Another sun day!

Just another quick craft. The desire to sew and use up some of my stash is overwhelming this weekend.

So, skirt for LMB!

Very simple and I covered a button to finish the look!
Oh and today LMB was a tiger - just so's you know!

Not quite a party political broadcast!

I think, it may be *whispers* - summer!

I have spent the day in the garden today, not studying when I am meant to be studying. Instead, I discovered that my sewing machine cable would stretch from the outdoor socket to the table! Thus, I ended up accidentally making a top for the Little Miss! Ooops -so my anatomy won't be up to scratch but ye gods I'll be able to do a nice daisy chain stitch for those perinneal repairs ;-))



Anyway, to other things. I needs your help!

I know there are more of you that read this than acknowledge you read it and I am hoping you can spread the word.

An old school friend of mine runs a hospital in Uganda on the edge of the impenetrable rainforest. He has worked incredibly hard, with his partner, building this from a small clinic to a reputable hospital that serves the local community and beyond.

Anyway, I received this letter the other day:

I have to make difficult choices as a doctor in Bwindi. Please allow me to share with you a decision that I have just made.

Alice is 20 years old and lives in a town that is two days walk from Bwindi. She wanted to give birth to her first baby in a health centre rather than at home, so when she went into labour at 32 weeks gestation earlier this week she walked for a day to a small health unit high in the hills, the nearest one to her house. Three days ago she gave birth to a premature baby girl who weighs only 1kg (2.2.lbs) and is tiny. Knowing that the place where she delivered has no power, few drugs and no running water, the nurse there sensibly advised her to make her way to Bwindi. Attached is a picture of Alice and her baby in the neonatal unit.

Alice set off the day after her delivery and started walking towards Bwindi. After several hours she caught a lift on a Tea Wagon, but this truck only took her to the local Tea Factory where she spent the night. Yesterday she caught a ride on a truck carrying sand to Bwindi, and she arrived at the Hospital with her precious baby who was cold but still alive. Bwindi Community Hospital has developed an excellent specialist unit for sick newborn babies. Seven out of every eight newborn babies admitted to our unit survive. This is a fantastic survival rate, and is a brilliant testimony to our nurses who work around the clock caring for these special patients.

It costs us a lot of money to run our neonatal unit. We have had to spend on employing nurses and doctors to give 24 hour care to 156 newborn babies in the last year, and every month our numbers increase and babies come from further afield. The neonates are kept in a room heated by power that we generate from a diesel generator during the day and run off batteries at night. We provide the babies with oxygen, all of them get intravenous antibiotics, and they are fed every two hours through a nasal tube. The unit is light and clean, and the mothers stay in an adjacent room where they are able to watch their babies through a glass panel. All of this money is well-spent, because it is often the difference between life and death.

We are fortunate to be able to subsidise health care for most of the children under five in this area through the Child Health Access Program, or CHAP, supported by the Eurochange Charity. But in spite of their generosity this does not cover all of the costs of looking after all children, and we will fall short this year to the tune of about $50,000. This means tough choices, and one decision that we have made is to limit the subsidised care to the people who live nearest to the Hospital – the 60,000 residents of Kayonza and Mpungu. We can still care for other children from other places, but their parents have to pay the cost. This sounds harsh, but my mother always taught me that “money does not grow on trees” and until we discover a money tree in Bwindi we have to make difficult rationing decisions.

Sadly for Alice , her baby was born outside of our catchment area. This means that, according to the guidance that we have set, we have to charge her what it costs us to look after her baby. This amounts to about $15 a day, or $315 in total. We told this to Alice this morning, and the message that she has received back from her husband at home is that they cannot afford this cost. It is likely to exceed the annual income for their household. He has told the family to leave the Hospital tomorrow morning and make their way back home.

The chance of survival for Alice ’s child, a 1kg premature baby at 32 weeks gestation, is very low if she goes home. The chance of survival in the Hospital is much higher.

