Baby Hat

Happy Sunny Sunday!

Jeremy and I have had a really relaxing and productive weekend. We enjoyed some time together, catching up on Mad Men. We mostly just hung around the house, except last night, when we headed over to my sister's to watch Sofia so that Em and Tony could have a night out together. (Do not worry family, pictures of Sofia are coming up soon.)

We have friends, Ian and Lynn. Ian is one of Jeremy's oldest and best friends. They go way back to the days of hanging out in Jeremy's parent's basement. Jeremy and Ian are a part of a group of five or six guys who have been hanging out, playing video games, watching SO MUCH ESPN, and drinking until the wee hours of the morning since high school.

Lynn started dating Ian when she was still in high school. She was the first of the wives to be introduced to this group. She is a trooper and has made a very good den mother to these yahoos.

Now, in a few short weeks, Ian and Lynn are expecting their first baby. They have decided not to find out the gender of the baby. I wanted to make a little something for the baby, and decided to knit a hat. I found a pattern on Ravelry, a knitting website, and set to work.

Since they don't know the gender, I went with an oatmeal type color. I used a knitting pattern that is ribbed, so it will stretch and the baby will be able to wear it longer.

Here's a picture of it completed.

And, since baby hats look cuter ON babies, I used Sofia as a hat model. 

This hat is small enough for a newborn but has enough stretch to fit a 9 month old. The fold adjusts so that the length can grow as the baby's grows. The hat can actually be worn without a fold when the baby's head is too long.

Emily loved the hat, so I am going to get started on one for Sofia. I think that I will make her hat a little longer so it has a fold and it covers her ears well (and will continue to fit in the fall).

Here's a cute picture of Sofia and her Uncle Jeremy.

And now, a quick update on my 27 list. I have been making good progress.

1. Finish changing my name on all documents. (I sort of stalled mid-change)-some progress has been made
2. Write four three two more blog posts featuring a craft.
3. Finish a knitting project for a friend's new edition. 
4. Run 27 22.5 14 miles.
5. Update information for my Illinois teaching certificate.
6. Four three two weekly visits to the dog park with Mosby.
7. Use a new pattern to make a fun Spring skirt for myself.
8. Clean out my (and Jeremy's) closets.
9. Donate items to Goodwill.
10. Try one new food.
11. Call Haley.(Hal, hopefully this weekend!!)
12. Do some landscaping on the back patio. (Even though we rent, it's nice to maintain for guests.)
13. Purchase the graduation gift I've been eyeing for a certain grad.
14. Catch up on Mad Men.
15. Visit Maggie (and Michael and Grace).
16. Organize my craft room.
17. Purchase a few needed items for our home (including a new pillow for Jer).
18. Take one instagram photo a day. So far, so good.
19. INSIST that I watch Sofia while my sister and Tony go out on a date. 
20. Formally introduce Jeremy to Moscow Mules. (I mentioned them here.)
21. Ask for a recommandation, buy, and listen to an album of a new band. (Feel free to leave me a comment with a recommandation!)  Thanks, Lizzy, for recommending The Civil Wars. They are awesome.
22. See The Godfather. 
23. Call my Gram.
24. Finish The Paris Wife. SO GOOD! 
25. Change my blog heading. 
26. Start our honeymoon photo album.
27. One random act of kindness.

Have a great week!

Until next time, keep crafting!

SB

Helping Hands

Two weeks ago, Jeremy and I were heading back home from spending time at my sister's house with my grandma and aunts. I was looking forward to an afternoon nap, Jeremy was looking forward to watching some basketball.

I was driving south on Western Avenue, which is one of the busier streets in Chicago. We were almost to the Western/Diversey/Elston intersection when we spotted a beagle running down the street, heading right for this very busy intersection. 

I told Jeremy to hop out and try to get to the dog before he got to the intersection. By the time I parked the car, the dog had safely made it through the intersection, but Jeremy was stuck at a red light. 

When we made it across the intersection, we found the dog in a gas station parking lot, where two guys were trying to corral him. I bought a stick of beef jerky and we calmed the dog down enough to lay down and let me pet him. He was terrified, and wet and cold from running through the slush.

The guys called animal control, but had to leave. Luckily, a girl getting gas spotted us and had a friend who works for an animal rescue shelter, Furever Rescue. She called her friend, Natalie, and Natalie started working to find someone to pick up the dog. 

