Got their backsides covered

Austy needed some stretchy shorts for Little Athletics so I whipped these up and let him press the start button as we embroidered some running shoes on the front leg (so he knows which way to put them on). He thinks he made them, because he pushed the start button a few times. In reality, I did most of the embroidery as it turned out to be an annoying one with only 4 colours but 20 thread changes! Reeeediculous. If only I could design my own embroideries... I forgot to take a closeup of the design so will try to do that in time for snap shot Sunday. These are called his "run fast shorts" as apparently they make him run fast, and do long long jumps. :)

I got Maddy's butt covered too with a very girly, princessy nappy for my very girly girl. I need to make quite a few more but the nanny hunt is taking up most of my energy at the moment with calls and interviews but still no nanny. I am exhausted by the end of the day and even the knitting has taken a back seat to going to bed early this week.

Oh and just look at HOW girly this precious princess is:

The kitten seems not to mind her feeding him her water (saying "Nigh-no... aaaaahhh"), or having books plonked on his head as she says "taaaaa", and he will happily knick off with her soft toys if she tries to share with him. I can just see her a little bit down the track dressing him in dolls clothes and pushing him around in her pram. I wonder where she gets that from.... (I have vague memories of taking our baby guinea pigs for rides in my trike when I was about two, and remember grease stained doll clothes from when the cat ran under the car to get away from me waving a bottle at him...)

Madelyn has been totally amazing us with her language skills of late. Just last week Austin and I were counting to ten as he was playing hide and seek with his Dad. We paused after 5, and Madelyn filled in 6, we said 7, then she said 8! We thought it was a fluke, but she happily repeated it and then had her grandmother shocked today when she went to pick her up and said one... two... then Madelyn finished "feeeeeeee"! She can also say arm, eye, ear, nose, and point to them on people (and kittens!), and she sounds so cute when she drops something and says "woopseee". She says "apple" a hundred times a day (the girl loves to eat and since apple and pear are the only fruit she can eat that has become a favourite word), and she tries "pear" occasionally. Tonight she was telling Austin "EAT Atty, eat, eat". She knows he never eats dinner so was saving me having to say it. Clever little girl, hard to remember she's only 14 months (tomorrow!) sometimes.

I nearly forgot- GIVE AWAY WINNER!!

The winner of my babyknit give away is.....

BECKY

who wrote:

What a wonderful giveaway, too generous really.I would love this set for my
friend who has just had a prem baby boy. She always said she would love to learn
to knit as she has fond memories of her gran knitting for her when she was a
child.

It was a close call really between Becky and Jodes - I nearly gave it to Jodes as her cousin and his wife are obviously wonderful people to be helping out with their nephew like they are, but as I wanted to make sure it went to someone who appreciates knitting, Becky's comment got the prize. I also have fond memories of knitting with my own grandmother. She is still around lucky for me, but I just don't get to knit with her much now as she won't drive to me, and her little unit isn't very child friendly so there is no time for knitting when i am keeping my kidlets out of trouble. I still remember beaming with excitement every time a soft squishy woolly parcel arrived from her when we were kids.

Becky since you are on both Rav and EB, probably best to PM me there - SkillySkally on Rav, jgal on EB. I hope your friend likes the set.

A very overdue blog post!

I know I haven't been blogging lately, but I have had an extra distraction. We picked up the teeny tiny Milo, just under 2w ago, and while he has us all completely besotted with him, he is also a little bit of a handful. Take a normal kitten, imagine how playful they are, then times that by 100, and that will give you some idea of what a cornish rex kitten is like!





Here he is the day we got him home. We treated him very gently as he was terrified for the first two or three days and wouldn't come out of the box we brought him home in.





I have been knitting though - I finished Madelyn's "In Threes" top all bar the buttons because with the weather we have been having lately it will be a while before we need warm woollies, and I hate sewing on buttons, so it will probably sit like this until it's cooler and I need to pick buttons. I was meant to finish the little tulip lace cotton top for her last month, but this was quicker and more suitable for tired eyes whilst getting back into a good rhythm starting back at work.

I also learned to crochet (thanks Mum) and Milo got my first couple of finished objects (seeing as I'm still learning and he really couldn't care less about how it looks). Here is a little mouse that started out as one of those jingle ball thingos but I crocheted a cover, added a tail, ears, eyes and nose and now it's a mouse.

I finally finished Madelyn's flirty skirty (which needed elastic, leg cuffs and blocking) - here it is blocking. I created the "cats paw" lace edge as I went, and did a ribbed elastic waistband because maddy pulls drawstrings undone but the rest is to pattern.

Oh and here is my first crocheted item ever, a door hanger cat toy, which is great for hooking over your wrist and flinging around since Milo is too little to reach it on our high door handles just yet.

I also tried out a baby sock pattern from "Boho Baby Knits". I love the look of it in the book but the sock itself is a little weird as it has a very pointy toe and heel. For some reason toddler sock patterns are like this (I have a couple of single socks from when Austy was this age because I didn't like the shape so they never got a pair made). However I do like the cute anklet style, so maybe there will be anothere one in time for cool autumn breezes.

I also dyed up more wool, some leftovers from some longies I made Austy years ago, and turned it into a curly purly soaker to be auctioned off to raise funds for Juvenile Diabetes Research over at Woolly Butts in March.

I made another in purple (leftover from the "In Threes" top) in a size small, but this one was my own pattern as I was too eager to cast on and couldn't wait for permission from Marnie (the curly purly designer) so figured if I designed my own I could do what I liked with it. When Marnie gave me permission to use her pattern I decided the boy one was in order. I will also sew up some matching tops to go with these.

I have been keeping busy with the kidlets on my days off, taking them to the zoo and local attractions, getting them out of the house. Oh and look at this - NO HANDS! Not the most flattering photo, but the only one I have managed to catch of Maddy walking so far. She's up and at 'em, walking as of Tuesday last week. (Keeping us on our toes!)

Not that this pic has anything to do with crafting, but my boy is certainly getting more spunky every day! He started kindy a couple of weeks ago and is totally loving it.

More cuteness here in the form of kitty pics - I did warn you they were coming!

He's settled in a lot better now, and plays with the kids, even coming up to snuggle with Madelyn and I while I feed her ready for bed. He's a mischevious little fellow though, stealing paper, small toys, dressmaking pins (eeep - straight out of the pincushion - so scared he'll swallow one or leave them somewhere for Maddy to get!), and even my embroidery scissors have been seen hanging from his mouth as he runs away!

He puts up with Austy smothering him with cuddles although isn't always happy about it, he watches curiously beside Maddy as she plays and he sleeps in our bed most of the time (except when his 2am antics get him locked in the ensuite for the night!)

(Please accept my apologies for the bittiness of this blog post - blogger wasn't in a good mood so I had to write it three times over and lost the flow...)