Yarns from Ptown

fb in Ptown

2010-07-21T22:47:00.002-04:00

I think facebook has killed my meager blogging skills. It's so easy to just type in whatever you're thinking at the moment and limit the characters. It makes me sad. I'll be better about blogging. Maybe. I hope. I like blogging. For now, I'll keep knitting my Hanami, which needs a clever name. Another day. I have no ac in my living room right now and it's about 100* outside. I can't think. Good night.

Storytelling in Ptown. Or not.

2010-05-06T07:54:00.002-04:00

I wish I could write. I mean, I can write, but I wish I could write well. You know what I mean: the kind of writing that inspires and entertains. Some of my favorite blogs to read are by gifted writers. These blogs are more than simply records of events. They are stories of events. I wish I was a storyteller.

Here's an example.
HokieBoy was in the tub the other day with his hand on his manparts. So I ask him if he needs to pee. He says no. So I asked why he was holding himself. He says, "I love my penis. My penis makes me happy. My penis makes pee. I hate pee. But I love my penis."

See, there's a record of what happened. Funny, but not terribly gripping. (Get it? He was gripping... nevermind.) How can I make this into a story of what happened? I want to tell the truth without exaggerating, because the truth is funny enough. Maybe I should find a class or something in all my extra time.

Not a lot of Knitting in Ptown

2010-04-10T21:44:00.004-04:00

I have so much to say, and no idea where to begin. So I will write a little today, and maybe I'll feel a little better.

I finished the race last month! My goal was to finish it before they closed the course, and I succeeded. In fact, I completed 13.1 miles in a little under 3 hours. (Just for fun: they close the course after 4 hours.) Then, I thought I was going to die. For about 7 hours, I wanted to throw up. I felt like I had the flu. In the meantime, I was throwing a party for my four year old. I was fun that evening. Finally, I managed to eat some birthday cake and I was healed! Guess a little sugar can go a long way.

HokieBabyGirl hasn't been gaining weight these past two months. At her 4 month checkup, she was 10# 2oz and just below the bottom 3% curve. That was about where she had been all along. At 6 months and 2 weeks, she was 10# 4oz. She fell not only off her curve, but off the chart. She gained 2 ounces in 2 1/2 months. Not good. Her pediatrician wants me to supplement with formula and come back for a weight check. I am working with a Lactation Consultant, supplementing my diet, pumping frequently, and supplementing HBG with pumped milk, formula, and fatty solids. Turns out, she kind of likes avocado mixed with rice cereal and formula.

I'm a little stressed out about it. I'm trying not to post anything about it on facebook. My mom and dad follow my facebook page, and I think my mom is mad at me for not just putting HBG on formula and getting over it. I don't like formula. I nursed two babies successfully for a year after rough starts and I'm not giving up on this one. I can do this. I have the desire, the support of my husband, professional assistance, and time at home to do this. What I don't need is to hear things like, "formula isn't that bad; I agonized over it for you and your sister; it's come a long way in 30 years." The bottom line is this: I want what is best for my baby, and I believe with all my heart that breastmilk is best. If I cannot bring my milk supply back to where it must be to feed my daughter, then I will do what needs to be done for her to thrive.

Needless to say, there is not a lot of knitting going on around here. Oh well.

Life as a Mother of 3 in Ptown

2010-02-05T16:54:00.002-05:00

Here I sit in my cozy living room, thinking about all the changes that have happened since I last posted anything on here. I am now a mother to 3 beautiful babies. I own the biggest truck my husband could find (a 2002 Ford Excursion. It runs on diesel.) We have a wood stove in our living room, a new powder room, and our washer and dryer are now downstairs. I am also on my way to being an "athlete," if I can get my act together.

HokieBabyGirl was born on September 14, 2010, despite my doctors being convinced I wasn't in active labor. She was 36 weeks gestation and is classified as a near-term preemie (37 weeks being considered term.) That makes hers my longest pregnancy (HokieBoy was 32 weeks, HokieGirl was 34.) A week later, we drove to Richmond and got the Great Orange Beast, or GOB. My mother in law and her sister came down from the 'Burgh for a long weekend to meet HokieBabyGirl. We spent Thanksgiving in the 'Burgh and Christmas at home. After the New Year, we went back to the 'Burgh to celebrate Christmas with HokieHubby's family. They had some lovely snow (around 8 inches with fresh snow falling each day), and I truly thought that would be it for the snow for us this year. I was wrong, as our little cottage was covered with 8 inches of the stuff last weekend, all falling between 0345 and 1200 on Saturday. Now a week later, most of it has melted and a new storm is on its way. We are predicted to received 1-3 inches tomorrow. Yuck.

I signed up to run in the Shamrock Half Marathon on March 20th. WHAT??? That's right. I, a woman who *hates* to sweat, signed up for a 1/2 marathon. I haven't run since college, and even then I was never successful. I haven't worked out since then either. I have not performed any serious exercise in over 10 years. Why would I want to run a 1/2 marathon? Because I'm sick of being overweight and out of shape. I don't want to be the fat and frumpy mom anymore. So, I set for myself a concrete goal with a deadline. I am not interested in running the entire 13.1 miles, just completing them.

I'm knitting a little more now. I've completed my Swallowtail shawl that I began in July, and now I wonder how on earth I'm going to use a rainbow striped lace shawl. I made an orange and maroon hat modeled off the hats worn on the sidelines of the Steelers games. I made a little hat for HokieBabyGirl that caused a mommy friend to request one for her son's birthday. Normally I would decline, but I love this woman and I couldn't resist. Fortunately, the hat took very little time.

Now that my baby is 4 1/2 months old, I think I can honestly say I'm getting the hang of things. Now that's not to say I'm good at things. It took a while, but we are getting to MOPs regularly and to Bible Study each week. Of course, the fact that we are not traveling again until May helps with the mindset. I *know* what I should do each day to make life easier, but I'm not all that great at follow through. I *should* restock the diaper bag each evening, reload my gym bag (yes, I have a gym bag now! That's another major change in my life!), and take care of basic chores each day. If I could stick to routines life would be very easy.

A mommy blogger I follow is doing a piece about Mommy Myth Busting. She has been a SAHM for some time now, but is trying on some other hats for a book. This week, she is a working mom. She is learning about how hard it is. I can only imagine how hard it is. It sounds like a great idea: give the kids to someone else to look after and go hang with grownups all day. Then, you've had enough time to miss the kids and when you get home your happy to spend the evening with them. Yeah, right. I can just see it. Get up at the butt-crack of dawn to get myself ready for work. Then get 3 kids dressed and ready to go. Feed everyone and let the dog out. Get everyone in the car and to the sitter. Be stuck in an office all day. Sure, I might get to chat with grownups, but I'd also have to answer to a real boss. Then, by the time I get home from work and picking up the kids, I have to get dinner on the table because you know we are all *starving*. I. Don't. Think. So.

I will continue being a homeschooling sahm. Our days are ours and I can do as much or as little as I want. I do need to be a better home manager though. My house is a constant wreck. We have entirely too much stuff. I call it crap, but HokieHubby gets upset with that term. My plan for now is to finish the baby's room and then go through the kids clothes and get rid of as much as possible. After that comes the toys. Oh the humanity!

Pictures 8.14.09

2009-08-15T13:48:00.003-04:00

Menu Plan Mo-Wednesday??

2009-07-22T09:26:00.002-04:00

Well, shoot, it's Wednesday and there is no updated Menu for the week. Things have been a little crazy at our little Ptown Cottage. We are still in the middle of the new bathroom/laundry closet remodel and the HokieChildren and I spent the night with my mom. So we've been making it up as we go along, which isn't always the best. The house is sucking up all of our extra funds, so I'm facing the fact that I cannot just run down the street to get pizza or Chinese food. It's a good thing we have a ton of food in the house right now.

Breakfast: cereal, eggs/bacon, cream of wheat, oatmeal
Lunch: pb&j, soup, spaghettios, leftovers
Dinner:
Monday: potluck, aka whatever-is-in-the-icebox-that-hasn't-died-yet
Tuesday: Chinese Stir Fry and tomato & cucumber salad
Wednesday: breakfast for dinner
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:
Sunday:
Monday:

After today, everything is pretty much up in the air. My inlaws (mother,aunt, sister,nephew, sister's boyfriend, his son) are coming down today/tomorrow for 2 weeks. We are all on a budget though, so eating out will not happen often. Fortunately, I have stuff in the freezer.

steaks, baked potatoes, corn on the cob
pork roast with veggies
spaghetti
pork chops (might have to buy more)
fajitas (will need to get side dishes)
steaks again (I have many)

We'll be winging it frequently. We're planning to spend time at the beach so maybe we will picnic and even cookout there. It's all a big fat question mark.

Good thing I'm pretty easy going!

Pregnant and Anxious in Ptown

2009-07-17T20:13:00.003-04:00

*Caution* Ramblings of a hormonal pregnant woman ahead. Read at your own risk!

HokieHubby and I decided some time ago, back when HokieGirl was teeny, that we might want to expand our little HokieFamily. We knew this wasn't necessarily going to be a popular idea. HokieBoy was a 32 week preemie and spent a month in the hospital, then came home on a heart monitor. When he was about 5 months old I was diagnosed with post-partum depression. HokieGirl was a 34 week preemie whose main issue was she was too tired to eat to get rid of her jaundice. (By the way, you wouldn't know it the way she's been eating since then!) With my medical history, why risk it when others could be premature as well? We had one of each gender, so why would we want more kids? More kids mean more expenses and I'm a stay at home mom so would I go to work? HokieHubby and I carefully considered these things and decided that yes, we do want more children. So, we did... *ahem* get pregnant.

The first two pregnancies were pretty easy. I had no indication that I was going to have preemies until less than 12 hours before they were born, and even then we were trying everything to get them to stay put. I loved being pregnant. Sure there were parts I could have done without: heartburn, difficult sleeping positions, having to use the bathroom all the time. Labor and delivery weren't terrible, although there were moments I'm sure I have forgotten. Recovery sucks: ice packs, sitz baths, and having a hard time sitting or using the bathroom. Oh, and pumping milk for a preemie 8 times a day is killer on your nipples. I'll only briefly mention the agony of walking around and seeing pregnant women everywhere and my baby was in the NICU, fighting for life. (I think I have a very small grasp of how women who miscarry must feel in public. A very, very small grasp.)

This time around, I'm a little older, and yes there is a difference between being 25 and pregnant and being 31 and pregnant. I've been rather surprised at that. My body is handling this one much differently. I needed maternity pants from the second month. My back aches differently and my uterus seems to sit lower from having been through this twice before.

Mentally, I'm a basketcase. I try to rely on God all the time, praying that he will take the anxiety from me and help me to let him keep it. I don't think I ever had Braxton-Hickes contractions with the other two, but I've been having them every day for over two weeks now. I was in the hospital once already because they got regular instead of random. I'm 28 weeks pregnant, which means we still have 4 weeks to go until I know roughly what to expect with a preemie and 6 weeks until my doctor says he's okay with me delivering. What I want more than anything, though, is to make it another 10-12 weeks so this HokieBaby can be full-term. I'm afraid of failing again. I know it's not my fault babies don't stay the full 40 weeks. (I also know there are plenty of women out there who wish their babies would be born a little early.) I don't want to leave my HokieBaby at the hospital again. It almost killed me to leave the first one, but I spent hours everyday at his side. The second one wasn't as bad because I had HokieBoy at home who needed me and HokieGirl wasn't nearly as sick as HokieBoy had been.

Each week that passes and I am still pregnant is a huge relief that I didn't even know I was waiting for. I have prayed, and others have prayed for me and this baby. God knows what my desires are, and I know that He has plans for me and baby. I know that He will use all things in my life for good because I believe in Him. Is it terrible that my prayer is that He allows me to have a perfectly typical birth rather than allow me to suffer through another premature delivery? Use me in my joy as a testament to God, that He hears our prayers and grants miracles!

October 9th is a long time away. I feel as though I have been in a mini-goal mindset forever. 24 weeks, then 26 weeks, now 28 weeks. Each week is a blessing. I know this, and I am so thankful that I can get and stay pregnant when some of my friends struggle with infertility or miscarriage.

If you are a Christian, please pray for me and my little one. Please pray that God will continue to take my anxiety even when I keep taking it back. Pray that I'll be able to leave it with Him. I know that Jesus tells us not to worry about tomorrow, but I am human and prone to thinking I can do this on my own. Please pray that this little one is born in October, healthy and full-term, but that if He should allow otherwise that I will rely on His strength at all times.

If you are not a Christian, I appreciate your friendship as much as my Christian friends and welcome your warm thoughts for my family. There is room in my life for caring people of all religions or no religion.

The Week in Ptown

2009-07-17T18:48:00.002-04:00

Here it is Friday, and I was thinking not much had happened all week. Then I went day by day and realized we have been pretty busy.

In knitting news, I have decided to try polygamy. I just wasn't making progress on FLS, and since I was already breaking my tradition by working on squares for a friend's 7yo who has a large tumor, I cast on for the Funky Monkey from Blue Moon Fiber Arts that I bought last May. I think I may like polygamy. The squares are great for doctors' offices and the monkey (so far) has been good to just pick up and work on a little at a time. I work on FLS in the evenings when things have settled down and I can focus. I ordered some yarn for Baby Mine sweater and I can't wait to cast on for that.

HokieHubby has decided that on Sundays when he's coming home from work, he's going to pick up donuts. I have decided this is actually a fantastic little treat. It only happens every three weeks. The HokieChildren have so much fun out on the front porch with icing covered chunks of donut. Hokiegirl had pink frosting and sprinkles all over her face and hands. Love it!

We have spent hours at various hardware stores this week, the whole family or the HokieParents individually. HokieHubby has ripped a huge hole in the floor of our downstairs bath. There are no longer fixtures in the proper room. We now have new insulation under half the area, and new plumbing for the washer and dryer and the new sink. The floorplan of our downstairs won't be changing too much, except that there will be a washer and dryer instead of a shower, and the sink and commode will share a wall.

The HokieCat took advantage of the absence of floor and made herself at home under the house two nights in a row. She doesn't come out much during the day, so she wasn't missed until after we were all in bed Tuesday night and she didn't join me. HokieHubby had take pains to cover the hole to keep unwanted critters out of the house. Wednesday she didn't come out until just before the kids went to bed. The hole was larger that night, though, and HokieHubby apparently left a spot big enough for her to slip on in. Thursday night we waited for her to come out for the evening visit and HokieHubby closed up the hole as tight as he could. HokieCat wandered around crying all night and this morning because she wanted to go back in her hole. Can't win.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-07-15T15:23:00.000-04:00

Not Me Monday!

2009-07-13T11:01:00.002-04:00

It's Monday again and time for a post worthy of MckMama ... or not!