The nurses caring for the baby have asked me to break the rules and allow Alice to stay in the Hospital for the care that her baby needs. I think it is the right decision. But it is easy to make “kind” decisions if you don’t have to pay for them. In order to fund this decision we are asking for a donor to cover the cost of paying for this baby and the other newborn babies like her who want to access our care but for whom we have no income source. Adults are paying their share – so far more than 2,500 people have signed up to our eQuality Community Health Scheme. But I have decided to write this message in the hope that someone who has supported this amazing Hospital before will go the extra mile to help us, so that we can change the rules and allow all newborn babies, wherever they were born, to be able to access the care that we provide free of charge. Information about how to help us is on the Hospital website at

www.BwindiHospital.com

Many thanks

Dr Paul Williams

Medical Superintendent

Alice and her baby!


So, here is where you come in.

I need ideas.

I need something that I can organise that reaches a wider audience than my immediate family and friends that would raise some funds for this current need at Bwindi. I need a big name, or a celebrity face ultimately, or the likes of comic relief to take this on, but that's a pipe dream.

I have some limited skills, none of which would raise much, just some shrapnel. I have friends who have talents, but we all live very spread out and whilst we would and could do something, it will be low key and will raise a small amount I expect.

What this hospital needs is more than just small time donors who can send 50 quid here and there when they've saved up their 2p's (not that I'm belittling the real help that those donors provide!) , I think they need some way of setting up a trust that can supply a constant trickle of funds for this specific purpose.

Anyway, back to reality. In the meantime, I am looking for ideas of things that might draw in a wider audience and raise funds. I'm also looking to spread the word of the wonderful work that Bwindi does for the Batwa population in Uganda. If you think you can help either financially (maybe you can put 50p on one side everytime you read this blog? Maybe you can do a sponsored event or knit baby hats even that I can mail out) or with an idea, please let me know.

Thank you!

Oh and the link again is above!

Mrs Brady, old lady!

Girlie weekend! Yahay! Who needs SATC2?

Had a fab weekend with my best friend who flew in on Thursday afternoon and we boogied the night away on Saturday at a dinner-dance at the Signet Library in the city.



Sunday was a bad recovery day - not due to large alcohol consumption, but due to the fact that I'd perhaps got a little over enthusiastic on the dance floor and now my dicky hip is playing me the repercussions! Couple that with the fact that earlier in the day we'd decided to hit the town to shop and by 11am I was ready to go home because I had had enough of pushing through crowds, makes me decrepit and creaking - must up the fish oil intake!

I'd love to be able to maintain the enthusiasm for Saturday morning shopping that I had when I was 20 odd - yeah, this is where the SATC similarity ends with a bump!

The cantankerous biddy in me grumbles at the shoppers who chat in the doorways, the families out shopping with their 15 children in tow who trip you up and just have to shop on Saturdays with all of them and the serious lack of cashiers on the checkouts despite the fact that Saturday must be the busiest shopping day.




I really think I need to be locked away at home until I've had my blue rinse and purchased a walking stick - it'll all be justifiable then - no?

Of course, today I'm back to earth with a crash.

A beautiful day outside - been lousy all over the weekend - and I've got my last exam to revise for - grrr... although keeping that cup half full, books are transferable, once it warms up, I'll take the revision into the garden.


Just like this....

Also got a new toy this weekend. An exceedingly early Christmas present. So, here are a few results from the weekend!





Dinner!


Bug on my bush ;-) - anyone any idea?






Orchid!

21st century boy

I am like a number 11 bus - nothing for ages, then two at once.

However, I did want to share;

Master Beehive the elder has been on a nature camp for the last few weeks after school. He's been learning to recognise plants, particularly edible ones and learning basic survival skills. It's been a dirty but fun experience as they've foraged in the rain, stalked in the wind and learned to light fires in the blazing heat - yes, come to Scotland - the weather is screwed!

He's about to go off on scout camp and is desperate to put these newly learned skills to good use, sadly, if he'd gone to scout camp when I did twenty odd years ago, he probably could have learned to dig a moat around his tent to prevent it floating away in the rain and learn to lash together a tripod to hold up his wash bowl or a shoe rack or even a small wardrobe - yeah Ikea, your flat pack is nothing to us old school girl guides, we laugh mwahahaha, in the face of challenge!

