I have a tendency to Over-Do

In case you hadn’t noticed.  

I over-do with knitting, and sewing and teacher-gifts and occasionally cooking.  A couple of months ago, I declared this ridiculous to do list.  Look, here’s another thing finished! (The socks, not the child)

 

Those are the new, Hogwarts-inspired, Sonar X3 socks.  I finished one of the shirts mentioned in that post, the other is half-finished.  The other two were cancelled due to a glut of long-sleeved dress shirts.  The Partner Hoodie is done.  The three stealth projects are done.  

I have finished one Deployment sock.  BIL has commenced to being less than familial, and as much as I’d like these socks to be about his service and sacrifice and not about his contribution to our family…. Well, let me just say that a lot of my emotions (and time) go into the things I make for people, and when I’m feeling particularly Not Good about someone, let’s just say that it makes it hard to knit for that person.  But that is one seriously cool sock.  There is a chance that a joke I made about finishing them for Partner, rather than for BIL, was recently misconstrued. But I digress.  

The Mystery Stole is about 1/3 finished.  I love it.  I love making it.  But it requires quiet and concentration, both of which have been in short supply here lately.  It goes on, bit by bit.  

The Urban Aran, Cardiganized is still in the dreaming stages.  

That shopping bag, though not on the list, also managed to sneak into the knitting queue.  It is, as mentioned in a recent post, finished.  

I cast on Kilt Hose *this morning* in the vain hope that I can finish them by early to mid-November.  I’m using Chasing Bunny’s very lovely pattern for Professor Moody’s Kilt Hose (because we just can’t seem to escape dear Harry around here, ever).  

The sanity of that November goal is in question, especially since, right now, I’m in the midst of Halloween Crafting.  I love Halloween.  I think it is a good opportunity to let your imagination run wild and then see if you can make some reality out of it, even if it’s only an approximation.  The educational institution that the elder two sonars attend has, rather cleverly I think, for several years held a Storybook Character Parade on October 31.  Children are invited to choose a character from a book, dress up as that character, and sashay around the campus before the flashbulbs of an adoring set of parents, books in hand.  Various literary and pseudo-literary activities ensue.  This allows any Halloween controversies to evaporate.  

The Sonars, being such imaginative little buggers—er, I mean, darlings, have come up with several lovely ideas.  

Sonar X8 has been inspired by Cornelia Funke’s When Santa Fell to Earth to be, well, Niklas Goodfellow (you might know him better by another name, ahem, Santa).  I dug around in the cupboard and came out with several yards of red felt gifted by a neighbor a while back.  He now has a coat and pants.  Also in the cupboard, some black and red neoprene and fleece, which became spats to resemble big black boots.  Hat will follow.  There will be no beard.  

Sonar X5 had toyed with Animalia by Graeme Base for some time, hoping first to be a Great Green Gorilla Growing Grapes in a Gorgeous Glass Greenhouse, then later to be a Zany Zebra Zig-zagging in a Zinc Zeppelin.  Thankfully (I wasn’t looking forward to using or approximating fur, or stripes) we later came across Enigma, by the same author, and a fascination with a magician has ensued.  It’s going to take me just as long to put this costume together, but it’s a bunch of small things rather than one big complicated (hot) costume, and it can all be done with fabric I have that isn’t a pain in the butt to sew with.  A vest and pants (done).  A bow tie (awaiting tying).  A cape.  A hat (half-finished) complete with “bunny” trick).  

Sonar X3 also started with Animalia.  He was totally fixed on being a Lazy Lion Lounging in the Local Library.  I have made a lion-ish suit before.  A simple lion-colored hoodie with great loops of felt sewn to the hood.  Unfortunately we no longer have it.  Still, it wouldn’t have been too hard, especially after I found half a bolt of upholstery fabric in another neighbor’s trash that was just about the right color to be a lion-y.  But then, we started talking.  We started looking at books.  We started looking at patterns.  And lo, we will soon have the White Rabbit.  Yes, That White Rabbit.  Before you start hyperventilating about fur rearing its ugly head again, know that I’m making only the rabbit’s head, and with white double-nap flannel rather than fur.  And no, it won’t cover his face.  He’s three.  I don’t think that would be wise.  Or cute.  To go with this wonderous head, there will be a vest and of course, a pocket watch.  

What?  For me?  Well, I don’t have much reason to wear a costume, except that there *is* a home football game on Halloween night here.  And I think it would be a shame to pass up the opportunity to do some small thing.  So there’s a very good chance I’ll break out my pink Hallowig and put on the Hawaiian dress.  If it’s not too windy.  Pictures will surely ensue should that take place.  

We bought a few apples yesterday.  Six different varieties to be exact.

Progress at the Flame

At 7:00 a.m. GMT -5 (my local time), when the Olympic Opening Ceremonies began in Beijing, I was sleeping.  Partner Sweater had one completed sleeve and one 4-inch sleeve nubbin.  

At 6:30 pm. GMT -5, when the Olympic Opening Ceremonies began on our local NBC affiliate, that second sleeve was this long:

If you embiggen the photo, you’ll see that I’ve just a bit over 13 inches there.  I had to slow down today.  No more than 15 minutes of knitting at a stretch, with at least a half an hour rest in between.  I’m working to stave off long-term knitting injury here.  Liberal icing has also occurred.  

There will be more knitting tonight.  And there is the slimmest chance of finishing before I go to bed.  Maybe.  

Peeking out of the pocket is the next project.  Stealth Project I, a felted lovely made with one of my favorite stand-by yarns, Patons Classic Wool.  They call that color Leaf Green, but it looks a bit like overcooked pea soup to me.  

What day is it?

I’m feeling a little dizzy.  I think I’ll just go lie down.  

Sleeve 1?

