March 11 of 31

Today upon getting up, I picked up Angela and we went over to my parents house to watch the movie The Holiday. It was cute, but cheesy at the same time. I'm a Cameron Diaz fan, as well as Kate Winslet. Also I'm a huge Jude Law fan. He's just so sexy, and that accent of his.... Oh yeah! I love love loved him in Alfie. The Holiday, is not a movie I'd pay to see in theaters though. But it was definitely a fun Sunday chick flick movie for a girlie afternoon!

Filatura Di Crosa Millefili Fine. 100% Cotton. Colorway 263. Made in Italy.



I started working on my sister's camera case today. Angela and I had stopped off at the LYS near my parent's house. Angela was looking for something in specific, and I wanted to find some yarn for my sister's camera cozy. I also picked up some 3mm and 2.75mm DPN's. (The 3mm are pearl white, and the 2.75mm's are PINK! (I am using them for the camera cozy. Angela helped me with a long tail cast on, which I still want to get the hang of. It's something that I've wanted to lear how to do. I find it looks nicer. I will master it! Don't you just love my cute pink DPN's? I do! (I've knit more since this shot was taken, so I'll post a progress picture tomorrow. I should be finished it tomorrow though!) Also - I've adjusted the number of cast on stitches from the pattern so that it'll fit the gauge of the yarn.

This evening upon getting home I watched the last 3 episodes of Season 1 of Prison Break. Jamie & I can now start watching Season 2, which I've gotten a hold of. I think Season 2 is almost finished on TV, so we'll be able to catch up. It's sooooooooo darn addictive!


Look at the BLONDE BLONDE BLONDE hair on my son! WOW! I didn't realize how blonde it was. Actually it's more *strawberry* blonde like me.... I love it! I love it!

March 10 of 31

Last night Sean slept from 8:30pm until 5:45 am this morning. Could not believe it. And tonight, he finally just fell asleep, it's almost midnight. I'm hoping though, he sleeps til morning, that would be nice.

Hubby just went to sleep, and I'm just working on some SP10 preperations so I can start my matches. Trying to make sure I have all the info I need, and I've put everyone in my group onto their each individual cue card, with their location, allergies, if they have pets or not, if they smoke or not, (dont want to make up smokers with people who have smoke allergies! Or Pet owners with pet allergies!) Also, I've marked down their interests, and any comments they wrote when they signed up pertaining to being matched up. I've got different color cue cards (index cards) depending on what country they live in, and I've also done groups for whether they want to have a spoilee in the same country, or if they want to mail to another country! I think I have a system going on, and I should have all my matches done tomorrow or Monday, and then I've got to start typing out emails to each person with whom they are spoiling! If you're in my group - look out early week next week in your ANONYMOUS account for your match. That is where I will be sending it to, but I WILL remind you in your 'real' email account, to check your anonymous account! So don't worry.

I'm VERY excited for this new round of Secret Pal to start, it's going to be a blast!

Today we did some errands for some stuff we needed to pick up, and since arriving home we've been watching Prison Break on DVD. We're almost done Season 1. I cant wait to start watching Season 2, which I have almost all of it already. It's soooo addictive!

I managed to get ONE row knitted on my father-in-law's Irish Hiking Scarf gift, but I really wanted to work on my SP10 preperations, so I neglected knitting for tonight. Once I have progress I promise a first picture of the scarf! Tomorrow I'm getting together with my sister & Angela to watch the movie The Holiday, so I plan to get some knitting done. Angela & I will also check out an LYS near my parents house that is open on Sundays. Angela's been dying to get to that LYS, and so I'm taking her. I hope that I don't buy anything - but it's possible I just might.

I think I have cramps in my hands from writing all the cue cards, so typing is bothering me.

I'm off for tonight... GO CHECK OUT MY ETSY SHOP. I've listed some new earrings that I've made, a cute shirt for newborn babies (need a gift anyone?) and some other stuff! I've also reduced the price on my Sweater Knitting Earrings - it's a great gift for a knitting friend! (I have more in stock, but have one listed at a time! Incase anyone is interested!) Awesome firefly stitch markers.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

March 9 of 31

Guess what arrived in the mail today while Sean was smiling in the bath?

(I was TOTALLY not expecting it, since I thought International orders didn't go out til yesterday. I love it, I love it, I love it! I can't wait untilt here is daylight tomorrow, so I can photograph the yarn in proper natural light! The post man dropped this off this evening, while I was giving Sean his bath. I knew it was Canada Post though, since the post man ALWAYS rings twice. I'm still expecting other stuff in the mail, so I thought it was that... Jamie answered the door, since I was bathing Sean, and all I heard Jamie say was... "You just made my wife one happy woman!" And I knew what it was. This package is ALL that I've been talking about for the last week.....!

