Knitter, Know Thyself

There's an abundance of knitting-related tidbits to get to, so I'm just going to jump right to it. First off, a progress report.

I've just about finished the first of my Socks for Seeley. This has been my commute knitting (I decided against knitting the Knit P*nis Chapstick Holder on the train), and it's going really well. So well in fact, that I asked Phil to try it on for size last night, since it turns out that he and David Boreanaz are about the same size.Yeah, I'm thinking that was a mistake. His eyes got all misty, and the first thing he said was "You're NOT giving these away, they're totally awesome!". Who would have thunk that the man of the perennial blue sock would be smitten with these crazy socks? He's really quite miffed that I'm giving them away (Yes, I AM DEAR!!!).

Which brings me to my next tidbit. Today he was spending the day at a MAACA meeting in Ottawa, leaving me alone with the two cherubs. Before he left, he attempted to alleviate his guilt by giving me a couple of twenties. Naturally, when Maxime got up from his nap, I headed to the yarn store. I went to Mouliné, mainly because I knew they were having a sale on Malabrigo Worsted and I wanted some for a friend (I won't say any more on the off chance she's reading this).
Now ain't that just the purdiest darn thing ya ever did see??? OK yeah, I totally blew my budget, but I still got a great deal on the Malabrigo and the sock yarn. And I even bought another ball of Zitron Trekking in the same colour I'm using for the Socks for Seeley.

What else? Oh!!! Have you seen Stéphanie's Lace Ribbon Scarf (scroll down a bit)???? (Go look. I'll wait.) As soon as I saw it yesterday, I was totally smitten. Like: Must. Cast-On. Now. I just happen to have a couple of skeins of Sea Silk, which even though I had originally bought them for the Print 'O The Wave Stole, I didn't think the colour I had was right for that project. But it's absolutely DIVINE for this one!

I actually hesitated a bit before casting on, seeing as I've already got 2 pairs of socks on the needles, and am nearing completion on Émilie's Good Stripe Dress (progress shots next time). "Oh gee, I really should finish something before casting on another project", I thought.

Then I thought: Says Who??? Am I not knitting purely for my own enjoyment? Are the knitting police going to knock down my door and drag me off kicking and screaming into the night, if I cast-on another project? No? I didn't think so.
The colour isn't coming out properly in this photo (despite my dickering around with Photoshop), but trust me: it's like buttah.

Finally, I thought I'd share one final tidbit. Earlier today, Émilie was at the computer, and she was upset about something or other (I can't remember anymore), and she was a bit teary. Without thinking twice, she reaches over to the Handmaiden Lace Silk I've got next to the computer (I had briefly considered it for the Lace Ribbon Scarf), and wipes her face with it.

Could have been worse, I guess. She could have been sitting on the John at the time...

Happy Knitting Everyone!

Where to Start?

I've got so many little odds and ends I want to discuss today, that I don't even know where to begin! The weekend was a blur, as usual, and it seems that by the time I had a few minutes to look around and get my bearings, it was Monday again. But let's recap, briefly.

Friday I stayed home with Maxime, because he had his one year vaccinations in the morning, and since he gets all his shots at once (4 of them!), I figured he would be cranky or feverish the rest of the day, and deserved a little down time. He did really well, actually, and it was nice being home for the day. I managed to get the jump on the weekend (laundry) and even had Kate-the-Enabler over for a SnB. Since I went back to work, our little SnBs have been few and far between, and I missed them.

Friday night Phil's parents came to watch the kids, and we paid a visit to our local Honda and Nissan dealers (oh, how I hate car shopping). The experience at Honda was actually quite pleasant, but we met the most obnoxious, cheesy, full-of-himself salesman ever to walk the face of the earth at Nissan (think Bill Paxton in True Lies). Seriously, the guy was like a caricature of a car salesman. He actually ended our meeting with "There's one thing the other models don't have, and that's me, and I'm the best there is!!!". Uh.... yeah, OK buddy. Smile and nod honey, and slowly back away...

