We journeyed up to Canada for the weekend- David only had Thursday & Friday off, so it was rather short. We left Wednesday from GR and got back Sunday night.
The weather wasn't very nice when we arrived, and we had a 4 hour (in ideal conditions) trip to make- we ended up arriving on the farm at 3:00 in the morning.
Thursday was a busy day- it was both American Thanksgiving and my birthday! After sleeping in, we went out for lunch at Save Room for Dessert- I used to work there back in the day. After lunch DJ went home with Grandpa & Babi, and D & I explored the town. We had a big supper that night, and I got to see a great group of friends who I hadn't seen in almost a year. We also celebrated "Christmas" (aka opened the gifts that D and I had brought up for everybody)
Friday we had a relaxing day, and in the evening there was a baby shower for DJ. He is so loved, and I am so blessed! We bearly had room to fly home all of the wonderful gifts we were given. The shower had a ducky theme- the auditorium was decorated so beautifully- unfortunately I don't think I have any pictures on my camera- they're all on my mom's. In fact, I think most of the pictures from the trip are either on mom's camera, or D's phone...
My dad's youngest brother & family came up for brunch on Saturday. We had a wonderful visit, and I got to meet my cousin's amazing fiancee.
A visit to Canada wouldn't be complete without tea with my best friend. I guess I can't speak for her, but I know that I feel so refreshed after catching up with her face-to-face over a nice cup of tea. This was Saturday night- and after she left, David & I gathered up our things and packed up our bags. By that I mean I got out some music books I wanted to take with us, sat down to play through a song or two and ended up not leaving the piano, while my amazing husband played tetris with our luggage and got everything we needed to bring home packed.
We got back late Sunday night, just in time for a little bit of sleep before D's 8:00 am classes on Monday.
And there you have a summary of our weekend! I apologize that I don't have any pictures- I was letting my hubby take pictures for us, and I don't have access to them off his phone yet.
God bless!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Check in on October/November goals.
I've got a crazy day today- we're getting ready to head up to Canada tomorrow. One more sleep! (as my mom would say). DJ has his first two teeth in- the bottom two- and he's being fussy & grumpy & tired today- which just makes trying to pack & prepare for leaving all the more... fun.
I wanted to report back on my list of October goals- now that it is almost to the end of November. We'll just pretend it was the list for both October & November. (which is true- I did still have the same main goals for this month too...)
If you remember the list:
1) get a good chunk of my Christmas knitting done- particularly the gifts for my Canada family & friends, as we're going to visit in November.
2) I've been trying to do some organizing & streamlining of my life and things (Remember project 333?) and I'd like to continue with that. A closet or drawer or two a week perhaps?
3) As the leaves start to turn, I'd like to keep up with raking them.
4) I think that's about good for now! I'd rather have a few good goals that I know I can reach than a huge long list that I'll be discouraged by when I read it at the end of the month
Well, I did get most of my Christmas knitting finished. (I have everything done for Canada minus weaving in ends on a few things- which is a good thing cause we're leaving tomorrow)
I am working at organizing things. In fact, that's what I've requested for my birthday- either nothing, or organizational tools (Rubbermaid's, storage drawers, labels, post it notes etc. :P) I sometimes feel like it is a never ending battle... I organize room by room, and by the time I get to the last room, the first room is a disaster again. :(
As for leaves... I haven't raked any... yet. I have thought about doing it a couple of days, but of course those were all extremely windy days, and it seemed a little counter intuitive to be raking leaves only to have them blow all over the yard again. When we get back from Canada...
To sum up: I feel like I have made good progress on my goals, but there is still much more to do. It's a work in progress!
P.S. I typed the web address for Etsy wrong the last time, so here it is again: http://www.etsy.com/people/ourhumblecastle
I wanted to report back on my list of October goals- now that it is almost to the end of November. We'll just pretend it was the list for both October & November. (which is true- I did still have the same main goals for this month too...)
If you remember the list:
1) get a good chunk of my Christmas knitting done- particularly the gifts for my Canada family & friends, as we're going to visit in November.
2) I've been trying to do some organizing & streamlining of my life and things (Remember project 333?) and I'd like to continue with that. A closet or drawer or two a week perhaps?
3) As the leaves start to turn, I'd like to keep up with raking them.
4) I think that's about good for now! I'd rather have a few good goals that I know I can reach than a huge long list that I'll be discouraged by when I read it at the end of the month
Well, I did get most of my Christmas knitting finished. (I have everything done for Canada minus weaving in ends on a few things- which is a good thing cause we're leaving tomorrow)
I am working at organizing things. In fact, that's what I've requested for my birthday- either nothing, or organizational tools (Rubbermaid's, storage drawers, labels, post it notes etc. :P) I sometimes feel like it is a never ending battle... I organize room by room, and by the time I get to the last room, the first room is a disaster again. :(
As for leaves... I haven't raked any... yet. I have thought about doing it a couple of days, but of course those were all extremely windy days, and it seemed a little counter intuitive to be raking leaves only to have them blow all over the yard again. When we get back from Canada...
To sum up: I feel like I have made good progress on my goals, but there is still much more to do. It's a work in progress!
P.S. I typed the web address for Etsy wrong the last time, so here it is again: http://www.etsy.com/people/ourhumblecastle
Monday, November 15, 2010
Etsy!
I'm full speed ahead working at developing an Etsy business. My shop name is ourhumblecastle (surprise surprise... )
I just finished an update, so head on over to
www.etsy.ourhumblecastle.com to check out the goodness! Just a fair warning, some of the yarns I listed today are already spoken for.
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| Group photo of some of my yarns |
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| DJ, enjoying the warm fall weather. |
Monday, November 8, 2010
Grandpa M look-a-like?
Just stopping in with a couple pictures... what I know you've all been waiting for.
Doesn't he look like his grandpa M in that first picture?
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| DJ sitting on the couch with some of his favourite toys |
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| hard at work pushing buttons! |
Monday, October 25, 2010
A choose your own adventure.
As promised on Facebook- to those of you who follow me both places- a choose your own adventure! Well, sort of. Let me explain a little bit of background here first.
I love lists. I lived by them in collage. Well, my whole life actually. If I don't have a list, I don't get it done. However, since the birth of my son, I find that lists can be very discouraging. When DJ was first born, I would sit down at the beginning of the week, just as I used to, and make a "master list" of all that needed to be done that week. Then I'd break it up into days... These 5 things need to be done on Monday, I'm going to do these 2 big tasks on Tuesday, run errands on Wednesday, etc. However, when you're living with the beautiful unpredicability of a small child, it becomes hard to get things done. Monday would end, and I'd only have one thing (if that!) done. Tuesday would begin and I would be determined to get both Tuesday and Monday's list done. And, once again, major fail. It got discouraging very quickly. I tried to lower my expecations and not worry about getting anything done, only... I would end up not getting anything done, even when I did have the time to do it.
The following is something that has been brewing around in my head for a while. I have been starting the day without a real list, but with the attitude of trying to get as much done that day as I am able. This "Choose your own adventure" (Us scientists like to call them dichotomous keys) has guided how I approach my non-existent to-do list. At the end of the day I find I am able to look back and have a good number of things done.
So here you have it:
A choose your own adventure in getting things done that weren’t on your list.
#1) You see or think of a task that needs to be done. Can you do it now? Yes - go to #2. No- go to#3
#2) Don’t delay! Do it now! ~
#3) Why can’t you do it? If something else must be done before you can tackle this particular task, then go to #4. If you don’t have time- go to #5. If you don’t feel like it, throw your feelings out the door & pick one of the other two options.
