10.31.10

Woke up to snow still on my car. I was told it snowed again a bit this morning.

After everyone left my parents house, we had a family lunch today instead of dinner since I wanted to take the boys trick or treating at dinner time, we tried on the boys costumes to make sure I didn't need to do any alterations before it was time to go out. The costumes fit them perfect.


And after struggling (yet again) to get them into the costumes, I couldn't get them out of them until it was time to actually go trick or treating tonight.


I had an hour at home before heading out to my sister & brother's area for trick or treating. I decided to go there this year (last year the boys were sick so we handed out candy and the year before we did our neighborhood) as it was way easier for me to go there than to walk further distances between houses. I had fun trick or treating with my two mini-spidermans tonight. I totally could have gone more if a) it wasn't so cold out and b) I wasn't 32 weeks pregnant. I felt such pressures "down there" by the time I got home, it's a good thing I'm not 37+ weeks pregnant, as I'm sure I would have gone into labor if so. (And I love whomever had this HABS pumpkin (above) out in front of their house - totally awesome!) The boys had matching Spiderman buckets to collect their candy in and the boys loved them.

... I'm totally going to be sick tomorrow. I started out this evening with a BAD headache (I am hoping it doesn't turn into a headache) and a runny nose. Totally coming down with something. So not happy about that, but I so had to take the boys trick or treating. They're only young once.


Progress on Vestee. It's 95% done. I just need to make the neckline band (which is knit separately then sewn on - not sure why you don't just pick up stitches off the neckline - but anyhow). I finally got the body done (that has been hibernating since my birthday in June). It's size 12 months, so baby boy 3 won't be wearing it until at least next fall. For all of you whom inquired, I am making the shawl collared version, not the hooded. I figured after someone made a comment that if baby 3 falls asleep without the hood on his head, it might bother him being bunched up or something, so I decided to go without the hood. I like it regardless. Totally cute. Almost done, thankfully.

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, TONIGHT, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck! Please note, even if you are logging into your blogger profile, not all of you have email addresses associated with it. Also - a lot of you have 100% blank blogger profiles. If I don't know who you are, you won't be able to win a prize. So please leave your information. Some of your profiles link to blank pages or don't link at all anywhere, so if I can't find you, you can't win. THANKS! (ps- I'll allow any comments that come in before I get up tomorrow morning to be included to win the prizes.)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

10.30.10 :: 32 weeks pregnant // 8 months

32 weeks pregnant // 8 months.

I was thinking about going as Juno for Halloween?
What do you think?
I don't even need to stuff my belly under my shirt!

This morning Sean had his Halloween skating class (however he decided not to wear his costume skating, which is fine, because only a handful of the kids were dressed up). Sean did extremely well skating without the bar again today. So very proud of him.

This afternoon I worked on some workbooks with Sean. He is really getting the hang of tracing the letters to help his skills. I really like these workbooks I got.

This evening we carved 2 pumpkins.
Sean had a lot of fun cleaning out the insides of it.
(I plan to roast the seeds)! YUM.

He was so proud of his work. (My dad helped him cut out the face).

These are our 2 pumpkins! So not putting them out on mat night.

This evening I looked outside to see SNOW on my car!!
I couldn't believe it. Snow. On the night before Halloween.
In my almost 30 years on this planet, I don't think we've ever had snow before Halloween.
(That I can remember anyhow).

I've been working on Vestee. Making great progress. Stay tuned.

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, TOMORROW, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck! Please note, even if you are logging into your blogger profile, not all of you have email addresses associated with it. Also - a lot of you have 100% blank blogger profiles. If I don't know who you are, you won't be able to win a prize. So please leave your information. Some of your profiles link to blank pages or don't link at all anywhere, so if I can't find you, you can't win. THANKS!

