Battle of Knits

Hello readers…

I have gotten a lot of emails in the past few months. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers. However I am moving the blog yet again.

Would you like to follow me to the new location? Please send me an email at battleofknits@gmail.com and I will explain everything as well as send you a link to the new blog. Simply send an email with blog in the subject line and I will reply. Thanks everyone and I apologize for all the confusion.

Testing, 1-2-3

Is this thing on?

I am just seeing if it is in fact working. I am alive and kicking.

I’m here

I have a load of drama to dump. If you are curious… please follow me back to Blogger.

It is only a matter of time until this dot.com goes away… since Josh owns it. I highly doubt he would be considerate enough to keep it for me. I love the new look and hate to see this blog go, but all things end. Please follow me back over to http://battleofknits.blogspot.com and as always thanks for reading.

Could it be molars?

I think my son is teething! I’m excited about this because I was starting to think he might need an exorcism. He had a low grade fever today, so I gave him Motrin, which really seemed to help. That and our beautiful day… it was 73 out and sunny. We played outside all day and I got the yard cleaned up and the back porch. My son got a chance to really check out the sandbox and I think he carried every toy he owns outside.

A happy moment today.

After hours of play I made him some dinner and he would barely eat– another sign of teething… I tried to check out his teeth, but he would not let me look at the bottom. The tops seem to have some molars halfway through and I think they may be responsible for turning my angel in an aggressive-tantrum throwing maniac. Today he only threw one big fit. It was like a vacation! I thought with him running around outside that I might be able to sneak in some knitting on the heel of my sock, but I put the chair in the sun, sat down and he climbed into my lap. Then he decided he would pull down the front of my shirt. So… no knitting was going to get done, so I put the sock back into the house. I came back out with the video camera and videotaped him playing around, being silly. I thought I might figure out how to upload a video to the computer. Then I couldnt find the USB cord. I have no clue why it isnt in the video bag, I never use the thing and I have no clue where it would be. So I guess it will have to happen another day.

I have about 1.5 inches done on the first heel. I hope to finish it tonight. If I am super motivated I may start the final chart repeat on the 2nd sock. Now that I am into the hell, I am getting kind of excited about them.

Socky #1

I got my new sock club yarn and I love it. It is a sock yarn set-up. Stripey sock yarn with solid trim for the cuff, heels and toes. Fun. Now I HAVE to make more socks. I have been surfing Ravelry looking for a good pattern for stripey yarns… No luck so far. It seems most people just make plain old stockinette sock with stripes. I might do just that. I should have taken a picture of this new yarn, but of course I forgot all about it.

The weather is supposed to be nice all week, so perhaps I can remember. Perhaps my son will feel better and perhaps I can catch up on some sleep!

(Finally, looks like the Yarn Harlot has a new post… must go read it!)

DIY Lobotamy

I have been seriously thinking about performing major surgery on myself lately. However, I cannot decide between a lobotomy and tubal ligation. Both would have results that might help my situation, but I am just not sure which would be more effective.

(Probably the lobotomy, since a tubal ligation is not retroactive.)

My son is seriously on thin ice with me. If this is the beginning of the “terrible twos” then one of us is in big-time trouble. It seems that he cannot go more than sixty seconds without being held. There are out and out tantrums several times per day now, when he used to be so wonderful. We cant take him to the grocery store… crap, I tried to walk him to the mailbox today and that was a disaster! It ended with me carrying an armful of mail & a package one one side and a kicking screaming kid in the other. He is hitting, throwing things, pulling hair and being generally defiant. In a way I am sort of proud of all his little kid angst… then I have to duck to avoid being hit upside the head with a toy car. He is seriously asserting himself and telling me that he will do what he wants. Well, I have news for that little boy… he had better hope that this phase does not last or he will be spending a lot of time in “the penalty box”! I have already been talking to Josh about it and I am going to have to begin the time-out training ASAP.

You just dont picture this aggravation when you are pregnant. Or when they are learning to crawl & walk… then BAM! Your sweet little baby turns into a monster. One day I’m getting six kisses in a row, then next he trying his hardest to kick me in the face. “Patience is a virtue” and whomever came up with that saying must have had many toddlers. I just hope I survive this. PLease please remind me of all this insanity if I ever say I’m ready for another one!!! (email me the link!)

Finally time to start a heel

My socks are coming along slowly. One needs another chart repeat, the other is ready for a heel. Eventually I might finish them… by the end of the Olympics? HA-HA yeah right! It just isnt going to happen and I have accepted it. I’m just glad everyone in our house is alive… for now. Oh and I have not yet been committed to a mental hospital.

The Strongbad Without a Face

In the land of crochet… Which I visited last night since I was exhausted from averaging about 4 hours of sleep a night for the past 5 nights and a bit burnt out on lace after knitting on my socks at Hank’s Sunday afternoon. I sewed him all together. I just need some felt for his face. His head is a tad lopsided, but I’m over it. I had to sew around the head about 40 times. The body and feet are stuffed with rice and lentils so they are heavier like a beanbag, but the head is just full of fluff, so it was nearly impossible to keep it from flopping… after sewing and sewing… and sewing… I looked at it. It was not floppy, just a bit tilted. It is going to have to do!  I have really enjoyed these amigurumi projects.

