Snake In The Grass

The fun thing about working in pediatrics is it's an excuse to knit silly hats, stuffed animals and pretty much anything amusing.  The snake only vaguely resembles the original pattern - I made the colors brighter, the eyes smaller and less realistic, I didn't make the split tongue and made a big smile instead. He turned out a little bigger because he's made of stretchy cotton instead of wool - it was important the yarn be completely without small fibers. Since the recipient is fairly young I made the face much simpler than the original - I once read somewhere that newborns, infants and toddlers will recognize two dots and a line as a face and that stuck with me. I've found the little people seem to prefer a very simple face on whatever I make and really if you look at it, he's looks like a pretty friendly guy. I didn't think he would be done in time - between trying to find the right yarn,the false starts (gauging was a nightmare!), making it up - I was working like crazy last night to get it done in time - and I did it!  I'm back to the shipwreck shawl next for a little while, the rest of the shawl is the same stitches, over and over and over... in other news it is still Winter. Yes it is. Is too. Shut up. Our yard is a frigid mess - we had the drive plowed, it snowed, it rained, it melted a little and then it froze solid. It looks like a mirror it's so smooth in some areas. The snow is frozen so solid Pearl has a reflection as she runs along the top of it through the woods - it's hilarious watching her do Squirrel Patrol, I'm sure they're all wetting their pants watching her skid and slide through the trees.