So...I digress, the activity list came through and he has to indicate whether he wants to abseil, do archery, go on the challenge course etc over the weekend. Archery is his number one choice because, as he told his younger brother in the car back from swimming yesterday evening:

"Archery is a very important skill to have."

Yeah - if you're wanting fresh venison for dinner


or are intending to take out your neighbour from the turret of your castle!


Or, if you happen to be a woodland elf!


I suppose the scout motto is "Be Prepared" and Lord Baden Powell never actually specified exactly how prepared one needed to be so...


Be afraid, be very afraid!

A bloggerary work of art...

I love these colours!

This blog entry is especially for my friend, Michelle, who, when she catches me at the school gate, will berate me for depriving her of the next installment of her bedtime reading. It's funny how blogs are fast becoming the new reality novel.

Personally I love reading blogs. I love reading books too and blogs cannot replace some of the amazing literature out there, but blogs are good in a different way. Perhaps in a fly on the wall type way, but more, I find, in an inspirational way. Blogs that I follow tend to inspire me in some shape or form, either for their craft ideas, beautiful photography, deep wisdoms, ideologies or unusual lifestyles and adventures. Currently mine is none of the above with any calibre, but I'd hate to deprive anyone of their relaxation and, much as I don't blog as much as I did in the US for fear of boring everyone, I will aim to update more often - so Michelle, this is for you xx


Is your crafting seasonal?

Mine is, but I'd never really thought much about it. In the winter I knit and bake, in the summer I garden and sew.

I don't know why either particularly. It's probably all just association; knitting with yarn for the cold weather, bake for comfort and then in the summer (that's a laugh up here - ours has been and gone over the space of this weekend!) I want to be outside and fabrics with lovely sunny prints just call to me and it's so easy to throw together a quick skirt or top. I feel I've really let the latter go over the last few weeks as I've been studying for my exams, but it's time to get some patterns and fabrics out of the stash and run up some new play clothes for the Little Miss.



The garden has done me proud over the winter. I was sure we'd lost a lot of stuff, not least an apple tree that snapped in the wind last winter and was bandaged (literally) to try to graft it back together. Sadly the graft didn't take, but the tree decided to flourish anyway underneath the snap.

We're going to have a great crop of redcurrants, gooseberries and raspberries this year as long as I've not just cursed us.
We've chosen not to grow much this summer as we're both incredibly busy, me with exams and a doula client and classes and Mr Beehive with random financy-person travel. We're just growing a few courgettes, tomatoes and spuds. I'm crossing my fingers and toes that the toms get enough sun this year to ripen.

We've got a fun packed summer set up, the boys are going to go on a cooking course and play lots of cricket and I'm trying to curb my enthusiasm for our big jollybob to Kenya.

I've also bought this book as it seemed to have some great ideas both for now and future summers in our own home where we can finally have our chickens, grow in the earth and make things like the clay oven on page 60!! - mmm.... woodfired home made pizzas baked in a clay oven - yum:


Anyway, it's been a while since I did one of my speedy throw it all together recipes for you, so here's one that is fantastic as a spread in a wrap with a load of veggies or as a baked potato filling with a bit of cheese.

"Good-Green avocado spread"

1 whole avocado
1 can of beans (butter or any white beans)
2 garlic cloves (or less if you're b-feeding)
1/2 a well chopped chilli pepper
1/2 lemon juice
salt
pepper

Summer days - kick back and relax.

May the fart be with you!

The sun is out,
the sky is blue,
there's not a cloud
to spoil the view...

finally, after the hail and sleet of last Monday!

Everything has kicked off into new life - just as I love it. Birth, life, greenery, hippity, hoppity ickle baby lambies...well, okay, not that last bit, that just sounds a bit barfy!

This weekend I've been at the NCT conference in Telford.

