Pictures are worth 1,000 words...

I kind of liked my photo recap the other week and I decided that since I seem to be blogging less, I should post lots of photos more often. One photo after all, is worth 1,000 words. So it makes sense that a few photos should make up for a lack of blogging on my part, right?

So here's what I've been up to: 

I've been waiting for Spring, and the sunshine finally started streaming through the windows a little more this week. 

The Peanut took his first flight across America a few weeks ago! 

He did great. His mama was pretty exhausted, though.

I started to crochet a blanket, using this pattern.  

(I also wrote about the blanket with the same pattern here.)

I made it into my local yarn store to pick up some buttons for this cardigan.

This gorgeous pile of yarn came home with me from Idaho. (Every time I visit this store, I break my promise to only use my stash and I make a yarn haul.)

These awesome scissors also made it into my bag. Cutting yarn is now even more delightful.

I am very much looking forward to the return of the Sailor in a few weeks. The Peanut is also missing him.

I'm a little excited to be using this cool vintage yarn holder I found at an antique shop a few weeks ago.

The Peanut has gone mobile. My little guy crawls all over the place and is now pulling himself up onto everything he can grab. 

 

And finally, this happened tonight... thanks to the aforementioned mobility of the Peanut. The little guy is into everything.

Welcome to my somewhat chaotic world nowadays! 

Receiving Receiving Blankets

Many moons ago, I happened to be visiting a friend in Canada when she went into labor. She had a home birth planned, but my plan was to be on a plane before the baby made an appearance. 

As it happened, she delivered her third baby boy a little early. While I didn't witness the actual momentous occasion (I sat at her kitchen table trying to concentrate on a crossword puzzle), I do remember the midwives calling out for me to put a bunch of towels in the dryer, which I dutifully did.

That was my contribution to the birth. A few towels in the dryer. 

I never knew what they did with those warm towels -- I just figured they were important based on the urgency of the request. 
 
More recently, while shopping for the Peanut, I noticed 'receiving blankets' everywhere I went. For some reason they reminded me of those towels I tossed into that dryer all of those years ago. 

Receiving blankets often make their appearance at baby showers as gifts. I even bought a pack of them myself when I first started swooning over small items for the Peanut. 

And then after I washed and folded them, I thought: 'What in the world do you use these things for?!' Apparently the original use was to 'receive' a baby at the hospital after delivery (probably the same thing those warm towels were used for in Canada.) 

But beyond that... what do you do with these things? Most receiving blankets I've seen are too tiny to actually swaddle a baby.

However, in the whole six weeks I've been a mama, I've discovered a myriad of uses for what I assumed were useless blankets. 

So, if you're on the receiving end of too many receiving blankets, fear not. You'll find a use for them! Here are some ideas: 

1. If they are big enough, you can actually swaddle the baby! I received one flannel blanket from my mother-in-law in South Africa that is huge. It's perfect for snuggling the baby after a bath. 

2. Use them as a portable changing mat. So far, I've only changed the Peanut in one public restroom (yeesh). You can bet your bottom (and your baby's) that I didn't put him straight down on that changing table. I put a receiving blanket under him and then that thing went straight into the wash as soon as we got home. 

3. Use at home with your changing mat. I don't know about you, but my little Peanut made a mess with the first few changes at home. (Operator error had a lot to do with it.) And the little changing table attached to the Pack 'n Play was frigid. It was just easier at first to throw a receiving blanket on the pad and then wash that if it got wet or dirty. Plus it was a little cozier for the Peanut. 

4. Keep a few in the car. They're useful to wipe up messes, or to use as a changing mat in the car when the public restrooms are too scary (see #2).

5. Use as burp cloths or to pass the baby off to other people who visit (who knows what germs are on people -- hand them a receiving cloth to use a barrier!) 

6. Fold the smaller ones into cloth diapers. I haven't tried this yet, but I figure in a pinch, they are about the same size as my flat diapers and I could use them as back-ups, or even as an extra layer overnight.

7. Use as small towels or washcloths. After mine start to deteriorate, I'll probably go ahead and cut them up and then zig-zag the edges to prevent fraying, and use them as smaller washcloths. 

So you see, receiving receiving blankets isn't so useless after all.

Gift Blankets

My mom used to say that a baby can never have too many blankets. I'm starting to think that is true. Even though it's summer, it seems that I have a blanket in the laundry daily. 

The only thing more fun than making a blanket as a gift for someone with a baby, is receiving one (or two!) in the mail as gifts for your own little one. 

I'm fortunate enough to have friends around the world... and even though not many of my pals actually knit and crochet, some of their mothers do. These two blankets made their way into our post box courtesy of some talented moms. 

I told my friends that I didn't have 'colors' picked out (see this post about the non-nursery) but that I wanted calm colors that reminded me of a safari (inspired by these critters.) 

Even though they are both totally different, I love the 'safari inspiration' in each of them!

Bellies, Bobbles and Blankets

About two months ago, the Sailor and I escaped to the beach for a few days, where we soaked up sun, sand and seafood. 

I used the long car ride on the way home to work on some bobbles. I remember thinking that my belly looked HUGE in this photo. Suffice it to say, it is MUCH bigger now that I'm 30 weeks along! In fact, my lap has all but disappeared.

Forget my burgeoning belly at the moment though, and check out those crochet bobbles! I had an extra skein of yarn leftover from making this bag, and I wanted to make a little companion bag to stash inside of the big one. I didn't use a pattern, which is very unlike me, so it took several attempts until I figured out what I was actually doing. 

