It's October!

Happy Birthday from Jane!

...and do you know what that means? It means I haven't blogged since September! How did THAT happen? Let's see--what have I been doing with my time? I truly have very little to report, but here's the lowdown: laundry, watching Baby S, abusing my children by forcing them to do their homework, humiliating my eldest by talking to his teacher on the phone about his homework, laundry, running my "vacuum" over the carpet and pretending that it is sucking up dirt even though I can visibly see that the dirt remains on the floor, drinking Diet Coke, laundry...you get the picture.

Honestly, it has taken me 3 days just to compose this post, and after reading to the end you will undoubtedly say THIS took her 3 days?

October also means BIRTHDAYS around here--Mike and I are now officially 41. In our 40's. Old. Sunday my dear friend Jane gave me more sock yarn, under the guise that it's my birthday month. So how can I say no to that logic? More Pagewood Farms...yum.....

Finished Shedir hat!

I've been in a bit of a knitting slump lately. I finished my cousin's hat (which looks very cool in person and someone with greater camera skills than I would have actually been able to capture that), and now, what to knit....

I mean, I have things to knit. I always have hats. And I currently have 3 pairs of socks going. And I still have Heidi's chicken to start. And Mike's sweater, and my scarf... But nothing is reaching out and grabbing me these days. I need inspiration.

Snowbird

I have been making slight progress on my Snowbird mittens, but they require a lot of attention to detail. And my post-its keep falling off the chart. For my birthday Mike ordered a magnetic chart keeper for me from Knit Picks that is currently en route--I keep telling myself that my enthusiasm for this project will pick up after I've employed my new chart keeper. Because a gadget will improve my knitting, don't you think?

Honestly, I'm not one for gadgets and have very few knitting "tools". I mean, I have the basics--I have what I need. But I don't go for all the point protectors and row counters and special tension thimbles and all that. We sell lots and lots of gadget-y items at the shop that I do not own. However, I do think this chart keeper is a must have. I am so tired of trying to follow a chart and keep track of which line I am on with post-its that lose their stickiness factor after being moved 3 times. My only regret is that I didn't order about 4 of them....

Ryan w/ his stack of books to be signed.

In non-knitting news, Mike took the boys to the UW Bookstore on Sunday to meet author Jeff Kinney. Ryan is a huge Wimpy Kid fan (being kind of a Wimpy Kid himself....) and brought the entire collection to be signed.

Author Jeff Kinney

Eric got his own copy of the first book, which he is now reading, and they both got their books signed. Ryan is so excited to have these autographs that he is re-reading the series (which is so amazing to me--he has no time to do his homework, no time to do his 40 minutes of assigned reading each night, no time for his book reports, but has managed to carve out a significant amount of time to re-read the entire Wimpy Kid series. I plan to use this against him during our next "discussion" about homework. In about 10 minutes).

Well, unless I want this post to linger into a 4th day, I believe I will wrap things up. Let's see if I can return before November!

And now it's August....

Tiffany's sock

Since the temperature has literally dropped 30+ degrees in the last week, I am now able to return to my computer without melting. Today I'm wearing jeans, socks and a sweatshirt. And I'm still slightly chilly. And that is just the way I like it!

So, my little experiment with Tiffany's sock kind of got away from me and I'm nearly ready to start on the toe. For whatever reason, this sock practically knit itself. I almost feel like Mrs. Weasley with this sock, it has been so effortless.

Leah's never ending socks

Unlike, say, these socks over here for Leah. These are the socks that I can knit and knit and knit, yet they never grow. And when they do grow, I get ladders, weird misshapen stitches...Somehow the yarn I'm using for Tiffany's socks got all the mojo and these Lilypad socks, with the darling picot cuffs, are completely void of any mojo. I have had to reknit each sock for different reasons and, seriously, the will not grow. Both yarns are Lorna's Laces, I am using the exact same needles for each...I have no explanation.

I was at Leah's the other day and warned her that there seems to be a curse upon these particular socks for her. So, when she gets a hole in one and then slips and falls and breaks her leg the first day she wears them, she can do so knowing she had full disclosure. But they're pretty darn cute at least....

Yes, I still have 1 1/8 of my mom's Monkey socks and 1 1/6 of Kristin's Narragansett socks. I seem to have gotten a little carried away with the sock knitting, if I do say so myself.

