As you can see, I'm still knitting the baby socks. In fact, I may be addicted to this simple little pattern by Amber Ward. I went and dug out one of my very first hand-dyed, slightly slubby, handspun yarns--some Kool-Aid dyed, handspun Polwarth singles that I never got around to plying, to see how it would knit up as a sock. Since a sock for a newborn wouldn't require the durability of a toddler sock, this was a great way to use up some of my handspun singles. I quite like what I see so far... I really do love how handspun, hand-dyed yarns look and feel so vibrant and "alive" versus the commercial yarns. I will most definitely be digging out the dyeing equipment again soon... I have a few skeins of undyed sock yarns begging to be painted in my "gynormous" yarn stash...
I've been thinking about knitting for our baby, due to arrive mid to late February, for awhile now, but have had trouble starting projects. There are just way too many patterns to choose from, first of all, and not enough time to go through everyone's amazing patterns and notes on Ravelry! Anyhow, with all the kicking and playing going on inside my belly to remind me that it won't be too long before s/he will be arriving soon, I've had to get a move on with narrowing down a few projects and starting something. Among some of the projects that I really want to complete for this baby are a Baby Yoda cardigan, an EZ Baby Surprise Jacket in my own handspun, some hand knit socks, an earflap hat, and some other crafty projects as well (ie. a kimono style quilted jacket and felted slippers/bootees) I know I'm being quite ambitious at the moment, but there's nothing wrong with aiming high. I decided to start with some socks. Below is my completed first pair of hand knit wool socks in elann's superwash yarn. The pattern is Ribbed Far-Away Baby Socks by Amber Ward found as a free download on Ravelry. My second pair, above, is the same pattern, but in elann's Esprit, a stretchy cotton yarn. I think I like the wool more, which I think, will hold its shape better as a more snug sock. We'll have to put the socks to the test when baby comes out...
I desparately needed a finished object from being so frustrated at the Koolhaas hat that I had been working on, so I started and finished a pair of Maine Morning Mitts instead. The mitts (my second pair) are such a relaxing knit, that I may have to knit a bunch more for Christmas. The Koolhaas hat, which was almost half finished last week, ended up being frogged due to mistakes made while watching D's karate classes. I fixed some of the mistakes, but more mistakes were made after re-fixing, so I gave up. I should just not bring any kind of chart reading to any of D's lessons. That concentration of mine needs some fine-tuning....JPG)
Anyhow, it's just too bad that the Bernat Alpaca seemed a bit itchy after trying on the finished mitts. I had to put in a cuff lining just to remedy the problem before gifting the mitts to a friend at work. 
As for the flan from yesterday, I pretty much licked the plate spotlessly clean. I resisted the temptation to gobble up a second serving, despite the boys not liking it, but who'd a thought that D would reject dessert! And because D thought the flan tasted like "barbeque", R pushed it away at the table too. I guess the "burnt" sugar taste isn't for everyone, especially for those with simple tastes. Hey, wait a minute, D loves cambozola and blue-veined cheeses on croissants! Oh well, I'm sure he'll acquire the taste for sophisticated desserts in time. For now, that just means more flan for M, me and baby #3.
I've been craving flan or creme caramel for weeks now and have finally gotten down to making it. I went through a whole pile of recipes on different sites, but decided on a lighter, Mexican version without the condensed milk. The ramekins are in the fridge chilling until dinner, so we can't wait! My boys have not been eating eggs lately, so this is a good way to disguise a little protein in their meal.
Otherwise, I've also been trying to think of cool ways to patch up D's trousers and sweatpants, which are usually relatively new except for the holes that a six-year-old wears into them right away, more specifically, on the right knee for every pair that needs patching. I love the look of leather patches, but I just don't have the time and patience to hand sew through thick leather sometimes, and for some reason, I'm not very skilled at using a thimble. I just never got used to using one. So, imagine how excited I was to find some bargain iron-on patches at Dressew last week while doing some last-minute Hallowe'en shopping. (Two patches for 25 cents!) This is what I came up with for D's pants.
I simply cut out the skull design I wanted and ironed it on for 30 seconds.
Then I outlined the eyes and nose of the skull using a chain stitch.
That was it! Other designs to consider without having to do the extra embroidery might be a star, a car silhouette, or animal (ie. a dragon, etc... )
As for the latest project on the needles, I'm working on the Morning Surf Scarf using my own hand-dyed merino handspun. The pattern is by Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer and was recently featured in the Summer 2008 issue of Spin-Off magazine along with many inspirational examples of this scarf pattern knit-up. With fall just around the corner, I thought I'd knit something cozy with some of my hand-dyed handspun. Here's my version. I'd have to say my second and third photos of the scarf are more accurate for colour than the first one taken in more direct sun. 
