I want to go to sleep with the earth...

The title reflects my feelings of October. It seems that we have done so much, I have been so busy, we've had birthdays and parties and meetings, and yet accomplished so little. There are still salad leaves waiting to be composted, sweaters waiting to be knit, Halloween candy waiting to be bought (Shit, what's the date?) and sleep waiting to be slumbered.

I love autumn. I love the coolness, the slowing down of life and rhythms, the colours of the leaves. I don't like the fact that urban life with children carries on apace.

Tomorrow is November 1st. Less than two months to Christmas. Shit. I already feel exhausted. Have done no Christmas knitting. And it does have to be knitting because I have developed a repetitive strain injury from too much crochet. So the Totoro amigurumi that I started for The Babe is on hold, as well as the hat I was doing for The Boy, and the one I was doing for myself. I will have to knit hats instead.

Except my hands are already tired from typing.

And I have signed up for NANOWRIMO?! What the hell am I thinking? I have no ability to do the things I need to do, as well as the things I want to do, now!? How the hell am I going to fit in 50,000 words in November.

I should be joining The Boy and his dad in Movember. I am getting to that age where whiskers are going to be easier to accomplish than words anyway.

Boring jumpers

I finished The Changeling's jumper.

 It is so soft and comfy and like a giant hug. She loves it. Thank goodness! But I am supposed to be making two other jumpers, 3 actually, which are all stocking stitch. I want to do something a bit more exciting and challenging. But stocking stitch it is. Miles of it. How boring.

This is Vanille for Al. And  Oatmeal for The Meister. Much more stocking stitch. Alas.

Crochet has been happening too.

I finished this bright baby blanket in Sirdar Supersoft Aran for a friend's baby girl. This is one of my square designs. :-)

 And made my self a hat,

with which I am very pleased.

Pattern available here.

There are other things happening, too. But if I told you about them, then my husband might realize just how much yarn there is in the house.

September Slog

I am trying to get a couple of things done for the Changeling, who is off to uni in ten days. She doesn't seem to want the things I want to knit though. I am more than halfway through a baggy top down raglan sweater that she wants. So lots and lots of boring stocking stitch. It will be lovely for her when it is done. A bit like a big warm cuddle, in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky, but it is not fun to make.

I have bought a couple of patterns for things to make as well. One fitted sweater that I would wear if I had the body for it. Funnily enough, she has her own taste, so I will have to convince one of her sisters that they want to wear it. :-)

I spent two days doing two shrugs for the Babe as the weather called for it.

They are both in Sirdar Supersoft Aran which I think is fab for little ones. The green one is the Shortie Sweater from Holland Designs and the pink one is my own design.

My eczema has been bad on and off, which means I keep accumulating things I want to do, and looking at patterns, and not actually doing that much. Still have the two Lily Go shawls to work through. Plus I started something for my on the new Addi click Tunisian crochet hooks. I just wanted to start something with them. And I am making some slippers from a pattern that I can't quite figure out size wise. So I am going to have to make them to see how big they are and who they will be for. :-)

I can already tell that my New Year's Resolution for 2013 is going to be to get a big of focus with my projects, and finish off my WIPs.

So what is it that is up?

I am now a Ravthlete. I have partaken in the Ravelympics - Or rather the Ravellenic Games 2012, since the USOC decided knitters and crocheters were deemed inappropriate people. :-)

This is what I have made

I was working on some hexagons as well, for the modular relay, but I haven't finished those yet and I don't think I will as I have lost my motivation. I am too busy putting up with PITA teenagers and toddlers and moping about being a crap parent. Definitely in a bit of a funk. But at least I made a cool teddy bear.

Hiatus

Not really doing much at the moment. My hands are not really in good shape. My eczema is bad, and my thumbs are cracked and bleeding and I had an infection (sorted thanks to homeopathic remedy) and then I sliced one thumb on the broken tap, and then grated it and sliced the other while doing onions then next day. So basically, bad thumb karma. Trying to take care of myself, so I will be ready for the Ravelympics, which I hope to take part in for the first time this year. Would like to get some things done for the two eldest daughters, one who is graduating from university in July, and the other starting in September. Must stop being distracted by shawls and cotton things for summer! At least I can still look at things on Ravelry, while waiting for my hands to be able to make something.

