Yesterday was a very long and complicated day. I babysat 11:30 to 12:30, then worked 12:30 to 1:30. During that time I fed the flies and mixed up 3 liters of agar solutions. Then I babysat 1:30 to 4:00. I thought Shaun had to catch the 4:15 ferry, so I went running around looking for him. Turns out that he changed his plans and was going to fly to Seattle instead of driving, then rent a car there and drive to Portland, so he didn't need a ride to the airport until 5:00. So I went back and babysat 4:15 to 5:00, then drove Shaun to the airport, then back to the lab to borrow a computer for the Textile Guild meeting (was going to use Shaun's, but obviously I couldn't if it's on its way to Portland.) I was going to pour the agar plates before the Textile Guild meeting, but there wasn't enough time, so Emma and I just went to get set up at the library.

So I was going to have a nice relaxed Textile Guild meeting this time. Shaun was going to take Emma, I was going to use his computer for the slide presentation, and I knew that the digital projector worked with the computer. However, Shaun had to go to Portland. So I borrowed a computer, which is a Mac, not a PC (urg). I get to to library, and the CD with the slides works fine in the computer (yay!), but the computer won't play nice and communicate with the projector. So instead of being able to watch a nice clear slideshow on the 4' x 5' screen, we had to squint and strain to see the computer screen. Meanwhile, Emma is very overtired, and crying because it's way past bedtime. I have a splitting headache, I haven't had dinner, and all I really want to do is tell people to just go home because I can't deal with all this.

Anyway, the slideshow was good, but no one could see it. Show and Tell was fun, and I got to show off my weaving and knitting. Finally the meeting was over. Time to go home, hooray.

Except that it isn't, not for me. I have to go back to lab and finish pouring those stupid plates. Emma and I don't get home until 10:30. At least Emma slept in her stroller while I poured the plates, lucky girl.

Finally I got home and could crawl into bed.

So I finished the second scarf last night. Yay! I think I have almost enough left on the loom to do a third scarf, but I'm not sure. I think I'll just weave merrily along and see how it goes. Then to warp the loom for the towels!

I also got out the rotary cutter and trimmed all the placemats and the runner I finished ages ago. That rotary cutter is pretty slick! A little scary, though, how sharp it is. Keep Fingers Away!

This morning I got the alligator clips and some copper wire to make my fringe twister. I plan to make it a three-pronger, so I can make twisted cording for edging ornaments and making bookmark tassels as well. I'm not sure about the copper wire (#8 gauge), because I don't know if I can get it straightened out enough. I may still try to find a wire clothes hanger.

Emma slept mostly through the night last night. She woke briefly at 3:15 (this seems to be a trend) and all I did was hand her her pacifier and blanket. She laid herself back down (first time for that!) and went right back to sleep. As she was laying down, she said "Mommmmyyyy." Very sweet. I don't think she's ever called me Mommy before, just Mama or Mom-mom.

No bad dreams last night- I dreamed that Emma was learning to weave, and kept showing me her samples.

Well, the trip to Seattle was a success. This is the first time I've been to Seattle on my own, and while city driving is not my thing, I think I did OK. The fact that Weaving Works is fairly close to the highway helps.

Weaving Works. Extremely fun store. Extremely bad for me to go to with a credit card. I spent over a hundred dollars, and was only there less than an hour. But it was all good stuff, honest! I got a Leclerc boat shuttle, 5 extra bobbins, a 60" tape measure (since mine has apparently disappeared), three cones of yarn for dish towels, and two books. They have lots of yummy yarns there. I was going to get a fringe twister but didn't, since I think I can make one fairly easily. Shaun has lots of scraps of pretty wood at his shop, I found alligator clips at the hardware store for 90 cents each, and I think clothes hanger wire will do for the cranks. I'm not quite up to making a shuttle, but I can do better than a $13 fringe twister. So it's not that I spent a lot, it's that I SAVED money, right?! That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

I also stopped at Joanne's in Burlington and got a rotary cutter, cutting mat, and acrylic ruler so I can finally trim fringes properly. I really should finish off the placemats and tablerunner I took off the loom ages (like a year and a half) ago. Although, come to think of it, I did finish 3 of the four placemats, and I'm not sure I like the way the fringe looks on them. I used crochet cotton for the warp and acrylic yarn for the weft (hey, it was my first weaving project and I was impatient to begin), so the knotted thread fringes look skimpy. Maybe I'll just trim the fringe short and do an overcast edge. But I can still use the rotary cutter for that!

I tried out the boat shuttle yesterday, and man, does it make a difference! I wove more than half a scarf the same length as the first one I did, in less than half the time. It is so nice to just toss the shuttle, and have the yarn unroll itself, just the amount I need, and not have to pull miles of extra through each pick. Stick shuttles are for the birds.

I did discover, however, that I need a bobbin winder. I thought I might be able to get by using my spinning wheel, and while a chopstick jammed into the flyer orifice worked, it was definitely not optimal. I checked on Ebay and there are quite a few listed, so I should be able to get one for under $50.

One of the books I got was on log cabin weave, which looks really interesting. I hadn't realized that it could be done on two harnesses (and therefore a rigid heddle loom). The dishtowels I bought yarn for (5/2 perle cotton in white/blue/yellow, which were on sale, so I saved money again-see!) will be log cabin. There are lots of interesting variations in the book, and the towel project may morph into placemats as well.

