That sound?

Oh, that sound. That's me gnashing my teeth in rage.

.

It's been a frustrating morning. First, the octopus costume that I made yesterday - that was warmly, gleefully, and lovingly received & worn yesterday - was rejected this morning.

.

I sighed, ground my teeth, and packed Amoryn & her octopus costume off to daycare & daycare's Halloween party. I told myself to not take it personally; she's a toddler, and at least I got to watch her run around yesterday, with all the legs on the costume bobbling around. Eight tentacles of awesome.

.

Now, I've earmarked today's naps as pattern editing time. And what happens? The software I'm using is crashing. CRASHING. Not even opening. Locking up. Every single time. I uninstalled, reinstalled, crash.

.

I've sent a rather abrupt email to their tech support; there's a new version available, but there's no link on their website to download it. I can download the old version... but not the newer one.

.

The program nicely pops up a window letting me know that there's a new version to download, and it lets me see that info as it crashes & locks.

.

Yes, I've restarted. Yes, I've closed all the other applications I was running. Yes, I'm ready to chew on the table. And yes, Eleni just woke up, which means that yes, I got two lines of the pattern edited.

.

I'd tell you more, including what program it is, but a) I'm hopeful that their tech support will come through b) frothing in a rage doesn't really do me any good, especially if I'm going to try & stay calm enough that I can rebuild in Excel during Eleni's afternoon nap. c) I'm not giving them any free advertising. If they come through, I might mention them favorably. If they don't, I'll be flaming them in a post.

.

And if that happens, I'll be naming names & pointing fingers. Heck, I might even put on the darn octopus costume, so that I've got more than just fingers to point & so that it gets some use.

.

Seriously. I have minimal 'focus' time available to me, this pattern is on a deadline, I spent yesterday making a rejected octopus, and I feel like it's all futile. Maddening & futile. I can't even make myself a coffee as a treat; I'm afraid that the caffeine & the rage might escalate to me teaching my laptop that it can fly.

.

Arrrrrrrg. *Sets forehead on table. Breathes. Breathes some more. Lifts head up.*

.

Okay, what's for lunch?

Too Much Terror For One Day

First, let me say that everyone & everything in my world is okay. And my heart rate has slowed down, and now I'm just exhausted & thankful* for a near miss.

.

And it's going to be several years before we walk to Tim Horton's again.

.

The girls were both getting a little rambunctious, and I knew that they needed some fresh air. It's been cool this week, and so we haven't been out much. (The deadline knitting doesn't effect it much - I only knit when El's asleep, & that's always our quiet time. Puzzles, play-dough, maybe a movie.) There wasn't enough time for a full-on play at the park, so I decided that we'd just walk over to Tim Horton's for one timbit, then by the mailbox, then home. It was all good until we were crossing the street to come home.

.

Amoryn, as you may or may not know, is a very headstrong & dramatic child who tends to throw herself into things. Literally, sometimes.

.

Part of the deal while crossing the street is that if there is a button, she gets to push it. She did that, and then she wanted to stand on the other side of the pole. I said "No, please come stand me & Eleni."

.

And she freaked out. Part of her freakout is her pitching herself backwards in the full-on throes of woe. So I made a diving catch - as two lanes of traffic on Country Hills Blvd are going past at full speed - grabbed her hood, which half unsnapped, then grabbed her collar. Then I grabbed the stroller, which had rolled forward about a foot. Then I hyperventilated, refused to let go of her, and tried to explain to her what had almost happened. While she screamed at the top of her lungs. I adjusted my scruff hold slightly to make sure she couldn't escape, tried to quit imagining what had almost happened, and kept breathing.

.

Once the light changed, I pushed/dragged the kids back into the safety of the cul-de-sac, where Amoryn stopped wailing in indignation and cried "You're really hurting me". I checked, and actually had a fair mitt-ful of hair. I apologized, then explained how very much she had just scared mommy.

.

Even though we ran overtime on Eleni's nap, we had a slide on our way to the mail box. I still can't believe how close to truly awful the day was.

.

I'm going to eat supper now, then kiss my girls goodnight, and keep knitting.

.

.

.

*Not thankful enough to be glad about the misses today with potty-training. The last three days, I was glad that we don't have carpet, and that she's making progress, and today, after the third mistake, I'm just sad & tired. That's all I'm sayin'.

