I'm working away on a simple baby sweater for the boy. My goal is to finish this one BEFORE going into the hospital to have him! I'm using the Simple Baby Layette pattern from one of Debbie Bliss' books, and some cotton/acrylic yarn by Patons. (Rio) It's looking a bit big, but then he can grow into it. I've already got the back and one pocked finished, so it's working up fairly quickly.

Matching Socks

Matching Socks
Originally uploaded by wendymc.

Teagan and her new baby doll model matching socks. I made the socks for Teagan first, and then thought I may as well whip up a matching doll pair with the leftovers. Various (stupid!) mistakes caused the doll socks to take longer than the toddler socks to make, but she seemed happy with them in the end.

I did find that homemade socks don't seem to stay on kid feet as well, so I may stick to knitting her hats and things for now. They'll be fine in shoes, but running around in the socks they kept slipping down on her.

I'm killing the Accordion sweater. I've been frustrated with it all along, it's just not fun, and I'm getting too many signs to "give it up already":

• the ribbing will need MUCH blocking to widen out enough
  
• it was painful to knit woolease on bamboo needles
  
• now that I switched to metal needles, it's only bearable, not fun.
  
• I'm questioning the colour choice
  
• I saw a sweater that would be much nicer than this one promises to turn out, for a mere$12 in the store
  
• I just realized I knit the left front backwards.
  

SO I think this sweater has a date with the winder, to be turned back into centre pull balls for some other purpose. I'm both frustrated and gleeful about this.

I'm looking forward to my next planned project - tiny knit doll socks to match my daughter's, so on christmas she and her brand new baby doll can wear matching socks. (they're girly sock colours and her doll is a boy, but she won't care)

The socks have been knit, though I still have to weave in the ends. I hate finishing work, seaming, weaving, all of that stuff. In this case I have only 4 short tails to weave in and I haven't done it. I really should, then I can wrap the socks up and be done with them!

I'm back to working on Teagan's Accordion sweater (from knitty.com). I have done too much to abandon it, and if I don't finish it soon she'll get no wear out of it before she's too big. I've done the back and the left front, and am about 1/3 done the right front now. It's moving much faster on metal needles, if I really work at it I might finish it for christmas.