10.29.10

It took me half an hour and a bribe to get Mack into a costume. He refused to be the shark like Sean. I gave him 5 options that I had in 2T/3T size. A shark (new this year purchased for daycare party today) a lion (what Sean was last year to daycare), a dragon (what Sean was 2 years ago to daycare) a monkey (What Sean wore 2 years ago trick or treating) or a spider (what they both were but now using Sean's old size for handing out candies last year since they both were sick and we stayed in). ALL Old Navy on sale! Love Old Navy & now we have a dress up trunk!) Took a bribe of a new hotwheel car to get him in the lion costume, the one that Sean wore to daycare last year. Then I wanted pictures of them. Oy, what a morning. Why are kids sometimes impossible & stubborn? Sean tried to take the costume off as soon as we were done taking pictures, and it took some convincing to get him to wear it to daycare. Once they both saw their classmates dressed up, they were all into it.

Aren't they just the cutest?
I'm biased, I know.

This evening we had some friends over for fondu dinner (Chinese Bouillon) and we watched the Habs game, which we won against the Islanders. The kids were hyped up on sugar from their halloween treats from daycare. I made my first ever pumpkin pie tonight. It came out great. Had no idea Jamie hates pumpkin pie, and our guests aren't fans either. Oh well. More for me. I'll let the boys try it tomorrow and see if they like it or not. If not, I'm going to have to find someone to share it with me, as I will not allow myself to eat an entire pumpkin pie to myself. No way!

Today's Link Love:
- There is a new code available for 100 Pampers points if you have not already joined the Gifts to Grow program. You need to register from 10/28-11/30 and enter code: 453983270233478. For those of you whom already have accounts, here is a 5 point code: 4HAPPYHALLOWEEN.
- There is another 5 point code available for Huggies Enjoy the Ride Rewards: BJQXHDKRRKGMPGB
- Very cute easy to sew newborn pants.
- This Menorah is really neat!

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck! Please note, even if you are logging into your blogger profile, not all of you have email addresses associated with it. Also - a lot of you have 100% blank blogger profiles. If I don't know who you are, you won't be able to win a prize. So please leave your information. Some of your profiles link to blank pages or don't link at all anywhere, so if I can't find you, you can't win. THANKS!

10.28.10 :: 123 weeks // 46 months old

Mack is 123 weeks old today.


Sean is 46 months old today.

The boys were picked up from daycare at lunch time today and we headed with my mom down to the Bell Center, where I surprised the boys with a Live Show.

A few months ago I bought tickets to The Wiggles Live (Wiggly Circus!)

It was a great show. We had excellent seats (4th row dead center) .

Mack sat most of the show in awe, with his jaw dropped to the ground.
It was too cute.
It was a great day.
Even I enjoyed myself at the concert.

Can anyone tell me where I can buy these "candle holders"? This one is from the top of a menorah to hold chanukah candles. I want to make something and don't know where on earth to begin looking for these, or what they are even called? I've tried googling "candle holders" but that does me no good with thousands of results founds. Anyone have a lead for me? They're really tiny these, and you can screw them into wood. I'm looking for anything of the sort (or ones that don't have to be screwed on either - I can glue as well). I hope someone can help me out?

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck! Please note, even if you are logging into your blogger profile, not all of you have email addresses associated with it. Also - a lot of you have 100% blank blogger profiles. If I don't know who you are, you won't be able to win a prize. So please leave your information. Some of your profiles link to blank pages, so if I can't find you, you can't win. THANKS!

I made my muffins (oatmeal chocolate chip) tonight (over 50 mini ones) for daycare tomorrow and I'm beyond beat. I can't keep my eyes open. I'm solo parenting tonight and the kids are walking all over me tonight and I don't have any energy to argue. I'm going to go crash with them in my bed. I'll let Jamie transfer them into their own beds when he gets in from work tonight.

10.27.10

21°C (That's 70°F) outside? I was wearing a winter jacket yesterday and was freezing. This weather is really unbelievable. It was so warm today, that I went out without a jacket. Indian Summer?

