Knitted Teddy Bear

Here it is! My son's first teddy bear! Isn't it the cutest thing ever?! I've always wanted to make knitted baby toys and am not really quite sure why it's taken me so long. I found a great book last year by Susan Anderson called "Itty Bitty Toys" that really sparked an interest in me. She has the cutest patterns for simple hand puppets that I'd really love to make. Also one of my sisters-in-law sent me a great book on knitted toys that is sure to keep me busy for quite a while.

I used a Debbie Bliss pattern for this bear (found on Ravelry but can also be found in her book "Simply Baby") that I ended up really enjoying. The first part of the pattern was written quite strangely and I had to rip it out at least 4 times before I finally figured out what I was doing wrong. But other than that it knit up quite quickly and easily. There were many reviews on Ravelry stating that seaming it together was annoying or difficult but I really thought it was fine. I didn't want to overstuff it, but there are a few places (like it's head and snout) that could be fuller. 

I can just imagine this little bear being dragged along on all my son's adventures.

Mushroom & Sausage Risotto

When you're home alone do you have different behaviour than when your partner is around? The question makes me think of Carrie from SATC and her "Secret Single Behaviour" theory, demonstrated by her eating saltines with grape jelly while standing in her kitchen reading fashion magazines. I truthfully don't think I have any remaining "Secret Single Behaviour" left after 7 years with my husband. I actually think that I had lived alone for long enough before meeting and moving in with him that it wasn't that easy to hide anything that would could have been considered "secretive" anyway.
But nowadays when the rare occasion comes along that I'm alone for days if my husband is away I have developed a new type of SSB: I eat food that I know he hates.
Like tuna sandwiches! And mushrooms!

I bought myself four baby portabello mushrooms at the market this week anticipating a few lonely meals but really had no specific dish in mind for them. Thankfully a little quick browsing on one of my go-to recipe blogs provided me with the perfect use for them.

Baby Pullover Sweater

Another little project for my baby-to-be from my favourite knitting source Purlbee.com.

I somehow managed to make the body too narrow (which in turn makes the sleeves look too long) which must have happened by binding off too many stitches for the sleeves. I guess that's what happens when I roughly follow a pattern and am not paying attention the number of stitches called for. Oops! 

I can roll the sleeves up, but I don't really love the look of them quite as much. I also wish my collar turned out as nice as the one on Purlbee. But I do love the slit detail on the hem and the fact that I was able to use up lots of this hand me down yarn. 

Nursing Pillow

Wanna know a secret? Sometimes I get lazy. Sometimes I give up and buy things I could make. Sometimes I just don't have the time or the drive to fulfill all my handmade dreams.
It happens to the best of us, right?

I had always wanted to make my own nursing pillow after seeing a cute handmade one in Lotta Jansdotters book "Simple Sewing for Baby". But while registering for our baby shower I had a moment of weakness and thought "Geez, I can't do everything myself. Maybe I should cut myself a break and just have a store bought pillow."
Thankfully I have a great partner in life who at just the right moments gently reminds me that I can do it myself. And sure maybe it'll be a while before I really find the time, but it will get done. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday.
This little life lesson is also one that I think my son is helping teach me from the womb. "It can wait" he says, as he makes me put off tasks for another day in favour of rest and relaxation. And it's true, most things can wait. The floors can be dirty for another day or two, the laundry can sit piled on the dresser moments away from it's final destination inside the drawers. Heck, even the bread dough can rise another day and not mind one bit.

When the baby shower rolled around there was no nursing pillow to be found amongst the gifts and I was secretly relieved. I added "make a nursing pillow" back onto my to-do-someday list, and just relaxed knowing that eventually the time would be found to get it done.
This morning the stars aligned (with the very cool morning breeze that blew into my sewing room) and I spent maybe 10-20 minutes making this simple but hopefully very useful pillow.

July Garden Update

Lately I'm all about the COLOUR in my garden! Seeing little bits of bright pink or orange peeking out from within the jungle of green just makes me so happy. This could also be because my garden isn't producing much in the way of edibles right now. Aside from herbs, some lettuce and edible flowers, I'm still mostly waiting for things to mature (or show up at all). 

So let's dive right into the good stuff shall we? CHERRIES!! Aren't these spectacular?? Mostly because we had no idea we owned a cherry tree until it started to bloom early this spring, and then weeks later when fruit slowly started to appear. 

Strawberry Almond Tart

So I don't want to sound like a broken record or anything...but have I mentioned how uncomfortably hot I've been lately? 33 weeks preggo in 25+ degree weather isn't as lovely as it may sound. 

I think I've been doing a pretty good job at not complaining too much but there are points in the day when a frown creeps onto my face and I just can't comprehend the fact that I need to stay out of the sun. Add to that picture my undying desire to cook and bake new fun things for almost every meal and my utter disregard for the fact that baking will in fact make my house hotter. 

Thankfully I've stumbled upon this little gem of a summer tart. Not only is it super fast to make but the end result is so light and refreshing that it almost makes me forget I had to turn the oven on at all. 

Green Bean Hazelnut Salad

This summer has been just fantastic so far. Despite the fact that the high temperatures don't agree with my pregnant body, my feet are constantly swollen and I'm getting a wee bit crankier...I am actually having a really great summer.
Yesterday was a perfect day filled with two trips to the lake, a great burger from my favourite new burger joint, a long nap, a delicious quickly-thrown-together summer meal, refreshing mocktails, and board games in the yard at dusk. What more could I want?

This salad comes from (you guessed it) Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks. She comments on the surprisingly pleasant pairing of the tomatoes and the hazelnuts but I really think it's the green bean and hazelnut combo that wowed me. Either way, you must add this into your summer salad repertoire.