mi hermana. also, a dino sweater

My sister left today to serve a mission (Carlsbad California, Spanish speaking). She'll be gone for 18 months.

I couldn't be more proud.

She's been living with us for the past 6 months, and I've gotten very used to her helpful nature and cheerful disposition. She's been an incredible help with the kids, provided me with stimulating day-time adult conversation (and lots of funny stories from her waitressing job), and has basically been a great person to have around. And she used to babysit the kids one night a week so that Mr. Snickerdoodle and I could go out. On dates. Loved that.

The reality of her departure hasn't quite sunken in yet, but I'm pretty sure I'll be curled up in the fetal position and sobbing by this time tomorrow.

Maybe some knitting will distract me. I just finished up this sweater for my cousin.



She's expecting a baby boy in April. No name picked out yet, but his aunt calls him Choncho. I wonder if that will stick...

Have I ever told you that I have 73 cousins? Crazy.

Anywho...

One of my favorite baby gifts is a simple cardigan made interesting with a bit of embroidered something or other. I think this bit of embroidery is cute...

... even if it's hard to tell what it is. Loch Ness Monster? Earless green giraffe?

It's actually a dinosaur. Some kind of sauropod, my kids tell me.

And one more thing, I've learned a lesson that I feel compelled to pass on to you:

When you're knitting baby stuff, bigger is always better.

Like size 6 months or bigger at the very least.

It's terribly tempting to knit teeny tiny sized things because teeny tiny things in general are so cute that they make your eyes hurt.

But we all know the sad truth: that babies grow fast.

What is the sense of taking the time and energy to knit something that a baby might only be able to wear for a couple of weeks (or not at all if they're ginormous like my kids)?

Save your teeny tiny knitting for Barbie. Heaven knows she could use some warm clothes.


P.S. If you're interested in the details of the dino sweater, you can find them here on Ravelry.