Baby Boy Booties

Here's those Baby Boy Booties to match the hat. I made these last night while we watched X-men (my favorite movie). I think it's great that Anthony will hang out with me while I do 2 of my favorite things. He thinks he's the lucky one because I love sci-fi movies. :)

Baby Boy skull cap

Here's a hat I made for a baby boy that isn't yet born. I'm working on the booties so I will share when I'm done. I used one of my Mom's buttons again. I can't seem to find any buttons that are as cute as hers. Gav says his Grandma has the best button collection around. He thought it was so neat he started his own. I love how excited they get about simple things. We adults could use a little more of that!

Kate with Ruffles

Sorry it's been a while since I've posted...I've been sick, sick. Wasn't it worth the wait, though? Mandy took this pic this morning of Kate. Can you even stand it? She's perfect...and I absolutely LOVE this hat. I saw a hat like this in one of my books. I decided to change the ruffles a bit and I think it turned out just right. The sizing is always a guess the first time I do a hat so I'm glad that worked out too. I hope everyone is surviving the cold!

Summer Mary Janes

Although it is FREEZING outside today I thought I'd share a summer version of Mary Jane booties. These would be so cute with a little summer dress and bloomers. The yarn has some give so the strap could be tighter if need be. I think the button adds such a cute touch. Another reason these are great is because they show their tiny little ankles.

Gav in his "Library jacket"

Here's a sweater I made for Gavin a while ago. It's a pattern from one of my favorite knitting designers, Debbie Bliss. He calls it his Library Jacket. I was cleaning out my closet the other day and he wanted to help. He was such a great helper and asked me why I was giving away a lot of my clothes. I told him when we don't want our clothes anymore we donate them to people who will wear them. He kept asking why I was getting rid of certain things. At one point I said something like, "Well, Bud, I guess I don't like it enough to keep it." Then he disappeared with a garbage bag of his own. He came back with some of his clothes in the bag. He was so proud of himself! When I opened the bag there was his Library Jacket and another sweater I made him. He told me he didn't like them enough to keep them. He's lucky he's cute.........

Ava and my hat

Here's Ava in my beret. She and her Mommy hosted our craft night last night. It was really cute because at first she wasn't too sure about me since she doesn't know me. The second she saw my hats, though, she warmed up instantly. I never knew they could be an ice breaker...I'll have to remember that! She's Sam's older sister. The whole family is just adorable.

This is Ava's new hat

This is going to be Ava's new hat. I made the other purple one too big. Her head isn't as big as my kids'. :) I finished it up at our neighborhood craft night last night. It's nice to get out of the house and talk with other Moms going through similiar things...all while knitting.

Abby in her hat

Here's Abby in her hat! Look at how adorable she is. I was so excited to get this picture because I have never seen Abby before. I met her Mom, Debbi, at a scrapbooking weekend this fall. All the ladies were so gracious...I was the only knitter. My Mom made me promise I wasn't going to come back a scrapbooker because she knows I don't need anymore crafts! Here I was amongst all these fabulous scrapbookers and I was VERY tempted! You can see some of their creations on Mandy's blog. We have another one coming up and I am so excited! It takes me two weeks to pack because I always change my mind on what projects to bring. I'm in "cautious" mode with my back so I can be certain I get to go. I guess that means no ice skating this weekend. :)

My new Hat

Gavin took this pic and has now climbed up on my stool to make sure I post it. I really don't want to because...look at those tired Mommy eyes!!! I was up 4 times with the kids last night. These are the days I like to put a little make-up on to pretend I'm amongst the living. I know, though, it would be smeared all over my kids' clothes in two minutes. Maybe I'll look back at this blog someday and these crazy nights will be a distant memory. I can dream, right?

I started this hat last night at Knitting Club (thanks for the great night, Ladies!) and finished it up today. It was quick and fun.

Baby Girl Hat

A quick post of the baby girl hat I finished yesterday. This is one of my favorite variegated yarns.

Booties Mary Jane Style

I made these yesterday for a friend of mine who is having a baby girl. Can't wait for her to see them. I loved doing them! I think they would be cute with leather soles for slippers. I'll have to put that on my list....

Ava

Here's Ava in her hat I made for her this fall.
And this is her new hat I made for her. She LOVES purple right now. I made her a purple hat back when she was a toddler. It's tattered, worn, and way to small but she insists on wearing it all the time. I hope she likes this one just as much!

