Thankful

Thanksgiving has come and gone, but I have reminders still of all that I have to be thankful for.

I'm thankful for Family: There were 20 of us for Thanksgiving, and being at my younger sister's house meant we could all sit in the same room together. Here's the table before we all sat down.

I'm thankful we have enough to eat. Here's my mom and others getting the meal ready, with plenty of room to be together. Having plenty of food to eat and share is a blessing. And wine too. Can't forget the wine!



I'm thankful for the kids in my family. Mine, and others. Here's my Absent-Minded Professor (red shirt) playing with his favorite male cousins.



Mayhem playing pool with her 6 year old cousin, Hadley.



I'm thankful that my 10.5 year old Lab, Bruno, still likes to play. His health hasn't been great off and on lately, but today he was feeling good. He gutted his "baby" and was having great fun showing off.


I needed to vacuum anyway.

I'm thankful I finished the Rainbow Blankie. See? Knitting and my knitting friends are a blessing in my life.


I have woven in the ends since I took that photo!

Good thing it's finished, too, because the recipient arrived yesterday, November 30! Meet my newest great-niece, Ansley Rose. I'm thankful she arrived safely and is healthy! Congrats to my nephew Andy, his wife Rebecca, and big brother, AJ.

I'm thankful for the love and support of my family and friends.

On the Needles and Finished

Yes, I'm still here, and still plugging away. It seems like the days are so long, and I'm up to my eyeballs in coping with grief and sadness and depression, and *poof!* before I know it, an entire week, or month, has passed.

Knitting is keeping me grounded in some ways, more so than just about anything else. Well, that and keeping my chin up for my kids when they are here with me. Mayhem is in choir and orchestra this year so she has twice as many concerts. Absent-Minded Professor has discovered girls and has an on again, off again relationship with the same girlfriend that sends his moods on a rollercoaster ride!

So, finished projects?

Easy Baby Cardigan, (ravelry link) by Diane Soucy. This is going to be a gift. A quick, easy knit. I used Mirasol Hacho, a DK weight yarn.

Elf Hat, (ravelry link) by Classic Elite yarns. This pattern sells for $6 alone on Ravelry, but if you can get to a yarn shop, you can buy the whole pattern booklet (Classic Elite Yarns Toboggan) for $9.50 and get SEVEN patterns! I used Toboggan yarn in Garnet and the Merino/Alpaca blend is yummy and warm.

I also finished a pair of plain vanilla socks from Colinette Jitterbug, but they are currently in the laundry and I will not fish them out to photograph them for you!

Nearing completion is what I have affectionately dubbed the Rainbow Blankie From Hell. This will be another baby gift, and I love the way it looks, but the yarn was a disappointment. Five of the 7 balls had defects in the ways of breaks, weak spots, knots to rejoin broken spots. I was sucked in by the gorgeous, deeply saturated colors, though. I ended up having to double the yarn in order to make sure that this wouldn't fall apart. Avoid Tonic by Jojoland.



This blankie is pretty much thought up on my own, but loosely based on a blanket I saw on the Purlbee blog. The light blue border was added because I decided the blankie wasn't wide enough and so the light blue represents the sky. The border is wider on the sides. It has made for good TV knitting, though.

Once that blankie is finished, I'm on to Christmas knitting... hats, mittens, some ornaments, an e-reader cover, slippers. Good thing I have a big stash of yarn!

It's also time to get ready for Thanksgiving. What are your plans? For the first time ever that I can remember, we are having the family here, instead of two hours away, in our hometown. We'll be at my younger sister's new house. There's a lot to do between now and then.

Oh! One last thing! Remember when you're out doing your holiday shopping that the Saturday after Thanksgiving is Small Business Saturday! Shop Main Street, not Wall Street. Drop in those small, independent stores and shop local.

Which end is up?

Some days I don't know which end is up, whether I'm coming or going, and now, with switching back to Standard Time, I don't know if it's day or night. Nothing seems normal anymore, and I had to get my trusty Nikon out for some photos to help me put things back into perspective.



This is normal. Bruno playing with his "flying squirrel." As you can see, he loves this toy. It flies, much like a frisbee, just not as far. The dog will fetch, and then "kill" by shaking it.



And after play comes a nap. It is good to use your human as a pillow.

Normal? This is probably the last tree on my street with leaves on the branches. I'm thrilled that it's outside my fence, by the street, since Bill worked so hard to get all of the leaves done and put out by the road. Pretty, huh? What's not normal is that it has been in the upper 60's, and might reach 70 this week.