Saw my OB today. What a useless check-up. We literally didn't do anything. And at first I was even forgotten about. Usually I'm seen right away by a nurse (I get weighed, they check my glucose level, they check my blood pressure, ask any other questions they might have) and then I go back and sit in the waiting room until my doctor has a room free to see me in. Today, after 40 minutes of waiting, I thought something was up, so I went to ask at the reception, and of course they marked I was here, but never pulled my file, so they forgot about me. Frustrating. But once I opened my mouth I was seen quite quickly. I was weighed (I'm officially swollen and retaining water) and she measured my belly. I'm measuring 33 weeks instead of 31 weeks (I'm 31 and a half weeks now). Right now this isn't a concern, we'll see at my next ultrasound if it's excess amniotic fluid or if baby boy is just bigger than what his brothers were at birth.

I got a phone call from the company that gives my warranty on my Sigma lens for my Nikon camera. Turns out that my lens was indeed defective and they are shipping me a brand new lens. Apparently the new lens has been tested and works. Let's hope.

Sean put his hand things he got at the Habs game on his feet, while we were watching a bit of the Habs game tonight before his bedtime (Habs won tonight!) Not even sure what these things are called, but it was too funny that he put them on his feet. Mack & I got a kick out of it!

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck! Please note, even if you are logging into your blogger profile, not all of you have email addresses associated with it. Also - a lot of you have 100% blank blogger profiles. If I don't know who you are, you won't be able to win a prize. So please leave your information. THANKS!

I leave you tonight with this video (Sean wanted to share it with you):

10.26.10

Sean's been asking me to learn to read & write. He can almost write his own name (however his letters come out sideways), so I started to look for workbooks. We've also started sounding out words for things and having him guess what letters the word uses to spell it. He's pretty good. He's really a sponge and soaks up all information and remembers everything. I am hoping these workbooks I picked up for him, (Alphabet, Numbers, Shapes, etc..) help him learn to use a pencil to write. I hope to find time this weekend to sit down with him and work in the book.


I did a trial run today for the mini muffins (Oatmeal Chocolate Chip) that I will be making for the Halloween party the boys have on Friday at daycare. I am not sure why I put my name down to make muffins (at 32 weeks pregnant). Why didn't I just put my name down for buying chips? It would have been so much easier. Oh well (though, I'll remember this for the Xmas party in December, as I'll be recovering from a Csection then, as well have a newborn). The test muffins came out great, and they are very yummy. And they are so cute. Too bad they're bite size... makes you want to keep eating them.


Tonight in my sewing class I made this box pouch. (It's currently got my current sock project in it). We used this tutorial, though had to alter it big time, because it's an extremely crappy tutorial. Basically the author of the pattern wrote out a bunch of dimensions and stuff, but then herself, changed up the zipper size, and didn't change the dimensions of the material so if you use the shorter zipper, there is too much material, and if you use the longer zipper, the bag does not come out like a box pouch, more like a long pencil case, which is not what I wanted. Very badly done tutorial, unfortunately. I've tried a few other "free" online tutorials before, but none of them ever came out to the size pouch that I wanted. I guess I will keep searching until I find something I like. I do have to say that I am getting better at using the zipper foot though.

Speaking of sewing, I really have a few things that I have to get done. Where does time go? Really? Slowly starting to feel a bit of anxiety over all the things that I have to do before baby boy's arrival (not including those sewing items). Breathe in... breathe out.

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck!

10.25.10 :: 199 weeks old

Sean is 199 weeks old today.

Since I couldn't photograph this yesterday as I finished it after sunset:

SPECS:
Pattern: Munchkin Hat by Jeannie Kubricht (My Ravelry Link)
For: A photo prop for after Baby 3 is born
Yarn: .40 skein of Red Heart Ltd. Eco-Ways Bamboo Wool in Ivory and .40 skein of Red Heart Ltd. Eco-Ways Bamboo Wool in Peacock
Needles: US 10 - 6.0 mm
Size: Newborn
Timeline: October 24, 2010 (One day of knitting)
Modifications: Knit pattern as written. (Knit this one starting with ivory, where the first one I started it with the peacock colorway, just to be different).
Opinion: This one looks like it'll actually fit a newborn.

