BUNNIES!!

This will probably be a long post, but these little bunnies have consumed our life this weekend so they're pretty important to me!
FRIDAY NIGHT:
It all started Friday around 7pm. Cooper starts barking and whining in a way that I've come to know means "Hey, there's something living in my backyard, let me out to go chase it!!!!!" I look outside and see a bunny sitting in some ivy under a tree, no biggie there, that's a pretty regular sight around here. But it stays there for a good 5 minutes and isn't scared away by Cooper barking. At the time I realized that wasn't normal, but didn't think too much of it. At about 11pm I let the dogs out for the last time at night, it was pitch black due to lots of clouds and absolutely pouring. Usually Cooper will just stick his nose outside, feel the first drop of rain, and decide he'd rather hold it until the morning, but Friday night he bolted outside. A few minutes later Trapper comes in and Cooper is still no where to be found. I look out the windows and see him under the tree, then I see he's jumping around and pawing at the ground. I send my sweetie out in the rain to see what it is cause at this point I know Cooper's caught something. He goes out and said it looked like the ivy was alive. He thought at first we were infested with rats, but then I told him there was a bunny there earlier in the day and so it's probably baby bunnies. Since it was pitch black and pouring, there was no much we could do without risking stepping on lots of little guys.

SATURDAY MORNING:
We wake up and go outside to assess the damage. Cooper had dug up a nest of bunnies just like we thought. 2 were a couple feet from the nest and didn't survive the night in the cold and rain. One was safe and sound in the nest. We searched the ivy and found one a few inches from the nest. My sweetie picked it up and it didn't look like it was breathing and it was cold, but it didn't look as bad as the ones we knew didn't make it. He held it while we looked for more and then he jumped cause he started kicking. We decided to bring this one inside to warm it up them we'd bring it back out with the others. As we went to go inside my sweetie almost stepped on a second bunny. This one was about a foot from the nest, but had more cover than the other one. It started moving a little as soon as I picked it up, but it was very cold. So we brought that one in too. We put them in a shoe box with fiberfill to try to keep them warm and put them in a closet away from the dogs, who never knew they were in the house!
We also put some fiberfill around the bunny in the nest since it was now all by itself and we couldn't built the nest back up because everything was soaking wet. My sweetie grabbed a handful of leaves and spread them out on the concrete so they would dry and we could use it to cover the nest later.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON:
The bunnies in the closet seemed to be doing better and responded to being touched and were moving all over the box, although still laying on their sides and not sitting up like the one in the nest. We decided it was time to put them back with their brother. We went outside and removed the fiberfill from the nest, put the 2 bunnies back, and covered the nest with the now dry leaves. We also put 2 twigs across the nest in an X. We read that the mother bunny will only come at night and only stays for 5 minutes at a time, so to see if a nest is abandoned you need to put 2 sticks across it and see if they're disturbed the next day.

SUNDAY MORNING:
We go outside to see if mama bunny came to visit them during the night and the sticks were exactly as we left them! We didn't know what to do and we were expecting another day of rain. We felt horrible about leaving them out there knowing they hadn't eaten anything in 2 days. I called the local wildlife rehabilitation clinic and left a message, but no one got back to me. We figured the best thing to do would be to leave them out another day and hope the mama came back. If there was no activity by Monday morning we would take them into the clinic. My sweetie went out and built the nest up a little more knowing we were expecting some pretty heavy rain during the day and we hoped for the best.

SUNDAY NIGHT:
Around 6:30pm Cooper starts going crazy again!!! I run to the window and see mama bunny sitting on her nest. She was there for about 10 minutes she seemed to be sitting still and feeding them for a while and then she started rebuilding the nest. She came back again at 8pm and hopefully a few times during the night. Hopefully this means the bunnies will make it. There's only one down side to them, I can't let the dogs in the yard until they leave the nest. Back to walking them in the front yard on the leash. They're very confused by this and keep whining at the back door. I'll get a picture of the bunnies in the nest if the sun ever comes out again.

On the non-bunny front. . . My sweetie left this morning for China. He'll be there for the week for work. I'm hoping to get lots of knitting done while he's gone! I've been working on his sweater non-stop for the past few days and have managed to get 16" done on the front. I need to do 17.5" of stockinette before I get to start shaping and using my brain again. Hopefully it won't take too long to finish and then I have one more sleeve and the collar. I'm so excited to get this thing of the needles and see if it actually fits him!!

Attack of the Pink!!

I've been shopping! I had to go pick up a bridesmaid dress for a wedding at the end of the month, which was a total disaster. It's too big and I can't decide what to do. I've still got a few weeks before the wedding so what if I have it taken in and then my boobs grow more and it's too small! Anyway, the place I had to go to was down in Columbus and conveniently located close to Babies R Us, so of course I had to stop in. The last time I was there I was actually good about not buying anything. I think that's because I was registering and it's almost like shopping. But this time I had to give in to the pink:
My favorite is the outfit on the bottom right, it's terrycloth!