Knitting Math

I've lost both my tape measure & my calculator. (I think small hands might have been a cause.)

.

Anyways, help me out with this math, ok? If, during the course of this:

(75 min)

.

I can get this done...

(Approx 5 inches.) (Blurred for discretion. Color is true though, and doesn't cover the luscious, luscious texture of cashmere/silk.)

.

How long is it going to take me to knit another, erm, 28 inches or so?

.

Or should I be wondering if I'll be able to recite Merriweather's lines in my sleep?

Busy, Busy, Busy

Well, the second half of October looks to be a little insane.

.

I've got to finish a top-secret project AND I'm going to make three Halloween costumes.

.

Why not buy them? Well, 1) it's a thing with me to make the costumes for as many years as I can & 2) Amoryn wants to be an octopus. I've never seen an octopus costume for sale.

.

I admit, I've been pitching octopodes for a while. And she's keen! Finally! So, we are going with a sea theme: an octopus (Amoryn), a starfish (Eleni) and a lobster (myself). I just need to consult my fabric stash to see what I need, and master the time space continuum so that I have more time between now & next Friday. (The man can go as a fisherman. Or kelp! He can be kelp! He can wear his green outfit! Ha!)

.

I think that I'm going as a red lobster, for better identification & visibility. Eleni will be a yellow polar fleece starfish, which means that I need to sort out what color Am's octopus should be...

.

Any suggestions?

.

Other than gently pointing out that talking about what I need to get done doesn't actually accomplish anything. Right. Back to work.

And Now She Is One!

Eleni had her first birthday yesterday...

.

She thought it was great; she liked the balloons and her sister was very helpful about opening presents. (Some small stuffies from me.)

.

Unlike a lot of kids, she did enjoy opening her cards... especially the giant bear from M_____ and M__.

.

The cake was the only thing I was really concerned about - with no dairy & no eggs, what do you do?

.

Well, you fret about it a bit, try a couple different things, then come up with a sort-of whoopie-pie/oreo cookie. Then, while the birthday girl is fussing as you try & get her candle lit, you set a couple cheerios on her tray, and she eats those instead of the cookie-cake.

.

(Stock photo)

Actually, I just watched the little video that her dad took, and she does pick up the cookie-cake, take a nibble, then drop it. She then looks over the edge a little wistfully, and refuses to eat anything other than cheerios. I missed that part because I was talking to Am.

.

I could wax poetic about how much I love her, and how amazing her first year has been, but I suspect if you follow this blog or know me, you know that already.

.

(And most of the photos are on Z____'s camera... and I don't have the cables to dump her pics into my camera, and now she's gone home. Sooooo.. imagine a fun, laughing day with giggly girls.)

Thanksgiving, And A Pie Recipe

Yes indeed, it's Thanksgiving Day here in Canada. We've been a bit ahead of the curve; we had our turkey on Saturday.

.

.

It worked out well; friends & family were free to join us, and we had yesterday free to go for a hike/saunter followed by a bonfire & hotdogs for supper. The weather foiled our bonfire plans a little, but not that much. Today, we're free to enjoy our leftovers, and start next week without feeling oppressed by the amount of turkey left to consume. We had the perfect amount of pie, too - I sent leftovers home with various people. Here's the recipe - and while it might be too late for the Canucks, hopefully an American or two can make use of it next month.

.

Pumpkin Pie

Crust:

1 1/2 c gingersnap crumbs

1/2 c chopped pecans

2 TB brown sugar

1/3 c melted butter

-Combine, pat into shape in 9" pie pan, chill one hour.

Filling:

3 eggs

1 c brown sugar

1 c whipping cream

2 TB dark rum

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon (+)

1 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 c pumpkin puree

-Beat all but pumpkin together. Add in pumpkin, stir, pour into crust.

-Bake at 350F for one hour, until set. Chill

Topping:

1 c whipping cream

2 TB maple syrup (+)

-Beat together, serve over pie.

.

Loosen your belt & enjoy!

.

(In case you're curious, I'm thankful for all the things that I love best.)

Introducing Mishka

I'd like for you to meet Mishka - a lovely, engaging scarf, named after a graceful engineer friend of mine whose love of nature is rivalled only by her love of straight lines.
.

