The Greatest Gift of All

I have recently discovered that my dear sainted sister-in-law (and, let's be honest, mentor and spiritual guide) has learned of my obsession with knitting. And although her tone, when she emailed my husband about it, seemed at first glance to be mocking, I could easily read between the lines to sense the hurt she was feeling that I'd never knit HER anything.

Well, I couldn't let things remain in that state. Immediately I put aside all my other, suddenly unimportant, knitting projects and began to search for the knitted gift that would be worthy of Rachel Sr., this noble woman - indeed this angel - who has played such a significant role in my life. But WHAT?

The nice women over at the Knitty Boards helped me locate a number of extra-special patterns (particular credit goes to Stitchy McYarnPants). Since the warm weather is coming (we're told), it seemed most appropriate to make something light and skimpy and summery. This was the frontrunner for a while:


But a bathing suit cover-up seemed as though it would have limited use (though there's no denying it could have doubled as a bath mat during non-bathing-suit weather), and I knew that Rachel Sr. would be so touched by my thoughtful handmade gift that she'd want the flexibility to wear it more often and to any public place. With that in mind, I selected these lovely shorts:


Nice (though doesn't the one on the right look kind of well-endowed in the crotch, for a girl?), but would she feel shortchanged to receive such a small item? I mean, really small? Wouldn't she want something that I really invested a lot of time into? Yes, I thought. Yes, she would.

After an exhaustive search (including a brief consideration of making this to brighten up her D.C. basement apartment and to provide her with a reminder of me that she'd see every day), I settled on this perfect project. It combines the skimpiness of the shorts with the full-size project of the cover up. Oh man, Rachel Sr. is going to look goooood in these:


"Urban Cowgirl" describes Rachel Sr. perfectly! She grew up in the wilds of St. Louis and now lives a crazy urban life in Howard Fineman's basement! Oh, and, wait! Wait until you see the back:


Pockets with hearts on them!! I mean, that is just so her! I can't wait to get started. She's just going to love me soooooo much! Watch here for progress!