#4) Can you do that other task now? Yes -go to #2. No- go to #3
#5) You don’t have the time because: The task takes more time than you have right now – go to #6. If you are in the middle of something else- go to # 9.
#6) Do you have your schedule or paper handy? Yes- go to #7. No- go to #8.
#7) Yes! You always carry your schedule or paper with you. Write in the task that needs to be done in an appropriate time slot. ~
#8) No! You’re not one to have paper or scheduling devices handy. You need to either get it and write down the task, or (less desirable) make a mental note.~
#9) You are in the middle of something else. Is your current activity more important than the new task? (eg. - are you entertaining a baby? Or watching a TV show?) Yes- go to #10. No- go to #12
#10) Can you pause your activity? Yes- go to #6. No- go to #11
#11) Carry on with that very important activity! ~
#12) The activity isn’t as important as the task, so the task should be your first priority. However, does your current activity really need to be done? Yes- go to #13. No- go to #16
#13) Do you have paper/schedule book? Yes- to got #14. No- go to #15
#14) Write down your activity so you can remember to do it later, and start the new task. ~
#15) Get paper & write the activity down for later, or make a mental note, and start the new task. ~
#16) Drop whatever you were wasting time on & start the new task! ~
I love lists. I lived by them in collage. Well, my whole life actually. If I don't have a list, I don't get it done. However, since the birth of my son, I find that lists can be very discouraging. When DJ was first born, I would sit down at the beginning of the week, just as I used to, and make a "master list" of all that needed to be done that week. Then I'd break it up into days... These 5 things need to be done on Monday, I'm going to do these 2 big tasks on Tuesday, run errands on Wednesday, etc. However, when you're living with the beautiful unpredicability of a small child, it becomes hard to get things done. Monday would end, and I'd only have one thing (if that!) done. Tuesday would begin and I would be determined to get both Tuesday and Monday's list done. And, once again, major fail. It got discouraging very quickly. I tried to lower my expecations and not worry about getting anything done, only... I would end up not getting anything done, even when I did have the time to do it.
The following is something that has been brewing around in my head for a while. I have been starting the day without a real list, but with the attitude of trying to get as much done that day as I am able. This "Choose your own adventure" (Us scientists like to call them dichotomous keys) has guided how I approach my non-existent to-do list. At the end of the day I find I am able to look back and have a good number of things done.
So here you have it:
A choose your own adventure in getting things done that weren’t on your list.
#1) You see or think of a task that needs to be done. Can you do it now? Yes - go to #2. No- go to#3
#2) Don’t delay! Do it now! ~
#3) Why can’t you do it? If something else must be done before you can tackle this particular task, then go to #4. If you don’t have time- go to #5. If you don’t feel like it, throw your feelings out the door & pick one of the other two options.
#4) Can you do that other task now? Yes -go to #2. No- go to #3
#5) You don’t have the time because: The task takes more time than you have right now – go to #6. If you are in the middle of something else- go to # 9.
#6) Do you have your schedule or paper handy? Yes- go to #7. No- go to #8.
#7) Yes! You always carry your schedule or paper with you. Write in the task that needs to be done in an appropriate time slot. ~
#8) No! You’re not one to have paper or scheduling devices handy. You need to either get it and write down the task, or (less desirable) make a mental note.~
#9) You are in the middle of something else. Is your current activity more important than the new task? (eg. - are you entertaining a baby? Or watching a TV show?) Yes- go to #10. No- go to #12
#10) Can you pause your activity? Yes- go to #6. No- go to #11
#11) Carry on with that very important activity! ~
#12) The activity isn’t as important as the task, so the task should be your first priority. However, does your current activity really need to be done? Yes- go to #13. No- go to #16
#13) Do you have paper/schedule book? Yes- to got #14. No- go to #15
#14) Write down your activity so you can remember to do it later, and start the new task. ~
#15) Get paper & write the activity down for later, or make a mental note, and start the new task. ~
#16) Drop whatever you were wasting time on & start the new task! ~
Saturday, October 23, 2010
cupboards & drawers.
There is a problem with cupboards & drawers. They are great for keeping things organized around the house (I.e. keeping messes out of sight.) However, you can perfectly organize a cupboard, and no one would ever know. The rest of your house looks just as messy, or just as tidy (however it happens to be at the time). You do feel a little bit accomplished I suppose, but it is hard to keep that feeling once you look around. I guess you could always leave the cupboard door open to see your work & remind yourself of what you've done?
Just kidding. If you're tall, like we are, you'd hit your head.
So... I'm still chugging away at organizing things in our house- part of my list of October goals.
Less is more. Thats what I'm aiming for. Streamline- organize- reduce/re-use/recycle.
Oh. Quick cool comment on that- we got single stream recycling in our area of Lansing. I am so excited! It makes it really easy to recycle- EVERYTHING goes in one box. I know that's totally off topic, but I just reminded myself of it and had to mention it here. I just broke my only blog rule: one topic per post! Oops. Please forgive me.
Until next time:
Me.
Just kidding. If you're tall, like we are, you'd hit your head.
So... I'm still chugging away at organizing things in our house- part of my list of October goals.
Less is more. Thats what I'm aiming for. Streamline- organize- reduce/re-use/recycle.
Oh. Quick cool comment on that- we got single stream recycling in our area of Lansing. I am so excited! It makes it really easy to recycle- EVERYTHING goes in one box. I know that's totally off topic, but I just reminded myself of it and had to mention it here. I just broke my only blog rule: one topic per post! Oops. Please forgive me.
Until next time:
Me.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
October Goals
Hey guys!
I'd like to start something on this blog. I want to post lists of my goals: In January, my new years resolutions. Goals for the next week, next month... etc. Feel free to post a goal or two of your own in the comments. After that time frame is over, I'll check back in and see how I (we) did. And hopefully we can encourage each other in how we did.
So for October:
A few things I'd like to see done by the end of this month:
1) get a good chunk of my Chrstmas knitting done- particularly the gifts for my Canada family & friends, as we're going to visit in November.
2) I've been trying to do some organizing & streamlining of my life and things (Remember project 333?) and I'd like to continue with that. A closet or drawer or two a week perhaps?
3) As the leaves start to turn, I'd like to keep up with raking them.
4) I think that's about good for now! I'd rather have a few good goals that I know I can reach than a huge long list that I'll be discoraged by when I read it at the end of the month.
What are your goals for October?
I'd like to start something on this blog. I want to post lists of my goals: In January, my new years resolutions. Goals for the next week, next month... etc. Feel free to post a goal or two of your own in the comments. After that time frame is over, I'll check back in and see how I (we) did. And hopefully we can encourage each other in how we did.
So for October:
A few things I'd like to see done by the end of this month:
1) get a good chunk of my Chrstmas knitting done- particularly the gifts for my Canada family & friends, as we're going to visit in November.
2) I've been trying to do some organizing & streamlining of my life and things (Remember project 333?) and I'd like to continue with that. A closet or drawer or two a week perhaps?
3) As the leaves start to turn, I'd like to keep up with raking them.
4) I think that's about good for now! I'd rather have a few good goals that I know I can reach than a huge long list that I'll be discoraged by when I read it at the end of the month.
What are your goals for October?
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
I was wrong...
About not getting sick again. Turns out I've got a full fledged stuffy, runny nose, sneezes, coughs... not fun at all. Today has become a knit, tea & snuggles kind of day. I've been missing D a ton too, cause even though he's around, he has been (wisely) limiting all conact with me to the occational pat on the back or brief side hug... no snuggles there! Hopefully DJ won't come down too hard with this. He's been nursing almost non stop, through the night, hours &hours on end during the day...which I have heard to be a good thing for baby's immune system.
