1. Limited time. (No explanation needed.)

2. Content issues. (Maybe a little explanation needed.)

When I started blogging, it was just about knitting. All knitting, all the time. Then we got the cats, and there was some cats and some knitting- hence the catchy title. Since Iris was born, it has been pretty much a smidgen of knitting, some spinning, some sewing, little to no kitties- and a whole lot of Iris. I think it is pretty normal for a new baby to take over a blog. She is good and easy blog fodder! She is popular! I know that for the most part, the family members checking in on the blog aren't interested in my crafting pursuits- which is fine, I don't expect them to be! However, it does put me in a bit of a pickle when I feel like posting something crafty and I know that half of my small readership is probably walking away disappointed because Iris didn't make an appearance.

That was a really long way to say: The blog is moving. My new blog is called Holly by Hand, and you can find it here. It will be more focused more or less on the crafty bits of my life, with some family life items here and there for zest. I'm planning regularly scheduled posting on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Structure (even self imposed structure) is a good thing for me!

Iris is getting her own blog right here, so you can keep up with her exploits there if you're so inclined. I'm planning on posting there once a week, probably on Sundays.

I'm a little worried that none of my readers are going to follow me to a new blog, or that it is too much trouble for people who like both the baby content and the crafting content to have separate places to go. I hope you won't mind too much, and that this will end up being a happy change for everyone involved. Some of this blog is already archived here on WordPress, but I think when Typepad closes my account there are going to be some linking and picture issues that I'll have to sort out. Also, there is a substantial amount that I haven't even moved over yet. The point being that it will all be archived someday, but maybe not for a while. If you need some info from the old blog and you're having trouble finding it, just get in touch with me through the new blog, or on Ravelry (where my user ID will remain knitonmycat), and I'll be happy to help!

I also wanted to say thank you to everyone who has read and commented with me here. It has been a lot of fun, but I think I am way overdue for a change. I sincerely hope you'll join me! To reiterate:

My new blog is here. (I cheated a little bit and posted a couple times already, so you should go get caught up! There is a new hat… I'm just saying….)

Iris's blog is here.

Iris also has photo hosting set up here, although we are still in the process of uploading.

Knit on my Cat is/will be archived here.

If Iris is going to be tall (and with two tall parents, I think she is pretty much doomed) she might as well get used to being asked to join the basketball team now.

Iris and Katie. Katie is Bob's brother Jeremy's soon-to-be stepdaughter, so I think that makes us related somehow! Regardless, she was very helpful with Iris while we were at the hotel….

although Iris occasionally disagreed.

The lake is this pretty! I COULD NOT MAKE THIS UP!!!

Iris got hold of the camera one night in the hotel room and apparently, this is what you take pictures of if you are an almost-two year old.

Nice composition, kiddo! I like the diaper hanging out the side of the trashcan. We party like rock stars.

Last thing I wanted to show you all is Grandma Linda's tattoo. (Yes, tattoo!)

An iris, for our Iris. Now is that love or what?

I know that some people (Tammy, I am talking to you!) have been waiting an inordinately long time for vacation pictures. I'm sorry it takes me so long to blog sometimes, but I'm (literally) not willing to lose sleep over it. I would like to suggest getting a blog aggregator, like Google Reader. It's a good way to keep track of all the blogs you like without having to check for new posts every day. Comes in especially handy for unrepentantly infrequent posters! Not that I know anyone who fits that description. Ahem.

So! Pictures!

At the Murphy house, AKA

Iris got the princess treatment from Grandma. Free rides in the wagon for grandchildren only!

Some other sights from around the house and back yard.

Chickens! (Who did not want to be photographed AT ALL.) They don't all have names, but P Diddy and Little Jerry are among them. Have I ever mentioned that raising chickens is one of my fondest wishes in life? I really got a kick out them while we were there, and Iris loved them too.

That's it for the yard… now a few pictures from inside the house, so you can admire (as I do) the eclectic array of decorative objects.

This is my husband's senior picture, next to a plaster handprint he made when he was a little kid. Awwww.

This last one is the view from the bedroom window, looking out over the "driveway". (In quotes because I am of the belief that if your driveway is more than 1/4 mile, it is a "road".)

Next time, there will be pictures from Lake Chelan! And maybe even some vacation knitting!

I'll be back in a little over a week!

This probably goes without saying, but taking a walk with a toddler is a completely different experience from the evening time "power walks" I used to take alone. Obviously, they are slower. Also, I notice things I didn't pay much attention to before.

Like how long our shadows are:

How interesting this drain is:

Tiny flowers:

Gravel is fun to take out of potholes:

And stairs are fun to climb…

over…

And over.

Sometime after this picture was taken, there was a tiny tumble from the second stair, so our walk ended a little prematurely. I carried a tired and slightly disgruntled baby home, but she doesn't seem any worse for wear.

Some more pictures I couldn't resist putting in. You can click to make big.

