Knitting for My Boys

by Aimee Yates

I started knitting about 6 years ago, long before I thought of becoming a mama. Though I came to knitting a bit later in life, per my mother, I was always fascinated by fiber and used to walk around with string when I was a child, twisting it in my hands and showing her my work. I fell in love with knitting and quickly learned the basic stitches and added to my knowledge via You Tube videos; trying shawls and sweaters and lace and socks and the whole gamut of knitted objects. For years I knitted selfishly, on the train commute to work, in public with my friends looking on in horror. It was my thing.

Then we started to try to have a baby, and a whole new world opened up. Baby knitting, small sweet little projects that took a quarter of the time of some of my past pieces. I started knitting our bebe a wardrobe upon seeing the stick turn pink.

Then at 13 weeks, I found out I was having twins. And one of my first thoughts was, "I have to knit two of everything. Wow'. And I did as I lay on bed rest for twelve long weeks. Knitting and knitting blogs saved my sanity during the time I spent confined to my bed. And I fell even harder for my love, my knitting.

Enter twin baby boys. Enter sleepless nights and endless feeds and never empty hands. Exit knitting, stage left. I will admit in the early weeks I tried but I did not have the mental or physical energy to pick up my beloved needles. I had a few projects that I started but I would always find myself with the row incomplete and drool on the yarn from my impromptu nap taken while trying to knit. So, I left knitting for awhile. I kept up with it via blogs, gazing longingly at projects that proliferated in others hands. I stared at my stash boxes, mounted next to our bed where I spent the majority of time feeding our tiny babies, dreaming of a way to use this or that ball of yarn. I would hold my favorites, my Rowan tweed or Malabrigo softness, and yearn to knit. And know I could not.

And then slowly, time eased up on me, and I found a way to fit a few small projects into my days. Huzzah! Here was a simple garter dishcloth, then a top down knitted cap, a few fingerless mitts, a hat of a simple lace pattern. And yes, more baby knits for my precious boys. I went from knit-less and fairly witless to knitting and loving it.

So, I have a few tips for you new Mamas or ones anticipating their bebe or (bebes be it the case).

1. First few weeks, be kind to yourself and let the knits sit while you get the hang of breastfeeding/bottle feeding/endless time demands, etc. Do not do what I did and try to knit while up after the 2 a.m. feed and having to breast pump to get through the night. These things are not compatible, not smart. At All.

2. Once you do pick up the needles, start simple. Think simple squares of wash clothes, I promise you, you will use every single one. Those newbies seem to spew a bit of something on the hour every hour.

3. Next step, knit in the round, preferably stockinette. This will ensure less need to remember row counts, less woes about pattern following and lots of adorable raglan sleeved sweaters for precious growing bundles.

4. When you do knit for baby, knit 1 or 2 sizes bigger. Because no one tells you how fast they grow out of stuff, and you know, you are knitting it, so there is a bit of a time suck factor.

5. Embrace the changes. We Mama knitters, once able to selfishly pick up the sticks, learn quickly what is important. The new addition to my life has taught me that crafting is my sanity, but my boys are my heart. And no knitting can replace that.

So, in order of increasing complexity I shall give you my list of projects, starting with the simple:

Ball Band washcloths - I know, they have been done since our Mama's time, and the pattern lives on the ball band of the ubiquitously useful Peaches and Cream cotton yarn. These simple but pretty wash clothes are fun to knit, use two colors to keep your attention (if you have any) and can be use immediately after cast off in those early days. Spit up, breast milk, formula: name the fluid, you will be wiping it up. You can order some awesome colors directly from the website here.

Baby legwarmers - These can be of your own design if you are comfortable. They are basically a knitted tube in the round with ribbing on each end. No counting rows and imminently useful for the little one (or ones) as they learn to scoot and squirm all over the ground. If you have all hard wood floors as we do, they also act as an excellent duster. The legwarmer, not the bebe. Well, yeah, the bebe.

Daisy Hoodie - Now, I knit these BB (before birth) but I love these hoodies. I used a very soft cotton blend yarn (Cascade Elite Premiere) and it washes well and they wore them forever. I skipped any embellishments but you can add cute button with loops, sew on circles or trucks, go crazy. Or do like I did and use a safety pin to close them. Classy, I know.

And one last note...when knitting for little ones and making up tops for them remember to leave a wide opening on the top as those heads of theirs are melon-like and they will most certainly protest any wrangling attempt to fit a too small opening over their delicate heads. Believe me, I have done this one too many times.