Saturday morning was busy as usual, with the kids' swim lessons in the morning leaving us all completely drained. Nevertheless, I had decided that Saturday was the day I would finish cleaning out my flower beds and planting my annuals (I just love going to the nursery and choosing my annuals each year - it's one of my favourite times of year), so with Émilie's help (Maxime is still a tad young), I spent the afternoon happily playing around in the dirt.

I also decided to re-seed my vegetable patch. I had sown a bunch of seeds the previous weekend, and didn't have a single shoot, despite an abundance of rain during the week. I suspect that I planted them too deep? Ever the optimist, I planted more.

(Seen here: cherry tomato plant, zucchini plant hanging in there, basil seedlings, and some miscellaneous sprouts [where Émilie dropped a huge handful of seeds].)

Then Saturday evening Phil's parents invited us over to their house for dinner. Actually, all they had to do was call us up, wait for someone to pick up the phone, then mutter the word "Lobster" into the receiver, and we were dropped everything and ran over. Émilie didn't care for it much, beyond looking at it's insides, but I came back home with the top button of my jeans undone, rubbing my belly and smiling contentendly. Mmmmmm, lobster....

Sunday? Uh..... Sunday is a complete blank. Errands, groceries, food. DORMA. 'Nuff said.

On the knitting front, I'm quite close to completing Émilie's Good Stripe Dress. Of course, I not only ran out of my main colour, but also of my main contrasting colour (a mere 4 and a half stripes from completion!!!!). Thankfully, it was Ravelry to the rescue once again, with Bambers

(I don't have her real name) graciously stepping in and offering to bestow her precious Key Lime CotLin in lot 5540 on me. I'll be eternally grateful, I promise.

I also signed up for Secret Pal 12! I've never participated in a Secret Pal exchange, but I've been reading off and on about them for what seems like forever, and they seem like a lot of fun (provided you get a good partner), so I thought Why Not?

Oh! And I almost forgot! Did you know that Madonna is coming to town in October??? Well, when she last came to Montreal, I didn't go, mainly because I felt the tickets were too expensive. But upon later reflection, I regretted it. Say what you will about her music, she's a world-class star, and I've been listening to her music most of my life (even though I don't actually own any of her CDs besides the Immaculate Collection). So when I heard that she was coming again last week, I decided cost be damned, I'm going to the show!

Of course, I totally forgot about the tickets going on sale Saturday at noon, and now they're sold out. Aaaaargh!!!!! You'd have thought that my yarn-purchasing skills, which are quite formidable, and might even be considered legendary in some circles (did I not score some impossible to buy Twisted Fiber Art during the last update? Who da Woman???), would have served me better when it came to concert tickets... Oh well, here's hoping she'll add another date. If not, there's always the New Kids on The Block....

Happy Knitting Everyone!

No, I'm Not Sleeegffff

Holy crap, where does the time go? Almost a week since my last post, and I don't have much to report besides the usual family shenanigans. But I want to keep you in the loop, dear readers, so here's a brief recap of the last few days.

Phil arrived home safe and sound on Friday night, stuffed to the gills with Oklahoma City barbecue (he loves it there), bearing gifts (perfume) and dirty laundry. On Saturday we took the kids to their swim lessons, and in the afternoon Émilie and Maxime helped me plant seedlings and seeds in my newly expanded vegetable patch (pictures when it STOPS RAINING!!!). So far I've planted a zucchini and a cucumber plant that Robyn gave me, as well as carrot seeds, lettuce seeds and some herbs (basil, cilantro and parsley). I also want to get a cherry tomato plant in there. I'd loooove to plant a raspberry bush as well, but I've run out of room, and can't for the life of me figure out where I could possibly fit one in our backyard, which already has a substantial flower bed, a swing set, a pool and a very large deck.