Hey! Get off my lawn!


What's really not normal is the sudden loss of a dear friend this week. My age. Three kids and a wife. D.W. was a former co-worker who had the best smile and most infectious laugh. He could reach the most unreachable students, and would do anything to help out a friend. I wish peace and comfort to everyone who loves him. We lost someone very special here. D.W., my friend, my life is better for having had you in it, and your alter-ego, Maybelline, too, of course. You will be greatly missed.

They don't grow up...

Meet Bruno. He's nine years ol...I mean young. Yeah. Nine years young. Slower than he used to be, but not out of the game yet, by any any means. Factor into the equation the fact that we weighs 112 lbs. and, well, lots of games are played by his rules.



Bruno's favorite game is tug. See him holding the knotted rope in his mouth?



He really wants Bill to play. Bill is MY favorite person. Bruno quickly learned that Bill is a "dog" person. You know, one of those people that loves dogs. You know who they are. And you know if you are or aren't one. Bruno can just tell that Bill loves animals of all kinds, including dogs. He's been known to carry on whole conversations with the two furry family members here at my house. (Shhhhh! they don't really know they are dogs!)



Of course, Bill obliges Bruno with a rousing game of tug! Bruno wrestles the rope away from Bill and runs away with it. Then he brings it back for more.



Once the game is done, Bruno decides he has to climb up in Bill's lap and give him hugs and kisses, too!



All of a sudden, there was a loud *SQUEEEEK!*



Bruno was wondering if Bill did that in his shorts, I think. ;-) hehehehe Bill tried to pull a fast one by inviting a squeaky ball to the party. Cut the innocent act, Bill. He's wise to you!

Interestingly enough, my female Lab, Coco, had no interest in playing their sophomoric games. Think I can teach her to knit??

Perfect 10

People all over the world are commenting on today's date: 10-10-10. Has today been a perfect 1o for you?

Here in the Midwest, the trees are trying to change colors, but temps are reaching the mid-80's. Yesterday we spent a great deal of time in the car, having decided to visit Mom and Dad for the day. There's a new addition at the old house where I grew up. It seems strange, but it's totally necessary, and I'm thankful for my brother-in-law, my niece's husband, and his father who gave up their Saturday to build the ramp.



The sky looked like this on the way home, and I had to take time to marvel in the beauty of the day. Farmers were busy harvesting with their giant combines, creating a hazy, dusty sky at times.



I spent part of the afternoon napping and knitting in a lounge chair in my sunny backyard today. Listening to Jimmy Buffett. In shorts. Barefoot. It's October, people!!! Really, though, with not a cloud in the sky, and an intermittent breeze, the day was one of those perfect 10 kind of days that you want to file away for revisiting later. With as dry as it has been, the wind through the leaves sounded almost like rain.



While my chocolate Lab and I soaked up the sun, my two "guys" retreated to the shade. Wimps! ;-)



Like a true Midwesterner, I know that this kind of Fall usually means something, and that "something" usually equals a big Winter. That doesn't scare me, but it does take some preparation. Do I look prepared?



I was kind of hoping that the firewood would reach ALL the way to the ceiling of the back porch. Oh well.

Productivity... sort of

The high today has been 52 so far. We decided it was a pot-roast-in-the-oven kind of day. The roast is nearly done. The potatoes have been peeled and are on the stove cooking. My whole house smells delicious! I wonder if College Grad will drop in for dinner like he did the other night. He's busy with law school, but I think he smells when dinner is ready...

Along with cooking, Mayhem and I even managed a trip to Yarn Cravin' to check out what's new and knit for a bit. I picked up some soft yarn to knit a hat or two for Dad - a black skein of Malabrigo Twist and a blue skein of Berocco Ultra Alpaca, which Mayhem chose.

I am wishing now that I had thought to whip out my camera while we were at the yarn shop because the big news is that Mayhem is knitting!! I promise photographic evidence soon, though. She is working on a scarf, garter stitch for now. I'm so excited about her knitting, finally. Keep your fingers crossed that she sticks with it!

After dinner, it's back to Dad's socks. I'm hoping to have them done by Monday, when my sister heads down to our hometown to spend a couple of days with our parents.

