UPDATED 6.18.14: Congratulations to Nancy, Jamie and Sophiesgirl for winning a copy of Malcom's Blanket! Check your email for further instructions... ------------------------
As you read this dear readers, I am winging my way across the country to the Interweave Studios to film a DVD. More on that in a later post, but look up and wave as planes pass over you! I'm on one of those knitting sleepily and drinking caffeine like it's going out of style.
I'm excited to share this new pattern with you because it's been a long time in the making.
Many of you know about our harrowing birth story with our son who just turned 3. Callum was born 2 months early with a host of problems after an emergency c-section. He was kept in the NICU for a month and it was touch and go every day. I look back on that month spent in a windowless room, growing immune to the beeps and alarms, the rushing of footsteps and the fluorescent lighting as I sat next to my son in his isolate incubator awaiting text results, not being able to hold him more than 20 minutes a day. I'd walk through the lobby and see the happy moms who got to take their children home after giving birth and want to find a corner to go and scream at the top of my lungs. Like many things in life, unless you've been in that situation when your world is crumbling, you have no idea what it feels like.
I met Honey while teaching. Teaching is a funny thing… You go into it with a bunch of students, you share an experience, you bond over knitting and you hope to see them in another class and watch their skills grow and grow. Every now and then you meet someone super special and you have an instant connection. I suppose all friendships are like that, but when I'm in "teacher mode" I'm so focused on making sure everyone is happy, they're comfortable and they're getting the technique to think "hey, I could be friends with this person outside of class." Honey took a number of classes with me and I liked her right from the get go, especially when she invited me over to knit and watch Game of Thrones. A woman after my own heart.
When Honey told me she was pregnant I immediately started flipping through the baby patterns stored in my brain wondering what I would knit her. I was even more excited to learn that she too would have a son and she was moving right down the street from us. She had taken a lace baby blanket class with me and struggled to finish, so I knew I would knit her that pattern.
I wouldn't wish our birth experience on anyone, so when Honey texted me to tell me that she was having a similar situation with her son coming 6 weeks early, I sprinted to my LYS, bought some Lorna's Laces Worsted Superwash and Knit. Like. The. Wind. I have never knit a blanket so fast, and while I knew things would be dicey for a while, just as they were with us, I wanted her to have it for Malcolm in the hospital. Knitting says so much on its own - I am thinking about you and your family. Someday we'll look back on this and think "how the heck did we survive that?" I've got your back for whatever you need. I will do whatever I can to help you get through this. You will be ok. He will be ok.
Many months later, I'm happy to say that Malcolm is thriving (and so cute!). I like to name projects after people who are important to me, and always name something after a friend has had a baby in honor of them. This is a special case because Honey and I were in the trenches together, sharing a similar birth experience. Meet Malcolm's Blanket, an elegant, heirloom-style baby blanket named after Honey's sweet little boy. Knit on US 7s and using 5 hanks of gorgeous hand dyed Zen Garden Serenity Worsted (a merino, cashmere and nylon superwash blend) in Blue Hawaii, this is a great project for anyone expecting a little one. The pattern has a good rhythm and makes for good TV or travel knitting. Walking through the woods to photograph it with my son running beside me gathering rocks and bugs, it reminded me just how far we've come. I look forward to the day when Callum and Malcolm will run and play together.
In honor of Callum's recent 3rd birthday, I'll be giving away 3 copies of the Malcolm's Blanket pattern (open to residents worldwide). Leave a comment on the blog answering this trivia question: The name "Callum" is of Gaelic origin and means what? Bonus points if you know what his middle name "Finnegan" means.
Three winners will be chosen at random on Wednesday.
Download the pattern here.