This is Sophie Kinsella. She's the author of the Shopaholic series and a bunch of other books. She was in Montreal tonight, at the Chapters downtown, signing books. Since I didn't know about it until too late, my brother's girlfriend, picked me up a copy and got it autographed for me.

Here is her latest book autographed. How freakin' cool is that? It even says my name!

So now, I own all these books from her:

I'm just missing one, which is Can you Keep a Secret?, which I want. Did you know, taht Sophie Kinsella is not her real name, it's Madelaine Wickham, which is another name (her real name) that she writes under. I can't decide if she looks more like a Madelaine or more like a Sophie. Too hard to tell! Anyhow, Thank you Melissa for getting me one of my fave author's book signed! Another thing that made my day today! (And yes, her 2nd book is Shopaholic Takes on Manhattan but I bought my copy while I was waiting in the airport in London, England, at Heathrow, and it's the European title to her 2nd book).

This is what I've been up to tonight:

These are some earrings that I made tonight. The top ones are made out of real coconut. The rainbow ones are fun, and the last 2 pairs are made from real sea shells. They're all awesome, and they will be going into my Etsy Shop tomorrow. If anyone is interested in an advance purchase, let me know, I'l send you a paypal invoice! If not, they'll be in my Etsy shop as soon as possible.

What Kind of Knitting Needles Are you?

What kind of knitting
needles are you?

You are interchangeable.Fun, free, and into everything, you've got every eventuality covered and every opportunity just has to be taken. Every fiber is wonderful, and every day is a new beginning. You are good at so many things, it's amazing, but you can easily lose your place and forget to show up. They have row counters for people like you!
Take this quiz!

10 Weeks

Yes, I know, as soon as Sean can move himself, I WILL be taking that stuff in the corner of his crib out. I know it's "illegal" you don't have to tell me! It's just there now, so he can look at, since he likes to look at things, and he can't crawl, so he won't be touching it anytime soon... but at the first sign of moving, he will not have that in his crib, and apparently I need to take out the bumper pads too? For what reason? So he can hurt his head on the railings? How does that make any sense? Oh - and the pillow? I thought pillows were a NO-NO for babies. Well, this is a suggestion from his doctor yesterday. It may help him with his acid reflux, we're testing it out. I do need to cut the tag off the pillow though - that I will do right away the next time he wakes up. I'm NOT moving him right now, he's FINALLY asleep!

10 weeks. Sean's 10 weeks old. That's no longer single digits in weeks. Double digits. Wow. Where does time go? He's getting to be a big boy now, however small he may be!

Today was just one of those days. Sean didn't nap ONCE during the entire day. It's been a really frustrating day for me, as I was trying to get chores done, and laundry done, and SP10 stuff done, yet everytime I thought I had a few moments, Sean was hungry again, or needed his diaper changed, or wanted to be played with. And I swear, he ate all day long. He's a growing boy. It's crazy!

No STR Club kit in the mail today. They were mailed from BMFA's on the 26th of February. As of tomorrow, that's 2 business weeks. If I don't receive it by tomorrow, I'm going to toss them an email and see what's up. STR, STR, where are you????! [update: apparently I just read that International orders ONLY went out today. Gosh, that sucks. So I bet it won't come until at least the END of next week.... so sad... I hope this does NOT happen again next shipment, hopefully they've mastered a better system! I also don't think they were expecting 2000+ members to join!]

Jazz & Zeus have been jealous that I have been taking a lot of photos of Sean, but none of them. Tonight I caught them cuddling with each other on our unmade bed (Oops! Was too lazy today! Actually I lie, I had NO time today to make the bed, lol...) So I leave you with a shot of the kits...

No knitting today. It's just been one of those days...

To Angela - Happy One Year Friendship. (Angela and I met one year ago today). Angela - UPDATE YOUR BLOG! LOL. YOU BAD BAD GIRL!

March 7 of 31

Sean slept last night from 10 pm until 6 am this morning! Boy am I impressed, and very happy! Let's see if this is a one time fluke, or if he'll sleep again tonight through the night. (Though due to him getting shots today, I'm not sure if tonight's the night to sleep through again!)

This morning I woke up freezing because our water was shut off just before midnight last night, so when I noticed, I had to turn off the heat. My heat for my duplex is gas heating, which needs water to heat. Since it was freezing, I left at a decent time and went to my grandmother's to wash up and brush my teeth. Plus I had to get Sean out of the cold. He has a space heater in his room, but it just wasn't the same.

I went to lunch with my grandmother before going to Sean's 2 month check up. We did a little bit of shopping in the mall where we ate lunch, which is next to the building where his doctor's office is. Today, she was there, and on time - so we were seen right away pretty much, even arriving 15 minutes before his appointment, we were seen almost right away, give or take a few minutes.

