0 days of work left

until i go back that is. Today is my first day on leave and so far it's pretty great. I woke up early due to a small munchkin in my belly pushing on my bladder. After some toast and coffee I saw blue off to work, took a small nap and did some cleaning up of the house. Yup pretty exciting.
The midwife came over for a checkup too, all is well in the belly. I didn't end up getting a 3D scan last week as bubs was too big to get a good shot and of course facing inward which is good, just not for getting a nice shot of the little face.

A month or so ago it seemed like I had been pregnant FOREVER, but now that feeling of doom (and excitement) is setting in. Sh*t I'm gonna have a baby soon! Then we'll have a whole new set of issues to deal with. Bring it on I say. But give me at least a week to get some more nesting and readying of the house done. Like many first time moms I will probably go 2 weeks past my due date and be griping to get this thing out of me. I would like to deliver around the due date or a week before would be good I think.

Here is a pic of the bebe in my belly from 14 weeks ago! Yikes. The star is a bit bigger now, the outline not so thick. I think this afternoon I will take a walk and do some knitting, not necessarily in that order.

7 days of work left

4 this week and 3 the next. Can you tell I'm ready to be done with work? It's not the work that I mind really, my bosses have been pretty easy on me, it's just that having to be there all day... no laying down, no napping. I think a lot of women here in NZed finish work by 34 weeks or before. However back in the states it is more like right up until you give birth - crazy 'maricans. I'm about 35 weeks, so 5 weeks until the due date.

We had a little surprise at the midwife appointment on Friday. After a night of not sleeping that well and waking up feeling sore, we found out that baby has 'dropped' and it was definitely during the night because the day before I was having plenty of rib kicks! Seems a bit early, but I guess that just happens in some pregnancies. We're pretty sure the head is down, but to be certain and to check on the size I get an ultrasound next week, a 3D one at that. It will be cool to see bubs again, especially in 3D.

Blue has come and gone to the states. I missed him loads while he was gone and I had to take care of myself. He's treats me pretty good when he's here. A few times last week I got to nap after work while he started the fire and cooked dinner, just like a little elf! :D

He brought me back lots of baby things, much of which got laundered this weekend. And some yarn! I had ordered some lorna's laces shepherd worsted (which is washable and dyed beautifully) to make the baby chalice blanket (below). I'm really enjoying the yarn and the pattern is a cute and quick knit. I haven't made anything in worsted weight on size 10 needles in a very long time! It's a nice little treat!I've even had my wheel out lately too! I dug out some superwash merino I dyed last spring. I split it in half lengthwise and spun two bobbins, starting from opposite ends and then plyed them together. I dyed it to be a nice striping yarn, which I still think it will be, but I love watching colours blend together as I ply and that's why I decided to spin and ply it as I did! It's very bright (especially for me) but I think I'll be able to dream up a good project for it... maybe for a little girl?

handspun baby knits

This little gem is my most recent baby sweater. I used two different handspun yarns (one I was just able to eek out enough yardage)  and it's name is February Baby Sweater.

I had enough of the darker yarn to get two of these little aviatrix hats knit up in 2 sizes, the first one seemed just a bit small. Now all they need are some buttons! I picked some out but not sure if I like them or not, may have to double check and make sure there isn't anything better out there.

And this beauty was gifted to me by stella down in dunedin. She used some beautiful handspun perendale and it is oh so soft and lovely.

The immenent arrival of bubs is drawing nearer. I have less then 4 weeks of work left and have enough annual leave to take fridays off for those remaining weeks - hurray for 4 day work weeks!

fluffy kitty

I got this in an email from my mom (who is now the mom of my fluffy kitty).

These annoying robins keep flying into our windows over on the side of the house by our bedroom. They just go on and on thump thump thump. I cut out silhouettes of hawks and they stopped crashing in. Kitty thinks they are real birds and keeps reaching for them :)


Silly kitty.Hopefully mom doesn't mind I posted her email ;-) xo mom for loving my kitty (and feeding her... and scooping her poop).

