Julia is right, some times projects sneak up on you.

Some new(ish) friend’s had a little boy this week. I hadn’t planned to try and knit him anything because, well, we haven’t known them that long and I am not exactly churning out the knits at the moment. But when the father calls you personally less than three hours after the baby is born how can you not knit?

As you can see my first attempt at a star leaves something to be desired. Well actually maybe you can’t in this photo, but trust me it’s not good - Jesse thinks it looks like a frog. I am thinking about crocheting a star and sewing it on, buying a patch of some kind to sew on, or trying to make a decent star chart and giving the duplicate stitch another go. What do you think?

Thank you all again for your kind, sweet words. I am feeling much better, I still feel a normal for me level of pregnancy crappiness but everything else has settled done. And look - knitting!

I really appreciate the sentiment of your comments, that I shouldn’t feel rushed to knit and blog about it. I must confess - I don’t! As much as I love to have knitting to blog about, I am stressing about the knitting because after all this time worrying about jinxing myself by knitting baby stuff while doing IVF, it’s finally ok to knit for our baby and the numerous other miracle babies in my life that are due around the same time. The fertility clinics of Australia seem to have suddenly gotten their act together late last year and I have much crafting to do! The knit blog community has given me so much in the last year that it really does make my day when I feel like I have something really worthwhile to blog about. But this urge to knit is about wanting hand made gifts for my own baby and for the babes of dear friends who have been waiting far too long.

Anyway last night it felt great to be knitting again and I am looking forward to starting the first of the baby projects as soon as the Jaywalkers are done. I have plans for 4 quilts (yes I know that is not knitting), a couple of blankets, some hats and a sweater or two. Will I actually be able to manage all that before June/July? That is the question.

Half an inch of a Jaywalker toe. I started exactly a week ago, almost to the hour. This really is a week’s worth of knitting. It’s sad I know. In my defence it’s been a really crap week.

I am 13 weeks pregnant today, I am starting to (oh so slowly) wean off of some of the drugs I am on. This was supposed to be the week where some of the restrictions would be lifted and I could start to exercise more etc. Isabelle started preschool and I was going to get on top of the book keeping again. Blah, blah, blah. Instead I spent monday night in hospital and what feels like the entire rest of the week in doctors’ waiting rooms. My completely benign, but never the less irritating heart condition has been playing up - aided and abetted by excessively low blood pressure. I am fine, just tired, nauseas, cranky and depressed to be less rather than more able this week. Hopefully next week will be better. Heck I might knit more than half an inch and shock you all.

I do have grand plans to knit again. One day. Maybe tomorrow.

And to everyone who has emailed me or left a comment in the last week, I am so very sorry I haven’t replied, I will be trying to catch up in the next few days.

Ok so I guess I am joking. But I am getting desperate here, desperate enough to wonder about sewing my own, and I have more faith in my knitting than my sewing. Here’s the problem, or the whole list of them:

• I haven’t quite outgrown my normal bras yet, but the underwires are bothering me.
• My options sans wires appear to be a) nursing bras b) granny bras more scary than nursing bras c) bralet things intended for teenagers with no gravity or shape problems to speak of
• I wore nursing bras for 3 years with Isabelle, they were comfortable and actually gave me a great shape. They also came up to my chin and wearing the exact same bra for so long (all be it in many different sizes and a few different colours) gets really really old, I don’t know how many more years I can face.
• I have yet to try on a single other nursing bra that works with my shape or is even remotely comfortable. This is Australia, the choices are very limited.
• So I have one nursing bra option and I just don’t want to go there out of boredom alone but the coming up to the chin thing really is an issue, at least while pregnant. I am so hot and that is before the temperature gets to 45C (I think that is like 115F). Nursing bras require covering up with more/bulkier clothing than I am comfortable wearing at the moment. The granny bras are obviously no alternative given they are even bigger.
• Which leaves us with the bralets for people who don’t need bras in the first place. Although my breasts are growing again they are still small enough that I can get these contraptions in my size. But given that they don’t actually do anything there doesn’t seem to be much point. I gained about 18kgs (40lbs) when pregnant with Isabelle, then I lost 32kgs (60-65lbs). Along the way I breastfed for 2.5 yrs and went first up 3 or 4 cup sizes and then down about 5. My breasts aren’t large, they don’t require scaffolding that comes up to my chin, but there is no denying they need HELP

Why is it that nursing bras are so damn huge and ugly? Why is it almost impossible to get nursing bras in a B cup? Why can’t you get pregnancy bras, given the idea that nursing bras bought in early pregnancy will actually fit when nursing is laughable? Why is there no middle ground in the underwire free world, somewhere between scaffolding and window dressing?

