mama urchin

Remember how I made a few apron sets to have on hand for birthday gifts? Well, they’ve been a huge hit and the birthday parties haven’t stopped. So, I’ll be working on something new to have in the stash soon. This, however, is about the boys. Katie hasn’t been invited to too many boy parties this year but we have had a bit of a run on babies that have big brothers. And any mom of two (or more) knows that gifts for a new baby are always better received when they come with a gift for the big sister/brother too.

The dinosaur backpacks are made from the same clearance fabric as Katie’s dino dress. They were super easy to make and I finally got to use some grommets — something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. The contents include all kinds of Dinosaur stuff I got in the dollar bins at Target — grow tablets, stickers, dinosaur skeleton kits, tattoos, etc. I also included a couple of Schleich dinosaur figures. Really, you could find almost all of this stuff at the dollar store. And as a mom I know that I like when Katie gets gifts like this. The stickers and tattoos get used and used up, and then they’re gone. The figures and the skeleton can be played with creatively and won’t be quickly outgrown. And all kids love a bag to put their junk in — I had a lot of trouble getting this one off the model. It’s so much better than another Polly Pocket or Spiderman figure. I also change the contents slightly depending on the recipient. A dinosaur book would be good for an older boy while a dinosaur coloring book and crayons are just right for a younger child.

The pillows from my bloggy birthday give-away are headed out today. Finally. Man, I am slow with the sending. These got held up with zipper issues. Why can you never find a zipper that is the right color and the right length? So there is one pillow where the zipper color is the best I could do and another where the zipper is way too long. Still, I think they’re pretty cute. Click through to flickr to see who gets which one and individual photos too. And here is a photo of my prop master — always ready to help me with the photography.

Another delayed baby gift. This is for a sweet little boy who arrived at the end of last year. The free pattern is called Super-Natural Stripes and it is knit in super soft Blue Sky Alpacas‘ Organic Cotton. I used the colorway pebble instead of the sage and I’m happy with the variegated effect. My only modifications were I didn’t knit the single row of bone at the cuff, hem, or button band/collar. It wasn’t really necessary with the pebble yarn.

Baby Stripes
Pattern: Super-Natural Stripes
Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas‘ Organic Cotton in colorways 80 (bone), 82 (nut), and 84 (pebble)
Yardage: less than one 150 yard skein of the bone and nut, less than two 150 yard skeins of the pebble
Needles: US size 7 and US size 5
Gauge: 16 st = 4 in
Size : 6-12 months
Modifications: Omitted the bone stripe at the cuff, hem, and button band/collar.

I finally got to the bookstore this week and got a hold of a copy of Larissa’s new book Knitalong. Longtime readers of my blog may remember that I knit some hats and my first socks ever as part of two knitalongs Larissa hosted to prepare for the book. Then she asked that I send the holly hat to be included in photos for the book. So I was hoping that there was at least a photo of it in there — for no other reason than to brag to my mom and mother-in-law. Well, now you have to hear me brag too because it looks like I have two photos in the book as well as two mentions. Hee hee, I’m almost famous. Okay, not really. But I have to say it’s a great book with that meathead pattern I get asked about so much as well as a bunch of other awesome stuff. So get your hands on a copy.

With delays for illnesses and vacations and all kinds of things we are finally able to call this round of miniswap complete. Katrina and Tristan were paired with Caroline who loves puppies, kittens, playing with dolls, etc. We decided for Katie and Tristan to each direct a project where they could help participate. Tristan’s project was a coloring set. I made the bag and sketchbook and the urchins helped with the crayons.

After looking through The Cute Book Katrina decided we should make a kitty for Caroline. We used the basic shapes included in the book but made some adjustments and made a mama cat too. Then we decided to make some toys and other things a la Lyn and include them in an old wooden box that originally held olive oil and balsamic vinegar. So Mama Kitty and her baby have a fish and a mouse as well as a pillow and some milk bottles in case they get tired or thirsty. Mama’s apron comes off for when she’s not chasing Baby Kitty’s messes.

We also included a rice pillow that matches Katie’s — fabric choices made entirely by her — and some other purchased things that we thought Caroline might enjoy. Caroline and her mama, Amber, spoiled us and you can see what they sent here, here, and here . Thank you Caroline and Amber, and thanks Molly for another great round of miniswap.

Before Christmas Martha asked me to make her a fishing set for her son O. We decided to do a little swap. She was really busy with her ACC appearance so she recently made some clothes for Tristan and the timing was perfect for our trip to California. Martha loves this denim and we do too — as you can tell by all the clothes the kids have in it — so the pants were loved immediately. I love that the pants are denim but were still nice enough for a family event. Lots of comments were made about the green button on Tristan’s shirt, I even wore a green dress — sorry for the mediocre photo, we obviously weren’t paying attention to the person with our camera. And speaking of coordinating, Katrina wore her denim gather halter dress so the two of them were matching without being too matchy-matchy. As you can see we had a wonderful time. Thanks Martha for making the urchins look so good.

We’re back from sunny Southern California. We even got a little sun on our necks and dipped our toes in the ocean. Now it’s back to blustery weather and winter coats. All in all we’re feeling a bit like this:

Once I dig out from all the laundry I’ll be back in this space ready to share again. Our mailbox has been brimming with goodies.

You guys know I love a good granny square afghan. Well, that grandmother of mine is turning 85 next month and my dad and his sisters are throwing a little family party for her. My mom and I have been working on a blurb book to give her full of family memories and this photo is going in it. I hope she likes it, I knew you guys would.

For a while after the holidays we got a break from the relentless birthday party circuit but it seems to have started back up again. So this Spring Katrina’s birthday girl friends will be getting this:

The basket, rolling pin, whisk, and cookie cutters are all from the Target dollar bins. The glass jars are from World Market and we filled them with color-coordinated sprinkles from our pantry. The apron — modeled by Katrina — was a quick sew and turned out pretty cute with gingham-ish ties and ball fringe. The main fabric is an older print, Buckarette, by Alexander Henry. I bought enough of everything to make three sets — one for a party today and two more for the granny gift closet . I am actually making four aprons though, my little bakerette needs an apron too.

So Emily is hosting Green Week this week and as you know, I love green. I mean really love green. Like I love it so much I want to steal Hannah’s sheets. My friends know I like green and here’s some proof that recently arrived in my mailbox.

Melissa made some of her awesome boxes to put in her granny gift stash back in January. I jokingly told her to put my name on the bottom of this box, and guess what? She did! Thanks Melissa.

Anina sent me this fabric and yarn as a thank you for helping her knit her very first sock. I’m thinking of knitting and felting a bag from the yarn and then lining it with the fabric. And don’t you just love this fabric? Thank you friend, I expect to see lots of handknits on your feet in the future.

Edited to Add: The fabric is by Shannon Lamden.