I'm not biased...

but I like this bag.

I just finished my version of Unbiased found on Knitty.com and a Knit-a-Day-Calendar of my mom's. It's made from yarn woven from recycled sari silk. You can find the yarn on the designer's website or I found mine on eBay (for about $10 - shipping included!).

It's an adventurous grab-bag type project in that you don't know what the finished product will look like until you knit it up. I wound the yarn months ago and didn't realize I'd get that big blocks of color. I also didn't know how different the pieces would look. Fortunately, two sets sorta match each other. The colors are so rich and bold, it's really striking. I've already received compliments on it.

I added a button and crocheted a tab (crochet is so much easier for spontaneous button holes when pattern doesn't matter) so it stays shut - sort of.

And the best part is, it's super-fast. I finished it in about a week and a half in time for our trip to Mexico... more on that later.

What Heaven looks like to a 2-year-old

I don't know who was the city-planning genius who decided to take out our city pools and put in these spray parks, but they should be given a medal. On a hot summer day with a rambunctious toddler, this is the best way to wear them out. It's just a spongy surface with sprinkler toys of all types for running and splashing and screaming with joy... then taking really good naps when you get home. No one can drown and no one is swimming in pee.

We enjoyed celebrating Madeleine's birthday with her and her family. D wasn't his normal exuberant self. He had a fever that morning and we debated staying home, but a second wind came along that afternoon and he had a great time. He even enjoyed his first bag of Cheetos and experienced the best side effect. mmmmm, Cheeto-y orange fingers.

Madeleine was excited to see "Baby Donovan". She held his hand, they danced in circles and away they walked into the the cool water...

Better than "no"

Whenever D's in an especially silly mood and I ask him to do something he doesn't want to do, instead of a typical toddler "no!" he throws his arms out and yells some nonsense.

Mom: Come here, we need to put on your shoes.
D: Gellagh! (arms out)
Mom: Donovan...
D: Blooghla! (shaking his head, throwing arms)
It usually ends with him running off in a fit of laughter and I tackle him to get his shoes on.

I think I'll try it at work someday.
Co-worker: Can we get this report by EOD?
Me: Googla!
Co-worker: We need this for a pitch tomorrow.
Me: Blegh boo!

I like it.

Bobbins and butterflies

This Saturday we are going to a birthday party for 3-year-old Madeleine. She's the daughter of our good friends, Kerry and Lee, and quickly becoming a good friend of Donovan's. Here they are looking oh-so-sweet before eating dinner together. And... eating dessert later... mmmm, pudding. "Look at my nose!" That night they greeted Jim at the door wearing no pants and playing a recorder and a toy saxophone as they played marching band. (Unfortunately, the camera was not handy for that.)

Since I have a son and only nephews, I don't often have a reason to knit all the fun girlie-girl things out there. So, I have to take opportunities like this to get girl knitting out of my system. Until I get a female relative, the bounty goes to my friends' babies!

I needed something fairly quick to knit, so I chose the Butterfly Bag from Lucinda Guy's Handknits for Kids. I decided to keep it more reasonably priced than what 5 balls of Rowan would cost, instead I used a combination of Lion Brand Cotton and Sugar 'n' Cream. It will wear just fine with many years of dress-up ahead. The gauge was bigger than the pattern suggested, so I left out some of the embroidery details - I thought it would be too thick, not to mention I'm not so skilled in embroidery. It's filled with a few girlie items - dress-up bracelet, hair clips and "make-up" bag. Three-year-old girl essentials, I'd say.

This is my third foray into intarsia. My first doesn't really count, but my second taught me, that you really do have to go with the small bits of yarn and bobbins, bobbins, bobbins. Or else, if you try to carry the yarn, the stitches are pulled side to side. See the pirate flag washcloth below... with details I hope you can see. It's squiggly.

Thanks to Martha, my knit-advisor, I read this handy little book she picked up at a knitting workshop and learned

• You really can't carry your yarn more than 2-4 stitches. You just gotta add another bobbin.
• Knitters either love intarsia or hate it. I think I love it...

Coming soon, a digger sweater for the boy who loves trucks.

Okay, okay, I'll blog!

I have been feeling this overwhelming need to create a blog everytime I am on my favorite knitting website http://knitty.com/ It seems all knitters under 40 (and many older than 40) must blog. It's not as if I don't spend enough time online at work (Jim would hate all those double-negatives) . I literally surf the Internet and get paid for it.

But, I will also use it to share the wonderful stories about our son who makes my heart ache with love every day. Today, I wish he could stay 2 forever. He's such an amazing creature.

So, here goes. Knitting and someone else's kid stories. Well, if it bores you... click away.