3rd trimester blues

Well officially I have been in my 3rd trimester for a few weeks, but I am just now starting to feel it full on. My face is puffy, my ankles are swollen, I tire super easily and bending just keeps getting harder! I visited my midwife this morning and thankfully the swelling is just a bit of edema and nothing to be worried about.Blue and I had a long weekend away, probably our last one without a bubs. We went over to the west coast to Karamea. Luckily the sun was out and the weather was great while we were there. The first night we stayed at a backpackers about and hour south of Karamea called the old slaughterhouse. It was a charming place up the hill with ocean views, a comfy lounge, big warm log burner, and a nice kitchen. They make their own hydroelectric power on site so the fridge was small and the toaster was a stove top one! The owners were really nice and welcoming and we really enjoyed our stay.
Here are some of the Nikau palms that the area is known for:

okay, it can stop raining now

It seems like it has been raining for weeks on end now. And I guess it has, but to be fair we have had a few sunny days mixed in, a very few. I think it's starting to get to me, these antarctic blasts, they are so wet and also cold, and just keep coming one wave after an other. Supposedly tomorrow is the last day of it for the rest of the week. Let's hope it's the last for a few weeks.
I've been doing lots of knitting and spinning lately. I just finished up a 3 day class at the guild where I learned to make boucle and tweed and other designer yarn. It was cool and good to get me spinning again. Right now I have a few completed hanks soaking. Hopefully I'll have some pics soon, but with this weather it might take ages to dry.Here is a pic of the cute bonnet I just finished and the 5 hour baby sweater knit up with some organic cotton that maepress gifted me! The pooh bear and outfit were sent to us from blue's sister - so cute!!! The baby stuff is slowly starting to accumulate... soon enough it will be taking over our house!

Scoop fruits

We've been treated to some winter weather her in Christchurch. I forgot how wet and cold the winters tend to be! Luckily we are all moved into our new flat and LOVING the log burner and insulation. It's no secret that Christchurch has a smog problem - an urban area with lots of people heating their houses by fire combined with a location that locks in the smoke, makes for some pretty icky evenings and mornings (even wikipediea mentions it). But I can see why people like their fires - they are warm, much warmer than you can get with any of the various other options around (still haven't caught on to that whole idea of central heating yet... it may make it here one day).

Somewhat related to the smog issue, I found out this week that I have asthma. The previous 2 winters I ended up having a cough the whole season and figured it was related to cold and damp living conditions, apparently it's been asthma. So now I have an inhaler. Not sure how much it will help, but I'm hoping to cut down on the coughing. I feel bad for bubs, must be loud in there!One great thing about this time of year - feijoas! Yum! They are so tasty. A while back we had a bunch of passioinfruits too and one afternoon we sat around eating 'scoop fruits.' What fun.

200th post!

That stupid man cold turned into a nasty lady cold as well. It was not fun and I didn't get the decongestants the man did! Apart from a sporadic cough on my part everyone is feeling well and we are back on course. And I got lots of knitting done while I was sick!
I finally finished the stripey socks and think they look great (despite that at least 2 people asked me if they were for wearing around the house... I guess they won't be getting any hand-knit socks from me!).I also cast-on 2 socks on 2 circs and completed (that's the kicker) the no-purl monkey socks. I used some needlefood yarn I had in my stash. Needlefood is a new online sock yarn shop that my friend Michelle opened up at the begining of the month. It's a great shop and has everything you need to make beautiful socks! Check out the needlefood sock blocker displaying my perty socks!
And finally I've finished some baby items. Cutest of which include small booties and socks.
This weekend is moving weekend and we have been busy packing and avoiding packing. We are excited to get into an insulated house with a fireplace to keep us toasty (not to mention the dishwasher...)

man cold

We've got one of these in the house at the moment.

chocolate...yum

So the old cake was pretty good. Actually the chocolate truffle layers inside were still amazing. The cake itself... a little dry. The outter ganache... now slightly waxy. So yeah as a whole package it was alright, but much better the first time around. Now the tuna steak, that was GOOD. Yum!

What a year

It's hard to believe that a year ago today Blue and I tied the knot! We've had a very exciting and fun year. The next year is sure to bring us even more of the same!

