It's a boy! And another boy!

TWIN BOYS! What am I getting into?

I should have known... I've been chowing down on anything with hot sauce. LOL

We had a wonderful gender reveal party with our close family and friends! It was such a wonderful way to get together and celebrate with some more adult time than a shower (not that I'm knocking showers, I can't wait for mine, this was just different!) We played a few games and everyone voted on what they thought the gender of the twins were! Most thought they were a girl and a boy, some wishful thinking ladies thought 2 girls, and only three people chose 2 boys (my mother in law, sister in law and step sister in law! LOL) On the menu was a bunch of my "craving" foods: Buffalo chicken, ranch meatballs, munchos, chips and salsa/ queso dip, pudding, jello, olives, pickles, ranch dip, mac and cheese.... Oh it was yummy. :)

A garland made of sonogram pictures... just paper clip to a wide ribbon and pin up!

Find the blue paci and pink ribbon to win a prize!

My cute prize table! It's a wooden ironing board with cloth diapers as a table cloth!

Photo albums for the winners of the gender guess, little socks stuff with organic lollies were the favors and monkey bread kits went to those who found the paci and bow. :) (We are doing a monkey theme. :))

I made handmade bunting for decoration- these will go up in the boys' room

cute right?

Some of the food with the cake- all very random cravings! And yes, that's a bottle of tums- that stayed on the table!

? What's inside? Pink? Blue? a layer of each? EEK! It was gluten free to say the least. :P

oh! Gramma's cutting the cake to see what the grandbabies will be!

BLUE!!!!!! 3 layers? Oops. Nope, not triplets, but mommy ran out of batter for the fourth layer..... 

So that was the party! We had such a blast! It was a lot of work for this mama to prepare for and BOY were my feet swollen by the time I got to bed (WAY passed my bed time!) but it was worth it! It's so lovely to share this sort of thing with those closest to you!

Two skirts on a Sunday morning.

With my expanding waist comes the shrinking of my wardrobe. It's sad.

So.... I made myself two new skirts. cost? $0. They were made from fabric and an old skirt that were in my stash already.

Tada!

This one was made out of just over a yard of wool flannel for the body, and a bit of leftover black cotton interlock for the fold over waist. The front and back panels are essentially the same, but I cut an extra low dip in the front to accommodate my growing belly. I made it to measure a bit wider than my hips so there would be ease in the unstretchy wool, and added a giant pocket on the side front.

This one was an existing skirt that had a fixed waistband and a zipper. Good golly that was NOT going to fit in the near future... I cut it about 8 inches below the original waist, cutting off the zipper and making it wider than my hips. I added the same fold over "yoga" waistband out of another piece of cotton interlock. This one is a bit bigger which is fine.

I figure these will work for pregnancy and after since they are stretchy and not specifically maternity.

If anyone is interested, I'll make a tutorial later, there is another piece of wool that is calling out to be another skirt.

What I've been knitting...

Soaker sacks!!! Well, one soaker sack. I knit it with a striped seed stitch pattern and I'm rather pleased with it....

Sleep Sack basic pattern

For newborn size:

Supplies and Materials:

• size 5 16" circular needles
• size 8 16" circular needles
• stitch marker 
• measuring tape
• worsted weight wool (I like Peace Fleece)

Abreviations:

• k- knit
• p- purl
• m1- make one (increase)
• yo- Yarn over (increase)
• k2tog- knit two together (decrease)

With smaller needles, CO 64 stitches. Knit 2" 1x1 ribbing (k1, p1) 

Switch to larger needles

Rnd 1: (k8, m1) around (72 stitches total)

knit plain until sack measures 14 " from cast on edge

Eyelet band for drawstring: 

Rnd 1: purl

Rnd 2: knit

Rnd 3: (k2, yo, k2tog) repeat around

Rnd 4: knit

Rnd 5: purl

Final round, bind off

Make a cord or use ribbon (I like a plain crochet cord or icord for this, it's more secure). Thread it through the eyelet row.

This is awesome for little babes to sleep in. It keeps the toes warm and makes midnight diaper changes a breeze. :) 

Cuddle sack pattern for newborn

Materials and supplies:

• Apx. 200 yards worsted weight wool (I used PeaceFleece, but alpaca, merino and others would be lovely)
• US 8 16" circular needle
• US 8 double pointed needs 
• Cable needle or one of the DPNs for pattern
• Stitch marker for round

Abbreviations:

• k -knit
• p- purl
• k2tog -knit two together (decrease)
• m1- make one (increase)

Pattern:

Cast on 84 stitches and join to work in the round, place stitch marker. 

Knit in stockinette for 1.5-2 inches, on last round, mark the center of work (knit 42 stitches, place marker, knit to end)

Start cable pattern as follows: 

Rounds 1-5: Purl 4, knit 8 purl 4, knit 8, purl 4, knit to center marker, Purl 4, knit 8 purl 4, knit 8, purl 4 knit to marker

Repeat this round 4 more times

Round 6: Cable Round

(Purl 4, slip 4 onto cable needle and hold in front of work, knit 4, knit four from cable needle (twist made) purl 4, slip 4 onto cable needle and hold in BACK of work, knit 4, knit 4 from cable needle (twist made) purl 4, knit to marker), Repeat to marker (Purl 4, slip 4 onto cable needle and hold in front of work, knit 4, knit four from cable needle (twist made) purl 4, slip 4 onto cable needle and hold in BACK of work, knit 4, knit 4 from cable needle (twist made) purl 4, knit to marker). Note: The cables should twist towards each other. 