Here is for size comparison from the first one I knit, with the one I just finished.

I also made some progress on Vestee. It's seriously so close to being finished. Just debating whether to make the hooded version or not? What do you think? Hooded or not? I'm indecisive. I started this vest back in June when I was taking Mona Schmidt's finishing course, but got side tracked from it, and really didn't have much left to finish at all... so I hope to get this off the needles very soon. This is on my list of things to do before baby boy arrives. (It is for him, however, it won't fit him for a very long while).

I got some good mail today. Not too long ago, I ordered some felt online. After searching a few stores near me and not finding what I wanted, I searched online. I found this great company called Dudley & Tyler. The customer service from this company has been absolutely wonderful. I definitely recommend you order from there if they have anything that you like. Steve, who has been giving me great customer service, has a coupon code to for all my blog readers. You will get 20% off your purchase, excluding shipping, valid through Nov. 30, 2010. It can be used as many times as you want by as many customers as want to use it. The code is knitpurl-emhe and you will need to enter this code at checkout.

So the moth situation from last night is under control. I picked up moth balls today (all I could find to eliminate moths), and Jamie tackled opening the cabinet and cleaning it out. Everything that was in there, was thrown outside and he said there were only about 10 tiny moths. PHEW! Disaster averted. He thoroughly cleaned out the cabinet. I have no idea why they were even under there, but thankfully they weren't reproducing. Hoping that's the end of them.

I had a nice visit with my neighbor whom I made Magnificent Mantle for. She LOVED it! I am so glad. She loved the color, loved the shawl, and says it's perfect, because she's always cold and she always wears a blanket and it's getting heavy to walk around with a blanket over her shoulders. I am so glad. This made my day today. I was kind of nervous about giving it to her, since I wasn't sure if she'd appreciate it or not. She's getting very scared for her double mastectomy next week. I have faith that she will stay strong & it's the right decision for her to be doing this.

ps- I'm running out of easy meals to make, and I can't stand on my feet very long. If you have any suggestions, please toss them my way! Thanks! (Nothing too fancy the kids won't eat...!)

10.24.10

Today was lazy Sunday. I also was alone with the kids today, but the pretty much behaved until about 15 minutes before Jamie actually got home, so I have absolutely no complaints. The most difficult part of the day was getting them to both agree on the same thing for lunch. Being over 31 weeks pregnant, I had absolutely no desire to start making 3 separate meals for lunch. I really need to figure out easy meals as I can't stand comfortably on my feet very long.

Some stash enhancement that I am totally loving:

The Loopy Ewe Solid Series in Orchid


The Loopy Ewe Solid Series in Spring Green


The Loopy Ewe Solid Series in Grape

I made a 2nd Munchkin Hat by Jeannie Kubricht today. I went up to 6.0 mm knitting needles. I will photograph that tomorrow once there is daylight again, and get the specs up on the blog. I did reverse color from the first one I knit starting with ivory instead of peacock. Details tomorrow! Hopefully one of them will fit baby 3 when he's born, so that I can take some photos of him wearing it.

I have made some progress on de-cluttering. I think I finally have the energy to do some nesting, in my last stages of pregnancy. My recent progress was quite the de-clutter. It had me clean out my shoe rack in one area of the house (I still have to do the other shoe rack - maybe this week) and clean under the sink in the bathroom. As well, I managed to clean out some shelves in the powder room/laundry room when I went to looking for a drain plug so that I can wash Ishbel in SOAK so I can re-block her. After losing her for a few months, I found her in the garage, and I wanted to give her a cleaning before wearing her again this winter.