Sunday we had family and a few friends over for a little barbecue, and while I had planned to keep do some more gardening in the afternoon while the kids were napping, by the time everyone left and the cleanup was done, I was completely exhausted, and would have preferred diving headfirst into a pool of my own vomit rather that doing anything that required me to get up out of my deckchair. That evening the kids spent the night at their grandparents' house, and Phil and I went out to a lovely dinner and a movie (Iron Man). The movie was surprisingly good, but what I was most stoked about was a find I scored at a bookshop we were browsing in before the movie started.

As you may or may not know, I'm a huuuuge Buffy fan, and I had found out recently that the series actually continues in comic (I mean graphic novel!) form. I'd been browsing around for the books for a while (even in a comic store in Japan, where the sales girl looked at me like I was from another planet or something when I said "Buffy?", but I digress), but I hadn't had any luck. Then Sunday I find Volume 1 of season 8 in the discount section! Scoooore! :)

Monday was an ick day, so after picking up the kids, we spent most of it indoors watching TV and playing on the computer and counting the minutes until they finally went to bed. Seriously, I love them to bits, but when we're all stuck in out itty bitty house, it's like time screeches to a halt or something.

For those of you still wondering, our car was declared a total loss, so it looks as though there will be new car shopping to be done in the next few weeks. We've started looking at reviews and reading up on fuel economy and low emission vehicles, and we've narrowed it down somewhat, but it's still a pain in the arse! Oh well, I'm sure the new car fumes will set it right.

On the knitting front, I've got a genuine Finished Object! I present the Leafling Socks.

To recap, these are the March Rockin Sock Club socks, knit with STR Mediumweight using 2.5 mm needles. I really loved knitting these socks. The colour was stunning, and the pattern incorporated some of Cat Bordhi's new techniques, which made it very interesting. All in all, a lovely project. I may keep these, or they may go in the gift pile. I haven't decided yet.

I also cast on my Socks for Seeley. These will be knit in plain, no-nonsense stockinette. Just a no-brainer sock, perfect for knitting on the train. I'm quite enjoying working with a self-striping, I'd even like the stripes to be fatter and more defined. Maybe I need to expand the stash? :)

Happy Knitting Everyone!

TGIF

Unoriginal, I know, but true nonetheless. Thank God it's Friday! It's been a rough week all by my lonesome with the 2 cherubs, while at the same time getting back into the habit of a 9-5 workday. Of course the kids sensed that I was at my most vulnerable, and tag-teamed each other with teething, colds and fevers. So stick the proverbial fork in me, I am DONE!

It doesn't help matters that Maxime has been waking up at the crack of dawn all week. And when I say crack of dawn, I mean that literally. He's been averaging about 5:15-5:20 AM, and babbles ever more insistently until I cave at around 6. I guess it's just to do with it being lighter earlier in his room? I need to look into installing some opaque blinds in there. Either that or sleeping with earplugs.

Actually, earplugs is just what I would have needed on Thursday morning. I'd left the window open on Wednesday night, because it was a relatively balmy evening. Anyway, at about 4 AM I start having these weird dreams with screaming babies and screaming children in them, everything screaming really loudly, until I swam out of sleep to realize that the screaming was coming from outside. It was a bird, and I swear it was SHRIEKING! I have never heard anything like it in my life. Either a predator had invaded it's nest, or we've got a group of closet Satan worshipers in my neighborhood and they were out skinning a live chicken or something. Seriously, it was vicious!

On the knitting front, there isn't much to tell, I'm afraid. Progress is slow on my current projects, and I'm just at that stage where I'm starting to get antsy to start something new. Or buy something new. Tee-Hee! No, don't worry, I didn't buy anything, even though I spent a good half hour browsing Webs' online store and nervously chewing off all my fingernails.

No, the one urge I've really got is to start my Socks for Seeley project. I bought some Trekking XXL self-striping at Ariadne when I was there for my spinning class a couple of weeks ago (no, I haven't practiced since then - bad spinner, BAD SPINNER!!!), and I've never worked with a self-striping before (I KNOW!). Now, if you follow Bones at all, the irony of my wanting to begin this particular project at this particular time will not be lost on you (for those who don't - a psycho stalker offered David Boreanaz's character a pair of socks as a gift, and it was wicked creepy!). Yup, just call me Fat Pam (Alison does!).