So. I'm drinking tea with honey & lemon juice,upping my Vit. C, taking echinacea, and trying to increase the water intake & limit the sugar.
What's your favorite thing to do for yourself when you're sick? A good remedy? Something to do to help you pass the time? For you parents, how do you manage to keep a house running when you're sick? I wish I had someone to cook my meals for me, bring me more tea & tissues when I run out like my mom did when I was little... but now I'm the mom, not the kid! I don't know how my amazing mother did it.
Tell me about your sick day traditions!
So. I'm drinking tea with honey & lemon juice,upping my Vit. C, taking echinacea, and trying to increase the water intake & limit the sugar.
What's your favorite thing to do for yourself when you're sick? A good remedy? Something to do to help you pass the time? For you parents, how do you manage to keep a house running when you're sick? I wish I had someone to cook my meals for me, bring me more tea & tissues when I run out like my mom did when I was little... but now I'm the mom, not the kid! I don't know how my amazing mother did it.
Tell me about your sick day traditions!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Update
Since you last heard from me, I've:
Gotten DJ's owl sweater finished
Got a lot of Christmas knitting done
Started working on Christmas cards for Etsy
Went on the shop hop (I'll explain a little later) with a good friend of mine.
Decided to participate in the Project 333 (again, more later)
Went to a fiber festival with another friend, and bought some fiber and a drop spindle to learn how to spin!
The Shop hop is an event put on by the Capitol area Yarn Shop Coopertive. Participatants purchased a "passport" for twenty dollars, and then visited each of the four yarn stores. Holding a passpot entitled the bearer to special deals at each store, as well as a free pattern designed by that store when you bought something there (anything- even just a 50 cent trinket) and... at the second store, you got an extra free pattern from a well know designer ( special just for the shop hop.) And... one more extra pattern when you visited all four shops. You've got a weekend (Thursday through Sunday) to get to all the shops.
DJ got his first cold the Wednesday before Shop hop. Mommy came down with it shortly afterwards too, and though we both got over it about a week later, now mommy has a throat that feels like a sea urchin is stuck in it- swallowing is no fun! I doubt it'll become more than just a sore throat though... I've got lots of tricks up my sleeve to fight it off!
I find it very hard to get things done when I'm sick. I really just want to snuggle under blankets, drink tea & knit. I did try to get work done- I decided that I'd do a one task per day sort of list- which ended up being more like one task the whole week... my poor hubby had to fend for himself most of the days while me & baby were sick.
Project 333:
In short: you chose 33 fashion items (so not underwear, PJs, wedding rings or workout clothes, but everything else is included) such as tops, pants, jackets, earings, shoes, purses, accessories, etc. and those are the only 33 items you wear for 3 months, from October 1-Decmber 31. I'll proably dedicate a post to this at some point, showing you what 33 items I have in my closet. :) For now, there is more info here.
I suppose now that I've mentioned Etsy I ought to explain a litte more about that as well. I opened an etsy shop, under my blog domain name (I.e. Our Humble Castle) I haven't gotten very far on it yet, it's one of those things that I am working on in my spare time (What spare time you ask? Ya, I wonder that too... :P ) Anyway, the web page is:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ourhumblecastle
Expect more cards & dyed yarn to come!
So... do you feel updated? ;)
Gotten DJ's owl sweater finished
Got a lot of Christmas knitting done
Started working on Christmas cards for Etsy
Went on the shop hop (I'll explain a little later) with a good friend of mine.
Decided to participate in the Project 333 (again, more later)
Went to a fiber festival with another friend, and bought some fiber and a drop spindle to learn how to spin!
The Shop hop is an event put on by the Capitol area Yarn Shop Coopertive. Participatants purchased a "passport" for twenty dollars, and then visited each of the four yarn stores. Holding a passpot entitled the bearer to special deals at each store, as well as a free pattern designed by that store when you bought something there (anything- even just a 50 cent trinket) and... at the second store, you got an extra free pattern from a well know designer ( special just for the shop hop.) And... one more extra pattern when you visited all four shops. You've got a weekend (Thursday through Sunday) to get to all the shops.
DJ got his first cold the Wednesday before Shop hop. Mommy came down with it shortly afterwards too, and though we both got over it about a week later, now mommy has a throat that feels like a sea urchin is stuck in it- swallowing is no fun! I doubt it'll become more than just a sore throat though... I've got lots of tricks up my sleeve to fight it off!
I find it very hard to get things done when I'm sick. I really just want to snuggle under blankets, drink tea & knit. I did try to get work done- I decided that I'd do a one task per day sort of list- which ended up being more like one task the whole week... my poor hubby had to fend for himself most of the days while me & baby were sick.
Project 333:
In short: you chose 33 fashion items (so not underwear, PJs, wedding rings or workout clothes, but everything else is included) such as tops, pants, jackets, earings, shoes, purses, accessories, etc. and those are the only 33 items you wear for 3 months, from October 1-Decmber 31. I'll proably dedicate a post to this at some point, showing you what 33 items I have in my closet. :) For now, there is more info here.
I suppose now that I've mentioned Etsy I ought to explain a litte more about that as well. I opened an etsy shop, under my blog domain name (I.e. Our Humble Castle) I haven't gotten very far on it yet, it's one of those things that I am working on in my spare time (What spare time you ask? Ya, I wonder that too... :P ) Anyway, the web page is:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ourhumblecastle
Expect more cards & dyed yarn to come!
So... do you feel updated? ;)
Sunday, September 19, 2010
A wise old owl
DJ has been referred to by a friend of mine as "the professor". He does have very mature features, and this particular nick-name for him got me thinking about wisdom, and what could be wiser than an owl? (jk) He needed a sweater that fit him (all the ones he has now he drowns in, including the BSJ I made for him) I decided to pick up some of my favorite silky wool yarn (Ravelry details) and find an easy free pattern to use. A lady at SSK has been making these cute owl sweaters from a pattern she bought for $7.00 that I really wanted to make, but me, being the sneaky me I am, decided to combine two free patterns into one sweater. I love how it is turning out so far:
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| DJ modeling the sweater so far |
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| Close up of the owls |
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| Detail of one owl cable |
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| I liked this artistic shot. |
Talk Like a Pirate Day
Well, there were several posts I was going to make before this, but when this happened, I couldn't help but share it first:
DJ says "Arr!"
Isn't he just the cutest little 12 week old ever?
DJ says "Arr!"
Isn't he just the cutest little 12 week old ever?
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Fingers
My fingers have always been important to me. When I was younger, my fingers and I learned how to play music on the piano and violin. We practiced hard, and got quite good at what we do. I started painting when I was a teen, and it was my fingers that held the brush. Throughout my education, my fingers have typed many words on a computer's keyboard, trying frantically to keep up with my train of thought. They are typing now, as I write, though this time only one hand's worth of fingers at a time, while the other hand's worth of fingers craddles DJ's head. I've used my fingers to knit and crochet, to grasp the whisk as I mix cake batter, to proudly announce my engagemant with a diamond ring. It was my itchy fingers that sent me to the doctor when DJ needed to be born early, and it's my fingers he prefers for comfort over a pacifier.
What do your fingers do?
What do your fingers do?
Monday, September 13, 2010
Christmas Gifts
When you're crafty and make most of the Christmas presents you give, it's never too early to start thinking about Christmas. I obviously can't tell you what I'm making, since most of the people who will be getting Christmas gifts from me, also read my blog. :P What I can tell you is that (at least some of) the gifts involve yarn, and so I've been busy dyeing some! It's something that I really enjoy, and allows me to get colors I like on nice yarns for cheaper than what I could get otherwise. And did I mention that it's fun and I love doing it?