In other news, I think Emma is about to get some more teeth. She was really good on the trip to Seattle- she did fuss some, but who wouldn't- cooped up in the car all day. Yesterday, however, was not so good. She was fussy all day, and wouldn't nap. She would sleep for maybe 40 minutes, then wake up still tired, cranky, and refusing to sleep. She also cried when I brushed her top gum before bed last night. I can see the two teeth in either side of the ones she already has on the top, and they're getting bulgier. When her other teeth did that they were almost ready to pop through.

She did sleep well last night, though. She woke briefly at 3:15 and that was it. I kind of wish she had woken more, as I was having horrible dreams about her dying. She drowned after being kidnapped by terrorists and taken along with a bunch of other people onto a ship, which then hit another ship and sank. Sort of 9/11 meets the Titanic. I tried negotiating with the terrorists to let her go, but they said there were no exceptions and they had to keep her. It was awful. I woke up sweating and crying, only to fall asleep and start the dream again. I should have just gotten up.

I finally did get up at 7:00, and to try and forget the dream, I started a kid's book I got Saturday at the used book store in town. It's The Hermit Thrush Sings, and I'm really enjoying it. I basically picked it up because of the title (sucker for hermit thrushes), but it sounded interesting so I bought it. I only got about halfway through before Emma woke up, but it's way better than I expected. I'm always a little suspicious of books I haven't read or heard of. I guess it's because I read books I like over and over and over. Recently, though, I've felt like I'm in a rut, and have searched out new reads in the library. The DaVinci Code was good, and The Shell Seekers, and the Elm Creek Quilts series (which made me want to make a quilt). Deception Point was good (same author as The DaVinci Code), but I had a really weird dream after reading it, inspired by the book. I seem to be an extremely suggestible dreamer. I often have dreams inspired by books or TV, usually after watching/reading something scary.

Anyway, back to work. More weaving tonight- finish that scarf!

Have I mentioned that I hate my job? No? Well, I do.

Well, Emma did it again! She slept (nearly) through the night. I say nearly, because she did wake briefly at 3:15, but all I had to do was lay her back down, and she went right back to sleep. And I was awake anyway, so it wasn't like she was depriving me of any sleep. I don't know why I was awake, except that I occasionally do that- wake up at 2ish, then can't get back to sleep for a couple hours. Probably not enough excercise.

I'm going to Seattle tomorrow. I need to do some errands off-island anyway (Costco, pet food, etc), so I decided that I'd just trek to Seattle and visit the weaving shop that all my textile guild friends are always talking about. I want to get a boat shuttle for my loom, as I only have stick shuttles now, and they are a pain to use. Unwieldy and awkward. I have a chenille warp on the loom right now, and have already woven one scarf off it using the stick shuttle. I'm really proud of the way it came out, but I want to see if a boat shuttle speeds up the process any. Weaving is fun. I think for the next scarf I weave, I'm going to try a twill. If I can figure out how to do that on the rigid heddle loom. I think it's just a matter of using a pick-up stick. Need to check that out.

Emma will be coming with me, of course, so hopefully she won't be too fussy. She's usually a pretty good traveller. She likes her carseat.

I haven't done any fibery things since Wednesday! After I finished the little knitted doily, I did start a crocheted doily, but haven't gotten very far yet. It's this one. I've almost finished the solid center part of the pinwheel.

Woo hoo! A really really good day! Emma slept 12 1/2 hours last night! Straight through! Didn't wake at all! (That I heard, anyway). I woke up at 8:00, and peeked in her room, and she was still conked out. So I got to have breakfast by myself, and then she woke up at 8:15 or so. She's been doing really well for the past week, sleeping-wise, usually waking once during the night, but last night was the first time she went SO long.

I worked in the morning, and Emma hung out with me, then we babysat before/during lunch, and I worked some more in the afternoon while Emma was at the babysitter's. She was asleep when I picked her up at 2:00, and I put her in her stroller and she continued her nap quite peacefully for another THREE hours! I don't think she's ever taken a three hour nap. Granted, she didn't have a morning nap today, but still!

Plus, she's been in a really happy mood today. It's nice.

Hmm hmm hmm. Not a very interesting day. I babysat, worked about 3 hours, and Emma and I went swimming while Shaun worked out. It was Lifeguard Swim, so there were a lot of kids in the pool. Why are other people's kids often so annoying? Note to self- don't go to Lifeguard Swim anymore. Unfortunately, that was the only time Emma and I could go today.

I finished a little knitted doily last night out of #30 ecru Cebelia. Turned out OK, but I'm not a big fan of creating circles out of short-row segments. I'd rather do them in the round from the center out, that way there's no seam to sew at the end.

I've been doing crochet with sewing thread recently, so using #30 felt like rope!

Well, so here I go in the high-tech world of blogging. I thought this might be a good way to keep track of my thoughts, my little girl Emma's accomplishments (she just turned one!), and my various needlework and fiber arts projects.

Of note to report today- I finished another hat last night, out of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece, color Lapis. It's the third one I've made using my own pattern. Same pattern for all three, but I keep tweaking it a little each time. This latest one is a little too short for Emma's head, so I may add a cuff. The other two are in color Cranberry, and are for size 9-12 mo. Maybe I'll put a picture up if I can figure out how.

Emma has been walking a lot! I think she's about done with crawling, as she much prefers upright mobility now. She has managed to stand up on her own a few times without holding on to anything, and can crouch down from standing to pick something up, then stand again with no support. What a big girl!

She also has four teeth now, two top and two bottom. Hopefully the next round of teething will hold off a while. She's been sleeping well- only woke once last night, at 1:00, then slept until 7:30!!!!!