… then “Work even in [stockinette stitch]  until sleeve meas[ures] 18”.  Work in k2p1 rib for 14 [rounds].  B[ind]O[ff] loosely in rib.”  

Do you think that pain at the base of my thumb is a bad thing?  

Hang on, I’m gonna go call Peyton Manning.  I have a question about Bursa Sacs.

Crazy Crafter

The first sign of the end of our summer has arrived.  Partner returned to work this week after his six-week summer vacation.  I love that he has had this time to hang out with us.  I know that we are very lucky to have this down time.  I also know that the structure of our local school system is what allows this and I support it fully.  I’ve heard all of the arguments for year-round school, and some of them are very good.  But for us, I would not trade summer vacation for anything.  Staying up late, sleeping in late, doing whatever with our time for a while.  It is profoundly soul-nourishing and relaxing.  

(Anyone who might believe that having some time off in the summer makes public school jobs somehow less “real” or less “full time” than jobs that continue throughout the year, please note that Partner will make up for that time before Christmas.  He works enough extra hours supervising sporting events, meeting with parents and community leaders and in general purpose long and emotional days to eat through that six-weeks worth of off-time very quickly.  And yet we still love the job.  Go figure.)

Over the next ten months, his job will slowly deplete our reserves, until, by the time May arrives again, I will not want to hear another story about teenagers. Or parents of teenagers.  Or teachers.  Or the dress code.  Definitely not the (stupid) dress code.  Not one.  

In four more weeks, Sonar X8 and Sonar X5 will go to school as well.  Third grade for the one, and the Kindergarten premier for the other.  We are all very excited.  Ok, maybe Sonar X3 isn’t so excited.  

In the meantime, I’m trying to draw out the indulgences of the summer schedule with a few more summer projects in my queue.  

Four fabrics that will be transformed into Partner shirts over the next week.  The brown and sand are yummy cottons that will be transformed into two complementary two-tone bowling-style shirts.  The copper and the heathery pink are stretch poplins that will become long-sleeved, banded-collar dress shirts (unless I don’t have enough of the coppery one, in which case it will be a short-sleeved shirt of a different style).  He’s trying to get away from white dress shirts.  

Two of these yarns will become two stealth projects.  The other two were just on sale and I couldn’t resist them.  I’m weak sometimes.  Three cottons, one wool.  

Some crazy knitting people have taken to using the Summer Olympics as a time to try to accomplish some challenging knitting project (similar to the Knitting Olympics, held every four years during the Winter Olympics, or the Tour de Fleece for the spinner-types, held during the recent Tour de France).  The idea is to choose a challenging project and start and complete it between the lighting of the torch at the Opening Ceremonies and the dousing of the torch during the closing ceremonies.  (If this interests you, drop over to Ravelry, a social networking/cataloguing/showing-off group for fiber/needle/hook-types, and join up.  Their front page splashes out all the details.)

I have complicated feelings about the political implications of a Chinese Olympic games.   The Sonars and I are taking an opportunity to learn about China (the G-rated, 3-8 year-old version), sports, athletes, and understand the purpose and history of the Olympics.   But I am not choosing to officially participate in the Ravelympics per se.  I am choosing to use the time to motivate myself to plow through the extensive queue of knitting projects piled around me.  

On the needles:

1.  Partner hoodie.  Probably about 75% complete.  (Note to self:  No. More. July. Sweaters.)

2.  Deployment socks for BIL.  10% complete.  This is my porta-knitting.  Needs to be done before November at the latest.  Earlier would be better.  

Up next:

3.  Kilt Hose for uncle.  Pattern TBD.  Yarn on order.

4.  Mystery Stole 4.  This year’s pattern is hosted by Melanie Gibbons again, but her mom, Georgina Bow is the pattern designer.  This one begins in a month and lasts about six weeks.  Yarn on order (some wool/silk blend from Knit Picks), beads are in the stash.  The idea here is that once a week, participants (thousands of us all over the world) will get a clue from Melanie and Georgina.  We won’t know ahead of time what the final Stole will look like, so the project unfolds like a bit of a puzzle.  A Mystery, if you will.  It’s a great knitting adventure, stretching my skills in a direction I don’t usually go (i.e. to lace).  (If this interests you, go join the Yahoo Mystery Stole Group before September 12.  The first clue is released September 5).

5.  Stealth project A.  It’s small and green.

6.  Stealth project B.  It’s also small, but not green.  

7.  Stealth project C.  It will be very very small.  Color and yarn TBD.  

8.  When the weather turns a little cooler (For five days in December.  Maybe.) Sonar X3 wants a new pair of socks.  When the time comes, he’ll choose yarn from the stash, and I bet they’ll be striped. 

9.  I want to make myself an Urban Aran, Cardiganized.  We’ll see if I ever get to this one.  Purple.  I want it to be purple, I think.  Or a rich, jewely blue.  For some reason, most people making this one are sticking to browns and greys, with a couple of notable exceptions.  I’ve seen gorgeous ones in blue and red.  

Anyway, here’s the “Plan,” inasmuch as I ever do such a thing as plan:

Finish the Partner Sweater before the Olympics start (two sleeves and eight inches of body, all stockinette).  Then do the three stealth projects during the Olympics (I told you, they’re small).  Then finish the deployment socks and start the Kilt Hose before Mystery Stole opens.  Hopefully I can knit the Kilt Hose alongside the Stole, and be finished with those in time to make the Sonar socks before he wants them.  

I’ll wait for you to stop laughing.  

All this and four shirts, a novel in November, Christmas (it’s out there), oh, and I forgot a bag I was going to make for a friend, and the regular maintenance of myself and my family.  No problem.  I’m making sure the freezer is full of ice, in the event (ahem, likelihood) of knitter’s injury.