover to make her a scarf or hat, or even some cute armwarmers. We'll see.

If I had to do it over again, I would have doubled the yarn from the beginning and made it just a bit wider. The original sweater was heftier in weight and had some stiffness to it. This one is light and soft, which will be nice, since she'll have to wear something underneath it, and will make it good for fall and spring as well as winter. 

I probably won't be able to finish the sweater for a few weeks, since we have scheduled a c-section for Blessing on Friday. Our little guy will be here before we know it, and our lives will change dramatically for a while. With that in mind, if you are the praying type, please say a prayer for us, that we have a healthy baby boy, my recovery goes smoothly and quickly, and that our transition to a family of 5 is smooth. Thanks for reading and God bless!

P.S. I'll try to post pics of him before too long. I have so many cute projects to photograph him in!

A new project

We finally have everything unpacked and now I'm just sitting around waiting for Blessing to make his move, so I thought I'd get started on a project I have been thinking about for quite a while. One of my Mom's cousins approached me last winter to ask if I would consider making a sweater for her, based on a garment she already owned. I told her I'd give it a shot.

We got together at a family function again this summer (we don't get together with all the distant cousins but a couple times a year) and she brought the sweater so I could get an idea what I was getting into. It's a really pretty vest-type piece, and instead of being a full sweater, it just has tabs on the side. Should be easy-peasy! 

I took it with me, and spent a few weeks looking up pattern ideas before I discovered I couldn't really find a pattern to match what she wanted exactly. She said she wanted "boxy," as this one is very straight, and she didn't mind having a different neckline. I suggested a boat neck, which should be fairly straightforward, because otherwise I would have to do some serious research to shape the shoulders like this sweater. I found a pattern I like, and the cable detail is beautiful for this! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to figure out how to purchase the pattern on Ravelry, as it's part of a collection or a book, but after studying the photo closely, I think I've discovered a way to emulate it without needing one. I noticed the neckline is basically a bind-off with an inch or two of stitches at each end, and then you just pick up the stitches on the other side. Since I won't be working in the round (because of the tabs on the sides), I'll just make it like a large rectangle with the neck hole. At least, that's my plan.

I then spent several more days looking for wool yarn that would give it the stiffness that she wants and the gauge that I want. After several texts and emails, we finally settled on Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool in Oatmeal.

It's a little bulkier than I would have preferred, but the other yarns we were discussing I would have had to order online without having an example of, and I really dislike doing that. And I got to use all my JoAnn's coupons to get this...

Hopefully it turns out beautifully, and just what she wants. I started on it the other night, but had to stop a few rows in until I decide exactly how I want to do the cable. I'll pick it up again tonight, after I do a little more scouting online for ideas.

I'll probably post photos as it comes along, so I can document what I did as much as show off. I hope to have it finished before Thanksgiving, but I'll probably have to get together with her a couple of times to check and make sure the fit is good. I would not be surprised if I had to take out the neckline a couple of times to get it right.

I like working with the Fisherman's Wool already, compared to the scratchy Alpaca I used for the purple cowl recently. Maybe I'll make my knot bag out of it...

Until next time!

Catching up--part deux

Getting out some of my projects of late from the boxes they've been packed in, I realized I needed to take some photos of my latest projects. I think this should complete the archiving post I started a few weeks ago, so from here on out, I should only be posting current creations.

Here's the first one:

I Love This Yarn, size 9 needles

This is a project I made over a year ago, but due to my lack of enthusiasm for finishing projects, I had it sitting around waiting for the buttons to finish it up for months. I finally finished it over the winter, but I put it in a place I rarely visit and forgot about it, until I unpacked it last week. It was a fun experiment in knitting short rows, and the variegated yarn really makes the pattern stand out well. It is a loose cowl, and I think it'll look nice this winter. I've got 2 more skeins of this yarn, so I will probably end up knitting a hat and some mittens to match at some point.

Red Heart yarn, size 9 needles

This is a hat I knitted recently for Isaac, whose fair isle hat with the same colors is going to be too small this winter. This one is super-stretchy, so it should fit him for a couple of winters (I hope!).

Purl Bee yarn in Shale, size 9 needles

This is an adorable hat I made for Blessing using this pattern. I had to adjust for gauge since my yarn wasn't as thick as the yarn she uses, but it is also very stretchy and will hopefully fit him for the first couple of winters.