Surrounded by several hundred like minded women; mamas, doulas, midwives and educators. We were blessed with the presence of the guru of the birthing world - Ina May Gaskin. Think, George Clooney for the birky wearing, yurt livin', lentil knitting, home birthin' fans.


Friday she entertained us for the whole day with her biography...oh to be a hippy in the 60's in a bus in rural Tennessee...later leading us onto her stories of her mamas in that community who birthed whilst they were travelling.


This moved on eventually to Sphincter Law by means of:

A You Tube birth of an elephant in Sri Lanka;


A Sheila Na Gig from Ireland "tearing out her heart" - or not... probably the same guy that "discovered" the clitoris *wink*

And a story of a mole who went in search of the git that left a turd on his head...


Yes, sadly, we have incorrectly translated it for the American market (and sadly the British too) who seem to be far more reluctant than the Germans to talk about poop and farting, but somehow still seem to talk utter crap all the same when it comes to birth *see here*


Sadly, I have been trying to relive this event for poor Mr Beehive, explaining the weekend to him with great enthusiasm and gusto. I've even attempted to demonstrate Ina May's observations for birth by peering at him (yeah, didn't go down well at 6.30am in the morning), yelling at him to push when he's pooing to make it come out faster and threatening to "give him a poo-easy-otomy" to help him get the naughty little bugger out, but oddly, to no avail, guess she was right and there's the evidence *wink* - sphincter law, cos he sure ain't crappin' on my watch!

Why is it then, in the western world, we tend to walk into a hospital for our babies, don a rear opening robe (yeah, go figure!), allow the world and his mother to peer up our foofs and then shout at us when things don't fit the exact time scale or mould. I'm not even talking births that need assistance, this is often normal, low risk birth, particularly in the US, but sometimes (perhaps to a lesser degree) in the UK too - you saw it on "One born every minute".

Birth needs to be natural, undisturbed and allowed to happen with laughter abundant and the mother feeling safe and relaxed, intervening only when needed rather than routinely or without any sound evidence that it's required.

One of those, "you had to be there kind of weekends" - empowering women and sisterhood all under one yurt!

So....moving swiftly on as we are, after all British and one can't mention pooh (does that come with an 'h' or not?) or clitori (hmmm, one clitoris, two clitori?) or anything remotely sexual especially on the same blog as one featuring a lego death star...

This is what Master Beehive the elder has been working on since his birthday last month. I'm really proud of him managing to do this with minimal help - much to his Dad's disgust as I think he'd hoped for more excuses to "help out".


The jedi death star.


Oh, and Ina May again...
You're probably wondering why there's another picture of Ina May, but I feel the relevance of the Leia look and the death star was just too startling to ignore, couldn't help it!!


Finally, I just want to introduce you to this blog. I was directed this way and am in awe of this lady. Take a read, but you may want a kleenex too in some parts.

Have a sunny "Ina" May and see you again soon xx

Run, run as fast as you can...

So, somewhere between my last blog entry and this I made a rather rash and hasty decision to up my challenge of last year and start running again.

Last year I ran the 5K race for life, uphill (yes, please note that !!) at Holyrood. Now, much as sibling rivalry gets me down in my own daily life sometimes, there is a lot for that gentle undercurrent of competion.
Not to feel overshadowed by my younger sis I decided to join her and a friend and up the ante.

So, it's now all systems go as we prepare in earnest for the 10K Bupa Great Race in May.

Funnily enough, I've gone from not cherishing the thought of getting out to run, to absolutely adoring my "quiet time" pounding the streets, just me and my iPod.

I'm now managing a steady 6K just about every other day, which amazes me. I'm feeling so much fitter and I'm aiming to up it by a 1/2 k or more each time over the next few weeks.

I actually wish I'd started this years ago, particularly when we were living in the States. Running along the beach front certainly outdoes pacing on grey streets in grey weather.

Anyway, to up the stakes even further I'm running for Tommy's so, if you feel you could donate something to the cause, anything would be really appreciated. Perhaps you could donate per km or donate per molecule of fat that my arse is going to lose (hopefully!)

Thanks

And the result is....

