having fun with a bunny puppet

In case you were hesitating to knit a bunny puppet, because you weren't sure if your kids would like one, maybe this will convince you!


Remember that the pattern is 50% off until the end of March! You can find it on Etsy and Ravelry (if you buy it on Ravelry, the discount will be subtracted when you check-out)

no time for email

I totally overestimated the time I might have to answer my email these days! New babies do sleep a lot, so I thought I would have the chance to send those pattern updates, but I also have a 2-year old! Anyway, I've replied to all your emails this morning, so check your inbox for the new patterns if you requested an update (if you don't know what I'm talking about, check my previous post). Mr. Mitten was also kind enough to answer most of my Ravelry messages for me, since I never get time to look at those (hint, if you need to ask me something, email is much faster than Ravelry - it's such a time-suck to go on there, I try to avoid it).

I am getting a little knitting done these days. I got 75% of a vest knit for Lev, from this pattern. Only to decide in the end that my gauge was doing weird things, and it would be way too warm for him to wear much. So it will be frogged, and knit again in plain stockinette (the vest does have a nice shape, and the instructions will work even without the slip-stitch pattern and stripes). I also started a Big Teddy, since that pattern desperately needs to be updated. I decided to add a pinafore dress to the pattern, so you can make a girly bear too (it's simply a skirt attached to the overall bib and straps, so a super-simple change to the original).

And here's a video of our little family enjoying some time together!

2011-04-21: Flying and vocalizing from Kay Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

welcome home

20110326: Welcome home, Kyr from Kay Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

fun for Autumn

Hello to all my dedicated readers out there. I'm so sorry for the long absence. I've been under the weather for a while (why do so many people get sick at the end of summer?) and it hasn't been helped by a heat wave in Montreal this week. Let's all hope that both will pass very soon!

I have got a bit of knitting done, which might lead to a fun new pattern for Autumn. I'm hoping to get it ready just when knitters (in the Northern Hemisphere, anyway) are starting to think about getting out the wool, and making a start on holiday gifts. No more hints for now, though, as it still needs some work before I can show it to you.

I've also been thinking of another Knit-along on Ravlery, with some sort of Autumn or Halloween theme. The summer KAL was fun, but most people were too busy to participate. Maybe cooler weather and a more specific goal will help?

There have been a couple of other exciting developments, which I've been itching to share. Let's all hope I can do that soon!

To end on a cute note, here's some evidence that our little Baby Mitten is not a baby any more! He's grown and changed a lot over the summer - we really need to get more videos of him!


20100821: Big Boy Bed from Konstantin Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

pug nose tutorial

When I wrote the Pug pattern, I couldn't think of a better way to describe how to shape the nose, other than "fold it up between the eyes and stitch in place." I'm really a hands-on type of teacher, so I find it much easier to show how to do something, rather than write down how I did it. I think most people who make this toy don't even bother with this step, and their pugs look just fine. But in case any of you are wondering what the heck I meant, here's a video tutorial that will hopefully clear things up.



If you don't have this pattern, you can purchase it on Etsy or Ravelry. It's also included in the new edition of Fuzzy Knits (Rav link).

work report

I have a few things to report in the way of Fuzzy Mitten doings lately. We're chugging along on the new Fuzzy Knits book. All it really needs now is the photos, and then we can order the first copy to see how it looks. So close, and yet it still seems so far away! Probably because I started this project thinking it would only take 4-6 months, but it's taken us an entire year.

I'm not too sure what's next. I have one new pattern in the works, but I might hang onto it until the Autumn, as that seems a more appropriate time for it. I've been thinking of designing a pattern for Knitpicks new Independent Designer Program. Have any of you heard of this, or made use of it? It seems like a good venue for patterns, since their yarns are fairly popular in the US. However, the patterns are all $1.99, so I would design something a bit simpler than my usual patterns. I've got a good idea, I just need the yarn and the time!

Thanks so much to those of you who bought a Bunny Puppet kit! I didn't realize they would sell so quickly. If any of you wanted one, but missed out last week, you're in luck! I've found some more yarn, and there are a bunch of new kits in my shop now. The yarns are a little different from the first set, but just as nice. There's still plenty of time to knit one before Easter, so go have a look!

