One down...

The little one, after much wiggling, some fake-outs and a persistent mom who just can't resist...lost his first tooth. As with the big one, there was much fanfare, excitement and celebration. A photoshoot, a show-and-tell at school and a placement of the tooth into the special pillow where only the tooth fairy knows where to look. However, this smarty pants just took one look at the pillow, and stated, "I know it's you guys who get the tooth". Sigh...when did he stop being little? But I persisted, thinking maybe he just needs a little convincing. Then he says, "If I only get a dollar, I would rather just keep my tooth." (!) Didn't it used to be a dime?

So after he fell asleep I thought I would bulk up the payoff without making it more money (he is only 5 after all). So I put lots of dimes, nickels and quarters in the little pocket and removed the tooth. It was only a dollar, but it looked like more, right? In the morning he was very excited to find the money. Then he came running into my bedroom saying, "Where's my tooth, where's my tooth?" I said, "What do you mean? The tooth fairy took it." And he burst into tears. Threw the money on my bed and started to sob. "I want my tooth. I don't want the money." These were real tears. He was so upset that I picked up the money, put it in his hand and reached to the hiding spot on my dresser and handed him his tooth. "Aha, I knew it was you," he said. Outsmarted by a 5 year old. Boy am I in big trouble.

Central Park Hoodie Swatches

I did a guage swatch! I did two actually. First I did one with a 5mm needles which is what the pattern called for but it gave me 16.5 x 24 instead of 17 x24. So I did it again with 4.5mm needles and I got 17 x 26. So neither one gives me guage but I think stitch guage is more important than row guage. Opinions? My reasoning is that it's easier to add an extra row to get the right length than it is to add extra stitches to the pattern. Right? Or maybe 16.5 is close enough to 17? I find that my 4.5 mm swatch is stiffer than my 5mm swatch. I would prefer a nicely draped sweater so perhaps I should go with the 5 mm needles and just make the smaller pattern. Silk tends to stretch when you wear it though doesn't it. This is the debate going on in my head. This has turned into a blog rather than a note so I think I will post it on my blog instead. I have to confess that I have never actually done a swatch before so I find myself in new territory.

Are you bilingual?

Just had to share this one. I was helping out in the kindergarten class today, corralling kids and other such 5 year old management stuff. And I was switching back and forth between french and english, depending on what the kids were responding to (whatever it took to make them listen). And the substitute teacher (who doesn't speak french) looked at me funny and asked, "Are you bilingual?" and my son piped up, "No, she's a vegetarian." 'Nuf said.

BNL

Yes, BNL. BarenakedLadies were in the little village I live in. And they had a FREE live performance for families. So I got up early. Really early. And got in line and waited and waited and waited.

And after 5 hours I saw this:

And this:

And it was really fun! Apparently the Barenaked Ladies are releasing a children's album in May and this little mini concert was a promotional event for this album. My kids loved them. I can't stop singing If I had a Million Dollars. They were genuinely funny and we had a lot of fun! The little one, of course, was surprised that the band was not barenaked and they were not ladies. How confusing.

Apparently I'm Alice

which alice in wonderland person are you? created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as alice you are like alice, she's really curious and has a wild imagination! white rabbit 55% alice 55% cheshire cat 50% mad hatter 35% queen of hearts 35%

EZ Bind Off

Have you ever tried Elizabeth Zimmerman's EZ sewn bind off? It is really cool. Essentially you thread your tail onto a blunt darning needle then use the needle (as if) to purl two stitches, go back and (as if to) knit one, drop knitted stitch. Repeat purl, purl, knit, drop. It is the best bind off I have ever used on a sock. I love it. On this sock I did 7 rows knit then EZ sewn bind off so the result is that the top curls down which is the intended effect. I read the method in Cat Bordhi's book but I happen to have Knitting Without Tears out from the library so I went and checked the original instructions. IMO, Cat Bordhi's are easier to read and follow and I like her finishing technique of casting off the first stitch twice. Very cool. Note: this sewn cast off uses more thread than you think. Leave a long tail.

Cat Bordhi is a genius

Really. This is amazing. I started making socks for...well, for me...because my foot was handy and I wouldn't ask questions when I started measuring length, circumference, arch etc. Others would.
Also because I went to Madrona (grin) Marketplace and I bought Blue Moon Fiber Arts mediumweight sock yarn in colourway Watermelon Tourmaline and it is really yummy. Mmmm. And I couldn't resist so I started to make socks...for me.
As I went on my merry way, trying out the Master sock pattern, working out the numbers (which is, let's face it, algebra) I started to doubt. I thought, there is no way this is going to work. I thought, seriously, my feet are not THIS big! She is clearly crazy. Then something completely bizarre happened. I tried them on (because I am knitting toe up and you can do that kind of thing). And guess what! They fit. Perfectly. Like they were custom made, just for me. Like someone had used algebra to make sure the arch sat at just the right spot and the heel curved at just the right moment. Cat Bordhi is a genius.
So, I went to Madrona. Not as a participant, but as a lurker. I went to the market place and started chatting with a lovely lady. We gave our opinion on knitting blankets. We talked about structure and knitting in one piece compared to knitting in blocks and joining with seams. I opposed her opinion in polite discussion. Then I looked at her name tag. It was BEV GALESKAS. You know, the genius behind the felted clog. I felt myself turn ten shades of red. The impertinence! How dare I try to tell Bev Galeskas that a blanket needs seams to give it structure.? What do I know? Crazy.
The reason I have had all these fun things happen to me is because my husband took me to Seattle for 2 nights away from the rat race. It was so fun and relaxing and excellent. And I actually looked at him for the first time in a long time. I mean really looked at him without someone yelling "mom" and without thinking about what I was making for dinner and how many loads of laundry I have to do and what is that mess on the wall anyway? It was really nice. I liked who I saw. I am glad I married him. I just have to take a minute to look at him once in a while and remember who he is. He's pretty great.