Boy booties and girl booties are all ready for the big news. Any guesses? Watch this space Thursday afternoon for the answer!

The boys are so excited about finding out. S is sure it's going to be a girl and B is saying boy. When I told them that we'd see who's right on Thursday, S looked at B and said 'no switching.' They tend to cheat and change their answer once they see what wins. Silly boys.

They learned how to play baseball this weekend.

running to first with daddy

coming home!

Wouldn't a little brother be great for them? Then again, if I had a little girl, I could knit something like this for her.

snapped on a camera phone in a DC baby boutique

I can't wait to find out!

After working hard all last week on design stuff, I treated myself to a little baby knitting. Nothing'll cheer you up like hugs and kisses.

can you tell that my gauge tightened up between pieces?

I finished the new back and then took out few rows from the first back and added neck shaping to make it the front. And now that pink blobby thing is on the back.

little blob hiding above the back ribbing

The baby will never see it!

[Remember, this is not for my baby. I still have to wait two more days to know if I should make another pink hugs and kisses sweater for my little one. This one is for a friend's baby, who is already here and waiting patiently on her sweater!]

Well, I'm a week behind in my goal to knit a hat a week for Caps 4 Kids during my beginning knitting class. I'm just finishing the first hat - a striped Harry Potter hat. This Patons Classic Merino fcomes in great Gryffindor colors, don't you think?

I'm tempted to knit the second hat as a long striped stocking cap with a pom-pom on top. This is too fun!

And the ultrasound says...

So glad I went back and made some decent twisted cord for those pink booties!

S was very excited to hear that he was right. And, as predicted, B switched and said he wanted a girl too.

Check out what I'm working on next....

click to find out!

Button and other niceties to come later. Send me an email or leave a comment here if you want to join!

I couldn't resist the girl-baby knitting any longer! After seeing Jess Hutch's knitted robots on the cover of the new Craft magazine, I remembered the little knitted toy pattern book she published last year (it's out of print now, so sorry, I don't know where you can get it anymore), flipped through it, and found this pattern for an adorable little dolly.

A quick trip to the yarn store and I was back home with Classic Elite Bazic in the perfect colors!

A few hours with the Knitsmiths and I had the little body almost done! She's so cute, I can barely stand it. Next up, buying some safety eyes and starting her little yellow dress!

In fact, Knitsmiths was a flurry of doll-making this weekend. Lisa was working on Jess Hutch's Kate doll from Knitty and Johanna was getting started on this cow doll (with crocheted udder!!) from a Bouton D'Or pattern book. What fun!

Okay, so going to the Topsfield Fair on the last day it's open, on Columbus Day, and on an unusually beautiful, sunny and warm day was not the best idea. Let's just say, there were a few other people who had the same plan. We were in line to pull into the parking lot for 1 1/2 hours. Plenty of time to take some pictures of the fall scenery.

When we finally made it in, the boys knew where they wanted to go.

Four rides on the fun slide! Then, off to see the funny pumpkins.

A few bunny rabbits, a cow or two, some ice cream and it was back to the rides.

It's nice when the boys get a day off school and can spend it with mommy again.

I'm so confused this week! First there was the holiday on Monday, which had me thinking it was Tuesday on Monday (who caught that on my Monday post?) and that it was Monday on Tuesday (missed a meeting with B's teacher - doh!). Then yesterday I spent the whole day with the boys' classes on their first school field trip. They got to ride a school bus for the very first time!

They went apple picking and got to do everything you'd expect, like pick apples, feed farm animals, take home a pumpkin, and eat apples all day long (B's got a new loose tooth now!). It was great!

But now it feels like my week is starting all over again. Is today Thursday or Monday? I can't wait for the weekend to restart my internal calendar.

(Two posts today! I gotta make up for yesterday, I know.)

Poor Dolly still has no eyes - I just can't seem to be able to find the time to get over to the crap store to buy some (see my previous post) - but I did manage to knit her little limbs.

It's kinda cool making baby parts on a doll while making baby parts in the womb as well. Here's how wee one's little limbs are coming along.

Future knitter's hands maybe?

I finally got down on the floor this week and started cutting out pumpkin pattern pieces for the boys' costumes.

I even brought all the fabric down last night to start pinning and cutting fabric, but then discovered that the boys had built a giant train track across the whole living room floor while I was getting their bath ready before bed. I couldn't take it all apart when they only got to play with it for a few minutes. So the actual pumpkin pieces will have to wait another day or two. Keeping our priorities straight here, you know.

wish I were so excited about cutting all that fabric!

Finally, I found the time and floor space to cut out all the pumpkin costume pieces. The boys were so curious about the process, they kept coming over to watch what I was doing. It was a lot of cutting, so they watched Charlie & Lola shows in between visits to mommy hunched over on the floor.

