20 weeks and knitting along

So here I am at the twenty week halfway mark and all I really feel like doing right now is knitting. A run-on cold and a minor annoying pregnancy side effect has had me pretty much in bed with my feet up as much as I can. At least it has been a condition that is happily conducive to knitting! I'm very much missing my sewing machine, although I think the break has been good for me. I'll have to be back at it again soon enough to keep up with the Single Girl Quilt-along, which is kicking off with Katy on Monday. Then you'll find part two, piecing, right here on Monday the 21st!

I finished my Big Herringbone Cowl a few nights ago and I seriously don't want to take it off. It clearly doesn't belong with the stripey athletic tee I'm wearing here but that paired with some preggy yoga pants is my uniform these days so oh well.  The cowl pattern is a free tutorial from the lovely Purl Bee blog, and I knew the moment I saw it I had to knit one for myself. And it was a great excuse to use this gorgeous madeline tosh merino yarn I impulse bought from my LYS. The colorway is called Amber Trinket, and it is one of the prettiest yarns I've ever had the pleasure of knitting with. No photos could capture the true beautiful purples, oranges and maroons, but this is a fairly decent representation. This pattern gave me a bit of trouble in the beginning due to first a too tight, then a too loose cast on, and again later when I found out I had twisted my stitches when I joined in the round, but I persevered after ripping out four times and from then on it was easy peasy.

And here is another self-portrait-in-the-bathroom of my belly, twenty weeks along! I'll hopefully have some exciting news to share next week after our ultrasound. I've convinced myself it's a boy but Lucy loves to pull up my shirt and touch the belly saying "see-ster!" No joke. We'll soon find out, and either way, I hope you'll all be able to tolerate the large amount of baby-crafting that will inevitably crop up for the second half of this ride.

Today I'm a bit crabby as my car broke down and our bathroom sink sprung a gigantic leak, and tonight we are having a big party at our winery to release our new Cabernet and Pinot Noir, so I will be forced to have to put on real clothes and leave my knitting behind. But I suppose I'll be back soon enough. I hope you all have a happy weekend filled with lots of sewing, knitting or your current vice of choice.