Shortly before I took my tumble on February 1, my mother's beloved 14 year old hound, Rusty, died. At the time she said she didn't think she'd ever get another dog. After about two weeks, my mother and sister, who lives with her, could stand it no more. They had to have a dog in the house.
Recycled Doggies was taking part in the My Furry Valentine event, a huge gathering of rescues from the greater Cincinnati area. I checked out their website of available dogs ahead of time and e-mailed my mother about a little hound/dachshund mix named Lilly. Turns out my mother already had her eye on her. After a few e-mails with Recycled Doggies regarding the dog's temperament and disposition towards cats and other dogs (in case some day the new pooch would have to come live with me), we decided she sounded like a winner and planned to get to the event right when they opened, before anybody else could scoop her up. My mother went from not wanting a dog at all to desperately wanting this dog in the span of about 24 hours.
At My Furry Valentine,
waiting to go home.
My Furry Valentine is so huge that it was held at the distribution center for leash makers flexi USA. Parking was across the street and a shuttle bus brought visitors to the door. My husband had come along, he claimed, because he wanted to see the new dog. I think it was really just to ensure that I didn't bring a new one home myself. I tried to tell him I had my arm in a sling and was hardly in a position to stealthily sneak a dog into the house. He turned out to be useful since Lilly was terrified of the whole thing -- noise, people, dogs -- and refused to go with us on the leash. He carried her through the warehouse, across the parking lot, and onto the shuttle bus. Then off the shuttle bus, across another parking lot, and into the van. I think he was sorry he came.
On the way to the event we discussed names. Emily was almost chosen, although Foghorn kept insisting on Viola for reasons known to no one but her. Then my sister mentioned the name Addie. She was thinking of the little girl in A House Without a Christmas Tree, one of my mother's favorite Christmas shows. I immediately got an image of Tatum O'Neal in Paper Moon. Either way the name seemed to fit this small, slightly fluffy pooch.
I've always said my mother has a knack for ending up with neurotic dogs. She manages to attract the Woody Allens of the canine world and Addie is no exception. In all fairness, we think the poor little thing had quite a life before ending up with Recycled Doggies. She was dumped at a rural Kentucky shelter by her family who was moving and decided not to take her with them. Their loss is our gain. Actually, their loss is also Addie's gain, as I don't think she was treated well. She's very nervous and extremely quiet, to the point where the first week we thought her barker was broken. She's terrified of men, even my husband. He takes this a little personally since he hauled her furry butt all over the place on adoption day. She no longer runs and hides in another room when he's around. She mostly cowers behind one of her owners and barks at him. She will eventually accept some treats, but it takes all her courage and she immediately ducks behind a caregiver after swallowing.
Despite her emotional issues, she's just about the sweetest little thing in the world. She can't get enough love and attention and petting (at least from those of us without a Y chromosome). She loves to lounge on the couch on a big pillow and my sister covers her up with an afghan at night. Well...in that case I could hardly wait to get my knitting fingers back so I could make Addie her own afghan.
Addie's Afghan
It didn't have to be big, so I chose the Sunny Baby Blanket by Lucie Sinkler. (My Ravelry notes are here.) While the pattern is intended to be made in one color, I decided to use up the leftover yarn from the Hoover Blanket I made for my mother last year. I love the Depression green with the rose pink together. Plus it was a way to use up a couple partial skeins of yarn I had left over. Plus I figure if it was using left over yarn my mother wouldn't decide the afghan is "too nice" for the dog to use. (She has yet to use any of the dishcloths or place mats I made her because they're "too nice" to get dirty.)
Addie's fitting in nicely in our family. She has a nickname from me ("Addie Banaddie") and every time I see her I have to break into "Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee." (I'll never get Tatum O'Neal out of my head now.) At first she gave me the bug-eyed, freaked out look common to those listening to my singing. Now she's gotten used to it and accepts that I'm not a maniac. Well, she accepts that I'm a harmless manic...who can knit nice soft blankets.
Foghorn had one American Girl doll to start last summer (Kit, in her Depression-era garb) and for her birthday received Kanani, a Hawaiian-themed gal in a flowery tropical dress. Grandma made all three of them matching sundresses in a mermaid-pattern last summer, which looked danged cute and the dolls have been wearing these dresses ever since.
The matching mermaid dresses.
It's now February and with the snow flurries blowing around out there, I have to say the dolls are starting to look a little chilly to me in their sleeveless frocks. I've been wanting to graduate from knitting socks to knitting a garment a little more challenging, but I can't quite bring myself to start something big and ambitious like an adult sweater. Instead, I decided to try my hand at doll clothing. Complicated enough to stretch my abilities, yet easy and quick enough to not be quite so intimidating.
I made Kanani a matching outfit using leftover yarn from Foghorn's January socks. It's the Serenity sock weight yarn with Deborah Norville's face on the wrapper in the "Spring Fling" color. (I often wonder how a woman goes from being a journalist on the Today show to hawking yarn.) Spring Fling made cute striped socks, so I thought it would add a little pop to an outfit.
The Eyelet Hem Skirt is a simple A-line design, super easy, and available for free on Ravelry here. It has an elastic waist and cute picot edging. This item was a breeze and I thought it came out pretty nice.
The Retro Cardi didn't work out so well. I'm not sure if there's an error in the pattern or if I messed up in some way. (I would think it was just me, but I noticed someone left a comment on the author's blog, asking about the same problem I was having.) I had to make some adjustments, but I ultimately managed to salvage it. It called for tiny 1/4" buttons and my mother had cute vintage pink ones, which go perfectly. It's hard to see from the picture, but the front has a lovely cable-like design. The pattern is free on Ravelry here.
I was a little afraid Foghorn might be so delighted she'd want a whole outfit for Kit as well. Instead she annoyed me by barely glancing at Kainani and instead going on about how every other kid in her second grade class as an iPod Touch and why can't she have one, especially since The Professor has a Nook. (The whole 7th grade class was just provided with Nooks, part of a technology pilot program, but this knowledge didn't make Foghorn any less indignant.) She better watch it or I'll knit her a stinking iPod and make her really mad.
