Untitled

This image is a new hat (same pattern as below) but the gauge is right on and the yarn is appropriate. It is for Ron to wear at work (let's see if he really does). It is pretty cheap yarn but it actually works great and I love the color. I have taken a break from the scarf because it is kind of a pain, each stitch is different and if you fuck up you have to pull it out and start the row over again so I think it will be cold by the time I complete it. Oh well
I am ready, I think, for a more challenging project. But, I browse around the yarn store looking for a pattern and I just get overwhelmed and maybe a little intimidated. If anyone has any intermediate fun patterns I would love any suggestions. I singed up for knitting II at Web's it begins in October. I am the kind of person who needs that extra help although, I surprised myself by figuring out the hat pattern. I suppose I can work though a pattern myself but most often I am not very confident about knitting sometimes. I just like the fact that we will make a mini sweater and that may boost my confidence a bit.
Back to current knitting.....
This picture does not give this hat justice. It is however, framed perfectly! My short stint with photography pays off (well sort of). 13 days (almost exactly) until the wedding so I may not be posting frequently throughout September. Martha's Vineyard here we come! I can't wait to go on vacation. I need a break, work has been, to phrase it nicely, hell. Most of the children are having difficulty transitioning so I have been holding crying kids all week. There is more but I don't think I can post it. Basically, I have been emotionally exhausted as I have been pulled in many different directions and bombarded with question after question after question. Today went beautifully and my director has been awesome through all of this crap. So I came home happy! Till next time!

Delivered by Santa?

Yesterday at about 6:00 EST I completed my hat. It is not fashionable or practical by any means. First it fits horribly, I used cotton yarn when the pattern called for worsted wool. As a result, it is all loose and totally not form fitting thus, the impracticality factor. Let's just say I don't think it would keep one warm even on a summer day. I am not sure if anyone would ever wear it it is that hideous. Amy (my coworker) said she wanted it but I am glad it is so ugly that she won't want it. I am pretty darned proud of it.

Wow! The pictures actually do it justice. And yes the model is a Santa statue (I promise you we are not Catholics, it just happens that we are both Italian and somehow managed to land this so-hideous-it-is-beautiful statue). I am actually trying to get my family (and Ron) to give up the whole gift giving thing even to the kids(I know I may get hate mail for this). Christmas should be about Jesus and God and one's commitment to faith and it's not (coming from and atheist). Giving gifts (well lets say freaking out about buying gifts by some deadline for someone who has all they will ever need) is a shoddy way to say I love, care, trust you. It just legitimizes consumerism and I am not all about that. But more of that during the Holiday season when I become pretty fed up with the whole hype!

A knitting feat!

I figured out the issue with the hat pattern. I was on break and had ten minutes left, that was when I knew I would crack the code. It felt so good to move on to the next step. Although, when I shared the news with my co-workers they were not as excited as I was. Very confusing. In the discussion of the orange hat I managed to find it a good home with Amy, one of my co-teachers, who apparently loves orange. I told her if I knit it for her she must wear it in my presence at least once. I hope she likes it and all it's little imperfections. I worked on it when ever I got a free second yesterday and I woke up early to do a little knitting this morning. Currently, I am sacrificing a shower for the time to document this knitting feat! Happy Knitting!

Circular needles and the kitchen table?

Knitting with the circular needles has been pretty easy. This is the edging of a practice hat. Yes, this cotton yarn is bright orange reminiscent of the 70's shag carpet my parents had in their living room. Someone told me it was the new black. I am not really sure about that one but isn't beauty in the eye of the beholder or something like that. So, in spirit of he 1970's I placed this lovely yarn on my retro kitchen chairs (which go along with my sliver retro table). I am telling you people it is comming back into style. So, the whole 70's thing is incorrect. Back up a couple of decades into the 50's. There really is a calling for this furniture, I mean some people have admired the table (seriously) when they came in. Mostly, they were trendy hipsters friend of a friends and we don't ususally agree on decorating. I might like the table if I lived in a trendy city loft apartment. I am, however, not sure the table fits into my vision of a country bungalow/Mediterranean kitchen theme.
I digress. Because of this color I am going to auction off this hat or something, when/if completed. Ron says he won't wear it, even to paint houses, because he will get made fun of. Poor guy. Who knows if this hat will even get past the edging because I am a little bit stuck transitioning from the edging to the body of the hat. This requires me to, I think, go onto double-pointed needles. The next step says to "From a circle with the needle, being careful not to twist knitting" (I am not sure what to do there because the needles are already in a circle) then to "K all sts from left-onto right-hand needle" then I will have one round. I am lost.
I get how to knit with the double-pointed needles; it is just getting the yarn onto the needles, I guess, is the current problem. I really am not good with transitions. Despite the frustration, I am having fun on this new project.
Happy Knitting

Just call me Aunt J.

At 6:22 am this morning my sister, the superwoman, gave birth to an 8 and 1/2 pound baby boy....naturally. She is so awesome and one cannot imagine how happy and proud I am of her and her amazing strength (also props to my brother in law for being such an awesome guy too). She knew she was beginning labor last night as she was really uncomfortable, they hung out at home went to bed, and at 3:00 her water broke. By the time she got to the birthing unit (10 minutes away) she was FULLY dilated! He was born in three hours.....Strange thing is that at 5:45 this morning I woke up after a restless night sleep and could not for the life of me go back to bed. I kept having dreams of a baby in a yellow suit so, I had a feeling it was happening.
They have not chosen the name yet. They had planned on meeting him and hanging out with him for a while before deeming him something, which I think is pretty cool. My parents were a little freaked out and people are still waiting to hear what his name is. To me it did not matter if he had a name or not, Baby C was fine for me. I was just so amazed and comforted to hold him. And, even though I hold babies for a living, it was indescribable to hold my nephew for the first time.