He got his 2 month shots - and boy did he scream, but nothing too serious. I was able to calm him down after the 2nd one, after dressing him and rocking him in my arms. (Upon getting home he felt feverish, so I gave him some Tempra, but he seems to be doing great right now).

So you want to know how much Sean weighs?

I was shocked!

My guess had been 9 and a half pounds, maybe 10 pounds max...

Are you ready for this?

He weighs 11 pounds and 15 ounces. Yep! One ounce shy of 12 pounds. I could NOT believe it!

That's 5.04 kg! Or 5040 grams!

Wowzers!

However... that is in the 25th percentile. Meaning, 25% of babies are smaller than Sean at this age (10 weeks) and 75% of babies are larger than Sean. 50% is average. So only 25% more babies are average and another 50% of babies are a huge. LOL. So Sean is still my little guy!

Sean may be getting acid reflux, and he's getting a medication tomorrow for it. Apparently he has some thrush in his mouth - which I'm going to be getting medication tomorrow for as well. The thrush, although it doesn't bother him, is probably from when I was breastfeeding, and it will go away upon treatment. I didn't even realize he had that. It's mild, but still there.

Otherwise, he's doing great - and he'll be seen again at 4 months old. (Or if I see this his acid reflux isn't going away and he's still panting when breathing - then I should go back in 1 month from now, but only if I feel it's necessary. She left that up to me to decide).

He has also grown from 19.25 inches at birth to 22 and a half inches long! My dear, he's growing out of his clothes fast!

We made a stop after the appointment to visit my cousin Jenn for a bit. Upon getting home Sean started to freak out. I'm not sure if it was because it was freezing cold (our house was like an icebox since I just just just turned the heat back on since we finally had water upon getting home and was able to turn the heat back on) but Sean and I had the space heater on. He felt feverish, so I gave him the infant Tempra, and he passed out for a bit, screaming here and there, probably out of frustration to what happened today. Maybe his body was reacting a little, it's very possible. But since he can't speak to tell me what is bothering him, I won't ever know. He's doing great right now.

In other news, the NEW SPRING KNITTY IS OUT! Oh.... is spring really around the corner? I'm VERY excited about that!

Oh, and where oh where is my STR Club Kit??? Have any Canadians been receiving theirs? If I don't get mine by Friday, I'm going to email BMFA to find out what is going on... I'm anxiously awaiting my kit! Let me tell you!

Tonight I went knitting at my local SNB - however, I only cast on the 42 stitches for the Irish Hiking Scarf I'm making my father-in-law. I think I just needed to get out of the house to socialize, and so I did so, and didn't even get to knit a stitch. My mind wasn't there tonight to knit. I'm burned out. Very burned out today. Ready to hit the hay and crash! Maybe I'll be lucky and Sean will sleep the night, and I'll get some good sleep rather that sleep, but interrupted sleep.

To HINKLEBELL - please email me at graphicdesignchick at hotmail dot com - I want to respond to your comment, however I can't access your blog, it's not letting me. Email me your blog address, and then I'll have your email so I can respond to your comment

And that's it for me folks today. More tomorrow!

March 6 of 31

Sean's sweater is done! Take a look!

Don't you just love it? I do! And it probably won't even fit him next week! (Well maybe without a sleeper and a onesie underneath - he was wearing BOTH when I photographed him in it today. This sweater is supposed to be 3 month size. Sean's only 2 months and a week on Thursday, and he's SMALL for his age. Hmmm!

STATS:

Pattern: Baby Baseball Tee with Mittens from Knit 2 Together by Tracey Ullman & Mel Clark
Needles: US 3 and US 5
Yarn: TLC Cotton Plus in light blue and cream
Timeline: Friday, February 23, 2007 - Tuesday, March 6th, 2007

Techniques Learned: How to seam, how to make a pocket, how to make a buttonhole properly, how to sew on buttons!

This morning I woke up to no water. A water pipe broke on our street underground, and they had to dig through ice first, then through the street, and find the source of the problem. It was -40 degrees overnight last night, and that was probably the cause. Jamie saw them working down the street, and after calling and asking the city what time the water would be back, and they said noon, once it was 12:30 Jamie went down the street to ask a worker, and that guy said another couple of hours! Having no water is not a problem, we have a water cooler in the house, and to flush the toilet we took snow and melted it and put it in the toilet bowl.... but it's the fact that we have gas heating, which uses water to heat the house, so we had no heating. Good thing we have gas fireplace in our den, and we chilled by the fireplace today, watched TV (24 from Monday, Lost from last Wednesday and Prison Break Season 1) while I finished seaming the sweater for Sean. Sean was with us, until I bundled him up and put him in his crib after he fell asleep - and put the space heater in his room. It wasn't so bad. However, my toes got numb, and that is sucky! Finally around 4pm ish or so, the water came back on.