.
It's shown above in Seasilk, and below in Taiyo; fingering and aran weight yarns, respectively.
.

.
It's a short repetitive pattern that makes the most of highly variegated yarns. The vertical 'ladders' balance the horizontal bands of color with grace.
.

.
I think it sets off short or long color runs equally well; and it's beautiful in any weight of yarn.
.

.
Although I've used the word "ladder", it's not a dropped stitch. The pattern has both written & charted directions, and is now available on my website and Ravelry for $6.00Us.
.

.

.

As a note, the Taiyo has previously been knit into two sweaters & several scarves, and this is the first real success I've had with this yarn. I think it speaks to the yarn's quality that a single-ply is still standing up so well!

Look What I Figured Out!

I invented a non-provisional tubular cast-on! (Non knitters, skip ahead.) I'm knitting a 1x1 ribbed cowl, and I remembered vaguely that I'd seen a Eunny Jang tutorial. I watched that, sighed, and was too lazy to go find some provisional yarn that I was willing to cut into bits. Then the phone rang, and as I chatted, I invented how to do it, with no provisions! I'm sure it's reinventing the wheel, but I feel terribly clever. You use Judy's Magic Cast-On, work a round, then pick it up from there. Fiddly, needs a dpn & a long circ, but requires no cutting! No provisional yarn! I may do up a photo tutorial of it.

For now, here's the CO edge. See? The tubular cast on provides a very even, elastic, uniform, BEAUTIFUL edge!
.
I also learned that the knitting muses are big on humble, humble pie. I'd originally swatched on a 4.5 mm, didn't like the fabric, decided to guess at the numbers & go down to a 3.75mm. Turns out, 108st was too small, and the fabric was too dense. So I found my 4.0mm, cast on 120 st, then actually looked at my needles... and looked again... and realized that I actually had found a 3.5mm needle. I sighed, then thanked my muse for making sure I had such a great opportunity to really, really learn my tricksy new cast on, then finally got it right. I've cranked out about an inch of the ribbing now, and so far, am cautiously optimistic.
.
What else did I learn... even a quick trip to Ikea takes a Very Long Time. I also learned that small, eager, drooly assistants in no way help or speed up building Ikea furniture, and that Eleni is in love with screwdrivers. My job was first to thwart that love, then to build the $#% drawers..
.
I've realized that I'm really, really loving fall... The colors are everywhere in my life, not just outside on the trees.
.

There's the fingering sampler pack I got from Impulse Of Delight .
.

There's the chunk of color that I stuck in my hair...
.

And there's the color I just painted my toes & some Sanguine Gryphon yarn that I'm totally in love with. (Skinny Bugga, just for fun.)
.
And fall what else? Falling asleep....
.
(A terrible segue, I know, but meh, I'm beat.)

I'm Doing It, Really, It's Just...

I'm trying to be proactive & get our books caught up. Except that I'm stalling horribly... So I'm posting this random picture. Then I'm buckling down to get some bookkeeping done.

.

(I'm just doing the Y/E reconciliation, and I hate that. Soon, it will be smooth sailing.)

.

Isn't this an amazing picture? I'd say they're my dad's antlers, but that sounds funny.

.

All right. No more funny. Nothing but books.

Falling In Love

Oh, autumn. How can I resist you?

Your colors compliment my daughters so well; and you're just so darn pretty this year!

.

(And yes, I let her try to play with that rock. I was confident that she couldn't swallow it, and that she wouldn't be able to lift it high enough to drop on her own head.)
.

I'm just so smitten with the yard, and the way that things are a curious mix of dead & alive, green, gold & red.
.

The plum tree (red on the left) has now dropped all of its leaves, but my willow tree continues to look fetching & an awful lot like bamboo. The sunflowers are all still alive, too.
.
Not to mention that the grass is still verdant and soft...

(Yes, the girls are racing towards each other here, and yes, that makes my heart melt.)

.

I usually don't really enjoy fall, because it means that summer is over and winter is coming. However, I've got a clever new tactic to feel better about winter this year. While it's too early to say if it's a success, I'm optimistic enough about it that I'm really quite taken with fall this year.
.

Back to the knitting now! Gauge swatch, gauge swatch, how do I love thee... it all depends on the project. I do like that gauge swatches never scald me though; one way that sewing (& pressing) is clearly inferior to knitting.