At 8:40, this has already been a mixed-bag sort of day. I woke up to my dog barfing on my floor and carpet, then had to quaff my coffee and scuttle down the street to catch my bus.

But then on the bus, I finished two projects! I am rawther pleased.

The first, a Toadstool Baby Rattle, ought to have been a quick knit. The pattern is very simple, and I’d knitted it before. Unfortunately, it was not the right knit for the right time, so the only thing that got me to pick away at it at odd times when I didn’t want to lug around my current Huge Project was knowing it is for a family friend’s baby.

I can’t resist knitting for babies. And now, huzzah, it is done!

The second finished object went from cast on to bind off in about 2 hours. This thrilled me to no end, because the Toadstool Rattle is not the first “quick and easy” project I have managed to draw out into a protracted, difficult project.

Behold: a mitered square washcloth! I got the pattern of of someone’s website, but in a moment of staggering librarian-fail, I did not note whose when I copied down the 30 words that comprise the entire pattern. Ah, well. Go to Ravelry and search “mitered square washcloth” and you will find a few dozen good ones. Normally, I am not a fan of knitting with cotton, but the speed at which this pattern worked up completely made up for the non-woollenness of the yarn.

These little triumphs will, I hope, get me through the rest of this mixed-bag Monday.