I visited my accountant today, and hoooooboy, was it confusing at first!  I'm not very organized, admittedly, when it comes to finances.  I've really really improved over the last year, however, and my taxes were at least smoother to figure out this year than last year.  It's all over now, and I'm ready to forget about it until next year.

Trevor and I also tried out Ingrid's new carrier- a Beco Butterfly II, and we all loved it! 

I'm lucky that Ingrid enjoyed it, because I don't think a stroller would work at MDS&W.  They might not even be allowed... but I don't remember.

We stopped for the ultimate treat, right before our appointment:  baklava truffles from Zoe's in Waynesboro.  I'm pretty sure nothing beats them, except perhaps Zoe's new dark chocolate covered caramels sprinkled with sea salt.  Hello, calories!  My baby gut is here to stay another day.

Oh, and for a wee pinch of fibery news- I just peeked in on the Gemmy batts spin-along and my eyes popped out of my head!  Head on over to Ravelry and take a peek :) 

"garden compost" batts

Ever since I read Pluckyfluff's Handspun Revolution, I've hung onto little treasure-box scraps of fiber that come off the small drum of my drum-carder.  Lately, however, I've collected far more than I can ever use, and have started smushing them together, carding them into batts and bunching them into sets called "Garden compost" batts.

They're a patchwork-ish hodgepodge of color and texture, and perhaps are the craziest batts I've ever produced.  I used to use scraps to create corespun yarns, but I imagine these would be much easier to spin from.

Speaking of spinning- I've noticed that some of the Gemmy batt spin-along participants have received their fiber!  I started spinning last night, using some silver-sparkled Gemmy batts to create a very thin yarn that I hope to ply with dark plum roving and knit a sweater for Ingrid.  I'm saving a gold-sparkled set for myself- maybe for weaving on my rigid heddle loom.

catching up

Wowee!  I finally hit the point of sleeplessness where my brain has turned itself inside-out.  Fortuantely, I've taught little Ingrid how to take naps, and I'm finally getting caught up on those valuable Zzzzz's.  I think I've been busy throughout the past week, but truth-be-told, I don't know what I've really accomplished.

I'm anxious to start spinning for the Gemmy batt spin-along, perhaps I'll give it a whirl tonight.

MDS&W

I'm so excited!  Events have been posted for Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival- and I'm thinking about signing up for a workshop.  I can't decide between "English Longdraw vs. American Longdraw" and "Getting it just right."

Either way, I've got to conquer my fear of spinning around other spinners first!  At Camp Pluckyfluff, I just popped Xanax until I felt just right (I was starstruck stupid by Lexi Boeger AND quite overwhelmed by the amazing spinners that showed up)... and that's not an option this year since I'm breastfeeding Ingrid.  I'm not the most technical of spinners- I have three spin "modes":  bulky, novelty, and fingering weight.  Each mode comes with a rhythm that magically creates a well-balanced yarn.  No math or treadle-counting involved.  I'm certainly not a perfectionist either, in any facet of my life, except perhaps in cleaning the kitchen, where perfectionism matters!

Well, little Ing is grouching.  She's not a morning person like I am, haha!  It takes her a full hour to stop stretching and grunting, after which she usually falls back asleep for a morning nap.  How can so much personality and persnicketyness be packed into a 10-ish lb. being?

Two things have eaten the past few days: colic and diaper rash.  I feel so guilty that Ingrid came down with a wicked rash.  Those angry red splotches nearly spell out "bad mother," right?  Blah.  I discovered that her fleece lined cloth diapers were repelling liquid, so I "stripped" them using Dawn dish soap and Calgon water softener- and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed (thank goodness we have well water and gobs of melting snow supplying it!).  Meanwhile, I used disposables with Desitin to heal her.

Well, the washing did help the diapers to stop repelling, but within 24 hours of putting her back in cloth, she was rashy again!  I was even changing her every two hours, on the dot.  Over the weekend, I cut up rectangles of fleece to use as liners in her cloth diapers so I can use heavy duty creams that aren't normally cloth diaper friendly, and I also ordered a couple dozen unbleached Indian prefolds and a wool cover (the only breathable cover option I've found so far... and why haven't I considered wool yet anyhow???).

They arrived today (thanks to super-quick shipping by Abby's Lane, my favorite cloth diaper source), and I've already washed and prepped the new goodies for use.  Hopefully, that helps.  If not, I'm calling the pediatrician.  And crying.

On the colic front- I tried rocking, extra burping, singing (poor child), massages, baths, and white noise.  Some methods worked... occasionally.  I feel bad for Trevor- lately, every time I hand her over to him, she starts to fuss and crane her neck around, looking for me.

Don't read this the wrong way, I love being a mum and I love my little Ing with all my heart.  I'm just feeling a lot of guilt and helplessness too.  She'll eventually outgrow the colic, I'm sure.  Her father and I both were both terribly colicky, maybe we deserve this for what we did to our parents.