Happy Knitting everyone! And thanks for all the kind wishes for Maxime's birthday!

Always Read the Fine Print

I'm starting this post from the office, during my lunch hour, and I hope to be able to publish it this evening. Phil is out of town on business this weekend, leaving me with the kids and the house and the Life. My evenings have been so busy that what little down time I actually have left by day's end, I've devoted to knitting, as I'm sure you'll understand.

First things first, today is Maxime's birthday! It's hard to believe that in just one short year he could go from this:

to this:

But that's life for you! It was a year ago today (actually right this minute, I'm typing this at 12:34 PM) that I underwent an emergency C-section and Maxime was born. I had been experiencing some pretty serious pain over the past few days, and on my scheduled doctor's appointment that day, my physician had trouble finding Maxime's heartbeat, which was considerably slower than normal. So off I went to the hospital, and by the time I got there they wanted him out ASAP! So under the knife I went, for the second time (Émilie was a breech baby). He had a few minor complications, but in the everything worked out for the best, and I've got a healthy, happy baby. I'm so proud of my little big man!

Since Daddy is out of town, we'll be having a small dinner with my parents to celebrate tonight, and we'll be having a barbecue with immediate family on Sunday, where the bulk of the gifts will be opened. I didn't want to have another huge shindig this time around, because Émilie really freaked out at HER first birthday party (I think it was all the people at once in our small house - she was NOT amused!), and I don't want to risk going through all that again! Besides, weekends are busy enough around here as it is! :)

(Maxime enjoying his cake, about 2 hours ago!)

I also want to share a knitting misshap with you. As you know, I'm working on making the Good Stripe Dress from the Spring '08 IK for Émilie, and I'm using KnitPicks CotLin. Now, I swear, I was a good knitter. Yes, I was substituting (I can't afford Euroflax at 20$ a skein!). But I calculated, I ordered, and I swatched. I SHOULD have enough yarn. I mean seriously, I've got 2 Masters' degrees, for Pete's sake, I can handle simple math.

Turns out I can't handle simple READING. I made my yardage calculations using Ravelry's description for Euroflax, which at the time was based on 50 gr hanks at 135 yards per hank. The pattern says you need 2 hanks of the MC, which would be 270 yards worth. Still with me? CotLin has 123 yards per ball, so to be on the safe side, I ordered 3 balls. 123 x 3 = 369 yards. More than enough. No brainer. Right?

Well, as it turns out, the yardage for Euroflax on the PATTERN is 270 yards for a 100 gr hank (and apparently Ravelry has corrected it's mistake since I ordered, their description is now for 100 gr hanks). So I would in fact have needed to order 5 balls of my MC. Also for my main contrasting colour, but it looks like I'm going to make it by the skin of my teeth on that one.

Frantic, I called KnitPicks and asked if they had any left in my dye lot. They didn't. What now????? I've only got one stripe to go!!!!

I decided to check out if other people had any CotLin in Royal Plum from lot 4017 in their stash, and 3 people did. I've contacted them all, and Deborah has graciously offered to trade me her ball of CotLin. Thank you Deborah! You're a queen among knitters.

So let this be a lesson to you all. Even if you think you're doing everything right, the Knitting Goddess, fickle bitch that she can be, can smote you down just for shits and giggles. Beware.

Happy Knitting Everyone! And a Happy Birthday to my son Maxime. I love you, little man. I hope you had a great day.

DORMA

A while back the Yarn Harlot had a post about the feeling of empowerment that the word Stet gives a writer, and later on it evolved into a statement about a knitter's right to work on the projects she darn well chooses. I liked the word. I thought it was appropriate.

Today I was talking to my Dad on the phone, and he was asking me how my Mother's Day was going. I laughed. "Mother's Day? Well, so far I've done laundry, cooked 3 meals, and ironed 8 shirts. I think today's post is going to be titled Day of Rest My Arse." Without missing a beat, my Dad says "DORMA!". And I liked it. Just think how efficient it would be to sum up the day's events with that word! Hey Dear, how was your day? DORMA.