Well, after a nailbiting few weeks since the interviews I have been offered a conditional place at Northampton. I just have to pass my biology GCSE with a grade C or higher. So pressure is now on!
I am still waiting on Bedford's answer, which should come either just before or just after Easter Weekend.

I'm thrilled to bits though to finally see the door opening for me to follow this dream.

So in the eye of this high I decided that I'd run the 10K with my sister on May 2nd WTF!? I'm running for Tommy's charity this time. Mad dogs and Englishmen and all that.

It's also been mother's day this week. I had a lovely lie in - of ten minutes - I could hear the banter downstairs, so gave in and went to sort out. My family have a wonderful way of telling me they want me to lie in, but then being so darned loud and argumentative between them that I end up having to get up to sort it out! Still, the basket of plants was beautiful as was the coffee in bed, made for me by Mr Beehive the younger and the lovely cards made by Little Miss Beehive. Thank you my darlings and it's the best thing I could ever be, your mama! xxx



This week I'm expecting my friend from the US and her son for a few days. I'm very excited. She's never been to Scotland and has a "loose" itinerary that includes a rather large radius of Edinburgh, but I guess that comes from being American and not thinking anything of driving 200 miles in a day! I envisage many castles, lots of "old" stuff in Edinburgh (a few ghostie things I think!) a lot of Highland cattle and a Loch or two oh and a wee dram or two !!

Well, back to the revision...

Lazy Sunday Mornings

How do you spend your lazy Sunday mornings? Are you lucky enough to read the morning papers? Drink your coffee? all whilst still in bed?
Our Sundays have become... no, what am I like?... our Sundays have always been early starts with a gathering tribe of smalls.

From babyhood where we'd have a baby in the bed with us and we were exhausted with night feedings and all of us flaked out whinging at the other to go and make some coffee and who was up most in the night competitions to try to outrank and prove it wasn't their turn to get up first, to toddlerhood with three smalls whereupon I'd normally lose the battle and end up comatose, but propped up, watching one, two or three toddlers happily playing and exerting ridiculous amounts of energy for 6am in the morning, to slightly older pre-schoolers who were, naturally "staaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarving" by 6 and were observed by me (usually) with my eyes propped open by caffeine and matchsticks whilst they tucked into their weetabix like it was the last supper. My stomach, on the otherhand, wouldn't be open for business for at least another three hours!

These days things are much calmer. I'm returning to enjoying Sunday mornings (nearly!) once again. True, we don't have papers in bed, or coffee, but we do have longer lie ins. Kids are able to read their books, listen to their cd's quietly and without us in their face. This morning, for example, we were entertained by a puppet show at 7am. LMB had been up working on her project with modelling clay and sticks since 6 - so that bit doesn't change, only she's able to get on and entertain herself quietly whilst we're able to grab a bit more shut-eye.

Returning at 7, we're greeted with "lady going shopping", "ballet dancer" and "man going to barbers" (which was actually a head on a stick) and we were all told that we were one of the characters - luckily I wasn't the head! In she climbs. Hands all the puppets to Mr Beehive who was told in no uncertain terms to hold them and not drop them (he's still partially comatose btw but performed his task most excellently).

We're then joined by the next child, budge up mother! Usually we're then joined by the third one, who is more gangly and teen like as the weeks progress, he shuffles in, grunting about tiredness but isn't too big to push me over further to get his spot in the bed!

Of course, not wanting to miss a trick is Meggie, who spends all the night in her basket, but come family-bed-in, she doesn't want to miss out on the action and takes a flying leap (not bad for a tiny spaniel and an extra high bed) to land on the top of us all in a furry, licking heap!

"aggh, my elbow", "careful, you're on my hair", "that's my eye your nose is in" along with squeals of laughter and winces of pain and this morning's best "Mummy, you're on my finger!" "Sorry, but your foot is in my boob!". Still, we're all in, entertained by the puppet show and the made up song that goes with it, Mr Beehive playing his role of puppeteer to excellence with both eyes still closed. Eventually, usually the small one, gets hungry, or the old one needs the bathroom and we all pile out, but I'd not miss this, all the same. And, for all the bruises and squishes I receive (cos it'll always be me on the smallest square of bed!) I hope this will continue for a few more years to come.

