Erin should change her blog name to Erin Raves About Sarah...and I'll change mine to Trying To Be Humble And Not Link Every Time Erin Raves About Sarah.

But she got her baby gifts...

Incidentally, I was thinking about Tucker while I was knitting. But that's a lot of knitting, and I was definitely also spending some time thinking about the episode of South Park where they burn a cross on Will Smith's yard but say that they're burning the letter T. I kept repeating the line as I knit -- "T, for 'time to leave'" -- until my husband was about to go batty from hearing the same lame joke for two weeks.

Also I was thinking about what a bonehead I am for making a burnt orange blanket with an f-ing T on it to send to a family stationed in Texas. Of all the dumb moves. I was 2/3 through the blanket before I realized that everyone is going to think they're University of Texas alums.

And yes, my sewing machine tried to murder me.

Round three of Erin's presents will be on the way shortly, hopefully before the baby is born. One more week!

Posted by: Sarah at 04:04 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I am mostly finished with this round of baby knitting, so I have thrown myself into crocheting squares for Hand-Crafted Comfort. Some of the ladies from my preemie knitting group donated yarn to me, and it all seemed to be red and blue. I threw some white in, and voilà:

I made 35 of these new patriotic squares. Coupled with the 16 for my autumn-themed blanket, that means I'll ship at least 51 squares to Heather soon.

Hey, 51.

But Heather's in the process of moving -- her hubs is returning from Iraq soon! -- so who knows how many I'll have by the time she gets an address. I still have a lot of that red and blue left, and I love the freeing feeling I get when I'm using up extra yarn that's been sitting around for a decade.

(Yes, I have yarn that's been sitting around for a decade. If by "sitting around" you mean PCSing with us five times and being dragged across the Atlantic.)

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Butterfly Wife updated that she sent out her 696th card to wounded soldiers at Landstuhl. Not too shabby. So I thought I'd give a little update.

To break the monotony of baby knitting, I have thrown in a square or two.

These 12 will be sent off to Heather for Hand-Crafted Comfort, her organization that assembles afghans for the wounded at Walter Reed. I haven't kept track of how many I've made total, but I am keeping track of certain colors because I am trying to make enough to provide an entire afghan. I've made 35 so far towards my own blanket. And isn't this just the greatest way to make a project: I do the fun stuff and then mail everything to Heather so she can assemble them, sew them together, weave in ends, and cut tails? Awesome. Why can't all my projects be like that?

And someone else mentioned the other day that we haven't had a pupdate in a while.

This morning, Charlie had an upset stomach. Apparently he decided the best thing to do was to go all the way downstairs, crawl under the Christmas tree, barf, and then lay down in it. Our dog's a genius.

Posted by: Sarah at 04:00 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 That's funny, because I just finished a post at my site about my crochet addiction and just happened to link you. Yarn=Crack, I swear!!

Posted by: Raging Mom at January 07, 2008 06:37 AM (l+Chn)

2 I like the weaving and sewing. I think I'm alone in that. Cute pup.

Posted by: stuffed at January 07, 2008 10:02 AM (oI9wm)

3 oh wow, I love to crochet!! I can't believe I stumbled upon your blog today of all days, when I just finished my last project!!

Posted by: Erin at January 07, 2008 03:35 PM (79ptc)

4 thanks for the pup photo! cute as ever.

Posted by: jennifer at January 07, 2008 03:58 PM (NiWTj)

5 Keep up the great work. Charlie is so cute. I am sure you must do like I do when they are sick and silly at the same time: love him.

Posted by: Butterfly Wife at January 07, 2008 04:36 PM (K0acE)

6 There's just something to love about the silliness that is dogs, isn't there? I'm not a fan of barfing, and Ike's got the most sensitive stomach I've ever seen. If we give him anything other than Pedigree for Fat Asses and chicken broth, he vomits and craps copiously. And do we chuck him out for a model with less barfiness? Naaah, we clean it up in an irritated manner and laugh at the way he puts himself in the corner in shame. Gotta love dogs.

Posted by: airforcewife at January 08, 2008 04:31 AM (mIbWn)

7 I love Charlie.

Posted by: Badger 6 at January 08, 2008 08:44 AM (n3eEc)

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The SpouseBUZZ knit-along is complete!