The only thing that was crappy about the entire situation, was that my tenant was a pain in the buttox. She called us to find out what happened, as if it was our fault she has no water. Then she kept asking me when it would come back on, and I told her that I was as informed about the situation as she was. She also was like "Why didn't the city notify us that there wouldn't be any water, what am I supposed to do with my 85 year old mother when she has to go to the bathroom? When they have to shut the power, they notify you in advance and tell you it will be back at so and so time..." I was like, it was a burst water pipe that happened in early this morning, how is the city supposed to predict that would happen? It's not their responsablity to call all the residents of the area to tell them." Ugh, she's a VERY good tenant, besides paying rent on the first of the month but postdating it later a few days later, but sometimes she's paranoid and annoying, since she is a single mom living with her daughter and her very own mother. So there is no man in the house. Now, don't get me wrong, you don't need a man to live, but apparently this woman does. She calls us for everything... it's as if I am babysitting her. That's how I feel sometimes.... Thank goodness the water came back on, I didn't want to have to deal with this any longer! At least she is a LOT better than the tenants I kicked out!

Tonight I went to Deep End Aqua, and it was with a teacher I had before as a sub for pre-natal aqua. I usually go to all of Hendrica's classes only, but since Pre/Post Natal Aqua was cancelled last night and also next week, I decided to get my exercise tonight in Meg's class. I had a friend meet me there, and it was a lot of fun. I'd consider adding on another night of Aqua, providing that Jamie's home and he can watch Sean for the hour that I'm at Aqua. Oh - I love being in the water!

Still NO SIGN of my STR Club package.... I'm dying to receive it already. So many people have gotten theirs already, and blogged about it. People have been receiving it now for almost a week! I wonder if it's normal for it to take THIS long to get to Canada?? I'll keep hoping it comes!

Tomorrow I have Sean's 2 month check-up (Finally!) and I'm dying to know precisely how much he weighs. I know for sure it's at least 9 and half pounds!

I got my group for SP10 tonight and I've added all their emails adddresses to my hotmail account, and I've added all their blogs to my bloglines so I can read their blogs and make sure they are blogging the required amount! I'll be starting matching up people in the next few days, and I'm going to get my matches out ASAP! So if you're in my group - keep a look out for your partner!

March 5 of 31

Today, once I got my act together, I headed over to my parents house. My sister is spending the week there, dog sitting. Lucky parents are in Jamaica. I wish I was there! (I feel like I need a vacation. Ok, what I really want is more sleep, but anyhow!)

My cousin Jenn came over to my parents house to see Sean. And to give me a few pointers with seaming. Here is my mess before starting to seam, and after blocking it overnight.

I love how the seam is so beautiful.... it's my first seam ever, with a little help from Jenn.

By the time I was leaving my parents house to go home this evening, I had finished seaming the inside of the pocket and seamed both sleeves together, so really, it went further than what you see above, but I didn't get a chance to photograph it yet. Also, the part for the button was knitted on, (here you just see the white knitted on the blue for the button holes, which are there, but after I knitted the extra part on the sleeve for the placket for the buttons to go on. A new progress report tomorrow - when hopefully i'll seam up the sides of the sweater, sew on the buttons, weave in the ends, and have a finished sweater! That would be fantastic! I am sure I can do it tomorrow!

This evening my sister was playing around with her laptop with Sean in her lap, and we decided to take some cute photos of Sean on the laptop. I'm going to email my parents in Jamaica from Sean's hotmail account (yes, I'm a geek Sean has a hotmail account - and a facebook account too!) and write a letter to his grandparents and I'll send this photo over to them. I'm sure they miss Sean, and would love to see him in pictures!

This above photo is for the Tattoo Meme - which I saw on Cynthia's blog. My Canadian Maple Leaf is a drawing straight off my passport, which I got done in April of 2002 while in London, England. It ironically DID NOT stretch while I was pregnant. This picture was taken in 2002, just after I got home from Europe. (I no longer wear my class ring, but now seeing it makes me miss it dearly!)

I want to get 2 more small tattoos. One is of cherries, I love cherries. I'm jealous of Cynthia's cherries tattoos. Also - I'd like to get a ball of yarn with 2 knitting needles sticking through the ball of yarn. Now that I'm not pregnant anymore, maybe I'll treat myself for my birthday! I have connections at one local tattoo place, Jamie plays baseball with the owner, so that wouldn't be a problem at all - to get good service! However, it would be f*ing cool to get a tattoo from like Miami Ink or Inked. But I won't be in Miami or Vegas anytime soon. So I guess I'll go local.