Ethan and Kate

This is Ethan. Look it how tiny he is! Even the newborn hat is big on him. I am certain his big cousin, Kyah, loves him to pieces. He arrived just in time for Christmas. What a perfect gift!

And here's Kate again. Here Mom took a better picture so I had to share. Look at those cheeks!!

Brynn and Tenley

I LOVE the pics of Tenley with her Grandpa. Not all Grandpas can show their love like that. How special...what great pictures. Mandy took them.













Brynn's parents are U of MN alumni (GO GOPHERS!) so they asked me to make her a hat. Under that hat are the most precious blonde curls. Stu, you will have to stand guard with your hockey stick when the boys start coming around :)

Raggy Hat being Modeled by Jayden

Here's Jayden in the Raggy hat. They always look so much better on the cutie pies...

Raggy Hat

I added strips of fabric to this hat. It reminds me of the ragtime quilts I've done for the boys. I love the idea of marrying two crafts together. I'm a wanna-be quilter so it's fun to work with fabric too.

Cherish

Here's my Uppercase Living art for our Master bedroom. I love the silver. It's subtle on the dark wall. I have our wedding photos in silver frames so it all goes well together. Anthony made me promise I wouldn't buy anymore for a while. I think he fears every wall will have words. :) I may just have to sneak one or two more for the boys' room. There's one that's a street sign and says, "All Boy Blvd."

Uppercase Living

I absolutely LOVE my new Uppercase Living art for my walls. Thanks Shannon! Here's what I put up in my craft room. Gavin helped me put it up and we had a lot of fun. He's such good company!

Gavin is holding a lamb stuffed animal I felted. It was tedious to do, but worth it in the end. It could also be used as a pin cushion. It reminds me of my Dad's old stuffed animals he played with when he was young. It has an antique look to it. He hangs out on the yarn shelf in my craft room for fear he would get destroyed if he was in the toy box.

Jayden

Jayden's Momma gave me this pic of her in one of my hats. Look at those eyes. Thanks Mandy!

Cookie Grandma

This is my husband's Grandma, Mae Jeanne. She is such a wonderful friend of mine. I am very lucky to have her. She's my blog's biggest fan too! She looks at my blog every day and always sends me nice e-mails about it. We miss her when she goes to AZ in the winter. Around our house we call her "Cookie Grandma" because she bakes fresh cookies and then mails them to the boys. They run around the house yelling, "Cookie Grandma Cookies!" until we can get the package open. They are so lucky she does that for them. It's their special thing together. She bakes 'em and they eat 'em!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

I hope you are all enjoying the holiday! We had a great time last night and now we're off to our next get together. My goal before we go is to get all 3 boys to nap at the same time so I can. Hmmm...we'll see how that goes.

I was excited to give my niece, Ava, her stocking. It was a surprise and I wasn't sure I would get it done with all the craziness. I knit it and then felted it in my washing machine. The snowman and holly were done with needle felting. I loved doing it; it was fun.

Kate

Here's Kate in her latest hat. You may remember her adorable pic posted Nov. 11th. She's getting so big! A few of us neighbors do last minute week night dinners so we don't have to cook every night. We just bring what we have in our fridges and wing it. It's nice to see friends in the middle of the week when things are crazy.

I love this hat because it's stretchy so she can tug on it and it will go back to it's normal shape.

Chloe and Me

Here I am knitting with my friend at my feet. She loves to lay in my yarn and keep warm. She's good company when she's not barking or escaping out the front door.

My Buddy

This is Mandy's son, Jake. He is such a BOY! He fits right in at our house. We spent the morning together yesterday. He was so quiet without the other kids around. Every once in a while I would say something silly just to make sure he was still good. He got this tiny smirk on his face and then shyly looked away. I know his Momma knows what I'm talking about! You are in so much trouble Mandy!! Puddy in his hands..... :)

Avery

Here's little Avery in the hat I made for her. Can't wait for the little peanut and her family to move into our neighborhood. We will have so many great times hanging out and watching our kids grow. Thanks for sending the pic Becky! Hope to see you soon...

Little Sam

This is Sam. She's teeny tiny like her Momma! Mandy Birdwell took these 2 pictures of the babies on their tummies. What a great idea for a picture. It never gets old seeing these brand new little darlings. How lucky I am to see them in something I've made!

Baby Amelia

I could stare all day long....look at that little butt! This is Amelia. She and her twin sister, Rachel, did this photo shoot together but Rachel decided to stay awake the whole time so Mandy wasn't able to get her laying on her tummy snoozing. They also have a 2 yr. old sister, Claire. As you can imagine, their Mommy and Daddy are very busy! I'm convinced God makes them irresistibly beautiful so we forget how much work they are and have more. :) The booties Amelia is wearing are great because they have a tie on them so they stay put.