I'm super excited to go out to a nice dinner tonight and I've been dreaming of the tuna steak on the menu. Tuna steak isn't very easy to come by here in NZed so I don't think I've had any in the last two years (maybe once when we went to oz...). And then maybe a nice cheesecake for dessert... if I have room.

We still have the top of our wedding cake from last year. Maybe I can have a slice of that to tide me over before dinner. I took it out the other night so it should be thawed by now. I'm a little scared of it, it is a year old. But apparently that cake that Elaine ate on Seinfeld was like 50 years old and she seemed to really enjoy that. I'll do my best to report back.

haircut time

I was long overdue for a haircut so I went in for a cute wee bob tonight. So far I really like it, but as always the true test is when you have to style it yourself. I was very specific and told the new (to me) stylist that I did not want messy top layers or a style that required a straight iron every morning. I'm way too lazy for that and would rather spend my time sleeping in the morning. Thanks to Millie for the recommendation!

Last time I got a new haircut someone down the hall got a similar one just a few days later...not cool. Hopefully I can be a loner at least for a little while with this one.Ohh, I also got new product (YES!) It's this stuff and I have high hopes for it.
I have been living a very riveting life lately, as you can tell.

Finally some knitting

I started on a few baby things over the weekend to distract me from the endless stockinette of my top. First I made the toadstool rattle by purl bee. It's a great quick little pattern. The rattle itself is a cat toy ball thingy -very clever. Blue has been really enjoying playing with this so I just might have to make a few more! It's also a great way to use up sock yarn scraps. Now all I have to do is finish some socks so I can use the scraps for more mushrooms.

After I finished the rattle I started in on this little ribbed cardigan that is knit from right sleeve to left. Another clever idea. I picked some sock yarn out of my stash for this project purchased from Kellie's destash, it's zen string loopy legends 'southwest sunset'. The colours seemed gender neutralish enough for me, but then started pooling pink. Ugh! Of all the colours to pool! I offset the yarn just a touch and may have taken care of the issue... I hate making more ends to sew it, but to avoid pink pools I'll do it!

hapu

As Kellie alluded to in the comments, I have been working on an extra special project. One that has been consuming all my energy and making me think more of cooking/eating than knitting or anything else. Isn't he/she cute? My mom thinks that little profile of a nose looks like me. Hee hee hee. This is my 12 week scan. Too early to tell the gender, but we aren't sure we want to find out anyway. I'm at the beginning of my second trimester so I am hoping my energy levels will soon return as will my knitting motivation. After all I've got a lot of little knitting to do now!

In knitting news I have seamed my smocked top and have started the endless stockinette body that is going to take FOREVER. Because it is going to be large enough to accommodate my hapu belly there are a lot of stitches and I would guess that it takes me a few minutes just to knit one round. Oh well. I should probably work on a few small baby items to keep me interested and then do the mindless stockinette when I need something extra mindless. Or maybe I should just get a monkey and teach it knit stitch? That sounds more exciting. As long as it isn't one of those cigar smoking monkeys, can't have that!

I'm still here...

Just quietly.
The summer is speeding along and I've got nothin' to show for it!
Well my smocked top is finally under way and the back section is almost finished. Hopefully within the next week the top sections will be merged (dreaded seaming!) and the endless stockinette body will be begin.And now that she is finally all cleaned up with wood and bearings oiled I can share my newest pet - Wendy! Ain't she perdy? Stella kindly sent me some nylon cord to give her a new driveband and so far she works like a charm. Well okay I haven't actually spun anything on her yet, but I gave her some treadles. Soon, on one of the not so hot days, I will pull out some wool and the yarn will be just as beautiful as the wheel!
I also sold one of my other wheels to Lucy. It wasn't getting much use here so I hope it is happier with her and Punky.

kickin' out the jam

Eh, not too much to say lately... Got some new drugs for migraines today. Hopefully I won't need them but it's good to know I have stuff to take if I need it. The GP said to be sure to keep hydrated and on those hot days I probably didn't do that very well so I'm going to be more conscience of it now and take my water bottle with me wherever I go!
Here's the yummy jam I made (with more than one of me reflecting in the jars). Below is the pan fried scone (a first) blue made complete with cream cheese and jam - a delicious Sunday morning treat.

