Just a few pictures of our new little girl. We went with the name Flora. I like it because in my mind it is old-fashioned, simple, a bit Earth Mother lovin' (my tree-hugging self loves plant, tree, and other nature names), and I think it suits her. Bruce has been lobbying for the name since I read him out our lists a month or so ago.

Above, you see him, the Big Brother in his Weasley sweater, holding his little sis. I'll need to make one up for her in the next year or so!

As a newborn, she is not awake very much. So here is a squirming sleep picture.

And last but not least, a cute little baby foot.

I've been swatching some laceweight yarn for the shawl I will make for my sister-in-law's wedding. I must decide on the style shawl and lace designs to use. There are so many beautiful patterns! I also have my pattern worked up for the socks I'm making out of Brooke's yarn.

This past week was much harder than I expected due to Flora not being able to nurse well. I've been stressed and out of the regular world. Maybe I'll bore you all later with details, but now, I've adjusted my expectations and all is going well. Now I have time to shower, read and knit!

(Just think of all the cute girl clothes I get to sew, knit, and crochet now!!!)

I hope to catch up on what everyone has been doing in the next few days. I'll be checking into blogs when I can. (and I'll try to get a better baby picture) Have a great weekend!

I have been wanting to make the leggings from Elizabeth Zimmerman's "The Opinionated Knitter". I found a full skein of TLC yarn, a cotton acrylic blend, (from either Caron or Red Heart, I can't remember which) that was left over from some baby blankets that I had made for my church back home. So in keeping with my commitment to use up as much of my stash as possible this year, I made the leggings from them. But, the skein wouldn't last for the entire legs, and I didn't want to go out and buy more, so they became shorts. This actually will be much more usuable in my climate.
Bruce likes them too, but he thinks they look better as a hat.

My sister-in-law has decided upon the dresses that the bridesmaids will be wearing. You can see it here. (The colors will be Mallard for the dress and mocha for the sash.) The wedding is in October, so I think the lace shawl that I have been wanting to make will be great at the reception. Now the question is - Which color yarn should I use for it? I have a white, a pink, and a burgundy.

I'm excited that I have a definite use for the shawl. It gives me a deadline, which is something I usually need if I am actually going to get something done.

Still no baby. We have a scheduled delivery for this coming Thursday if it won't come out on its own by then. I'm doing what I can to help it along. I keep having false alarms. How frustrating!!!

Maybe tomorrow will be the day...

Although it is chilly, the sun has been shining nicely today, so I was able to get a couple of pictures. The first is of the hat I mat for myself out of the Noro Iro. I love the colors in it! The wool/silk belnd feels great too. I think, though, that since I have such a large head, I might shouldn't use a bulky yarn in the future. Now, I'm still wearing this and think is looks fine, but - just saying, big heads don't need big yarns.

Next up is the other part of my order from Brooke. I added to the cart because I just liked it, but my main purpose in the order was the yarn. Once I saw the bag in person, I think I began to be more fond of the bag than the yarn.
I must think of a way to have it with me often. Maybe it can carry some baby necessity in the diaper bag? But I'd hate for it to get messed up. Hmmm... No baby yet today, though LB about sent me into labor with a struggle we were having today. He's in his room for an extended time out and I went straight for my secret Dagoba chocolate stash to calm down. In my haste to break off a piece, a chocolate shard broke into my skin. I must say, wounds inflicted by chocolate are well worth it.

I have quite a few items to share today, and I am saving some for another day because I don't have good pictures of them yet.
Last week I made some infant spiral socks. I've seen them in a few different of the vintage 1940s and 1950s baby books. They are heel-less, so they start out more like stockings for the baby, then end up being socks as a toddler.
LB has tried them on and I was surprised at how well they fit him. -Though he tells me he wants a heel on his sock. (How great is that that my boy knows some sock anatomy?!)
They were a quick knit - I used some leftover Patons Kroy that I had laying around.

Next up is the yarn that I received from NeighborKnitter's Festival of Blogging. She gave it to me for sticking in there and blogging straight on until the end! It's a hank of Brooke's hand dyed sock yarn. I completely love it. I actually have a pillowcase (for my cuddling pillow) that has the some colors in it. It is great - I look forward to knitting up some socks for myself with it!



The last is the yarn that I obsessed over for a couple of weeks before buying it. It is also from Brooke. These colors hypnotised me and made me want them. I thought about them constantly until I purchased them from her store. The colors are so tranquil and calming. I am in love.