Yesterday afternoon, a well-intentioned family member brought over some "jook" or congee for me to eat, knowing that it was one of my favourite cravings from time to time. I hate to say, but it was just not the best congee that I had ever eaten--way too watery and just nothing in it that I liked. So, today I set out to make the most satisfying, congee that I could with all my favourite garnishes. I debated over adding meat to the pot, but decided against it, since my plan was to make my congee egg-heavy with salted duck eggs and century eggs. I was also going to buy some crispy barbequed duck to eat with it on the side, but wouldn't you know it, the closest bbq meat store in my neighbourhood just happened to be closed today. So, I got full this afternoon on plain, but delicious basic white congee to which I added chopped scallions, slivers of peeled ginger, chinese doughnut (yiao tiew)--something I haven't had in a long,long time, century eggs, salted duck eggs, sesame oil, and soy sauce. Now, I don't know if I'll be able to ride to work on such a full stomach....
The garden is such a magical place despite mine being overgrown and full of weeds. This year I've made a bigger effort into growing more veggies that we could use in our family meals. It's been about four or five years since I've grown snowpeas, so it's a real accomplishment that I actually have a small harvest of both round and flat snowpeas.
My strawberry rhubarb has continued to thrive in its present location next to the fig tree. I've already used it in a coffee cake and a rhubarb bar recipe back in June, so instead of making a pie (which I was too tired to make yesterday), I made a simple rhubarb compote using 6 cups of chopped rhubarb, 1 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon of grated orange rind, and 1/4 cup of water. I involved the boys by teaching them how to de-string rhubarb stalks, which they had fun doing after a light duel with the rhubarb stalks as though they were swords. The compote turned out great and will be delicious with vanilla ice-cream or even just toast in the morning! I can just see myself making more compote and preserves in the future as my strawberry freezer jam turned out so scrumptious as well this year. 
We had a perfect day to try paddling at Ambleside Park this past Sunday. Mountain Equipment Co-op put on some great water clinics with Deep Cove Canoe and Kayak at Paddlefest for kids and adults. D had a great time trying something new despite being the youngest and most inexperienced. He didn't even complain or get upset when he had trouble manoeuvering the kayak to keep up with his group. The teachers were great and everyone seemed passionate about helping one another learn more about the paddle sports. 
After the clinic, D told me he'd like to try kayaking again. This is exciting to know. We're glad D isn't too easily discouraged by being thrown into a completely new experience. He's such a good sport!
This guy, on the other hand, was too young to try kayaking, but was quite content blowing bubbles on the beach and having the comfort of his favourite cookbook (yes, you read right, his fave cupcake cookbook) nearby!
Today, as we were walking from the parking lot to the swimming pool for his lessons, D asked me who made the world...... AGAIN! It's really not unlike him to ask me such a deep philosophical question, as he has always been pretty mature for his age, but he's asked me this question before and I always bring up the Big Bang theory and he always suggests the added possibility of God creating the world, an idea he's heard from other people besides me. I stress the uncertainty of it all, and because D never gets the black and white answer, he just continues to ask the question from time to time. Then a little later on at the pool, he asks if I was a mom who was just pretending to be nice, but was really an evil person!!! My first thought is, gee, why can't I have a normal kid?!? But then again, what is normal? Wacky and off-the-wall, but maybe that's what almost-six-year-olds think about or is it just mine--one who probably watches too much tv and/or has a vivid imagination in high def? Anyhooow, my D never fails to surprise me with his sense of wonder.
Other activities this weekend included a trip to check out the Chinatown Night Market, which is small in comparison to the Richmond Night Market, but still quite fun and interesting for the atmosphere and offerings by the variety of vendors. I have to say that this market has improved and is a lot more organized than what I remembered it five years back.
As you can see, I've made some progress on the Baby Surprise Jacket. I'm not a super fast knitter, but I've been trying to get it in between all the martial art classes, swimming lessons, and the little one's preschool. And lately, I've been getting the urge to start spinning on the Louet 10 again. I actually dug out the nostepinne today to wind up some experimental singles that I had spun up and left on the wheel months ago. I might just have to dig out some new fibre to spin tomorrow, if I have any time left, that is, before having to leave for work in the afternoon.
