5 weeks...scary

The baby is getting ready to enter downstage (think about it) any week now. But he is thinking more of a feet first kind of entrance at the moment, with his back to the audience (kind of like his mother). So maybe the lovely beginnings of this mural in his room will entice him out, head first:

You can see the beginnings of the Baer and the Tiger on their way to go fishing. The Chair is blocking the Froesch (frog) and Meghan is pencilling in the Tigerente down right. This weekend there will be paint!!! The image is from one of the Janosch books - Oh, wie schön ist Panama.

Since this past sunday looked like this:



..I stayed in bed all day and finished this:


Finally finshing more than just socks for the little boy to be. Sad, but true, Maximilian isn't even born yet and he gets his first cable sweater years before Fritz ever will :)

I started the sweater for a friend's baby 2 years ago and never finished it. I did the back and one front and then forgot all about it. And since I was making up the pattern as I went along, I couldn't remember what I had done in the first place when I found it again after moving last month. So after counting stitches and finding a post it note or 2 with notes about the cable pattern at least - I finished it this weekend. I CAN tell you that the yarn is a chunky cotton (Modial? I think) knit on size US 10.5 wooden needles. There is a 6 stitch cable that front twists every 4 rows. And there are 3 cables going down the back. I had sewn together the shoulders before picking up 32 stitches for each sleeve, knitting down towards the seed stitch cuff. The sleeves look awfully short and the sweater looks huge around, but oh well babies come in all sizes, so i am sure it will fit him at some point (*gulp* i hope!). Am thinking of putting in a zipper - so much easier than buttons or snaps! And just need to finishin sewing the side seams and it will be perfect!


I even started another sweater for the baby out of the self striping/fair isle regia sock weight yarn - and am half way there. Well one front and one sleeve that is - so maybe that is a third? Will need to get a picture of that soon too!

back to that whole work thing - need to do some sewing for non-baby things (bummer)

6 weeks to go!!!!

Unless Maximilian decides to get here early!!!
For those of you who are desperate to see how large my stomach is getting (family only, I am sure) as well as the cutest little socks you ever did see, please see here! I am almost as cute as the sox!

I have been sort of nesting…making a few cute baby things here and there. My goal is to use up the stash as much as possible. I do not have too much by way of knits, so most of those were purchased recently. But the cottons are out of my stash, such as the lovely dancing skeletons here:



My favorite Madhatter might recognize the fabric.



Of course it has a snappy crotch, as do all baby things, but I always feel the snaps are too far apart for what I need it for, so I pleated them in abit to make them fit the little crotch. I should just sew on individual snaps next time.


And there are surfin' pirates here:




which is the leftover fabric from my niece’s pajama bottoms that she got for x-mas.




And I must admit, now that I live 3 exits from IKEA, (very dangerous, I tell ya!) I have made many trips and had to get this:



It was 99cents! How could I resist? The sign said armchair covers…weird.

And of course, being the backstage wardrobe lady that i am, everything gets a label!



The fabric on this particular onesie is left over from MERLIN, a show we did about 3 years ago - such a small piece! Who would miss it?

no blogging on the weekend :( no computer at home. But there will be more crafting and wait till i get to show you what will be happening in Maximilian's room this weekend! HINT: it involves tigerente and the scenic painter from the theatre!

Comfortably numb...

Well, have you been wondering where I have been?
Long story short ends with the above photo….

So the week of January 15th we moved and stuff is still in boxes. I have made lots of cute things over the last few weeks –both knitted and sewn – took pictures and downloaded them to the computer.

Here is some cute baby knitting (not for mine, but a coworker who is having a girl) for evidence sake:


Even wrote a few blogs out with the intention of posting them as we went through tech so I would not have such a large gap of time in between posting…
Didn’t happen, did it?
Why? You might ask…
Because at some point during tech I couldn’t get on to that lovely upgraded blogger thing – I am so computer challenged people! Could not remember my new password or login…..so I thought “Aha! I will just email the files to myself at work and then I can do it from there since I have everything written down at work somewhere…”

So here we are into February and go to email all pics and files to myself when I discover that the computer is not on the coffee table, where it belongs.

