Enough About Poodles.

Let's talk Knitting. Irene's socks are finished and they fit like a glove. Love 'em.





I can't tell you how excited I am to finally be able to make child socks that actually FIT a child...



And not just once, but twice!

Um, no, not like "both socks"...more like "both PAIRS of socks". Uh-huh, that's right:



Keegan's are done and they fit, too! I don't have a finished object shot, though. He wore them right away, and I didn't get a decent pic before he was off to school.



The colors on these socks are really cool...so many different shades and colors. I thought they were going to be predominately blue when I ordered it, but I'm happy with how they look.



So, the reason I didn't get a picture? Well, I was well into the second sock when I asked Keegan what he wanted to bring to school the next day for Show & Tell. He exclaimed that he really wanted to wear his new knitted socks. Um, yeah--not quite finished, exactly. But now I sure had some motivation, didn't I? How could I not knit until I finished them? After they were done, I forgot to take a picture, and then we were running out the door to school drop-offs. Here he is in the morning--you have to see.

It was Pajama Day, so the kiddos wore their PJ's to school. Super cute. Keegan wore his China pajamas, from one of Brian's previous business trips.



Best part of his outfit?

The socks.



I have to tell you about the new knit-a-long I joined: Sock Knitters Pentathlon 2008. It's in honor of the upcoming Olympics. Knitters from many different countries have signed up. We'll knit 5 pairs of socks. The first pattern was released at midnight EST on March 1st, and we have two months to finish to stay in the running for a medal. (Yeah, I'm not so much "in the running" as I'm just knitting along and having fun, but anyhoo...) More details can be found if you follow the link. Lots of fun.

The moderators suggested a solid or semi-solid colorway for the socks, so I chose some Dream In Color Smooshy in Happy Forest. Beautiful.



This yarn is Keegs approved.


He thinks it looks like grass and he's right. Plus, SO soft. I've been dying to try some DIC, so this was a great excuse reason.

Now, we had suggestions for the yarn color, the required gauge and suggested needle sizes. We just had to wait for the pattern to be released. Naturally, I stayed up until midnight to see what it would be. Really cute pattern, by the way. Jacobean Socks. At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about the pattern, but that was most likely because I was dead tired. So I figured I'd start in the morning, and went to sleep. I tossed and turned and worried if the gansey type pattern was way over my head. In the morning, I went online to print out a copy of the pattern and get started. Well, someone had already finished one sock! Yeah. Like since I went to bed, and before I got up in the morning...someone had finished one. Then she finished the other. I think it was something like 9 hours or so! What?! Really, this did shock me. I know lots of people knit tons faster than I do, but I was not expecting this. Oh, and now that I've been working on the pattern--not nearly as intimidating as I thought, and I love how they look.



I have finished one, and I'm just starting the patterning on the foot of the second. Short row heels are easier than I thought, but way more tedious than I'm used to for a heel. Knowledge is power, though, so I know this skill will come in handy later. (Or so I keep telling myself. What a PITA.) SKP2008 is fun so far, and I enjoy learning new techniques and having people to ask about them if I have problems. You all know I'm a sucker for a KAL. But I did change my settings on the Yahoo group to moderator posts only. Somehow, possibly because it's such a large group, the comments and posting was making me crazy. I tried the daily digest, but still felt overwhelmed. I am glad to do the group, however, and I think if you wanted to join, it's still not too late. And yes, Qutecowgirl, Jen did get me too. How did you know? I believe she likes the term "enabler".

Oh, and the quote? It's from The Cutting Edge. Great movie.

Alright, next time I have to show you the funniest pen.