1. Bunny and my dad ready for formal night, 2. Malabrigo Beret for Little J, 3. Toddler Mittens for Hanna, 4. Panama Canal lock doors, 5. Bunny and Santa, 6. close enough to Twilight fingerless gloves for Big J, 7. three generations with matching hats, 8. Island Princess, 9. For both ends of Baby K, 10. Tiny Guatemalan weaver, 11. Christmas!, 12. Mittens for Ms. C, 13. lock house, 14. 1/3 of the way through a lock, 15. floral carpet in a Guatemalan village, 16. Mittens for Mrs. D

We’re adjusting to life with a cast pretty well, although we have yet to venture into the word of a full bath. I admit I combined the need for a hair-cut with the need for a hair wash. Bunny and I hit the mall on Monday evening and at Cartoon Cuts he got a wash and cut! Pin removal has been scheduled for December 2.

I did manage to finish the Turkish Patterned Cap for Bunny shortly after my last post. He has been wearing it almost daily. I figure it will help keep him warm since he really can’t wear a coat.

This photo is from a Kindergarten field trip to some farm or something. I think it turned out really well and he looks quite adorable in it if I do say so myself. I have yet to get a photo of both of my guys in their hats, but I plan to! Thanks to Lisa for modeling and Amber for taking the model shot!

]]> http://bethc.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/hat-for-a-one-armed-pirate/feed/ 4 bethc pirate Turkish Pattern Cap in use Turkish Pattern Cap http://bethc.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/how-much-hat/ http://bethc.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/how-much-hat/#comments Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:55:09 +0000 bethc http://bethc.wordpress.com/?p=354 ]]> How much hat could a worried mom knit if a worried mom knit all night?

Turns out you can knit pretty much if you’re up all night! But let’s start at the beginning of this story.

On Wednesday as Bunny and I were going into school he said to me, “It sure would be nice if I had a hat.” Words to warm a knitting mom’s heart. Wednesday night I gave him a number of choices and he decided he wanted a hat to match Daddy’s, the Turkish Patterned Cap I knitted for B. I tried the existing model on Bunny and figured out the sizing.

Thursday afternoon I left school early and headed to Reagan National Airport to catch a flight to Chicago for a meeting of an advisory board I serve on. The trip was flawless. I got lunch in the airport, got on an earlier plane off the stand-by list, and even ended up in an “Economy Plus” window seat with and empty middle seat. While in the airport I had executed the cast-on and once settled in my seat I merrily knit along all the while thinking about how lucky I was and how much I enjoy color work!

Landing was easy and I headed through O’Hare to the shuttle area. They say the hotel shuttle comes every 20 minutes, the past two years when I have gone to this meeting I have had to wait 30 minutes each time. It was exactly 10 minutes from when I arrived at the bus stop till the bus arrived. I checked into the hotel, dropped my stuff in my room, and tried out the free happy hour! Happy hour and a bite to eat and I was back in my room, amazed at my fabulous day… and a little concerned about what fate had in store… little did I know.

Friday morning, great breakfast in the hotel, a few rounds on the hat, and then downstairs for my meeting. The meeting was good and interesting. I feel like I had things to contribute and that I learned some things as well. Then my phone rang a little before 2:00 central time. When I saw the school’s number on the caller ID my heart flipped. My friend and teaching colleague JulieFrick was on the other end. She said they had already called B, but that Bunny was quite hurt and it was likely that his elbow was at least dislocated. From that point on the day rapidly went down hill. B left work and raced over to school (damaging the left front of his car on the way out of his work garage) he talked to both the pediatrician and the insurance on the way and after consulting with the school nurse he scooped up Bunny and they headed to Georgetown University Hospital. Much waiting and some x-rays revealed that he had indeed broken his arm and surgery was needed to repair it. (If you like that sort of thing, click here for the x-ray.)

Through all this I’m getting to and then waiting at O’Hare. Luckily I was already scheduled on an evening flight, because everything was overbooked. I knit some, but I think I mostly looked at my phone willing it to ring with news. By the time I boarded the plane I knew that Bunny would have surgery while I was in the air and that B felt comfortable with the guy who was performing the operation.

I did knit on the hat on the flight and for the first time ever was asked to put my knitting away for landing… When we landed I got to through the airport and on the shuttle to my car into my car and on my way to the hospital. Luckily I had packed an extra night’s worth of everything so I was set to stay at the hospital. I got the the surgical waiting room and met up with B and not long after the surgeon came to tell us that all was well. Bunny now had four pins in his arm and a giant cast.

We got to a shared room in the pediatric ICU shortly after midnight and B went home to get some sleep. I stayed in the room, knit, listened to my iPod, and dozed. In the morning the decision was made that Bunny should stay till about 1:00 so that they could give him the final dose of antibiotics. He was having some pain, but they were able to control it. We have discovered that he doesn’t identify the pain right away, but starts falling apart about any little thing and then we know there’s pain.

