Why hello there!

So since I'm done shopping for my swap partner, Wolf and I went to the mall with Wolf's sister yesterday. And I decided to throw money caution into the wind and see if I could find a child to help from the Christmas tree. See, every year, they set up a booth and a tree and on the tree they hang up cards for children who come from families who don't have enough money to buy things for their kids for the holiday. We used to pick a kid all the time when we were little but haven't done it lately. So I just started browsing through the cards. Now, they give a line for things the kids need like clothes and such and then things that are wish list items. Now I was thinking about being odd and getting a boy. But all the boys wanted iPods and palm pilots and new bikes etc. As much as I would love to give a child an item like that, I can't even afford one for myself. And I wanted to be able to get the kid something from their wish list.
I went around the tree for about 5 minutes until I found the perfect child. I mean perfect. She needed clothes and jackets and wanted arts and crafts supplies. I jumped a little when I found it and read it over 10 times to make sure I was reading it right. So I decided to give her gifts. The cool thing about it is that the mall is actually getting involved now, so they give you a list of stores in the mall that will give you a discount if you buy things for your child from their store. Then they also give you a book full of coupons that you can use at stores in the mall for yourself. So I was extra excited about that. So we got everything we needed yesterday because we're silly like that.


You can make the images larger, too. That way you can actually see better. Haha. I bought her the gray sweater (ok, I know I could have made her one, but I have enough on my plate and I don't have any access to her so I can't exactly measure her to make sure it fits right), the pink hearts necklace, the heart box kit and the art set. Wolf's sister bought the jeans because I was wary of buying them from the first store we entered into. So yay for her chipping in because it was very out of character. Then since Payless was having their Bogo sale, I figured I could get her some new shoes as well. So we got her some nice black dressy shoes and some Hannah Montana slip-on shoes. And please note that going shopping for this darling has made me want to have a young one of my own. BEWARE! Lol.


Then we got her this black jacket that's like a regular sweatshirt on the outside, but inside it's line with faux fur so it'll be nice and warm. A jacket was specifically listed on her card, so I figured a jacket and the sweater would do perfectly. So then we also got her the butterfly shirt you see underneath the jacket there. And the scarf? I made that when I was first beginning to seriously get into knitting and it's been sitting around for a while waiting for a use. And I thought this would be a perfect time to hand it off to someone that can use it! Sure, it's Fancy Fur, but they'll be able to wash it like normal and all that good stuff. :] All-in-all, I think she'll be happy. I wanted to get her more stuff, but you can't give too much or they'll split up some of the gifts and give them to other kids who didn't get a whole lot or who's cards weren't selected. Yupyup. So she got clothes, a jacket, shoes (which weren't on her list, but shoes are always nice to have), and a little craft kit and an art set. I think I did pretty well.

And this monstrosity here? This is the sweater I'm making up for Wolf's sister. And I know I completely messed up a bit on the ribbing (go ahead and enlarge it...it will just right out at you) but I decided to just leave it since I'd already ripped it back about 14 times before. And she said she didn't mind if there were little mistakes through it because it would made it look more "handmade". It still drives me nuts and I want to fix it, but I just keep looking at the pile of yarn I still need to knit with before Christmas and that fuels my drive to just get through it. Lol. But it is my first sweater, so hopefully it'll come out ok. Crossing my fingers!