A few weeks ago when I met up with Tara for lunch, I brought a skein of yarn that was on my desk. When I pulled it out, a moth flew out. I was freaked out, but didn't think anything of it, as it was the first I'd seen and didn't seen any after that in the house. I totally didn't even think that it could have come from my house. Luckily that skein had no other moths in it, I checked it as I wound it - and it never went anywhere near my yarn room. (My yarn room stayed 100% sealed). Nothing could crawl or fly in or out unless the door was opened. Tonight while sitting on the couch watching tv, I saw a few moths fly out from the cabinet under the fish tank. (Maybe the other moth was completely not related, who knows?) I WAS MORTIFIED! Tiny little things. I got the fly swatter. I swatted those and killed them. I then proceeded to the kitchen, grabbed the huge garbage bags, and my packing tape, and sealed off the cabinets at the bottom of the fish tank. There is no getting in or out of there now. I have no idea what's doing in the cabinets under there, and frankly, I am mortified of what could be in there. I plan to pick up some items (mothballs, cedar blocks, products to kill them (?) tomorrow, before re-opening the cabinet. I haven't seen any since those 3 or 4 flew out. I think I killed what was in the room (den). I am absolutely grossed out. We haven't had any fish living in the tank for quite the while now. I don't even know what's under the tank, as it's Jamie's tank, not mine, and I didn't care for it or go into the cabinets. I am curious if there are more, how on earth they got there. Have you ever had moths? What did you do to get rid of them? Thankfully they're not in the closets in the bedroom nor in the kitchen. What they're doing under the fish tank baffles me. I am not sure what's worse, moths, or the ants we had two summers ago. (After taking care of that issue, we didn't have a single ant this past summer, and the kids still dragged crumbs out of the kitchen).

Hmmmm.... What to do? I just want to get rid of them, they're nasty. (And I don't want them anywhere near my yarn at all - ever). Any tips or suggestions would be fantastic! Thanks! Until then, maybe by sealing off the fish tank with garbage bags will suffocate them, and they'll die? Though, I read online that they like humidity... so that might not work? Hopefully they won't multiply by tomorrow morning, if that's the case. But I had to do something... I didn't want them all escaping. Thankfully it's NOT lice! Or bed bugs. Ugh... all creepy. Shivers. Gross.

Oy, I'm beyond grossed out. Hopefully this won't stop me from sleeping tonight.

10.23.10 :: 31 weeks pregnant

31 weeks pregnant today.
Baby boy better NOT grow any larger...
I'm already waddling as it is!

This morning Sean had another skating lesson. I am so proud of this kid. Today he skated without the bar, and did extremely well. He did have some wipe outs, but halfway through the class, on his own, he figured out how to stand up. We were so proud! The other 2 boys in his group are already 5 years old, so he's a lot younger than them, and he did a lot better than both of them. That's my boy! And one day, when he's playing for the NHL (this mama can dream) (well, that's his goal anyhow), you can say you know his mama and you remember when he first learned to skate!

Even Mackenzie was super impressed with Sean's progress, he gave his brother a thumbs up!

I started making my To-Do before baby list. Oy, is it long. Hopefully I can get things done in a timely fashion. And as I get further along in my pregnancy, everything is taking so much longer to do. I don't have much help, so I've been taking care of a lot of things on my own. Jamie's been working lots of hours lately, as we're in the middle of expanding our business, and I'd rather him be busy now, instead of after the baby comes.

I also started knitting another Munchkin Hat, in 6.0mm knitting needles since it's a quick knit. I am hoping the needle size isn't too large for the yarn (same as the previous Munchkin Hat I made, but this time I'm reversing the colors, starting with white). Details to follow on this one, most probably tomorrow.

Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck!

10.22.10

Today Sean had to bring in flags to school for Show & Tell to talk about his nationality and background. There is quite the nice mix of countries and religions in Sean's class - which I am glad about. Sean brought in a Canadian flag, since he was born here, as well as his parents, and most of his grandparents. However, his Papa (my dad) was born in Israel. I didn't have an Israeli flag on hand to send Sean to school with, so I made one. I found a picture on the internet, and printed it up. Do you notice anything about the construction?