black currants

I finally made my black currant muffins. They were pretty good, but not quite as good as a blueberry muffin (my fave). I think the brown sugar/butter crumble on top was really the best part.
Today I finally picked enough of them to make a batch of jam! And just in time because they seem to be on their way out. This time I decided to do it properly, sterilizing the jars/lids before hand and then sealing them in boiling water afterwards. Yeah I probably shoulda done that last time, but I didn't have proper jars so I made refrigerator jam. ;-) I used quite a bit less sugar (4.5 cups ish) than most recipes call for (6 cups to 1kg of berries - yikes). We had a tasting on crackers and cream cheese and I must say the jam is delish. Makes me want to pick another kg to make my stores last longer.
The veggie garden is also putting out crazy amounts of courgettes and beans at the moment. Oh and cucumbers - just enough for me to pick one as I'm headed to work and have it with my lunch. I miss the lettuce that bolted a while back, but tomatoes and peppers are on their way. Mmm fresh salsa!

I haven't been knitting or spinning much lately. It's been so hot...

Ahhh... much better

I am feeling much better! The migraine is gone and a southerly came through bringing cooler temps. ahhh...
Just before xmas I got a bunch of cool stuff from some friends that I meant to share, but didn't get around to. So I will now.
I got this amazing little felt fantail at the local knitting group's xmas ornament swap. Miss lucy made it just for me (blush) and I love it! I also love that it isn't xmas colours so I can keep it around all year without feeling shame. She has details about it here. Thanks Lucy!
I also picked up some destashed fabric and socks from Miss Millie. Unfortunately Millie moved up to Wellington over the holidays and was trying to unload some of her stash. I called dibs on the browniest of them and she revealed that she thought of me after putting it's very browness in a pile. I have just acquired a lovely (and hopefully working) sewing machine and am dreaming up some toy patterns to make with the fabric.

On the very same night that I receive both of these prizes Michelle surprised me with some burt's bees lotions that her husband brought back from Canadia. I was telling her of burt's greatness and how I miss their products and voila! They are handbag/knitting bag size too.
What nice friends I have!

miss misery

I'm alive, but just barely.
I haven't knit a stitch in weeks and am currently setting a personal record with a 3 day migraine (I blame the nor'wester). It was only 2 really good days of agony in the blistering heat (probably the only heat we'll get all summer!) and today is what I like to call a migraine hang-over. Still didn't feel well this morning, although not the agony that was, and pretty much stayed in bed all day. I was happy not to have the photophobia part too bad so at least I could read today and watch a little tennis on the tele.

Blue has been most wonderful taking care of me and picking up around the house as I have been completely useless in all respects. I've been longing to bake some black currant muffins (our bush is abounding with fruits). Do you think if I get the ingredients prepped and maybe measured I can convince blue to bake them? It would have to be later in the evening though when the heat isn't so fierce.

We got back almost a week ago from our trip to the north island. It was lovely up there and there are lots of photos to sort through. Maybe blue will do that after he bakes those muffins...

For lack of other photos on the computer at the moment, here is the smocked top I started before xmas:

Better than George Costanza

You know that Seinfeld episode where George is bragging to Elaine about what a good parallel parker he is and as he is yammering on the guy that called Jerry a phony tries to snag the spot by pulling into it? Then they sit there both half in the spot, blocking traffic and miss the big fight they were going to watch at Jerry's.

Well, last night we went downtown to meet up with some friends and I was lucky enough to find a spot less than a block away from the bar we were headed to. There was 2 people standing in the spot as I approached and I wasn't sure if they were crossing the street, trying to get to the car parked in front of the spot or what. So I pulled up and past the spot to do a parallel park job and the pedestrians ended up crossing the street behind me. So after they crossed, I looked back preparing (but not bragging like George) to pull into the spot and what do I see? Someone with their signal on trying to pull in nose first! So I says to myself, oh no they don't and I whipped into that spot, quick as lightning, one fell swoop, no need to adjust forward or backward, put her in park, shut off the car, and off we went to enjoy our evening. Apparently I'm quite good at parking under pressure and unlike George, I only brag about it after the fact!

(I couldn't find a pic of the parking space episode so I went with this gem! )