23 Weeks Pregnant

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Baby is rolling, kicking and punching like crazy! Shawn feels him or her very often now and we can see the jabs on the outside, too. Baby is definitely getting bigger; the kicks s/he sends me directly to my pelvis bone feel so heavy and strong, especially compared to the little pokes and flutters of weeks gone by. I also enjoy gently pressing against one side of my belly and feeling the other end of the baby poke out the other side of my belly. S/he is getting so much longer!
I am so glad for the reassurance I get from the movements and for the connection it makes me feel to the baby... even though I am still in heavy denial that all mammals give live birth to a baby of their likeness.

We're still getting ready for baby; we may have picked a blue nursery paint color! I also can't stop myself from working my baby hoodie pattern into a stack of hoodies so I started making bigger sizes, like 18-month for after the baby is (gasp!) 1 year old and needs sweaters. Here's a swatch!

Free Sloper Pattern by HiLLjO - Baby Hoodie with Zip

Baby Hoodie Blocked Pattern by HiLLjO

If you would like to purchase the full pattern with written crochet instructions for each piece, please visit my etsy store! Thank you.
Otherwise, feel free to use the pattern below to make your own fabric, fleece, knit or crochet hoodie of your choice! Enjoy!

For Crochet: Gauge – G6 Hook with Worsted Weight Yarn or other hook necessary to maintain Gauge

4dc/in.

3 rows dc/in.

Measurements needed for custom garment sizing:

Head Circumference and Height

Belly/Chest Circumference

Neck to Back Length

Average measurements for 6-9 month olds (courtesy of Bev Qualheim)

Head: 16 in. around; 7 ½ in. tall

Chest/Belly: 17 to 19 in. around

Back Length: about 9 in.

Sleeves for babies under 1 year old usually measure 9 to 10 in. long. Fist Circumference is about 5 ½ in.

To get measurements for all blocked pieces shown below (except adult sleeve), calculate the following:

Width of Front pieces: Divide chest/belly measurement by 4 (ex. 6-9 mo. size Front pieces are 4 ½ in.).

Width of Back piece: Divide chest/belly measurement in half (ex. 6-9 mo. size Back piece is 9 in. wide).

Length of Hood:  equal to height of head multiplied by 2, plus 2 in. (ex. 6-9 mo. size Hood is 16 in. long).

Width of Hood:  equal to ¾ the measurement of the head’s circumference, divided in half (ex. 6-9 mo. size Hood is 6” wide).

Width of Sleeve on “Arm Pit” side: equal to length of Front/Back pieces (ex. 6-9 mo. size Sleeve is 9 in. wide on “arm pit” side).

Length of Sleeve along seam: For babies 6 mo. to 1 year, this is 9 to 10 in. on average.

Width of Sleeve for Wrist Opening: 5 ½ in. across on average.

Blocked Pieces – General Shapes (not to scale)

To assemble you will need:

Both Front pieces, 1 Back piece, 2 Sleeves and 1 Hood piece
Yarn needle
Matching Yarn
Scissors
Separating- or Coil-style zipper which matches the length of your Front opening

Front/Back Pieces

Arrange Front and Back pieces as shown in diagram.

 Align and pin zipper in the center of the two front pieces. Make sure zipper tape is on the “inside” of the Front pieces and pin through the front. Sew each side of zipper tape to each Front side of hoodie with needle and thread. Remove pins.

With RS facing, line up shoulder corners B & C on Front and Back, sew B to B and C to C along seam lines with yarn needle and yarn. Weave in ends and set aside. 

Sleeves 

Fold Sleeve piece in half (D to D; E to E) and sew along length from E to D with yarn and yarn needle. Weave in ends and leave long tail of yarn. Turn inside out to show RS.

Repeat for other Sleeve.

  

To attach sleeves, first place markers in each Sleeve piece at top shoulder and bottom “arm pit” as shown.

Place markers on Front/Back piece at top shoulders. Match each Sleeve’s shoulders with the Front/Back piece shoulders. Place markers in Front/Back piece where “arm pit” markers line up (about halfway down length of Front/Back piece).