I did not wake up this morning before the HokieChildren and (knowing that for my own sanity and their protection I should go ahead and get up and do a little something for myself) roll over and try and sleep some more. After a week of getting up early for the World Changers and thoroughly enjoying the quiet mornings on the front porch, I know better than to give that little luxury up!

I have not been avoiding emptying the clean dishwasher or folding the clean clothes in the vain hope that HokieHubby would catch on and do it for me. I am such a good wife/mother/housekeeper that all the chores are done before the clean clothes wrinkle or the sink fills with dirty dishes.

I did not allow the girls from the World Changers to entertain my HokieChildren all week just so I could have some peace inside the house. There is always peace in my house! Just because my children adored those girls and were fascinated by all the paint and tools and the girls seemed to enjoy HokieChildren does not mean I would take advantage of them that way! (By the way, I truly did keep asking them if the kids were okay and finally decided this peace was an extra unexpected blessing.)

And it was not I who was grumbling about the storm 10 minutes after I had been enjoying it when I realized that my tropicana plants that were booming like crazy had been flattened. And I did not curse when I realized there is a chance all my squash plants have been squashed as well. I love summer storms and take the good with the bad. I am grateful once again that our tulip poplar was removed earlier this year because this was another storm that would have cost us if that tree had been standing. I was not secretly thankful that the power outage across the street was not caused by my tree, especially when I found out that they have been without power all night and all morning. I only feel sympathy for the homes affected.

I am not the kind of mother who secretly takes pride in her HokieChildren's public behavior while forgetting how proud I am when we get home and chaos reigns. I never lose my temper and always remember to take a time out. I have never told my HokieChildren that I wanted to put them out with the trash, only to hear something very similar come out of HokieGirl's mouth yesterday.

And after hearing my HokieChildren say they didn't want me anymore, discussing the situation with them and then later hearing, "I want to keep you forever, Mama," I did not cry.

Menu Plan Monday, Part 2

2009-07-13T10:37:00.003-04:00

Here we go again... let's see if I can make this a habit!

Breakfasts: cereal, eggs, bacon, toast, bagels, pancakes
Lunches: leftovers, pb&j, ham sandwiches, egg salad
Dinners:
Monday: hot dogs
Tuesday: chili, cucumber salad
Wednesday: pork chops, squash
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: breakfast for dinner
Saturday: steaks on the grill, corn on the cob, salad
Sunday: homemade chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese
Monday: out to eat with inlaws

Mad Mama in Ptown

2009-07-12T19:17:00.003-04:00

I think I've done a pretty good job loving on my children and they love on me right back. Until today.

"I don't want you anymore!" came from HokieBoy's mouth this evening.

HokieGirl followed that with, "you a bad Mama!"

Oh my.

Here's what happened. We were hanging out in the living room. HokieHubby had left for another overtime shift. I was messing around on the computer. The HokieChildren were playing with trains and a ton of track. Things were going well until HokieGirl tried to run her train on a stretch of track where HokieBoy's train was running. Screaming and screeching ensued. They were warned that they needed to play nicely or the trains would be put away. So, niceness reigned for a few minutes.

Suddenly all heck broke loose with both HokieChildren screaming at each other again.

I broke it up by saying it was time to pick it all up and put it away. HokieBoy comes to me crying and whining that they will play nicely this time. I stood firm. They put the tracks away, both of them crying hysterically.

In the meantime, I went outside to check on the newly flattened tropicana flowers in my front yard. They found me and begged me to let them play trains. When I refused, that's when those horrifying, knife-like words flowed from their little mouths.

"I don't want you anymore!" and "You a bad mama!"

I guess I am officially a mom. My children hate me. At least for a moment.

We went inside and I talked with each of them alone. When asked why he didn't want me anymore, HokieBoy told me it was because I keep getting mad.

"Why do I get mad at you?" I asked.

"Because I play with the fan or touch things that could hurt me, or for climbing over a gate or other dangerous things."

Okay, not going to argue with that, but, "why am I mad at you this evening?"

"Because me and HokieGirl were fighting."

Aha!

"Should I be mad at you for not be nice with each other?"

"Yeah."

A very similar conversation followed with HokieGirl. I think they may be getting the hang of it.

Oh, and about five minutes after our talk, HokieBoy pops out with this gem:

"Mama, I want to keep you forever."

Maybe I'm getting the hang of it, too.

Beautiful Mornings in Ptown

2009-07-11T10:08:00.003-04:00

I found myself having to check the calendar over and over this week. Could it really be July? We here at the HokieCottage awoke each morning to beautiful temperatures and sunshine. Each morning this week I hauled myself out of bed before 7, got dressed, and then enjoyed tea or coffee on my porch. We were waking up early because the World Changers were here all week working on our home. This was a group of lovely people, mostly teens, who repainted our front porch, rebuilt the ramp to the shed, repaired and repainted our living room ceiling, and installed new windows on the back of our house.

More importantly, these young people shared their deep love for Jesus with our family. Now, you might know that I love Jesus and am already striving to share that love with my children. So why was it important to have these Jesus Lovers in my home all week? We need to surround ourselves with our family. It is with family that we can re-energize our own faith. Also, I believe that while my teaching as mother is of utmost importance, my children need to hear about Jesus and His great love for them from other believers. These young people touched my children's lives. They played with them, ate with them, read Bible stories to them, and prayed with them. One of the churches represented sent HokieGirl a book of Bible stories and songs. One of the boys from that church (who we never met as he wasn't on our crew) sent HokieBoy his personal Bible. It was the Bible his pastor gave him when he gave his life to Christ.

So this morning, Saturday, I ate my breakfast alone on my freshly painted porch. It may have been the last lovely morning we will see for a little while, as the weather is supposed to return to it's wonderful summertime heat and humidity. I thought about those wonderful kids who served my family with love for our Savior. I thought about how they did so with no thought for earthly rewards. Their reward for the work they did is waiting for them in Heaven. But they should know that the work they did was more than just fixing a house. They planted seeds of faith for my children. They showed strangers love. They gave me hope for my children's future and my own.

They Changed the World for the better.

The Talk in Ptown

2009-07-07T20:03:00.002-04:00

So the World Changers are in my neighborhood doing improvements to some of the homes. This is a program sponsored by churches and the kids pay to come out and do this. It's a mission thing. Anyway, we applied and were accepted to have some work done on our house, which is a true blessing, especially because the projects they are working on have been on the back burner since we are preparing for the new baby.

So that's just the background for the conversation that took place on my front porch yesterday between the HokieKiddos and the World Changers Crew:

HokieBoy: We're having a baby sister, but we don't know what her name is going to be.

World Changer: Are you excited that you're having a baby sister? I don't have any brothers or sisters.

HokieGirl: That's okay. You can grow a baby in your womb so you can have a baby sister.

Let's hope the teenage World Changers wait until they are older and in a loving, committed marriage and don't take HokieGirl's advice anytime soon.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-07-06T20:31:00.002-04:00

Okay, so I tried to plan menus in the past: monthly, weekly. It never works. So I read a woman's blog who is also trying to be more organized. Here I go!

Breakfasts: oatmeal, cereal, egg sandwiches, bagels

Lunches: pb&j, ham sandwiches,

Snacks: grapes, apples, cheese/pepperoni and crackers,

Monday: ham, macaroni and cheese, fried green tomatoes

Tuesday: spaghetti

Wednesday: country ribs (crockpot), zucchini % squash, macaroni and cheese

Thursday: chicken enchilada

Friday: leftovers

Saturday: Kristen's Party

Sunday: Sunday with Mama

Monday: hot dogs

Not Me Monday

2009-07-06T15:20:00.002-04:00

Joining in with MckMama's fun:

I did not stand idly by this week while HokieHusband allowed our HokieChildren to swim in our very green pool. I would *never* allow the pool to get/stay green, much less allow children to swim in it.

I also did not have contractions on Tuesday that got regular in the evening and then go to the hospital where they decided to stop. And I was not told that I was dehydrated. I drink tons of water daily and take plenty of time for myself throughout the day to prevent such things from happening.

That said, I did not take my HokieChildren to see Monsters V. Aliens knowing full well that HokieGirl would probably be afraid of the movie. And she most certainly did not spend most of the movie in my lap complaining about the "bad robot" and how this was a "bad movie." I would never take her to see a movie I wasn't positive she would like.

And at the YMCA, I did not sit in a lounge chair while someone else's mommy and daddy played with my HokieChildren, and even if I had I would have made sure they were parents I knew.

Oh yeah, and today I did not entertain myself on the internet while the teenage girls from World Changers played with my kids all afternoon.

Birthday in Ptown

2009-06-01T22:50:00.004-04:00

My little HokieBoy turned 5 on May 29th. Crazy. I think that particular birthday was pretty difficult to believe. After all of his issues in the hospital at birth, not a soul could tell today that the doctors and nurses weren't sure that he would live.

And live he does. My HokieBoy is filled with energy and spirit. He is love and sweetness. Oh, he whines with the best of them, frequently when HokieGirl is annoying him by messing with his toys. But he knows how to push her buttons, too, so I guess what goes around comes around.

Each year before his birthday, I remember the events leading up to it. His debut was such a shock to us all that Saturday morning. Friday night I was laying in bed reading, having given myself my nightly anticoagulant. It was about 11:45 and I was finishing a chapter. I wasn't terribly sure, but I thought my water broke. (Well, it was either that or I had just had an accident!) We went to the hospital, and to make a long story much shorter, HokieBoy entered the world at 7:06am May 29th. All this despite the best efforts of myself and the entire team at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh. The shock is because HokieBoy was not supposed to come out and play until July 20th.

So Happy Birthday, my darling little HokieBoy. And now I can look back on those long days of being home while you were still in the NICU and be truly thankful for all my many blessings.

Someone's in the kitchen in Ptown

2009-05-17T12:48:00.003-04:00

Mother's day our little family could be found picking strawberries in Pungo. I think the farmer's need to weigh us before and after we pick, since HokieGirl and I probably ate several pounds of berries between us! We picked almost $40 worth of berries! My mom took some and we gave some to my sister, but we had a table full of berries when we got home. I now have 14 12oz of strawberry sauce (it didn't gel into jam, so I'll reprocess it), and 4 quarts of actual jam. There are also about 4 quarts of capped berries in the freezer. That's a lot of berries, people!

In other news, things are winding down around here. For a family with no school-aged children, our lives sure follow the school year. Bible study has ended until September, and MOPS is winding down. HokieBoy will not have speech tomorrow because of SOLs, nor will he go the following week for Memorial Day. June 1st we go for his IEP, and I have no idea what happens next. I will say I am looking forward to not having real commitments for a little while.

We're leaving Ptown this week for a visit to Pburgh. We haven't been since January and snow. I think we are all really looking forward to a trip. Next month we'll go camping in West Virginia.

I have a visit to the OB Tuesday. Maybe we'll get to find out which gender Hokie-Baby-To-Be is and I can actually work on the name list. Maybe then I'll feel like knitting something special.

As I'm sitting here on the chair in the living room, I hear a very manly belch. I'm thinking to myself, "nice rip, HokieHubby," but he's not home today. As I peer over the top of the screen I here a sweet little giggle and HokieGirl's voice says, "excuse me!" She'll be burping the alphabet in no time.

Cottage in Ptown

2009-05-04T18:32:00.002-04:00

Not much interesting on the knitting front. I started my February Lady and was totally not getting gauge. I decided to keep going without checking gauge, even though I knew it was working to be too big. Reckon that was knitter's denial, as I made it through a skein and a half before deciding to measure gauge. Now I have a small swatch going and hope to get going on actual knitting again soon.

Now for what has really been occupying my time these past few days. My cottage. We have gotten so much done in our yard! I think it's absolutely beautiful! I never thought that a few flowers could make me as happy as they do. I now totally understand my mother in law's interest in beautifying her home on the outside.

Also, HokieHubby installed not one, but two beautiful ceiling fans in our living room! Now we can actually spend time in the house even when it is hot outside! Hopefully, this means we'll be able to hold off on installing the window units for a little while.

Now that our yard is great and our living room is cool, our house is falling apart again. This time, there is no tree causing obvious damage. This time, it's small stuff that is causing major issues. There is apparently a small leak in the roof of our breakfast room that allows a bucket of water to fall onto our table. HokieHubby needs to go up onto the roof and investigate. Hopefully it will just be a quick patch job.

But that's really small potatoes compared to the broken sewer pipe under our house. For a couple of weeks now we've noticed a rather foul smell coming from under the house. HokieHubby opened up the crawl space and noticed some dampness under the shower that we were planning on removing anyway. He thought that maybe the water was from the shower. So we stopped using the downstairs shower and switched to the tub upstairs. Sure enough, it seemed to get a little better. For a little while. We decided to go ahead and rip out the shower and see if we could get a better look. Turns out the pipe that carries water from our kitchen sink/disposal, dishwasher, and clothes washer is broken.

Grr. HokieHubby is at ~~his second home~~ the hardware store to get items that will hopefully at least temporarily fix the issue. We'll see.

Mornings in Ptown

2009-04-28T07:05:00.002-04:00

When I am awake enough to witness them, this is mostly how the morning in the hokiekids' room goes:

645am: Hokiegirl's eyes open slowly. She stretches. Suddenly, her eyes POP open. She is awake, and there is no turning back. She hangs out on her bed for a few minutes, rolling around and playing with various animals within reach.

700am: Hokiegirl climbs up to Hokieboy's bunk. Sensing her presence, he opens his eyes and growls, "Hokiegirl, get off my bed! I'm trying to sleep!" She ignores his demand, telling him instead that the sun is up and it is time to wake up.

Now, here the routine varies. Typically, Hokiegirl pesters Hokieboy with hooting noises that are exactly the right pitch to sink into my marrow in the other room. Some hollering usually ensues between them, with Hokieboy still trying to fight Hokiegirl off so he can sleep. Today, however, Hokiegirl quietly removed herself to her own bunk and played with a bear. Hokieboy apparently decided he was not interested in sleeping and played with a book. This morning there is singing instead of hooting coming from their room. This is a wonderful thing. It is beautiful.

My only question is, WHY do they do this kind of thing only when I am already awake and not on the days when I want to sleep in???

Overheard in Ptown

2009-04-25T21:22:00.003-04:00

Me: Did you need to go potty? The bathroom is free now.
Hokieboy: No, my pen1s changed its mind.

Apparently, they get their own mind early.

Easter is coming! What do you do?

2009-04-02T16:26:00.000-04:00

When I was a little girl, Easter was pretty much the same every year. On Saturday night we would have a family dinner, usually a cookout or spaghetti, and dye eggs. And not a few eggs! We would dye dozens of eggs, at least 10! Mamaw had to have some with all of her church ladies' names, my mom took some to work, and all the family members had their names on eggs, including anyone who might randomly show up on Easter Sunday! It took hours! The kids would get bored after the first few dozen and then the grown ups would have their turn.

