Snow and silliness....

TERMINATION DUST!!! (The term we use to describe the first snowfall on the mountains) IT'S HERE!!!! And, it doesn't look like it will be going anywhere. It is about half way down the mountains. And gorgeous.

And, silly me. Thinking I was going to knit those mittens. After reading the pattern, I realized I only had a little more than half of the required yarn. Ugh. It would help to read things. So, the yarn might become some fingerless mitts... haven't decided quite yet. I'm a bit bummed, as I was so excited.

Weston is going out goat hunting again this weekend... I hope he gets a goat and makes it home safely! Sawyer has two birthday parties to attend, and I'm hoping to squeeze in a craft fair as well. So, busy weekend here! And, if there is time, I really want to plant some tulip bulbs in the front garden. I have been cleaning it up the past couple of afternoons, so if I can make it to the nursery on Sunday, I should be able to get them planted and ready to go!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Selfish Knitting

I don't typically knit (or craft much, of that matter) for myself. But, right now, I am feeling the need to some nice, handspun, handknit mittens. And, yes, I have one almost finished, beautiful colorwork mitten... but those aren't what I want right now. I'm going to knit the spun sugar mittens (Rav link) out of some handspun that was gifted to me in a swap when I was pregnant. I knew when I received the skein in the mail that I would make these mittens. So, now, a year later.... I'm going to cast them on. I feel like I have earned it after all the crafting I have been doing for Sawyer and his birthday (his sweater, his dog toy, handmade invitations, handmade photo cards, etc...).

As soon as he wakes up, I'll print out the pattern and then wait until next nap to cast on.... mittens... you will be mine.....

Other people's children

Sawyer woke up from morning nap just in time for us to rush to music time at the zoo.  We were about 10 mins late, but it was still a lot of fun. Sawyer loves music and he thought it was fun to play with the musical instruments and clap with the music. Everyone was having a good time until....

Sawyer wanted to play with the drums.

Another little boy (probably around 4) was playing with the drums. Including drum sticks. I just stood back and watched, as kids that old are normally really good with Sawyer. They might not want to share, but they are nice. This little boy decided that Sawyer shouldn't touch the drums and hit his hands with the drumsticks until Sawyer moved them. Which was a little bit, because Sawyer can't always stand on his own. So he until he fell down crying. I rushed over to him and picked him up and calmed him down. But, being the determined child he is, he still wanted to play with the drum. This time, I watched the other boy. When he started to go at Sawyer with the sticks, I grabbed them and told him gently that you can't hit Sawyer with the sticks, that isn't very nice. I had to constantly redirect this child from hitting Sawyer, and other children, with the drumsticks. I was hoping the parent of this child would come over and intervene, but that never happened. It was very frustrating and disappointing.

I am fairly forgiving of kids at playgroups. I know that kids (especially around Sawyer's age) don't always know about personal space, or sharing, or not poking other kids, etc. BUT, I do try to stop Sawyer from hitting and poking as much as possible. I don't normally tell other kids what to do, but this was a safety issue. He really hurt Sawyer and he could have easily really hurt another child. All I can do at playgroups is help Sawyer learn how to deal with different situations, and show him how to act properly.

In other, happier, news.... I am knitting Sawyer a dog toy for his birthday. It is almost done. Just needs some eyes. He also received his very first birthday present in the mail today.... pictures on his blog soon.... I have also cut out all of the flags for his birthday decorations. Now to sew them onto the bias tape (which I think I will need more of) and see if I want to make more of them. I also have to get pictures of Sawyer printed for another banner I have planned. His birthday is going to be crazy.

A small weather update. It has been an amazing fall here. GORGEOUS. The leaves are all yellow.... the temperature has been cooler.... but it has been bright and sunny. I've been loving it. This morning, it was winter. It was 28*F when we took the pups out this morning. Sawyer was bundled up in his snow suit, a knit hat, and his snuggle thing in his stroller... he stayed nice and warm! (And is now well seen, thanks to my dad and his ever-growing collection of lights) I love the winter. I'm excited for snow. But that is all I'm going to say, because I know that by even writing that, many people are cursing my name. (But, seriously, if you don't like winter... you probably live in the wrong place)

Alright, off to finish a few things before he wakes up from his nap.

Dinosaur Sweater!

Sawyer's sweater is finished. Pictures soon. I promise. But, I just wanted to post that it was done, because I was SO excited to finish it. It is pretty awesome....

Pictures sooner than I expected! I'll try to get one of the sweater off of him, so you can really see it... but these are cuter!

It's Fall

It is fall here in Alaska. The weather is cooler, the leaves are changing, there is less sunlight.... ahhh... Fall. I love this season. Here are some pictures I snapped the other day on our way to the museum. We went to see the Mammoths and Mastodons exhibit. It was very fun. We went to the Imaganarium first, so Sawyer could play (pictures of that on his blog) and then we all went and explored the special traveling exhibit. It was very well done, and I learned quite a bit. A great fall afternoon.

Productivity!

I've been getting quite a bit done lately. Sawyer's sweater only needs 1/2 a sleeve! I have finished a pair of mittens out of an old sweater (pictures soon). I have also finished quite a few sewing projects that are gifts... here is a picture round up of all those!

Moose in the Garden!

Just last week I commented to Weston that I was surprised that the moose hadn't eaten my garden yet... it seems to happen every fall. Then last night, it happened.....

I don't mind it. I like seeing moose in the neighborhood... and it means less clean-up for me in the coming weeks! And my brussel sprouts weren't growing anyway, so I'm excited that someone got to enjoy them. 

I also finished spinning this yarn... I love it! It is almost 300 yards of light worsted weight yarn. 

Sawyer's sweater only needs one more sleeve.  I tried it on him last night and it was SO cute! I hope he enjoys wearing it.... luckily he can't take his clothes off (yet) so he won't have much of a choice. I have also sewed him some dog pants to wear to his party. Pictures of those soon!

Hunting, teeth, and my sanity

Weston leaves to go goat hunting tomorrow morning.  If he doesn't get a goat, he won't be back home until Sunday night. Which is a long time.... 4 long nights by myself. Best case scenario, he gets a goat right away and comes home. :) I really hope he gets a goat on this trip, because if he doesn't, he will be heading out every weekend until his tag is expired to try.  I would also like some meat for the winter.... and a sweet new rug.... I'm really hoping to have good nights while he is gone, but it is going to be tough....

Sawyer is teething. He has two bottom teeth (they have poked through, but still aren't all the way in) and those apparently were easy.  He had one bad night with each of them, and no other issues. I don't know which tooth is coming in now (he won't let me mess with his mouth) but last night was bad night #3. And naps have been getting worse. I know his mouth is bothering him because he doesn't even open his eyes or lift his head to fuss, he just lays there and chews on his hand and cries miserably. It is sad. I feel for him. I've been trying different things to help him, but nothing has seemed to do much yet. Hopefully he gets better soon.  This morning, he did nothing but cry for the first 1.5 hours he was awake. Which brings me to my past point.... my sanity.....

Sometimes I think being a mom drives you insane. I don't understand how I can love Sawyer so much but also be so annoyed by him. Granted, today he doesn't feel well, so I'm not bothered too much by his fussiness. But on days that he is grumpy for no apparent reason, I get grumpy. I think all the crazy hormones and emotions that you go through being a parent also trigger something in your brain that makes you crazy. I wonder if science has looked into this.... so when you think about how crazy your parents are, just remember, you probably made them that way.....