Book List

I haven't posted a book list in a long time, have I? Oops. Well, here it is. This is a partial list, because I've read some things and took them back to the library already.

• No One Noticed the Cat, Anne McCaffrey
• Innocent in Death, J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts)
• Maelstrom, Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
• Nimisha's Ship, Anne McCaffrey
• Killashandra, Ann McCaffrey
• The Redemption of Althalus, David & Leigh Eddings (I think this might be the best of all their books, all the series included)
• One Good Knight, Mercedes Lackey
• A Civil Campaign, Lois McMaster Bujold (Yes, I've read this already. Several times this year in fact. It's one of my very favorite books, and I read it whenever I miss Miles Vorkosigan)
• The Alchemist's Apprentice, Dave Duncan (VERY good book. It's the first I've read by Mr. Duncan, and I think I'll have to track down his others.)
• The Nursing Mother's Guide to Weaning, Kathleen Huggins and Linda Ziedrich
  

I'm going to put the knitting books next, with....PICTURES!

Homespun Handknit, edited by Linda Ligon. This has some really lovely hat and glove/mitten patterns. The socks aren't to my taste (mostly knee-high) but it does include Elizabeth Zimmerman's Wearable Art Sock, that is a sampling of EZ's amazing talent for seeing patterns in unusual ways.

Simple Socks - Plain and Fancy, Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts. This gives a basic pattern, and lets you add embelishments. The author(the wonderful person who did Knitting the Old Way) shows how to do topdown and toeup socks. The only heel in the book is a short-row heel. The author admits it's her favorite. :D There's lots of tips and tricks in this book to make your socks better.

Knitting in the Old Way, expanded ed, Priscilla A Gibson-Roberts and Deborah Robson. A loverly, loverly book that examines 15 basic sweater shapes, explains how to create them, and gives examples of how to customize it to fit your ideas. I may need to buy a copy of this one! It's coming out in paperback...

Inspired Cable Knits, Fiona Ellis. This book is divided into 4 sections, each "Inspired By..." change, nature, energy and time. Change has projects (4 tops, 1 hat and scarf set) that has cables that move in unusual ways. Nature (4 sweaters and a wrap) are projects in earth tones (except for the violet wrap) and textures that mimic natural substances. Inspired by Energy is a more ecletic selection, with a yoga bag, a pillow, a child's sweater, and two adult tops. Inspired by Time has patterns that are more traditional, or at least, inspired by traditional patterns. Nothing in the book jumped out and grabbed me, but it's got lots of pretty pictures.

Re: Potty Training

Thank y'all for your helpful coments. It helps a lot to know other people have, indeed, gotten thru this without permanently scarring their children. I'm going to try more rewards, and, I'm feeling hopeful, because Little J's pee'd in the potty twice in the last two days. YAY!

As promised, my current Knitting WorksInProgress***

These first two pictures are of my Hogwart Sock Swap sock. I can't tell you who it's for, and I'm not going to tell you the pattern either, but, it started out with three balls of lovely Koigu KPM. I've since decided not to use the white, and simply use the blue and grey for the Ravensclaw socks. It's a very wavy pattern, which I hope you can see in the second picture, and it makes scalloped stripes around the sock. It's also going pretty slowly :( This seems like such infinitely small yarn (even though I used smaller on my fingerless FairIsle gloves) and the pattern requires concentration.

The second set of pictures, below, are my current mindless knitting sock. The sock I take in the car with me, the sock I put in my purse, even, the sock that I knit on when I'm standing in line.

It's a ribbed pattern, with a small braided cable in the wider part of the rib. I like it, and it dosen't demand too much of my brain.

Like I said earlier (I think) this yarn is the varigated portion of a Duets set from A Swell Yarn Shop. It's the Chocolate Fantasy colorway, which I thought was yummy. I know it's a lot of pink, and I do remember how often I've made comments against the overuse of that color, but, but, it looked so good! And yarn dosen't have any calories, right?

Future plans include knitting up the Sahara sweater (I haven't swatched for that yet) and I'm considering ordering yarn from Elann.com for another Shapely Tank from White Lies Designs and for some Little Turtle Knits diaper covers for Little J. I've got projects running around in my head, and I'm not sure what to do next. But, I'm going to blog about it! As soon as I get something done :)

***To quote from the Yarn Harlot: This is not a complete list. I shall never admit publicly to the full, complete and real list and any references to an project that is on the needles that I am ignoring or have abandoned will be ignored, even if you have photographic proof...even if I provided you with that proof myself through the miracle of blogging.

Potty Training Difficulties

Little J had been doing really well at using his potty chair. I know, this all isn't very interesting unless you're a parent, but, I was gushing about it too his pediatrician...how he was actually sitting on his potty, and he was trying to pee, so he obviously knew how to use the muscles he needed...Well, I seemed to have spoken too soon. Since then, he has started resisting sitting on the potty chair. Vehemenently. He dosen't want to sit on it when he wakes up, he dosen't want to sit on it after naps (and he definitely has to go after a 3 hr nap with a dry diaper) and he dosen't want to sit on it before bed.

There hasn't been any traumatic incidents to cause him to dislike his potty. I think this is more of a control issue. My son is, in the minds of his fond parents, very intelligent, and he wants to have his own way...which often means that he wants to do something, anything, besides sit on the potty. As long as it's not what his mommy wants him to do, of course.

Little J has been so resistant, that I've started praising him again whenever he sits on the potty chair. Even if it's the two short seconds he touches his butt to the potty chair before he gets up to streak through the kitchen. And extra praise and huggles when he actually uses it. But, it's slow. He dosen't want to sit on the potty chair, and I'm not sure what to do now. Do I just keep trying? Or should I let it wait for a couple weeks?

Future posts (this weekend?)

Somehow, finding time to type when I could be outdoors just gets more and more difficult. I wonder why? lots of sarcasm there. But, I do plan to post this weekend. First, I need to update my booklist with the books I've read in the last month. It will be a partial list, because I don't remember everything, but the library is requesting their books back. urgently. Next, I want to let y'all see a picture of my current WIPs. (or yarn planned for projects, as the case may be) I've also got a rant in the back of my head on the difficulties of potty training. Maybe y'all can help me out with that. And, late Monday, I will hopefully be able to post pictures from the Indy knitting group. Yay for knitters!