It is coming along nicely.
Archive for family
This feeling is going to change me
The new jeans I bought before christmas to congratulate myself for loosing all my pregnancy kilos are too loose fitting now. I do not mind. I feel light. Ready for change.
I apologize in advance for my irradic postings. I hope to find a new routine, but I am not counting on it right now. So, why all these sudden words?
We have bought a little house! It is a small, bright and very interesting structure which will fit our family perfectly. An old school building will be rebuilt into a string of houses with a small patch of grass in the middle. It includes a lot of work on our part, designing everything inside, but I do love that our house has a history. For so many reasons. It appeals to my heart and my soul.
I have a strong need to stay firmly connected and grounded throughout this process. The move is sure short in distance, but it has stirred such a strong rediscovery and re-evaluation of my core values.
Will you stay with me on my journey? Even if I do not write about knitting in every other post?
There will, on the other hand, be posts about building progress, scandinavian interior design, lots of worries, failed sewing attempts, chaos gardening AND knitting.
My next post for example, will have lots of knitting in it. Not my own, but by someone very talented.
Hope you will have a Happy Easter holiday!�
Big love, little sweater
One year old. I had really meant to write this on Ivars birthday the 6th of December, but I think I might have slipped on a black patch in my brain and got stuck. Well, I intend to shine some light into that darkness. Decorate it perhaps.
My sweet, smiley, cuddly, happy, cookie-loving little son is growing into a toddler. I am not sure if I want to let him grow any older than this. For someone only capable of saying three words (Mamma, Pappa, kaka*), he is surprisingly able to get what he wants.
He got this little sweater from me. I love the yarn, Opal Hundertwasser Wool, and it took exactly one skein to knit this with only a few inches of yarn left after finishing. The sweater did come out a little tight in my opinion. Anna had the same reflection on the very same sweater for her baby daughter. It took me forever to finish it because I could not seem to get the collar right. This is a keeper though. An heirloom. I will keep it for my grandchildren, if I am ever so lucky to get any.
* mammy, daddy and cookie in Swedish.
Back from black
This is just a quick, meaningless post to break the awful silence that has reigned here at the minemma blog lately. It is a sort of I-just-need-to-get-over-it-and-start-posting-again post. I could blame it on a dark and dreary December, but I remember too much light and happiness. I could also say there were three birthdays and a funeral*, but lets just move on.
There are a few finished things I would like to show you. I am just waiting for the camera battery to finish charging.
My maternity leave is over by the way. Over a year filled with cuddles, kisses and slow motion living is over. I am back to the fast lane. Well, as fast as it gets at a museum.
Ok. See you all soon. That is a promise.
*The birthday “kids” were Ivar (yay!), my dad and my brother in law. The sudden death was not a relative, but a co-worker. Sadly missed.
December 1st
Tyra and I are making our own Advent Calendar from bits and pieces of recycled material. The cap is from a baby food can, the cardboard circles used to hold cereal and the adornments has been in my Christmas crafting stash forever.
We first planned an activity calendar, but right now I am thinking that making one of these each day, for what will become a 24 piece Fridge Magnet Advent Calendar, will be enough of an activity to keep us busy until the 24th. We will have to make cards, candy, decorations, presents and other Christmas stuff too.
I really hope the snow will come back soon. Preferably tonight. I would love to watch a white world through our window as we light the first candle tomorrow morning.
Happy Advent!
Vanishing light
1. pumpa, 2. talgoxe, 3. leaves, 4. churchshadow, 5. larder, 6. bergsgatan, 7. grannahouses, 8. edit, 9. laholm (Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.)
Me and the kids are back from a visit at my mothers house. I brought three knitting projects with me, hoping for some time alone with my yarn curled up in the sofa, but I had kids or cats in my lap as soon as I sat down. Not that I mind.
Click on the photo links and read a little more over at Flickr if you are interested.
A wednesday smile
One of our favourite pastimes is dancing together, me and Ivar. He has been enjoying music since before he was born and it is a joy to see his expressions nowadays. I know, the photo is kind of crappy with only bits of us showing and a little out of focus, but it was the best shot we got with the self-timer.
Right now we enjoy listening to Beirut. Zach Condon has a way with tunes that simply opens up my heart and makes me want to howl. Waltzing with a baby works fine too.
Check them out at their website Beirutband.com. Turn on your speakers or put or a pair of headphones and enjoy. Watch them do a street performance with my current favourite song Nantes from the album Flying Club Cup.
Opposite day
Summer Solstice - Midsommar - is almost as big a holiday here in Sweden as Christmas. This year was rainy but you could still hear traditional music, dance around the maypole and put flowers in your hair.
It has been a bit of a rollercoaster lately in our family, with the death of a great-grandmother who was such a sweet person in life. Hugging her felt like holding a bird in your arms. She never had a chance to see little Ivar. Tyra called her ‘Gammelmormor Skakhals’, which is totally impossible to translate but would be ‘Great Grandma Shaky-Chin’ or something similar.
I am home alone with Ivar while our other two family member attend the funeral. It just for a few nights, but I miss them so.
Meanwhile I browse, listen to the radio, snuggle with Ivar. He giggles every time someone whispers in his ear!
Beautiful childrens clothes at Buisjes En Beugels
THE new knitting community is Ravelry. I am so exited about the invitation!
My fathers garden
Me and the kids spent a few days at my dads house and had a lovely time exploring all the flowers, patting cats and eating outdoors. I even had some time to start a new knitting project. This will eventually (soon) turn into a little zippered baby vest for Ivar. At least I hope it will. I really hope it will. My last self-made project is currently on hold because of pattern issues (or the lack of a pattern).
The yarn is Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton. I love how soft it is and how fast it knits up, but I worry about some future pilling.
Sorry for not blogging in a while. I have some updates and what better way to do is there but to show you some photos?
A lovely, yummy parcel from my Swedish Secret Pal (Hemlis) with luxorius chocolate and coffe. There is nothing left of this today…
The most recent parcel from my SP with 1-ply wool yarn from Ulspinneriet Öland (with a great scarf pattern) and a pair of beautiful Susanna’s Ebony needles. I cannot wait to try all of this!
Tyra turned five this month and had at least two cakes and parties. She expressed some concern before her birthday. She said that she did not want to be five, since she do not care for becoming an adult. Tyra woke up relieved and happy to find that those thing does not happen overnight.
Yarn, tea and forgiveness
Welcome to my kitchen table for a cup of refreshing peppermint tea. Oh, what is that on the table? Please feel free to sit down and feel the springy wool and the shiny fuzzy alpaca. I have brought home a big load of Peruvian wool and two cones of alpaca, both off white, from Marias Garn. It is finally time to tackle a manly project and knit a sweater for my darling Kristofer. He liked a pattern from the winter issue of Vogue Knitting. Hope it will work out. It should be a relatively quick knit. The boyfriend sweater curse only applies to actual boy friends, right? Not husbands?
This is Ivar at four months. Is he not the cuddliest baby ever? Hehe, that is what I think anyhow. I met with a doctor last week who could explain what really happened to me at Ivar’s birth. She took the time to listen and I could feel myself finally forgive myself for letting my baby out in the world prematurely. I have somehow been walking around with a feeling of guilt convinced that something was seriously wrong with me. Well, this wonderful doctor peeled that belief off me layer by layer. There is nothing wrong with me! Well, apart from what was already ‘wrong’, but that is something completely different and I will not bore you with it.
Happy spring!