Easter morning, my sister and I would wake up and find Easter baskets in the hall outside our bedrooms. Oh, the candy we would find! There was always a toy of some sort, but as I got older it became a cd. We would put on our Easter dresses, usually with warm tights and sweaters, and head out to church. Ever notice how Easter around here is unpredictable, but usually cold?

Then to Mamaw and Papaw's house for our Easter feast! Ham, potato salad, collard greens, pickles, beans, the spread left little room on the table for our plates! After the kids finished eating, we would run around asking when the grown ups would finish eating so we could go find eggs! We were more than a little obnoxious, I'm sure. We would be herded into the living room and watched carefully to be sure nobody peeked out the windows. After what seemed like hours, we were finally allowed to go hunt eggs, by age order though, so the littler ones would be able to find the obvious eggs. I was the oldest, and it seemed to take forever to get to my turn!

Eggs were all over the yard. We would find eggs in the strangest places, and after we thought we had found them all, Uncle Larry would tell us there were more. He would have riddles ready to help us find those last elusive eggs. That was the best part. All of us kids would stand around and beg for more clues. One year, even he forgot where he hid a couple of eggs, and Papaw found them a month later doing maintenance on the house!

Now, all of the grandchildren are "grown" with the youngest in college and I have my own children. So the traditions are beginning to be passed down. Easter dinner is still at my Papaw's, but the fare has gotten simpler and easier. My mom, uncles, and aunt still buy the eggs to dye on Saturday night, but I no longer get to hunt the eggs. Now, my husband and I hide eggs for our children. And the Easter bunny at my house has a lot to learn about planning ahead so the kids have baskets with the right balance of candy and toys.

Easter has always been a family day for us, but you might have noticed just the passing mention of church Sunday morning. Now that I have my own family and my own faith, I get to build my own traditions. This year, there will be Bible readings in my house and stories read to my preschoolers before Easter morning. At my weekly Bible study, the kids heard the Palm Sunday story straight from the donkey's mouth. Next week they'll hear the Easter story from their teachers and again from me. I hope that my children will enjoy Easter for all of the fun things like egg hunts and baskets, but I want them to know the JOY that comes from the knowledge that Jesus is alive.

Please share your family traditions!

And it burns burns burns...

2009-03-25T21:42:00.003-04:00

The ring of swaps...

I've participated in a few knitting swaps. Some of them have been fantastic. Others, not so much. I never received anything from one swap (it was supposed to be a pair of socks and a couple of themed doodads). The latest swap I received $10 worth of a $60 swap and have heard nothing since. The swap ended February 28th.

I'm taking a time out from swaps for a while.

Great Expectations: a WIP

2009-03-21T10:35:00.003-04:00

In case you hadn't noticed the widget on the side of my blog, the Ptown Cottage is expecting a new arrival this fall! Things are going well, I think. There is some debate over the actual due date, as the baby has measured a week behind for 2 ultrasounds. I go back at the end of the month for an official ultrasound. Not sure what the other two were: unofficial?

Anyway, I am a high-risk pregnancy. I had a blood clot when I was 18, the same year my dad had one. Well, that was too freaky to be coincidental, so we went in for genetic testing. Turns out I have a genetic mutation called Factor V Leiden. This is like having 2 risk factors for blood clots, making me more likely than others to develop clots when taking hormones like the birth control pill, smoking, or when pregnant. Hormones go absolutely berserk when you are pregnant, and this fact reeks havoc on my blood. I have to take injections of blood thinners throughout my pregnancy. Without the blood thinners, I could develop another clot or a clot could develop in the placenta or cord, causing miscarraige. Making things just a little more interesting, both of my children were born prematurely. Hokieboy was 2 months early and Hokiegirl was a month and a half early. Thankfully, you would never know looking at them now.

So, the due date of a baby is actually pretty important. A week can make a huge difference in the health of an infant. So much happens in those few weeks. A baby is actually considered full term by most at 37 weeks gestational age. Most of what happens between then and the due date (40 weeks) is putting on the pounds. Hokieboy was born at 32 weeks. This meant that his lungs were underdeveloped, as was the sphincter muscle that is between the stomach and the esophagus. He needed assistance breathing, developed jaundice and then had acid reflux, which caused him to stop breathing and his heart rate dropped too low. When he came home after a month in the NICU, he had a heart monitor to alert us to those events. Hokiegirl was born two weeks older, at 34 weeks. The lungs are generally mature by 34 weeks, which made me breathe easier when I hit that mark. She stayed in the hospital for a week because she also had jaundice. This made her too sleepy to eat, and without food to flush the bilirubin out, she remained jaundiced, which made her too sleepy to eat, and without food... you get the point.

The current due date for the new baby is October 9th, but that may be pushed back to October 16th, depending on the results of the ultrasound. I have grounded the baby, insisting that it not leave its womb until October. We'll see how that goes.

Over here in Ptown, a different kind of knitting is happening. I don't hold the needles at the moment, but God is very busy with creating a new life in me.

Psalm 139:13 "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb." NIV

Marching along

2009-03-06T11:08:00.002-05:00

It's March.  I could hardly believe it when I flipped the calendar over to look
at the new month.  As I was driving this evening, I noticed that it was after
6:00 pm and it was still light outside!  This wonderful realization came to me
just days after we saw snow covering our yard.  It's hard to believe, but spring
really is on it's way.  I've never really been one for spring cleaning, but as I
look around my home that has been shut up for the long winter, I see the appeal
of having everything aired out and freshly scrubbed.  We'll see if I can bring
that image to reality!

Spring brings us a chance to get out and enjoy God's creation.  My camellia
bushes are blooming and the daffodils are popping up everywhere.  The birds are
visiting more frequently and their song wakes me up just before sunrise.  While
it's not quite planting season yet (someone told me tax day was a good time to
plant around here to avoid late frosts), when the warm days arrive I will be in
my yard planning for planting. 

This month, we are focusing on the Growing Adventure.  Let us take some time to
really observe how God works all around us.  The plants that we see are a great
word picture of how God works in our hearts.  A seed must die in order to become
fruit the following season.  We bury it in the ground and soon a shoot pushes
through the dirt and mud towards the light.  The shoot becomes a plant that will
blossom and produce fruit, from which more seeds will come.  And the cycle will
continue.

We are those seeds, and good works are our fruit.  Only when we die to ourselves,
our sinful selfish nature, can we be planted in the dirt.  We will be drawn to
the Light that is the Lord Jesus Christ, and He will coax beautiful blooms and
fruit from us.  Growing is hard work, but if we can just get out of God's way,
He will do the work in us so that the Light of His Son can shine before all men
and they will see the good works and glorify the Lord.  (see Matthew 5:16)

The lost birthday post

2009-02-27T20:54:00.002-05:00

So, I tried this on my birthday and cyberspace ate it. We'll try again.

My birthday weekend brought me all sorts of yarny goodness. On Saturday, a wonderful woman opened her Great Yarn Stash to my knitting group for us to tear apart. I managed to bring home a pretty obscene amount of yarns that I may never have purchased on my own. Robin is a designer who has had many yarn companies send her yarn in exchange for her designing something that uses that yarn. She had more yarn in her home than a small yarn store. Hundreds, maybe thousands of skeins and balls and cones. And the variety! She had wool and wool silk blends and mohair and acrylic and novelty. Colors ranged from grey and ecru to neon pinks and oranges to foresty greens. I picked out a few skeins and was told I must pick more. So I did. She told me more. I am embarassed by the amount of yarn came into my house on Saturday. I brought home a Stash of My Own. My stash before Saturday fit very comfortably into 3 small bins. I'm not sure I'm ready to publicly announce the contents of my new stash.

Also adding to the birthday yarny goodness that weekend, I won a contest over on Carly's blog. My first ever contest! I'm not sure exactly what it is, but Carly has wonderful taste and I'm sure it will qualify as yarny goodness.

My new stash is afraid of the paparazzi, so there will be no pictures at this time. Thank you for your understanding.

February is the Month of Love

2009-02-04T14:58:00.005-05:00

January 2009 has come and gone already and now we are into February. Did anyone else feel
like they had been knocked over by a tornado last month? My family is still recovering from
a month of celebrations, family, and travels.

February is a great month. It brings us Groundhog's Day and President's Day, Valentine's Day
and my birthday! Calendars often assign February the color pink, for love. Roses are a tad
less expensive than usual. Candy is everywhere. People everywhere make declarations of love.
The stores are filled with sappy cards extolling the virtues of love.

Paul gives us a message about love in 1 Corinthians 13. Many of us have those verses read
at our weddings or on plaques in our homes. Paul tells us that love is the most important thing,
and that without love we are nothing and can do nothing. Without love, all of our efforts with our
family, our children, and our friends would mean nothing for the Lord. Love is what sets us
apart from the world, and is how the world sees Christ in us. It is a choice to live a life of love for
all to see. It is also a challenge.

"Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always 'me first,'
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end."
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 The Message Translation

How might we live out these verses in our day to day lives? I struggle daily to place my families
needs above my own desires. I envy other people when I should be wholeheartedly happy for
their blessings. I've been known to "fly off the handle" with my children and husband for little
reason other than the time of my cycle. How often have I held on to grudges or been gleeful
when someone else struggles? Perhaps instead of losing my temper, I need to take a deep breath
and gently explain how I feel when someone offends me, offering loving forgiveness. I need to
refrain from saying hurtful things to or about someone else. A small show of love is simply
taking a few minutes to play with my kids before I get on the computer to send that email, or at
least a moment to let them know that I will be with them as soon as I press send. I can show my
love for God by trusting Him and knowing that He loves me and wants to use all things for
my benefit.

Love will help me through the tough times, and we all know that as mothers of preschoolers there
are tough times every day! I am trying to live out these verses everyday, and not just for my
husband who listened to them with me on our wedding day. I am trying to show my children love
the way Jesus loves me: unconditional, unselfish, and unending love. I want others to see the love
of Jesus Christ in me and want that love for themselves and to give that love to others. I pray that
each of you will find a moment to really read 1 Corinthians 13 and challenge yourselves to lead a
life of love, one moment at a time.

I'm sunk.

2009-02-03T12:57:00.001-05:00

I have a need to send something to the other side of the world. The quote? $100 US. I don't have that kind of money. Now what?

10 on Tuesday

2009-01-06T16:45:00.004-05:00

A little something I've seen on some other blogs.

10 Things I Want to Knit in 2009
1. A Hokie Hat
2. Baby Mine
3. Felted Slippers for hokiekiddos
4. Christmas stockings for PittsburghCousins
5. Beaded lace, perhaps waves of grain
6. Lenore socks
7. Amused or Corona
8. Green day vest
9. colorwork mittens like Lillyfield
10. Clapotis (cuz I may be the last knitter to do one)

Other minor projects:
1. socks from stash: at least six possible pairs
2. washcloths from stash: at least five balls available

We'll see how that goes, considering my FO list for 2008 was short.
1. Prayer Socks
2. two dozen wee tiny prayer socks
3. MS3
4. Central Park Hoodie
5. Ravelympics Baby Surprise Jacket and matching hat and socks

Current WIPs
1. Mmmmmalibrigo Nutkins, began early December 2008

In the mail...

2008-12-24T11:52:00.004-05:00

So lately, the mailman has been bringing lots of Christmas cards. We've heard from people that we only hear from this time of year and people we see every few days. I also sent cards to people we only hear from once a year and people we see all the time. Today, there was nothing...

Except this:
Well, I didn't order anything. So I opened it.
OOH! A Present!
From my secret pal. And it says Merry Christmas!
What? You didn't really think I would wait until tomorrow, did you?
Thank you, Secret Pal! Now the trick is to wait until the 1st to start reading it!

Knitty Scrooge

2008-12-21T13:24:00.002-05:00

I don't Christmas knit, but why is it that the closer it gets to Christmas, the more I think of things that would be perfect for people? I don't think of things to knit for my kids or my husband. Instead I think of how perfect this item would be for that random person I never see. Or how cute my cousin would look in that pattern. That is why I do not Christmas knit. If I knit that really cute hat for one random relative, then I'd have to do one for all of the random relatives. Knitting overload! But sometimes I wish I was a faster knitter. Then maybe I could be a Christmas knitter. By the way, do you think it's too late to order some Mmmmalibrigo worsted and knit Hokiehubby a hat for Christmas?

SP 13 question

2008-12-18T14:42:00.002-05:00

Am I doing any holiday knitting?

Nope. Not one thing. Nada. Nil. Zip. Zero.

I'm just not ready for the pressure. Also, I'm a selfish knitter. I've only given away some washcloths, a couple of garter stitch scarves, 3 baby blankets and a baby layette.
I have a couple of in-laws who would like to receive hand-knits, but they want big things like sweaters and beaded lace stoles. I'm afraid that knitting for Christmas would set a precedent that would require me to knit for more people and I'm just not ready for that. I don't do well with deadlines, as evidences by the fact that my very first sock swap partner received her socks over a year late (sorry about that!). Sadly, none of my swaps have made it out on time, but SP 13 will be a change for me! You'll be getting your package before the end, honest!

In the meantime, I'm plugging away on my malibrigo nutkins. I frogged the short row heel and replaced it with a heel flap. Normally I don't mind the challenge of a new technique, but I really need these to be happy socks, and they weren't until I frogged. Knitting is to be a stress reducer, not inducer! When it's not fun, I don't want to do it. Back to some household chores so I can knit again!

Here's a dull post for you

2008-12-17T07:46:00.006-05:00

Today's ToDo List: aka How I'm Trying to Get It Together So I Can Find My Mind
-take dinner out of freezer
-eat breakfast/take vitamins/drink more COFFEE!
-get ready for hokiekiddos to get up-drink and breakfast
-Bible study
-Melaleuca order
-straighten kitchen after Hokiehubby made dinner for kids last night and left it a mess again (I did more than straighten: it looks really good in there)
-throw out 15 things (I'm not sure how many things I threw out, but it's a lot)
-call Victory House to schedule a pickup for the stuff that is too good to throw away
-get together stuff for Victory House pickup
-clean bathrooms (not too bad, just need maintenance)
-at least one load of laundry
-gather paperwork for worldchangers program
-apply for YMCA Open Doors
-decide who the kids are shopping for at Frosty's Shop
-put timer on computer so I stop sitting here wasting time.
-frog short row heel and do a heel flap like I know I like

I'll let you know if I find my mind in all this mess.

Any entry is better than no entry, right? Maybe?

2008-12-16T14:29:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I was on a roll for a while there, blogging very frequently. Not so much lately. We went to Pennsylvania the 5th-7th to see Thomas the Tank Engine. He comes to the Strasburg Rail Road 3 times a year: June, September, and one weekend in December. We've always gone on a weekday in September because we've never had to worry about missing school. It's wonderful then. The December event was lovely, but I much prefer Lancaster County on the weekdays when there is a Thomas event. Hokiehubby's mother, sister and two boys, aunt, and very pregnant cousin and her boy came from Pittsburgh to spend the weekend with us.

