Jamie delves into things completely foreign to her

Last year, around September or October, I found out my lovely cousin Audra and her husband, John, were expecting their first child.  This will be my aunt's first grandchild and my grandparents first great grandchild, so this is big news in our family.  My grandparents were probably giving up hope as their oldest grandchildren, my sister and me (34 and 32 respectively), haven't been showing any signs of expanding our families.  In fact, I've been stating for years that I will not have children.   It's for the best really.  I know nothing about babies.  I mean nothing.  I've never even held one.  I know so little I had to actually research the pros and cons of different styles of baby blankets before I could start knitting one.  I had no practical knowledge on the subject.  I had tons of questions.  What's the best yarn to use: wool, cotton, acrylic.  Lacy blanket or solid blanket?  What's the best size?  The only firm answer I found was that it should be machine washable.  It seems everything else was debatable.  In the end, I decided to go with lace blanket made in a cotton blend that is machine washable.  My research shows that babies like  sticking fingers through holes and mom's like that a lace blanket can easily be breathed through because of all the holes.  I went for cotton because the South has more warm months than cold months so it seemed more practical.  Loopas helped pick the color.  He said the color would show less stains.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="332" caption="Lil Lambie and the Baby Blanket"][/caption]

Pattern: Pine Forest Blanket by Ingrid Aartun

Yarn: Lion Brand Cotton Ease

Needles: US 8

More details… here (ravelry link)

It was a very easy lace pattern so I could take it anywhere and knit on it.  It traveled with me to sit and knits, my mom's house, and was my regular tv knitting.  It still took me forever to finish it.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="397" caption="Baby Blanket closeup"][/caption]

I seriously thought I'd never complete it.  Luckily, I managed to get it done before Ruby Clare is born.  I hope it is liked and well-used.

I managed to find the time to knit one more baby item for Ruby.  I thought they were fun.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Little Booties"][/caption]

Pattern: "Suede" Booties by Candi Jensen

Yarn: Berroco Suede and Plush

Needles: US 4

More details… here (ravelry link)