We waited about an hour and a half with that little guy. People were so kind. Everyone asked if he was OK. People gave us towels and blankets and helped us wrap him up.

Natalie couldn't find anyone to pick him up, so she came herself. She asked us to name him, and we chose Elston, after one of the streets in the intersection. 

Natalie brought him to the vet and sent us pictures and updates throughout the evening. The next day, we agreed to foster him until a family could be found.

Then, fate (and social media) stepped in. Jeremy had shared the story of finding Elston with some people from work. When he shared it with one girl, she said that her husband follows a Facebook group, Lost Dogs Illinois (see link here). A beagle named Snoopy had broke out of his collar in her neighborhood, just north of where we found the dog.

Jeremy checked the picture, and sure enough, Elston was actually Snoopy! Jeremy called the owner. She was so relieved! She started crying, thanking Jeremy, and telling Snoopy's story.

Snoopy had just been adopted 3 weeks earlier. He was an abused dog that was abandoned because he wasn't good at hunting. He was so scared, he wouldn't let anyone but his new owner near him. 

Natalie brought Snoopy home. I spoke to the owner a couple days later. She said that Snoopy was doing great. Through the whole ordeal, he had actually become LESS nervous, and was letting others pet him.

Jeremy and I were so glad that we were able to help, and feel so grateful to Furever Rescue and Lost Dogs Illinois for getting Snoopy home safely!

Now for helping my hands stay warm on our SLOW transition from winter to spring, I knitted some fingerless gloves this week. I used the leftover yarn from my scarf.

I followed the directions from this youtube video.

They were pretty quick and easy to whip up. Each glove took about 2 hours for me to do. They turned out pretty cute!

I am on Spring Break the next two weeks. I've already enjoyed the slower pace, and am looking forward to sleeping in, seeing friends, and visiting my parents.

Until next time, keep crafting.

SB

Love: Infinity Scarf

During the month of February (and now March), I've decided to create a series of posts based on the different real life love stories that inspire me. I'll be featuring friends and family, and their different types of love.

Without really thinking about it, I picked the perfect month to feature love on my blog. The theme started off because February is, of course, the month of Valentine's Day.

What I hadn't considered at the beginning of February is how much I would be seeing my family and how they carried me through a very difficult and stressful month at work, simply by being around.

I started working on this scarf in January, right about when things started to get stressful at work. I actually started working on it the last time we saw my parents before they went on their yearly winter trip (this time to Florida and Dominican Republic).

I continued to work on the scarf as we took our trip to Texas to see Jeremy's sister and family. I took a break from the scarf and the stress of work on this trip. 

I feel so lucky that I ended up with a second family (in-laws, if you will), that make me feel so at ease, relaxed, and carefree.

My cousin, Kristen, and her son, Colton came to stay with Emily, Tony, Sofia, Jeremy, and I the next weekend. I picked Kristen and Colton up from the airport after a particularly disastrous meeting at end of a Friday. Had Kristen and Colton not been in town, my weekend probably would have been spent wallowing.

But, after Kristen, Em, and Tony lent a sympathetic ear, the weekend was spent having fun, hanging out together at Emily's.

And spending time at the Children's Museum at Navy Pier.

I also have been helping out a couple evenings a week with Sofia. Tony is out of the country with his family, and it's truly been the highlight of my weeks to spend evenings with Sofia. (Plus her early bedtime has given me a lot of time for knitting.)

Last weekend, I spent time with friends that have become family.

Maggie's husband, Mike and daughter, Grace, with Sofia.

And my Gram, Aunt Cindy, and Aunt Judy came into town for the day on Sunday. Emily hosted with a fabulous brunch. We spent time laughing at Sofia grabbing ice cubes out of Aunt Cindy's drink and enjoying watching Sofia grow.

And all month (really almost two months now), there has been Jeremy. Always quietly stepping up to the plate, ready to back me up when I need it the most. Taking care of the dog, grocery shopping, making meals, always there, quietly helping.

Things are getting better at work; they've just started looking up this week, just as I was finishing my scarf.

Fittingly, the scarf has some unexpected twists and turns (from a knitting error I made, it's more of a figure 8 than a circle), and things at work has taken an unexpected twist with a slightly different role than I was expecting.

But, with the love of my family, everything turned out just fine.

Thank you family!

Until next time, keep crafting.

SB