We visited the town of Hershey on Friday and picked up about 8 pounds of kisses. We took the factory tour ride and got to make gears full of kisses. The making was free, the gears were not. Saturday was our Thomas ride. A little tip to save stress: don't forget your tickets at home! For some reason, will-call was not available when I ordered our tickets. I always use will-call so I don't have to worry about tickets when packing. It all worked out okay, and we were all safely aboard when Thomas departed the station at 10:45. That evening, we drove out to BFE to visit the Christmas Village. It would have been very lovely if my cousin hadn't been 38 weeks pregnant and ready to pop! A story for another day, perhaps. Sunday, we had lunch with our Pa family and sent them west while we headed southeast to home. Hokiehubby had picked up a brochure in the hotel for a little railroad that I can't even remember the name of. It was only about 15 minutes from where we were, and we could be there in time to catch a ride with Santa Claus before coming home. It was a fun little trip for the four of us.

Since then, I have just been in a funk. I don't know what exactly is going on. I know I love Christmas for all the beauty everywhere and the time we spend with our families. I really don't like the gift thing. I feel like there is too much focus on spending money on people, and stuff shouldn't matter so much! I hate combining all this material crap with the birth of Jesus the Christchild. That's where the focus should be, and now that I am responsible for two small souls I just can't seem to get excited about gift-giving. Another separate issue is I think I'm coming down with a baby bug. Everywhere around me are women who have just burst or who will burst soon. I am still wishy washy on expanding our family, especially right now with our hokiehouse being so small and the money not exactly overflowing. But, it wasn't really the "right time" with either of the other hokiekiddos, so why am I so concerned about timing? I think a bigger issue at this point is that if we have one more, we will want to have another one to make things even. We have two beautiful and healthy children and I am always a high-risk pregnancy, so why risk it?

Plink!

2008-12-03T17:15:00.003-05:00

There's a special kind of music that happens in the kitchen. You take a giant pot and fill it with water. Then you wait for it to boil. Soon, you fill little glass jars with something yummy. You place the jars into the pot to boil for a little while. When you take them out of the pot, you set them on the counter to cool. That's when the magic music starts.

Plink.........plink........plink..plink......plink.....plink.

The magic music is short. If you aren't listening, you won't hear it. It's the wonderful sound of little jars of applebutter sealing on the counter as they cool. You know you did it right. Those little jars of yummy-ness will be ready for Christmas presents.

PS: when I grow up and become a real blogger, I will have my camera on hand to take wonderfully artistic pictures of the musical instruments.

And I Promptly Lost It

2008-12-01T21:59:00.002-05:00

The mojo is gone. I went into denial. I started thinking that the Hokiesock was a little big. I said, nah. It's fine. Yeah. It wasn't. It was just large enough that it would have slipped right on down into my shoes. Frogged.

On the plus side, I wound my Malabrigo. I hope to start new socks tomorrow after I get some other things taken care of. I'm hoping the loss of mojo is simply from the gorgeous Malabrigo staring me in the face.

Found it!

2008-11-29T20:18:00.004-05:00

My mojo came back today. We went to my great aunt and uncle's house for our annual fruitcake dancing. Okay, so it's really just making fruitcake. When Hokieboy was a teeny thing, the Saturday after Thanksgiving we went and made fruitcake. We wanted to put his hands in the batter so we could say he helped, but my aunt *insisted* that we put his feet in the bowl. So, fruitcake dancing was born. Hokiegirl joined in the tradition when she was born. Now they are a little old for the feet to be cute, but we still get them to stir the batter.

Back to the mojo. Fruitcake takes a long time to make and bake. We were at that house from 10am to 7pm. I wisely brought my Hokie socks to work on during the annual Commonwealth Cup game. Yay! Much knitting was accomplished! Yay! University of Virginia: 14, Virginia Tech: 17. The Hokies will make their next appearance in Tampa next week for the ACC title game. Woohoo!

Knitting on hold...

2008-11-26T12:24:00.002-05:00

I have lost my knitting mojo. Nothing is exciting anymore. I have been spending entirely too much time on facebook and websudoku. I dream in numbers and grids. I try to find really interesting things to put as my "what are you doing?" headline.

Thankfully, Hokiehubby hauled our butts out of the house yesterday. We went to Hampton for the Air and Space Center. It was pretty cool, but the kids still enjoy the Living Museum or the Children's Museum more. They are still a little young for appreciating all the cool planes. Some of the hands-on exhibits were malfunctioning. They did fine, though. I think as long as they can look at things and run around they are happy.

I have stalled out a little on housework. I had hoped to clean off the front porch the other day so we could decorate for Christmas, but it hasn't happened yet. I need to make dinner for a friend who had a baby and I'm making soup for tonight.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Who's your knitter?

2008-11-23T16:24:00.002-05:00

Not me, not today, apparently. However, I am on FIRE! I have completely cleaned not one but both of my bathrooms. I hate cleaning bathrooms; I think we all know why. But today, they are clean. Really clean. Also today, I made a loaf of bread to go with my applebutter! Yay! I have just shy of 8 cups of applebutter. I was really hoping to can it to take to my MOPS group, but I'm not going to have enough for everyone. Maybe I'll take some to share at brunch and package a jar with some other goodies as a raffle basket... that's actually a decent idea.

Applebutter:
6 pounds of granny smith apples, peeled/cored/sliced
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 Tbls cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves

Make apples into applesauce by simply microwaving until mushy.
Put everything into the crockpot on low overnight.
Blend until smooth.
All done. You can process it in your canner, or it will keep for a month in the icebox, indefinitely in the freezer.
This makes a nice tart applebutter. Use more white sugar (up to 2 cups) for sweeter applebutter.

Adventure in the Kitchen, Part 1

2008-11-22T11:53:00.003-05:00

I'm making applebutter! I'll let you know how it goes, but right now it smells soooooo good.

Maybe I should bake some bread to go with it...

That's what little boys are made of

2008-11-20T17:43:00.002-05:00

I went to Yarn for Supper last night for an evening of adult-ness. It was very nice. Uninterrupted thought processes ensued. Knitting occurred. Coffee was consumed. Then I reached into my jacket pocket for my wrist warmers.

I found a frog and a spider. Can you tell I have kids?

I suck at knitting

2008-11-18T18:27:00.002-05:00

I just haven't been able to get my head in the game. Maybe it's the yarn (STC Bamboo). Maybe it's the project (scarf). Maybe it's the pattern (cat's paw lace). Maybe it's the recipient (my sister, Cat). I just don't know.

I think I'll go fondle my new Malabrigo sock in Caribeno and try to feel inspired.

Secret Pal 13

2008-11-17T20:53:00.004-05:00

I'm a little late getting this up, but such is me.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I keep being drawn to Schaefer's Anne, but probably because that was the yarn for my 2nd pair of socks, and they were a wonderful experience.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? Sadly, whatever I have on hand. Right now, DPNs are all together in DPN tubes, my new KP Options (yay!) are hanging out in the bag they came in, and my straights (which I rarely use any more) are in a bin in the closet. I'd like to get binder or case, similar to the one Knit Picks sells for the options, but I need a bargain! Some other knitters I know have a binder fromBass Pro Shops that seems to work well.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? In 2002, I learned how to knit at a class at the YMCA in Blacsburg, VA. Hokiehubby was fighting wildfires out in Utah and California and I needed something fun to do.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? I did, but I haven't managed it lately.

5. What's your favorite scent? Oh, I really don't have one. Herbals, perhaps.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? I do have a bit of a sweet tooth, but I try not to indulge often. When I do, I like dark chocolate or cookies and cream ice cream.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I have a mild interest in scrapbooking, but I suck at printing pictures. Ah, spinning. Maybe someday, but I can't afford it.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I listen to Christian mostly (KLOVE on the radio), but I like popular stuff (top 40? Do they still call it that?), country, bluegrass like Alison Krauss and Nickel Creek. If I had a gaming system, I would own Rock Band and sing it all night long! I have an iPod.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? Blues and greens, reds and purples. I like my colors saturated, I'm not into pastels.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am married and have two preschoolers (boy and girl). I have a dog and a cat.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? I would if it were cold enough.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? I like socks and lace, but I'm feeling the need to do another sweater (I recently finished my first! Central Park Hoodie!).

13. What are you knitting right now? A scarf for my sister out of bamboo, and trying to cast on some socks.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Of course!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Circs-just got my nickel-plated Knit Picks Options. I mostly use wooden for my socks, I like my Britany Birch.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? No, I have a knitter friend down the street with a set, but maybe someday.

17. How old is your oldest UFO? Baby blanket from when I was pregant the first time, in 2003/04.

18. What is your favorite holiday? What winter holiday do you observe? I love Christmas, but not because of the presents, because of Baby Jesus.

19. Is there anything that you collect? Not so much. Unless yarn counts. I really should try that whole yarn diet thing and knit from stash. Nah.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? Nothing I'm dying for, but I'd like to have the Harlot's calendar. I try not to think to hard on the other stuff cuz I don't knit very fast and I'm afraid I'll end up with an unruly stash. I have a small house.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? Two color knitting. I've been meaning to try the Endpaper Mitts or some other mitten.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? I am. I'm a size 8 1/2US. 8 1/2 inches around the ball, 9 inches heel to big toe.

23. When is your birthday? February 24

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID? ptownhokie

Scenes from Psycho

2008-11-15T11:16:00.002-05:00

There they were, just sitting there. The Hokiekiddos were watching the Snowman, eyes fixed on the screen in awe and wonder. I slipped away. I needed to take care of some business. I go into the bathroom and sit for a few minutes. All is still quiet. I know the movie is not very long, but I figure I have enough time for a shower. I turn on the water. I listen from the bathroom to judge how much of the movie is left. They're flying now. Okay, so I have enough time to shower and then the movie will be over. It's all good. I step into the shower. Oh, the hot water feels so good! There is nothing like a shower to...
"Get out of the bathroom, please."
"I want a dookie!" Hokiegirl demands.
"I just want to take my shower. I'll be done in a little bit."
"Uhhh!" She tries to close the door repeatedly. It's a tough door to close.
"Mama, I'm firsty." It's Hokieboy this time.
"Please just let me take a shower!"
"But I'm firsty!"
"There's nothing I can do right now; I'm in the shower."
"Uhh!"
Did I misjudge the length of the movie? No, it was still on when I got out of the shower. Kids really have a knack for knowing the best times to be annoying.

Just another dreary day

2008-11-14T14:22:00.002-05:00

Today is Friday, and we have no events scheduled. I did finally get some sweats on rather than stay in my nightgown all day. I'm starting to doubt the feasibility of keeping both children out of school and homeschooling. It's not that I think I can't do it. I can. Hokieboy can. He is so smart. He taught himself how to write his name. I swear I had nothing to do with it. Sadly. Anyway, I just wonder if I can handle having both kids home. Hokieboy can only go to MOPS this year and next and same thing for CBS. Family will start talking about school when summer comes and I think he wants to go. Dunno how to explain that his school will be our house. Hokiegirl will be giving up naps soon. Everyday it gets harder to convince her she needs one. And I have zero motivation to do anything lately.

Started the cat scarf for my sister. The yarn is STC Bamboo and it is super drapy. It's very soft and lovely, but I'm not sure lace is what it wants to be. Oh well, I'll keep on with it and see what I think later. After finishing my Central Park Hoodie, I've had kind of a block. Nothing I knit satisfies. Just more motivation issues, I guess.

It was a dark and stormy day

2008-11-13T13:50:00.004-05:00

Today was Bible study day. I was up at 6 to get showered and dressed and make lunches. I was able to check my email before getting the kids dressed and into the car at 730. Traffic was really odd this morning, with lots of accidents from the Beach to Ptown, but none on my way out, thankfully. We had a shorter-than-normal wait to get into the tunnel (only about 10 minutes) and then smooth sailing out to Lynnhaven. So we pull into the parking lot, I shut the engine down, and it starts raining. Hard. Seriously?? Oh well.

It was a good morning. Of our little ones that usually cry, only one did and only for a few minutes. That was nice, especially since we were short staffed. Our nursery worker's son in law lost his battle with cancer earlier this week, and one of our teachers was in a bad car accident last week. She had to be cut from her car and had surgery to repair a broken hip socket. She is okay, tired and doing physical therapy. Hokieboy misses her.

It was raining pretty steadily all the way home, which made driving a little tense. We made it safely. Now I just hope that the truck doesn't leak like it usually does. Last time we got a steady rain, it got into the steering column and the horn kept honking randomly. That was fun. Sure. So if you're driving around Ptown and hear a horn honking that won't stop, it's mine. Sorry.

A MOPS Mom Rambles

2008-11-12T12:48:00.004-05:00

I am utterly exhausted. Just for today, I hope. We had MOPS this morning and it went well. I love MOPS and all that it stands for. I'm enjoying being Coordinator. But sometimes, I feel like others are simply going through the motions. I think maybe I try too hard. I do too much on my own. Maybe I just need to rely on my steering team more and ask them for help. I just want everyone to come to MOPS and have a good time, but not have to worry about the behind the scenes stuff. So, I show up every Tuesday and help with set up. Then I come in early on Wednesday to finish any details and whatever. Of course, I am the last member out each week, followed only by the mentor moms who finish the dishes without my kiddos running around like chickens. So, this Thanksgiving, I am thankful that there is only one MOPS meeting this month, and it's over.

The Monster Caramel Apples were a hit, though.

In and Out

2008-11-04T18:31:00.003-05:00

5:45am: awoke to the sounds of many cars parking in front of my house to vote.

7am: lines around the block.

8:45am: left for normal Tuesday activities; long lines still there.

2pm: walked to church to vote.

2:07pm: walked home.

The walk to and from the church took longer than the entire voting process.

2008-10-13T16:49:00.002-04:00

I'm so not good at writing regularly. Sigh.

So I'm still plugging away on my Central Park Hoodie. Thankfully the knitting is done, but there is much seaming remaining. I'm not real happy with the button band on one side, so I may be tearing it out and starting over. I'm going to seam first so that all I will have left is the new band. In the meantime, I finished a little baby hat to go with the BSJ for Hokiehubby's cousin this weekend. I also managed to find buttons that I think will work. The BSJ was hanging out alone at home when I managed to get out to find buttons. I haven't had a chance to try them out. My Hokiejays were frogged, as the yarn wasn't striping the way I was hoping. Oh well.

I have been busy. I am a children's teacher for a Bible study, so I must plan those lessons as well as keep up with my own study. I'm also the coordinator for the daytime MOPS group. That is one of the most challenging things I've done recently. I knew it would be, and I'm still wondering why God laid it on my heart. I imagine I'll find out someday.

Hokieboy has speech on Monday mornings now. It's going really well. His teacher started the "s" sound with him today. He has gotten the hang of "f" and it is time to add another sound.