I realise that knitting a bra is a stupid idea but I don’t have any better ideas at this point.

Happy New Year everyone, I hope it brings you lots of challenging (but not too challenging) knitting! I haven’t knit a stitch since I finished Mum’s christmas socks, and I haven’t wanted to. Isabelle starts preschool this week though, and I am supposed to go with her, which I suspect will be a complete waste of my time as she is so independent already and may be a little startled at my not leaving immediately as she is accustomed to with Daycare. So I am expecting to start knitting again at preschool. Jaywalkers, I think. In the mean time I have been trying to figure out what to blog about on my knitting blog if I am not knitting….

2005 was a long hard year for us, mercifully with a very happy ending. Writing that last sentence I first typed “with a very happy knitting”, which is also true. The knitting, the blogging about it, the reading about it, the friends I have made, all of these things helped me through the last year. I don’t know if I would have stayed sane without them. Thank you all.

I think the knitting may continue to be a little thin on the ground in the four to six weeks ahead. I will be slowly weaning off of most of the drugs I am on during that time and I am sincerely hoping to feel better by the end of that process - because I have a LOT of knitting to do before July! Before June in fact, as two dear friends are due four weeks ahead of me. Winter babes all of them…. So I plan to knit the Jaywalkes in January and I hope to get serious with the baby knitting very soon after - blankets, hats, cardigans. Amazing how I can be so excited by the idea and so not interested in starting now, that’s early pregnancy for you.

I think 2006 is going to be a good year for us, I hope it is for you too.

Pattern: Loosely based on the Moss Stitch Shoes from baby knits for beginners by Debbie Bliss. Different yarn, different gauge, different number of stitches, plus strap.
Yarn: Jo Sharp SoHo Summer DK Cotton in “Putty” #227
Needles: 3mm Addi circular (I think, it’s a while since I actually did the knitting part)

These slippers are a quick knit, but moss stitch is rather unforgiving in a pure cotton. I am hoping that washing will even out the stitches a little and that they won’t grow too much in the process as they are just the right size now. I should have washed them myself to find out, but time got away from me, so they will be gifted as is. I think I have done my dash with moss stitch shoes for now!

Pattern: Mata Hari Socks
Yarn: Patons Patonyle, shade #4303
Needles: Two 2.5mm Addi Circulars

I finished them last night. There will be more photos once they have been gifted - as modelled by the intended’s feet, assuming they fit. Please let them fit. If you are thinking of making these socks - DO IT! They are so fun and considering how slow I have become since getting pregnant they are a fast knit. Go on, you know you want to.

Today is a good day. I feel organised and it makes me happy. All the postal christmas presents have been sent (and received). More than half of the parcels of baking have been distributed to the folks we won’t see again before Christmas. All of the gift shopping is done, most of them are even wrapped, and about 90% of the grocery shopping is done too. So tomorrow, when it is 38c (100f) with gale force winds, we will have almost nothing to do except hide from the heat and hopefully catch up with a few friends.

The other thing that makes today a great day is that I am ten weeks pregnant today - and for all that I am sick and tired ALL the time I finally feel confident it will stick - which is the best christmas present of all.

Happy Holidays to you all!

I have had a few stolen moments in the last week to chip away at the second sock. Thursday I short rowed down to the point of the heel. Friday I long rowed back, and I learnt something - I prefer the long rowing. It seems to go much faster than the short rowing, presumably because I don’t have to keep looking ahead to make sure I am not about to knit the stitch I should be wrapping.

My mother moved to NSW this week and today we went to visit her in her new house. It’s and hour and a half drive each way, Jesse was driving and I thought I would get so much knitting done. But no. Morning sickness=car sickness and there was almost no knitting achieved at all. I may have managed an inch. There are how many days to go now? Must. Knit. Sock.

On the other hand the baking is going really well. Today I made up the first three parcels of goodies ready to distribute tomorrow.

There are how many days until christmas? I have half a sock to go before Christmas, but all of a sudden it seems a heck of a lot of baking needs to happen first…

Sorry, no knitting here. Just lots of fun with a new camera.