It's Something

Good news... there is progress!

Because the weather was so cold here my lovely knitting group made a last minute location change and came to my house to knit, and meet the baby. They held the baby and my fingers flew- cramming in as much knitting time as I could muster- hence the progress we see today.

What's funny is that I am DYING to work on something new, but I have to finish this first. Next I'm going to pick up the sock since all I want to do is start a million socks. BUT, finishing is the name of the game and so, instead of being all willy nilly- I'm going to stick to finishing what I need to finish. I'm hoping and praying to the patron saint of knitting that I can get this blanket done before the end of January so we can begin February with something much more interesting!

Because there really isn't much else to show you, I will placate you with a smiley pic of my kiddo... which I'm hoping will gloss over the fact that there isn't much else to show you. SO BEHOLD... my happy kiddo! (Who you are welcome to come and hold if you will let me knit ;-0)

Progressions

With the Teddy blanket off the needles I'm moved my devotion and attention to getting Parker's blanket done next. However it kind of looks the same as it always has since progress is quite slow. SO, in order to convey some sense of completion and because some days it IS just a row done- I've decided to snap photos with a tape measure so we can at least that there is some progression. (This is as much for me as anyone.) So here we go- 24" on Parker's blanket. I will either knit to 40" or until I run out of yarn, whatever happens first.

Also- because there are looky-loo's who like this sort of thing, my yarn gifted to me from my inlaws arrived this week and it is lovely. OH so lovely. Behold- Madelintosh Tosh Sock in "Logwood". It's this lovely light purple color and I am just itching ITCHING to work on it. (But NO... I am being strict with myself, there are items that need to be finished first!)

So that's what happening around here this week- slow and steady progress on the blanket for the baby. SPEAKING of the baby... I thought we could all enjoy this cute photo of him. My cutie smiles and "talks" a lot more these days... charming the pants off of everyone he meets. Tell me- can you resist this face?

I cannot... which is why progress is happening at snail's pace. But at least it's some progress and we'll take it.

A New Year... New Challenge

Happy New Year!!

I'll be honest, I did my damnedest to finish the Teddy Blanket for 2011... there was crocheting an hour before the clock told us it was the new year, but I also had a fussy baby (booo exczema!!!) who wanted my attention more. Alas- Teddy was not finished for 2011. However, fear not because I did finish it for 2012!

Pattern: Teddy Bear Baby Blanket by Barbara Breiter

Yarn: Mission Falls 136 Merino Superwash in colorway 006 (Discontinued yarn)

Needles: US 6

Thoughts: This pattern was actually inspired by a Ravelry member's project AleNochka (Rav link)- when I saw what she had done I decided to use her same modifications and knit a version myself. It's not a thrilling pattern but it did knit quickly and it was ideal to haul around with me when I just needed something easy and quick to pick up and knit. (Other projects aren't as simple.)

You'll note I sucked it up and crocheted (yuck) a border. God help me, but I actually enjoyed my crochet time! (Sensitive knitters will want to pass over the next photo as it's an extreme CROCHET CLOSEUP... I'm getting a lot better at crochet!)

So with Teddy off the needles it's time for me to take stock and plan for the New Year. The truth is, I have a lot of unfinished things that need to be cleaned up. A lot of projects that got abandoned last year for one reason or another. They kind of hang over my head reminding me that I need to "close a few circles" and move forward. So, without further ado I present to you my New Years knitting resolutions.

1) Parker's Blanket

I started this on mat leave and had the delusional idea that I could knit it in a week before Parker's arrival. This is just a little over half finished and I want to get it done for my kiddo.

2) Pink Baby Dots

I still love this blanket a lot- but it's not an easy one to cart around- it's a strictly "at home" project.

3) Nebula Socks

I have a metric butt load of sock yarn and recent stash acquisitions mandate that 2012 be about knitting socks, meaning I need to get Nebula off the needles and on my feet!

4) Kevin's Sweater (Now known as Project Kevin & Kristian)

Remember when I was knitting a dog sweater for a friend? I hardly do... and for some reason I abandoned this project when I was so close to being done. Poor Kevin is still cold! Thankfully it's been a mild winter so far! Kevin's mom recently had a baby (Christmas day) and I think it would be funny for Kevin and baby to have matching sweaters. So- Kevin's sweater needs to be done and a little baby sweater needs to be made in order to consider this finished.

5) Fireside Sweater

I abandoned this project when I found out I was pregnant because it felt futile to knit a sweater that I wouldn't be able to wear as I got bigger and bigger. I'm so close with this one... SO CLOSE. It needs to be done and now that I'll fit it again it REALLY needs to be done. So finish it I will.

These are all diverse projects in all various states of completion. There's enough representation here that if I bore of one project I can move on to something completely different, but still focus on finishing. As the baby gets a little bit bigger and begins to find a more regular schedule (patterns are emerging!) I should find a few more minutes and opportunities to pick up the needles. So that's what you have to look forward to this year.

Once these are finished (hopefully in the first 6 months) then I'm going to move my focus to small projects. Baby sweaters... socks... little items that have a short completion time. Should be a good year! Thanks for sticking with me despite the light blog posts this year- I'm still here, I'm still knitting and will hopefully I'll keep finding the time to talk about it!

Happy New Year!