Arrange pieces as follows: 

Lay Front piece RS up. Lay Sleeves with RS out with shoulder and “arm pit” markers lining up to outside seam with wrists facing in toward zipper. Lay Back piece WS up on top. Pile should appear as below (Sleeves shown as though Back piece were “see-through” in dashed lines):

Sew each Sleeve to Front/Back piece making sure to only go through the sleeve and Front OR Back layer so as not to sew the sleeve shut.

Hood

Fold the Back piece in half to find top-center stitch and place marker as shown.

Take hood piece and with right sides facing, fold A to A and sew along seam with yarn needle and yarn. Turn out so RS faces out and seam is hidden inside hood.

Weave in ends and leave a long tail of yarn. Set aside.

With RS of both Hood and Back pieces facing, line this marker up with the center seam sewn down back of hood. Evenly sew hood to back piece (and down onto Front piece’s shoulder areas) with yarn needle and yarn.



Please do not use all or portions of this pattern in any other pubication without linking to this site and giving me credit for my work. Please see the full license deed for this pattern before distributing/sharing. Thank you!

Green Crochet Zip Baby Hoodie by HiLLjO

I'm at it again.

This is the first zipper I've ever installed and it looks and works fabulously. I'm very proud!
The design came to me in one of my dreams where baby was a chunky-cheeked little blonde baby girl. I held her up and she smiled big at me (later I realized the baby looks like me when I smile big) with big, green eyes and she was wearing this hoodie. I doubted I'd ever find this hoodie so I made it.
FREE BLOCKED PATTERN IS HERE!!!
See all the crochet baby projects here!

Crochet Sleepy Owl Baby Cocoon and Hat by HiLLjO

Before we got pregnant I used to make a lot of things for other people with babies or for those waiting for their babies to be born but only made one thing for our own child that I wasn't even sure would fit. Luckily, I now know it will fit in the late winter after baby is born.
I ordered more yarn with each negative test, dreaming of the day I'd be able to pick up my hook and skeins armed with a due date, and thus a timeline of ages/sizes, with which to make our baby enough items to be draped in mommy-made crochet almost daily.
With the first trimester over in a mere 2 days, I have now only made one thing for our baby since getting pregnant. It's cute, I'll give you that, but it's ONE THING. I need to get busy...
If you would like the pattern for this cocoon/hat let me know, or you can just order one here!!!

We're All Mad Here

We're All Mad Here by hilljo featuring long sleeve tops

I bought more yarn to help mend our broken hearts...

When I made the crochet baby hoodie I sized it for a 9-month old. I realize now that I may be hosed...  the biggest a baby born ASAP would be in December is 6 months. It's just made of the nicest yarn I had ever bought... so I just bought more.

I'm saving this business for when I know for sure how big the baby will be the December after he or she is in there for a while. Isn't it pretty?

"Sublime" for a girl. I just love this; it looks like cheshire cat fur.

"Sphere" for stripe A of a boy's sweater.
And "Summer Sky Heather" for stripe B.

Kind of excited... I can't lie.

In the meantime at work everyone around me is popping out babies or squeeing news of "I'm/My Wife is pregnant." I'm serious--I'm not being sensitive; check out all the hats I've made for people this month.

And I'm still working on a gajillion other projects! They keep me busy and happy.



Bobble Dots!

Yesterday I mentioned that the 2nd hoodie I have made for us to save is sized 8 months. I am making it with pink + gray ombre yarn and texturing it with little bobble polka dots.

I love how the variegated yarn kind of makes diagonal "stripes" across the pieces.

Mmm so cute!!! Even if we don't get lucky at baby lottery for another 2 months this would look great on a little gal in February, too. :o)

See what I did there?Yeh. Doin' well.

Better.

Sorry for the cryptic bit of sad yesterday... had a bad babycrack day.

Anyway, the more and more we crunch numbers the more we see how much easier saving money and buying baby things will be after August.

