If They Could Just Stay Little

If they could just stay little 'till their Carters wear out, and maybe their wool socks.

Would you believe that I am already weeding through things that no longer fit this baby? All those newborn clothes, anything that says 0-3 months, oh, and these-

I made him some tiny Garter Rib Socks to match mine. Those were the first socks I ever finished, not the first pair I started, but the first I managed to stay focused on enough to complete. It's rather a bright shade of blue, for the fun and spunky days I guess. Being the compulsive hoarder that I am, I could never bring myself to part with the leftovers from that first skein of sock yarn- I just knew I could use it someday, and I finally did. Now I need to finish another pair of socks so I can have some more leftovers, so the babe can have some more socks, ones with a few more rows to accomodate his growing feet... (I could also use about 24 more hours in my days.)

I still need to get Mercy's hat blocked, isn't that awful? (The crocheted edging has the tiny bit of flaring going on...) Okay, now that I said it (proving to the world my talent and skill at procrastinating) I simply have to get up and block that thing! I mean, this is Minnesota. It has gotten cold, and we finally have snow, which she actually likes to go out and play in, for a few minutes even. Sure, there is a hood on her snowsuit, but it isn't alpaca soft and warm.

I was a wee bit discouraged by her initial reaction to her lovingly handcrafted hat, though...

Kids. My sister may be right- just give them some gel pens and notepads from the dollar spot at Target and they're happy, spend precious knitting time on people who will appreciate it. She may be right, but then again she may be wrong, and my kids could grow up feeling neglected if I spent all my knitting time knitting for myself, I mean, for grown friends and family, ehem. I think I'll give the little buggers a few more chances, and probably some more pens and paper as well... I am such a softie, or is it softy?

Speaking of softies, and gifts, apreciated or not, I've got a book recommendation for this season-

The Mitten, adapted and illustrated by Jan Brett

"In The Mitten, a Ukranian folktale, a boy named Nicki loses his snow-white mitten. He can't find it in the snow... but the woodland animals do!"

A grandmother knitting mittens, white wool, a child playing in the snow, woodland critters- so cute, and I just love the very last illustration, the puzzled look on grandmother's face as she looks at the two mittens... so cute. It would make a wonderful companion to a handknit pair of mittens for a loved one in your life, and every knitting mother should have a handful of beautifully illustrated stories featuring our favorite handcraft, don't you think? Seriously, this is just such a sweet book. (Moms- Jan Brett has a ton of free printables on her site, like these adorable ABC flashcards!)

I've got quite a few projects up my sleeve at the moment, and my Ravelry Queue is getting out of control... No one could knit that much, well, maybe somebody could, somebody who didn't need to eat or sleep for several years, but not me, gonna hafta start cleaning that thing out- one of these days...

*Bonus dinner recommendation (I'm feeling rather random)- I made Meril's Kicked Up Mac and Cheese tonight, Emeril's Essence and all. This one's definitely a keeper- very fun and tasty meal!

Happy knitting-

ali