I love making things for other people- especially when they like what I've made. I wish I had the time to make Christmas gifts for everone I know, but I'd have to start two years in advance if I did that. Hah!
Growing up, my family often made Christmas gifts for all our neighbors, something simple that we could do a lot of- such as poppycock in rubbermade tins, or gift baskets we'd put together ourselves out of items we purchased in bulk. I tend to follow that idea of gift giving still today- find something simple to make and make a bunch of them for everyone I need to give gifts to.
What have been your favorite Christmas gifts you've given? Crafters: What are your favorite simple gift projects that you like making? I do have to say that knit cotton dish cloths have always been a favorite of mine... I'd love to hear your ideas, but I warn you, I might steal some of them!
I love making things for other people- especially when they like what I've made. I wish I had the time to make Christmas gifts for everone I know, but I'd have to start two years in advance if I did that. Hah!
Growing up, my family often made Christmas gifts for all our neighbors, something simple that we could do a lot of- such as poppycock in rubbermade tins, or gift baskets we'd put together ourselves out of items we purchased in bulk. I tend to follow that idea of gift giving still today- find something simple to make and make a bunch of them for everyone I need to give gifts to.
What have been your favorite Christmas gifts you've given? Crafters: What are your favorite simple gift projects that you like making? I do have to say that knit cotton dish cloths have always been a favorite of mine... I'd love to hear your ideas, but I warn you, I might steal some of them!
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Schedules
(I wrote this post on Friday, I just didn't get it published til now.)
I had a rough day yesterday, as far as accoumplishing anything around the house goes. Now Thursdays are my knitting days, a day that I have allowed myself to knit most of the day, snd not worry sbout getting house things done. However, yesterday the fact that the house was in disorder, and had been for most of the week really bothered me.
D's first week back to school was great. He and I had worked really hard on getting the house cleaned & organised the week before classes started - it wasn't perfect, but it was in really good shape. Every day D was at school by 8:00 am, and came home sometime that evening to a clean & tidy office, a clean kitchen with supper ready to go on the table, and most time I had the living room clean as well. I was excited about how well I was doing. I even had time to work on cards, and a few other things that have been long overdue, important but not urgent, things.
Then come a couple of days when D's schedule starts getting out of wack- he needs to get classwork done, so he stays up late, then comes home right after classes the next day cause he's tired & sleeps, waking up in the evening, and then needing to study all night to stay caught up for the next day. I'd have his office clean when he came home, but then I'd ue it while he slept, and it would get messy again. I started dyeing yarn for Chtistmas presents ( that's the next post) which tied up the Kitchen. When D came home before lunch, it was hard to justify getting up @ 6:30 to pack a lunch when I could make him one when he got home. When he slept through lunch or supper hour, it was hard to go ahead and make the meal when I knew I'd be eating alone... and then when he did wake up, the food wasn't ready and I was often too tired & hungry to take the time at that point to make a heathy meal- opting for quick to prepare nachos or something along those lines.
I finally finished the yarn dyeing last Monday, so I figured I'd be able to get the kitchen back to my standard of tidy on Tuesday. However it had been easy to stay up late working on the yarn, seeing how D was up studying too...then during the day, it was hard to be motivated to work. I'd want to take a nap when D got home and wanted to sleep. So yesterday, the kitchen still wasn't near where I wanted it to be.
I know that with a baby, it is perfectly impossible to get all the work done that you want to, so the to-do list that I had for myself beyond the simple everyday household chores that wasn't getting done was understandable. However, I had been managing to both keep things tidy, & get something on that list done each day, just a few short weeks ago- and getting back to that place shopuldn't have taken me this long. Once it's clean & tidy, it doesn't take much to keep it there. Getting it there has been the problem.
D & I had a good talk last night, and we talked through some of the causes of why I was feeling frusterated, and today I've been thinking through some solutions. I was reminded of what my mom does for meals during seeding & harvest, when my dad's schedule gets wacky. She makes lots of bread, and always has one or two sandwiches per worker that she's feeding in the fridge at all times. That way my dad can grab a sandwich on the way to the feild, but if he ends up coming home for lunch, he can either eat the sandwich, or eat the soup or whatever mom had made for those at home.
As I mentioned, I wrote the above post yesterday, in bits & pieces throughout the day while feeding DJ, and I am happy to say that the kitchen got tidied to 100%, and D stayed up when he got home from classes in an atemp to normalize his sleeping pattern. I know this is still a work in progress, and if you have any suggestions for me of things I can do to motivate me to stay on task, even when those close to me have wacky schedules, I'm all ears!
I had a rough day yesterday, as far as accoumplishing anything around the house goes. Now Thursdays are my knitting days, a day that I have allowed myself to knit most of the day, snd not worry sbout getting house things done. However, yesterday the fact that the house was in disorder, and had been for most of the week really bothered me.
D's first week back to school was great. He and I had worked really hard on getting the house cleaned & organised the week before classes started - it wasn't perfect, but it was in really good shape. Every day D was at school by 8:00 am, and came home sometime that evening to a clean & tidy office, a clean kitchen with supper ready to go on the table, and most time I had the living room clean as well. I was excited about how well I was doing. I even had time to work on cards, and a few other things that have been long overdue, important but not urgent, things.
Then come a couple of days when D's schedule starts getting out of wack- he needs to get classwork done, so he stays up late, then comes home right after classes the next day cause he's tired & sleeps, waking up in the evening, and then needing to study all night to stay caught up for the next day. I'd have his office clean when he came home, but then I'd ue it while he slept, and it would get messy again. I started dyeing yarn for Chtistmas presents ( that's the next post) which tied up the Kitchen. When D came home before lunch, it was hard to justify getting up @ 6:30 to pack a lunch when I could make him one when he got home. When he slept through lunch or supper hour, it was hard to go ahead and make the meal when I knew I'd be eating alone... and then when he did wake up, the food wasn't ready and I was often too tired & hungry to take the time at that point to make a heathy meal- opting for quick to prepare nachos or something along those lines.
I finally finished the yarn dyeing last Monday, so I figured I'd be able to get the kitchen back to my standard of tidy on Tuesday. However it had been easy to stay up late working on the yarn, seeing how D was up studying too...then during the day, it was hard to be motivated to work. I'd want to take a nap when D got home and wanted to sleep. So yesterday, the kitchen still wasn't near where I wanted it to be.
I know that with a baby, it is perfectly impossible to get all the work done that you want to, so the to-do list that I had for myself beyond the simple everyday household chores that wasn't getting done was understandable. However, I had been managing to both keep things tidy, & get something on that list done each day, just a few short weeks ago- and getting back to that place shopuldn't have taken me this long. Once it's clean & tidy, it doesn't take much to keep it there. Getting it there has been the problem.
D & I had a good talk last night, and we talked through some of the causes of why I was feeling frusterated, and today I've been thinking through some solutions. I was reminded of what my mom does for meals during seeding & harvest, when my dad's schedule gets wacky. She makes lots of bread, and always has one or two sandwiches per worker that she's feeding in the fridge at all times. That way my dad can grab a sandwich on the way to the feild, but if he ends up coming home for lunch, he can either eat the sandwich, or eat the soup or whatever mom had made for those at home.
As I mentioned, I wrote the above post yesterday, in bits & pieces throughout the day while feeding DJ, and I am happy to say that the kitchen got tidied to 100%, and D stayed up when he got home from classes in an atemp to normalize his sleeping pattern. I know this is still a work in progress, and if you have any suggestions for me of things I can do to motivate me to stay on task, even when those close to me have wacky schedules, I'm all ears!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
If you follow me, and I follow you, does that mean we're going in a circle?