March 4 of 31

So today was just one of those Sundays. I slept in a little, missing out on Yoga, yet again. Someone come kick my butt on Sunday mornings to get me to go to Yoga. I guess it will be a lot easier once Sean is sleeping through the night, but now that I'm getting up to feed him, (sharing with Jamie of course on night's when he's not working the next day), I'm beyond exhausted!

We've watched a bunch more episodes of Prison Break. We're just addicted! And I think it's my sister's fault, because she keeps raving about how good it is! Thanks sis!

This afternoon I did some errands picking up Jamie's jeans that got the button above the fly fixed, (no idea how it popped off in the washing machine, but it did), mailed some stuff at the post office, deposited my mortgage payment, did an exchange at the dollar store near my house for something that I got for an art project that turned out to be defective. Then I headed over to Walmart to do another return, and pick up something else. I was shocked, for one of the returns I wasn't sure if they'd do it - but apparently Walmart will take back anything that is defective! I had purchased Gerber bottles and X Cut nipples - which are supposed to be nipples for allowing thicker formula through (when I tried the very minimal amount of single grain rice cereal in Sean's bottle), there was at one point, Sean was sucking on it for about an hour I kid you not - at 4:30 in the morning, (my hubby's feeding time - not mine) and apparently Sean was trying to eat for an hour, and nothing was coming out. Sean was getting frustrated, and Jamie half asleep as well - was getting frustrated. I don't really know if it was a full hour, but that's the story I got. Who knows how accurate that is - I mean, at four in the morning, who is thinking clearly? Anyhow, they took back the opened package of nipple and the open package of bottles. That was very nice of them. No questions, no fuss - just a simple return. Fine by me! I have no complaints!

Today I've discovered that I do NOT like Pampers for little boys. I much perfer Huggies. Both these diapers shown above are for stage 1 - up to 15 lbs. Well, Sean may be approx. 9 and a half pounds (that's my guess), and I find the Huggies are better for little boys, because they trap in the pee. The Pampers once wet get a little loose on the top, because they poof out, and the next time Sean has to pee - BAM! Leakage! The Pampers were a gift from my baby shower - we have 1 package. Those will be the last package of Pampers I use for stage 1. Maybe I'll give Pampers a try in the future for bigger sizes, but for now, I can't stand to use them, but I'm not going to throw them out. Pampers for little boys are no good! Huggies on the other hand, I got a ton of - and I love them! I got 228 diapers that were from Costco from my mother-in-law and father-in-law for part of my baby shower gift. (They also bought Sean his crib). Then, I also got a diaper cake from my mom, dad and sister, that my mom & sister made together, and that was from another box of 228 diapers from Costco. They also gave me all the leftover diapers that they didn't use in the diaper cake. What do you use? Are you a Huggies fan or Pampers or something else? And why?

Here are two more bibs (above and below) that I made for Sean. This white one above is one of my favourites, because of the marching ants! I just love it! And below, just a simple one with his name on it - with the iron-on letters that Angela got me as a gift for either the holidays or my birthday, I can't remember! LOL.

Today I decided to try and see if the Youppi outfit fit on Sean. It's 0-3 month size, but I did have a small baby! Youppi for those of you who don't know - was the Montreal Expo's (baseball team that we don't have anymore) ex-mascot. Apparently he moved over to hockey (which I think is WRONG) and he now cheers at Montreal Canadiens games. So wrong, so wrong.

As a gift for Sean's Brit Milah, he got this outfit from his step-great-aunt and step-great-uncle. (Jamie's step-aunt and step-uncle). They knew we are huge Habs fans. The good thing about this outfit, is the Habs shirt comes off the Youppi and can be worn seperately! The bad thing, is the Habs jersey says YOUPPI on the back with his number which is the ! Look at Sean's chubby cheeks when he smiles. It's ironic that he's still soooo small - over 2 months old and under 10 lbs, and he's got chubby cheeks!

In knitting news....

I have these JUMBO rubber puzzle pieces which I used to use in my old apartment under my exercise mat, so that I didn't hurt my back (hard floors and my back don't mix). Anyhow, I was keeping them for a kids' play area, once I had kids, but now that I have Sean - I think if I need them in the future, I'll get some more. Right now they were the most perfect thing to block parts of Sean's sweater on! I've spritzed the pieces and since they've been blocking (with awesome new blue "seaming pins" that I picked up the other day, they can be used to seam, or to block, I've managed to finish the other white sleeve this evening while watching more Prison Break. Anyhow, I can't wait to hopefully seam it all together tomorrow!

March 3 of 31

I got to sleep in today, which was fantastic. Sean slept in with me, cuddling with me all morning - boy that was nice. The only unfortunate thing is - he's a sweater (just like his daddy!) It's kinda funny - he smells just like his daddy does in the middle of the night! Cute. I have nothing against it - but it's just funny that he has that trait. He also sneezes just like his daddy, and will usually sneeze 4 in a row - just like Jamie! I just hope he doesn't get mommy's lungs - I get bronchitis like 2-3 times a year, and I DO NOT wish that on anyone!