Enjoy your Sunday morning lie in,
yours in squishes,
Big Chief Foot-in-Boob!

New Toy!

Did I tell you I've got a new toy?

Mmmmm, a Janome 8077! Early Birthday present from Mr Beehive.

So, as you can probably imagine, I've been busy.


Pair of summer pyjamas for the Little Miss (un hemmed at this point!). Amy Butler daisy chain fabric. I'm really pleased with the outcome, but the shorts could've used a few extra mm's around the butt!

This is a knitting bag for a friend of mine. I've lined it with a vintage rose fabric and it's fastened with a wooden button. It is long enough to take the longest needles and a current WIP or two.


This was an experiment in PUL. I'd wanted to do a lunch bag for myself (although someone already has her beady eye on it!) and had a spare remnant of Amy Butler fabric which I thought I'd use. So it's padded and lined with PUL so it's wipe clean with a padded handle. It'll happily take sandwiches some fruit and a drink.



A pair of checked baggies for my nephew with a couple of pockets for him to put his finds in. These were originally for Master Beehive the younger, but whilst I was sewing and he was at school, he grew! That'll teach me to make a pattern up from a pair of his existing baggies that he's obviously grown out of. He was showing a 1/4 inch of ankle out of the bottom sadly. Luckily there's a 4 year old who'll appreciate them (well, his mum will !!)




Next on the card I'm pimping a pair of my jeans and then I've had a delivery of a lot of pale baby blue and some chocolate brown needlecord. I'm thinking a cord pinafore dress for LMB with a cute applique dragonfly or something on the front. I've also got a friend having a baby, so I may have another attempt at a kimono top, I'll have a rummage in my stash box.

It's all just Madness!

We were in a rush today. I'd been out observing with an independent midwife all day at ante and postnatal visits and after tea Master Beehive the younger decides to inform me that he has homework in his bag due in tomorrow.
Pah, thinks I! Still, it's been half term, the soonest she'd have gotten it out to the children was yesterday, Monday, so there can't be much!
Pah! again! No, there is three pages of maths and then he has to write a page on what he was "going to do"(?) in the half term. Of course I am wondering whether he was actually given this before half term, but no, he insists not!.

So, we now have at least an hour of homework to do after dinner!
Pah! thrice!

Luckily for older siblings though - what a beauty they are. I packed the Little Miss upstairs with her elder brother under strict instruction for him to read to her, supervise face, hand and teeth cleaning and then sing her the song she likes before bed. Master Beehive the elder loves authority (of his own, not mine of course) bundles her upstairs, chivvying her along.
Suddenly I hear him singing at the top of his voice - "Naughty boys in nasty schools, headmasters breaking all the rules...." 8-O apparently at the request of the Little Miss. She had cool older bro up there tonight singing funky songs rather than mummy or daddy and their boring renditions of "I had a little nut tree". Big Bros Rock!

Like, totally mental maths and cannabis cardis.

It would be foolish to suggest that I am now back in the calm of the fold up here in Scotland! However, I am back.

The last few days have been just about the most stressful of my life so far - childbirth was far easier!
On Friday last week and Monday this I went to a couple of university interviews for a place on the Midwifery BSc Hons course starting in Sept 2011 - a realisation of a long time dream. Friday's interview wasn't so bad. We had to write an essay and then had a face to face. I came away feeling positive. Monday's however, was a totally different kettle of fish. For this day we had a selection procedure, if we didn't succeed in the morning by passing the maths test, essay and group exercise, we wouldn't be able to proceed to the afternoon whereby we were able to have face to face interviews.
As you can imagine, tensions were running high. Maths isn't my strongest point, it's not that I can't do it, it's just I don't work well under pressure. When I'm under pressure, for some reason my brain decides to shut down, so it doesn't matter how many times I've practiced dividing decimals, suddenly it looks a foreign language (oh and no calculators were allowed, before you all laugh and tell me to just press the right keys!!)
Fortunately I had obviously pleased lady luck as I managed to get through selection by the seat of my pants I think and got the opportunity for a face to face in the afternoon.
I don't feel too bad as everyone found the test hard, in fact some of the ladies who'd had maths tests elsewhere said it was, by far, the hardest test yet - so that's some relief.
Whilst I was being interviewed I managed to see that I'd gained 65% for the maths and 85% for the essay but didn't manage to see my group result - so I feel pretty okay with that. I won't be under so much pressure as a midwife and if I'm giving drugs then I'll always double check and then check with a colleague, as I said, it's not that I can't, it's just the pressure of three pages in 20 minutes - they say time flies when you're having fun...can I suggest it flies when you're not too?!