Yep, that's right what you're seeing. A size US10 knitting needle from my "odd jar or needles" stash. It worked beautifully to make a flag!

SPECS:
Pattern: Munchkin Hat by Jeannie Kubricht (My Ravelry Link)
For: A photo prop for after Baby 3 is born
Yarn: .40 skein of Red Heart Ltd. Eco-Ways Bamboo Wool in Ivory and .40 skein of Red Heart Ltd. Eco-Ways Bamboo Wool in Peacock
Needles: US 8 - 5.0 mm
Size: for a very small headed newborn
Timeline: October 22, 2010 (One evening of knitting)
Modifications: Knit pattern as written.
Opinion: It's very cute. Great hat pattern. This hat is a photo prop only though, would be dangerous for a newborn or any baby to actually wear. I will be using it for photography purposes only. This was a very quick knit. Use this tutorial for the tassel. I am usually not a fan of Red Heart yarns (cuz most of them are acrylic) but this yarn is 55% Bamboo and 45% Wool and it’s super soft. I took out both my kids medical record books. My first born, Sean’s head circumference at birth was 33.4 cm. He was 5 lbs 5 oz. at birth. My 2nd son, Mack’s head circumference at birth was 33.5 cm. He was 6 lbs 4 oz. at birth. If baby 3 is any larger, this hat will NOT fit him. So… I am thinking about re-knitting this hat, with a larger needle size.

Today's Link Love & Random Thoughts:
- Here is one more Pampers Gifts to Grow code for 10 points: Pampersgtg10pts
- I saw this banana slicer and totally want one. Too bad Amazon.com doesn’t ship to Canada. Has anyone ever seen one? Where can I buy one?
- My sister introduced me to this photography blog, the guy takes amazing pictures.
- Went for a manicure & Pedicure with 2 mommy friends this morning. The pedicure was very needed as I can't reach my feet any longer. Too bad being pregnant meant I couldn't use the massage chair while getting my pedicure. Next time!
- Had lunch with my sister today as I was craving good salad bar, it was nice to go out for lunch!
- Don't forget that I'm having a contest to win a ton of awesome prizes! If you want to win, just simply leave a comment anywhere on this blog until midnight, Oct 31st, 2010, as I'll be drawing winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010. Good luck!

10.21.10 :: 122 weeks old & 5 Year Blogaversary!

Mack is 122 weeks old today.
He's quite the comedian.

Today marks my 5th blogaversary. I've been blogging daily (with the exception of being in the hospital in labor & postpartum) for 5 years now. I can't believe it's been 5 years. I absolutely love to blog, and it's thanks to all my loyal readers (and commenters!) In honor of my blog's 5th birthday, I have quite the giveaway for you! All you have to do is leave a comment on any post, between now & Halloween. You can leave as many comments as you want, and I will pick the winners on Monday, November 1st, 2010 for all these following amazing prizes:

- 2 lucky winners will win my entire Sock Collection in PDF format.
- 1 lucky winner will win a copy of Jennifer Lori's My First Superhero.
- 1 lucky winner will win a copy of the pattern of their choice in GlennaC's Raverly shop.
- 3 lucky winners will win a copy of a pattern of their choice from WoolyBearDesign's Ravelry shop.
- 3 lucky winners will win a copy of a pattern of their choice from Jane Richmond's Ravelry Shop.
- 4 lucky winners will win a copy of a pattern of their choice from Spillyjane's Ravelry shop!
- 3 lucky winners will receive a copy of the Gift Issue of KnitCircus.
- 1 lucky winner will receive a one year subscription to KnitCircus.
- 1 lucky winner will receive a copy of the novel Jessica Z. by Shawn Klomparens, which I recently reviewed.