Vertical stripes

Here's the hat I finished last night to match Gav's winter coat. He wasn't too sure about it until his little brother begged for one just like it. Then he had to wear it to school. This time I made sure to have a label in it before he left. I hope it makes it home today! I wanted to try doing vertical stripes but didn't see a pattern out there that I liked. I ended up just winging-it and, this time, I think it worked out. I like it. It's silly; just like Gav.

Boy Premie Hat

I made this hat today. We were on the way to see Santa and I forgot some of my needles. I ended up using my lip liner as a double point to finish it up before we got home. I added this woven label on the hat ("fun, wild & crazy") because making the hat reminded me of when our first son was born 3 lbs. 8 oz. He was in the NICU and all we wanted was him home with us. My Mom used an orange for sizing when she knit Gavin's hats. It's hard to believe a baby can be that small (or smaller). The label is my note to the parents that soon enough their little premie will be running around being fun, wild and crazy. The days at the hospital will be a memory and he'll be eating 2 sandwiches at a time like ours does now.

Maddy's Hat

Here's a hat I just finished for Maddy. I met her Mom at a Uppercase Living party and found out we have a lot of people in common. A group of us are going sledding on Saturday night. I hope I don't end up in a body cast.

Men's Mittens

Here's a pair of men's felted mittens I did. They are so warm! After I made them my husband told me he doesn't wear mittens. Well! I guess I have another pair for myself...

Happy Monday Everyone! It's nice to have the sun shining on this freezing day. Here are my favorite mittens. Every year when I get the bins down with all the winter gear in them I can't help but feel a bit of dread. The idea of cold weather and trying to keep the kids from having cabin fever all winter can be a scary thought. When I see these mittens somehow they minimize that feeling. Opening up that bin of scarves, hats and mittens I've made brings back memories.

All my Boys

I just ran across these pics of the first days with Fin. You get a peek of the booties I did to match his hat in this pic. I love this picture because it's how I know my wonderful husband these days...in his Golden Gophers sweatshirt looking a little sleepy. Love you P!

Graham had a few days there when he decided for every picture he would cross his eyes. Not sure how he came up with that. Mandy, with all her skills, got a shot of him looking at Fin. It was no small task.

Here's the proud biggest brother. Even now he wakes up in the morning and says stuff like, "Mommy isn't it fun having a baby in our house?" He is such a generous soul.

Old experiment becomes something unexpected...

I was going through my yarn the other day and found this completed project just waiting to be felted. I knit this a few years ago just when I was starting to try my own patterns. As a hat it turned out too wide so I stashed it away (I never have the heart to rip out my projects). When I found it I decided to felt it anyway and see if it would work as a bowl. It does! Now I have a place for my keys and change.

One more to go...

Here are the stockings I made for my two older kids. I machine felted the stockings and then needle felted the snowman and tree on. I still have to do Fin's (yikes!). I'm going to do Santa on his. I plan on putting their names on them too. Let's see...how many more days before Christmas?!?

Newborn Boy

Here's the hat I did last night. I like how these colors are so boy. When I started knitting I noticed all the newborn things were pastel and sometimes a bit old fashioned. It's nice to change it up a bit. Can't wait to see a picture of the little guy in it! He has to be born first though :)

I'll be sad to see this one go...

I love this hat so much! It truly was a labor of love. It evolved as I was doing it. It sparked so many new ideas. I need to jot them down in my knitting journal. The hat is heavy since I used quite a bit more yarn than usual. My dream would be to have some of my patterns published. This one would definitely be one I would include. The yarn is sturdy and durable but the flowers make it happy and fresh.

My Spot

This is my favorite spot to sit and knit. Lots of my knitting books and tools get piled up like they are in this pic. My parents brought this chair home from the cabin. Who knows how old it is. It badly needs to be refinished or painted. I can't bring myself to do it though. There's something about it that I love just the way it is. I think it reminds me of my childhood at the lake. The sun peeks through our windows in the morning right when my youngest goes down for his nap. It's perfect! A little peace and quiet while I do one of my favorite things...

Baby Girl

Here's a hat I did today. It's for a baby girl that is set to be born on Wednesday. When I get an order for a newborn hat I can't help but think about how this brand new life will wear something I've made for them in their first days of life. I know I've said this before... it's such an honor.