... I want to cry too. Thankfully, he's not like that all the time. In fact, he spends a lot of time like this:
Lately he's been doing this a lot:
Some may say it's just wind making the corners of his mouth turn, but I'd like to think it's a smile. Let's take another look...
If you have been paying attention to my sidebar, you'll see that I have been knitting. I have made progress on my vest. It's about the only thing I can knit as it requires very little concentration, which is a good thing as I have very little to spare.
We have been trying to settle Alex into some sort of a routine this week in the hope that it will get us more sleep and save our sanity. It worked for two nights and then last night was dreadful. he just would not settle and Chris and I took turns patting his back and carrying him while he cried. I think it may just be wind causing him discomfort. He's let a lot of it out this morning, and now he's sleeping like a little beauty, which is why I am able to steal a few minutes to post.
I am so relieved he's finally fallen asleep as a parcel arrived for me this morning. It is my gift from my
Spinning Roving Swap pal, Gina. Thank you Gina!
I can't wait to get started on the Blue-faced Leicester roving. It is a breed of sheep I have not seen locally and I have heard (or should I say, "read") so much about in the knitting and spinning forums. When I get back into spinning, which will be soon, I hope, I will be spinning that and the CVM roving that
Cynthia sent me before Christmas.
Labels: Alex, swap
This year has really flown by for me. At about this time last year, I was unmarried, and didn't even think that I would be preparing for the arrival of a baby in a year. I was preparing for our trip to Malaysia when Chris would ask my parents for my hand in marriage. But here I am now.. married and living in a flat full of baby things, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a little one who promises many sleepless nights and much laughter and heartache in the years to come.
Strangely enough, although Bubba is now considered a "full-term" baby (as of today), I am not nesting (yet??). The flat is still a mess and my affairs are still not in order. I have plastic boxes of yarn yet unsorted since the time we moved in and yet more plastic boxes filled with pre-pregnancy clothes. Bubba's clothes for the first month or two are washed, but only if he is really a 'he'. If he turns out to be a 'she', well then.. she will have to wear 'boy' clothes for a few months (if she is lucky) or a couple of years (if she isn't). We have lots of boy clothes, and I am not sure I'd be bothered to go out and buy new girl clothes if I do have a little girl. I think we have all of two girl outfits - one bought 'just in case' and the other was given to us.
It feels surreal. I am not sure that I am ready to be a mum, but ready or not, Bubba's not going to waiting for me to give him permission to join us. He'll be out when he's good and ready. I have told him that he must NOT come out before Christmas as I am not ready for him, but seeing as Christmas is only 2 more sleeps away, I am fairly certain he will stay put for at least a few more days. After that, if he wants to come out, he's most welcome to. I will have his cot made up by then, I hope.
It is hard to believe that the baby is now *35 weeks old, and I have spent the last 35 weeks feeding him and carrying him around. He has been everywhere that I have and eaten everything that I have. He has been a part of me, though it wasn't really noticeable for the first 25 weeks or so. It's only in the past two months that I have grown significantly bigger (think "a ship in full sail") and significantly more uncomfortable (think "roll off the bed rather than get off the bed"). I really should take another belly photo to show you what I mean. It's as if my belly is making up for lost time and has now swelled to gigantic proportions.
My cousin asked me yesterday, "Are you excited or scared?". The two are not mutually exclusive. It's scary to think that soon I will be responsible for the life of another human being, especially one as helpless as Bubba is going to be when he is born. It is also very exciting. I look forward to caring for him and nurturing him as best I can, knowing that we created him. It's probably only natural to be both scared and excited. I'd like to think so anyway - i.e. I'd like to think that I am not strange.
We have most of what we need for Bubba's arrival, and some of what we don't need. Everyone's been very generous to us and it's been fantastic. My in-laws have gone a little nuts buying things and we have lots of baby clothes, cot sheets and towels now. We have so many things that when the folks at work wanted to give me a "send off/maternity leave" present, I didn't know what to ask for. They ended up giving us a voucher for a local baby shop, which I am sure will prove useful as Bubba grows and we need more things for him. We also have a 'surprise' baby shower that's been planned for us on Christmas day - it's a surprise in that we were not expecting it, but we were told it's happening. I have decided to stop buying things as we don't know what's coming. The only things I need now are the little things like bottle and teat brushes, baby hair brush, QV bath oil and other little things which I can get from the chemist if we don't get them at the baby shower.
On the knitting front, I haven't done much. That blue/aqua blanket is now finished - YAY! I didn't die of boredom, but it was a close call. I decided crocheting is quicker than knitting and so it has a dark blue crocheted border. I plan on washing it soon, but I have to gather enough clothes to go into a dark wash together with it as I suspect the blue yarn may run. I'll take pictures when it's all washed and dried. The weather is a bit icky today, so it's unlikely that it will get washed today, but definitely some time over the Christmas holiday.
Do you remember
those squares that were plagueing me some time ago?
