can't help myself!

now in all of these pictures taken today keira looks angelic and I couldn't help it they are much more exciting than my knitting right now and I swear it looks like she's reading in that first one!! BUT she has just taken 1 1/2 hours to get to sleep with much screaming and carrying on - this is not my normal girl and I don't know what went wrong tonight! anyway she is now quiet and I'm happy :)

its a busy few days ahead starting tmrw with playgroup, an afternoon play date for keira, then family and an old family friend for dinner, sister and hubby both arriving saturday morning and then fathers day breakie on sunday- I'm tired just writing about it and it means I need lots of things cooked, house totally clean and no knitting! I've been scrapbooking and making cards this afternoon which was lovely but that's enough me time!!!!!!

lovin' those dishcloths

Well lots of photos. First off is the sugar n cream ( 8 balls) I received yesterday! I really like knitting with this especially when you need to pick up stitches and they just stay there and don't move! next up is the first dishcloth I'm doing from dishcloth boutique and I think it looks like a block of chocolate, yum yum!

also here is my mum's jumper ready to finish and do the roll neck! its taken me way too long to do this jumper and I'm a bit embarrassed at how late it is however my mum thinks will be perfect for france and she loves it - but its a bit snug on her so hope it fits her when all done up!

hubby is over in miami all week for an insurance conference at boca raton, oh there are some great yarn stores near him but he says he won't have the time! oh well at least he is having fun and he saw raymonds mother from everyone loves raymond at the airport lounge and texted me to tell him - I went to text him back at 3.30am as I fed keira and dropped my little mobile on her head - omg she let out a shreiking cry for 1 minute that I've never heard and I panicked and started crying ( I do this quite a bit now) but then she started giggling and kicking her legs around so thank god I have a light little pop open mobile and she's resilient!!!!! won't do that again!

well its clean up day today so better get cracking on those floors

What I've learnt!

Well its been a few days of learning!

Last night I learnt that you should always heat your husband's dinner! I told him to heat up the bread so he put a big tuna nicoise salad in the microwave for a minute or so till I realised what he'd done!

during the day I also learnt that lace knitting requires total concentration if you are doing it for the first time. This was my fourth attempt and then I tried again and keira woke up and I lost my place and it was all over! I've decided to do lace knitting at night once she is in beddy byes!

and here's my bolero progress so far - I'm loving it and the colour is going to be gorgeous with her little jeans!

thanks everyone for your comments on my creche episode- it makes me feel so much better and normal that I'm not overeacting!

this made my day!

wow look what arrived today! I wish my laceswap partner could hear my oohs and ahhs then 'oh my goodness more' as I discovered there was a second pattern and pair of addi's! I've been dying to get my hands on a pair and actually kept checking out a website for them so to receive not one but two pairs! well I'm over the moon! I just love it love it love it! they are going to the front of the knitting queue!!!

it really cheered me up as I had a bad morning!I've only used the creche at the gym a few times and I walked in to collect keira and heard screaming very distressed that sounded like her - sure enough she was and the lady was trying to rock her saying she's tired and she just started crying! I could see and smell that her nappy had leaked everywhere and she was telling me she was tired and needed a feed! I don't think so! I have never heard keira cry like this before and it made me cry! I changed her nappy and she got worse till she got a big cuddle and took about 5 minutes to calm down! I was so mad and upset at the same time I cried the whole way home! She is always such a happy good baby and we don't let her cry much so I walked out saying I'll never put her in there again and luckily was cancelling my membership next month!!!!! ok thanks for listening!

So I get home and there is the wonderful lace swap parcel from knittingnatty that just made my day - ok my month!



oh and now keira's happily playing on her mat and giggling away and there's a photo of us knitting on sunday as keira gets used to her big bed!!!

happy birthday justin!

its hubby's birthday today, yeah 31, and older than me (just!)!!! He wanted plants and a home brew kit and I bought an ipod shuffle which he just LOVES!!!!!!!!!! we went out to lunch, mmmm I treated myself to the yummiest apple quince hazelnut crumble with vanilla creme anglaise - mmmmmmmmmmm soooooooo good - I love my desserts!

here is a picture of keira in another of nana shirley's knits, so cute this little one and she is now wearing the largest jumpers that nana thought would be for next year!!! what a big girl she is

this is also the bolero jacket that I had started then pulled out as hard to get the edging right! will try again. I also tried my hand at dpn's yesterday - big mistake as keira crying I was getting frustrated with the needles - I am sure it takes practice and patience so will try again!

and THANK YOU DONNI for teaching me how to add buttons! love it and you were right it was easy - thanks again!

mmmmm white chocolate mud cake

Its 11.30pm and I'm awake -why ????? Well, its hubby's bday on saturday and he needs a cake for work and I am awake waiting for the white chocolate mud cake to cook! this cake is a winner and is iced with a white chocolate ganache and is pure indulgence! I'll photograph tmrw morning, mmmmmm, shame its going to work and not staying here!

its been a busy day organising keira's passport application, exercising, shopping, baking and looking after keira who poked her finger in her eye this morning and realised it hurts!!!