Sort of reminds me of this comic- but that's not the point of this post. The real point is this: if you're following my blog and have a blog of your own, I'd like to follow it! That's one of the things that I've been enjoying about blogging on blogspot is the "Dashboard" where I can quickly link to blogs that I want to keep up with.
So if you've got one for me, just leave a comment after this post!
:D
So if you've got one for me, just leave a comment after this post!
:D
Friday, September 3, 2010
Socks
Yes, I know I can buy socks at Walmart. But since I've started knitting my own, I don't think I want to anymore. If you've never worn a pair of hand-knit socks, you are missing out. The truth is that unless you can knit you probably can't afford a pair. Just the cost of yarn for a pair of socks can easily cost 15 dollars or more. My first pair used $18 dollars worth of yarn, and I think I spent close to 40 hours on it so... at $7 an hour that's about $280 dollars... you've got yourself a pair of $300.00 socks. I'm sure some people could afford that, and hey, if you're one of them who wants to spend $300.00 on the nicest feeling pair of socks you've ever worn, drop me a line, and we might be able to work a deal. ;)
But enough talk about the value of socks.This is a history of the socks I've made, so far. I'd love it if some day, I only owned hand-knit socks, and no more Walmart ones.
The first pair I made were for my dad for his birthday.
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| Gray Panda Silk sock for Dad |
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| Dad proudly wearing his socks |
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| One of DH's socks |
I made my next two pairs by kniting the first sock of each before going back and making the second sock for each pair. One for DH, and one for me. DH's pair was finished first.
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| My "Happy Spring Socks" |
One of the local yarn shops (Rae's Yarn Boutique) has started doing a "sock of the month" club. I bought the July kit, mostly because I know the designer, (Lynn H) and I've always wanted to have one of her patterns. What better pattern than a sock pattern?
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| Summer Squiggle Sock |
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| DH's sock in Extravayarnza's Wonderflonium yarn |
Thursday, September 2, 2010
True calling.
"One finds their true calling where their talents intersect with the greatest needs in the world."
There is a great need in the world today for strong Christians in every walk of life- business, medicine, agriculture, politics, just to name a few.
I believe I have talent in many areas, but many of them center around making a house into a home, such as my crafting, working in the kitchen, making music, and learning.
This is why my true calling is to be a wife and mother. This is why I want to have a large family- the potential to place more godly men & women in more avenues of life. This is why I'm dedicated to raising this little guy to love the Lord with all his heart.
Where does YOUR true calling lie?
There is a great need in the world today for strong Christians in every walk of life- business, medicine, agriculture, politics, just to name a few.
I believe I have talent in many areas, but many of them center around making a house into a home, such as my crafting, working in the kitchen, making music, and learning.
This is why my true calling is to be a wife and mother. This is why I want to have a large family- the potential to place more godly men & women in more avenues of life. This is why I'm dedicated to raising this little guy to love the Lord with all his heart.
Where does YOUR true calling lie?
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Baby, Baby!
Our son David Douglas (DJ for simplicity's sake) is here! In fact, he's been here for 10 weeks already. My how time flies.
He's only a day old in this picture, chillin' on the quilt Grandma M made, wearing the coming home outfit that I knit for him.
He was supposed to be a July baby, but he ended up coming on June 22- my doctor induced me early, because my liver started doing funny things, and due to the high risk of still birth (Yikes!) they wanted him out A.S.A.P. once they confirmed my condition.
But all that was a long but fast 10 weeks ago.
He's only a day old in this picture, chillin' on the quilt Grandma M made, wearing the coming home outfit that I knit for him.
He was supposed to be a July baby, but he ended up coming on June 22- my doctor induced me early, because my liver started doing funny things, and due to the high risk of still birth (Yikes!) they wanted him out A.S.A.P. once they confirmed my condition.
But all that was a long but fast 10 weeks ago.
A picture at 5w2d. Wide eyed & looking at mommy. That outfit doesn't fit him anymore- he's too long for it!
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| DJ & mommy in Philadelphia |
At 7 weeks we went on a family vaccation, visiting Carbondale IL for a friend's wedding, Nashville on our way to Lynchbutg VA for a week, then Philadelphia & New York before heading home.
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| Our family by the Liberty Bell |
Life is busier then ever, and I am being forced to learn how to make ever moment count, which will be a great blessing in the long term. I'm loving all the new, callanging, and sometimes frightening moments as they come. Here's to being a mom!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Go to the ant...
This week has been an interesting one. I know it's only Wednesday, and there is plenty more week to go around. I hope that the rest of the week will improve.
Last week- on Friday- I had a great day getting everything done on my list in preparation for my knitting group that night. I dusted, vacuumed and tidied up downstairs, the kitchen was in order, and I even gave the floor a quick wash down. I accomplished everything that was on my list before that evening. It was a perfect ending to a great week. I did have a few things on my to-do list that carried over to the next week...
Que Monday. I don't really remember what I did Monday, probably because I didn't do much of anything. I have a dry-erase board in the kitchen that I use to write down the things that I need to do that day. It is in a high-traffic, visible location- perfect for reminding me of what I have to do. I usually spend some time first thing in the morning, or even the night before (if I am ambitious) writing out my game plan for the day. But Monday, I didn't. My whiteboard was just that... white.
Tuesday, well... I know what I did Tuesday. I wasted time on the computer and didn't accomplish much of anything. I didn't even get ready for the day (dressed etc) until I had to leave for my Dr.'s appointment- at 3:00 pm. (Everything is average with both me and the baby! Praise the Lord!) David has spring allergies, but Tuesday morning he had woken up with a sore throat on top of the regular allergies... by last night (That was Tuesday night... I know it's past 12:00am Thursday now, but it still feels like Wednesday to me.) I had the same sore throat. I'm blessed I don't have allergies on top of it, but even with going to bed early last night, today was a bit of a "sick day" for me.
We have offered to host our Bible study Wednesday nights, so I needed to have the house in good shape for that. I needed to get work done today. It would have been so much easier on me if I had just worked a little better Monday and Tuesday. But sometimes it takes a while for us to learn those lessons. I worked at what I could today, and did get quite a few things done. One quote that kept coming to mind was from Emilie Barnes: "It doesn't have to be done perfectly, it just needs to be done". Sometimes -I'm wondering if that's what happened to me on Monday- sometimes I think that when I look at all of the things that I need to do, its hard to know where to start. Beyond that, I don't really want to start a task- say- cleaning out the fridge, (it needs to be done) because I don't think I have the time to do it as well as I want to do it at that point- so I don't do it at all. This quote encourages me to start anyway. I might not get it all done, but I can at least get something done. Today I started cleaning windows- a spring cleaning task that needs to be done- but I didn't have the time to get it all of the windows in our house done in one afternoon. In fact, I only cleaned the front and back glass doors... nothing else. But hey! I at least got something done. It reminds me of another quote: (which I just looked up and found out I miss-memorized it as a child. The real quote is first:) "Mile by mile, life's a trial. Yard by yard, it's not so hard. Inch by inch, it's a cinch!" ~Unknown
(My version: "Yard by yard, life's hard. Mile by mile, it takes a while. But inch by inch, everything's a cinch!" )
So tomorrow, inch by inch I will get things done.
Tomorrow, I will not worry about getting things done perfectly, just done!
I want that Friday night feeling again, my to-do list full of check marks.
