Instant Gratification FO!

Giant projects like the blankie are wonderful in their own way - they are very satisfying in the long term, that's for sure. In the mean time, I needed a little instant gratification, and I also needed to keep my hands warm. We live in an old house with some drafty windows, and normally it's not much of a problem, but the temperatures have been sub-zero F all week.

I started these fingerless mitts on Friday afternoon, took this picture of the first one on Saturday morning:



And Joe took this picture of the finished pair this morning. What a quick knit, and I'm wearing them right now.



Here are the stats.

Yarn is Aisha Celia Designs wool - somewhere between sport and worsted weight handspun. Size three needles. The pattern is by my friend Jean Christensen and is available at the Yarnery. This is a great little pattern - perfect for a quick gift, a great way to use a single small skein of yarn.

I do plan to get back on the blankie wagon tonight, but there is another small project on the horizon for this week. One of Julie's little friends, M, has had her eyes on Julie's felted clogs since I knit them, and asked her mother in the sweetest way to knit her a pair. M's mom does know how to knit, but still hasn't finished the socks I helped her start some time over the summer. Well, she hasn't made it to the heel on the first sock yet. I want M to have the clogs while she can still get some use out of them this winter (because M is a sweet child and deserves nice warm feet). I also don't want M's mom to be frustrated with the fiddly short-rows that comprise this pattern, along with all the weird picking up and knitting together involved. It's hard to have a knitting lesson while watching four kids at the same time. Mostly, it's wonderful to knit something for someone you care about and will appreciate it, and these will only take me a couple of evenings to whip up.

Here are some pictures of our quiet weekend at home. The girls love helping me fold the diapers.



The diapers are looking pretty ratty. These are the diapers that I bought before Julie was born, and we've washed them at least once a week since then, so it's no surprise that they're falling apart. They are still functional, though, and nobody sees them under the clothes.



The girls sometimes play together so well, it just makes my heart melt. Julie was helping Sophie open this box so she could play with some blocks. I don't even think the word "MINE!" was used once during this conversation.



I stuck my head around the corner this afternoon and saw this scene. This is so typical for weekends around here. So sweet.




And, of course, Julie says "Take my picture too!"



Now, excuse me while I sit and watch the Superbowl commercials. We videotaped it especially so I could skip through the boring parts and watch the good stuff. Oh, and there was the whole missing the second half because of dinner and bedtime. I can't believe I'm admitting this next part to the world, but we saw a Pizza Hut commercial with the cheezy pocket crust. We hate Pizza Hut, but right now we are waiting for our cheezy crust pizza to show up so we can eat it.