Isabelle’s nosebleeds aren’t all crazy anymore. That first day after we got the air purifier and humidifier, no blood. NO BLOOD!! And she’s only had two since then, quite an improvement over the nine nosebleeds last week.

But allergies are kicking my butt. My eyes are all itchy even with the air purifier and I don’t know if that’s why I’ve been feeling a little run down. In fact, today I took a nap with Nathan. A nap when he doesn’t usually have a nap. That is of course why he is WIDE AWAKE now. And he’ll be up late too. Sigh.

Oh well. Never mind that. Look at this instead. Something new!

OOohhhh! A little crocheted elephant.

Isabelle originally wanted a little boy elephant, a bright blue one. But partway through crocheting it, she requested the elephant with the skirt instead.

Nathan likes her long nose.

Poke, poke, poke.

Project Notes
Pattern: Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet
Yarn: Red Heart Ltd. Super Saver
Needle size: Size G hook/4.5mm (thanks Bethany! I was able to crochet part of this in the dark with the light up crochet hook you sent!)

For a few months now Isabelle has been wearing bandaid eyepatches. We misplaced her pirate one and I’ve been meaning to make a new one but hadn’t gotten around to it. The box of patches we have is running low so I thought it was a perfect time to get going on the eyepatch.

I used this eyepatch tutorial for occlusion therapy by LucyKate Crafts. Isabelle chose the colors. It’s made of felt. Even the button! Well, I think the button is felt. I can’t remember what it said on the packaging. All I know is that it’s soft and not hard like regular buttons.

It’s nice not to use bandaid type patches.

Why didn’t I make one sooner?

Besides avoiding taxes this weekend, we went to a welcome home party. It was for Alan’s cousin’s daughter’s baby boy. Whoo that was a mouthful. What does that make him? A cousin of some sort? Anyhoo, the little guy was born premature before Christmas and they had a party to celebrate him being released from the hospital. He came so early they never did get a baby shower.

I couldn’t find the umbilical cord hat I knit for him. Yes, I misplaced a knitted item. Sigh. I made it back in December and put it in a safe place until I could see them. They live up the street from us and this was the first time we met the little guy. Either that or I put it on Nathan’s head to see how much he’d grown and he walked off with it.

Ok back to what I was saying, easily distracted today. Since I couldn’t find the hat, at the last minute I sewed the baby a blanket with some fabric I had in my stash.

I think the fabric was from my friend, Veronica. She used it to wrap Nathan’s birthday present. How awesome is that? A present wrapped with FABRIC!! I made a baby blanket with it. Just a very simple blanket with chenille on one side, backed with this dinosaur flannel fabric and inside a layer of flannel. It’s nice and super thick. And for some reason I always mix up flannel and fleece. I have to ask Alan every time, what’s this fabric that’s in my stash. Ok went off the trail again.

While I had the fabric laid out and was cutting into it, Nathan was all over it. Later after the presents were all wrapped up, I felt bad. I should have saved the fabric to make something for Nathan.

I mentioned the other day that I found a replacement hat for my favorite pattern, the umbilical cord hat for babies. Well, here it is, a crocheted gnome hat!

But as I said, in that post, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

Take this gorram thing off of me mama!

Nathan sure didn’t want to wear it.

Whoo got it off!

And that is why every single photo of this hat is a little blurry.

Much better.

But ain’t it purty? Whatdya think? Too unusual for a baby shower gift? Stay with umbilical cord hats as gifts?

In my mind’s eye I see myself, before Nathan, posting regularly in an ordered pattern sort of this way: family posts, drawings, crafty posts. It was never the same category one after the other. I don’t know if that was actually reality. That’s just how I wanted to post. I think I managed it after Isabelle turned one. And now that Nathan’s a year and a half old and not needing me so very much, I think I’ve found that groove back.

My most recent posts have followed a similar pattern. Family, craftiness, drawings. And eeeep, that makes me so happy! I don’t know if I can keep it up but I can hope.

Here’s one of the recent things I finished, another umbilical cord hat (from Stitch N’ Bitch). I seriously love these things for new babies.

Though I love this pattern, I may have found a replacement hat. I say may because the new hat fits Nathan now, so it’s not for tiny babies. And though I like it, it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. I’ll share in a few days when the next cycle of my “pattern” of posting comes along.