Holy loot! What fun prizes! If you leave a comment and you are new to my blog or a first time commenter, make sure that you leave an email address where you can be reached, or your Ravelry ID. ENJOY!

My back pain has started to get worse. I really am excited to be finished with this pregnancy already. It's to the point now where it's getting hard to even sit on the floor with the boys and do puzzles with him, or play cars, etc. They want their mommy back, and I don't blame them. Though, I do have to admit, the back pain (lower back) is not as bad as the leg cramping. I think by far, that is worse.

Some yarn made it into my shopping basket when I went on a hunt for US 19 - 15 mm circular knitting needles today. I will show you that stash enhancement tomorrow (in need of daylight to photograph the yarn properly). I figure let me get the stash enhancement out of my system now. It has been a long year on my yarn diet, and I totally deserve to spoil myself a little for behaving this year. I will be using the US 19 needles for a project that I will be doing a KAL with my sister (she managed to convince me to get cracking on that project - which I will talk about shortly).

I did get a bit of knitting done on Loopy Lace Scarf, hoping to get that finished off as soon as possible. My queue on Ravelry keeps growing as I keep getting inspired by other people's projects. So much to knit, so little time.

Today’s Link Love:
- This cute bib tutorial.
- You can head over to send a free sample of Kleenex to a friend or family member. I understand this is actually a decent size sample so it might be worth requesting. I just sent a free box to my mom and “she” sent one back to me. I’ll let you know how it is when it arrives. I was informed we should have them in about 14 days.

10.20.10

Now that the yarn diet of 2010 has ended, there has been some stash enhancement. I went to visit Louise at Biscotte & Cie, as she mentioned when I asked about Yarn Forward Issue 27, that she had it. However, her August 2010, is issue 29, where as Ravelry claims Issue 27 is August 2010. A little confusion, and the issue she had did not contain the 5 patterns I was looking for. The magazine itself is a little pricey on stands at $13.75 an issue, but for 5 patterns, that to me is worth spending that. That's okay, I've been meaning to go visit & see what she's got. A little stash enhancement was indeed in order.

3 skeins of Biscotte & Cie Gobelin in a nice pink shade (there is no colorway name on the tags).

And 2 skeins of Brown Sheep Burly Spun in Elerberry Wine (225)
(I have a thing for Chunky Yarns lately)

In the end I figured out that I could purchase the Yarn Forward Magazine online, digitally, for half the price of the Canadian magazine stand price. For 7$ I ordered the issue here. Buying it digitally allowed me to print the pages that I wanted. I have my eye on Willow, Aster Hat, Dalenni, Discovery Socks, and the Peony Tank.

Today I spent most of the day on the phone with customer service and technical department employees. First I dealt with calling back my rep at Samsung in regards to my brand new printer that the just exchanged for me. I was having an issue printing documents and we figure out what the issue was (I was printing and getting about 1.25" on the right side of the page with faded ink). There was a slight fraction of the back door that wasn't 100% closed. After doing a bunch of other tests, and me scanning the pages of what was printing, to email the tech guy, so he could visually see what my printer was producing, he took one look at what it was printing and knew what to do. My printer was fixed and I was happy within minutes. (And then I printed out some knitting patterns to my heart's content).

The next call I had to take care of was for my brand new lens that Jamie got me for my birthday this year. I was still hearing a weird noise upon going back from 200mm zoom back to 18mm zoom. I never heard this noise before having sent my lens to them in the first place when there was an optical stabilizer issue. Hopefully they can fix it (all on their dime this time) and get my lens back to me as soon as possible. In the meantime, I don't think I need it this week. Hoping to get it back in my hands by Halloween.

I like seeing things get resolved. More things to check off the long to-do list.

I was supposed to go see 2 movies this week - but my plans got altered. One was yesterday, but I ended up taking Mack to the doctor instead. The other plans today, got altered due to my friend's baby teething really badly, and her son was just inconsolable. Oh, I remember those days. And I can't wait to go through them again with baby 3. Hopefully my movie plans will resume next week. Trying to do as much stuff for myself right now before baby boy is born and I have absolutely no me time at all.