I also finished the second of the February Sweaters. I really like the way this one came out. The color is way off on this, but it's a rainy, dreary day so outside pictures are gonna have to wait.
But, I'm having decision issues for my next one. Here are the 2 I've made so far:
I think that the bottoms one is much cuter with just the 3 buttons. But, I think that the top one may be much more practical with it buttoning all the way down the front. I think I'm going to have to let it stew for a bit before I decide what to do on the next one. Feel free to chime in with opinions!

And last, but not least, I've been bugged by a bunch of people for a baby belly shot. So, here you go:
I'm guessing she's about 15 pounds by now! I obviously have lots of weight to lose after she's born, but I can't worry about it now. I'll try to get a better shot one of these days if I ever remember to ask my sweetie to take a picture for me.

A little update

Not all that much has been going on around here. Life seems to be settling into a nice routine for us. The weather has been just perfect for the past week or so, allowing me to take some nice, long, daily walks with the pups and a friend. It feels like I've been getting lots of knitting done, but it really doesn't seem like all that much now that I've taken some pictures.

First up we have some progress on the second February sweater. This one is made from the same yarn in the same color as the last one. I've changed it a bit though so there are 3 buttons grouped together at the top instead of it buttoning all the way down.
I figured out all the pitfalls the first time around and this one is going much smoother. I'm still not bored with the pattern, but I am finding it easier to pick up other projects instead of this one. This one is for a baby due in August so maybe that's why I'm having an easy time putting it down.

The project that I've been picking up is the baseball sweater I started forever ago for my sweetie. I finally got the motivation to get working on this again, mainly because it's monopolizing the really nice Vera Bradly knitting bag I have! I finished the back and one sleeve then I put it away for months, but this month I decided to work on it as part of the She-Knits Men in May knit a long. I doubt I'll be able to finish it by the end of May, but any progress I make is a plus. This is what I've done in the past 5 days.
This is the front which is 120 stitches wide and I've got about 5 inches done. I need to do 17.5 inches of stockinette before I get to do any shaping. Now I remember why this thing got abandoned in the first place! It's torturous and I don't particularly like working on it, but it is good mindless knitting. I've been suffering from a bit of a headache for a few days now and it's just the right thing to work on since I don't have to think at all!

On the baby front, all is going well! She's growing a lot this month, or at least I assume she is given the growth of my belly! She's also gotten extremely active. I don't feel her when I'm up and doing stuff, but the moment I sit down she's doing somersaults. She's started reacting to things going on outside of me. We went to a ball game, which is probably the loudest place she's ever been since we have a pretty quiet house. We stayed for 7 innings of the game and she was awake the whole time. Last night was the first night she woke me up from a dead sleep with a forceful kick. It's pretty amazing, but hopefully she won't do that every night!

Through it all I've had my little mama's boy sitting by my side on the couch. He had a bit of a hurt belly this morning (thanks to the honeysuckle bush that he likes to gnaw on!) so he was exceptionally snuggly this morning. Isn't he just a beaut!

An Overdue Thank You

About a week ago I received a great package in the mail but I keep forgetting to post the picture. I set up a little swap with someone from Ravelry, Silja, if you listen to She-Knits or Yarn Thing then you've heard of her! Well, she's over in Norway and doesn't have access to some of the things in the US, like Knit Picks yarns since they don't ship internationally. I offered to order a couple of skeins of laceweight yarn for her and send it to her and in exchange she would send me something. I just asked for anything she thinks I wouldn't be able to get in the US. She came through big time!!
She sent me a skein of yarn in grays that looks like it's going to work up just gorgeously. And it came just as my lace obsession is really getting into full swing. She also sent a wide variety of stitch markers, a few regular ones, a few that clip on to the work, and one that says "JOIN" for anything in the round. And what I think is my favorite thing (well, I haven't actually knit with the yarn yet so it's not fair to say yet), a needle holder. It's got one large pocket and then lots of small ones, perfect for my knit picks options tips and cables! I love it, love it, love it! Some of the stuff she sells on her Etsy shop so go check it out.

So, what's on my needles at the moment. Another February Sweater. I finished all my grocery bags and I'm using the same needles for the February Sweaters as I am for the Branching Out Scarf. I'll get back to the scarf eventually, first I have lots of sweaters to make. I'll be casting on for the Voyager Lace Stole as soon as I get the yarn mailed to me from my parents (I'm not holding my breath for that one!) And I got the yarn to start making Starsky, but since I'm making it for post-baby and post-diet, I'm not in any rush to start it.

February Sweater

I finished the February Sweater and it's gorgeous! I love, love, love it! I went yesterday and bought some buttons and I'll hopefully get them sewn on today. This sweater is for my cousin's baby. His wife is pretty old school so I got buttons that look like little pearls. What do you think?
Changes I'll be making for the next one, or three, I make:
- I'm going to do the sleeves in the round so there is no seam at all (although I think I did a fantastic job seaming the sleeves!)
- I will remember to start in garter so there isn't a roll at the neck, but the roll may increase the cuteness factor, so I may go back to the roll once I do one without it.
- I'm going to play around with the buttons. I want to do one with 3 buttons near the top and then none on the bottom and then maybe one without buttons and instead do it Mintyfresh style!

