he was fat & bunchy, as a rabbit should be... ~ posted by Melissa

(from The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams)

 

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day

 "Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse.  "It's a thing that happens to you.  When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

 



 

"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse.  "You become."



 

"It takes a long time."

 "...but once you are Real you can't become unreal again.  It lasts for always."

pattern:  Henry's Rabbit from Rabbit Hole Knits (free ravelry pattern link here)
yarn:  Spud & Chloe Sweater in toast, chocolate milk and igloo
link to my ravelry project notes here
rabbits to be loved (hopefully!) & hugged & made Real by Neoma and Vincent

rabbit ear hat ravelry notes & pattern info can be found here

another weekend come & gone ~ posted by Melissa

The weekend was a blur ~ filled with a road trip, a birthday party, yarn shopping, football watching and snuggling up in the blustery autumn weather.  All in all, a joy filled weekend but it was overshadowed by a huge, unexpected loss that one of the women in our knit group experienced.  All of our hearts, mine included, swell with sorrow and sadness for her and her family.  Another reminder to hug the ones you love and hold dear, and to live every minute to it's fullest. 

Hope everyone has a peaceful week.  I'm thinking about you, Chris.

isn't he handsome....

signs of fall everywhere

Suquamish Tribal War Veteran Memorial on the Suquamish Tribal lands...

the Seattle skyline from Suquamish...

Chief Sealth's grave and tributes left at his burial site...

A boy and his yarn....

  We got to see our 2 year old nephew last weekend and I gave him a ball of waste yarn that he was eyeing in my knitting bag.  He immediately took off running, with the ball unrolling crazily behind him while I chased him around the house.  We always have such a fun time when we get to visit with him.  Today he was visiting Grandma and this is a conversation that they had:

Vincent:  I miss yarn.

Grandma:  You miss playing with the yarn?
Vincent:  Yes, the yarn.  And Jas and Lis (my husband & I) left.  I miss.

Don't you just love it?        ~ Melissa
(thanks for sharing, Trudy!)

Growing Pirates

Before the littlest family member joined us 2 years ago, this Auntie made him his first skully sweater ~ size 6 month.  Can I get a little bitty 'aaaaargh':

As expected, he quickly grew out of it but this smart Auntie saved the leftover yarn and told his very smart mama that if she wanted me to try to up size it so he could get a little more wear out of it, I would surely try.  So, a few weeks ago, that very smart mama gave me a tracing of his best-fitting shirt and returned the wee pirate sweater to me for some modifications:

As I carefully unraveled the ribbing, the tiniest bits of crackers and such that had become embedded in the fibers fell out in my lap and I could picture the little guy happily munching away wearing his cute little hand knit.  Very sweet.  I picked up my stitches again and crossed my fingers that there would be just enough yarn left and........success!  He'll get one more winter from his gift from Auntie!

 

And just in case you're not completely burned out on this theme (I think this may be the last of the pirate posts.....maybe!) ~ Kelli and I have now officially made three generations of our husband's family skully caps to keep them warm this winter:

Can we get a great big, manly man, family sized 'AAAAAARRRRGHHHHH'!    ~ Melissa

I'm thankful for....

A lesson learned ~ when things don't fit, maybe it's because they're meant for someone else:

He wore it all day and refused to take it off....if you ask him who made his hat, he'll tell you 'Lissa' - Sweet!

For an excuse to act like a kid again:

And for a father-in-law who is a great sport:

And, no, that's not Santa ~ he really is just my father-in-law!   ~ Melissa

Sometimes a Growl is Good ~

Happy Birthday, Sam and Jason!
Thanks, Tamra, for the link to relishmag.com where I found the recipe for Halekulani Hotel Coconut Cake.

After a rough start (a 30-minute bake took an hour for some reason???)...

I had a cake that closely resembled the picture on their site.  Now for the big test.....

My official taster took a poke, and a lick....

and a few more pokes, and with a growl that meant 'More please, Auntie!', the cake was declared fit to eat and the celebration commenced!
Happy Birthday, guys!
Kelli and family, you missed out on this one!
-Melissa

A day for play...

Yesterday we spent the day goofing before we spend our upcoming vacation week doing major home improvement things.  It was a great idea and I feel refreshed and ready to paint and install and unpack and organize....hopefully there will be some new photos of the attic by the end of the week that show major progress.  Until then, here are some pics from yesterday to tide you over!  ~ Melissa


a better photo of the Mondo Vest



brrr ~ it is NOT springlike quite yet!



Giddy-up, nephew ~ so sweet!



Time well spent playing with my nephew ~ my boots are big boots to fill!