Handmaiden Casbah Sock ~ Ruby

Everything on the needles and hooks will be going ON HOLD in March. March 1st I am starting an Ishbel shawl. I have been committed to this for a month and I am very excited to start it. The yarn is delicious. This picture is terrible, since it was cloudy today, but dont worry. This blog will be saturated in photos of this shawl. I would like to gift this one too, however, this might have to be mine, since I am completely lusting over this yarn. I have named my project the “Ruby-ISH-BELla” because I am super lame. (I have accepted this too.) 

So on hold will be: The Vancouver Socks, the Tea Leaves Cardi, the Toodee doll and one day I might finish the crocus scarf. I had intended to work on it during the Olympics, but never even took it out of the bag. I think it is that yarn. Someone cursed that yarn. (Good thing crochet projects dont count on my 2010 goal.)

Off to knit a heel.

(BTW I absolutely LOVE this new theme!!!)

New Look!

I have updated around here. A new theme, some new pages… Please, let me know what you think!

His girlfriend!

photo

Originally uploaded by Slychikadee

Didn’t take the ladies man long to seek out the pretty girl in the group. Here he is gettin’ those digits and putting them in his little black book, with crayon of course! We have a little player in the making.

My sweetheart.

photo

Originally uploaded by Slychikadee

How can one child be so sweet in one moment and so completely frustrating the next?

Happy Kid!

photo

Originally uploaded by Slychikadee

Here he is roaming around “The Germ Pit” (as I like to call it) in the mall. It is a bouncy wonderland. He is finally big enough to hold his own in there, since most kids are over 3… some as old as 8! It is a madhouse of screaming-running-bouncing crazy children expelling massive energy! Even the occasional kid-collision will result in tears– but not for long. The interesting thing about this spot is the fact that kids overcome amazing injury and jump right back in game, as if they were not trampled by several older children at all. It amazes me! The desire to bounce and screech surpasses all pain.

I was so excited to see my son adapt to this enviornment and play hard like the big kids. I was equally as excited to leave Daddy in charge when I snuck into the GAP for some new jeans.

“Sometimes I get so tense, but I can’t speed up the time…”

I have come to realize after a day of screaming too much… that I do not have a lot of patience. Some days I have more (a lot more) than others.

Today was not one of those days.

I hate hearing myself scream at my son. I am going to make a HUGE effort to limit this as much as possible, because after today I am upset with myself for not having more patience. I made it through the infant stages with minimal breakdowns… there was this one day where I thought I was losing it, called Josh at work crying because our son just would not stop crying– I had maybe 20 minutes sleep in 2 days… I look back now and cant believe I was as calm as I was! Must have been those oxytocin and prolactin hormones flowing from breastfeeding!!!

Right now the kid must be going through something… A growth spurt? A phase? Whatever it is I am completely frustrated by it. He wants to be held– and ONLY BY ME– 24 hours a day. He is being very picky with food these last few days. I feel like I throw out enough to feed 2 extra kids some days. Today I could only get him to eat half a waffle, french fries and some gluten-free flat bread. I tossed out chicken, broccoli, crackers, raisins and it drives me crazy. Tomorrow I am going to try some jello with fruit in it. He will most likely eat more tomorrow since it is “Daddy-day” since I am going out to Hank’s in the afternoon. We shall see. I just want my happy kid back!!!!

Finally at least the weather seems to be warming up. Today might have hit 70. I feel like such a freak sometimes… I moved here in August of 2004 and that winter I never wore a jacket, maybe a sweater in January… I wore flip-flops the whole season and though everyone around me was crazy in their UGG boots and scaves, hats, mittens, ski jackets… Honestly, I have not yet pulled out my L.L. Bean ski jacket since moving here. Now I do feel cold if it drops below 60 degrees. I have fully adapted to Florida living!!! Scary.

Here is a picture of the best part of our day. We went to the mall to get me some jeans and the Boo-bear some new sneakers.

See next blog post… since Flickr is a pain in my ass!

Pearl Jam– Dissident

She nursed him there, ooh, over a night
Wasn’t so sure she wanted him to stay
What to say…what to say
But soon she was down, soon he was low
At a quarter past…a holy no…
She had to turn around

When she couldn’t hold, oh…she folded…
A dissident is here
Escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here

And to this day, she’s glided on
Always home but so far away
Like a word misplaced
Nothing to say, what a waste
When she had contact…with the conflict…
There was meaning, but she sold him to the state
She had to turn around

When she couldn’t hold…she folded…
A dissident is here
Escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here, oh…oh…oh…

She gave him away when she couldn’t hold…no…she folded…
A dissident is here
Escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here, oh…
Couldn’t hold on…she couldn’t hold…no…she folded…
A dissident is here
Escape is never the safest place, oh…
A dissident is here