Other than that I've been working on some more crocheted grocery bags. I have 4 now and I'm almost done with a 5th. I should be able to get one, maybe 2, more out of the cone of cotton that I bought. A few went on their first grocery trip last weekend and they were very effective and we didn't get any weird looks from the baggers. And my sweetie was able to get them all inside in one trip (very handy when there are 2 rambunctious dogs waiting on the other side of the screen door for you!)

I bought yarn to make myself a goal sweater. It hasn't arrived yet, but once it does I can't wait to start knitting Starsky. The plan is to make it in a medium and then it will be my incentive to lose weight after the baby is born. I've gained back just about all the weight I lost on Weight Watchers and really want to get back to being skinny. Of course I'm not allowed to diet while the little one is growing inside me, but once she's out I'm going back to WW. I think a hand knit sweater would be pretty good incentive. I haven't knit a sweater for myself yet and the short time I was skinny I wasn't at the point in my knitting where I would consider knitting a sweater. The good thing about doing this with Starsky is that it's a tie front cardigan so I don't think it has to be knit to the "just right" size to fit me. I think a little big or a little small and I'll be able to get away with wearing it. I really wanted to order some green yarn, but I've been told all I knit is green so I got brown instead, that should go with just about everything.

Check out my Widget!

Isn't that the coolest thing ever! I'm hoping it updates itself every week, we'll see in a few days. The February sweater is almost done. I'll post pictures in a day or 2. All the knitting is done, just have to sew up the seams and weave in ends. I've got yarn on the way for 3 more, one for my girl, one for a college friend who's having a girl and one for just in case. I've still got 2 friends that don't know what they're having yet. One already has a boy so I'm hoping she has a girl this time around.

Earth Day

Yesterday was Earth Day and in honor of that I was electricity free until my sweetie came home from work. It was a very nice day until the pups started acting up. I think there was something wrong with one of the horses in the field behind the house and it was very upsetting to the dogs. Hopefully the horse is all better today and hopefully a nice long walk will exhaust the dogs a little.

Yesterday morning was spent in the yard cleaning up some leaves in the corner that I don't think have been touched in years. It was at least 9" of leaves and the bottom layer was pretty well decomposed. It took quite a while, but it got done. While I was working hard, the pups were soaking up the sun!
Poor Cooper gets so hot because of his dark coat, but he still lays out in the sun instead of finding a shady spot!

After lunch, they started getting fussy. I made them take a little nap with me. Usually it calms them down, but instead it seemed to fuel the fire and they were bouncing off the walls. I had a killer headache after a couple hours of barking, whining, and clicking their nails on the floor so I retreated to the porch and knit.
This is my progress so far on the February Sweater. This one is going to go to my cousin who is having a girl a month or so before me. I am placing an order soon for more yarn, I'm getting the same yarn in purple to make for my little girl and I think I'll stock up on some more pink and purple to make for some other friends who I'm not sure what they're having yet. I think that this will be my standard baby girl gift from now on. Once I figured out what the heck EZ was talking about in her pithy directions, it's a very easy knit and not in the least bit boring (like I thought the baby surprise jacket was!) I've only got a couple more inches left on the body. I may be able to finish it by this weekend.

I forgot to take pictures of my package from a ravelry buddy. That'll have to wait until the next post, but it's really good!!

Who Am I?

Take the Quiz here!

You are Elinor Dashwood of Sense & Sensibility! You are practical, circumspect, and discreet. Though you are tremendously sensible and allow your head to rule, you have a deep, emotional side that few people often see.

Crafty plans

With the news of a little girl, all my crafting plans have changed. I can return to the quilt I started, then put on hold since I was convinced she was a boy. That's going to be quite a project and will take up tons of my time. But I also want to knit at least one girly thing since everything else has been boyish. I'm going to make a February Sweater and depending on how I like it and how easy it is to make, I will either keep it for the little girl (I need to find something to call her!) and make another for my cousin's baby, or I will just give it to my cousin's baby.

My sister gave me a great idea the other day. I was complaining about how she hasn't finished my graduation shawl yet and she said she would get to it soon and hopefully she could get it done cause it would make a great nursing shawl. Now, I don't know what she's thinking cause that thing is alpaca (I think) and the baby will cook under it! It'll be great in winter, but not so much when she's just born in the fall. So, my brilliant beyond brilliant idea is that I'm going to knit myself a nursing shawl. I have some gray lace yarn in the basement that should be enough for a shawl and I have the Victorian Lace Today book. I just need to pick out a pattern and start knitting. I should probably finish some of the stuff on my needles first so I don't have too many projects looming over me, but I know I won't!! That's not how I roll!

IT'S A. . . .

GIRL!!!! Let the girly-girl knitting commence!!!