Yarn Along

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Jacinta

Joining in with Ginny from Small Things.

Still knitting away on the Beyond Puerperium.  I have finished the body, just deciding if I will do short or long sleeves, then some buttons need to be picked out.

I have some lovely Noro that I have recently added to my stash.  I few weeks back,  I thought I had lost Jairah’s knitted hat and after searching for over a week, decided to buy some more yarn to make another.  Can you guess where this is going?  Of course, after buying the Noro (costs a small fortune over here), I found his hat.  It had been put up on top of a cupboard and obviously I hadn’t looked that high up!  Anyway, now I need to find a project to use the two balls of Noro.  Maybe another cowl?  Not sure yet.  May look at Ravelry for some inspiration.

As for reading.  I finished The Kashmir Shawl, by Rosie Thomas.  I can’t say I loved the book, maybe liked?  I found myself reading it, just to finish it.  I think it had too much in the way of affairs outside of marriages for me to find the book captivating, more sad if anything.  Anyway, I bought another book on Kindle this week, called Fields of Corn by Sarah Price.  It’s a good old Amish story, so should be quite a contrast from The Kashmir Shawl!  I’ve only just started it, so haven’t formed an opinion on it so far.

Can’t wait to see what you have all been creating this week.  Jacinta x

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A Tooth Fairy Visit

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Jacinta

Our sweet Tenneille was getting so desperate to loose a tooth.  I think there was pressure in the form of a tooth chart at school, where the teacher has been writing the amount of teeth each child has lost.  Thankfully for Tenneille, a tooth was finally loose.  There was some industrious tooth wobbling going on over the course of a few days.  The tooth ended up falling out at school.  The precious little bundle came home and placed beside Tenneille’s bed, ready for that magical tooth fairy to pay her visit.  Of course the tooth fairy’s helper hadn’t counted on the tooth coming out as soon as it did, so with some panicked creative thinking, a forgotten stash of some art supplies came to mind.  Coupled with with some gold coins and a special note, the tooth fairy had a lovely little stash to hand over to a peacefully sleeping girl.

The thank you letter to the tooth fairy

Suffice to say, Tenneille awoke the next morning, very excited to find her fairy loot.  Bless her heart, she wrote the tooth fairy a letter back to say thank you for her gifts.  What does the tooth fairy leave in your household?  Jacinta

Posted in Family Life | Tagged , | 5 Comments

This Moment

Posted on August 17, 2012 by Jacinta

From Soulemama {this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – some words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.  A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

I love your moments too.  So feel free to leave a link in the comment section for us all to see.  Have a beautiful weekend.  Jacinta x

Posted in Family Life, This Moment | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Yarn Along

Posted on August 15, 2012 by Jacinta

Joining in with Ginny from Small Things.

I’m so excited to say my mystery project from last week is finished!  I called it Sweet Memories Cowl.  Very happy with how it came up.  The Zara Chiné yarn is so lovely and soft, perfect for against your neck, no hint of scratchiness.  I posted about it here.  It is also listed as a free pattern on Ravelry , I am excited to say, as it is my first ‘published’ project.  Let me know if you try the pattern out.  I’d love to see pictures too!

I’m still working on the Beyond Puerperium that I originally started for a friend’s baby, that ended up too big.  It will be Jairah’s once finished.

As for reading, still plugging away at, The Kashmir Shawl.  I’m trying to sneak in any reading time possible, as it is starting to get interesting.  While at the library with the kids the other day, I came across, Anne Frank by Susanna Davidson.  I was drawn to all the photos.  It is written for the younger reader, so it should be a quick read.

Can’t wait to see what you have all created this week.  Jacinta x

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Sweet Memories Cowl Pattern

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Jacinta

I’m so excited to share with you my Sweet Memories Cowl pattern.  It was my mystery project from Yarn Along last week.  Best of all, it’s free!  It’s nice and easy and knits up quickly.  It is long enough to wrap two or three times.  I think cowls are now my go-to gift for those special people in my life.  This one is destined to keep a very dear friend toasty warm.

Sweet Memories Cowl – By embracingitall

Suggested yarn:

Zara Chin̩ 50g 8ply РThis pattern used 1 1/2 balls
or any 50g/1.75oz 8ply yarn with approximately 125mt/136.5yds  per ball will give you a similar outcome

Needle size:

5mm/8US circular needle 80-100cm in length

Finished Dimensions 

Your finished cowl will measure approximately 150cm (60″) total circumference, by 13cm (5″) in width.