Plans

I haven't  really finished anything since my last post. Still Zooming along on Gatherings Leaves Shawl, well  not really. I have taken a break so I can make things for other people. I am working on a pair of socks for my eldest who is soon  to graduate from university. Then I have a couple of things I want to make for the next daughter who is flying from the nest and heading to university in September. And I am already thinking of Ravelympics  things to do.

This post is to remind me what events I want to do. :-) I will be on holiday during the mass cast on so I will have to take something with me I guess, and cast on  others the next day when  I get back. I want to do Balance Beads, maybe beading a shawl or scarf: Colourwork crosscountry, maybe doing the fairisle slippers in the Debbie Bliss mag I have; Sock Put, how about some toe-ups? Modular relay, finally do those bobble hexagons I've been wanting to do; Wips Wrestling, maybe finishing the Buttercup or those gloves that have been there for about 4 years...

Nothing exciting to say, or photos to post, just a memory to jog in the coming weeks. :)

Boredom

I'm spending a lot of time being bored these days. I think this is the nature of having a small child, and making yourself available for them all the time. I suppose the other option is to be a working mother, where I could be stressed all of the time instead, but for now, I will choose boredom. I will still complain about it though.

I don't get nearly enough time to crochet -or knit for that matter. Or read a book other than Where the Wild Things Are and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish.  But I am still going when I can, usually at midnight when I should be asleep but I have the house to myself and desperately want to finish something.

A couple of somethings I finished are these shawls, both from the  Chèche à la sauce bidules chouettes pattern. Here it is in English if your French doesn't go the crafty vocabulary. The translation requires that you know some things about crochet I think, as there some 'just get on with it' areas.

I also managed to finish a very pretty poncho for the Babe. I thought she would like it as sometimes when we go out for a walk and I am wearing a shawl she wants one too. I usually wrap and old woolen woven one that I have around her and she is happy, but I thought if we could stick a poncho on, it would be quicker, and keep her happy.

I was wrong. Here she is taking it off, having had it on for about 38 seconds. She hasn't allowed it to be put on her since.








I also got to finish the Meister's Cookie Monster Hat, which has been crocheted for ages, just waiting for me to get the eyes, mouth and cookies done. She wanted  two chocolate chip cookies, but I ran out of the light brown, so she got a chocolate covered digestive as well. She doesn't mind. :-) I just had a look at ones on Ravelry that others had done, and made it up.

And then I have done a few little photo prop type ones for babies of varying sizes for The Changeling's workplace. She works as a photography assistant and they do family portraits, and newborns and things. I didn'g get photos of most of the hats. How ironic is that? But here are the newborn sized Owl hats.

I am continuing with my attepts to focus on 3 projects a month, having strayed a bit. With the weather getting nicer (well, theorhetically as the heating came on yesterday,) I like the idea of doing lighter shawls with the Crochet Shoulder Wrappers group. I want to do about 6 of the CALs in May, June and July. Plus I have bought some of this  in the 180gm size in a grey to teal colourway. I am doing a Lily Go pattern in that as well as another Lily Go pattern as one of my CALs this month. The Gathering Leaves looks like this so far.

 It is slow going because of the whole small child needing attention thing, but the chart is great, and I zoom along when I get the time. The yarn is not as great as the pattern, but at over 2000 metres for under a fiver on ebay I am not going to complain too much. There is 20% wool in there, and the colour is quite nice anyway.

The thing that I really want to finish is the Babe's blanket. I stalled a bit, being distracted by many of the above, but I only have three colours to do of the repeated stripes, and then the border! And then several months to wait until the Babe has her own bedroom and bed on which to put it. But I still want to finish it. It is looking good...

...even if there are a lot of ends to weave in. The Babe wraps up in it already, and calls it, "My Oom?" because told her it was for her room.

Other fun things I have done, include going to the Black Sheep with Caroline and Martine and buying far too much yarn, or just enough yarn depending on your point of view. I did put a lot of things back, but I made the mistake of saying in front of the above witnesses that I won't have to buy any yarn for the rest of the year.  Damn! So between the Postman knowing I am not supposed to be buying yarn, and kids who I have to bribe not to mention any packages that arrive, and now my partners in crime actually thinking I have too much (not just enough, but actaully TOO MUCH - is there such a  thing?) I may have to actually get on with making things, and not just planning on making other things.