A few WIPs and a very sad picture

I've recently reconnected with one of my favorite things - sock knitting. I've had this Cherry Tree Hill yarn sitting around for, oh, two years or so. I haven't knitted since before I was pregnant with Dawson and he's almost 14 months old if that tells you anything. It took a while to get reacquainted with all those tiny needles but we're back in the groove now. I already have some gold & blue stripey numbers planned for Josh and I - Let's GOOOOO Mountaineers!

Have I mentioned before how much I adore fall?! I'm not very fond of hot weather (to put it mildly) so the prospect of cool fall days and bringing out the sweaters and scarves thrills me to no end. I bought two new fall candles last week and you had better believe that September 1 they will be burning. I even love the word "September" - it makes me think of pencils, new shoes, school buses, leaves and the return of all my favorite network shows. Oooooh, I can't wait!

And I'll leave you with a picture of a very big, time-consuming, challenging WIP - a nap mat for Papaya. I actually wrote a (vague) pattern for this so if I ever make another I'll be able to remember the steps. Papaya and her mama are moving (back) to Hawaii next month and this will be for her to use at her new preschool. I can't wait to see a picture of her sweet blond head laying on her new nap mat.

Oh! I almost forgot - and I don't know how since I'm staring right at it. One-year-old + laptop on sofa = BIG trouble. The guys at Gateway just looooove me.

My dear friend is taking a journey to Tennessee for a new video card. I'm not sure I'll be able to survive the 7-10 days that she'll be gone. It's going to be a sad, sad time.

A little goodness

A couple of months ago I found a blog I really enjoy, written by Leslie in Japan. We email back and forth and are in the process of doing a craft swap. Being the doll that she is she offered to pick up any Japanese fabric that I've had my eye on and mail it to me. Apparently a few other readers thought that was a good idea too! Within the last few weeks she's opened an Etsy shop to share the Japanese crafting goodness with the rest of us unfortunate souls stuck in the land of JoAnn Fabrics. I just can't rave enough about her selection and fantastic customer service!

I requested a specific book because I'm madly, deeply in love with the shirt on the cover. I want to make one for Delaney and myself. She ordered it for me and let me tell you, when I opened that delightful little envelope from Japan I literally gasped with excitement! I won the coolest Eco Bag and she stuck in some sweet squirrel fabric (that will be made into a fall tote for ME) and some little candies. I'm trying to pace myself on the candy - I have only eaten one piece and OH, BOY. The empty Hello Kitty wrapper contained a marshmallow filled with chocolate. Seriously? I could have eaten at least 5 of those. Or 9 or 10. I think the baby likes them.

All Your Kids Need (ISBN 4579111338)

Check out these bags - perfection! Totes, drawstrings....

And this dress - oh, my...

The minor glitch in my master plan is that both the book and the patterns are written entirely in Japanese. Hmm. Would it be a bit much to learn a foreign language to make a cute shirt?

Nah. I don't think so either.