When I'm working full time, Sundays are absolute killers. I actually look forward to going to work the next day so I can recover. I get home pretty late (around 6:00 PM), so I've got to make all the meals ahead of time (you guessed it, on Sunday!). Plus the laundry that's still left to fold and put away, plus the ironing, plus the taking care of the kids, plus life. It's pretty exhausting. So this is what I did today:
Baked 3 chicken pot pies, 1 spinach pie (a recipe I got on Knitspot!), 1 salmon loaf, one batch of Beefy Carrots (an old family recipe that's really embarrassing, but that Émilie positively loves), one batch of Sicilian style linguine sauce, and in the back there is a batch of Filet of Sole Mornay with a trio of vegetables for Maxime. I also:
Folded 3 loads of laundry and ironed 8 shirts (2 of which were mine).

DORMA indeed. As I was saying to my Dad, I think that Mother's Day was invented by men who, after being fed and clothed and taken care of their entire lives by their mothers, proceeded to leave and never call or visit, then came up with this Mothers' Day deal so they could alleviate an entire year's worth of guilt with a dinky card and a wilting bouquet of flowers.

If I sound bitter, I am. (What episode of Buffy is that from???)

Seriously, for all you wannabe mothers out there, this is what Mothers' Day is really like. Just like any other day, except you have less time to get everything you need done accomplished, because you've got to set time aside to be "pampered".

Still, I did get some nice stuff from the kids (Dad helped).


A beautiful art project made by Émilie, as well as a potted plant from both the kids. Daddy was planning on taking me to Ikea to pick out a new bookcase for myself, but I just couldn't bare going there today (not with everything I already had to do), so I asked him if I could pick out a perfume for myself this week and give him the bill instead.

So if you happen to notice a nice-smelling woman snoring into her keyboard this week, that'd be me.

Happy Mothers' Day everyone!

Thank God the Yarn is Safe

I fully intended to blog yesterday, as a matter of fact I was thinking about blogging on my way home from an appointment last night, but as you'll read further on, God had other ideas in mind.

Yesterday I received a lovely package from Maggie, 3 skeins of her new laceweight yarn. OK, technically only 2 were for me (Kate-the-Enabler also ordered a skein, and we split cost of shipping with Maggie's blessing). Now, you all know how much I luuuurve Dyed in the Wool Handmade, and I wasn't about to pass up the booty left over after the Knitter's Frolic (which I'm still miffed I had to miss, but I'll get over it). When I got home I dutifully oooohed and aaaaahed, then got back to frantically eating dinner, cleaning up, bathing the kids and putting them to bed. (À propos? Working full time and mothering 2 kids under 4 is hard work.)

I had decided to make an appointment with my esthetician after the kids were in bed, because I knew that weekends from now on are going to be hectic enough as it is without me whining about needing to get my bikini waxed. Off I went, with Kate's yarn in tow (I figured I'd drop it off with her before heading out). When my discreet knocks turned flat-out doorbell ringing went unanswered (apparently there was bath time drama in the Enabler household), I headed back to my car, again with yarn in tow (I wasn't about to just leave it on her doorstep, for Pete's sake!). I made it to the esthetician with time to spare, and had a lovely (if, you know, painful) time with the ladies (I've been going there since I was 13).

On my way back home, I'm driving along and coming up to an intersection. My light is green, has been for a while actually, so I don't slow down, I just keep driving (I'm in a 50 km/h zone). It's about ten after nine, and I'm thinking that I'll probably be able to squeeze out a blog post before getting to bed. I've almost crossed the intersection.

That's when the guy on the other side of the street decides to make a left turn, cutting me off.

I don't have time to do anything but think "Oh Shit! This is really going to hurt", and WHAM!!!! I hit him head on. I may have tried to hit the brakes, or swirve to avoid him. Honestly, I didn't have time to do much.