Reaching goals feels good. But in order to reach them, I need to set them - every day.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
The Blessings of Being Pregnant
Sugar gives me heartburn. Not spicy food, not eating too much, just sugar. I had two donuts this afternoon, and I am paying for it now...
I figured this out most clearly when I went in for my gestational diabetes test this last week. They had me drink about 350 ml of pure sugar water (a certain combination of dextrose and glucose and other sugars) within 5 minutes, ( I chugged it, cause the sooner I finished the sooner they could start timing) and then exactly an hour later they drew blood for lab work. That's all that was in my stomach that whole hour... just a mere 350 ml of liquid sugar, and it gave me heartburn.
I really don't have much to complain about though. Of all the major complaints that people have about later on in pregnancy, such as heartburn, not very good sleeps, jabs to the ribs, tap dancing on the bladder, well, it hasn't been that bad for me. Tomorrow will mark the fact that I am unmistakably in the third trimester, so I suppose that could start to change things. ( I'll be 28 weeks then... although I'd almost say 26 weeks counts for second tri... depends on how you divide things up!) I rarely eat anything sugary, and I've hardly ever gotten heartburn this whole pregnancy. Baby Goo moves, and is plenty active, but only jabs in ways that hurt if I haven't been that active that day. (Sitting on the couch for extended periods of time isn't a good idea. I get jabbed in the ribs!) So long as I've been working in the garden, or going for a run, or working out using the Wii fit... Baby Goo is quite happy to be calm and kick gently. (Most of the time it just tickles!) It's great motivation to stay in motion! I honestly hadn't felt any distinct kicks to my bladder until today. So far, it's not too bad... but I imagine it could get worse. :) As for not being able to sleep, God has blessed us with an amazing Tempur-Pedic memory foam bed, and the only complaint I am starting to have with it is because it is a king size! It comes in two twins joined to make the king, leaving us with a small crack between the halves of the bed. I used to be able to sleep on the crack (and close to my husband on his side of the bed) with no problem... but now I've got to choose: sleep comfortably, or sleep next to D! He's been great about letting me sleep on my side and him coming over to the middle to cuddle for a while...
As you can see, I have plenty of physical blessings to count in this pregnancy. I've been able to run almost weekly for the last month or so, and have been so enjoying how good I feel afterwards. D and I actually registered for our first 5k together! It will be the beginning of May. I am so blessed! I hope to come back and read this blog post on my rougher days of pregnancy that I will undoubtedly face, and be reminded of how beautiful of a miracle pregnancy is, and how wonderfully easy of a journey I have been blessed with.
Count your blessings!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
My berry patch
Spring is here, in full rainstorms and sunshine and glory.
My parents came down at the end of March, and helped with projects around the house and yard. You'd be amazed at how much needed to be done, as well as how much got done! It was such a blessing.
I really should have taken a before picture of the back yard just to show how far it has come. There was a sandbox that was full of weeds and maple tree seedlings, and now... it is perfectly cleaned out and is the home to my new berry patch!
We've been blessed with lots of space in our back yard- albeit a little bit shady thanks to the big maple tree- (Mom couldn't believe that all the leaves we raked were pretty much only from the tree in our back yard- over 20 lawn and garden bags full!) and I have been wanting to grow a garden so badly. One of the things that I have missed the most about farm life is the fresh raspberries in the fall. They are so expensive to buy in the store, and they're never quite the same as ones you pick yourself. Of course I wanted to make sure my garden had a berry patch of raspberries and strawberries. I put an add on Craigslist, asking if anyone had an established patch that I could come and get a few strawberry runners or raspberry canes from. I've gotten replies from about 3 people who are willing to let me get plants from them! They each have different varieties, so I'm planning on getting some from each of them. Over the next year or two, I'll figure out which ones I like best and want to keep, and I can always thin out the ones that don't do as well.
I had posted the add earlier in the spring, before most people had gotten out into their gardens. I finally connected with one of the ladies today and got my first round of plants! It had been raining quite heavily the last while, but we thought we'd try to go out and dig them up anyway. I headed over, and by the time I got to this lady's house, it had stopped raining! Not only that, but it stopped long enough that I was able to go out and finish preparing my sandbox (Strawberries love sandy soil) and put them in the ground.
A few pictures to share:
A bonus picture of our puppy, Lulu who was enjoying being outside with her mommy, and doing a very good job of learning to stay "out" of the new berry patch. :DMonday, February 22, 2010
Sweaters and snow
I woke up earlier than I would have liked this morning and drove D to his exam through several inches of slippery, slushy snow. No such thing as a snow day for a medical student!
Part of the blame for this morning being earlier than I wanted it to be was the fact that I didn't get to bed until much later than I had intended. The reason for that is best shown, not explained. See:
I finally got the body of my sweater done! Mind you, it was 12:30 AM when I finished it. I intended to go to bed closer to, oh, maybe 11:30, and when 11:30 came I decided that I would knit until midnight and then stop, but when midnight came and I was only a very short section away from being completely done with it, well...
I finished.
All that I have left to do now is knit two sleeves, block the pieces, seam them together, and finish it off with a brown i-cord edging and I'm done! The body is going to get soaked and put on my nifty blocking pads from Sam's club (Heavy-duty interlocking safety mats... :D ) today. I'm going to give a sleeve my best shot today as well, and hopefully I can get one done. Personally, I'd like to be wearing this on Thursday when I go to SSK (South-side knitters- a little group of us that meet at a coffee shop Thursday mornings). But... that might just be wishful thinking.
Last Thursday at SSK I was just starting to pick up stitches off of the cable braid across the bottom of the sweater. I needed help from some of my expert knitting friends to finish my calculations about where to make the decreases on the sides. ( I love the cable on this pattern, but I wasn't too excited about wearing a rectangle...) In the hour and a half or so that I worked on it that morning, I picked up my stitches and did about 2 rows beyond that. Not much at all. And yet my goal is to have it finished a week later at our next meeting? A knitter can dream, can't she?
A little note about the decreases I did- I made the braid according to the directions for a L sized sweater, picked up the # of stitches for a L size sweater, (216) and proceeded to make decreases on either side of where the M sized back would be, (center 96 stitches) until I had reached the # of stitches for the M size. (192) I did the decreases fairly evenly spread over the 74 rows it took me to get 15" of fabric. Then I proceeded to work the arm shaping according to the instructions for a M sized sweater. It seems to have worked quite nicely! I will be making two M sized sleeves to match the arm-hole shaping.
Enough taking about it! I must get to work! The time is slipping away from me, and I have plenty of hours to put in, both on the knitting, and a few other things around the house that need to be done. I leave you with a quote that seems fitting in light of my lofty sweater project goals: "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it, you will land among the stars"
Part of the blame for this morning being earlier than I wanted it to be was the fact that I didn't get to bed until much later than I had intended. The reason for that is best shown, not explained. See:
I finished.
All that I have left to do now is knit two sleeves, block the pieces, seam them together, and finish it off with a brown i-cord edging and I'm done! The body is going to get soaked and put on my nifty blocking pads from Sam's club (Heavy-duty interlocking safety mats... :D ) today. I'm going to give a sleeve my best shot today as well, and hopefully I can get one done. Personally, I'd like to be wearing this on Thursday when I go to SSK (South-side knitters- a little group of us that meet at a coffee shop Thursday mornings). But... that might just be wishful thinking.
Last Thursday at SSK I was just starting to pick up stitches off of the cable braid across the bottom of the sweater. I needed help from some of my expert knitting friends to finish my calculations about where to make the decreases on the sides. ( I love the cable on this pattern, but I wasn't too excited about wearing a rectangle...) In the hour and a half or so that I worked on it that morning, I picked up my stitches and did about 2 rows beyond that. Not much at all. And yet my goal is to have it finished a week later at our next meeting? A knitter can dream, can't she?