I'm still not sure what I did (I really should have written down my method) but in the end, it turned out kind of cute, I think.

I also had some leftover giraffe fabric from this blanket I was working on, so I lined the inside and added a zipper.

And then, when I got home, I finally finished the blanket, too. 

The blanket is super squishy and will be perfect for when the Peanut wants to roll around on the floor. If only I had the energy to make one in my size!

The Sheep

A few weeks back, I wrote a post on several yarn works in progress, where you may have seen a glimpse of the headless knit sheep. A few days ago, I mentioned gift-giving and I showed off a little handmade yarn card. Thankfully I didn't reveal the actual gift, because apparently the recipient actually does read this blog! 

Yesterday, my friend from school days had her first baby shower, and she got to keep this awesome sheep pillow. Now you get to finally see the sheep, in all of his glory.

After I finished my little (um let's say, BIG) sheep friend, I sat with him on the couch and wondered if I could actually give him away. Sheep are quite cuddly, especially when made with knit bobbles. 

I had never knit bobbles before, and even though I was tempted to try to convert the pattern into crocheted bobbles, I stuck with the knitted ones. I do think crocheted ones would have been faster and perhaps easier, but I'm glad I tried something new.

I modified the pattern slightly by totally over-stuffing this thing. I think it was meant to lay like a pillow, but I wanted my sheep to stand up on his own. I also crocheted four legs instead of knitting the two long ones. Having only two legs looked funny since he wouldn't be laying on his side. (Not that you can actually see his legs, since he's rather rotund.) 

My friend chose a sheep theme for her nursery, so of course the pillow fits perfectly. 

The sheep, getting a bath before getting stuffed.

I wanted to also give my friend something she could use right away, since apparently newborns don't really need giant over-stuffed sheep pillows for sleeping.

On the other hand, my mother has always told me that you can never have too many blankets for a newborn. At her suggestion, I picked out a grass green color for the blanket. The cream colored one on the right was a baby gift for another friend.

I managed to find a little sheep applique for the corner of the blanket.

There's even more sheep to show, but I'll post the rest of the flock later this week.

Yarn Project Update

I thought I should give an update on the progress of the 8527 works in progress I've had on the needles lately. (OK, slight exaggeration... but I have had a lot of projects going at once.)

Citron grand shawl: A few more rows completed all thanks to a two-hour camera club meeting. I'm hoping to get a big chunk of it completed this weekend at a knitting retreat (yes, it's true. We knitters have retreats. Eat. Knit. Repeat.)

Sheep pillow: Still in progress. Until I can sit still for an hour with no distractions, I'm thinking of giving the gal a headless sheep instead. 

The possible crocheted sweater: Not possible. I realized this yarn (Caron Simply Soft) was a little too floppy for the sweater. I also realized I bought a TON of this yarn simply because it was on sale, so I started a knit blanket instead. Knitting a blanket goes against my grain... I prefer to crochet them, particularly as I learned to crochet because I wanted to make blankets! However, I've had this Lenox Square Throw pattern sitting around for a while, and decided now that I have enough of this cheap grey yarn laying around, it was time to make it. Plus, who can resist those gorgeous chunky needles? 

The pattern is free on Lion Brand's website. You just need to sign up for an account to be able to download the pattern. 

This is working up super fast, since you only knit one panel at a time, using a double strand of yarn, then you simply seam each panel together. I think my panels look a little narrow, so I may end up making more of them to make the blanket wider. 

Basic baby blanket: Completed! I even finished a second one in a different color. Those little things really do crochet up super fast when you use the same stitch and one color.

Fuzzy felted slippers: Not happening -- at least in that felted pattern. I didn't have enough of that same yarn to make a whole pair. Plan B: Granny Square slippers. 

I'm looking forward to spending a weekend finishing either the shawl or the blanket! What are you doing this weekend?

Remember the Great Gravy Boat Giveaway ends April 30th! Add your comment on that post for your chance to win. 

Bullion Beach Blanket

During our recent epic road trip (the one where I decided I needed to start blogging again), I decided to crochet a blanket. I had a stash of pink, green and cream cotton yarn (acquired during a stock-up sale). I also had an issue of Interweave Crochet, purchased especially for this Bullion Beach Blanket pattern. I decided that the colors -- crazy as they are -- actually looked great together. I piled the stash into the car and proceeded to make the motifs both in the car and everywhere we happened to stay. 

I blitzed through motif after motif and stacked them into piles as I completed them. They started to look like neon pancakes after a while. I wish now that I had taken photos of them on a breakfast platter. 

 

But then they all came together... 

And here again...

And wouldn't you know, I still had a TON of leftover crazy-colored yarn.

I go to a local knitting club once a month where I live. Every once in a while I seem to have something quite spectacular to show the other members -- a month ago, I brought in this blanket for my own version of grown-up craft show and tell. 

This past week I had nothing to show the group. One of the ladies sidled up to me to see what I was actually working on -- and then she chuckled. I was knitting a basic dishcloth. It's my go-to project when I'm in between big projects. It seems that every other meeting, I'm making a dishcloth. (They do make great gifts... and really, you never can have enough for your own kitchen.)

Then I realized that none of the gals at the meeting actually saw me working on this blanket... maybe they thought I didn't really make it...? 

Regardless, I know I actually made it. The Sailor witnessed the whole process too and even went so far as to ask, 'Where are you going to put that thing?'

Isn't it obvious? We're taking it on the next trip to the beach.