Littler = cuter

Isn't it a little unfair how true it is that the smaller a thing is, the cuter? Pygmy animals, cars, mini pastries.... And of course, baby clothes.

I wish everyone I knew had babies on a regular basis! The projects are quick, the results are (to borrow the title of my nephews' favorite show) too cute, and babies are amazing models. Plus, there's wiggle room when it comes to size. A baby won't be offended if you hand-craft a sweater that's a bit too big. In fact, their parents will probably welcome it!
I'm probably just a few days away from finishing this little charmer, even though the baby isn't coming until June. This, my friends, may be a first. Of course, the sweater's not done yet and my typical m.o. is to get a great head start and then fall into complacency until the last minute. (Let's not talk of my thesis right now, okay?)
I've been enjoying a bit more free time as of late. I should be reading. My current book, The End of Men is overdue from the library and I'm doing my first book club in a couple weeks! We're reading The Alchemist, which has been on my list for a long time. Speaking of books! Have you pre-ordered your copy of Fit to Flatter yet? I've had a couple of quick peeks while the book was in progress and let me tell you, you want it! Great patterns, great instruction... it's no wonder Amy's classes have been so popular; she's a great teacher.
Here's hoping I at least have the body done of this little beauty this weekend. And then to make the hard choice: which booties? I usually go with Saartje's Bootees, which are fun to make and always very well received. But I've already made them a few times, and I'd sorta like to try something new. Maybe these with the sweet lace detail to echo the sweater? Or what about these? I need to stop trawling my Rav queue for booties. I WANT TO KNIT EVERYTHING!

So. Excited.

My life has been sucked into a new void. Sure, I've been knitting, but not much. I also haven't been doing much else. There are two reasons for this.
1. Two new wee babies came home with us last week. They just found their names today. Meet Laverne and Shirley.

Shirley is the one with the black head, of course. She's actually a hooded rat, and the rest of her is white. They're super shy and a little spazzy, so I can only let them play in the bathtub, with supervision. So yeah, I'm spending a lot of time in the bathroom lately (tmi?).

2. The second I finished reading my first blogger account of Ravelry, I hightailed it to the site to leave my name on the beta tester list. In general, I love beta testing. I love trying out new stuff and giving feedback and using every browser available to me. And also, hello, awesome sounding new knitting site? Sign me up! I was shocked and ecstatic last week to get the email with my invitation code! You know how people say that they go to Ravelry, and next thing they know it's been days and they haven't done anything else? That's been my life. For the first time since I can remember, I haven't even checked my Google Reader feed for new blog entries. I spent most of today organizing my stash, and then admiring how easy it is to see what I have. Now it's on to adding my completed projects, which takes longer, because I have to hunt for project information. I am so excited about this site, mostly because I have always thought it would so great to have a forum where knitters could connect and share information, without resorting to those email lists (I can never keep up with those), or communities where it seems the posts become so repetitive if you read for any length of time. From what I understand, the site will be live soon. I can't wait!

I've squeezed in a few more rows on Miss. Puffy. Finally the sleeves have been separated, and I'm about to start waist shaping. This picture makes me imagine it as a bolero. Could be cute.