Saturday mum and I had booked to go on a quilting course. Mum wanted me to do something that got my head out the books and really I needed to get her out of the house as she's been tied down there for the last six weeks due to having a bunion operation. Dad has been a star, but she's limited with where she can go that has a wheelchair as she can't go far on the crutches and, let's be honest, Dad isn't wanting to spend a day quilting or doing something like that!
So we made these:

with jelly roll. I'm rather pleased with the end result. I have no idea what I'll use it for, but I now know how to make a bag, so can probably make some for the children with just one strip of patterned material too. However, the upshot of the day (or rather down!) is that I realised just how elderly my machine is. The "chugga chugga ping" is not actually a healthy sound and isn't "quaint". I did end up with janome and elna-lust (won't make any sense if you're not familiar with sewing machines). Luckily I'm teaching several times over the next couple of weeks, so should have enough earned to feed my habit!



The other WIP that's finally finished is the cardigan for a friend's baby. I don't know what she's having, so opted for the cream. The pattern was using a Sirdar yarn, but I wasn't so keen on working with that feel, I tend to pull it too tight, so chose to use a Debbie Bliss cotton. This was my first error as the cotton doesn't go as far, so I ended up running all the way into the city one morning for one more ball of yarn, paying more for parking than the ball and buying more yarn that I probably don't need for future projects that I haven't started *sigh*. Anyway, I still ended up short, so adapted the pattern in the end to introduce a contrasting colour in the edging. I actually prefer this result as I feel it's more unisex. Now I just hope she likes it - people can be funny with knitted items!

I did have a sudden panic when I caught sight of the motif on the cardigan in the fading light last night that it looked suspiciously like a cannabis leaf, but luckily Mr Beehive relieved my fears informing me that it was all in my head *hmmmm*? So this one is now known as canabis cardi, which is hardly surprising since I've been re-reading Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May and am probably totally caught up in the psychadelia and trips!!! (again - makes no sense if you haven't read it!)

So, now we wait; for babies and unis...

The week in photos

Squirrel theft!


Durty Dawgs!




Revision!

This:

has become these for LMB to put inside her boots when we walk to school.



and of course, no young lady is quite complete without sporting a headband with felt flower which I made up from a practice band of cable I'd been working on - waste not want not and all that! My sister now wants one in black!



The cardigan just needs sleeves. Next project is to finish the front of Master Beehive the elder's sweater and decide if I have enough time to knit sleeves before he grows out of it, or if it might be better as a tank top ;-)
Then I want to start on a baby cardigan for a friend having a baby in April.

What else? Hmmm, well, since reading The Red Tent, I've suddenly become anxious about the fact that storytelling is an important part of discovering who we are. I've bought a book for my parents as a start, to ask them to fill it in to pass onto the grandchildren. I know my maternal grandmother actually started to write a book about her life and I realise how little I know about them. She used to tell us all the time, but when you're a child or teenager, you don't always take it in. Now she's gone and I'm anxious to hear her story, so my challenge over the next few months is to track down her notes (which I think went to my aunt when my grandmother died) and see if I can have a copy to read. Perhaps this is middle age, or maybe middle age is Mr Beehive, who is now "in" the crate with Meggie, apologising to her for him squirting the "no bark" this morning and her taking the hump with him ROFL!