A little note about the decreases I did- I made the braid according to the directions for a L sized sweater, picked up the # of stitches for a L size sweater, (216) and proceeded to make decreases on either side of where the M sized back would be, (center 96 stitches) until I had reached the # of stitches for the M size. (192) I did the decreases fairly evenly spread over the 74 rows it took me to get 15" of fabric. Then I proceeded to work the arm shaping according to the instructions for a M sized sweater. It seems to have worked quite nicely! I will be making two M sized sleeves to match the arm-hole shaping.
Enough taking about it! I must get to work! The time is slipping away from me, and I have plenty of hours to put in, both on the knitting, and a few other things around the house that need to be done. I leave you with a quote that seems fitting in light of my lofty sweater project goals: "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it, you will land among the stars"
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
We interrupt this knitting week to present:
I had our "20 week" ultrasound done today. I'm supposedly only 19 weeks 2 days today, but so long as the ultrasound is done within a week or two, it serves its purpose. The doctor and ultrasound tech checked all of the major anatomical features of the baby, (spine, kidneys, stomach, bladder, brain, heart, etc) making sure they were on track for what they were supposed to, and that there were no visible defects. (And there were none, thank the Lord! Everything is developing properly.)
Seeing how this is my first post about our baby, let me fill you in on what is going on. The doctors have my due date set as July 11th, 2010. God couldn't have planned it better- it's in the middle of the 5-6 week summer break that D has. Today's ultrasound had Baby Goo (our nickname for the child) measuring a little bit bigger than average, but still within the target growth. I was a big baby, (10lb 6 oz,) so I wouldn't be surprised if I also have a big baby. This is our first child, and we are waiting until it is born to find out the gender. (P.S. we're keeping records of the "guesses" of our friends, so if you want to be added to the official list, just include your guess in your comment!) We do have names picked out for both genders, one of which we had decided on before we were married! We'll keep those secret for now. ;)
I was a little disappointed in some of the ultrasound pictures today. Baby Goo wasn't lined up very well for the profile shot, so I'm not even going to post one of it... you can hardly tell it's a baby, let alone the profile of one! My favorite picture by far is the one of Baby Goo's feet:
You can even see the toes on the end of the top foot!
Baby Goo is lying sideways, with the head on my right side, and the feet towards my left. I also found out today that the placenta is between me and the baby, which would explain why I haven't really felt any distinct movement yet. I'm sure I'll be thankful for the cushioning later, once the baby really starts kicking!
We are so excited about this blessing the Lord is entrusting to us. I wouldn't be surprised if Baby Goo becomes the subject matter of many more blog posts! For right now though, I've had a very long and exciting day and am about to grab my knitting and sit out in the other room with D to wind down for the night.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
First two WIPs finished!!!
Keeping everyone up-to-date on my Ravelympics projects:
I have finished the BSJ, and I absolutely love the finished product. The colors worked out beautifully. I ended up switching out some of the brighter colorway for one that was a little more earthy. (I would have ended up with too much purple and blue on the front of the sweater, and they are definitely not my favorite colors-- as it is, I love the colors that ended up on the front from the other colorway!) I have about a skein of left over yarn that I'm going to use for a super-secret project. (something small and simple that I can have on hand for birthday and other special occasion gifts...)
Here is the finished sweater:
Buttons will be added once the baby is born, since we are not finding out the gender! :)
The second project on the list also got finished up tonight. It only took me about two hours or less to add the ribbing on the arms, and do the collar, and of course, weave in all the ends. :D
I present: The Mini-Mangyle:
This is for a little guy, (he's almost two I think... I 'd have to check on that!) but it might already be too small on him. Luckly, he now has an infant brother who can grow into it if it doesn't fit him at all, I'll just have to make him a special sweater for his next birthday...
I did start working on my next project, and I hope to have it done by Tuesday night at the latest. I'd be super happy if it were done tomorrow night, (there is a chance I'll be able to swing it) but I'm not going to count on it. If I finish by Tuesday, that will leave me with 12 days for my last two projects: the colorwork mittens, and my Samus sweater... which I will be making in a size L instead of the M size I had planned... so it fits over my baby bump! :P
Goodnight world!
I have finished the BSJ, and I absolutely love the finished product. The colors worked out beautifully. I ended up switching out some of the brighter colorway for one that was a little more earthy. (I would have ended up with too much purple and blue on the front of the sweater, and they are definitely not my favorite colors-- as it is, I love the colors that ended up on the front from the other colorway!) I have about a skein of left over yarn that I'm going to use for a super-secret project. (something small and simple that I can have on hand for birthday and other special occasion gifts...)
Here is the finished sweater:Buttons will be added once the baby is born, since we are not finding out the gender! :)
The second project on the list also got finished up tonight. It only took me about two hours or less to add the ribbing on the arms, and do the collar, and of course, weave in all the ends. :D
I present: The Mini-Mangyle:
I did start working on my next project, and I hope to have it done by Tuesday night at the latest. I'd be super happy if it were done tomorrow night, (there is a chance I'll be able to swing it) but I'm not going to count on it. If I finish by Tuesday, that will leave me with 12 days for my last two projects: the colorwork mittens, and my Samus sweater... which I will be making in a size L instead of the M size I had planned... so it fits over my baby bump! :P
Goodnight world!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
For the next two weeks this is a knitting blog...
Consider yourself warned.
Ravelympics is off to a good start for me. Last night we took an average of two clocks (one said 9:01 and the other said 8:59) and we started on our projects. A friend of mine cast on her very first lace shawl, and I got out my BSJ WIP project, figured out where I was ( I don't know why I didn't get that done earlier) and let the needles fly!
Time seemed to fly as well, because before I knew it, it was 11:30, and I still had a couple more rows to do to reach my goal for the night. At about 12:05 (right around three hours of knitting) I had finished 20 rows. I hope to have this sweater finished by Sunday night so I can work on the next project in line. Of course I had to average my "time per row", figure out how many rows I had left, add in extra time because each row is getting longer, and then calculate how long the rest of the project should take me. (all of this at midnight with a very tired brain!) Now I know I should be able to complete this in about 10 more hours of work, and that I probably will have put at least 25 hours into knitting this sweater for my little one-to-be.
Oh yes, the reason I wanted to make this post this morning:
Before I started last night:
Picture taken this morning to show how far I've come. Note that I was starting at the red stripe located near the "armpit" of the sleeve last night. I'm quite happy with how far I've come, and I can't wait to see where it will be tonight!
Ravelympics is off to a good start for me. Last night we took an average of two clocks (one said 9:01 and the other said 8:59) and we started on our projects. A friend of mine cast on her very first lace shawl, and I got out my BSJ WIP project, figured out where I was ( I don't know why I didn't get that done earlier) and let the needles fly!
Time seemed to fly as well, because before I knew it, it was 11:30, and I still had a couple more rows to do to reach my goal for the night. At about 12:05 (right around three hours of knitting) I had finished 20 rows. I hope to have this sweater finished by Sunday night so I can work on the next project in line. Of course I had to average my "time per row", figure out how many rows I had left, add in extra time because each row is getting longer, and then calculate how long the rest of the project should take me. (all of this at midnight with a very tired brain!) Now I know I should be able to complete this in about 10 more hours of work, and that I probably will have put at least 25 hours into knitting this sweater for my little one-to-be.
