Happy Halloween!  This year has flown by far too quickly.  Halloween sets off the flurry of craziness that is the holiday season around here before we settle into a months-long cold and quiet winter, and with Clara being born just a month ago, even Halloween sneaked up on us this year.  But I did get in a little bit of crocheting in time to celebrate the season. 

All of these adorable crochet pumpkin accessories are so incredibly cute.  Right after her birth, we got this cute little knit pumpkin hat from a friend who volunteers for our local CSA pickup.  It was so perfectly fitting, considering all the squash and pumpkins we’ve been receiving in our shares for fall.  And she looked so sweet in it.  But it wasn’t long that Clara (who is nursing and gaining weight like crazy) grew right out of that hat.  And I decided to replace it with a crochet version of my own.

So I went on Ravelry and found this crochet pumpkin hat and was able to whip it up in a single afternoon.  Of course, Miss Clara’s head seems to be growing exponentially, so I had to add a second round to the edging so that it would come down over her forehead (she has her daddy’s big head!) but it’s enough to get hopefully a few weeks of wear before she’s inundated with winter hats.  I did go down a hook size when making this, using an I instead of a J hook, as my gauge suggested. Next time I would stick with the J hook though.  It did fit her newborn head, but they just grow so quickly, don’t they?

The crochet pumpkin hat that I chose was not a free pattern, but it was very well written with good photos, and even includes video links, so it would be great for a beginner crocheter. This Pumpkin Beanie is available on Ravelry for $4.95.  Another great feature about this pattern is that it goes from infant size up to adult size, so next fall I can make crochet pumpkin hats for everyone in the family!  Won’t they love that, haha. Fortunately, everyone here is very accommodating with my constant crocheting for them!

For the hat, I used Vanna’s Choice yarn in Terracotta and Kelly Green for the leaf and curl.  The flower was made with an E sized hook and Caron Simply Soft yarn in off-white.  I wanted the flower to be small enough not to overwhelm her head and the hat, but I would probably use a worsted weight yarn for the flower on an adult sized hat.

After the hat was done, the only logical thing was to make a matching pair of baby booties to go along with them, right?  I had started this pattern for booties a couple of weeks before she was born, but because I became so ill, I didn’t finish them.  So they again took no time to finish making.  This pattern for Fairy Blossom Baby Booties is free and can be found here. These actually turned out a tad bit bigger than a newborn size, but that works, because she’ll have plenty of time over the cold winter to use these to keep her beautiful baby toes snuggly warm. 

For all those of you who have been so kind to check up on me and send me messages and emails, thank you.  We’ve been recovering well from Clara’s birth.  Our whole family has fallen in love with her, and she’s proven to be my easiest newborn yet (knock on wood!) in terms of high needs.  Her big brothers have been a wonderful help in terms of watching over her while I get showers and a little bit of sanity in, so that’s been a blessing.  And Daddy just adores her; I love to watch his heart just melt when he holds her.  I can’t believe it’s already been a month, and yet I can’t imagine how life was without her.  This has truly been a magical fall. 

Happy Halloween,

Mellie