An hour and a half and one big scissor bruise under my thumb later, and ta da... all the makings of pumpkin guys!

twenty-six pieces to make just two pumpkins

Dolly is done! Lucky for me, fellow Knitsmith Ariel had just the right eyes to finish her off. (You know, those safety eyes are hard to come by! I think she found them on the website Jess Hutch recommends in her Kate pattern.)

Knitting dolly was fun. The tiny parts went fast. Sewing on the limbs was a little tricky, but I just kept at it, trying to get the legs parallel to each other so they would look even. And once I got those eyes on, it was like she was a little person. Seriously, it felt so weird to have my hands in her head tying yarn ends once she had those shiny black eyes looking out at me.

Oooh, you gotta see what Rabid Crafter sent me! These are the cutest booties ever....

she's posted a link with pattern info here

They're crocheted booties that look like mary janes with little ruffled socks. Aren't they adorable?! Thanks so much - I love them. And they were a huge hit at Knitsmiths. I hope they'll ooh and ahh that much when the baby comes!

And speaking of the little girl:

belly at week 19

Anyone remember this scarf from this summer? I started knitting it for the store back in June and then got pulled away by design work until now. Since it's now time to be knitting scarves and selling warm, fuzzy angora yarns, it was time to finish up this scarf and get it in the store!

oooh, blocking lace is fun!

Making this scarf was really great. The Angora Extra is super soft (the bunnies on the label are sooo cute!) and the lace pattern (from Ella Rae Book Two) is a basic pattern that only has two different lace rows and was easy peesy to learn. I'd definitely recommend the scarf as a good first lace project to beginners (or lazy experienced knitters like me!).

And it's just so darn pretty!

Purpley is all finished, just in time for Rhinebeck (now watch, it won't be sweater weather again this year!). I'm very pleased with how this sweater came out. I couldn't quite convince myself of the practicality of knitting a maternity sweater, but as I already had this sweater half done on the needles and it was coming out a little roomy, it seemed like a no-brainer to finish it up and wear it as a maternity sweater. And since I'd made it a smidge longer than the pattern called for, it's just the right length now to let a little baby bump poke out the bottom.

Overall, I enjoyed this Ella Rae pattern, although I have made several alterations to it. And although the Debbie Bliss cotton angora yarn is admittedly a strange animal (it does shed and it's rather limp), I can't help but really like it. It's so warm and fuzzy! And it's perfectly purpley for covering my girl-filled pregnancy belly.

Gotta have a special project for the ride to Rhinebeck. And it's got to be a new project for the baby, right? And what could be more perfect for the baby than this pink/purple speckled Koigu?

Koigu P703

I'm making a simple garter stitch baby cardigan that we have as a store pattern. (It looks sort of like this Debbie Bliss Garter Stitch Jacket but in a finer gauge. I'm thinking of running a ribbon through it like Debbie Bliss does in this little matinee coat from her Baby Cashmerino 2 book.) Our sample is knit up in a yellowy-orange speckled Koigu and every week when I go to work, I think, that is just one cute infant sweater. So I caved.

I love the subtle pink hue behind all those fun purple blotches. And, of course, the occasional bright blue speckles are my favorites!

See you at Rhinebeck in my purple sweater, knitting the baby's purple sweater....

Back from Rhinebeck where it was all about Socks that Rock and being a square. And I didn't participate in either.

I just wanted to run by and yell, "don't believe the hype!"

This was the line at the Socks that Rock stand about 15 minutes after the fairgrounds opened: 30 people, each with at least 5 skeins in their arms. And supposedly the line stayed like that all day. Crazy!

After checking out the STR insanity, we moved on to things I really wanted to get. Like Jamie Harmon's amazing hand-dyed angora. Last year I got her angora to make this funky hat. This year I got yarn to make this little baby hat for wee one on the way.

this is soooooo soft!

And I picked up some extra in the same colors to make a hat for me too. Awwww. Then it was on to another favorite: Shelridge Farm, where I was reminded of a cutie patootie baby bonnet pattern of theirs that Lisa, Johanna and I fell in love with last year.

Lucy Neatby's Domino Baby Bonnet

I've got some Lorna's at home that'll be perfect for it! I did still pick up some Shelridge Farm Soft Touch Ultra for a tiny, lacy sweater for wee one to wear home from the hospital. And a skein of their worsted weight for a design idea. I couldn't find a sweater of theirs that I was desperate to make, so I'll just have to make one of my own!

And then we drifted....

I found this so funny, I kept repeating this title all day long. Just ask Johanna!

love that color - and it's not even yarn yet

sweest baby hat at the fair

Kate Gilbert's baby was in the best baby sweater at the fair, by the way. I didn't get a pic because I only caught a glimpse of her at the knitblogger meetup which was a mob scene. Oh and no, I'm not a square (sorry, Rhinebeck Bingo players). I am lame.

price list at the cashmere stand - check out that last item

a super bulky Kate

After about 6 hours at the fair, we spent about 4 hours at Morehouse Merino's shop. Here's what I got...

naaah, this is the sale yarn in the store - cool, huh?