Abbreviations:

k – knit
p – purl
yo – yarn over
m – m
pm – place marker
c0 – cast off

Pattern:

Cast on 200 stitches, pm.
Round 1: Join in the round, k all sts to m
Round 2: k
Round 3: p
Round 4: k
Rounds 5-10: yo, k2tog, repeat to m
Round 11: k
Round 12: k
Round 13:p
Round 14: k
Rounds 15-20: yo, k2tog, repeat to m
Round 21: k
Round 22: k
Round 23: p
Round 24: k
Round 25-30: yo, k2tog, repeat to m
Round 31: k
Round 32: p
Round 33: k
Round 34: k
CO stitches loosely.  Wash and block cowl to desired shape.

Sweet Memories Cowl – By embracingitall

 

Sweet Memories Cowl – By embracingitall

Feel free to leave a link to your finished project in the comments section.  I’d love to see your version of the cowl.  Happy knitting!  Jacinta x

Posted in Craft, Knitting, Patterns | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

This Moment

Posted on August 10, 2012 by Jacinta

From Soulemama {this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – some words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.  A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

I love your moments too.  So feel free to leave a link in the comment section for us all to see.  Have a beautiful weekend.  Jacinta x

Posted in Family Life | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Brrrrr

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Jacinta

Talk about crazy winter weather today!  Rain, snow, sleet, hail more rain more hail (you get the picture).  Usually we just contend with a lot of rain and fog in winter, but today Mother Nature certainly mixed it up.  Even Cardamon spent more time than usual asleep (he certainly makes a nice furry heat pack).  I’m already tucked up in bed, as it is the warmest place to be in this kind of weather.  Will be interesting to see what tomorrow brings, until then, at least I know I will be snug as a bug!

After one of the many hail storms

He is kind of hard to knit around!

For all you lovelies in the Northern Hemisphere that have been sweltering though a hot summer, I hope this post makes you feel a little cooler!  Jacinta x

Posted in Seasons | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Yarn Along

Posted on August 8, 2012 by Jacinta

Joining in with Ginny, or should I say Ginny’s hubby this week, from Small Things.

My photo is a little on the mysterious side this week, as I am working on a gift for a friend.  I’m using Zara Chiné which is a gorgeous merino wool.  It is so soft to work with and I am loving the denim colour, which has a slight fleck of colour through it.  I’m excited to say I am using my own pattern, which I will share once my project is complete.

I have had good intentions of reading my book, Small Wonders by Barbara Kingsolver, but the truth be told, I am turning into a Kindle (on my iphone) gal.  I often don’t get a chance to read until it is lights out for the night and at least I can sneak in a couple of pages on my phone before my eyes start drooping!  Hence I bought a new Kindle book this week, The Kashmir Shawl, by Rosie Thomas.  It’s about a woman, Mair, who goes on a journey to try and find out more about a shawl which belonged to her grandmother, whom she never met.  I am only a little way in, but fingers crossed I like it, I mean it’s kind of about knitting, so that has to account for something, doesn’t it!  The front cover is pretty too, for me, that goes a long way.  Has the design of a book’s front cover ever enticed you to purchase it?

Can’t wait to see what all you talented women have been up to this week.  Jacinta x

Posted in Books, Craft, Knitting, Yarn Along | Tagged , | 16 Comments

Winter Wonderland

Posted on August 7, 2012 by Jacinta

At the beginning of winter, we promised the kids we would take them to the snow.  After watching the snow report for a good month, we figured Monday was the day.  The kids were so excited all morning and I will admit now, it was a long two hour drive to Mt Baw Baw!  Ah yes, there were many deep (exasperated) breaths from both Greg and I.  Finally reaching the top of the mountain, after enduring snow chains (think corrugated roads), we all rugged up within an inch of our lives and headed off to hire toboggans.  The kids took to the toboggan run like pros and there was no stopping them.  They had no fear and even Jairah was zooming down the slope giggling his head off.

The first sighting of snow!

And they’re off!

They certainly got up some speed

Greg and I were impressed with how well our kids got along all day.  There was no fighting, bickering or nagging, instead, they took turns of the two toboggans and the girls happily played side by side, all the while copious amounts of snow was being consumed.  It was all so much fun, none of us wanted to go home!  Next time, we will certainly make it a mini family holiday and go for a couple of days.  The car trip home was much quieter and I swear there were smiles upon some very sleepy lips.

Self portrait!

 

It took a few photos, but I finally got them all looking my way…..

 

 

but this is a bit more like it!

Jacinta x

Posted in Family Life, Seasons | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

This Moment

Posted on August 3, 2012 by Jacinta

From Soulemama {this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – some words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.  A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

I love your moments too.  So feel free to leave a link in the comment section for us all to see.  Have a beautiful weekend.  Jacinta x

Posted in This Moment | Tagged , , | 17 Comments