As much as I love the yarn, I ordered another item from her that I will show later that has completely captured my heart. I have also made a hat from the Noro Iro that I bought at my lys's big sale. It's been so warm lately I was starting to be afraid I would never get a chance to wear it. Today has been chilly, though, and LB and I spent the afternoon at the park, me wearing my wonderfully warm toboggan/hat/toque/whatever you want to call it.
I hope to get some good pictures of these two tomorrow to share.

Still no baby. I am very ready for this to be out, though I also know that a baby is SO much easier to take care of when it is inside the belly, than when it is out!
I still have 7 hours to go to get this one born on the 9th!
Anybody have any castor oil?

Here is the one completed Wine and Roses mitt. I tried taking a picture of my hand modeling it, but that turned out to be a bit harder than I had thought. Also, since my thumb bind off was a little tight, my thumb kept looking a nice shade of purple. If I keep this, I must redo the bind off.
Today was a gorgeous and sunny day, but I took advantage of it by getting LB and I outside, instead of taking pictures of my work.

I've decided to list out the projects that are on my agenda for this new year. I may be joining Miz Knotty's stashalong, because everything I have listed to make, I have yarn for already, except for one item.
Many of the projects come from the yarn that I just purchased at my lys's big sale.

1. Some Elizabeth Zimmerman baby leggings. These would be the only garment for which I may need to purchase yarn. I have some things that might work, but gauge, fiber content, and yardage come into play somehow with each of my options.

2. I think I may make Stella out of the Noro Lily Multi that I won last year in the Knit the CLassics group. I definitely want to make something out of that yarn this year.

3. I bought some worsted weight alpaca a couple of years ago and have yet to do anything with it. I have enough for a sweater. I'm working on some design ideas for it now, using Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns. (libraries are so nice) I'm considering some type of cabling or lace. Not heavy, just a touch.

4. A hat out of the Noro Iro that I bought at my lys

5. The Brea Bag

6. A couple of moebius baskets out of the yarn that I dyed over the summer. I want these done by easter, as I think the colors are quite appropriate for that holiday.

7. At least one lace shawl of my own design, using the laceweight yarn I bought last week.

8. I would like to make something from the Weldon's Practical Needlework Volume 1 that I found at a used book store. ( I bought it for $18!!!) Ideally it would be one of the items that they don't have a picture for. I just like the idea of making it with no clue as to it's outcome. Kind of like a mystery.

9. At least 3 pairs of socks! I have more than enough sock yarn for that now.

That does it for the knitting. I also want to try my hand at some self-striping yarn. I have two skeins of undyed worsted weight yarn, but I would prefer my self-striping yarn be for socks. We'll see. I like the whole idea of figuring up the math for it. That's just too enticing for me.

On the sewing end of things, I really want to do more sewing in general. I know I won't really be able to make any clothes for myself, seeing as how it's 9 months in and 9 months out when your having a baby. But I would like to make a bedspread for LB and some big ol' floor pillows for him and the new one. I have had the fabric for these for awhile now. I just haven't gotten to them. The same goes for drapes for our bedroom and LB's bedroom.

I've been waiting for a nice sunny day to get a good shot of what I purchased at my lys's big sale, but it's been overcast pretty much every day since. I should have taken advantage of the sunshine that same day, but no. Ms. Procrastinator always thinks later is a better time.

It really doesn't look like much in the picture, but it feels like a lot to me.

I bought 3 books:
Traditional Scandinavian Knitting by Sheila MacGregor
Folk Socks by Nancy Bush
In Sheep's Clothing: A Handspinner's Guide to Wool by Nola and Jane Fournier

And then I bought some yarn:
2 skeins JaggerSpun laceweight in pink and 2 in burgundy
2 skeins of a Cascade in grey to make the Brea bag
2 skeins of Brown Sheep's Wildfoote in Blue Flannel
1 skein Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn in purple
1 skein Noro's Iro in blues, greys, and browns to be a hat for me
2 skeins Katia Jamaica in a blues, greens and aquas colorway. (okay, so the Katia I bought the day before when it was on sale for 50% off, but I'm still counting it in my spoils. I plan to make something summery for the baby in it.)

I finished the first mitt of the Wine and Roses mitts, but don't know if I'll make the second. I like it, but am unsure if I'll really ever wear them. It was my first time really following a lace chart. It was a lot easier than I expected.
The past few nights I have done no knitting or crafting whatsoever. I need to get inspired again. I feel as if I am wasting so much time while we listen to old radio shows or watch our Star Trek:TNGs or Poirots.

Happy New Year to you all!