My sewing lesson last night got canceled as my sewing instructor's son came down with pink eye - and that is highly contagious. Ick! Ick! Ick! No way I wanted to catch that. Though, I'm still not 100% sure what I wanted to make this week in class, so maybe it's a good thing that class got changed for another day (need to figure out when that will be).

Today's Link Love:
- My friend Sara pointed out this recipe for Batter Fried Apple Rings and boy do they look yummy!
- Love this hearts hat pattern (knitted pattern).
- Love this FULL page of all kinds of bags to sew. I heart bags.
- Still reading & enjoying my book.
- Halfway through listening to my audio book (and deciding what audio book to buy next).

Tomorrow is my blog's 5th birthday. I can't believe it's been 5 years! Stay tuned tomorrow for some awesome giveaways!

10.19.10

Mack in his new fall coat. (Actually it was bought for Sean last year, but someone was a tad picky about what he wore, so I put it away for Mackenzie). Mackenzie looks so cute in this jacket. This jacket is actually probably warm enough to be a winter jacket, however, it has no hood, so I won't be using it as a winter jacket. Mack's got 2 of Sean's winter jacket/pant sets to wear this winter. Mack's kinda in between sizes, so he might fit into Sean size 2 suit from 2 winters ago, or maybe even Sean's size 3 from last winter. I pulled them both out, have some velcro to sew back on, on one of them, and then it's good as new. Not sure if it'll make it to baby 3 though, to use when he fits into it, but I'll see how it ends up after this upcoming winter is over.


For Sean though, I had to get a new snow suit set as we didn't have anything in size 4. Sean picked out this Spiderman set (it came with black snow pants) a few weeks ago. It's been really cold outside lately, so since his fall jacket is starting to get a little too chilly to wear, he started wearing his winter jacket. I'll have to knit him a hat that matches.

Mack started hacking up a lung last night. So I called our doctor's office first thing in the morning and managed to find out that our doctor is back from her maternity leave, and got squeezed in to see her this afternoon. Mack's lungs were clear, and the cough is just a dry superficial one. He'll be going back to daycare tomorrow.

Specs:
Pattern: Magnificent Mantle by Crochet Kitten (Ravelry Link)
For: My neighbor/friend Jana
Yarn: 2.4 skeins of Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash in 805 Violet
Hook: 6.0 mm (J)
Size: 52" wide x 26" long (middle down)
Timeline: October 10-18, 2010
Modifications: Followed pattern as published, though, the pattern has some parts that are poorly written. Once those parts were deciphered, the rest was smooth sailing.
Opinion: I love it. I hope my neighbor likes it, and it keeps her cozy during her double mastectomy in November.

I did some errands while out with Mackenzie today after his doctor's appointment, and probably should not have gone into my local yarn shop (looking for a magazine that they don't carry - that issue of Yarn Forward that I posted about the other day). Cuz I walked out with some hand dyed yarn called Distinct Fibers, which apparently his hand dyed in Pointe-Claire, Quebec (that's all the sign said). Above is the Jasmin color, and below you have the Autumn Leaves color. There is great yardage (437 yards) in this yarn, so I am thinking they'll end up being a shawl.

I decided that I am ready to reclaim my body back as my own. Hurry up weeks, fly by faster, I'd like to bring baby boy into this world already. (And I miss sleeping on my stomach). I can do without the lower back pain and the leg cramps. I can do without the anemia medication (which is so difficult to take on an empty stomach when you're pregnant and constantly hungry). I'm ready. Bring on the sleepless nights & the every 2-3 hour feedings. I'm ready. Just.a.few.more.weeks.

Today's Link Love;
- This super cute onesie tutorial.
- Love this Crib Organizer.
- Love this I-spy bag tutorial.