In smaller and yet smaller sizes I keep making more baby hoodies for us to save. 9-months might be too big to use in December if we got pregnant this month. I might even have the baby on my birthday if this cycle works out. So now I'm working on an 8-month sized hoodie. It's pink-to-gray ombre stripes with little "bobble" polka dots. I don't have a picture yet, but it's textured like this:

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And colored like this:


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The hood is almost done; I'll try to post pictures tomorrow.
In the meantime, Shawn is trying to figure out where we are going on vacation very soon, and I am not sharing after the Chicago-Surprise he pulled on me. He will have to just WAIT. :o)

1, 2, 3... A, B, C

I am a machine!

Since becoming obsessed with my latest pattern creation 11 days ago, I have whipped out a total of 3 baby hoodies. I have been playing with resizing my original pattern which was sized 9 months.

The peach crochet baby hoodie below is for sale! It is sized for a newborn; very tiny. 

The purple hoodie is for a couple at work and it is sized for a newborn up to 11 pounds.

If you would like a baby or even adult sized one, email me or visit my etsy store!

The free version of the pattern is here if you'd like to go it on your own.

It's Friday, I'm in LoVE! #25

Happy Happy Happy Friday!

After getting constructive last week, I have been staying that way. I got the yarn I ordered more of in the mail and finished the future-baby hoodie last night. I put pictures of it up here!

I also finished 2 more crochet projects that should have been done about a year ago!

"D" for Daniel!

Corbin's Coyote Blanket

Now I am free to finish my current projects and get them to the people who are eagerly waiting!
So today, I love me because:

1. I still has a happy!!!
2. I am filled with FAITH, JOY and LOVE because of my personal relationship with my spirituality.
3. Everytime I dread being in the middle of the 2-week wait, I get giddy with anticipation instead.
4. I didn't wash my hair today... and I don't care!
5. This is week 3 of yoga/walking everyday! WHAT!!?!

Happy weekend to you!

S. : see you at 1! :o)

Crochet Baby Hoodie by HiLLjO

Last week I started (and finished) a crochet baby hoodie for our future firstborn. I was trying to hold out until I was actually pregnant to make it, but I could no longer resist that yarn!!!

The pocket opens in the top to stash a bottle, face wipe, or biter biscuit.

Yes, yes I did buy an entire hank of additional yarn to make just this pocket...

If you LOVE this hoodie, it is based off my FREE crochet baby hoodie pattern!If you would like one made for a friend, family member, or even yourself email me!

I even make them in grownup-people sizes!

 :o)

Constructive vs. Destructive

CAUTION: Post content briefly mentions "pee sticks" and ovulation.

The new moon came and went yesterday. This time of the month is a good time to "work in" what we have learned recently and to toss out that which does us no good.
Over the last month we have tossed out the boy baby names (sorry guys), the self-censorship that feels "safe," and the last bits of self-dishonesty I hope to incur. I also tossed out something that I haven't shared yet: OPK's. I wasn't sure what they would bring me, but I thougth they would help (or at least couldn't hurt). I thought I was being constructive.
OPK's look like home pregnancy tests (HPT's) but instead they indicate that ovulation is imminent (in 12-36 hours). Also unlike HPT's a line is not a line on OPK's: it must be a dark line to be "positive."

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After 8 days of trying these mo-fo's I have had it. These bishes [sic] are destructive to me.You'd think I was getting a negative HPT with every negative OPK. Some were darker than others, leading me down the road to the crazy-town where they wield rulers marked with millimeters and measure just what perecentage of the test line is as dark or darker than the control line. 50%? TEST AGAIN!!!
So none of that. I went home, went to my 24-packs of OPK's, and effing HID THEM from myself.

I proceeded to do yoga for almost an hour. Now that's constructive. I also went to fetch my yarn I sourced after designing future-baby a hoodie, and started the damn thing. I finished it, too. Constructive, also.

Should I get more yarn to make a pocket?

Yes. Yes, I should...



I felt guilty starting and finishing a project that I have only had on my plate for a little over a month when I have soooo many others to finish, but I had a block in my creativity from not letting myself make this. So all of you that have slippers, illustrations, and other goodies and bits coming to you: lo, I have not forgotten. Oh, no. It's just taking me FOREVAR. But one day you'll go to your mailbox and you'll be pleasantly surprised. Promise.