In other news, our Baby Mitten is growing, and no longer a baby! Maybe we should call him Munchkin Mitten now? He's been walking for a few months, is rather chatty (even if most of his words sound the same), and is finally growing some hair. He requires a lot of my time now, especially with him taking only one nap a day, learning so much all the time, and getting into anything within reach. It's really funny too, some of the things they learn! Lev loves our kitties, and is always asking me to play with them or give them treats (this is so they will stop hiding from him, since he's still a bit rough).



He's also started singing along to his favourite cartoon, a Russian version of the Bremen Town Musicians.  He's certainly not in tune, but it's so cute! He even sings at the same parts of the songs every time.

adventures of a house elf

One of Mr. Mitten's hobbies is to write subtitles for Russian films. Having watched him work on many different films now, it's certainly not as straightforward as it might seem. Recently I asked him to translate a cartoon I particularly liked, because I couldn't figure out the story just from the actions of the characters. All I could tell is that the main character, Kuzya, is quite the mischievous brat!

As it turned out, the story is based on several folk-tale characters, and they use rather a whimsical way of talking. Since this was too difficult to translate, Mr. Mitten had to simplify things a bit. However, I don't mind missing out on a bit of subtext, now that I know what's going on! I thought you might enjoy watching too. (I promise to have some knitting-related stuff to share very soon!)

happy birthday, baby!

A year ago today, I wrote this blog post. Reading that second paragraph, I should have know at the time I was tempting fate, wishing that Baby Mitten wouldn't show up in the middle of the holidays. I went into labour that evening, and Lev was born at 12:30 am on December 12. He was 5 weeks early, so tiny and scrawny, but so full of life that we knew everything would be okay.



Sadly, the first 2 weeks of his life were spent in the hospital, so I never did get to enjoy our Christmas tree. Although, the Christmas baking I did was a nice addition to hospital food (my pre-labour fit of nesting was to make 4 dozen mincemeat tarts!). It was such a relief to finally get him home, and make a start at fattening him up. You can see that by the summer, he was doing just fine!



It's so hard to believe that a whole year has gone by, and he's grown up into such a personality. A little bit of both of us, and a lot of his own goofy style. Getting a video camera was a brilliant idea, since photos could never quite capture some of the amazing moments of Lev's first year. Despite all the bad days (and nights) those moments of joy, silliness, and love sparkle in my memory.



Balancing work, learning how to be a mom, and making time to be a wife, has made this year challenging in many ways. I've changed so much, and those changes often came with a lot of tears: worrying that I wouldn't be good enough, might make the wrong choices, or lose myself in this new role. But now that I've made it through this first year, I think I've done okay, and I'm satisfied with the kind of mother I am to Lev. Seeing him happy, healthy, and learning so quickly, I know I must be doing something right (not to at all diminish how wonderful a father Mr. Mitten is).



Often work has lost out, although I could never regret the time I've spent taking care of my little one. I think this next year is going to bring a lot of changes to Fuzzy Mitten (good ones, never fear). I feel the need to take some different directions, branch out, and test the skills I've learned over the past 3 years. Keeping up with a toddler while trying to do all that is going to be a challenge, but I think I can make it fun if I keep my goals in mind, and take time to enjoy all the little happy moments he gives me.

toy trades

I wanted to say thank you for a couple of trades I've done in the last few months. The first was with Alyssa of Penguin and Fish, for a lovely woolly horse for Lev (I traded this bunny for it). It arrived right before we moved, so I never found time to take any photos of it. The second was for a Viking doll from Sandra of Herzensart, for which I sent her this lion. I've adored her toys for ages, and am so thrilled to have one of my own! Both toys are really meant for Lev, and he loves playing with Binky the horse, but he'll have to wait a few years before I'll let him play with Baldrick the Viking (because of the small parts, really). In case you couldn't tell, Mr. Mitten named both toys. I never gives toys silly names.

where did the name 'Fuzzy Mitten' come from?

I know posts here have been quite sparse lately, so I was wondering what you would like to read about, so I can concentrate on that. Please leave a comment, or send me an email.

For something a little more entertaining than usual, here is the Russian children's film which inspired the name Fuzzy Mitten.

some laughs, and spring day in the park

It's been a little while since we shared any baby cuteness with you, so here you go! Lev is still figuring out how to laugh, so he sounds quite funny. But he laughs so rarely, it's still amazingly cute and funny.



The weather was beautiful today, as only early spring can be: warm, sunny, and breezy, with just a hint of the first flowers. We stopped for a rest at a playground during our afternoon walk, and Mr. Mitten took some lovely photos of us.