I am up to 15 now, though I could have sworn that I have knitted more than 15. It sure feels like I have. Anyway, I need 25 for a baby blanket. this too will have a crocheted edge, I think. I don't want to die of boredom! I am aiming to finish the blanket before Bubba arrives. In fact, I'd be really happy if I can finish the blanket before the new year arrives (that is, of course, assuming that Bubba arrives AFTER the new year).
I participated in a stitch marker swap hosted by
Robyn earlier this month. I have sent out both my sets and received one. The other is on its way. The one I received was from
Patty (who does not have a blog or if she does, I don't know the URL). They remind me of hard candy, like the sort that is made in rolls and cut into shapes with funky designs and colours on the inside.
Aside from that, not much else has been happening. I have done a little dyeing, and some new yarn will be up in my
Etsy store shortly. I just have to edit the photos and list them. I will dye more merino roving when I have the space to dry it. Right now all my indoor hanging space is taken up by clothes, sheets and other silly things!
* At forty weeks of gestation, the baby is only 38 weeks old as they (meaning the doctors and nurses) always start counting from 2 weeks BEFORE the date of conception. Weird, I know.. So, while the baby is 35 weeks old now, I am 37 weeks pregnantLabels: blanket, etsy, knitting, life, pregnancy, swap
Do you remember
this blanket? I finally dug it out of the UFO pile and started working on it again. It's slowly growing. Currently it measures about 26in x 35in. I am plannign to add another panel to make it as close to a square as mossible, and then maybe add on a crochet edging. Crochet is quicker than knitting, and after knitting THAT much garter stitch, I think I would have had enough.
A surprise package?
Look what arrived at my doorstep last Friday? I know, I should have posted about it sooner, but it took me a few days to take the pictures and work out who had sent it. It's from
Morgan. I don't know what I have done to deserve this (random?) act of kindness.
That Spinning Place is a local online shop selling handspun yarn, handpainted rovings and other lovely things. Go take a peek. Morgan sent me some handpainted roving, two gorgeous skeins of handspun wool/silk in a beautiful girly colourway, a needle wrap and some stitch markers. Thank you Morgan!
Cynthia's packageIn my
previous post, I mentioned getting a swap package from
Cynthia. What I didn't mention was what it contained. She have been to Rhinebeck and bought me a whole lot of fibre.. mm.. luscious. She even sent me a thermos mug from Rhinebeck. That mug is going striaght into my hospital bag so that Chris can use it to have hot drinks while I am in labour. I love the fibre she sent me, especially the cashmere/silk blend. Oh so beautiful. I don't want to spin it. I just want to pet it, like a little animal! Cynthia also sent me some CVM (California Variegated Mutant) roving. I have never felt it before as it is not a breed that is local to us. Now I have, and I do want to spin that up to see what it's like. I also got some silk/wool blend and a skein of Socks That Rock in a gorgeous green. Oh and also a sticker and some stitchmarkers. I am a lucky lucky girl. I only just managed to send off Cynthia's package this week. I hope it gets to Boston before Christmas.
Last Hurrah?Chris decided that maybe we should take a mini holiday before baby arrives. I can't believe it's only another 4 1/2 weeks till my estimated due date. The baby can really arrive any time from about next week and be considered full-term.
We checked into the Hilton in the city and had a nice relaxing weekend. The room was lovely and the only disappointment was that we didn't get the pillows we asked for. They have a "pillow menu". Yes, folks, that's right, a "pillow menu". We could ask for any pillow on the menu, and it would be delivered to us. Before we left for dinner, I rang and ordered a few pillows for ourselves as the standard pillows they provided were too soft. The pillows didn't arrive before we left and we thought they'd just leave them in the room. By the time we got back from dinner, the pillows were still not there, so I rang again. By that time they had run out of the pillows that we wanted and we just had to settle for our second choices - which weren't bad, just not exactly what we had wanted.
Dinner was at
Post and we weren't disappointed. We both had a lovely meal - probably the last such meal we will have in a while since we're not planning to take the baby to dinner at such restaurants. Yes, I know people do, and it really annoys me when that happens and the kid(s) just won't sit still. It really spoils the ambience for everyone else. I refuse to be one of THOSE parents. So, folks, if I am ever guilty of that, remind me - I will NOT be one of those parents!
The portions were not huge, but we had three courses each, and a side of mushrooms and some bread to start with. We certainly didn't leave hungry. My salmon was nicely done, though a little on the rich side. Chris had the kingfish, and loved it. It had a lovely Chinese flavour to it and the fish was cooked to perfection. His oysters with Thai dressing wereperfect. He said that they really say "Thailand"" to him. I think we'll be back again when we can.
Endpaper MittsHave you seen
these?
Cynthia is knitting them and I am so inspired. She's right. They DO look like stained glass windows. I want to start my own, but I can't decide what colours to use. I can't cast on just yet anyway. Ineed to finish that blanket. Yes, really. I need to make sure I finish my projects.. one at a time. I will eventually get around to those other UFOs, I am sure, but right now, I just need to tackle this blanket. I think it will be a great blanket for throwing on the floor when baby has tummy time. It's bright, it's textured, it's cushy, and most of all, it's machine washable!
Labels: blanket, knitting, life, swap