Oh yes, the reason I wanted to make this post this morning:
Friday, February 12, 2010
Ravelympics preview
I knit and crochet, and have discovered that Ravelry.com is a very handy website for such crafters. This website issued a challenge to its members: Over the Olympics (17 days) challenge yourself to start and finish a project (no matter how big or small) or finish up projects that have been siting around unfinished (WIP=work in progress) You are allowed to start working on the projects during the opening ceremonies (but not before) and they must be finished by the end of the Olympics for it to get a "medal"
I wanted to do a quick photo preview of the projects that I have planned for the next 17 days. I may have bitten off more than I can chew, but they said to challenge yourself right?
First up:
Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ)
This is a sweater I started for Baby Goo (the nickname for our baby, due in July). It is a WIP, and the first project that I will work on. I'm hoping to have it finished over the weekend... we'll see how long it will actually take me.
Mini-Mangyle
This is a sweater-vest that is (still) a Christmas gift (09) for a friend's toddler. (those are doublepoint needles on it) I obviously don't have much to do... just weaving in ends and ribbing the shoulders and adding a neckline... shouldn't be too bad... less then a day's work I hope.
Entrelac Gloves
Once again, not too hard of a job, just the fingers on the left hand to finish up. Hoping for not much longer than a day or two for this one...
Samus sweater
I have only just started this sweater for myself. It will be this beautiful brown for the bottom of the sweater, and for the bottoms of the cuffs, and then the gorgeous red for the body of the sweater. This will be my biggest challenge, and will probably take most of the 17 days.
Rainbow Delphine Gloves
This will be my only non-WIP project. I'm looking forward to doing the color work on this pattern... I don't have much to say about this I guess, until I start working on them a little more. :)
That's all I have for now! I'm just waiting for 9:00 tonight when I can get out my BSJ and start working on it! :D I am so excited! :D
I wanted to do a quick photo preview of the projects that I have planned for the next 17 days. I may have bitten off more than I can chew, but they said to challenge yourself right?
First up:
Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ)
Mini-Mangyle
Entrelac Gloves
Once again, not too hard of a job, just the fingers on the left hand to finish up. Hoping for not much longer than a day or two for this one...
Samus sweater
Rainbow Delphine Gloves
This will be my only non-WIP project. I'm looking forward to doing the color work on this pattern... I don't have much to say about this I guess, until I start working on them a little more. :)
That's all I have for now! I'm just waiting for 9:00 tonight when I can get out my BSJ and start working on it! :D I am so excited! :D
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Refreshingly exhausted.
I tried to think of a title first. What a silly idea. I thought I learned that back when I first watched "Anne of Green Gables, the continuing story"...
My body is tired, my mind is tired (pardon me if I don't make sense.), yet as exhausted as I feel physically, I also feel refreshed. I had a great time enjoying two events that I haven't attended in a long time, enjoying the company of friends that I haven't seen since Christmastime.
I didn't have the energy to get all of the tasks done today that I had intended to. (i.e. washing dishes, organizing the "office" room, etc.) Instead, I chose to enjoy my Thursday as a knitting day. I could choose to feel that I "wasted" my day, or that I failed... I didn't get all of my list done! Instead, I've focused on what I have done at the end of the day.
This is a principle I've been trying to adopt lately... in the past I've struggled to motivate myself to accomplish the things I need to in this castle of mine. I don't have any external motivators, other than the days that I need to drive D (my husband) to school. It's easy to waste my time and then beat myself up afterward for not getting anything done in a day, yet not change anything the following day. It's also easy to set aside one big task for one day... such as organizing a room, cleaning "the whole house" and then not be able to accomplish it all in one day... the key is to look at what you have done. My mentor has been encouraging me to "make small acts out of big plays" (or something like that... I'll have to check that quote) Instead of organizing the office, perhaps tomorrow my goal will be to "start" organizing the office. That way, so long as I get a tiny bite off that job, I am able to feel accomlished.
At the end of your day, what HAVE you done? Not what did you want to accomplish, not what should you have accomplished. Even if it wasn't something on your "list"- if it needed to be done, be glad you got it done! Be encouraged as you think about what you have done, and be determined to do just as well tomorrow.
My body is tired, my mind is tired (pardon me if I don't make sense.), yet as exhausted as I feel physically, I also feel refreshed. I had a great time enjoying two events that I haven't attended in a long time, enjoying the company of friends that I haven't seen since Christmastime.
I didn't have the energy to get all of the tasks done today that I had intended to. (i.e. washing dishes, organizing the "office" room, etc.) Instead, I chose to enjoy my Thursday as a knitting day. I could choose to feel that I "wasted" my day, or that I failed... I didn't get all of my list done! Instead, I've focused on what I have done at the end of the day.
This is a principle I've been trying to adopt lately... in the past I've struggled to motivate myself to accomplish the things I need to in this castle of mine. I don't have any external motivators, other than the days that I need to drive D (my husband) to school. It's easy to waste my time and then beat myself up afterward for not getting anything done in a day, yet not change anything the following day. It's also easy to set aside one big task for one day... such as organizing a room, cleaning "the whole house" and then not be able to accomplish it all in one day... the key is to look at what you have done. My mentor has been encouraging me to "make small acts out of big plays" (or something like that... I'll have to check that quote) Instead of organizing the office, perhaps tomorrow my goal will be to "start" organizing the office. That way, so long as I get a tiny bite off that job, I am able to feel accomlished.
At the end of your day, what HAVE you done? Not what did you want to accomplish, not what should you have accomplished. Even if it wasn't something on your "list"- if it needed to be done, be glad you got it done! Be encouraged as you think about what you have done, and be determined to do just as well tomorrow.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
The Beginning
I officially have a blog.
This raises a few questions in my mind, such as:
What should be the purpose of a blog? Is it to benefit you, the reader, or me, the author? Perhaps both? A place to publicly voice opinions? Simply a journal to document what has happened in my life? To amuse people? Do I want this blog to develop a following, or am I content to let my words, however they are directed in the end, simply float around in silent cyberspace?
I have friends who have knitting blogs, keeping track of their projects, and putting them on display. I have friends who have blogs where they update home churches on the events of their missions trips. I have seen blogs focused on food, on electronics, on green living. Any object or subject which that person finds interesting becomes the content of their blog.
What am I interested in? A short list would contain:
Cooking
Frugal living
Gardening
Knitting
Photography
Science
This just scratches the surface of what I love doing. This obviously is too much for one blog to focus on. Which brings me back again to why I have this blog.
I want this blog to be an encouragement to those who read it. Whatever I post, be, what I've done that day, or a tip I've learned for frugal living, or my newest crafting project, I want it to be uplifting to those who read it. I want them to walk away with a smile.
:)
This raises a few questions in my mind, such as:
What should be the purpose of a blog? Is it to benefit you, the reader, or me, the author? Perhaps both? A place to publicly voice opinions? Simply a journal to document what has happened in my life? To amuse people? Do I want this blog to develop a following, or am I content to let my words, however they are directed in the end, simply float around in silent cyberspace?
I have friends who have knitting blogs, keeping track of their projects, and putting them on display. I have friends who have blogs where they update home churches on the events of their missions trips. I have seen blogs focused on food, on electronics, on green living. Any object or subject which that person finds interesting becomes the content of their blog.
What am I interested in? A short list would contain:
Cooking
Frugal living
Gardening
Knitting
Music
Painting
Photography
Science
This just scratches the surface of what I love doing. This obviously is too much for one blog to focus on. Which brings me back again to why I have this blog.
I want this blog to be an encouragement to those who read it. Whatever I post, be, what I've done that day, or a tip I've learned for frugal living, or my newest crafting project, I want it to be uplifting to those who read it. I want them to walk away with a smile.
:)
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