We will be going to Erie this weekend and on to Pittsburgh Sunday. Nobody up there knows we are coming, so shhh! Baby shower and graduation party on Saturday, and Presque Isle on Sunday. Hokiehubby wants a bit of a replay of last weekend when we rode bikes for 25 miles in two days. I don't ride bikes, or exercise, so 25 miles is a really freakin' big deal for me. So we will go to Presque Isle and try again. Fun.

It's my anniversary with Hokiehubby! Seven years of wedded hokie bliss! I still love you, and I don't itch at all.

What I did on my summer vacation...

2008-09-15T03:30:00.001-04:00

We went home. No, it's not really home, but it's where HokieHubby and I always feel most at home. Driving back to Bburg is always so nice. We like to stop at Cowlings BBQ for lunch on the way out. Good stuff. Hokieboy loves him some bbq. There is just something about Virginia once I am west of Farmville on 460. It's like the cares of my normal life melt away and I actually become more like myself. Blacksburg is the one place that was mine. I have my memories there.
We had to hit this place for lunch. I insisted on getting the Mac and Cheese for at least one Hokiekiddo. I never let the kids get mac and cheese when we are out because it's usually crap. Not here.
Hokiehubby got to go home, too. BFD157 rides again, this time with little firefighters in training.

These fantastic statues are all over town, thank heavens! Before we left I told Hokieboy we were going to see where the HokieBird lives. He gasps, "the HokieBird! I LOVE the HokieBird! I'm going to give him a hug and a kiss!" Of course we were there in time for move-in Saturday and there was not a live Bird to be seen. HokieBoy was very excited to find this one at Station 2.

If you did not know, Virginia has a fantastic state park system. This is HokieGirl showing off a caterpillar at Butterfly Kapers at Douthat State Park. This was the second year that my mom rented a cabin for a week for all of us. We had a fantastic time, and only left the park twice on the two days that it was raining, or rather pouring. This year the kids did all of the Kapers programs. Unfortunately, the remnants of Fay came through on Tuesday and did not leave until Thursday so it was too cold to be at the beach too much this year. We visited the C&O Historical Society one day, and my mom and I took a mineral bath at Jefferson Pools the next. OH MY I need me one of those nearby!

So, I'm thinking at the moment that it is much too late (too early??) to continue this entry. If you are just DYING to know what happened next, I'm sorry. I wasn't able to sleep so I came down to piddle and decided to write. More later... and maybe even some knitting updates!

catching up on photos and clearing up a little confusion...

2008-08-19T23:18:00.005-04:00

This is the package my wonderful secret pal sent me.
It was full of very lovely stuff. There is a lovely keychain of a sweater in progress that instantly found its home with my keys, some samples of wool wash, a pretty green stitch marker, size 0 harmony dpns, a knitting journal, dpn wip tubes, highlighter tape, and the new Harlot book (awesome, by the way). The yarn is some very lovely Dream in Color smooshy and Scout's yarn custom dyed in orange and maroon just for me, ptown hokie. Thank you so much! You are awesome! I love getting your comments and emails!

This odd little mass above became this lovely sweater below:
It is NOT for a child of mine. My two little ones are too big for this. I am not expecting anytime in the foreseeable future. It will be for HokieHubby's cousin's baby, due Christmas Eve. This is Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket. I'm waiting to find out what gender the baby will be so I can buy buttons for it. Mom-to-be feels like baby will be a girl, so I'm hoping that is true. The sweater has a lot of blue in it, but possibly a bit too much purple for a boy. If it is a boy, I will add a blue edge around the neckline and blue buttons.

This is the package I received last month for the A Few of My Favorite Things Swap: an assortment of teas (delicious), chocolates (again, delicious), lavender soap (loving it currently: I think it repels mosquitos), candles, notecards, stitch markers in a box, yarn and needles. Thank you for a lovely package, Shannon!

Baby Surprise

2008-08-17T07:30:00.003-04:00

Good news on the knitting front: my Ravelympics Baby Surprise Jacket is all knitted up! Right now it is a floppy piece of fabric waiting to be photographed and then seamed. Once that is done, I will be going out to buy buttons. We're not sure of the sex of the baby just yet, so maybe the more economical thing to do would be to sew it up and wait to buy buttons. The jacket so far is beautiful. I'm using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport in Confetti, which is white, light blue, darker blue, purple, and pink. It's probably best suited for a girl, but I think a newborn boy could wear it fine. I'm going to use the buttons to hopefully clarify gender. I used one skein and part of the second, so I'd like to do a hat and booties to match.

So, doesn't it figure that the day I get up early, the kids sleep late? Usually they wake me up around 6:30. So I get up at 6 and they are just now waking up at 7:45. I really need to get up early more often.

trying to medal in Baby Dressage

2008-08-13T14:18:00.003-04:00

In keeping with current events, here's the Olympic-themed SP12 question of the week:

Which Olympic event would best describe your knitting/knitting style?

Gymnastics Team

Lace=balance beam: this event requires massive amounts of concentration and I cannot take my eyes off of the apparatus.

Socks=floor exercise: this is the event that goes everywhere, to all the corners of the earth. It tends to be the one that has the most energy and moves/shaping.

Sweater=uneven bars: this is a new addition to my routine. It has highs and lows, simple stockinette turns and cable twists and releases. It is an in-depth exercise, involving many castons/mounts for each piece of the sweater and castoffs/dismounts. Gotta stick the landing: the seaming is the last part that leaves an impression with the audience.

Wee Tiny Prayer socks=vault: quick and dirty and full of prayers.

(Can you tell what I watched last night?)

Speaking of the Olympics and knitting, I am working on a baby surprise jacket for the Ravelympics. I'm doing pretty well, too! I hope to finish it before we leave for camping next Friday. I don't want to seam it on the road without my internet! My traveling project will probably be the Central Park Hoodie I started before the Olympics. I've finished the back and sworn not to knit more on it until after the BSJ. We'll see how that goes!

My pal is better than your pal!

2008-08-07T19:17:00.003-04:00

First of all, thank you so so so much to my secret pal! You are spoiling me already! I took pictures, but Hokiehubby has the good laptop that makes pictures easy to upload. Let me just tell you that I have been properly spoiled. I can't decide what gift is my favorite! You'll just have to wait until I can post the pictures to find out!

OTN: Central Park Hoodie. I started this guy on the first of the month. I'm so excited, as this is my first sweater! It's speeding along; I'm on the armholes on back. Of course, the size 10 needles probably help, and the fact that I'm really enjoying the yarn (Knit Picks Wool of the Andes.) I was a little nervous about Knit Picks yarn, as I haven't enjoyed the sock yarn I've tried. This stuff feels good to work with.

Catching up on SP12 questions:
In many communities, "the fair" is a great place to visit and spendtime with your family. It's also where many have entered one productor another (jams, cakes, even knitting)...Have you ever entered your knitting (or anything else) in the fair?Would you ever consider it?

=I don't even know where there is a fair nearby. I've never entered a fair, but I might some day! When my husband's aunt saw my MS3, she suggested that I sell it. How do you sell something like that??? I worked so hard on it for months. It was my first lace, and it's full of mistakes. I'm very attached to it. Of course, my mother in law told me that she is going to be incredibly excited to open her Christmas present this year.

What is your favorite supper for a hot summer evening? For added flavor, post a photo or recipe link.

=I don't know that I have a favorite supper. If things are really rough around here and I don't want to cook, I would be happy with a bowl of cereal and maybe ice cream after the kiddos go to sleep. Hokiehubby and Hokiettes don't aways go for that. So they get hot dogs and mac and cheese. My latest experiment is once a month cooking. Now there is always something in the freezer that has minimal prep: thaw and heat and eat!

My MOPS year has begun. We had our first steering meeting yesterday and it went well. I'm still nervous about being Coordinator, but I know it will be fine in the end.

More later, when I can post pictures!

MS3 is done done done

2008-07-30T10:48:00.003-04:00

to sleep or not to sleep...

2008-07-16T00:18:00.001-04:00

My freakish need for sleep is officially cutting into my knitting time. Again.

So whose fault was it?

2008-07-10T08:43:00.002-04:00

The facts:
-There was marker all over the bedspread.
-There were three markers (with and without caps) in Hokiefriend's bedroom that had originally been downstairs, accessible in a child's desk.
-The boys had been allowed free reign of the house while us mommies hung out in the living room.
-The boys had been told they were not to have crayons all over the house, due to last weeks "writing on the walls" incident.
-The boys had been told markers were for the dry erase board only.
-Hokieboy is 4years and one month old; Hokiefriend will be 4 next month.
-Hokiemama (me) is 30; Hokiefriend's Mommy is 28.

Observations:
-Markers were accessible at all times to curious preschoolers.
-The boys were never told the markers needed to stay downstairs.
-The boys were not supervised upstairs.
-The boys average 4 years old.
-The mommies average 29 years old.
-When confronted, each boy said the other one did it.

Conclusions:
-The boys probably knew they were not supposed to draw on the bed, but it cannot be determined for sure.
-The boys have impulse control issues; they are 4.
-The mommies did not draw on their additional 25 years of life experience to make some simple decisions that could have prevented the situation (ounce of prevention v. pound of cure, HELLO!)

Verdict:
-Boys: Guilty of succumbing to typical impulses affecting young children.
-Mommies: Guilty of stupidly allowing children with access to destructive materials to run amok unsupervised in a home with items that the mommies do not want destroyed.

Sentence:
-Boys: immediate suspension of coloring privileges until further notice; three strikes rule in effect: one more coloring offense and boys will not be allowed to play together indefinitely.
-Hokiemama: embarassment at seeming lack of control of Hokieboy's actions; awkwardness of not agreeing with Hokiefriend's Mommy's method of punishment; possible participation in replacement of destroyed comforter.
-Hokiefriend's Mommy: find a way to remove dry erase marker from comforter; failing stain removal, possible replacement of comforter; other ramifications unknown to this entry.

Conclusion:
Keep all markers out of reach of children unless supervised.

Markers and Crayons and 4 Year Old Boys

2008-07-09T19:33:00.002-04:00

Who did it?

Last week Hokieboy went to a friend's house to play. They had a lovely time with their notebooks and crayons looking for clues ala Blue. They were searching for the monster that lives under Hokiefriend's Mommy's bed. Blissfully unaware of any danger, we mommies helped the boys clean up when it was time to go home.

The phone rang at 9:45pm. "Do you have a minute?" asks Hokiefriend's Mommy.

This didn't sound good. Turns out there was crayon all over Hokiefriend's walls, and when confronted, Hokiefriend told his mommy that Hokieboy did it. Being a nice friend, Mommy was not blaming Hokieboy entirely, but Hokiefriend had never done this before.

So Hokieboy and I talked. He said Hokiefriend said it was okay.

It was determined between Mommy and me that the boys would no longer be allowed to use crayons without supervision.

Fast forward one week to today. We are back at Hokiefriend's house. The boys have been told that the crayons are off limits. The mommies help clean up so we can go home.

The phone rings. "Do you have a minute?"

AGAIN??? You've got to be kidding me! This time it's dry erase marker all over Mommy's brand new comforter and pillow cases. Dry erase is permanent on fabric.

What am I supposed to do? It's been too long since the incident for a timeout and the evidence is not available for me to show Hokieboy as a reminder. So, crayons, markers, and other drawing implements are off limits until further notice and if it happens again he will not be allowed at Hokiefriend's house. Grr.

melancholy me

2008-07-07T11:58:00.004-04:00

Still plugging away on MS3. I'm about 15 rows from finishing clue 4. I've been keeping tabs on Jessica's progress on hers. She finished knitting and needs to get some new pins so she can block it. I made her promise I can come and help. I've never blocked anything, but I hear it's knitter's crack, especially with lace. Magical. We'll see! I'm excited about it.

I've made dozens of wee tiny socks, and now it is time to move on. I need a new portable project. Nothing's catching my eye right now, though. Sigh. I want something new, but funds are perpetually low. So, I must go stash diving. Well, jumping anyway, since the pool is shallow and I wouldn't want to break my neck.

And that brings me to... SP12's question #4. It's all about stash again.

1) What yarn (that you don't have/haven't used) would make your stash "complete"? Is stash ever complete? Considering the aforementioned depth of my stash and my limited experience/budget, there are many many yarns out there that I've never knit with. I've heard wonderful things about malibrigo, noro and other pricey yarns. I'd like to try some of the new cotton blends, provided they aren't too splitty. I've also had my eye on fearlessfiber's sock yarns.

2) What yarn do you never want to be without? I hope to one day knit with something I would mourn over if I could never have it again.

I'm wondering if my partner from my last swap has received her goodies. I still haven't received mine, but they are supposed to be on their way.

I just remembered I have some Anne lurking in my stash... off I go to find a pattern!

random bra discussion

2008-06-30T11:25:00.003-04:00

Two posts in one day... it's a twofer!

So at YFB the other day, we talked about bras and sizing and whatnot. I mentioned how (horror of horrors) the bras I wear are pre-Hokieboy. This means that they are over 4 years old. I actually have owned a couple of other bras, but pregnancy, nursing, weight loss, another pregnancy, and more nursing all mean lots of change. Over the past 4 1/2 years, I spent 15 months pregnant and 24 months nursing. I never thought of it that way. Anyway, that's a lot of mileage on the girls. So the reason for this post is: my old standby, daily use bra broke today. The underwire snapped and poked me in my boobage. I only have one other that I alternate with. So, you will be happy to know that I must make the time to go bra shopping in the immediate future. Or pull out nursing bras, and that's just not a happy option. Good thing it's payday.

It's summer!

2008-06-30T08:16:00.002-04:00

I have big tomatoes. Huge. No clue what variety I planted, but they are huge. The first red one came almost two weeks ago. Now I just have huge, beautiful green ones. So in honor of the green-ness of these fresh tomatoes, I fried them. Smoked up the whole downstairs. Yum. If I had been thinking, I would have taken pictures to immortalize them, they were that good.

Also in honor of summer, Hokiehubby managed to get ahold of 8 cantelopes for $2. Sugar. Very ripe. He used 2 at the fire station. We gave 2 to my mom and I took one to a friend. The four of us managed to consume one at dinner last night, and this morning I had to refrigerate the last 2. The kitchen is so warm and the melons ended up with soft spots overnight. This is a bummer. I'm not a huge fan of refrigerated fruit. I prefer it closer to (cool) room temperature. I think it's sweeter and closer to its natural taste.

MS3 is about halfway through clue 4. Clue 4 was a double clue and I'm about to start the second set of charts. I'm loving the way it's coming out, but I'm not sure what to do with it once it's done. I'll want to show it off, but how? Sigh.

I didn't want to leave

2008-06-25T21:23:00.005-04:00

I'm back from the woods of western Virginia. We went camping in Douthat State Park, one of my favorite places to be. I love the tons of stuff they have to do. We swam in the lake, fished (caught nothing, but several future fishers will be happy that we fed the fish nice fat worms), hiked lightly, and cooked over a campfire. Hokiehubby loves camping, being an Eagle Scout and all. He bought a new camp kitchen and tent especially for this trip and the many that are apparently in my future. It's all good, or so I keep telling myself. Once our bank account recovers I will be much happier.

