I copied the pattern from Barbie’s Shrug. (below)

> A chocolate brown feathery scarf

Rather slippery when knitted but it’s unbelievably warm!

> Elongated Scarf

> Hannah’s Marshmellow and Feathery Scarves

The marshmellow wasn’t easy to knit. Knotted here and there but it DID make a cute accessory!

>Fizzy

There are few similar ones in the box..

I found the pattern on a knitting book for babies. I thought if I used bigger needles then it might fit Hannah. And it does!! Rather cute and I am pleased.

I added few French knots to make small flowers. Really chic.

This is what we are going to have for dinner tonight. Hannah and I, I mean.

One of few things I like when Rob is away is that I can cook something that hardly takes any effort and yet is good enough. Hannah happens to like this chicken and sweet corn soup and I thought, why not.

I knew I would be very busy on Friday, doing the paper round, and driving Hannah to her gymnastic class after school which would hardly leave me enough time to cook when we get back.  The driving takes about 20-25 minutes (depending on traffic) and the class lasts for an hour. I usually stay in the parking lot with Pig dozzing off next to me in the car, and sometimes either with a book in hands or these days, knitting kits. I like to have early dinners and so I carefully plan everything in advance.

I had a spare time yesterday afternoon, after shovelling the mulch off the neighbour’s yard to cover the holes Pig has been digging, and I decided to make the soup. I thought I wouldn’t have enough time to do my own soup (yes, originally I was going to do Hungarian Bean Soup for my dinner) so I used all the  two sweet corns I bought, one chicken breast and they all made it in one big bowl!! It’s enough to feed 4 or 5 people!

Anyway, one thing left I need to do is just bake the bread rolls. And I have managed to squeeze doing it this morning and so they’ll be ready for dinner tonight, fresh from the oven!

Nothing beats the freshly baked rolls you make yourself with a very, very big bowl of soup in a cold chilly night!

I’ve been meaning to chuck them in the bin, but honestly, didn’t have the heart!!

I bought the pair about three years ago. They’re so comfortable and cost around 15 Bahrain dinnars. One mistake that I started was that I didn’t bring another pair of (flat) shoes when we had a trip to China. It was a monsoon season and it rained rather often. These lovely pumps got soaked, but still very comfortable. Who would have thought I would be walking in the rain? But anyway..

The soft leather was getting thinner with the frequency of the use and my nasty toe had apparently contributed a hole!! Had no idea how it happened! I just found a tiny rip one day and few weeks later it was getting larger! It should have been enough reason to bin them, but then again, I loved them too much to see them gone!

Until this time. I’ve worn them a lot around the backyard, while hanging my laundry. They have resided in the laundry room most of the time, for quite some time. And now, even I still love them, I’ve come to decision to actually bin them! It’s about time.

They will go the next time Mr Bin-man comes to collect all the rubbish..

But until then, I think I will take my time to have a long look at them, and say goodbye………..!
Ouh..

I had few distractions as the process went along and I had to stop quite a lot. Rather too many things on my mind, I frequently forgot where I stopped and so, the pattern got a bit confusing!

I ended up with this……

A (smaller) beanie with stalk on top, as if it were a pumpkin! There was no way I would want to wear it and not feel silly! Thankfully, I had a great taker.. She happily wears it, as not only it is cute, it also keeps her head warm.

Not a total blunder then!

A year has flown. And it has been ages since I last knitted, and it was only doing some Barbie clothes for my daughter. 

It was only few days ago when the weather was slightly cold and wet that I started to think about knitting, again. I found a beanie I knitted for Hannah few years ago and it still looked pretty cute. Then I thought, “I want one of these.” 

I still keep all my wools I’ve bought over the years we were living in Britain and Bahrain. (The latter sounds a bit weird, doesn’t it? Hot country and wool don’t seem to mix very well.) I’ve always thought they would come in handy! I do collect some easy patterns too, just in case I feel the urge to sit down and unwind with those wools.. I must say though, knitting isn’t really a therapeutic activity, like some people suggest. I do get frustrated when stuck and even feel depressed for not understanding the patterns. (I am a beginner!) So it hasn’t really helped me through my rough days. But, the good thing about knitting is, well, at least to me, how addictive it can be once you get the hang of it. Not to mention the pride you come up with when you finish and produce a nice creation. I still remember the feeling! My projects that have successfully completed are few (baby) jumpers, which I still keep for memory’s sake, a pair of baby slippers (lost them somewhere), scarves (no idea where they are) and of course Barbie’s outfits.. (excellent project to finish up my left over wools) 

And so, now I am brushing up my knitting skill again, with a simple project in hand: a beanie hat!

I’ll upload the photo when it’s done. (Only if it’s any good! )

Back to knitting now..

Ini benar-benar kejadian!

Kurang lebih sepuluh hari yang lalu Hannah mengeluh gatal-gatal di kepalanya. Tapi aku nggak begitu ngeh, karena dia memang suka kurang bersih membilas shampoo saat cuci rambut. Plus, belakangan, karena udara agak dingin, dia suka sekali nongkrong di depan heater, berdua Piglet! Suamiku pun pikir, gatal-gatal di kepala akibat kebanyakan nganget terlalu dekat.

Hingga di hari ketiga, dia masih garuk-garuk. Saking penasarannya, aku periksa kepala dia.. Masya Allah… kagetnya aku melihat telur-telur kutu nemplok di rambut halusnya. Pantas gatal.. Sore itu juga, aku petan.. Geregetan. Memang sih, setelah aku ingat-ingat, dua minggu sebelumnya, ada pemberitahuan dari sekolah tentang beberapa siswa yang berkutu, dan mereka menghimbau para orang tua untuk memeriksa kepala anak-anaknya.

Rob beruntung menemukan apotik yang masih buka dalam perjalanan pulang dari kerja, mengingat malam itu sudah hampir jam 9. Jadilah malam-malam kita semua kasih treatment masing-masing. Ngungkep pakai handuk semalaman untuk membunuh induk dan telur-telurnya. Treatment berlanjut hingga keesokan hari di mana aku menghabiskan beberapa jam untuk menyisir rambut Hannah dengan sisir khusus.. Takjub dengan keampuhan lotion pembunuh kutu dari apotik.. dalam dua hari rambut Hannah telah bebas dari gatal-gatal.. (dan kutu!)

Saat ini Hannah boleh dinyatakan ’bersih’ setelah mendapatkan treatment kedua. Aku, ibunya lega bukan kepalang…

Memang ini bukanlah hal yang memalukan, karena memang terjadi hampir di mana-mana. Bukan pula berarti kita jorok. Bahkan seorang teman mengatakan bahwa kebanyakan justru anak bersihlah yang sering ketularan kutu!! Tapi tetap saja, aku bergidik mengingatnya, meskipun sungguh, tidak perlu lagi kuatir karena kecanggihan obat-obatan di jaman sekarang boleh dibilang yahud. (Untuk bunuh kutu aja sih…)

Semoga tidak terulang.