Pixie Bonnet for Christine's Baby Girl

I found the pattern for this Pixie Bonnet for free on Allcrafts.net.

I used more of my Premier Yarns Angel self shading yarn in the color 'Baby Daisy' (which is a worsted weight) on size 7 needles.

This is a newborn pattern but what's nice is that there seems to be a lot of room for variation in size with the rib stitch. I just love how it comes to a peak in the back.

I crafted this bonnet for Christine's little girl that is still on her way. :)

Many thanks to Jillian for being my accommodating model even though she wasn't newborn sized anymore. :)

Daven's Hat

I used Premier Mega Brushed in the color Apple Green, which is a worsted weight yarn.

This patten is worked in the round.

US 7 circular 16" needles
US 7 double pointed needles

Cast on 80.

Row 1 to 4 - rib stitch [knit 1, purl 1 around - knit where you knit, purl where you purl]

Row 5 to 30 - stockinette stitch [knit every stitch]. Measures about 4.5" from the edge.

Row 31 - (K2tog, K8) repeat to the end.
Row 32 - Knit every stitch
Row 33 - (K2tog, K7) repeat to the end.
Row 34 - Knit every stitch
Row 35 - (K2tog, K6) repeat to the end.
Row 36 - Knit every stitch
Row 37 - (K2tog, K5) repeat to the end.
Row 38 - Knit every stitch
Row 39 - (K2tog, K4) repeat to the end.
Row 40 - Knit every stitch

Switch to double pointed needles to finish. 8 stitches per needle works out nicely.
Row 41 - (K2tog, K3) repeat to the end.
Row 42 - Knit every stitch
Row 43 - (K2tog, K2) repeat to the end.
Row 44 - Knit every stitch
Row 45 - (K2tog, K1) repeat to the end.
Row 46 - Knit every stitch
Row 47 - K2tog every stitch, leaving 8 stitches.

Cut the yarn, weave the tail through the remaining 8 loops (beginning with the next loop you would have knitted) , and cinch together to close the hole.

You don't have to knit the top to such a small diameter, but I don't really care for a puckered look, so I tried to work the hole down as small as possible.

It came out a little bigger than I had intended. This pattern is a large kid's or small adult's beanie.

The yarn was nice to work with; fuzzy and light. I had a little trouble getting tangled on the extra fluff when I was decreasing, but otherwise, I'd like to work with it again.

Happy Birthday Panzer!

Panzer, whom I call 'Pants' mostly, has turned a year old!

He is quite the odd little animal to cohabitate with. He thinks he is one of the dogs, but I would equate him more to a raccoon or a squirrel; something you would think is a bit too wild to live indoors.

Panzer is fascinated by electronics. He waits for the DVD and Xbox to open so he can attack the CD trays, he wants to know where the paper comes from when the printer is on, and he is a big fan of the ceiling fans. He won't leave my laptop alone either. He is either running across it, batting at the screen or trying to get underneath it. If my laptop is open and the screen goes to sleep, he will come over and touch the keyboard to get it going again. He gets excited when I play music over the laptop or my Ipod - circling around, digging underneath, smelling and tasting the noise-maker all in the effort of finding where the sound comes from.

Panzer waiting patiently for the chance

to get his paw caught in the DVD player.

Panzer is really active. He needs constant stimulation. He is hard on the furniture, the old cat, and my flesh. He prefers to attack one of the dogs (Tatum) and lick the other (Brisbie). The licking seems cute and affectionate, but Brisbie is not his biggest fan and she growls at him when he tries to groom her. Panz thinks he is one of the dogs and gets really upset when they go somewhere he doesn't. When they go outside to play ball, he expects to go too and then spends his time jumping out of the bushes and attacking the dogs as they pass, and climbing trees at maximum possible speed.

He is a ruthless bag-ivore (be it plastic or paper), a murderer of yarn (especially if it is attached to a project), and a thief of other people's food (no matter how full his own bowl is).



What's good about him? He is hilarious and adorable. Panz is very interested in everything I do. He waits outside of the bathroom for me, throws himself down on my lap in a fuzzy little ball, lays across the back of my neck to watch me knit or type, every move he makes is accompanied by a tiny trills and squeaks as though he were a toy, he plays fetch with his favorite toy.

He also has the most amazing fur. I keep saying I'm going to make myself a Panzer hat one day. And the belly. He has the cutest, fat, squishy belly. If you can survive the retaliation, it's well worth a squeeze.

As I type this, he is using my arm as a prop to hold up his leg while he cleans it. Glad to be of service...

Happy Birthday, Pants. :)

Bloons Tower Defense

I just found a free online game that I am in love with!

Bloons Tower Defense is on the Free Web Arcade site and it is absolutely hilarious.

I got addicted to Tower Wars maps playing Lord of the Rings, Battle for Middle Earth, Rise of the Witch King strategy game. I was looking around the internet for more tower wars style games when I came across the Tower Defense Games page of Free Web Arcades.

