Big Sis to the Rescue


Remember this post?  We can all rest easy- my big sister has saved the day!  You see, I was not the only one to purchase a cashmere Target hat from the thrift store a year and a half ago.  I had totally forgot my sister had purchased one, too.  I should have known she had some laying around- afterall, she did make Elise these super sweet mitts when she was born:


Amanda is my older sister, the one who I take visits out to North Dakota to see. She lurks around the blog (leaving comments under the alias 'Anonymous' and then signing it 'Amanda').  She has also made an appearance here at FPK.  Do you remember the Lansing Cowl and Beret? 
She happens to be my beautiful model!  Anyway... Amanda happened to read my post a couple weeks ago when I ran out of yarn.  My wonderful sister then sent me yarn that very same day- how great is she?  Elise will get a girly pink cashmere shrug afterall!


ps... The Lansing Cowl and Beret is almost 6 months old, which means I will soon be able to release it to the public.   Look for it at the end of March!


Lessons From Motherhood



Can you believe this picture was taken over 12 weeks ago?  Our little peanut has most definitely moved out of the newborn stage and interacts with us more and more each day.  Although it is a very exciting time developmentally, it also comes with a new challenge- tomorrow I head back to work.

Right now I can't imagine what this is going to look like until it plays out.  I do have to admit, I have taken full advantage of the laziness relaxation that maternity leave has provided for our lives and it's probably about time to be a little more productive with our time.  My mojo is starting to come back and I am making lists again.  It was nice to have a couple months free from lists, but they seem necessary again.

This also means that it's time I stop only knitting cute little baby things for Elise- and start writing out some patterns.  By the end of this week I hope to have the Baby Mitts written out and ready for test knitting/tech editing.  I would also like to be more consistent with the blog- 3 posts a week and no less (we'll see!).

Today Elise will spend the day cuddled up in my arms. Waketime, naptime, feeding- it doesn't matter what the books say- it's our last day together and I will cherish every moment of it, just as I have cherished every moment of the past 12 weeks.  Here's a few things I've learned in the best 12 weeks of my life:



  • I don't care how many times I hear it- breastfeeding does NOT help the baby weight come off.
  • There is nothing more natural feeling than a baby on my hip- I love it.
  • Sleep deprivation is not the problem I figured it would be.  It's much easier to wake from sleep when there is someone immediate looking for attention.  
  • I never expected to feel this amount of joy in being so needed.  Elise knows when I'm around and prefers me to others.  That's a little selfish of me to love so much, but I can't help it!
  • When a toothless grin is what you wake up to- every morning seems a bit like Christmas- despite how tired you really are, it's still exciting to get up.
  • I probably would not have been able to survive motherhood 10 years ago.  Seriously... what would I do if I could not type any question I have in to Google?
  • Elise is my favorite duet partner-her coo's are amazing,  there really is no sweeter sound on earth.
  • I can knit much faster without a baby on my lap, but where's the fun in that?

More About the Hat...

**probably my new favorite picture of Elise- I'm totally in love with it (and her, of course!)

As promised, I wanted to share a little more about the super cute baby turban hat that I made for Elise last week.   The pattern is by Pickles, and like everything else they put out, I fell in love with it from the moment I saw it.  I originally saw the little hat when they made an announcement on their blog about Pickles Favoritter, their new book that is now available in their shop (unfortunately it's only in Norwegian, otherwise I'd totally be snagging a copy for my collection).

Anyway, this image popped up and I had to have the pattern. 

I started looking through their website...nothing. The blog... nada.  Their Ravelry store- no luck.  Fortunately for me, time was all I needed and a couple weeks later they posted about the Lazy Daisy Sweater and Turban hat- yay!

Have you seen Pickles stuff before?  I've always been a fan but (for me) it's even gotten better lately.  They seem to have a new baby over in Pickles land and I've been enjoying all the posts (and patterns!).  Their yarn looks just beautiful and they really have a way of putting colors together.  Has anyone out there ever had any experience with their yarn?  It seems that is not available in the States- I've tried putting it in 'my cart' on their website and nothing seems to happen.  Maybe they need a US distributor... maybe I should volunteer for the job :)

Anyway, I made my hat to match Elise's mittens which means the yarn was Knitpicks Palette in Raspberry Heather.  Because a thicker yarn is called for, I just held two strands of the yarn together. 

Ok... enough words- Elise was rocking this photo shoot, so I will leave you with cute baby photos (with bonus "Sneezy Eleezy" shot):