This was the trip I almost dreaded. A couple of months ago, we sat down together and looked at the calendar. I don't like to sweat, so I wanted to get the camping over with before the heat of summer. So, we picked the first weekend of summer, knowing that if we didn't put it on the calendar another summer would pass by with no camping. Then I suggested with invite my inlaws, as in Mom and Dad. That was fine. Then Mom invited her sister, who decided she would want to bring down her grandson (10). Then Mom thought she'd better invite my sister-in-law and her family (boyfriend and 3 boys: 7,7, and 5). Then she thought her brother would like to come with his daughter (10). Then her sister thought she'd bring her granddaughter (4). So, four people became six, and then became 16. So much for my relaxing bonding time with my in-laws. All in all, though, it wasn't too bad. There were some tense moments, but there always are when you are trying to organize that many people. Ironically, I went the whole time bugspray free. It wasn't until we were home and unloading that we needed the stuff.

SP12 question week 2: As a kid, what did you look forward to most about summer vacation/break/holiday?
I always looked forward to the last weekend of summer: Labor Day weekend around here. We went camping every year to a family reunion. It was my favorite thing to do all summer. Unfortunately it meant school was about to start.

SP12 question week 3:What would you consider the perfect amount of stash?
I'm not sure how to answer this question. I guess the perfect stash would have enough yarn that you could always cast on a new project. I wouldn't want too much at one time because I would forget what I have. Or I'd be too overwhelmed with choices to cast on anything! I like having a project in mind for each skein in my stash, which, by the way, is pretty small.

It was hotter than Hades...

2008-06-13T19:19:00.002-04:00

...and I thought we would melt. On Monday, we had a brownout for about 15 minutes followed by a blackout for over an hour. Little Bit was sleeping upstairs. I'm not sure how as that is the hottest place to be with no air. Little Man was with me in the living room playing trains. This was in the afternoon around 3, the hottest point of the day. I thought we would be going out to the Rat's Place for pizza and to run around in air conditioning for a while, but the power came back on before it got too miserable. So I made chicken fried rice. I was bummed about cooking, but then I generally am when hubby is on shift.

I suppose I should just be thankful the power held on Sunday. Sunday was the hottest (102, I think) and the day of my first Pampered Chef demonstration. That went really well! I made it a mystery host event and sales were pretty good. The stuff really does sell itself. Now I need to find one more person to host a catalog show so I can reach a goal of 4 shows in my first 30 days. That person gets a free gift and I get a significant bonus. Any takers? ;)

Things have cooled off significantly, to the point of being almost pleasant. Of course that cooling off bit really means dropping back into the mid- to upper- eighties. But lower humidity! Hopefully this is not an indication that the summer, when it actually arrives next weekend, will be unbearable.

My SP hostess wants to know my favorite summer drink. Now I love me a good frozen margarita anytime of year; however, I just made a new drink this weekend: Triple Citrus Mojitos. It involves oranges, lemons, limes, and mint, and a syrup made from the zest and the mint, and rum. Of course, I must be careful with rum, as it is my nemesis. (There was an incident at a party in college involving a drink of mostly rum and a little orange juice and an emergency room. We'll leave it there.)

I was working on these very lovely wee tiny prayer socks for my MOPS group. I managed to get around 2 dozen of these little guys. Did I get a picture? Nope. Not of one. I guess that's what happens when you stay up until 3am trying to get them all done before you leave the house at 8. Dagnabit.

A Few of My Favorite Things

2008-06-13T19:03:00.003-04:00

Dear Karolion,

I had a hard time keeping to the budget on this swap. I really wanted you to have an awesome package, but $15 doesn't go far these days! Please enjoy these items!

-Seashell stickers: The beach is one of my favorite places to take my kids- cheap entertainment! I especially love it in the off-season. We are very fortunate to live very close to the ocean.

-Sudoku: Before ravelry, this was how I wasted time.

-Kite: Nothing beats watching a child's eyes light up when they see a kite flying!

-Oreos: My favorite cookie!

-Bottlecaps: One of my favorite treats when trick-or-treating!

-Hershey's Goodnight Hugs: I like to relax with a hot beverage any time of day.

-Pampered Chef Nylon Scraper: I recently became a Pampered Chef Consultant. This little tool is soooo useful. I use one to clean pretty much any surface in my kitchen, including glass bakeware, my glass cooktop stove, and my sink. I've heard of people using them for cleaning showers and tubs and scraping wallpaper.

-Peaches and Cream: A dishcloth makes a great portable, useful, and cheap project. Socks are generally my favorite to take with me, but my favorite sock yarns are out of the budget here!

-Knit Picks Shimmer: My favorite project that I have a love/hate relationship with lately is lace, Mystery Stole 3, to be exact.

-Wee Tiny Prayer Sock: I could not knit you socks, but here is a wee tiny one to let you know that I was thinking of you.

-Finally, a bag to carry it all in- I'm addicted to bags. I'm always searching for the perfect bag for a particular need (knitting socks, diaper bag, beach bag).

These are a few of my favorite things, and I hope you enjoy them!

Sincerely,
ptownhokie

Secret Pal 12 questionaire

2008-06-02T22:04:00.003-04:00

I thought I should go ahead and post my answers. It's a little late tonight, and I'm distracted by the Lost season finale (yay, DVR!), but better something than nothing! I'll have to review this again later and make sure it makes sense!

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I like pretty much any fibers, but I'm not a big fan of 100% cotton. I'd like to try some cotton blends sometime.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I have a lovely (ha) pencil box for dpns and hooks and doodads, and my full length needles are in a craft bin buried in my closet. I prefer dpns and circulars.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I've been knitting and crocheting for about 5 years and consider myself somewhere between beginner and advanced.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Amazon but it's fairly new. I didn't know you could have one until this questionaire!

5. What's your favorite scent? lavender-vanilla, honeysuckle

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? dark chocolate

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I would like to scrapbook and sew, but I have no space in my home for such things! Knitting is nice and portable! I'm happy enough with knitting for now, bu I may spin in the future.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I listen to Christian music (KLOVE on the radio) and country and the popular mainstream type stuff. I like to be able to understand the lyrics.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? I went to Virginia Tech so orange and maroon are the best color combination around! I love the blue family.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am married with a 2 year old and a 4 year old. I have a dog and a cat.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? I would if I had them. I do have scarves.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Lately I've been enjoying socks because they are portable and relatively quick.

13. What are you knitting right now? wee tiny socks, MS3 (aka Swan Lake), about to cast on Blue Moon Fiber Arts funky sock monkey

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? of course, who doesn't?

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? circular bamboo

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? no, but I'd like to.

17. How old is your oldest UFO? 4 years?

18. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

19. Is there anything that you collect? dust :)

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? I do not have any subscriptions.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I'm sure there are but it's late tonight to be thinking about it.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Yes and I wear US 8 1/2 shoes, pretty average.

23. When is your birthday? February 24th

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID? ptownhokie

Swaps and such

2008-05-24T11:42:00.002-04:00

Well, a while back I decided that I would only participate in one swap at a time, to keep costs and time commitments down. The idea was: no swap until the previous swap was knitted, boxed, and sent away. I broke my rule. I did the Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 back in September/October, and neither one of us finished our socks on time. Life just does what it wants, without our permission. So I finished those socks and decided that even though the swap wasn't complete I could go ahead and do another. I did a prayer sock swap on Ravelry. That went better. My partner sent my socks right on time. They are beautiful! They are a little too long, but I'll just wear them around here. I was a couple of weeks behind on mine, but the girl I sent to (in Belgium!!) was very understanding. The plan was working fine, until a girl I know invited me to join A Few Of My Favorite Things over on ravelry. Then I noticed SecretPal 12 was up. So, I'm signed up for 2 at the same time. Neither one requires knitting a complete project; they are more putting nice packages together. And, AFOMFT is only a month and a $15 commitment so it will be done soon. The other is over 3 months. So anyway, there will only be a little overlap by the time signups for sp12 are done. Rationalization or reality avoidance: you decide.

fevers, socks, and cooking

2008-05-22T14:12:00.003-04:00

We went to Pittsburgh earlier this month. It was a pretty nice visit. Unfortunately, hokieboy came down with something. We got to the Burgh Thursday evening and Friday morning he was burning up. He didn't whine or cry or anything; he just sat there, and didn't want to eat or drink. We went to Erie for Mother's Day (which is a whole other story) and he swam at the hotel for a long while, but he went to bed really early. Around 4 in the morning, he wakes us up saying he's hungry and he wants something to eat. Well, of course there is nothing. I didn't have any snacks in the hotel room. So I go out looking for a vending machine. Nothing near the front desk. I find the elevator and there is a soda machine and an ice machine. I take the elevator down one flight and pray there is a snack machine. Oh, hallelujah! So I buy pretzels and poptarts and cookies, all in the hopes that my little furnace will eat something! (This ordeal has taken at least 10 minutes of me wandering around barefoot in my pjs at 4 something in the morning in a hotel.) I make it back to my room and find that hokieboy has managed to wake his hokiesister, who is now thinking it's morning, even though she has only been asleep for 4 1/2 hours. I get him to come into the bathroom so hokiehubby can turn the lights out and convince the little girl to sleep. I offer up my goods. This is what my almost 4 yo says to me:

"No, thanks, I'm good. Daddy got me this." He shows me the cup of Sprite in his hands.

Happy Mother's Day to me. And thanks for wandering around at 4 something in the morning looking for food.

We made it home safely and unremarkably. Then, on Sunday evening, just under a week after hokieboy got over his fever, hokiegirl wakes up in the middle of the night burning up. Joy.

The worst part of sick children is that I can't go anywhere. I don't want to expose anyone else's little darlings if my own are contagious. So, we canceled our plans with friends. I need to see a chiropractor, but I can't make the appointment without someone to watch my kids. All my nearby people have kids. But it's all good because the chiropractor is open late and my mom is coming over tomorrow to watch the kids for me.

Knitting: I'm almost done with clue 3 on MS3. I really enjoy it while I'm doing it, but it doesn't grow very fast. I'm also making wee tiny prayer socks for my MOPS group's last meeting. This was inspired by the prayer sock swap I was doing on ravelry. Nothing else to say about that, as my laptop died with the pictures on it and my camera battery is dead so no new pictures. I got my ravelry order: a fuschia tshirt, a Bob pin, and a cute little cotton fiber bag.

Pampered Chef: all the paperwork is done and I am a consultant! My kit should be in soon! Know anyone who would like to host a show? There are incentives for hosts of shows that I close within my first 30 days!

Waking up to new adventures

2008-05-04T10:40:00.004-04:00

Mystery Stole 3 is out of hibernation! I picked it up again after some encouragement from Jess <pixieroseknits.blogspot.com>. I'm liking it much more as I'm 2/3 of the way through clue 2. I can actually read my lace and I'm able to follow the chart much better. I finished my sock swap and sent them off last week. I'm feeling pretty good about knitting right now. I do need to decide what I'm taking to Pittsburgh with me Thursday. I doubt I'll get much done on MS3 simply because when I'm visiting with people is not the best time for lace. So I'll need to cast o some socks. I have some beautiful yarn just waiting for me in my stash. (Stash sounds so wordly: my stash is like 4 skeins.)

I have a new venture beginning very soon. I'm going to be a Pampered Chef Consultant! Yay! I've been thinking for some time about doing something to earn play money for this family. Maybe this way I won't feel so bad for taking the kids out to eat. Anyway, if anyone needs a consultant, I'm here! I should be ready to go later this month and I'm looking for people to host parties. I get a bonus if I turn in 4 parties within my first 30 days. So exciting! I hosted a party yesterday and have my first 2 parties booked already! I need 2 more before June 15th. Pampered Chef also does wedding showers. I can't wait to see how that goes!

Let sleeping dogs lie

2008-04-28T17:11:00.004-04:00

Today began with a ring. At 7:15 my phone rings. I ignore it, thinking if I answer it the person on the other end would probably drop dead from the growl in my voice. It doesn't work. My cell phone rings. Loudly. Somebody had better be injured, because my kids are sleeping in today, therefore so am I.

I think I grumbled something like, "hello?"

It's Paul asking me for a huge favor. "Can you go downstairs and find the map (that I did not treat like the important document that it is and casually left on the dining room table that is now covered with clean clothes)? The GPS did not take me to the right place."

More grumbling from me as I stumble as quietly as I can down the stairs that complain loudly. They are almost 100 years old, afterall; you'd complain, too. I reach the dining room and hear from the room above me the pitter patter of little feet.

"I NEED TO GO PEE-PEE! I NEED TO GO PEE-PEE!!" yells my soon-to-be-4 year old.

I stumble back up the stairs to let him out of his room, vainly hoping he hasn't woken his sister.

He has.

I stumble back downstairs to the phone that I had left. Rather than look under the piles of clean clothes (hey, it's a flat surface that the kids aren't likely to pull the clothes off of), I check the floor first.

There it is. The only piece of paper on the floor. If he had looked, he would have found it.

At this point, I need to go pee-pee myself. So I take the phone and the map with me.

"Where are you?" I growl.

"At the power plant."

Guess where he's supposed to be?

The training center is part of the power plant complex.

So this afternoon, I decided to go to the post office after my 2yo woke up from her nap. Being the brilliant woman that I am, I decide to save the environment (and my money) by walking the half mile to the post office. It's been raining off and on all day, but not hard. We begin our journey, one kid walking with me and one kid in the stroller, two umbrellas in hand. One block from the post office, we see big flash of lightning followed shortly by big crack of thunder. It hasn't done that all day! Just rain!

So we moved as quickly to the post office as a 4yo's legs can carry him. (I finally got my prayer socks sent to Brussels.) Turns out that was the only talking from the storm, besides some little rumbles. After our post office business is done, we begin our little trip home. It's sprinkling, then it rains. We stop to try to adjust the stroller umbrella. It falls to the side. We go to the next tree and try again. As we start walking it falls again. This continues all the way home. Finally we make it home.

I love the cool spring weather. I love April showers. I love having my windows open. Unfortunately, these things do not always go together. It's so humid that my house is stuffy. So I try to open more windows. That works for a little while, until I'm told that it is now raining in our house. It's been an interesting day, and it's not over yet.

Yarn for Supper sure tastes good!

2008-04-16T09:10:00.002-04:00

I took a time out last night. Paul got home from work and disappeared. After an hour I went out to find him. I didn't know how bad I was feeling until he asked me if I was okay. I just started crying. I needed to get away. So I asked if he would be okay if I ran away for a bit.

I went to Yarn for Supper at Panera Bread. That was the fastest three hours I've enjoyed in a long time. I love love LOVE my children and my husband, but I needed to be without them for a little while. I just sat there and ate dinner and knitted. I had a whole day away last Saturday, but it was a leadership training. Totally different. Light conversations and good food can't be beat. So, I'm making a new commitment to myself to take time out more often. I'll be a better mom.

