Two Dresses

You can miss a lot when you don't open your mail. Like invitations to baby showers. For some reason, no one got the mail and when the box filled up, the post office quit delivering. I finally decided it was time to pay bills, went to the post office last Saturday and picked up a tub of mail. Along with the expected bills, there was also an invitation to Michelle's baby shower ... today. Knowing I would never finish the blankie I had started to knit by today, I decided to make matching dresses for Bailey and Baby R. I can sew much faster than I can knit. Oddly enough, I was not able to find the same pattern in both an infant and toddler size, so I improvised. I used this pattern for Baby R's dress, and this one for Bailey's dress. I used the collar from the baby pattern for the toddler dress, and also used buttons for the back opening rather than a zipper. The fabric is from Mill End, who--by the way--takes competitors' coupons and has the nicest selection of cotton dress fabrics. Their yarn department is not bad, either. And they have the nicest/most knowledgeable staff I have ever encountered.

One Finished, Another Started

I finished the baby blankie for Baby K, although not in time for the shower. I like the pattern, which I got at All About Yarn, but am not crazy about the yarn (Bernat Satin). It is soft and cushy, but a bit too stretchy. Or maybe I should have used smaller needles. The pattern instructed to finish the edges by picking up stitches every other row, then casting off on the next row. I like this type of edge and will try it more often. Although, when I finish with a blanket, I usually want to be finished, not picking up stitches and making a nice edge. Maybe I'm not the most patient knitter.

The pattern is called Thermal Blocks, and the blanket is thick and warm but uses only one strand of yarn.

I have started the blankie for Baby R, who is a girl, and I find it much easier to knit for a known-sex baby. Don't ask me why. I'm really liking this yarn, Plymouth Encore Colorspun. I searched for a pattern for weeks (and I have a huge pattern stash) and finally chose a pattern from the first knitting flyer--Fiber Trends Easy Knit Baby Blankets Collection 2--I ever bought. This flyer has three patterns and I have knit the other two (the hearts are my favorite). Though I was unsure about the pattern at first, I really like it.

So many patterns, so little time.

First Strawberries of the Year

When I brought strawberries home, Ben--the newest member of the produce police--immediately demanded to know where I got strawberries in February. Reassured that these strawberries traveled from only as far as California, Ben decided that the first strawberries of the year should be celebrated. One of the boys' favorite desserts is Strawberry Shortcake ... not just any shortcake, but Brown Sugar Shortcake. Using a traditional biscuit dough, I roll it out cinnamon-roll style, spread a paste of brown sugar and melted butter over the dough, roll it into a log and cut into 1 inch slices. Bake on a parchment covered cookie sheet (the brown sugar makes a mess) until lightly browned. Cool slightly and cover with sliced strawberries and a bit of whipped cream. You'll never eat plain shortcake again.

Valentine Treats (and Costco advice)

First, the advice: Never go to Costco when you are hungry, unless you don't mind coming home with a few extra purchases. Though I have a fine selection of cookbooks and though the internet provides more recipes than one could bake in a lifetime, I HAD to buy the Martha Stewart Cookies book. For this recipe. Which, I later discovered, is here. The recipe is definitely a keeper. I baked these Surprise Cookies for the office (and the boys) for Valentine's Day. The 'surprise' is a marshmallow melted in the center of the cookie, then covered with frosting. I used my new King Arthur Flour cookie scoop and wonder why I waited so long to buy this handy gadget. The cookie scoop was almost a necessity with this recipe, as the dough is very sticky--like a very thick cake batter. Parchment-lined cookie sheets were also a necessity: the cookies are very fragile until they are cool. I forgot to sift the cocoa for the frosting and ended up with tiny bits of cocoa powder, which no amount of whisking or whipping could disperse. No one complained, but still. For perfection, sift the cocoa.

Annual Boondoggle

Why is it when you mention going to a conference at a five-star resort people smirk and whisper "boondoggle", nodding knowingly? Our annual conference was held over the weekend at the Salishan Spa and Resort and it was fun, informative, and inspiring. And not much time for boondoggling. The federal update was a bit, er, overwhelming: 1200 pages of new legislation and a 200 page Dear Colleague letter issuing guidance. My presentations went fine, although I'm exhausted from fretting over them. And an added bonus ... a Sticks and String networking session was offered for the first time, allowing fellow knitters to have an organized time to get together. Helen showed me how to knit two socks simultaneously on a circular needle and I can't wait to try this technique. I have never knit socks because I feel so awkward when I use double pointed needles. Note to self: Must finish baby blankets first. Matt's and Amy's baby shower is the 10th.

I really don't think I want to live anywhere else in the world. I've often thought it would be fun to live in Billings, Montana ... or maybe even Helena. But no. I could never be more than a two hour drive from the beach. I love the beach at any time of year, but today was perfection: sunny, warm, and no wind. In February. I love Oregon.

NYM

The end of the semester has me contemplating the grading system currently used in the local public schools. While looking for Craig's birth certificate a few months ago, I discovered my report card from first grade. Back then, the marks were "C" (commendation for special effort and achievement), "S" (satisfactory progress) and "N" (need for more effort). In junior high and high school, the marks were the more traditional A through F, grades generally understood in contemporary society. I received only one F--in 8th grade math--and it was well earned. Trust me. Much like the F-word, however, the F grade seems to be banned from use at our local junior high. (I hope to never discover if it is still in use at the high school level.) It seems that giving a child an F--in other words, suggesting to said child that they have failed--is not acceptable in today's society. Think of the damage to the young psyche, the self-esteem issues that might arise. So now we have NYM, which presumably stands for Not Yet Meeting. Although capable and bright, both boys have Not Yet Met their fair share of junior high expectations, one more so than the other. In our house, NYM is actually short for No You May not play video games until your grades improve.

Ben is bemused by the whole NYM concept. There is not much gray in Ben's world: for Ben, everything is pretty much black or white. Good or bad. Right or wrong. Naughty or nice. 0 or 1. When asked to explain the NYM marks he received this semester, he offered his own definition of the ambiguous NYM mark: No, Yes, Maybe?

I like it.

Modified Resolutions

Significant progress was made on the green blankie for Baby K before I decided I just wasn't satisfied with the color. For a baby blanket. I really like the yarn and the pattern and am not ready to frog it. I picked up a skein of the same yarn in a different color and am thinking I may use multiple colors to finish the blanket. I need to think about it more.

In the meantime, I need to finish a non-experimental blankie for Baby K, whose mother incidently is an experienced knitter, a fact that may be contributing to the whole green blankie quandary. I decided on a nice traditional pastel, boring but safe. It's not really breaking a resolution if you're knitting something for the same person, right?

I have always wanted to take a Fair Isle knitting class, but currently lack the time to devote to such a project. Wondering if self-striping yarns might satisfy my desire for the Fair Isle "look", I picked up a skein of Bernat's Baby Jacquards to make a sweater for Baby R.

The answer is no. I still need to take the class. But I did learn something new by making this sweater. Though I understood the principle, I had never attempted a picot edge before. Unfortunately, I followed the pattern instructions, which said to bind off after five rows of stockinette. THEN (of course) I decided to research exactly how to "sew picot edge in position". The internet is indeed amazing. Within a few seconds of googling "sewing picot edge knitting", I found this blog with detailed instructions on finishing a knitted picot edge. I found several more very helpful sites, but decided to use Jeannie's needle and live stitch approach. Now all I need to do is to un-bind-off my stitches (is there a technical knitting term for that?) and remind myself to research a technique before I actually need it.