Baby, It's Cold Outside

I have been very busy knitting. I have some problems with my hands and can only knit for a while before they start to bother me, so I make the most of it while they're feeling OK. I've had surgery for carpal tunnel on both wrists, and surgery for tendinitis on my right hand. I have broken my left wrist twice, most recently two years ago, and now have tendinitis in that wrist. I know when they start to ache and swell that it's time to put the needles away and begin a different type of project, but for now they're working and so I'm knitting as fast as I can.



This is a wrap around sweater jacket that I made for myself. I need to find a nice suede belt to wear with it. Rob isn't home to take a photo of it on, so the chair is modeling it.



A number of years ago, when I was living in Central New York, I left my apartment one Sunday afternoon to go to a hockey game. It was a frigid, windy day with ice on the ground and snow in the air. I wouldn't have left the warmth of home that day for anything but hockey.

I took a bus across town and about two blocks from the arena, a little boy boarded the bus. He was about nine years old, thin and messy looking. He wore shoes that were too big, jeans and a tee shirt and an adult's suit jacket with the sleeves cut down. He was carrying a shoeshine box and had been working on the street corner all morning. He didn't have the correct change for the bus, so I paid his fare.

I enjoyed the game, which our team won, but I couldn't get that little boy out of my mind. I still can't. I went home afterwards and got out my knitting needles. I started making hats and mittens and when I had a pile, I donated them to charity. Every year since then I've made hats, mittens, baby blankets etc. for charity.

Here is some of my recent work waiting to be delivered.



A stack of baby blankets.



If I have enough yarn, I'll make hats, bootees and sweaters to match.





Here are some of the hats I've made this year. Rob will be taking them in the next couple weeks to the center that gives them out.



I try to make them for kids of all sizes, from babies to teens.








For the bigger kids I make each hat different and try to use colors and trims that will appeal to kids, while still making them warm.



Hats are fun to make, because they go together so fast. I can make one or sometimes two in an evening.



I like to use beads and bells. I try to think what I would like when I was a kid.



I feel that all kids should have warm winter clothes, no matter how poor the family. And all new babies should have something new, a blanket or sweater. I can't help all the cold, hungry kids, but I can do something and that's better than nothing.