On the knitting front. Thursday night I, along with MamaCate , held a knit group at work. Turned out it was just me and Cate, but we had a terrific time. It was nice to just sit, knit, chat and of course gossip. Cate lent me a book with some fun patterns in it so, I am currently practicing working with circular needles. I like to just make some swatches (of course check the dreaded gauge) and also get used to the process before embarking on a project. At first it was a bit shaky. I had to cast on 80 sts (for a practice hat) I didn't like the e-wrap cast on so I used the long tail (extra long tail cast on) and it went pretty smooth. (We bought a digital camera today so now pictures will be frequent hooray!) .

Along with borrowing a how-to book, Cate also lent me the hilarious book At Knit's End , I am going to purchase it as we speak. The first page says it all... for me at least. Here is the excerpt:

"There is a certain majesty in simplicity which is far above all the quaintness of wit.
- Alexander Pope
It is some kind of miracle that all knitting is constructed of only two stitches: knit and purl. Sure, you throw in some yarn overs, and sometimes you knit the stitches our of order, but when it really comes down to it, knitting is simplicity. The most incredible gossamer lace shawl....the trickiest aran...a humble sock...each just made with knit and purl.
Know these two stitches; Rule the world." -Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

This is why I think I am so drawn to knitting, it is simple yet challenging. I started to learn to play the guitar about 6 months ago. Despite my open mind, it was not so open to the open endedness of music. On the other hand, knitting gives me the satisfaction of creating something, yet has some simplicity to it. My brain just works better with a little bit of guidance.

Happy Knitting, Cheers! to my sister. From a very proud Aunt!

P.S Ron admitted today, after a trip to Web's, that he doesn't mind knitting as long as he receives some sort of knitted product every once and a while. I think I may need to write this up in a contract.

No baby, no knitting, a whole lot of complaining!

One may wonder how I do not have any time to do all the fun things I enjoy like knitting or even relaxing. Well, lately I feel like I have no time to even exhale. It just seems that I always have something to do after work and before work and it sucks. I just want August to be over, get married, and go on vacations for 6 whole days! Although, I am looking forward to a knitting group tomorrow at work. I don't know how may people will attend, but it will be nice to sit down and have knitting be the main attraction. It may also give me some much needed community feeling at work (which I think everyone is feeling). I will keep you updated as much as possible. Cheers!

34 and counting....

Ron and I are getting married in 34 days. I never thought I would ever get married. Mostly because I didn't think I could find a man who sticks up for women ok lets just, in short, call Ron a feminist or pro-feminist or an ally of women whatever you want to deem him. After finding this wonderful man we have been living together for two years in return, we have basically went through the "first year of marriage". After we get married not much is going to change for us, except that I may get some pressure to have children and get a tax break. All of a sudden one month before the wedding I am scared (a little). Before we were engaged no one took us seriously, we knew that we were in a committed partnership however, it seemed that people needed some sort of stupid security. The minute we said we were getting married it was like....Ohh Jessica is not just some young girl Ron is dating (like Ron was the promiscuous man on the year), finally they are settling down, or now we can respect Ron and Jessica's partnership (ok no one said that though I would like it if someone had before the engagement).
After the engagement I got the OHH! Congratulations, wow how old are you? And some people at work asked me if I am coming back to work after the wedding, do I interpret it as, women are no longer able to keep a job because they are going to pop out 10 children and say home, or are you moving somewhere different to live with Ron? I have no idea but I was serioulsy asked that at least twice.
Basically, I am freaking out because my future is not longer this huge mystery like it was when I was 12. When I could innocently fantacize about what my job will be and who I will spend the rest of my life with. Now it is pretty much worked out for me, well at least one part (the whole job/career thing is still in the works) and I guess it is a bit scary. I suppoe maybe things will change or have already changed because we are committed to eachother. Like, not only do I have to worry about my parents and family but; I have inherited a whole new set of parents who will someday(already) need our help. Also, when making serious decisions about my life I now have to consider how they will effect my partner. For example, I cannot just pick up and move half way across the counrty for grad school. That sort of compromise is a bit scary when really truly faced with it.
On top of all that work is not the same. There was this huge flight of teachers and now they are scrambling to hire new ones. The newly hired teachers I have met seem a little bit strange, snarky, and make me feel like the new teacher. I do not like that AT all. I mean this is my block ladies (note: this feeling is not conducive to a team). Shit Shit Shit! And I am the one who tries to keep this place together and have a peaceful community and make everyone feel a part of the community. Then I have to transition to a new classroom with a semi new team. AND! this classroom consists of INFANTS and toddlers, and the directors are so busy they have not noticed that we are going to need some extra support in this transition! I am toally freaking out! AND I AM GETTING MARRIED IN 34 DAYS!
I guess I am a) not dealing well with changes in my life and at work b) just feeling really unsupported and unheard, like only Ron is listening to me and c) feeling a little bit stereotypical that I am getting married in the first place (hint the title of my blog). I have never felt this uneasy in my whole life. Can we skip the wedding and just go on a honeymoon?