In Bloons, you build defenses for waves of creeps, in this case the creeps are balloons, that move long the track and you have to shoot them all before they reach the end of the track. You lose a life for each creep that passes the end and gain money for all the creeps you kill. This tower defense game in particular is cute (not to mention actually survivable) because of defenses like the 'Monkey Dart Tower' and 'Super Monkey'.

There are four different versions on this website and each map has added monkey defenses: the Super Monkey even gets Laser Vision.

WoW Hearthstone

I play World of Warcraft and in my search to find WoW crafts online, I've noticed that people have made very cute things, but haven't posted any patterns.

I wanted to make a hearthstone (used to recall a character to it's home) and I tried very hard to document my wanderings as I made up this little plushie.

(fyi - hearthstones are kept in your bag.   /wink)

~~~

Rambling pattern follows:

I used Lion Brand Vanna's Choice in Beige for the main color and Lion Brand Wool-ease Blue Heather for the rune.

US F hook

Chain 5 loosely.

Round 1 - 2 sc in the top of the second st, sc in the top of the next 2 st, 3 sc in the last st, (turning the work in a circle) sc in the top of the next 3 st. This should create a flat, oblong circle. {10}

Round 2 - 2 sc in the next 2 st, sc in the next 2 st, 2 sc in the next 3 st, sc in the next 3 st, 2 sc in the last st. {17}

Roundd 3 - 2 sc in the next 2 st, sc in the next 6 st, 2 sc in the next 3 st. {22}

Round 4 - 2 sc in the next 4 st, sc in 7 st, 2 sc in 4 st, sc in 7 st. {30}

Round 5 - sc in 2 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 1 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 5 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 6 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 1 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 6 st, 2 sc in 1 st, sc in 3 st. {36}

Round 6, 7, 8 - sc around. {36}

This is the point that I embroidered the hearthstone symbol on the face of my project using the blue yarn.

Round 9 - sc in 2 st, (sc2tog, sc in 3 st) around and sc in the last 2 st. {29}

Round 10 - sc in 1 st, (sc2tog, sc in 3 st) around and sc in the last 1 st. {23}

Round 11 - sc in 1 st, (sc2tog, sc in 3 st) around and sc in the last 1 st. {17}

At this point I stuffed the hearthstone with polyfil.

To close, I went about another round of sc in 2 st, sc2tog. I started to loose track since the opening was so small.

I finished by sc2tog until it was closed.

Right before I pulled the tail through the last 2 stitches, I add a few poly-pellets to give the bottom a little weight. That was a messy experiment...

Popeye Has Been Adopted!

Our spunky little foster cat, Popeye, has been adopted from Whiskers, Tails and Ferals. He has gone to a nice family with two little ones. I'm so happy that Popeye has found his forever family.

Panzer has had a funny reaction to Popeye leaving. He didn't spend any time searching the house for the missing kitten, like he did when Link was adopted. Panzer became highly affectionate and demanding of my attention for a few days. I think he was a bit jealous of the one on one time Popeye and I spent; maybe Panzer is happy to have all of my attention back.

In addition, Panzer has lost his playful outlet and has reverted back to attacking the dogs, our old cat, my hair, and using our furniture like a race track. He might even be a bit more excited than usual... Now all the personal time that can be afforded to me comes from Panz's renewed fascination with paper bags.

We hope Popeye is having fun with his new family. :)

Popeye and the Dogs

I am pleased to report that Popeye is acclimating to our dogs. We have a lab (Brisbie) and a lab/german shepard/etc mix (Tatum). Both dogs are fairly excitable and curious, especially when there is a new smell in the house.

On the first day that Popeye and the dogs began to share the living room, I was prepared to separate them after a short while, but I didn't have to. Suddenly Popeye became aware of the dog and no-dog areas of the room. He played in the cat area and peeked out at the dogs from behind the couch.

Dog watches Cat, Cat watches Bird

(Tatum is the brown dog, Brisbie the yellow one.)

The biggest surprise that day was when Popeye curled up and went to sleep on the cat tower. It was the first time he had gone to sleep outside of his crate or his favorite hiding corner, under the curtains. And on dog day #1 of all days. Since that Monday, the upper rungs of the cat tower are Popeye's favorite napping spot.

Another startling advancement happened the next day when he wandered past the dogs on their dog beds (they were obeying the rules without taking their eyes off of him for a second) and down the hallway, then used the littler box in the bathroom. I'm amazed that he chose to treat our house like his own so early in his introduction to our dogs.

Unfortunately, this doesn't mean that everyone loves each other and they all roll around together in a field of heather. Popeye doesn't care for the dogs but is becoming quickly tolerant of them. He plays his way out into the living room, forgets they are there, complains at them, then darts away. The good news is that he doesn't stay hidden for long. Less than a minute behind some piece of furniture and he is back to what he was doing.

Popeye's reaction is much different than anything I had expected. He doesn't treat the dogs as though they are predators, which would be natural. He treats them like any other moving, noise making thing in our house; potentially scary. He gives the dogs a wide berth while walking by and doesn't let their presence deter him from what he is doing. Popeye has no problem objecting when the dogs try to get closer or they surprise him.

In summation, Popeye still enjoys himself the most when the house is on the quiet side, he is adjusting well to our dogs, and becoming very comfortable traversing our house. Still not a fan of the video camera though. :(

The cure for feline photophobophobia? Why, a little white mouse, of course.

Furrballicide

(He didn't want to be videotaped, but the mousefur toy could not be ignored.)

CUTENESS NOTE: Not only are Popeye's ear hairs white, but he has one, tiny, white whisker.

More Popeye

This is information I'd like to pass along to anyone interested in adopting Popeye. I try to document behaviors I am fairly certain you won't see from a crate at an adoption day. I hope this helps Popeye find a forever home, if his active personality isn't apparent at Petco.