Halloween Rules

Look! Buddy Bill's afghan is finished! The final round was completed at knit nite last night. Details? Crochet granny square. Generic. Lots and lots and lots of Tatamy Tweed Worsted. At least 10 balls. I am amazed at how much more yarn crochet uses up compared to knitting. Size H hook. Nearly a month to complete.
Tonight the kids will go out begging for treats. Mayhem is a witch of sorts. Absent-Minded Professor is becoming one of those kids who doesn't dress up but goes begging anyway. He is only wearing camouflage pants and shirt and a camo bucket hat - you know, kind of like a guy from M*A*S*H. At my house, those kids get Dum Dum lollipops instead of chocolate. Really. (The same rule applies to adults who drag infants out trick-or-treating. Puhleeease! We know who will be eating that candy!) If you can't take the time and effort to come up with a costume, you don't get the good stuff. Some of the high school kids in the area, armed with only a pillow case and no costume, know to bypass my house because they have learned that I have two separate bowls and the unspoken rule of "no costume, no chocolate." I have heard them pass on wisdom to others, "Hey, don't go there. All you get is a retard sucker!"

Wait until you see the wonderful jack-o-lantern that has been carved for our yard! It's gonna look great all lit up in the dark.

Both kids have had colds for the past week and today it sidelined me. Absent-Minded Professor's cold is turning into something bigger and he may head to the doctor. Mayhem has turned the corner and is almost well. And me? Too soon to tell. I spent the day sleeping and getting a little TLC.

After three weeks away, I made it to Insanknitty last night. I'm back in the corner with Patti, Mary and Julie (another crocheter) finishing the afghan. (I stole this photo from Insanknitty blog! Shhhhhhh!)

Stay warm, friends. It's supposed to get chilly!

Fall Colors

Buddy Bill and I went back to the cemetery yesterday to see if the leaves had changed more. They had, indeed!!! A rainy day was just clearing, giving me just the right combination of dark clouds and sunlight. So, just fall photos for you today, but they are stunning. Eye candy.

Bury me under a tree like this!

Knitting news:
The afghan will be finished today! I also received an advance invitation to join Karida's sock club which will be announced to the public on Monday. Of course I jumped in! She has the yummiest yarns, and Washington is one of my most favorite places.

Holy Hives, Batman

You probably think I forgot all about giving you an update on the dinner theater, right? Wrong!

The evening at Gratzi was wonderful! Buddy Bill had never eaten there, but I had. As always, the food was fabulous, and the service impeccable. Bill was pleasantly surprised by the food. We both ordered chicken dishes, but different types, and shared. The performers were fun; they clearly enjoyed what they were doing, and that made for an enjoyable evening. Good food, a glass of wine and wonderful company. All that on a school night!

It took me a while to get to sleep after I got home, which is pretty normal for me. The problem was, I woke up at 2:15 AM itching like mad. A peek in the bathroom mirror confirmed my suspicions: Hives!!! EEEEK! I don't have food allergies, so it wasn't something I ate. No med changes, either. I decided against benadryl at 3:00 AM because I would have trouble getting up at 6:00. The problem with that plan was that I didn't get any sleep at all! The itching nearly drove me mad and I ended up calling in sick at 6:30 in order to medicate myself enough to sleep.

Brainstorming all day, and consulting Bill and another good friend, W, resulted in the following conclusion: stress. There's someone at work that is really annoying me and the hives were a reaction to the stress. I was going to nix that theory until the hives started to flare up again today after a run-in with that person. That person isn't going away, so I have to figure something out. I can't take sleep-inducing antihistamines every day! Any ideas? I would knit, but remember I'm not allowed to knit at school!!! ARRRRGGGGHHH!

OK, here's two happy photos:

This is one reason why my favorite color is red.

Bruno says, "Gimme a cookie!" (How can anyone resist that face??)

The afghan is almost done. Watch this space for a photo!!!!!

So much to say, so little time

There's so much to catch up on, but there's a really important baseball game coming on in an hour, so I'll let these photos do it for me.

Mayhem can knit! Slowly, painstakingly, but she is, at last, knitting. She sat with a bunch of us knitting girls at Panera yesterday morning and did it! (Too lazy for links, but hi Sarah, visiting Renee, Mary, Johari, other other Karen.)

The afghan for Buddy Bill is growing, and growing. See? Another row of oatmeal, two more rows of gold, then a border and I'm calling it finished! I need to get back to Cobblestone. (The colors are little washed out in these photos - sorry)

Yesterday afternoon was a perfect day to get pictures of our beautiful autumn foliage. Buddy Bill and I took a walk and I photographed the trees. Don't laugh, but one of the cemeteries here in town has the most beautiful maple trees, so that is where we went.