She's a Walker now...

2008-04-13T18:42:00.002-04:00

My baby sister got married today. It was a lovely party at Redwing. The bride and groom made their vows on the bridge in the Japanese Garden. The party was at the shelter nearest the playground for the enjoyment of my children. A grand time was had by all.

And I missed the ceremony. Before the ceremony began, my great-aunts were complaining about being cold and wondering if there was coffee. Looking at the time, Paul and I figured we could run up to Starbucks and be back with a box of coffee in 20 minutes, tops. So we leave the kids with my uncle and head out: the shop was maybe a mile away. We get there and ask for our coffee and pay. The girls seems excited to serve us. They find the box and then puzzle out how to put it together. Then they begin brewing the coffee. The box is almost full, when suddenly the bottom literally falls out. Coffee everywhere. So they decide they must call the manager to find out how to put the box together.

We wait. I call my cousin to find out what's going on. The wedding ceremony is over. Apparently, they thought everyone was there, so they began a tad early. Six minutes.

In the meantime, the girls at the coffee shop are having no luck. The new box is not going together. The coffee maker is not brewing actual coffee anymore. They can't get the pump on the pot to work. We tell them thanks, but we want our money back now so we can go. They offer us free coffee to make up for it. We make the decision that we might as well stay, since we've missed the ceremony anyway. Fifteen minutes later, we leave the store with 16 tall cups of coffee and creamers and sugars.

I missed the ceremony, but the coffee was free.

My willful (new) two-year-old

2008-03-19T10:46:00.004-04:00

My daughter is two. It's official. Her birthday was yesterday, and now I can say for certain she is in the terrible twos. It's not that she is a bad child. On the contrary, she and her brother are perhaps the sweetest things on earth, randomly spouting "I love you" and running up to everyone they know with great big smiles and hugs. She is just extremely willful. She does what she wants to do, no matter how many times I tell her no. She climbs all over the furniture, tugs on my curtains, rips pages out of books, tosses toys everywhere, wriggles under the safety gate, and strips down nekkid whenever she can. She raises her head when you say her name and gives you a look that says, "go ahead and put me in time out; when it's over I'm doing this again."

All the animals at the zoo, and she plops down to play in the gravel. Two.

ginger tea and toast

2008-03-02T09:07:00.004-05:00

In response to my sad, devastating discovery that coffee does indeed exascerbate my relux, I bought some ginger root. I thought, "hey, coffee is bad and tea is supposed to be not good, but ginger is great for settling stomachs! I'll make ginger tea!" Well, I'm not really a fan of ginger usually. And ginger tea is not for me (it's not my cup of tea, you see?) It's really too spicy, even with some honey. I guess I could drink it if I needed to settle my stomach, but not every morning instead of coffee. So, back to square one. I've got cozy chamomile today, so we'll see how that goes. I do love the smell of the ginger tea, so I've got it simmering away on the stove rigt now: yesterday's remains with some more water on top.

My husband and I have been making bread with the bread machine for the past couple of months. We finally found a method that turns out some really decent stuff! But now I'm thinking we would be better off making a smaller loaf more frequently so we can be sure to consume it before it becomes a bread brick.

On the knitting side of things, I have a deadline looming for my prayer swap socks. I should be spending more time on them, and less time on the computer, especially because they must find their way overseas...

Apparently, I'm diseased.

2008-02-29T07:54:00.002-05:00

I have acid reflux disease. I've been hoping it was something else, like maybe the world's longest and only non-contagious stomach flu. This has been going on since July (hmm, the month my father-in-law's office caught fire and a giant tree limb crushed my kitchen...) I finally saw a doctor two weeks ago and got medicated. It didn't seem to be working, so when I forgot it on Wednesday I learned it apparently is working. I thought I was going to die most of the day. So yesterday, I decided to cut out just coffee and chocolate to see if those were triggers for me, but I still took my pill. No reflux. CRAP!!! No coffee, chocolate, or pizza! It's not like I have to have those foods to live, but they can be so enjoyable. I also learned from a friend who is also professionally medicated for this that her main trigger is tea, and with summertime coming that makes me very sad. I love me some sweet tea. So this morning, instead of coffee, I brewed some ginger root tea and sweetened it with honey. I'm hoping that the natural stomach settling properties of ginger will keep me from refluxing too much and that the hot drink will be an ample substitute for morning coffee. The kids were up at six, so in another couple of hours I'll be wanting some caffeine.

Happy Leapday!

Thirty is the new twenty

2008-02-25T09:20:00.002-05:00

Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday dear me
Happy birthday to me!

Yesterday was my birthday and as it was Sunday, I avoided the internet. Turns out, becoming thirty was pretty anti-climatic. My husband sang happy birthday to me when he got home from work. Then we went to church. Then, we met my family at the Bier Garden http://www.biergarden.com/ (the website kind of sucks but the food and beer is awesome). We enjoyed a leisurely meal, followed by presents for me: dark chocolate espresso beans (for when I need a buzz tending to my preschoolers) and some yummy smelly stuff (the healing garden's organics fig & lavender lotion and body mist) from my sister, Grants (50 bucks) each from Mama, Daddy, and Nana (that's three wishes GRANT-ed!!), thirty bucks from Papaw, Kohl's gift card from Larry, Yankee Candle electrics, and 20 bucks and a reusable bag from the Kilgore clan. Hubby said I would get my gift from him after the kids went to bed, but then he fell asleep. Too bad for him! Personally, I'd rather have something a little more lasting than a roll in the hay for my thirtieth birthday, anyway. Guess maybe I should have given him a list or something.

I frogged my prayer socks. I just wasn't feeling the love from the socks themselves. I was trying toe-up for the first time, and I think it's a little bit against the purpose of prayer socks to be dreading working on them. The yarn is beautiful so I'm just going to do something simple. Simple will show off the colors of the yarn and allow me to focus on the praying part of the socks.

No other knitting right now, because I only have a month to finish these. I'll probably work on the sheep blanket that has been hibernating for some time now. I put too much time and energy into it before and it would be a shame for it to never be finished.

So I've never really participated in Lenten fasting, but I really felt led to try it this year. I didn't feel like there was any food that would lead me into a closer walk with the Lord, so I opted for activity fasting. On Sundays, I am avoiding the computer and the internet (except for a quick 15 minutes in the evening if there are plans for Monday that involve emails or message boards). Instead, I use the extra time to read my Bible, work on CBS, or spend time with my family. Also, I have an evening game addiction: I play computer solitaire or do crosswords once I get up to bed. Instead, I read the Bible or a Christian book. I would like to fast food sometime in the future. For me personally, there is no one food item that I feel fasting it would bring me closer to the Lord. If I fast food, it would probably be a meal. I have come to understand that not all Christian practices are for any one person at all times. At this time in my life (mom of two active preschoolers), I am not feeling led to fast food. I imagine it is because fasting involves a certain amount of preparation and time. It can lead to weakness in the body from lack of energy. I need all that energy. Someday, I hope I can fast for a period, whether a day or longer.

Keeper of the Keys

2008-02-09T20:54:00.000-05:00

I seem to be a little chatty lately.

What will I do when my children are a touch older and I can no longer control them and their little worlds? As they grow up, they will be able to make their own decisions and I will have no say, or at least less say. For example, soon they will be too big for baby gates. They will be able to open them on their own (the boy already can). Then, I will not be able to keep them in their room while I catch a few extra winks. They will wake up and go downstairs on their own. Everything in the house will be fair game. They will be able to get to all the snacks/candy that I currently hide from them.

Suddenly there will be more battles of the will than just the "I want more juice" battles. It will be "I want ice cream/candy/chocolate/soda/everything-else-that-you-and-daddy-keep-for-yourselves" battles. Bedtime will no longer be the simple read/pray/sing/tuck; it will become "I'm not ready to go yet."

I will have to have more rational responses than just, "because I said so" or "because I'm the Mama." I will have to be more responsible about what I bring into the house. I will have to be more creative with my hiding places.

Parenting will be harder as they grow older, not easier with experience. As if it's not hard already. They will develop more personality, not less. And that's a good thing, right? I don't want to raise little robots who always do exactly what they are told without question. I want them to grow up to be free-thinking adults who can function independently of me, or anyone else.

I love my children. I love them so much that the thought of being without them makes me ill. It's just I never got to thinking about them as 6 year olds or 12 year olds or 16 year olds. I've been thinking about myself (and other people I knew) at various ages. I suddenly have a new appreciation for my own parents. I was not a horrible child. I didn't get into much trouble. But I know what is out there. I just know that good intentions from parents do not stop children from making poor choices. My life could have turned out very differently if I had made any one decision differently. That is what is the most frightening thing of all. One thing. One choice. One misstep. I don't want my children to face the same chances/dangers I did, but how else would they grow?

He said it would be done way before Thanksgiving

2008-02-09T19:37:00.000-05:00

He lied.

~The Timeline~
July 28th, 2007: the ginormous tree limb falls, punching a hole in the roof over the kitchen sink
July 30th, 2007: clean-up begins
October 18th, 2007: demolition/rebuilding begins

November 28th, 2007: contractors complete the main portion of the rebuilding
December 7th, 2007: cabinets ordered
January 17th, 2008: cabinets arrive and upper cabinets installed (by husband and me)
January 28th, 2008: friend finally available to assist with lower cabinets (more complicated than uppers as some must be cut on bottoms to account for sloping floor)
February 9th, 2008: today

My kitchen is still not done. It has been over six months. We have not ordered the countertop. My husband would like to redo the floor. He wants to have the floor heated, as the kitchen is not heated (we have radiators for heat and no central air and the kitchen was an add-on). We still have to have the final inspection. At least I'm not doing dishes in the bathroom sink anymore. We went from having 3 cabinets to 14. It's amazing. I'm still not sure how to set it all up. I'm getting there, though.

To the grey hairs on my head:

2008-02-08T16:36:00.000-05:00

I know you are there. I'm not stupid. Just because you don't show yourselves often doesn't mean you aren't there. I also know how lucky I am. I will be 30 this month and I can count on one hand the number of you I have found in my lifetime (one of whom was when I was 15: what's up with that??). I would just like to ask that you show yourselves when we are at home. It's annoying to walk into a friend's bathroom and have you standing straight up (well, curly up anyway) and announcing my age. Granted, it is more effective if others see you before I do. You know that you will be plucked as soon as I see you, at least until you complete your plan of outnumbering the brown hairs. So, should I give in now? Should I succomb to your conspiracy with VO5 and Garnier and replace my natural color (which I like just fine, thank you very much) with something from a bottle? Should I leave the world of maintenance-free hair (I'm a wash-and-go girl) and join the ranks of women who are constantly checking for that dye line to avoid showing their grey? And why exactly do you choose to reveal your plan so close to my birthday? Is it because I wasn't dreading 30? Am I supposed to be upset at the approach of a new decade? I just kinda looked at it as, "wow, 30, a new first digit." Now it's like a body alarm is going off: 30 years. Time for a tune up or something.

My non-knit Christmas

2007-12-23T20:14:00.000-05:00

I didn't get anything knit for Christmas this year. I didn't plan ahead. Of course, this is the first year that knitting was even a real option. I've only gotten back into it since the discovery of the world wide knit-web. Now I'm not sad that I don't have any lovely things to gift this year, but I do wish I had considered the idea sooner. My family is so hard to shop for. It's very stressful to give thoughtful gifts, especially when I have two little ones I have to haul around with me wherever I go. (That part is getting better as I am more honest with my husband about needing time out alone and I have a neighbor I'm swapping babysitting with.) I'm also on a pretty tight budget this year, as the kitchen remodel is continuing and is not completely covered by the insurance and we still need about $5000 to remove the tulip poplar. So, my kids are getting the lion's share of gifts, of course. My husband got his camera upgrade last month, so I am getting a small digital camera to make up for the lack of a truly portable camera to catch the daily stuff of running around with kids. I found a silver Christmas tree for my mom. She said she wanted one of the old ones from aluminum that you couldn't use lights on, just the spinning spotlight. I know it's too late for her to put up this year, but I just found it yesterday. My dad is getting a photo album, a fleece blanket, and a flower to plant. I'm giving my sister a fleece blanket and some money for the cattery at the SPCA. She works there and appreciates a donation more than stuff. As for everyone else, I bought a big can ($25) of Virginia Diner Chocolate Covered Peanut Brittle that I'm going to split up and I'm making truffles and cookies to go with it. Not very original, but I couldn't come up with a zillion gifts that wouldn't break the bank. Next year I'm making everyone ornaments. I did that the year Mamaw died. I took a flower from every arrangement at the funeral, dried them, and put the petals into glass ornament balls. Now every year, I put a reminder of her up on my tree, and so can everyone else. Maybe next year I'll do little knit sweaters and stockings and stuff. Also, my boy will be 4 1/2 and my girl 2 1/2, and that's perfect for child labor, I mean craft gifts!

Giving thanks to whom thanks is due

2007-11-19T11:01:00.000-05:00

General Thanksgiving
By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us.
And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine.
(signed) G. Washington

Source: The Massachusetts Centinel, Wednesday, October 14, 1789

(and who said our forefathers were not Christian)

Disorderly Household (or Business As Usual at My House)

2007-11-19T10:57:00.000-05:00

I'm on the Flylady (http://www.flylady.net/) list and today I got her thanksgiving holiday reality check. They talk about perfectionism in there, which is really what keeps me from doing anything around my house. I hate that, but even right this minute, I'm sitting here thinking that since I have no kitchen, what is the point in keeping the hallway clean? And if the hallway isn't neat, what's the point in cleaning the dining room? Besides, I'm supposed to be packing to come to PA, which means I need to finish my laundry, but I can't fold it while Natalie is awake because she likes to wear Connor's underwear on her head and she digs through through the basket throwing all the clothes on the floor. So, I think I'll wait to fold clothes until she goes down for a nap, but I didn't sleep well last night so I'll just doze here on the couch while Connor takes his nap. I can fold clothes when the kids go to bed tonight. But, we're meeting my dad for a pre-trip dinner since he's coming home for Thanksgiving until Sunday and we won't be back until Monday and I'll just want to hang out with Paul since we haven't had any time to just veg on the couch together. So the packing can wait until tomorrow after we get back from CBS and picking up a few things for the trip oh my goodness! Paul slipped out of class really early today and he's ready to go now????? But there's still dirty dishes in the bathroom sink...

And I'm not even planning a Thanksgiving dinner.

By the way, take some time this week to thank God for everything He has blessed you with (that would be everything you have!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

The knitting herd

2007-10-29T11:11:00.000-04:00

So, I've noticed knitters are sheep. We all follow each other, sometimes not even knowing who is the leader. The internet is the shepherd. We all jump on to see what everyone else is doing. Ooo! Ooo! The new knitty is out! Everyone make Monkeys!! Ooo! Ooo! Ravelry! Everyone sign up! Ooo! Ooo! Mystery ___ #432! Gotta do it!