Mar: Fritz, what happened to the laptop? I have to blog!
Fritz: I took it to work, you know since I bought it for work…and by the way it isn’t working. I thought it had a virus, so I brought it into work to run a few blah blah blah
(At this point I tuned out a bit and until I heard…)
It is being serviced over at CompuServe and they are probably going to have to wipe it clean.
Mar: but my pictures!
Fritz: and all that music we downloaded…
Mar: Crap!

So the story gets worse – the computer is now with HP and we have yet to hear anything about it. I know, I know, all you Mac users...I can hear it through the computer what you all are thinking and saying how we should have gotten a Mac. But, when we bought the computer last year the theatre had just purchased all new software for CAD and VectorWorks and LiteWrite, which were not MAC compatible…..so just leave it at that.


But where or where did that lovely sign come from? Well last week I had a little fall at work and landed face first into a concrete floor. The baby is fine because he is protected by lots of fat and a placenta…my teeth, on the other hand….


...are not!

Thank the powers that be for workmen’s comp baby! ‘Cause we don’t got no stinkin’ dental insurance, yo!

tagged! your it!

(Wow! thought I posted this!)

1) Post 5 things about yourself that you have never posted
2) Tag 5 people whom you'd like to know more about


1) I wanted to be a jockey and race horses at the Meadowlands when I was younger. I also wanted to be a gymnast. Basically, I wanted short people jobs. I cried the day I got on a scale and weighed 110lbs and found out I was 5'3". That was when my growth spurt started in the 7th grade and didn't stop until I was 5'10".

2) I am not the person you want to call Customer Service, that is, if you work for customer service. My close friends like to say that they "went Marietta on customer service" in order to get whatever problem they had fixed. Fritz will call and say “you so don't want me to put my wife on the phone." Admittedly - I have gotten 2 months free electricity, 5 months free gas, 3 month free water, 1 month free cable, free sewing machine repairs, and the list goes on.

3) I don't like to sew. Okay - I do, I just wish I didn't have to do it all day long at work so I could actually enjoy it more for myself.

4) I secretly desire to be Martha Stewart...not her personality and unpleasantness, mind you – just want her house and Birkin Bag. And the appearance of being able to decorate, cook and create in an instant….I think I just want her staff.


5) Hmmmm... 5 things…. Oh! I like to break out in song whenever possible! With my own lyrics to popular songs, of course, as well as incredibly out of tune and off key. Fortunately, this is more fun when with my mom since she cannot sing either. Not so much fun for Fritz since he has an ear for sound and music…


Pass it on to 5 people? Well never been a fan of chain mail and forcing people to do something they might not want to do…and I think most people I would like to know more about already have answered this lovely little game – since I am so slow on the posting and all 

Knitting – can you believe it!!!

There are many other things going on here at Casa de Knit Or Get off – but there is actually knitting – for once!!!
Some old (like May!) and some new!

I finally met up with Starr and was able to give her (and have her try on) her knitted corset that I made this summer – AND IT FIT!!!! She was kind of enough to slip it on quickly before our lunch date the other day – unfortunately the pic is a bit blurry and we were in a hurry – so not the greatest picture:



Pattern: smallest size of Annie Modesitt Bias Corset from Interweave Knits Summer 2006
Yarn used: not quite 5 Balls of Debbie Bliss Cathay, cotton/micro fiber/silk blend, 50g balls, approx 109 yards each (did not use contrast yarn for bind of or strap)
Needles: US 3 (I knit loose, so always go down 1 or 2 sizes, plus I wanted the fabric to be dense for stability)
Changes to pattern: More like corrections. The ribbing did not flow from cast on to body as smoothly as it should (actually, it only works correctly as written for 2 sizes) so I cast on the number if stitches I would need for the body with a contrast yarn , knit a few rounds, then changed to my yarn and started the body. When I was done, I picked up in black and “forced” that ribbing to work. All mentioned here.
Also, I used half elastic/half ribbon straps instead of i-cord. I knew Starr would be wearing this out dancing, so I wanted it to be a bit more secure.

and then there was this lovely - just a tshirt turned into a dress. Starr said - MAKE A DRESS, and I said OKAY! Wish i had teaken pictures of the how too - but again, forethought, something i am seriously lacking....