Jamie & I have been watching episodes of Prison Break one after another. We're on episode 8 right now, which we're saving for the next marathon! Maybe tomorrow afternoon? The show is just so damn addictive! I don't know why we haven't watched an episode sooner!?

Some pictures from today:

Raesha - do you recognize the pants? They are from you from our swap that we did in December. He's fitting into them nicely now! (They're still a little too big, but he'll grow into them nicely!)

This is the detail of what's on his bib. It was me who bought 10 different coloured bibs in a package from Toys R Us and got iron-on studs and decorated his bibs. I've done all 10 bibs with different patterns, different iron-on things, and it was a lot of fun. As he wears them I'll photograph them and post them for you to see what I did. I had to jazz up these bibs, they were rather plain!

Now, this t-shirt that Sean is wearing is the cute little t-shirt that says "Me In Amsterdam" on it. It's the shirt that I bought him on our honeymoon - since technically he was there with us, just in my stomach! It's a little tight on him now, but he's also wearing a onesie underneath. So maybe it'll fit him a little longer, but with no onesie. We'll have to see.

I got Sean to sit up on his own - but with the back support of the couch. He's not sitting on his own yet, but I'm sure in due time he will be!

Sean got this outfit from some cousins on Jamie's mom's side of the family, and he was just too cute in it - I had to share this photograph with you. He goes through outfits and outfits in one day, sometimes because of spit up (which is why he got changed out of the Amsterdam tshirt today) and sometimes because he'll pee while on the changing table getting his outfit wet... this kid changes more time in one day than some girls do! He's definitely keeping me on my toes with the laundry!

Now, Maggie, whose blog I read, posted today about some lovely new couches she got. And I wanted to post the reason why I can't get new couches:

Above is our year and a half old couches in our den.

And above here, is our really old couches in our basement.

You see, Jazz, still has his claws, his front ones and back ones. We can't get new couches until (unfortunately) he passes on. He's only about 14 or 15 now, approximately, so he's got a bunch more years before I'll ever see new couches. But that's okay, I love Jazz, and as long as he's with us, he'll be able to go into the couches. Yes, you heard me, he has ruined the ones in the basement so badly, that he can actually GO INTO them. Sometimes when we can't find him - we know where to find him - inside the couch. And I mean that literally.

Something else on my mind that I want to address - since I got a comment on my blog about it earlier. People seem concerned that I should not have given Sean single grain rice before 6 months of age. Now, there is no set rule as to how early a baby should receive single grain rice. I have not given him fruits or veggies or even meat for that matter. I tried to give him a little bit in his bottle before bed, to hopefully fill him up better. He's been asking for more food, and maybe it was just a growth spurt. I didn't intend to use it solely for the purpose of having my child sleep longer, though the thought of that sounds great. It's just that Sean has been really hungry lately, and I don't know if just the formula is satisfying him. I in no way would do something to harm my own child. I don't know why people feel this way, but I just wanted to address it before you thought I was a horrible mother or something. I'm not the first mother who has tried to give her child more than just formula earlier than the child being 6 months old. I know babies that have demanded solids at a very early age. I have a friend who gave her child solids as of 14 days old because the child was not sastified at all with just milk (not sure if it was breastmilk or formula - I can't remember if she breastfed). Anyhow - I am no longer giving Sean the single grain cereal in his bottle - I tried it just once to see if he liked it - and if it would fill him up better than formula, but it seemed to not make a difference, so I am going to hold off until his at least 5 or 5 and a half months or even 6 months old before trying again. I'll let Sean tell me when he's ready for more than just formula.

And that's how I feel about that! I do not think I'm a bad mother in any way for even trying. It was discussed beforehand, and looked into before I even tried. And I'm happy with the decision that I made. I don't even know why I am justifying this or myself. Anyhow, I guess I just wanted to get that off my chest.

I'll leave you with this quote - I just love it!

And I can't wait for her knitting movie to come out - she's apparently starring in the movie Friday Night Knitting Club. The release date is June 6th, 2008.

Oh - and in knitting news - I'm halfway done sleeve number 2. After that's done, I'll just have to block, and seam together! I can't wait to finish it already - however it looks a LOT bigger than 3 month size... which isn't exactly a bad thing, since Sean seems to be smaller than most kids his age! However, I still won't know Sean's weight until Wednesday at his 2 month check up. But now I'm guessing that he's around 9 and a half pounds.