This is the previous hat with a keyhole scarf made of the same Shale Purl Bee yarn. I still have quite a bit of both of these yarns left, so I made the following hat as well, to hopefully use up some of the navy, but there's almost a whole skein of it left. 

I love the way this hat turned out, and I tried to use the jogless stripes technique, but I'm still not convinced that makes a difference. The pom makes this hat!

This slouchy hat is the reason I had so much of the shale leftover. I got about two-thirds of the way finished with it, when I ran out. I had to start a new skein and hardly used any of it to finish. I actually didn't plan to make it quite so slouchy, but by the time I finally finished it, I wasn't going to take it out and redo it. Maybe someday I'll have a ton of hair to pile up inside it like a hairnet...

As I mentioned at the top, anything else I post from here on out should be all-new. I've got a cute little stuffed elephant in the works for Blessing that needs a lot of sewing, and hopefully after some trial and error, will turn out to be adorable. I've also got some hats and sweaters I'd like to use up some yarn for, and some household projects to figure out. I don't know how long it will take to get some of these things going, so it might be a while before I have anything worth posting. I'll probably have some adorable pics of my new little dude in his cute little hats, so keep your eyes peeled for those soon :-)

I'm due 2 weeks from today, if I am able to make it that long, so if I don't post before then, I'm probably quite busy getting use to our new life as a family of 5. Take care and see you on the flip side!

Nothing new...

I really wish I had something neat and exciting to post here, but with the Big Move and unpacking over the last few weeks, I just really haven't had time or the energy to make anything. Most of my yarn is packed up in boxes still, waiting to be unpacked in my new craft area, which also needs some work.

I did manage to get some good work in on my ugly square, using up all the yarns my Grandma has given me over the last year or so, and all the scraps I've been collecting as well. It is getting bigger, but I think I'll keep going until it's about a king size comforter. I've got quite a way to go, and I'm not sure if you can notice a difference from the last time I took photos of it.

My days have been filled with taking care of the twins, unpacking, organizing, and preparing for the baby. Hopefully he'll wait a few more weeks to make his debut, so I can be completely unpacked, get all our pictures and shelves hung, and start working on some other, more aesthetic projects around the house. If I do, I'll be sure to post some photos. Otherwise, it may be a while before I get another post up, as I'll be nursing a little human round the clock and trying to stay awake for the twins as well. It'll be tricky, until we get in a rhythm.

Hope to write again soon, with more to say and show you! Until then, we appreciate your prayers for a short labor and healthy baby boy. Take care and God bless!

Archives

As part of my projects for moving, I set a goal to go through all of my old photos, at least for the last several months. I try to stay on the ball for making photo books for Christmas, but this year I have gotten REALLY behind! As a result, I came across oodles of photos of projects I've never posted or haven't listed on my Etsy shop. I will try to archive some of these projects for you today. Be prepared for LOTS of photos...

 

These fun hats were the original project I started with this yarn, that soon turned into an elf hat as well as a granny square afghan. I saw this cute post on Pinterest and had to make them for my boys' 1st birthday (and all subsequent birthdays in the family, so far...). They are tiny hats, and I didn't line them with any cardboard or anything, but they do the job. If the boys would only sit still, they would stay on just fine... ;-)

The next project is a baby blanket for one of those ethereal "girls" everyone keeps talking about ;-) My good friend from church had a precious little gal named Evelyn, so I thought I would use up some of the more feminine yarns I was given by another friend to make this, based on another pattern I saw on Pinterest. This blanket took AGES to complete, based on the fact it was in stockinette and the yarn was SO tiny to knit with. I would be proud of myself for completing 4 rows while I pumped breastmilk overnight for my boys. I also wanted to personalize it a little for her, hence the tiny "E" in the corner. Overall, I think it turned out beautifully, but I don't know if I would want to tackle a project like this again for a while. I still have plenty of this yarn leftover, and many different colors, so I might knit a tiny sweater or two at some point, but I may have to do them in garter stitch...

Front view (knit stitch)

Back view (purl stitch)

 

The next project is a pair of cute Santa hats I made for the boys' 2nd Christmas. Luckily, they still fit this year, although I think I forgot to get them out, since we had a fairly mild winter. I used leftover Christmas tree skirt yarn and did one in stripes and 1 solid. 