Rounds 7- 16: Repeat cable pattern round 1. 

Round 17: Repeat cable round 

Rounds 18-23: Repeat cable pattern round 1

Round 24: Switch back to stockinette. 

Round 25-27: Knit plain

Round 28: (Increase round)  (k21, m1) 4 times

Knit plan until sack measures about 14 inches from cast on row. It will be curling at the top and it's supposed to, it will make it more comfy. :)

Decrease: 

Round 1: (k 20, k2tog) repeat around 

Round 2: knit

Round 3: (k19, k2tog) repeat around

Round 4: knit

Continue this pattern until there are 56 total stitches, now we'll decrease more quickly:

Round 1: (knit 5, knit 2 together) repeat around

Round 2: knit

Round 3: (knit 4, knit 2 together) repeat around

Round 4: knit

Round 5: (k3, k2tog) repeat around

Round 6: knit

Round 7: (k2, k2tog) repeat around
Round 8: knit

Round 9: (k1, k2tog) repeat around
Round 10: knit
Round 11: (k2tog) around
Round 12: knit

break yarn, thread through tapestry need and pull through remaining loops. Weave through several times. 

Children's Growth Awareness Day by the Magic Foundation

Today is Children's growth awareness day. I got this from an e-mail list I subscribe to, and think it's so important! 

The MAGIC Foundation has declared September 30th as Children's Growth Awareness Day. We have nicknamed this event, Growth Spurt. This year is our first attempt to unite families throughout the world with the goal of spreading information about the importance of monitoring a child's growth pattern. On Sept. 30th, MAGIC families throughout the world will be sending out emails, posting to groups, putting up posters....about children's growth. It is a monumental effort by just a few (our children's conditions are rare) but we are hoping that our friends and family help us and keep spreading the word! Together we will change children's lives! Why is children's growth so important? Children's growth (how much they grow each year) is a major indicator of their overall health. If they are growing at least 2 inches each year (after the age of 2 and before puberty) it is a strong sign that they are healthy. If they are NOT growing this bare minimum, it can be an early warning sign of underlying health issues such as disease, tumors, hormone imbalances or unidentified syndromes. Paying attention to those height markers made on walls by parents, and the growth charts at the physicians offices is a routine and often overlooked tool for catching problems in their early stages. Many people do not realize the importance of this information and consequentially children may struggle for years with an unhealthy body or serious problem developing which can be stopped or treated much sooner if people become aware of the signals his or her body is sending via their growth pattern. True or False? Parents who complain that their child is too small, or developing too early are simply trying to make their kids "designer" kids to given them advantages over other children. FALSE! Parents who face these medical problems only want their children to be healthy. It is just a part of life that unlike as an adult, during childhood how fast or slow the kids are growing can be an early warning signal to medical professionals and parents. The MAGIC Foundation parents are not using medical treatments such as growth hormone etc. for cosmetic purposes. For our children, it is a true medical need which is often overshadowed by the sensationalized abuse of this medicine by high profile celebrity and sports figures. What is The MAGIC Foundation's Annual Growth Spurt? This is an online event by which everyone in MAGIC teams up to go online and spread the word about the medical importance of children's growth. We are mainly parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and other supporters who personally know an affected child. We are small in number due to the rare frequency of these medical problems but we are HUGE in heart and effort! We gather online, to reach out to those who may not understand these issues in the hopes of helping those children who are still lost in the system - and have not been diagnosed. What good does spreading this information really do? Efforts like this have literally saved the lives of children. Simple information about children's growth have helped parents realize that something was wrong, pointed them to online educational resources, and helped them find their way to experts- quickly. Serious problems like brain tumors have been identified with enough time to make a life long change for children. What is the goal of International Children's Growth Awareness Day? We hope that our combined efforts will help educate 100,000 people about children's growth. How you can help! If you think someone can benefit from this message, send them to www.magicfoundation.org Why should you get on board with this challenge? Because you are probably just like us...hard working people who have busy lives. Alone, we cannot possibly make a noise loud enough for the world to hear...but together we just might! Take 5 minutes and send an email. Ask your friends to pass along this simple yet potentially life saving information. I assure you that somewhere along this information path, a child's life will be changed! Thank you. Together we are MAGIC!

Sample Grocery List

Feel free to copy and paste this into word, delete the cells and use it for yourself! (This is what we went shopping for yesterday. lol)

Grocery List 9/29/2012

Produce	Dairy	Meat	Canned Foods	Frozen
10 Onions	Milk	2 whole chickens	6 oz tomato paste	Mixed veggies
3 Green peppers	Cheddar cheese	3 lb chuck roas	Chicken stock (4)
1 Red pepper	Monterey jack	1 hambone, 2 c. ham	Beef stock (1)
3 tomatoes	Cream cheese	5lbs ground beef	8 oz. green chilis
Fresh parsely	Sour cream	1.5 lb round steak
Fresh cilantro	Butter	sausage
2 Jalapeño pepper	Eggs (2 doz)	½ lb salami or pepperoni
Celery
Carrots			Dry Food
Mushrooms		Bread/Cereal	Rice noodles
1 lb Romaine  or spinach	Baking	GF oatmeal	Egg type noodles (gf)
Sweets & Snacks	Dried thym		1 lb split peas
	Dried basil		1 lb lentils	Condiments
	Chili powder		Pinto beans	ketchup
	Garlic powder		Kidney beans	Olive oil
	Veggie shortening			Cheap oil
	cumin
Beverages	Health /Beauty	Paper Products	Cleaning	Miscellaneous
Orange juice
Cranberry juice