A big white poof appears in front of me out of nowhere, and it takes a few moments for me to realize that the airbags have gone off. It's smoky and hot and sufficating in there, so I try to roll down the window. It's not moving too well.

That's when I get my wits back and decide to get the Hell out of the car. I grab my purse (with my cellphone in it) and get out of the car.

The other driver and his passenger are also getting out. They're freaking a bit ("Oh My God!!! I'm sooo sorry!!! I didn't see you!" and the like), but they're OK. After making sure that no one is injured, I start making calls. First 911, then my mom and stepfather (who happens to be my insurance broker), then my husband.

I'll stop the narrative at this point to reassure everyone that I'm fine. I've got some minor scratches or burns or something on my left forearm, from the airbag going off, and a bit of a stiff neck, but considering the collision I was involved in, it's an absolute miracle no one was hurt. I mean yeah, it's a hassle and a bummer, but it's only a car, right? The important thing is that I wasn't hurt, and that the kids weren't in the car at the time of the crash (Thank Heavens).

(Totalled? My car is the blue Ford Escort)

Anyway, the cops come, the other driver (an 18-year old kid) confesses right away that he's the at fault party, and the fire trucks (there were fluids leaking from my car, so they wanted to make sure it was safe) and tow trucks arrive. By this time my whole clan is around me, with coats and blankets and umbrellas and cameras. Before they took the car away, Phil was allowed to get in and remove some personal items. He got CDs, sunglasses, Émilie's car seat, and just as he was about to give the guy the go ahead to take her away, he spots something I had completely forgotten.

Kate's yarn.

You'll be glad to know the yarn was delivered safe and sound this morning. Thank goodness Phil still had his wits about him! It could have been lost forever!

Last Day

Tomorrow I go back to work. I have no idea how I'll be able to juggle everything in my responsible, adult life, let alone how I'll manage to make room for blogging, but I'm certain I'll figure something out. I've made some great friends through this blog, some of whom I've been fortunate enough to meet in person, others not (yet). I'm really going to try to make an effort to post at least 3 times a week, but if I don't quite make it, please don't hold it against me.

This weekend it was just me and the kiddies. Phil had a boys weekend at the Pinball Wizards Convention in Allentown, Pennsylvania (you can check out all his pictures here), and had a blast. It's obviously always a little difficult when Phil is away, but it's also kind of nice to spend more time with the kids, and to get to spoil them with junk food that Phil normally frowns upon. Special times and special privileges.

Oh, before I forget, here's a picture of yours truly modeling the lovely Cluaranach.

I really love it a whole lot, and I'm hoping it'll count as appropriate Rhinebeck-wear. You'll notice that Maxime is also covered in handknits in this shot. Tee-Hee!!!

To celebrate my last day at home, I ditched the kids (!) and headed down to Ariadne for a spinning workshop. This was a beginner course, where we learned to spin using a drop spindle, and I really enjoyed it. Here's my first ever handspun:

(By the way, this EXTREME closeup is brought to you courtesy of Phil's brand-new camera, a Sony something or other... hang on, techno-geek that he is, he's pointing out the exact brand-name.... OK, it's a Sony DSC-T300. Roll eyes here.)


Here's a shot of the thinner areas of my yarn compared with the Opal Feelings I purchased before the workshop (WHAT??? It's for Phil!). And oh yeah, the Opal is a FOUR-PLY (as opposed to my 2-ply). So yeah, I've still got a ways to go.

Now obviously it's not perfect (not by any stretch of the imagination), but I think it's pretty good for a first yarn, right? I mean, if you look at some of the stuff that's out there (Ozark, anyone?), I think it's pretty gosh darn nifty.

That being said, I don't know if I've got it in me to really get into it that much. It seems like there's a whole lot to learn in order to really get good (which fibers are best suited for what, draft, crimp, spindles, wheels, etc.), and I don't know if I've got the time or the inclination to learn it all, you know? I mean, when am I going to knit if I'm spinning all the time???

