The last two nights, after the little one is put to bed, I have enjoyed some knitting time. I used some suede bottom soles to make him his own little muk luk type shoes. I think they turned out so cute. I am excited about using them all winter long. I am all about ease and comfort and these will meet both needs. Very easy to throw on and pull up over his pant legs. Bring on the chill!





A couple weeks ago I visited a new-to-me knitting shop in Stillwater MN called Darn Knit Anyway. Ummm…if you are in the area you should totally make a visit!

The building has so much charm and doesn’t that make your shopping experience so much better?!


Look at all that yarn! A wall of goodness.

And just a little Spud and Chloe. I couldn’t decide on what color to get. At one point I was standing on a chair with my arms full of each color. Oh my–trouble!

Then I saw this wall of wonder. Oh yes, I was really in trouble.

Here are some bolts I couldn’t resist waiting to be cut.

They also carry a lot of handmade products by different artists. It was so much fun to see the talent and unique ideas.

A beautiful basket of buttons!

Kata Golda does some darling work!

Yes, Yes, you really must visit Darn Knit Anyway. Plus, Stillwater has so much else to do from great shopping, the St.Croix river, and wonderful bed and breakfasts!
Daffy got a new friend last night. Meet Chrysanthemum. (I know a silly long name, but do you remember that children’s book about Chrysanthemum the mouse…)

She will be hanging out with Daffy in the crib once the project is complete.


For now, they are sitting on a pile of books. The perfect place for two friends to hang out.

Project from Itty Bitty Nursery by Susan B. Anderson.
Here’s to the cutest little mouse. Hurray!

He’s a garden mouse so I think his name should be Daffy. Short for Daffodil. Due to the yellow. Or maybe Sunny. hmmmm… He has to have a name for storytelling time with Elias.

He is soon to be joined by 4 other mice friends. I started out with the yellow and white one because that way if I made a mistake it wouldn’t be as noticeable. He turned out!

Daffy…or Sunny…will hang out with Elias in the crib. Well, above the crib. With 4 other mice. Hurray for nice mice!!

Pattern is from Susan B. Anderson’s “Itty Bitty Nursery.” More on that when the project is done.
Meet Curly. He is our newest friend from Itty Bitty Toys.

He is incredibly cute! Snakes are one critter that I have a high aversion to. Most of the time I try to be pretty macho about things, but not so with snakes. I think it all started when my 5th grade teacher had us watch as he fed the class snake a mouse. I just can’t stop seeing that big eared darling of a mouse wander the cage innocently. I’m sure you know the ending of that story. I almost tear up just thinking about it. But Curly doesn’t eat mice. In fact, he eats mosquitoes. He is pure sweetness through and through.

He comes from Itty Bitty Toys by Susan B. Anderson. (I know. Another project from that book. Trust me, you haven’t seen the end of it either. My needles are flying!)

While Elias and I were knitting him last night, I started thinking that I might try and only give Elias homemade gifts. I think that would be very cool. And it would teach him something about the meaning of gifts.
