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Here are a few more shots of handsome Liam in his handknits! This is the lovely vest that Hanna knit for him.
Here's the hat and blanket I knit from Natural Knits for Babies and Moms. I can't tell you how glad I am that the hat still fits - he is just growing far too quickly for my liking!
The blog world never ceases to amaze me, and warm me up with all the love bloggers share. Some time ago, I commented on Karen's blog - she had made the sweetest top for her daughters, and I wondered where to find the pattern. She kindly offered to send it to me, and when it arrived, she had included another pattern, plus some buttons and a cute little tissue holder. So nice.
Recently, Karen gave birth to a third beautiful daughter, and I quickly seized the opportunity to knit something little and girly. Here is the On the Sunny Side hat, knit from one skein of Knitpicks Shine, in Reef. I used the instructions for the open lace brim, and love this patttern! Very sweet, and I hope Karen's babe enjoys herself in the sun!
I haven't been around much lately, and I'm sorry to have disappeared without warning! I'm working on a major project here, that I'm not quite ready to talk about, and it's sucking up most of my time. (NO, it's not another baby. I'm pretty sure that ship has sailed!)
Anyway - my parents are truck drivers at the moment. This means that they drive for about two weeks, and then are required to take two days off. I had told them earlier that if they could take a break somewhere nearish to us, like Edmonton or Vancouver, that I would see if I could meet them there. I got the call that they were going to make their next stop in Edmonton last weekend, so I quickly packed up the kids and we five drove to the city for a couple of days of fun with the grandparents! (Yes, traveling with four kids by myself might sound slightly crazy, but it was so worth it.)
The kids and I drove all day Sunday (Edmonton is about 740km from here), and played with Grandpa and Grandma until Tuesday afternoon. The hotel we stayed in had a swimming pool and waterslide, and we kept the whole time really low key, just hanging out together. Grandpa took each of the kids for an outing (he even babysat Liam while the rest of us hit the pool), we found an amazing Turkish restaurant (my step-dad is from Iran, and this was the closest we could find to Persian food - ooooh, so good), my mum and I visited a yarn store, I got to wander around Chapters with only Liam in tow. All good things. The kids and I drove only part way home on Tuesday, spending the night in Hinton, AB, and visiting with Stuart's sister, who lives there. We made it home Wednesday afternoon, all a little tired and road weary, but safe and sound! Whew!
The most exciting part of the journey, for me, was this:
I had the great fun of teaching my mum to knit! Here is her very first FO:
A "bookmark" from her first cast on, knit stitches and bind off! It was really wonderful for me to be able to share something so dear to my heart with someone I love so much. I sent her on her way with "homework", a copy of Stitch n' Bitch, as well as a couple of balls of dishcloth cotton, two pairs of needles, and a ball of wool. I hope that this is something she will really enjoy! I said to her, the best part of it all is now I can talk to her about knitting without her eyes glazing over. She answered, "I don't know about that!"
But we have wool, even if it's blazing hot! This is the second hat I've knit for Kristy's Hat Quest. The yarn is some Briggs & Little Tuffy, hand dyed by Dorothy some time ago. I used this originally for a pair of Horcrux socks, and had enough left for this fun hat. I love the striping action - I wasn't sure what to expect, but really like the way this looks. This was just a plain ol' hat knit top down on 5mm DPNs, with about an inch or so of 2x2 ribbing at the bottom. It's a bit big for my son, so we turned up the brim for the photos. Brian did a very nice job modeling this hat - you'd almost think he enjoyed it, rather than what he really thought of the experience:
Today is my handsome husband's birthday! On Monday, we celebrated by visiting Barkerville, an historic, old west town, full of actors in costume. This has somehow become an annual tradition, with certain very key elements:
We walk main street,
take a stagecoach ride,
do some shopping for certain items, such as giant jawbreakers, ice cream, and bakery-fresh sourdough bread,
check out the Cornish Wheel and Pump, and hear the mining demonstration,
and pan for gold. There was some fibre to be seen,
such as antique bobbins,
and hand knit wool scarves. Once everyone is worn out, we head for home,
stopping at a nearby lake for a picnic.
There are wildflowers to be picked,
special rocks to be discovered,
and lots of room to run (my goodness, the boy is like Dash from The Incredibles. He just never stops moving!). Lots of fun was had by all,
except for Liam. This was pretty much his take on the whole day. Maybe he'll enjoy it more next year!