On the other hand, getting into spinning would open a whole new world of possibility as far as stash enhancement is concerned... :P

I'm also pretty sure that the initial fascination with spinning a bland natural colour fiber probably goes away fairly quickly, and that it would be a whole lot more fun to spin some dyed top instead. However, I'm going to hold off on that impulse until I've spun the entire 8 oz of Corriedale that we were allowed to take home with us to practice (20 minutes a day keeps the doctor away, or something to that effect). We'll see if there's sufficient improvement at that time.

OK, I'm off to check the train schedule and make my lunch for tomorrow, then I'll practice my newly acquired spinning skills (Get DOWN with your bad self!) before hitting the sack. After all, I'm a workin' gal now :)

Happy Knitting Everyone!

What Next?

Today is my last day at home alone with Maxime. I'm going back to work on Monday, and Maxime is having another "practice" day at daycare tomorrow. While I'm excited about new professional opportunities awaiting me at work (they're making me Webmaster, and one of my mandates will be to completely redesign the company's Web site), I'm also feeling a little sad and anxious about how busy life is about to become.

I had a conference to attend for work on Tuesday, in Longueuil of all places, and arrived home a little before 6 in the evening. Everyone had had their dinner, Émilie was too busy playing on the computer with her Dad to give me the time of day, and even though Maxime was still happy to see me (my little man!), I only got an hour with the kids before it was time to give them their bath and put them to bed. I felt strange, I felt like an outsider. I remember feeling this way when I went back to work after my maternity leave was over with Émilie. Suddenly, you go from being the most important, central figure in their lives to barely getting to spend an hour with them a day during the week, and not much more on weekends, with the frantic running around to get all the chores done for the next week. Meanwhile, Phil gets more one on one time with the kids, because he picks them up from daycare everyday (he works 8 minutes from home, I work downtown). It feels like you're not even a part of the family anymore, you're just that weird lady who happens to be renting a room in their house.

Whew! THAT was depressing, wasn't it? Apologies to everyone for sounding so glum, I usually make an effort to be funny and cheerful on this blog. I'll be OK, I remember that the feeling of estrangement doesn't last forever (mostly because you simply don't have time to think about it).

Yesterday Émilie had her first ever dentist appointment, and I couldn't have been prouder of her. She did great, as opposed to her Dad (who has been going to that same dentist since HE was 3 years old!), who apparently threw a temper tantrum in the hall before ever getting to the chair, his first time around. No cavities to speak of, but the dentist was concerned about her two front teeth (all I want for Christmas....), which are really starting to stick out because of her incessant thumb sucking! We're going to try and break the habit over the coming few weeks, but every time I pointed out to her that she was sucking her thumb this morning, she cried. I sucked my thumb until the mature age of 8 or 9, so I completely understand what she's going through. Of course, I was lucky that I never actually required braces. I hope we'll be able to avoid it, but if not, oh well, it's not the end of the world.

Today Maxime and I have what will hopefully be our LAST physiotherapy appointment. As my readers may recall, he developed torticolis fairly early on, and has been going to physiotherapy since he was about 7 months old. During our last appointment, the therapist said that his torticolis was actually cured (is that the right term?), but that she was still concerned that he wasn't yet crawling and that he was only in the 25th percentile for mobility for his age group. This didn't concern me much, because Émilie was a late crawler and walker as well (11 and a half months, and 16 and a half months, respectively), but she didn't care, and scheduled a follow-up appointment. Well, he started crawling a couple of days after his last appointment, and while he isn't walking yet, he's always pulling himself to a standing position, and has even managed to stay upright solo for a few seconds at a time. I can't wait to tell her to stick THAT in her hat! HAH!!!

Not much knitting content today, I'm afraid. I'm still working diligently on the Good Stripe Dress. I've started the flared skirt section, and as there are more and more stitches on the needles, the progress is getting slower and slower. I took a wee break last night during the hockey game (which we lost, and shan't speak of), in an attempt to finish the first Leafling sock, but alas, I've still got a few rows to go on the toe. Maybe I'll finish it up this evening. I need a boost.

Happy Knitting Everyone!