Stanley Cup

There was a rather large crowd in Boston today.
(Some of us got to hang out above the crowd, which was more pleasant than being in the middle of it.)
All to cheer for the Stanley Cup winning team!

My Lucky Month

I've been pretty lucky lately.

The other week, I won a copy of the current Knitcircus.

Yesterday, we went to a healthy living event put on by our city. While there, I won a baseball through one of the many raffles that were held throughout the day. Now true, a baseball is not a huge thing, but I still won it!

Today, I received a phone call that I won a free week at a local gym, including a personal training session.

I think I should go buy a lottery ticket!

Tropical Dolly

One of the Tropical Lily projects I had favorited on Ravelry was for a doll. Since I had some Cascade Luna left, and needed a no-thought project to take the park, I made one for Little Girl's Bitty Baby.


Bitty Baby seems to like it. We'll see if she holds on to it. The Bitty Twin hasn't seen it yet, and she might get jealous.

I altered the back to just have ties around the waist and neck. I thought about sewing on snaps or buttons, but this was much easier.

Little Boy tells me his doll, Baby Al, would like a boy version of this top. We'll see if it happens.

Happy knitting!

The Issue with Gauge

I know, as you know, that a good knitter always knits a gauge swatch.

I also know, as you know, that sometimes (or a lot of times), a knitter doesn't bother to knit a gauge swatch, and that often, it doesn't matter.

This is not the case in this story.

I cast on last month for a Tropical Lily for Baby Girl, using some Cascade Luna that I bought on the North Shore Yarn Crawl. I really loved the blues and purples of the yarn, and totally imagined how the colors would bring out Baby Girl's bright blue eyes.

I cast on the appropriate number of stitches using a size 7 needle as called for in the pattern, and I knit. I realized as I was knitting that the pinafore would be a little wide, but I decided that Baby Girl could always wear it next summer. Too big is always better than too small when it comes to clothes for children.

I followed the pattern, except to make a button tab instead of ties at the back. (I just didn't like the bulk of knitted ties). And, instead of putting buttons on the ends of the strap, I put the buttons on the inside of the waistband, and made 4 buttonholes on each strap, so the size could be adjusted as needed. Feeling very clever, I blocked the top, being careful not to add any extra width, but hoping to add a little length.

And as expected, the top is too big for Baby Girl.

Unexpectedly, it is also ever so slightly too large for Little Girl. Thankfully, only slightly.

She wore it to school today.


The moral of the story: Sometimes, when you don't check gauge, it still turns out alright.

Happy Knitting!

Hello, Again.

Despite its lack of appearance on this blog, there has been knitting going on.

I've knit two slouchy hats (that story is a blog post all its own):

I'm almost done with a Tropical Lily for baby girl:


And I'm on the start of Clue #4 out of 5 on the Birthday Pi Shawl:


Progress has been kind of slow because it's been pretty busy around here.

My cousin got married in Alexandria Bay, NY.

I made the kransekage, the traditional Norwegian Wedding Cake:

Alexandria Bay is a 7 hour drive through 4 states (Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York). I used knitmap to locate the yarn shops I would be passing, and stopped at three of them in Vermont on my way to New York. I bought a skein of sock yarn and a skein of worsted weight wool, but I haven't taken any pictures of them.

Little boy graduated from preschool the following Friday, and as a member of the parent board, I had a lot of running around to do to get ready for the graduation after-party. We're so proud of our little boy, and so glad that he had such a positive first school experience!

I've also been very busy meeting with brides and grooms whose weddings I'm coordinating at church. I had three weddings in May, and three more in June. I LOVE doing weddings, but it always makes for a busy weekend.

I'm hoping to make it to my knitting group tonight. I haven't been there in months!

Happy Knitting!

He is Risen!

He is risen indeed!

Little Boy

Yesterday, Little Boy turned 5. 5!!! I can hardly believe it!!

My boy is a runner, and has been since he could walk. He hits the ground running in the morning, and runs all day. In fact, the only complaint we hear from his teachers is that he needs to use walking feet more, and running feet less. He is a natural athlete, and we can't wait to see what sports he will pick as his (although DH is hoping hockey and I'm hoping baseball. I have a feeling it might be track). Despite his athletic toughness, he's sensitive, and his feelings are easily hurt.

Of all the kids, Little Boy seems to have the best sense of humor. He's often "jokin' around". And he's lost a front tooth, and the other tooth is a little crooked, and when he smiles, oh my goodness, he lights up the whole room! Little boy is also a hug cuddlebug, and gives everyone a ton of hugs a day.

I know it's crazy, but his first word was "broom". This boy loves to clean! He's a huge help around the house, and loves that he can help out by vacuuming. (I usually give him a quarter to vacuum to the furniture. He love's using the upholstry brush). He's also a tremendous organizer, and has been known to disappear into the basement (storage central in our house), just to "make things neater."

Like most boys, Little boy aspires to be like his Daddy. He wanted a yellow cake this year, because that's what kind of cake Daddy has. He has recently acquired a toolbelt, and has been helping Daddy with a project to fix the bunk beds. He's so proud of himself!

Little boy is far from perfect. He has a hard time listening sometimes, and he can be really impulsive. And he insists on writing his name from the right to the left, which is impeding his ability to get his own library card (and he really wants his own card!) But he's sweet, and friendly, and so full of laughter. I am truly blessed to have been entrusted with this child.

Happy birthday my dear sweet boy. I love you!