I also bit the bullet and bought some size 12 jeans today realising I won't be back into my size 6 ones for quite some time and I'm sick of my maternity ones! I tried them on with keira in the changeroom who was smiling as my big bottom was near her pram - cheeky girl - yes its big!. My friend was also over yesterday, looked at my wedding photos and said gee you were skinny - thanks - it was only 18 months ago but I really did eat up big when I was pregnant - it might explain why I loved being pregnant so much!

Tonight I started doing the little bolero from debbie bliss baby cashmerino 2 - oh its so cute in a dusty rose colour! I also ordered 8 balls of sugar n cream today in brown, hot pink and marble (I think?) and can't wait till it arrives - perfect for the dishcloth shuffle. I'm still waiting for my laceswap yarn to arrive - I ordered it over 2 weeks ago and getting a little edgy so sent a polite email off enquiring how long it should take - rest of the present is ready just need the most important component.....the yarn!

I might also try to add buttons to my blog tonight! Donni gave me comprehensive instructions that I looked at and put down for another time!!!!

well only 30 minutes left and I'm off to bed - thankfully the cake cools in the pan while I rest!

sucker for punishment!

Wow, keira and I did it! The city to surf is behind us (photos tmrw!)
The whole race I said I'll never do it again ( I cannot begin to describe the road rage I encountered which was bl**dy ridiculous - every person who walked into my pram abused me, rolled their eyes, told me off, people behind would then tell me off!!!!) but I'm going to try and run it next year and my lovely parents have offered to walk keira with them and I've just signed up to do the 9km bridge run next month - omg I can only run for 10 minutes at the moment so this is a major challenge but I'm up for it! I figure I'll lose more of my keira weight!!!

Today was also a great day as my mum asked me to go to France, yes France on her school trip! she's a french teacher and had a student drop out of her trip so is taking keira and I with her! This will be a major operation with lots of planning to take a 4 month old baby to paris and the south of france but since we are picked up everywhere by coaches and have nice hotels I think we can do it - plus Keira is out and about all day everyday with me so I think we can do it - any tips on travelling with bubs - put them here!!!!!

one blog question - how to add buttons to my blog - I am now in the lace swap, dishcloth (thanks donni saw the button on your blog) and the scarf swap and would love to add buttons to my blog!

goodies in the mail!

oh it was another good day for me via the postman! I received this lovely swap from nattychick, I just love the stitch markers with my initials on them and the gorgeous wool and choccies and hand stamped card! its all too good - thank you so much!

then I got my amazon books, wow, they are both so good! The lucinda guy book will def. challenge me but actually so will one skein as never tried felting but want to - one question - does it do bad things to your washing machine???? we have a lovely new one and don't want to damage it????

well its been a busy day with training this morning (we did sprints and something called the beep test !?!?! where you run back and forth and have to make the beep !) I'm exhausted but committed to do bikram tonight so will be pooped tonight! plus poor keira is out of routine today so she will be very pooped too as hasn't slept properly today BUT she did sleep 8pm to 3.30 am today which was the longest ever - good girl!

not bad for first effort!

well these are my first attempt at stitch markers and I'm pretty happy with them just need to work on the ends and wrapping them tighter around the top!!! any tips would be appreciated!

I came home today from the gym to find not 1 not 2 but 3 parcels - my wool from ebay- yeah! love them all but not sure on one wool, its opal petticoat 1339 so think they'll be socks to give away - does anyone have a good sock pattern they can recommend!!!!

well keira is resting and I'm about to clean the house, what fun for a wednesday afternoon!

Girls night in!

Well, hubby is off in Melbourne this weekend helping his mum pack up her house and downsize so its just me and Keira hanging out at home tonight - notice how her hair keeps growing up!!! I can't control it!

So we are just vegging out and since I started the day with a bikram class I deserve it!!!

I also got my laceswap buddy so found some lovely wool already online and just deciding what pattern to go with it, this is fun!!!

this afternoon I also decided to clean out my knitting stash, inspired by Nattychick to swap some wool!!!!! I'm still going organising!!!

oh and the little hats (I also made a hot pink one) went down a treat, my new little neighbour is called Aysha and received the hats yesterday!!! her mum and dad visit her twice a day in the hospital and loved them especially as all the knitwear knitted for the premmies in hospital has to be returned!!!! its so nice to knit for someone else and give presents!

1 little hat done....

Well I managed to do this little one as a variation on a pattern I had, thanks Donna I had a Cleckeaton book and just reduced the stitches - I have never done this before so I am impressed with the result!!! I'm going to check out some patterns on www.bevscountrypatterns.com which had oodles of patterns, thanks Meredith, and should have a nice little bundle of premmie knits! They are so quick and it looks like i hardly touched the ball of wool once I'd finished the hat!

Keira has just woken up after sleeping since 11am including her time in creche while I did yoga, yawn, I am getting used to bikram so the class I did today was a bit too relaxing for me and didn't work me too hard, plus 45mins is too short! Anyway back to bikram tomorrow!

Premmie patterns anyone?????

wow, I just found out my neighbour had her baby 5 weeks early this week and she weighs a teeny weeny 1kg!

Wondering if anyone has/can recommend premmie patterns!?!?!?!? I've gone through all my books and have nothing! would appreciate some guidance!