A birthday and an almost-finished sweater

On Saturday, we celebrated Morrow’s first birthday. Hard to believe that it was one year ago that he came into our lives.

We had a nice (read: brief) birthday party for him and sang “Happy Birthday” at 12:22pm, commemorating his entry into the world to the very minute. It was sweet to celebrate that. And it was a good thing he wasn’t born at 3:30 in the morning or something!

For me, the weirdest part of reflecting on a year going past is that I haven’t been pregnant for a whole year. For most women, it’s all about getting used to being pregnant and all the changes that entails. For me, I’ve been trying to get used to this whole not-being-pregnant thing. I suppose back-to-back pregnancies’ll do that to you.

For those of you who wanted to see pictures of the completed sweater I planned to knit for Morrow, here he is modeling it in it’s nearly-completed state. Obviously he’s got some growing to do to fill it out! I suppose that’s the reality he lives with when he’s only in the 15th percentile!

But I’m really pleased with how it turned out. I still have to sew the zipper in (I already finished weaving in that long end in the picture).

Anyway…here’s little Morrow Johnner:

He’s one of the brighest spots in my life. His sweet little voice, his funny little antics, even his whining… it’s all amazing to me. I’m so thankful that I’ve gotten to be his mother for one year so far. I pray to God to give me many more years with him.

Birthday season coming up…

Morrow’s birthday is sneaking up on me, coming quickly on August 22nd. I usually try to knit something for my kids for their birthdays, so here’s what I impulsively decided on this morning at the yarn store:

[photos by Loop Knits]

It’s called the Playground Hoodie, and the pattern is by Spud and Chloe, a relatively new yarn brand that I’ve been reading all kinds of hype about and have been eager to try.

Morrow’s sweater will have a zipper sewn in for front closure. And the contrast color I chose is a lime green.

Good thing about it is that it’s really thick yarn and should knit up quickly. I don’t exactly have a lot of time. So I should probably stop blogging about it and actually go start it!

Don’t tell Morrow, though. It’s a surprise.

What I probably won’t be making for Valentine’s Day.

In my delusions of homemaking grandeur, in which I am perfectly organized and endlessly motivated and nothing ever happens to derail me from my perfectly-laid plans, I imagine myself doing all kinds of things.

I have dreams of being a crafty woman. Everything I touch would turn beautiful.

Something about Valentine’s Day is pretty to me. I like the colors, I guess. Soft pinks, shades of red, all offset with some white… so pretty. Yeah, I know it’s a Hallmark holiday, but I like love. Love is good.

I’ve come across some Valentine’s Day projects in the past couple days that have me dreaming… that’s probably where it’ll end, though.

These are the ones that’ve caught my eye particularly:

Skill level: Easy

I think these heart doilies made out of napkins are adorable (via Martha Stewart, the one who inspires many of my delusions):

Skill level: Intermediate

If I were a scrapbooker, another one of my grand delusions, I’d be all over these 3D paper decorations.

Skill level: Are-you-freakin’-kidding-me

All of this is made of cake. All of it. Not much more to say about that, except not gonna happen. Major props to Bakerella on this one.

What are your favorite Valentine’s Day crafts? Nothing’s too remedial to share (trust me, I’m the world’s worst artist). But if you have mad skills you’ve been wanting to show the world, I promise I’ll still like you.

Happy crafting, whatever shape it takes this week!

Boy Sweaters for My Knitting Audience

This summer I worked on sweaters for the boys to wear this fall and winter. I chose Berroco’s Comfort yarn in a variegated blue called Military Mix.

For Orison’s, I used Knitting Pure and Simple’s Children’s Neckdown Cardigan. This is a pattern you have to purchase, but it’s very good. It would be well worth your $4.

For Morrow, I chose a free pattern for a little ribbed jacket, since I wasn’t sure what size he’d be this fall and winter. I love this pattern too, and I was so pleased with how it turned out.

Taking Paper Snowflakes to the Next Level

I just watched this short video on how to make awesome looking paper snowflakes! I’m totally not artistic, so I’m always looking for easy ideas that I might actually have success with.

If I get around to this, I’ll post some pictures of how they turn out! If you get around to it, make sure you blog about it and show me!

(via Modish)