I'm so grateful to be sharing these walks with her right now.

The BSJ is now EBB (everything but buttons).

In other breaking news, last Saturday, Iris had her first (long overdue) haircut.

Before:

After:

(With Kym, our lovely stylist.)

She still has plenty of hair… it's just not in her face so much now. So we're both happy. I think it was one of the less traumatizing firsts for both of us, on the whole.

That is the word that best describes my current WIP, this Baby Surprise Jacket. (Do I really need to put up this Rav link?) Besides that the pattern is sort of that way to begin with, I strongly suspect that all my increases and decreases are not quite perfectly aligned. Fortunately, I think the fingering weight yarn will hide many ills (Dream in Color Starry in Punky Fuschia. I don't think it shows in pictures, but in real life, it has a subtle sparkle. Just right for your baby bling needs!)

Maybe you can see the sparkle in that one. I hate to even post pictures of WIPs around here anymore, because I seldom seem to have a finished object to show off later. I don't want to be a tease! I'm feeling pretty confident about this one. Fun, ingenious, keeps you guessing… all things that keep me engaged in a knitting pattern.

I'm trying to find things to do with my sock yarn stash this summer that aren't socks. Baby stuff, hats, shawls, scarves. This caught my attention yesterday in a big way. It is practically begging for the Malabrigo Sock treatment. I'll take other suggestions of course. I am not going to run out of sock yarn anytime soon!

Last weekend, I picked strawberries and made my first freezer jam. It was super easy to make, and the results are spectacular!
I don't think I'll ever go back to store bought. Not when there are so many delicious fruits to experiment with! I am not usually a fan of sugar free jam from the store, but I substituted the sugar for Splenda and it worked fine. There is so much fresh strawberry flavor here, I don't miss the sugar at all. (I used Ball Simple Creations No Cook Fruit Pectin. I don't think you can just go swapping sugar and Splenda willy nilly… it really depends on your pectin. So be careful!)

2. Bread!

Because you need homemade bread to go with homemade jam, right? I don't think it gets any better, really.

Of course, June is not just for eating things. More on my summer fiber pursuits coming soon.!

I would like to give a
way a jar of jam to a blog reader in the Metro-Louisville area. If you want one, leave
me a comment and I'll pick someone at random on 06/12/2009. I wish I could open this
little contest up to everyone, but I don't think I can put this stuff in
the mail, so you also win my delightful in-person delivery. Yay! (Oh, and
if you're interested in making your own, Erin put up this really nice
tutorial. I promise you, it is sooooo worth it!)

Iris had a wee bit of an ear infection last week, so I didn't get much of anything done. I am not complaining! She is 19 months old and this is the first time we've ever had to get a prescription filled for her (Thanks, boobs!) She's feeling much better now, which is good, because we had an action packed three day weekend!

On Saturday, I went thrifting with Allison. I was looking for a coffee table, but instead I came home with a sweater that I hope will fit me in the fall, a housecoat that I plan to recycle into something cute for Iris, and this cute little box for sewing notions (among other things).

(You can click to "embiggen" as the Yarn Harlot says.)

That is the cool thing about going to yard sales and thrift stores. Frequently, you don't find what you were looking for… but you find other stuff that makes you just as happy, if not more so!

Iris had a good time roaming the Goodwills and Salvation Armies of Southern Indiana, but she was plumb tuckered out when we got home!

Sunday was mostly a day for moving furniture around and cleaning. Not terribly blog-worthy. But my living room looks a heck of a lot better!

Today, I got to spend four blissful hours sans child at the Knit Nook. I feel like a super productive knitter now. I almost finished the yoke section of the top down cardigan I started for myself on Friday night. (But I couldn't get a good picture, so we'll put that in the "later" pile.) I also almost finished the ribbing section on my Mini Mochi socks!

For some reason I can no longer remember, I decided to do a twisted 1×1 rib on the cuff. It looks pretty, but I think it might be the death of me. It is taking FOREVER to make it to two inches. I am not ready to officially declare this ribbing to be at black hole status… but I am close. I will make it. The end of the yellow is nigh. I am primed for green!

I still haven't gotten my act together on the buttons for Iris's cardigan, in spite of all my good intentions. But here's a little preview:

Are you excited? I am too… maybe even enough to sew those buttons on today!

I did turn the heel on my Jaywalkers, which went fine, but since then, they have been nothing but trouble. I think I need a private lesson with someone who has actually knit a pair or two so they can show me where I have gone awry with getting the stitch pattern to line up on the instep.

In the meantime, I'm casting on for a pair of socks that will hopefully prove to be less painful.

The yarn is Mini Mochi from Crystal Palace. It is a really unusual sock yarn- a single ply, spun very loosely, but in an 80/20 merino and nylon blend. Theoretically, that should make it a little more durable than say, Noro Sock. I happen to have a "thing" for rainbows so this colorway is right up my alley.