Saturday Hat on Monday

I was supposed to have finished this hat* on Saturday when I started it. It's on huge needles (US11), is pretty thick yarn, done on circulars so it knits up quick and I know the pattern by heart, I've done it so many times. My trouble? I was mesmerized by the cool swirly pattern thing that emerged in the ribbing section of the hat when I was working on the smaller needles (US9) and tried desperately to get it to swirl all the way up. But when I switched to bigger needles or increased stitches, I lost the swirl (I know, duh...it took me a while to get it). After ripping back to the ribbing about 1400 times (4 times), I finally went back to the pattern and just finished it. Since Jackson took a 2 hour nap on my lap today (!), I was able to plow through and finish it. I do love it and am excited to have a new hat for the winter. Mittens and scarf are next!

Well, not exactly next. Not only am I super excited about my new sock yarn from La Verna, but I realized today that Jackson needs some mittens. With snow in the forecast for Wednesday, I better get moving...

When I heard that weather forecast on the radio this morning, I figured that the herb garden is pretty much done for the year and ran out to harvest all that was left. I hadn't had a lot of time to spend in the garden these past few weeks and was amazed at what I found. Basil anyone? I got the dehydrator going with rosemary, sage, thyme and oregano and have tons of basil in the fridge waiting to be made into pesto for the freezer. The house smells like Italian soup!

I promised photos of the Boy today and I am following through. They're a bit fuzzy though since they are from the cell phone camera (why can't I take any good photos on that one?!). We took him to the park on Sunday afternoon and he absolutely adored the swings. What a happy baby!
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*The hat pattern is "Homecoming Beret" from Depth of Field Yarn, a freebie pattern. Simple: cast on 70 stitches, K1P1 ribbing for 1-2" on US9 16" circs, Stockinette for 6" from the beginning on US11 16" circs, decrease evenly with k3tog's five times around every other round changing to dpn's when needed, ending with a k2tog round. It will get more "beret-like" with wear. My Homecoming Beret from '04 is huge now!

The poncho in the photo is hand-knit too. I used some sort of Lion Brand yarn (Landscapes?) last winter to whip up a quick nursing pull-over on US13 needles (it is great for that, he can't pull it off!). It's just two big pieces of fabric stitched together at opposite corners to form a "V" in the front and back. Easy!