Fritz always wondered why I knit tea cozies for everyone else and not us – so as an answer to said complaint, I whipped out this little puppy over New Year’s weekend. NO, not any of the cool tea cozy houses or other fun shapes that I got off Ebay this summer – but something plain and boring with a little cabling action to amuse myself.

I used Patons 100% Merino from my stash (a recent purchase, it is true – but stash none the less). I think I cast on something like 130 stitches and then just went from there. The cable pattern is from an Elspeth Lavold book. I would tell you which one, but that would require opening one of 15 boxes labeled “books.” The movers are coming tomorrow, so that will have to wait

Oh yes we are moving!!!!!!!!!! Scary thought! Of course this means decorating and making curtains (or buying) and making (definitely not buying) a new slipcover for the couch – one that is a little more cat proof than the current fabric – I HOPE!!! *gulp*

there is so much more to sohw you and so much more to this post but alas - blogger ate it yesterday. When i have time this weekend, I will update to the new and figure out how to use it all - as well as post a few more pics -but this i always say and never do :) .....

time to switch

okay maybe it is time to upgrade
wrote fabulous blog
lots of pics
hit "publish post" and blogger ate it!!!!!

will try again tomorrow - and it was all about knitting - really - have to go teach knitting class now....

HAPPY HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!! okay so it is the 2nd dayof the new year - but i have never been one for punctuality (ask anyone who knows me - and no, I will not work on it as a resolution).


As for Resolutions - I have many as do you all, I am sure, I thought I would try out a few:

1) Be more organized....*giggle*...

Last year I told Fritz, that in order for me to be more organized, I needed an I-pod...that worked. This year, Fritz has decided that for ME to be more organized (read: make room for baby - either the yarn/fabric goes or no baby...) that we need to move. So we are moving to a larger apartment in 2 weeks.
Oddly enough - I have discovered that I do not have as much yarn as previously thought (and no, i did not count the balls/hanks/skeins - that would have used too much brain power and financially depressing. But I have A LOT more books and magazines than I thought I did....and can not let go of a single one of them! Of course, we shall see how I feel in a few more days when i am so over packing. OF course packing/cleaning has it's rewards - since i have found....

One CD containing very few pictures of my week in Vienna! I had left the digital camera at home – so I had to get a disposable camera while in Wien. I had the pictures developed at the local CVS and put on disk for sharing purposes – well what a pain in the buttocks!!!! That Kodak disk is not user friendly – well at least not Marietta Friendly 

I really didn’t take too many pictures – 7 maybe? Should have taken a pic of the REBECCA marquis – but that would have required forethought – and I am not very good at that.

But I did get a picture of the MANNER store in the airport, ‘cause that is just too funny that there is a huge pink store dedicated to the yummy Manner cookies.



I bought this very cute baby bib (before I knew gender) and though it is pink, Maximilian (we have decided on one L) will have to wear it.

All I need to do is put 2 dots above the A, and turn it into MAENNER (which means “men”). Okay… I thought it was clever.

And in the Museum Quartier at the Museum Moderner Kunst (Modern Art Museum) was this lovely display….

Could you imagine? I am guessing it’s Dorothy, and she has taken a WRONG turn!


2) Learn how to cook and bake - more than the few things I know how...

So I joined the Campbell's Kitchen - web page created by Campbell's Soup and other related companies - you can have a recipe box on-line - and most of the dishes are totally MidWest America Cassreole type dishes. Some are even healthy! We are not talking gourmet here, people, but it should help me with my fear of cooking and food poisoning as coinciding hobbies.
I have tried two recipes and so far, no deaths.

I also made Cranberry Scones for a new year's brunch we went to yesterday - and people who are not related to me, nor were they bribed, REALLY REALLY REALLY liked them! (I have to thank my friend Beth who gave me her fabulous recipe and told me exactly how to mix and bake - down to the kneading as well as description of colour of Scones when done.)
Not only that, Fritz asked me to make more when we got home!!!!!!!! And i learned something in the 2nd batch - self rising flour is not a good choice for Scones - stitck to ALL PURPOSE FLOUR and they will be fabulous! My mother would be so proud!


Well, that is all for the resoloutions - i was thinking about losing weight - but i have a life form in me so i think i get a pass on that one.

There is even knitting to share - but that will have to wait until those who they were made for - get them......