Still hating the blanket!

But some FO's - I decided to make more shorties for DD as the ones I made her are loose, which is great for a non-crawler, but not working for super-action-baby. So I sized down my needles and made these:

LTK Picky pants, in a lighter worsted wool I got from a yarn store I just discovered at the end of my block (!!!). I did the eyelet garter finish, and used very small needles (3 mm) for the waistband, and added a few extra rows to the waistband. I also changed the eyelet row in the waistband from *K2tog, YO*, repeat to *k2, YO, P2tog* repeat - it makes less eyelets, and I think it's tidier hugs her waist better. The body of these is done with size 7 addi turbo needles. Don't ask me why for some projects I give the metric size and some I use the US size. It's just whatever side of the size gauge I happen to be looking at.

And an action shot:

Man, how stinkin' cute is that?? They fit like a dream. So sweet. Oh, I made the legs super short - I only did two rows then did the finish. Love how it turned out.

Loved it so much, I made another pair! These were

made from Paton's wool, dyed by me with

kool-aid, witih a cream trim. You can really see the eyelet cuff in this, they are so sweet.

I used size 6's on these. They're nice and snug on. These were so much fun to knit, they're pretty quick and the cuff is interesting, so it was enjoyable. I even enjoyed weaving in the ends. I know, I'm going nuts. I don't get much time to myself.

And she's off!

This was going to be a post about my littlest child, who is learning to crawl and quite frankly is the cutest thing you've ever seen. But I had to get something off my chest.

At left is a lovely waterfall. Unfortunately it is in my basement. It is not supposed to be there.

The good news: I got a dehumidifier for $25.00, and it works great!

The bad news: My basement stinks. That funky musty damp basement smell. I'm so pissed off. When we looked at this house, it was perfectly dry, and there had been a few downpours already this season. Idiot vendor had neglected to clean the eaves, so this downspout got clogged (it goes right into our basement drain).

Fortunately your intrepid blogger found the perfect tool (took the swiffer apart) and used great skill and dexterity (rammed the pointy end into the downspout in a panicked attempt to de-clog) and voila. Problem solved.

Other than the stink.

Fortunately I have my knitting to help me relax.

Ah yes. The baby blanket for my nephew, due imminently. The infernal baby blanket is still in progress. If by "in progress" you mean "baby is due in 3 days, there's probably 20 hours of work left to do on it and I haven't touched it in 2 days". I think these blankets are supposed to be special because they are threaded with love and prayers and hope. This one is threaded with curse words at the moment. Better get on the sweetness and prayers thing.

I hate this project. I don't know why. I think it would look nicer all in blue, but I'm too far gone to rip it out and re-start. And did I mention that that border is 12 rows of stitches of seed stitch. 171 stitches across. I am so screwed.

And I just deleted the photo I uploaded. Here it is again. Cuz I've got nothing but time. Oh my god, I deleted it again. Screw it.

But I did finish a soaker for a trade on mamabarter. I made this in about 2 hours of knitting, and am also making a size small. This is a size newborn, and it's impossibly tiny and sweet. She provided the yarn, and I got a diva cup too in exchange. Not a bad deal! I'm pleased with the knitting, it was a cheap yarn and not very soft, but it turned out beautifully.

And I got me some zen string. I thought the whole hoopla with zenstring (http://www.zenstring.com/) was just a bunch of, well, hooey - I mean, how special can yarn be?

Pretty damned special, as it turns out. Just taking it from the skein and winding it into a ball (without a swift and winder, mind - note to self: request same for birthday) was a near-religious experience. This stuff is so soft and slippery I cannot wait to knit it up. But alas, I must, as it is for longies for baby for the fall, and I'm afraid to start now lest she grow and force me to frog. Zenstring shall not be frogged. This is a skein of bliss aran BFL in the "sakura" colourway. I'm trying to think of a reason why baby deserves $50 longies when I could have a $50 scarf.

Some FO's, some in progress

Big month, June was - and July's been nuts too.

Random parenting comment (because I was going through photos, and found this one)

Babies love being held. Even fat little breastfed babies. I can barely lift my 19 lb hulker of a 6 month old, so I wear her in a sling. This is a peanut shell sling, it's just a ring of fabric that I slip on, and pop DD into it. Here we are at IKEA in Minneapolis. She loves her sling. Dads: you get lots of cute 'awww' looks when you wear your baby.

I also found a great store in St. Paul - http://www.peapods.com/ - I haven't found a bricks and mortar natural kid/baby store anywhere, and I was in heaven here. Between this place, and the yarn shop I found, let's just say the bank account was a wee bit lighter when we got back to Canada.

Here's that pic of the soaker I was talking about. Cute baby, eh? Crappy soaker, I cannot make the curly purly pattern work for my DD and it's really pissing me off. Back to the drawing board.

My son had his grade 6 graduation in June. Here's a pic of my handsome boy - he also won the math award. That's right, he's adorable, loving, AND smart. I'm a bit proud.

Hoo, boy, there's lots more, so maybe I'll post again tomorrow. I'm pooped. And I have to pee, adn I'm afraid I'll lose this post if I don't publish now!