snow season

I keep thinking of posting here, I promise!  However, every day ends up like today--only 20 minutes 'til preschool pick up, and there's still shovelling to do and the compost to take out and it takes 5 minutes to put on boots and coat. (but nothing like the 15 it takes to get the boys ready!)  So, I am doing a drive by post.  It won't look perfect, or maybe not even good, but I can say at least I was over here.  :) Hey y'all.

So, The first photo here is that of the boys' wool pants.  At preschool, folks seemed horrified when the boys did not appear in snow pants on the first semi-cold and snowy day.  We have the requisite snow pants--and we just left them in the boys' cubby at school.  Cause, at home, we put them in these: felted wool pants that go right over their overalls.  This year,we found that last year's handmade wool pants still fit (Thanks Didi--my mom, who made them!) but were too short.  Snow could still hit that delicate area above the top of the boot and below the scrunched up overalls beneath.  So, I fashioned some cashmere (yes, these are from thrifted recycled cashmere sweaters) gaiters.  I sewed them on the bottom of the pants, above the ribbing at the bottom of the pants.  Nothing now gets into that cold snowy ankle region! 

Next, I finally finished my new mittens--Due North Mitts, one of my patterns.  What I learned was that a normal person might knit these in a week or two.  It took me forever!  Worse, I found the chart swims in front of you when you try to knit at 10 pm, and you never get to sleep through the night. :)  I was motivated by a definite lack of mitts.  I have to knit more, I wear a double layer mitt in the wintertime, but I will probably be knitting much more plain vanilla mitts in the future.  One of my twins still rarely sleeps through the night (at 2.5 years old, yup) and well, neither do I then.   You'll note here, if you are really awake (which I am not) that these mitts match my Slippy the Cowl pattern--first time in the history of time when I have been so matchy matchy...when I can remember to wear them at the same time...

Last up is a funny picture of the slippers I cooked up for the boys in a hurry.  A week ago now, one of my twins took a header down the basement stairs.  It was scary and he has a big shiner on one of his eyes.  He is fine, but we decided we needed some grippy slippers in a hurry.  It was also -20F outside, so I found some leather scraps, a big crochet hook and held 2 plies of Rowan chenille yarn and one of Paton's Merino Worsted and crocheted like the wind.  One twin (the one with the shiner) loves his slippers.  The other won't wear them.  Figures.  In any event, I made 4 slippers in a weekend while we played in the basement.

(I have no idea how to rotate this photo and am short on time!  Tilt your head?  Pretend they are on a 2 year old, racing past?!)

Finally, I have just about decided that winter is a bad name for a season.  I think this one should be called virus.  Someone or everyone has been sick in this house since October, and it was the same last year from December through May.  I am wondering why the season naming rights have not been snapped up already by someone with the cure for the common cold, cough, or stomach bug.  Just sayin....

Now I'm off to dig out the car and get to school and get the boys into all those layers and home before nap time!