We shopped, ate a ton free refreshments (we are pregnant, you know!), then Johanna and I grabbed a sofa by the laceweight and sat and knitted and told everyone we saw to knit a lace shawl like my Melody's shawl. (Look for me, Jess and Maya to be making the exact same shawl in the near future!)

making babies, selling laceweight

Finally, it was off to the Marriott to meet up with lots of knitbloggers and knitbuds for a knitting and spinning party in the lobby.

a couple of my all-time favorite people, Leigh and Sandy

I worked on my garter stitch baby sweater, getting all the way to the front panels.

she came home almost all done - watch for the finished pics soon!

And last, but not least, we stopped by Colorful Stitches in Lenox on the way home on Sunday to check out a little sale we heard they had going on. I got two baby sweaters' worth of yarn (one in Jaeger Matchmaker DK, one in Mission Falls 1824 Wool) for a total of $26!

thanks Peta for the tip!

And then we came home and showed all our loot to the Knitsmiths. Cause no one else would really understand.

The Gryffindor striped HP hat - now a knitting staple for me. I know it's still eight months until the next movie comes out (and lord, well JK, knows how long until the next book), but I can't help but think about HP knits. I think it's the beginning of fall and starting to think about Christmas knits again. You know, S is going to need a new red Weasley to go with B's new blue one and I'll have another mini-weasley ornament to make by this time next year. But for now, Harry Potter caps for kids are my focus.

I'm hoping another kid will be more excited about the hat than S here

I've got a metric ton of the Patons Merino left over, so if I can squeeze it in before the end of November, I'm totally doing a stocking cap version for my next hat. With a pompom or a tassel. I've never made a tassel. I can't be any worse at it than I am at pompoms, right?

S may not have been so thrilled about trying on the hat, but B's gotten into the fun, making a magic wand with his playdough the other day.

And Ruth mentioned to me at Rhinebeck this weekend that she posted her pattern for House Gloves. Check 'em out - she put Slytherin colors on the middle finger!

My project Rhinebeck baby sweater was almost done - just a little picot edging to do - and I had a good bit of Koigu leftover from the last skein, soooo I thought some matching booties would be perfect. I searched for a good all garter stitch pattern and serendipitously found Kelley's post on the Baby Bumpers blog with Debbie Bliss' garter stitch booties from her Quick Baby Knits book. Hey, I've even got that book - awesome!

I cast on, knit, knit, knit (okay, I'm getting bored with the garter stitch) and it's coming out humongous. So I decided to put the bootie on hold for a bit and start the picot edging on the sweater. Then I find that the edging, in additon to taking forever to do, is eating up yarn like, well, like I eat up stuff these days really.

So bye bye bootie. I pick pretty picot over a big bootay any day!

Let the pumpkin sewing begin!

first long seams down the body

armhole openings at the sides

closing up the circle

empty pumpkin shell waiting for a little person

The boys are going to decorate the faces on their own. We've got some black felt and fabric glue and they're going to cut out triangles and mouth shapes and stick them on by themselves. Can't wait to see how that comes out!!

Next up for me is all the elastic around the top and bottom and then the leaf collar and stem hood. The leaf is the boys' favorite part.

They're so excited!

wide shot

closer....

picot and ribbon

Oh my, that picot edge went slowly! Four hours at least. I don't believe I spent more than twice that amount of time knitting the whole rest of the sweater! I do really like it though, all pretty and picot-y. And I found the ribbon at Colorful Stitches this weekend, all purpley and velvety.

Oooh, I think I'm getting into this girl knitting!

The boys are in school already, so the ironing board had to stand in as model, but here's the weekend progress on the costumes. The pumpkin bodies are all done (thanks to hubby spending an hour threading the elastic through the casings!) and I'm down to just finishing the green parts. The leaf needs elastic still and then I've got the stem hoods to sew. We're getting there!

The Halloween costumes are done! Yesterday after school the boys cut out felt face parts.

how cute is it to see your kids be crafty?!

We put the pumpkins back up on the ironing board and the boys stuck the eyes and mouths on just the way they wanted them. Aren't they great? They drew those mouths all by themselves!

S made a nice pumpkin

B wanted a mean pumpkin

I did my part by finishing the hoods last night while they were sleeping (and while watching "While You Were Sleeping"). The boys woke up this morning and couldn't wait to try them on.

Pictures of pumpkin boys tomorrow!

The costumes came out super cute, but with the stuffing, the boys just became tooth-achingly sweet. They thought it was so funny when I started stuffing them and they were "getting all fat". They ended up with big bellies and poofy butts that would waddle with them as they walked. It was too adorable. Hubby and I laughed our whole way through the neighborhood behind them!

pumpkin on the way

To get in on the fun, I followed Freecia's suggestion and put a little pumpkin face on my little baby bump. Baby even had her own tiny pumpkin candy basket, just big enough for a mini-reeses peanut butter cup and a milk dud or two. Yum!

"Okay, let's go get candy!"