Have a great week, everyone.

Missing Kid Not on Milk Carton

I'm missing my Absent-Minded Professor. He's been gone since Monday morning. No phone calls, no emails, not a word. Rest assured, though, you won't see his face turning up on a milk carton. He's just gone for the school week at outdoor education with his whole 6th grade class. Tomorrow afternoon my first-born will be home again. I'm sure he'll have great stories about Michindoh.

My house sure is quiet with him gone. It's not that he makes a lot of noise. The clashes he and Mayhem get into over stupid stuff create a lot of noise! Normally when he's gone he can call, or I will call and talk to him at night before bed. AMP regularly goes to stay with my parents for several days to a week at a time, so I'm OK with him being away from home. This is the first time he's been somewhere without family, though. I'm quite sure he misses Bruno and Coco more than he misses me! The dogs and I did send him mail.

The granny square afghan is 45" square. I ran out of the Tatamy Tweed worsted in Oatmeal and have just a scrap of the yellow (Gold) yarn left. My LYS is out of those colors; remember I bought it on clearance months ago when they decided to stop carrying it. Today I decided to order some directly from Kraemer Yarns in order to finish the afghan the way I want. Now that it's finally cool, I really want to finish this and get it to Buddy Bill's!

Mayhem gave handknit socks her stamp of approval today. It was chilly in the house and her feet were cold last night at bedtime. I suggested she could wear the Thuja socks I had made for her during the summer. This morning she proclaimed that her feet stayed toasty warm and those were now her bed socks. The way her feet are growing, they won't fit long! When I knitted them in June she thought I was nuts, of course. "It's too hot for those socks, Lady!"

Tonight I plan to get Cobblestone back out and work on the sleeves. Grey's Anatomy will be on, and I know I'll be parked in front of the idiot box, as my dad so fondly calls the television. Now that it feels like October, Buddy Bill needs his sweater.

Any big weekend plans? I think I'm going to try to get out and photograph the fall foliage! Oh, and knit of course.

Mail and Simple Pleasures

Normally checking my mailbox at school is not much fun. It typically means more work in the way of paperwork to complete, referrals from teachers and administrators, messages from parents to return, junk mail to sort through. The other day a turquoise-colored envelope caught my eye though, and immediately I recognized the handwriting on the front. Buddy Bill had sent me mail at school! (You can all say "awwwwwwwww" now.) Inside was a card with two Labs snuggled up together in a chair, one yellow and one dark, just like my Labs.

(Greeting card from Avanti Press)

The card contained some silly, mushy sentiment which made me grin. It's still here on my desk, making me grin. Knowing he's not one to buy greeting cards makes it even more special.

Simple things bring me great pleasure. Sitting outside enjoying a quiet afternoon, with a book or my knitting, brings me great pleasure. Really. As the mom of two active kids, two dogs, and being someone who works full time and tries to keep up with all that and keep a house... well, quiet time to just sit and knit for an extended amount of time is rare.

Receiving a card in the mail from someone special, just because, brings me great pleasure. Just thinking of you, no special occasion. It's normal to get cards for birthdays, and around the holidays, if you've been sick, or going through a tough time. A card out of the blue for no special reason is always fun for me.

Taking a walk in the park, particularly now, as the leaves are changing, is also a great pleasure. (OK, not so much when it's 92 degrees, but when it's typical October weather!) We are fortunate to have an incredible Metroparks system here, full of beautiful wooded walking trails and nature centers. You forget you're in a city when deer cross the path fifteen feet in front of you.



An evening in front of the fire with a good book, a glass of wine and the dogs brings me great pleasure. My dogs don't know they are dogs, so it's typical for one or both of them to get up on the couch once they think I'm not looking. Bruno will usually wait for an invitation, but Coco pretty much owns the spot at the end. Add in some good company to share the wine and it gets even better!



Knitting, which has been around for centuries, brings me so much pleasure, as does creating knitted items for others. I started knitting as therapy for myself - to not snack in front of the TV, and to keep my mind off other troubles - yet nearly everything I make goes to someone else. I love the joy in the recipients' faces.



Do I like nice things? Do I like to go nice places? Yes, and yes. I'm finding more and more, however, that they are not so important. I get much more pleasure from simpler things, and certainly many more treasured memories.

Now someone please, please, please, send some cool weather!!! It's almost 90 degress again today. That does not make for good days in a junior high. P.U.