I am a sheep. I'm working on Monkeys. I'm on Ravelry. Not only was I trying to do MS3, I didn't learn my lesson and am signed up for Mystic Waters KAL. It all started for me with meetup.com.

Excuse me, I have to go check what my friends on ravelry are queuing.

Baa.

the new camera is a hit!

2007-10-22T10:09:00.000-04:00

With my husband anyway! It came in last week and he is having a blast with it. It's really nice: an almost-professional digital SLR. I'll get used to it eventually, and I'm sure I'll come to love it. For now, though, I can only lament its relative lack of portability. In other words, it won't fit easily into my purse/diaper/knit bag. At least, not if I want to keep purse-things/diapers/knitting in the bag as well. This just means I won't have a camera on hand for snapping candid shots on the run of my cute offspring. Crap. On the other hand, I may actually be able to get some nice knitting shots... someday.

The contractors are here today tearing down my kitchen. It's a mess. I should have gotten food and drinks out of there to get us through the day. It's 10:15 and I'm starving. There's roofing paper between me and the pantry. I've seen some of what's inside my hundred year old walls. I don't want that stuff in my lungs. The plan is: one day demolition, one and a half reframing, then wait for the electrician and the plumber, then two days finishing. Once that is done, we will take final measurements and order our new cabinetry. That will take 3 weeks to come in. We will be installing, along with help from friends. So, you figure five weeks to completion puts us right after Thanksgiving. So, we should be done by New Years.

My sock swap socks are in the works. I have been working only on them, but alas, I'm not very fast. At the rate I'm currently moving, I should have them done by Christmas. Just kidding... I think! Maybe my kitchen will be done by then... Hey, I can dream!

The dog ate my camera

2007-10-02T16:13:00.001-04:00

That's not fair. Nobody actually ate it. We were in Lancaster, PA, and the camera suddenly stopped working. It refused to read any memory stick. Fortunately, we were almost done with our little vacation so there wasn't much we needed to take pictures of. If it had happened earlier in the trip, I would have been royally pissed off. So, we checked with Sears and our warranty is still good until December. They are going to give us a new camera because they don't make ours anymore. Now for the funny part: it's working today. Dilema: do we still try to get a new one? I'm afraid that it will happen again after the warranty expires. Grr.

still here!

2007-09-30T19:18:00.001-04:00

Life gets in the way sometimes, don't it? School started, and even though my kids are not school-age, our lives seem to revolve around the school year. We have been super busy. I decided I didn't like my Hogwarts socks, so I frogged and ordered new yarn. Fleur, they will be my top priority... if I can put my new scarf away! I'm learning to cable! It's kind of fun... All knitters should knit one pair of socks and some sort of cable project. I saw a cable scarf at wal-mart and I wanted it. But I wanted to do it myself. So I am. Anyway, I must put the distractions-I mean children!- to bed.

I'm in!

2007-09-07T12:21:00.000-04:00

I got my invite! I got my invite! I got my invite!

Yep. I'm on Ravelry. I'm ptownhokie. Now if I can finagle the time to play on it... do I have to feed the kids??

Six Degrees of Draco

2007-08-26T11:13:00.001-04:00

1. Mad Eye Moody was kidnapped and impersonated by
2. Barty Crouch who worked for
3. He Who Must Not Be Named whose followers also included
4. Severus Snape who was head of Slytherin house which included
5. Lucious Malfoy who is father to
6. Draco Malfoy

OTN

2007-08-09T12:09:00.000-04:00

We are in Pittsburgh again. FIL had his knee surgery Monday. There were no complications, but man, he's mean as all get out right now!! He is sniping at everyone! It's hard not to get offended, but I'm glad he's at the hospital because if he were home I think I'd have to hit him!

Since I'm away from home, I don't know if my package from knitpicks is here yet. It's got my yarn for the Hogwarts Sock Swap. I was really hoping to bring that yarn here with me so I could get started on Fleur's socks.

In the meantime, I am getting some progress on my MS3. I'm on row 61 of the FIRST CLUE! Clue 6 is out tomorrow morning. I think it's coming along very prettily. I do really have to pay attention to both right and wrong side rows or I lose a stitch.

I frogged my monkeys again. The tofutsies just doesn't seem happy with me. I went down on needle size and they were way too small. I've started anew with some gorgeous red yarn that I had to have the last time I was in PA and I'm using 2.75mm needles. I'm MUCH happier with this yarn. I think it wants to be monkeys because I'm not having any problems, so far. (Oh, knitting fairies, please don't knock me down for putting that out here!)

It's hot up here... but hotter at home. I pray my house is okay whenever we get back!

a moment to fill in the gaps

2007-07-31T21:52:00.001-04:00

We went to the water park on base with my dad Friday around noon. We were there until 4. We had a blast! The kids were awesome. N took a nap in the pool and then on her Beebah. C finally cracked during adult swim at 3:45, so we packed up and left. Went to Nitnee's house and had dinner. We got back to our house around 8:15ish. We saw some signs of the storm on our way: minor flooding and branches down. P laughed and said, "I wonder if we have a tree!" Pulling up to the front of the house, things didn't look too bad. As we peered around the side, all we could see were branches. The large limb that went out and then straight up (like an "L") had fallen down, taking at least one other large limb with it. We are guessing that the "L" branch landed on the kitchen roof, punched a hole in it, and then sort of slid to the ground, leaving a little pit just outside our kitchen door. The sink was full of water and there is a decent hole in the ceiling. The restoration company has three fans and a dehumidifier going in the kitchen. They are checking each day to make sure it's drying. State Farm is sending someone out tomorrow to estimate the damage and decide how much to give us. A contractor is coming tomorrow evening to see what needs to be done. In the meantime, we are not supposed to use the kitchen much, not that we could with the fans and dehumidifier. State Farm is going to reimburse us for meals, above our typical grocery budget. We were without internet or phone until this afternoon, and then we got it back by asking the passing Cox man if he could help! Cox wasn't coming out until Thursday to fix it.
Fun stuff.

If a tree falls on your house,

2007-07-31T12:54:00.000-04:00

and nobody's home, does it still make a sound? A large limb from our tulip poplar fell on the kitchen. We're okay, but we cannot use the kitchen. It also took out our internet and phone, so I'm incommunocado (sp?) right now. I'm getting the shakes from internet withdrawal... Hooray for the library and its timed internet policy!

blue blue blue

2007-07-25T14:51:00.000-04:00

Someday I will get pictures to a place where I can add them to the blog... if only for myself!

I have four repeats on my first monkey sock and I think I want to keep them short. I have Yarn for Supper tonight, so I'll take them in and ask for advice. I'm on row 59 on MS3. I want to put in another lifeline before I move on. I've learned I really do have to tune EVERYTHING out in order to properly knit lace. If hokiehubby talks while I'm working on a right side row, I forget yarnovers or decreases. I'm counting at the end of every row. It just feels safer. But at least I'm done with chart A. I need to get some yarn for my Hogwarts Sock Swap. Interestingly, before I signed up for this, I bought some "Hufflepuff" yarn because it happens to be Steelers colors. I'm Hufflepuff but my partner is Ravenclaw. So, I'll get to use my yarn to make something in Steelers colors. I'm thinking about mittens and maybe a hat to match, since football is in the fall/winter. I don't want to make a scarf with this yarn. I've made plenty of those in the past.

We had to go to Pittsburgh to help deal with the fire, and we got back Monday night. I'm not quite normal right now. A little blue. I'm hoping Yarn for Supper tonight will cheer me up. I get to leave the hokiekids home with their daddy, so that's good. Our "garden" looks pretty good. The cucumbers are getting along very well. We only have a couple of green tomatoes (beefmasters), but the romas all still have blossom end rot. I'm going to feed them some milk and see if that helps. To my knowledge, my parents never tried romas. They only ever grew easy stuff, the kind that didn't need special care. Anyway, the romas have lots of little babies, but their bottoms are gross. I tried feeding them some Tums thinking the calcium would help. Oh well.

Hogwarts Sock Swap

2007-07-21T12:28:00.000-04:00

WooHoo! It's my first swap! I am a first year at Hogwarts!

What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into? Hufflepuff
Shoe size? 8 1/2
Foot length? 9 1/2
Foot Circumference? 9
List your three favorite double point needle brands:
a. Takumi
b. Brittany
c. (I need to branch out a little!)
Would you like to try a new brand needle? (brand, size, length) Anything, always up for experimentation!
Do you have any allergies? Will your knitting be exposed to smoke or animals? I have no allergies; my household is smoke-free, but I have a dog and a cat.
Are you an international participant? Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal? I am in the US of A but I'm certainly willing to have an international pal!

Check it out at: http://hogwarts-sock-swap-two.blogspot.com/

non-knitting post: fire at the office

2007-07-20T12:35:00.000-04:00

I am in Pittsburgh yet again. We were just here for the 4th of July. There was a fire at my FIL's business, so we are here to help out with cleanup and mental support. The business was not a total loss, but the building might be. It's pretty bad. My FIL is a Taurus, so he can be rather bull-headed. He's stressed out about this (understandably) and he's taking it out on my MIL. If you are a praying person, please pray for strength and wisdom for all of us up here.

Ooo. Knitting stuff afterall: monkey sock 1 has three repeats of pattern, and MS3 is up to line 33. Also, I've joined the Hogwarts Sock Swap: questionaire post to follow soon!

I think I said too much.

2007-07-07T16:36:00.000-04:00

My mother in law thinks I'm nuts. I tried to explain a little bit about the obsession of knitting. It all started when I asked her if she ever knit. She said a little a long time ago. She went on to say that she would like to get back into cross-stitching. How did she get from knitting to that? Anyway, I told her a little bit about the knitting lifestyle aids that are out there: blogs, books, webmagazines. I even read her a little bit from Yarn Harlot's Knitting Rules! She chuckled politely. POLITELY! I told her about the Yarn Harlot's squirrel. She gave me a look. She thinks I'm nuts. Of course, my husband goes on to tell her that I am addicted to this stuff. He tells her I'm always online laughing to myself. He tells her I'm always muttering things like, "knit one, purl two," like the Granny on Sylvester and Tweety cartoons. They all think I'm nuts. If they knew how much time I've spent today trying to decide whether or not to join in on MS3 (which I signed up for a long time ago) and what kind of yarn I would use, they would actually say outloud that I am nuts.

Speaking of MS3, I want to do it. I signed up for it, but it's a little intimidating. I've never knit lace before. I'm also in the six-sock-knitalong and the monthly dishcloth KAL. Now, my Yarn For Breakfast group wants to do a KAL. Guess I need more yarn. And needles. And more nuts.

Found

2007-06-25T12:54:00.000-04:00

Close one: the socks were in the back of my car. I've taken to bringing them with me pretty much everywhere in the hopes that I can pull them out and work on them. I have no memory of putting them in the back of the car, but I went to get hokieboy's bag of toys and there they were, snug in their little bag! I'm going to be more careful. I did start my KAL washcloth since I didn't have my socks. Poor socks. Someone needs to tell me a little more about second sock syndrome. I can guess that it takes longer to finish the second one because the thrill is over. I just want to know if handknit socks really feel better on your feet! I'm not sold yet. I've been informed that I am not to buy more yarn until I use up what I have. My husband found my stash, hidden away in the laundry closet. It's actually small, only two rubbermaid bins. It doesn't take up much room at all! Unfortunately, it's all worsted weight non-socky yarn, and socks are my current experiment of choice!

Missing: socks. Reward.

2007-06-24T20:40:00.000-04:00

It's gone. I had it last night. I don't have it today. I was getting so close to finishing the second sock and it's gone. It'll turn up. I hope.

It's a sock!

2007-06-12T19:35:00.000-04:00

The first sock is a sock. But wouldn't you know it: 6 rows before the end of the sock, I drop the working needle right between the boards of my front porch. I have been wanting to put a rug out there, but we don't have the money. So, I was able to finish the sock, but I can't start the second until I get new needles. Daggonit. I guess I need to block the sock, but I need to figure out how. Maybe I'll wait until I can get to yarn for supper and ask around!

On another note, Hokieboy is potty training and it's going very well. He got his first "all day no accidents" car today!

Progress report

2007-06-07T10:32:00.000-04:00

I started a sock! Yay! First wearable! I'm doing okay with it. In fact, I've turned the heel already and I'm working on the foot. I had a little worry about my gauge, but I've decided to continue. I started with the required 7 st/in but then it became st/in. I've since relaxed a little and I'm just going one stitch at a time. It's just a sock. It's my first sock, and if it's not perfect, that's okay! I'm just getting my feet wet! If this turns out well, I'm excited about the baby sweater that's next. The only problem is we are completely broke and I'm going to have to dig through the yarn I have for a while. I hope I have enough of something nice to start the sweater. I have something in mind, I just don't know how much I have.
I have pictures of the sock in progress, I'm just too lazy to download them to the computer so I can upload them to the page.
We had yarn with kids yesterday. It was a good time! One 3 month old boy + one 14 month old girl + one 2 year old boy + one 2 1/2 year old boy + one 3 year old boy= lots of noise and lots of fun! The three mamas had a good time talking and some knitting was actually done! Yarn for breakfast is Saturday and we're having a brunch for Jessica who's getting married. Paul's working Harborfest, so it looks like I'll have the kids with me again!

this habit doesn't have a patch

2007-06-03T12:30:00.000-04:00

So this is a little ridiculous. I have a new addiction, it seems. Interestingly, I have flirted with this addiction for a couple of years. I have found a whole new world of enablers. My husband will be thoroughly dismayed when the depth of my new addiction comes out. I don't think I have enough time or money for this adiction. My children get in the way. My bills get in the way. My need for food and water gets in the way. It's knitting. And reading about others who knit on the internet. I blame meetup, and myspace, and Leah, and Tracey, and Yarn for Breakfast, and anyone else I can think of to avoid blaming myself!

The eternal baby blanket

2007-05-30T13:04:00.001-04:00

A long, long time ago (just after Christmas 2005), I began a beautiful pink baby blanket for the little girl growing in my belly. I had the best of intentions. I would get her blanket done in time for her to use in the hospital when she was born in April. She was born in March. Six weeks early. Her blanket was not finished. When she came home, the blanket was not finished. Months passed. The blanket was not finished. Christmas 2006 came... and went... and the blanket was not finished. A few weeks from her birthday, I was determined to finish her blanket. I knit into the wee hours. Then, I ran out of yarn. Whoops. I don't get out to that store much anymore, so it took a while to get the yarn. Her birthday came and went. The blanket was not finished. I got another ball of yarn. Then I ran out again. So, back to the store for yarn. It's been discontinued and they had no more of the lovely pink. So I bought some white. Her blanket is finally finished. It only took six balls of yard, five pink and one white, and only 17 months. About eight inches of the corner are white. It's rather silly looking, but a pretty good story to tell her one day while I teach her how to knit.