Oh, that's right! This is why they didn't wear them this year: I made them new hats! That is one problem with being a crafter, there is always something new to make and try. My sister-in-law found these hats online, and thought they would be cute on the cousins, so I ended up making all 3 of these the week of Christmas this year, on a whim. I think they turned out super-cute though. My 2 kiddos are in blue and green, below.

 

Speaking of Christmas, as I may have mentioned in an earlier post, I barely had time to get the gifts finished I had planned on, with the addition of the cute hats above. I ended up sewing these cute booties together first thing Christmas morning for my sister-in-law, who ordered up a pair for her coworker last year. The cuffs are a little different, and these are a soft acrylic (she doesn't wear wool), but I think they turned out great, and she loved the red I picked for her.

  

Since I made the booties for her, I didn't have to worry about knitting up anything else except for these fun little scarves I found a pattern for at JoAnn's. They are call keyhole scarves, and I love that they don't come off easily! They are so quick and easy to make too. Everything is knit, and I just changed colors every other row. I had to buy some new Vanna's Choice to make good color combinations, but I've already been able to use much of it up with the projects I've done this year.

  

I made 2 scarves a fair bit shorter, so they would fit my little guys. These are perfect for those cold winter days when we're the only ones looking at the polar bear at the zoo!

  

I made Teeny's scarf out of 1 solid color to match his Denim Twist yarn slouchy hat. I've had this yarn forever, and just didn't know what to make with it. I finally decided to make him a cute little hat that should fit for at least a couple of seasons, a scarf, and, after buying another skein online, will have enough leftover to make a cute project for the baby. 

 

Bulldog is sporting a hat I intended to make for my hubby. It was my first attempt at Fair Isle knitting, and it turned out much smaller than I had hoped. Luckily, it fit him just fine. I used leftover Red Heart yarns from a couple of beards. I did end up making another one for my hubby, that fits much better.

 

I don't know about you, but I don't like to spend money on patterns that I can usually figure out myself, but sometimes you come across something that is just too good to pass up. These next 2 hats I actually paid for the pattern because I couldn't find anything that even came close online, and was in a bit of a crunch to get them done in time. The boys are OBSESSED with trains, and I found this cute little park in North Kansas City that runs an old KC Zoo train for pennies. It was just before the boys' 2nd birthday, and the theme was, of course, trains, so we hauled them all the way up there on a Sunday afternoon and rode the train for an hour on $5.00! I wanted to get some cute photos of the boys in their overalls and hats to put on their birthday invitations, and these hats turned out perfectly. Totally worth the money!

The next item is an all-white viking beard someone ordered from Etsy. Just wanted to share the variation.

The next project was part of our Halloween costume nearly 2 years ago, so I'm amazed I hadn't posted anything about it yet! These were "scoodies" I found on Pinterest and adapted to fit my little guys. We were Star Wars characters, if you couldn't tell. The tiny ears on the scoodies helped them look like Ewoks.

The next item is a bit nebulous. I had a fair bit of bulky wool leftover from my cap and scarf, and saw a cute newborn cocoon I wanted to try. I didn't think I would ever have a chance to use it (my hubby was pretty against growing our family any more), but I suppose now I can use it for the new dude.

 

The next item is actually the oldest project I have on this list. I made these before the twins were even born, maybe even before we planned to have kiddos. It's been a while. They are a set of 8 nesting bowls I found, again, on Pinterest. I've always intended to make little balls to use of the rest of yarn, and for the little people to toss into the bowls, but just haven't gotten around to it. Maybe by the time Blessing is old enough to use them...

 

The last of the "new" projects is this pair of mittens I made, using the Homespun I made my nephew's poncho out of. They turned out great, but it wasn't quite cold enough this winter to use them a whole lot. They are REALLY warm!

And what post isn't complete without a beautiful Scandinavian boy twirling in a beard and viking helmet his Mommy made? I love the joy on his face here. 

I still have several projects completed, or mostly completed, that I need to photograph, but I figured this was long enough for one post. Stick around to see photos of our new home transformation over the coming weeks! I'll be busy packing, moving, unpacking, and nesting, but I'll try to get some of the new stuff up too. Thanks for sticking with it all the way to the end!