Posted by: Sarah at 05:32 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Knitting woes are universal:

I am convinced that all that jazz about the big Christmas Knitting Deadline and the Will it Fit/Will They Like it Debate fluffs up the project so much in our minds that if, when the recipient finally opens their gift, they have a heart attack and go totally blind from from the joy of it all that our knit-gifting experience will never be exactly what we expect. I mean, really, let's be honest. A heart attack and total blindness--add to that a small amount of some sort of incontinence or maybe a swoon or two would fall just a tiny bit short of what we'd expect, once we add up all those skyscraper dreams, etc. that we graft into all those stitches, bulky or not.

I can so relate. This year the two things I knitted for people in my husband's extended family, they didn't even understand what I had knit them. I had to mail their gifts, and apparently both of them spent a week staring at the items and wondering what they heck they were and why I'd made them.

My husband keeps telling me to stop knitting for non-knitters. But when you're a knitter, you can't go out and buy a pack of onesies for a baby gift; you have to make something for baby. So I have to live up to that expectation while balancing the fact that it takes about 60 straight hours of knitting to make a baby blanket.

So I keep going. I'm 3/5 of the way through little Tucker's gift. And it totally doesn't match the nursery. Sad.

Posted by: Sarah at 07:02 AM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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1 SARAH! Stop freaking out! If it is anyone that will appreciate a knitted blanket to the point of heart failure or blindness, it is me. Tucker will love it, I will love it, and it doesn't have to match the nursery. I'm not as matchy-matchy as you may think. I look forward to receiving it, and even if it takes you four more months to finish, I would rather you enjoy the process than let it cause YOU heart failure.

Posted by: Erin at January 01, 2008 10:59 AM (XRza7)

2 Just wanted to say hello! I read often but don't post a comment. I am a non-knitter and I have always loved your gifts! The boy loves them too! Some people just don't appreciate a gift that is made . . . aren't those the best!

Posted by: Heidi at January 01, 2008 01:20 PM (GnQGs)

3 Sarah, I have a friend who is a knitter and a rather part time blogger. She just asks people what they want... *grin* That way they're expecting it... of course you could always enclose a card that says... "I hope you like wearing this..." If they see that, it will probably fall into place. In any case, Happy New Year! I hope you have a terrific 2008 to make up for 2007.

Posted by: Teresa at January 01, 2008 01:58 PM (rVIv9)

4 This comment is for Erin since I cannot post a comment on her blog; I messed with it for l0 minutes and then gave up. I love the name, love the colors of the room, and love the creative decorating. Very clever! Tucker _________ sounds like a dreamy movie star's name. I love it! Sarah's Mom Sarah, you're too hard on yourself. I've been bundled up all day long in the cream/sand blanket you knitted for me. I love it and it's so nice and warm and special because you made it for me!

Posted by: Nancy at January 01, 2008 03:27 PM (i47jP)

5 Don't worry! Your gift will be loved. And, trust me, your gift WILL be used & therefore, doesn't need to match the nursery given that the little buggers don't spend much time in there anyhow!

Posted by: Guard Wife at January 01, 2008 05:32 PM (BslEQ)

6 Thank you, Momma Nancy. When are you coming to see Tucker?

Posted by: Erin at January 01, 2008 06:44 PM (XRza7)

7 When someone MAKES something, it is an heirloom. At least, that's how I see it. Every stitch that goes into it was a thought the creator gave the receiver.

Posted by: airforcewife at January 02, 2008 08:44 AM (mIbWn)

8 Oh, get this. The other day I dropped off a hand knit blanket with a note for a pregnant friend I used to work with (she was off the day I brought it in). So I went in today, and she said, "Hi Erin." I waited for more, but it never came. "HI ERIN?!," I thought. The nerve. Scout said, "Well, maybe nobody gave it to her. Maybe someone stole it." Heh. That better be what happened.

Posted by: Erin at January 02, 2008 03:19 PM (XRza7)

9 Erin, remember when I made that hat and scarf for the Christmas gift exchange and the lady who opened it said, "Oh...a hat and scarf" and dropped it on the floor? Sigh.

Posted by: Sarah at January 02, 2008 03:48 PM (TWet1)

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