March 2 of 31

Today I did not go anywhere due to the snow that is outside. It fell over nigh and when Jamie went to get our newspaper in the morning it was all covered up - and he had to dig it out. Nasty weather out there. So today, we went no where. It was nice staying in. We watched some TV, starting to watch Season 1 of Prison Break. So far, we've really enjoyed episode 1. I got a little bit of knitting done, I am in the middle of sleeve number 1 of 2 and that's all I have left to do before blocking and seaming.

Sean has been a little fussy today, but hasn't thrown up, which is a good thing. He must have had a 24 hour bug, or something. The good news is, with a little help of some single grain rice cereal (1/2 tsp in his regular bottle) he slept from about 5 am until 10 am this morning. We're hoping that a satisfied belly helps him sleep longer. I had tried out Gerber bottles and X Cut nipples (which are MEANT for thicker formula to get through, but after a lot of frustration, and NOTHING at all getting through them, I'm marching back to Walmart asap (maybe tomorrow if the weather is better) and I'm returning them, as defective. We wasted an hour of Sean trying to suck out his meal - and nothing at all came through. We then put the same stuff (poured) into his regular Avent bottles - and drank it with his stage 2 nipple, NO PROBLEM at all! Weird. Anyhow, there must be something wrong with the nipples. The package actually says that itès meant for thicker formula to pass through, but we had no such luck.

I got asked to be a hostess for Secret Pal 10 - on recommendation from a friend. I've accepted, and I can't wait for things to get rolling. Shortly I'll be emailed the girls (and possible guys) that I'll be in charge of, and matches will be going out by March 15th. I can't wait for SP10 to get started! I've already got some fun ideas for contests for my group - and I am going to make sure that everyone is participating fairly in my group! Oh, it's going to be a blast!

Jamie and I tried watching Stranger Than Fiction today - the new Will Farrel movie. What a weird weird movie. We couldn't make it more than 10 minutes. Not sure if the talking isn't supposed to line up with them talking or what, I know there is narration in the movie, but for some reason it was just way too hard to follow and very messed up. Anyone else see this movie? Understand what I mean? Did you enjoy it?

Tonight we had my in-laws over for dinner and we had my step-mother-in-laws Chilli. It was damn good! We played poker tonight, and in the first game I was out 4th and in the second game I made it to 3rd. Not bad for not having played in a while. I was very impressed with my game, I just wasn't getting great cards at all. Not at all tonight.

Today I got my STR's colorway County Clare from Barb. I traded her my almsot finished Clapotis and yarn for it - for this yarn! I can't wait to see how she finishes it off, and I can't wait to knit up the STR! I see people are starting to blog their STR Club kits on their blog - which means the USA started receiving their first shipment, and I should be getting mine hopefully VERY soon here in Canada. I can't wait for the first club package! The colorway looks awesome! (I think we all get the same colorway, right?)

Alright, I must get sleep. I'm doing the next feeding whenever that is - and then Jamie's doing the middle of the night one or early morning, depending on how long Sean sleeps. Hopefully he'll do another 5 hour sleep - that would be FANTASTIC and just beautiful. No idea what's going on the rest of the weekend - probably just chilling out - watching some more Prison Break, maybe a movie or two, and knitting! I like that plan!

9 Weeks

Today has been a long day. I had plans to go visit my cousin and knit with her, and bring Sean with me, but Sean has been fussy all day long. I wasn't sure what it was - but he was having regular bowel movements, and going to the bathroom otherwise regularly, and he had no fever, he just didn't want to sleep, he didn't want his pacifier, he didn't want to be put down, and he was fussy all day long. He had also thrown up a few times, I'm not talking spit up, I'm talking liquids pouring out of his mouth. Sorry to be graphic. Anyhow, it was nasty. Once it even hit the wall in my office, which is like two feet away from my desk chair. I had to change about 3 times today due to him throwing up. However, with no fever, I just didn't think it was necessary to run to the doctor for nothing. And it's not the first time he's thrown up from probable overeating. Just like his mommy - eyes are bigger than the stomach.... however, I don't throw up. I just get really full and ill when I do that. Anyhow, things seem to be a little bit better now.

This evening I finished the front of Sean's sweater and cast on the first sleeve. See - progress! (It's too bad it curls, I can't get it to stay straight to photograph. I bought seaming pins, I'm going to try to take a better photograph later. But heck - we have progress!!!

Today Sean is 9 weeks old. It's Thursday - so it's Self-Portrait in the mirror day!

Oh - I love my little man!

Tonight I made it to Deep End Aqua, but boy was I zonked beforehand, and even more so, afterwards! Wow - I'm ready to crash. Just finished watching some TV with Jamie, and I think I'm going to hit the sack. Tonight Jamie is doing the night feedings, so that's a good thing for me and some sleep!