Vocalizing

Vocalizing
Originally uploaded by mricon

I took this video of Lev the other day. I thought you might enjoy the cuteness! He makes sounds like this all the time, except when other people are around. He's started smiling too, and not just when he's about to spit up. Sometimes he smiles as I'm changing him before he eats (I think he's happy about getting to eat soon) and sometimes for no reason at all. It's rare enough right now that each smile seems so special. I can hardly wait until he starts laughing!

Cheesiness in motion

One of my hobbies is doing English subtitles for Russian cartoons ("fansubs"). It's kind of fun and challenging, especially if I get to translate songs or poems. Here is a cheesy Russian cartoon I translated last weekend -- in fact, it is pretty much how Lёva got his name ("Lev" is "Lion" in Russian).



Coincidentally, Lev has his own Twitter feed now: you can follow him at @rrrmeow. Watch out, though -- he's not yet potty-trained! ;)

cuteness in motion

I meant to post more last week, but got sidetracked with all the millions of things that needed doing, which weren't blogging. I finished my noro socks, and will try to get a picture soon to show you how pretty they are! I haven't stopped wearing them since I washed them, but I should give them a little break soon. Anyway, to start your morning off with some cuteness, here are some videos of Lev we took recently.

The first was taken during his bath (carefully edited to preserve his dignity) and you can see how chubby he's become in the last few weeks. He's 10 lbs now, which is pretty respectable for an 8 week old baby. It's even more impressive if you know that's double his birth weight!



This second video was taken just before my mom left, and it's showing the first time he rolled over. Can you believe it, at just 7 weeks? He's done it a bunch of times since then, so it wasn't just an accident. He keeps trying to roll from his back to his front too, but isn't quite strong enough to manage that yet.

Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec

Promenade in Ste-Anne from Konstantin Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

We don't actually live in Montréal proper, but in a small suburb on the Western tip of the Island of Montréal called Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue. Even though most of the West Island towns are posh bedroom communities for lawyers, doctors, and company execs, Ste-Anne is a welcome exception, for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because it's a much older settlement than most others -- so there are no super-expensive McMansions lining the waterfront, and secondly because there are two high schools, one CÉGEP, and the Macdonald Campus of McGill university -- all in our small town of 5,000 people.

Even though the majority of West Island is historically mostly English-speaking, Ste-Anne is divided pretty evenly between French and English, especially when McGill is in session. Most townspeople are fluent in both languages, and those who aren't usually know just enough to get by. Even though I speak fairly fluent French, most people will switch to English when talking to me because I do not sound like a native (Québec has a very distinct local accent, while I learned the Parisian pronunciation). The further East you go in Québec, the fewer English speakers you will find, until you get to New Brunswick, which is the only officially bilingual province of Canada. From there on, the direction reverses and you get squarely into English-speaking territory by the time you're in Nova Scotia (with Acadia being a notable exception -- this is where the Cajuns came from).


Heading to ultrasound from Konstantin Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

The best way to get to Montréal from Ste-Anne is by taking the train, which takes about 45 minutes with all the stops. Sadly, the train doesn't run nearly frequent enough and is only convenient for commuting to and from work. The city of Montréal is trying to change that, but for the time being it's more profitable for the railroad company to let the freight trains through instead of the commuter trains. With gas prices around here being about $1.35 per litre lately (that's a whopping $5.40 a gallon), hopefully there will be more and more people taking the train instead of driving, and that might change how much pressure the city is able to put on the railroad company. Perhaps we might even see more than 3 trains a day during the weekend. :)

But, despite all of the above, we're quite happy living here without owning a car. Most stores are within walking distance from our apartment, and for stuff that we can't get in Ste-Anne, we usually plan weekend trips, sometimes involving Communauto -- a local car-sharing co-op that we're part of. Plus, we have lots of local restaurants to choose from and a Farmer's Market on the weekend that lets us stock up on organic locally-grown veggies.


Marche Ste-Anne from Konstantin Ryabitsev on Vimeo.

We quite like it here. :)

chicken pants

I found these films via another blog I read and contribute to. I <3 them, seriously. If someone local could help me make videos like this, they would be my BFF!

Episode 1



Episode 2



Episode 3

tricot machine

I found this on another blog I read, but I loved it so much I had to share. I'd heard of Tricot Machine from a friend, but hadn't heard their music before. I wish I understood more French, but I still think the song is lovely. And who wouldn't love a music video made from knitting?