Whatever is going on in this world — and whatever is being temporarily shut down or put on hold — babies are born!  That is a bright spot in my thoughts — especially as we anticipate the birth of our grandson next month.  Baby knits have been on my mind on my needles 🙂

I finished this set — Baby Wrap Sweater (designed for Kidknits by Erika Flory), Kimono Booties (from Little French Knits, Florence Merlin the designer), and  our own Pansy Pot Hat (form The Baby in the Garden Layette by Pelagia Fiber Arts).

The multi-colored yarn is from the always fabulous Knitted Wit!  The solid green is Debbie Bliss’s Baby Cashmerino.  Lovely yarns!

Sarah and I were able to get to Rainy Day Yarns in Gig Harbor just before everything shut down — and I bought yarn for 2 toddler sweaters.  I like to knit what I call “playground sweaters” — ones that can be used out and about.  Wool is such a practical fiber for the little guys — natural, breathe-able, sturdy, soil-resistant, simple to clean.  But Sarah and I also succumbed to an incredibly soft Royal alpaca yarn (like baby kitten soft, like ridiculously, meltingly soft) for the ultimate in newborn knits: a tiny cap and a wee kimono!  Sarah has finished the hat and I am working on the kimono (I confess that I had to rip it back and re-start it twice to get the gauge right — even tho i had done reasonable gauge swatch — but I suppose my brain has not been as sharp as usual these past few weeks…)

I have one design project in the works for our new little Baby Bear — his Yzma Blanket.  I have knit one for each grandchild (Yzma is my “grandmother name”) — a special blanket in soft wool.  That will probably not be done by the time he is born (actually none of them has been!), but since all the other 5 grandkids still sleep with their cherished Yzma Blankets, I don’t worry about it being outgrown 🙂

So, Baby Bear, you are much in my thoughts these days — as you have been in my heart already these many months!  So excited for your arrival next month!  It is a good thing I have all this baby knitting to keep me occupied while I wait 🙂