SP10 Questionnaire

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I do NOT like Acrylics. I can’t stand the feel of it. I will use it to make a baby blanket - because babies spit up on things and it’s machine washable, but in that case, I’m very picky to the brand/quality of the acrylic. I love sock yarn (I’m a sock yarn addict) and I love anything that is soft! I am NOT a mohair fan… or do I like to knit with chenille, popcorn yarn, fun fur or eyelash yarn. ICK. I right now would love to check out Koigu (I keep hearing nice things about it)- as well as Blue Mountain Fiber Arts' Socks That Rock - I'm dying to get my hands on Cracked Crayon and Lucy, or Bunny Foo Foo.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a wooden case that my grandmother gave me, as well as a large a nice Double pointed needle case I made for my bamboo DPN collection. Click here to see my beautiful handmade case. My circulars are now housed in a shoe bag that I got at the dollar store. Click here to see my awesome creation! Each pocket houses another size, and it came in a crazy color! My other regular straight needles are in this needle case that I made with my friend Jennie, click here to view. However, since making these all, I've acquired more needles - that need a home....!

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I consider myself to be an intermediate knitter. I’ve been knitting since about mid-Novermber 2005, and have accomplished a lot since then. I tried knitting once when I was about 9 years old, an old non-live-in babysitter/housekeeper Irene taught me to knit. She was later fired for stealing from my parents. Then, my friend Faye got me knitting needles and some really expensive yarn for my birthday in June of 2004, while in my 2nd year of professional photography school. I knitted a garter ridge scarf (only knew knit stitch back then, didn’t know how to purl yet) and then put down knitting until November 2005, when I started working on a scarf in chenille (yick!) yarn for my mother-in-law. That yarn got so gross to knit with, that I won’t ever knit with chenille yarn again, and that scarf died. That’s when my sister-in-law introduced me to crochet (or her version of crochet anyhow!) and I didn’t touch any knitting for another month and a half until January 2006. That’s my knitting history for you in a nutshell!

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

I have a froogle list. It’s got some books on it, as well as some knitting accessories.

5. What’s your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)

Peach, Watermelon, Cinnamon.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Not a fan of chocolate…. sweet tooth - not really. I like to chew different mint flavored gum. I've actually just begun a sugarfree and white flour free diet... called the G.I. Diet. It's more of a lifestyle change than a diet. However, sometimes I like to treat myself and have a little bit of sugar.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I sew, take pictures, do graphic design and crochet. I do not spin. I’d like to learn though.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s?

(if your buddy wants to make you a CD):

I do not like rap or country music, or church music either. I can play MP3’s that’s no problem.

9. What’s your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can’t stand?

I HATE PURPLE! I love pink, peach, blue, turquiose, yellow, red, anything but purple! I love also knitting with neutral “earth” tone colours…. (Blacks, beiges, greys, greens…) Right now I'm hot for lime green and yarn with a bunch of green colorways. For example, I'm loving Scout's Appletini yarn. I would LOVE to get my hands on some. I love a bunch of her other yarn, but I'm in love with Appletini right now.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I live with my hubby and our 2 cats and my beautiful newborn son Sean. He was born Dec. 28th.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

I wear hats & scarves. I think I would wear a poncho.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

I don’t hate anything. I’m loving socks and anything baby!

13. What are you knitting right now?

Socks for my hubby and myself, as well as Clapotis for myself. I need to also get started on a purse for my MIL’s bday.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Of course!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

I don’t really care for straights, but will use them. I like DPN’s for socks, or on a pair of 12″ circs. I have not tried magic loop yet, though I want to. And bamboo vs. aluminum - well it all depends on what type of yarn it is…. some yarns don’t mix well on bamboo needles (and it also depends if it’s circulars or DPN’s as well - it does make a difference in my opinion). Plastic - I guess is okay as well.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

I own a ball winder and a swift. Hubby was getting annoyed being my swift, so he convinced me to buy one. A knitting accessory – how could I say no!

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

From January 2006 (shhh! don’t tell anyone!) I better get to it, eh?

18. What is your favorite holiday?

Any holiday that brings family together.

19. Is there anything that you collect?

Elephant statues (just bought my latest one on a trip to Casablanca, Morocco, Africa). Oh and I collect yarn and purses!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I have a subscription to Interweave Knits that I just treated myself to. I am dying to get my hands on some Koigu. Keep hearing really good things about it. Also – I would love to try some of Scout’s Swag (Appletini) yarn. Also – there are a few Vesper Yarn colorways that I’m in love with – and the ONE retail shop in Canada that carries them is out. (And a 6 hour drive from my house!) (Colorways that I love are: Knit & Tonic, and SweetWater and There are some knitting books on my froogle list.

21. Are there any new techniques you’d like to learn?

Long tail cast on.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

I am a size 8 women’s sock/shoe. I am a sock knitter.

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

06/16