~~~

After spending a week with this little kitten, he still doesn't like having his picture taken. I've tried to be sneaky; holding the camera over my shoulder, obscuring it behind the couch, but he is onto me every time. Popeye plays in such an entertaining manner. He doesn't care if I'm watching while he plays and he doesn't care if I point the camera at him when he is just sitting around, but if I try while he is playing, he stops what he is doing or disappears.

I have a lot of film of Popeye smelling the ground, staring at me and/or running away.

Popeye really enjoys the little beds and rugs on the ground in the cat area. He gets underneath them and plays, lays on the floor and attacks the edges, either propelling himself along or spinning them in a circle. He also seems to be drawn to little fur covered mice toys. He plays them across our concrete floor, throwing his body down on the ground and sliding across the floor as he does. He has taken all of the mice, one by one, to the same corner of the living room.

2.5 Seconds of Play

(I thought I was smooth grabbing the camera while Popeye was under the cat bed, but he found me out pretty quick. This is still the best video capture of him.)

At this moment, the kittens are playing in the bathtub, although that may not be Popeye's preference. Panzer has been fascinated by jumping in and out of the tub since the first day we got him and I'm sure he has lured Popeye in there with the specific hopes that he will find a playmate to jump in and out with him.

~~~

Popeye has become much more animated when in a lovey mood, too. He walks in a circle while being pet, purring all the while. He seems to want to be pet all over his body. This morning he jumped up on the couch to visit with me, tossed his body down on my lap, rolled over (exposing his belly), and stretched luxuriously. When he looked back at me again, his little tongue was sticking out between his teeth.

Happy in the Morning

(I apologize that this video is mostly of my feet, but it shows how affectionate Popeye is. Too bad you can't hear him purring.)

I don't think Panzer cares for Popeye's 'Lovey Time' at all. He watches us from a distance with his ears turned back. I tell Panzer that I have two hands, but he remains unenthused.

~~~

On a behavioral note, Popeye responds well to a clap of the hands and 'tst' when learning the rules of the house. While he really enjoys exploring the house and has become increasingly lovey with me, he is still caught off guard by new noises and movement. I think that a home with dogs or small children would require a lot of adjustment. Also, if he hides, he can always be lured out with food.

(This is the best pic I have been able to get of Popeye's unusual two-toned eyes. They flow from golden brown to green in the center.)

Popeye

POPEYE is a 3 month old male kitten available for adoption through Whiskers, Tails and Ferals. He has been neutered, micro-chipped, and is litterbox trained.

Popeye Facts

He may appear, at first glance to be black, but he is actually a wonderful sable color. When the light shines on him, his coat is illuminated with a dark, coppery brown in a thin-striped pattern. He isn't just sable colored, he feels like a sable too. His short, slightly puffy, slippery coat is soft like a rabbit and reminds me of my grandmother's old mink stole.

He also has the most amazing eyes, which I can't capture due to the flash of my camera. I suppose they would be considered hazel, but they are a golden brown, turning to green near the pupil. I've never seen anything like it in a cat.

Popeye and his brother, Simba, were left in the Whiskers, Tails, and Ferals' Christmas tree lot at Petco.

Popeye's brother, Simba

Popeye eats Purina One Kitten food and canned food in the evenings. He is a hearty eater and quite literally goes crazy for canned food.

Popeye's Personality

Popeye likes a quiet house. He has a tendency to disappear when things get busy, but when it is calm, his personality comes out. He likes to explore and see what things on the floor are edible. He is very lovey when we get up in the morning; lacing his body in between my feet and purring. He likes being rubbed in front of his ears.

He plays with our 6 month old kitten, Panzer, but doesn't care for it when Panzer gets rough. He gives the older cat some space and has not been introduced to our dogs. I think it would take Popeye a good amount of time to acclimate to so much excitement. Popeye likes to play with any toy, like your typical kitten, but he seems to really enjoy propelling himself along the edges of our rugs, carpets and animal beds on the floor. He gets a toy, flops on the ground, then pushes himself along the floor using the base of the cat tower. It's highly entertaining.

He is also camera shy, so I can scarcely capture the funny things that he does. As I am typing this, he is on his back, under a cat bed, turning it in circles with his feet. Scratch that. Now he is testing whether the paper towel his food bowl is on is edible.