Mikayla's Blanket

I have a history with BABY BLANKETS, albeit a very short history.  This is my second baby blanket and I tried to learn from my previous mistakes.  I'd finished my first (with a whole lot of help from my good friend Mary Ezra (you can check this out at: http://maxsdream.blogspot.com/2008_01_01_archive.html).  But I was ready! 
That first blanket was a logistical disaster.  Max had 8 different balls of yarn going at once and that baby blanket turned out to be much bigger than originally planned.  She knitted in the car on our way to California with the balls of yarn at her feet.  The different strands were constantly getting tangled and had to be untwisted routinely.  This blanket was going to be so much easier - just knit one small square at a time and then put them all together at the end.  No Problem!

 I started knitting the first "squares" on my first trip to Las Vegas to help Brandy set up the nursery for Mikayla.  (I like to knit "small" items- they are so portable- I can carry them absolutely anywhere.. BIG THINGS- are just so cumbersome.) And then I was still knitting squares when I returned in June to spend two weeks with Mikayla (and her Mommy and Daddy).  And I kept knitting squares- mostly during baseball games- the most perfect activity to combine with knitting.  I finally finished the "squares".  And the push was on because we had a visit scheduled and I was determined to take the Mikayla's  Blanket with me- and give it to her personally!  Don said it wouldn't happen- that it wasn't possible- that I could not possibly finish it in time- that I might as well give it up.  JUST THE SORT OF MOTIVATION I NEEDED!  I was determined- if only to prove him wrong!  I have to admit that I was very skeptical about this plan.  It seemed to me that it would have been much easier and more stable to just attach all of these squares to one big piece of backing material.  But Max was determined that each square would have its own separate backing made up of three different patterns.  Then everything would be attached together using long strips of another material in a criss cross pattern.  This was getting difficult.

So I bought material- and cut this into squares- actually cut it into squares twice because the first "idea" didn't work- so it was back to the drawing board.
I attached each square to either a flannel or satin backing- babies love touching different textures- so the idea was that this blanket would have knitted squares- and flannel squares- and satin squares (and ribbon)- all in one blanket.

Then after all the squares were lined the squares had to be "assembled" into the blanket..

And the squares had to be connected using a "tape"...

And then the "ribbons" had to be measured- and cut- and pressed...

And pinned in place...

Of course I was not about to "check" THE BLANKET on the plane ride to the west side of the world, so we packed THE BLANKET into a carry-on suitcase which Don carried on the plane.

And THE BLANKET made it to Las Vegas- and was personally delivered- to Mikayla!

On the "knitted" side...

On the "satin/flannel" side!  What a beautiful BABY (and I think maybe the BLANKET turned out just fine)!

I have to admit that I was proven wrong, but then again maybe I was the reason it actually did get finished on time.  Nothing like telling Max that she couldn't do to give her the motivation to prove me wrong.