Discharge went as planned and we were home by mid-afternoon. Bunny and I both had a nap and a good night’s sleep on Saturday night. By yesterday he was feeling pretty good and went to a birthday party as planned. Today he and I are both at school!

All’s well that ends well… I feel thankful that at every step of the way Bunny had outstanding care. I’m hoping I can get his hat done tonight, maybe I should start working on a giant mitten as well!

First Bunny and I went to Nature’s Yarns to get soles for his slippers. On the way home from there (with a stop at Bob Evans for lunch) we stopped at Uniqities and I got the Fiber Trends pattern for the adult clogs. When we got home I set to work sewing on the soles, and discovered I just didn’t like the way they fit on the slippers and the way they looked. So, back out to Fairfax where I exchanged the soles for some yarn.

Not long after I got home the mail arrived with delights galore! The new shipment from The Yarn Pirate’s Booty Club, which is just great, and a box from my secret pal!! The photos on this post are all of the great package she sent that included:

• one skein of Noro Silk Garden Sock in a blue, green, purple colorway that is just great
• one skein of Araucania Ranco in shades of pinks
• one skein of Scarlet Fleece Silk & Ivory in browns, pinks, and purples
• Cookie A’s Gothic Spire pattern
• a WHOLE LOT of SKITTLES!

It’s a great package! The yarns are all really nice and I already have ideas. The Skittles, well let’s just say the snack drawer at school will be well stocked

Thanks so much to Stephanie of the Knitting Nurse… we’ll have to meet up sometime since she lives nearby, and I think she works at an LYS!

PS: photos of the yarns are on my stash page on Ravelry already!

We’re just back from a truly relaxing week-end that has left me feeling renewed and refreshed. We left later than we intended on Friday, but did manage to make a final trip to the beach for the season. Because I have the best in-laws in the world, and they have a trailer on 4 spots away from ours, I got perhaps more sleep in a single week-end than I have since before Bunny was born! All that sleep has left me on a Monday evening (but really it’s more like a Sunday evening with the holiday and all) with the energy to quickly bring blogville up to date.

Since we last spoke we received the wondrous Malabrigo from SuperCrafty and the Grade 6 knitters are off and running. While a few are still working on their “practice” many are learning the joys of knitting a cowl with yummy goodness. I knitted one for myself, binding off as we rode the bus to the Grade 6 fall camping trip. I then proceeded to wear said cowl for the entire 3-day trip. After that abuse it needs a good washing before its photo shoot!

We arrived home from camping on Bunny’s 6th birthday. My how time flies! He calculated that if he aged another year for each birthday celebration he’s now 12. His birthday was well celebrated to say the least, with different events stretching over eight days. One of the many highlights was the Pirate Lego party held with 18 of his closest friends. We rented Legos for the event. 30,000 of them! A good time was had by all the kids, and the adults involved were all exhausted!

When we got ready to leave for this week-end’s trip I grabbed Bunny’s long neglected Tomten. What fun it is to knit on and I am nearing the end of the first sleeve. I have high hopes that I’ll actually get it done in time for wear this fall! Luckily it seems that it will still fit, and he still likes purple, whew.

I have other things that need to get done, most pressing is sewing up the squares for a group baby blanket. The squares have been done since mid-summer, I’m just putting off the sewing… now I’m thinking about crocheting them together, perhaps that would be interesting enough to get me on the case! I have ordered Cascade 220 from The Loopy Ewe to start on holiday felted clogs. I have the pattern for the children’s but have to track down the adult one. Anyone know of a lys in my area that carries it? Seems a shame to pay shipping.

Only three teaching days this week (Friday is parent-teacher conferences) so I’m hoping that my state of restedness might last…

After finishing these and swatching for a sock class with CookieA this week-end I was left rather at loose ends on the knitting front. So off I went to my bag of UFO’s and found my Shetland Triangle started in the summer of ’07. What a delight to knit. I wonder why I put it away?

Time will tell what arrives tommorow…

We’re doing our best to teach them about knitting with “the good stuff.” We’re starting them out with donated acrylic and then once they show they can knit they move on to Malabrigo! Yup, because of the great prices at SuperCrafty we were able to get each kid a skein of his/her own and we will set forth and make cowls!

I know what I’m going to teach.

I have clean clothes.

School starts tomorrow… Ready or not, here we go again!

But for today, I’m thinking back to the summer!

I competed in the Ravelympics!

And I won two medals!!

Surprised that I managed to start and finish two projects during the Olympics? Me too. Of course, there was a trip across the country and a cruise so there was penty of knitting time!

My projects were Elisa’s Nest Tote and Children’s Felt Clogs. Both were great fun to knit and I’m already planning repeats of both. I think I better start stocking up on feltable yarn, I see a lot of clogs come Christmas! Didn’t The Loopy Ewe say they would have Cascade 220 soon? That could be dangerous…