Juliet

And just because I truly think there is something wrong with me, I finally found a use for my beloved Tilli Tomas yarn. And I started that project too. I've been thinking of trying out the Juliet Scarf from Lousia Harding's Knitting Little Luxeries. And I'm really liking it. It's a lace pattern, but it's not your typical repeating lace picture. There are several different "stripes" going down the scarf, which I think is fun. And it really shows off the yarn. Ok, this picture doesn't show off the yarn, but the glass beads are great in this pattern.

Knitting aside, we're sort of in survival mode here. With Mike working two jobs, I just don't have enough time to get everything done that needs to get done. I mean, I'm working too, just in opposite hours at the shop, and then when I'm at home, I'm trying to knit baby hats, keep up with the house, laundry, run all the errands, and oh yeah...spend time with my kids. So, while we are so very grateful for jobs and for the ability to actually pay some bills on time, I can't say this summer has actually been fun (ok--the part where all four of us got to see Harry Potter--that was pretty fun. I'll give you that).

When school starts I will begin babysitting a newborn. It's a situation that sort of fell into my lap and it actually works out nicely. I'll keep the same number of hours at the shop, and then pick up more income here at home. The hours will be from about 9:15 to about 4, which is really manageable. But again, no free time. Don't get me wrong--this job couldn't be more convenient. For someone looking to earn more money and still be available for her kids, this definitely fits the bill. And spending time with a newborn actually is appealing to me, since my babies are no longer babies anymore. But I keep thinking that, now that I can actually afford to paint my two unpainted bathrooms, I have no time to do it!

Mike keeps telling me that all of this will eventually work out. I'm not sure why he is so confident of that (he is sleep deprived, so some of it could be delirium), and I keep thinking that we can't keep this up, working 45 different jobs....but that's the situation we're in right now, so I guess we'll go with it.

Wow--I sort of ended this with a downer. You can blame the heat.

Royal Update

Actual Rose Buds!

OH HEAVENS TO MURGATROYD IT IS HOT THIS WEEK. Ok, fine. I know I complain about the heat all the time and I'm always telling you about THE HOTTEST WEEK OF THE YEAR. But this time I mean it. No, really. Seattle is in for record heat. Tomorrow it is suppose to reach 101 at SeaTac. And that always means a good 5 degrees hotter where I am.

People, we're not equipped for this here in Seattle. We have no air conditioning. We have no swimming pools. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we live by the water and can go to the beach.....THERE IS NO SHADE AT THE BEACH AND IT'S GOING TO BE 105 DEGREES. I can't cope with this weather. It makes me yell. The inside of my house reached 91 yesterday. That is with all the doors and windows open and the fan blowing. Currently it is 10:00 am and it's already 81 inside my house. Last night I actually sent my boys to bed with ziplock bags filled with ice.

I could complain about this all the live long day, but I do have other news to report. Namely, the deer seem to have disappeared. Perhaps they died of heatstroke. We can only hope. Actually, I have noticed their absence for the last few weeks, but didn't say anything in case they read my blog and were waiting for me to report that I have actual roses on my rose bushes and tomatoes on my tomato plants. Truly, now that I have shared this news with all of you, I will not be the least bit surprised if I wake up tomorrow morning to find that they all came back to the Keene breakfast buffet. I really do hate those deer with the same intensity as the hatred I have for the heat. Which proves my theory that they are creatures straight out of hell.

It's Here It's Here!

I'm telling you--nothing makes me crankier than a thermostat that reads anything over 72.

I do have some happy news to report: my beloved new book arrived! It came early and it came to me free of charge--how much happier could that make me, I ask you?

Hobby Horse

I just have to show you some of the projects I plan to make the next time money drops from the sky into my lap and the space/time continuum opens up and gives me 5 extra kid free hours each day.

Can you believe this Hobby Horse? Does this not have that baby, Blake, written all over it. Ok fine, you don't actually know him, but if you had a baby boy in your life, don't tell me you wouldn't be thinking of making this for him.

Gentleman's Scarf

I know it's hard to see the texture of this scarf from your vantage point, but trust me when I say, this scarf is stunning. They knit it out of a fine gauge cashmere/silk blend. We have some Blue Sky Alpaca Silk in a sport weight at the shop that I think would be equally beautiful. I do have a couple of men in mind that I think would actually wear this.

Texter Gloves

How funny are these?

Ballet Flats

I don't see myself making these anytime soon, but I just had to show them to you to give you an idea of how beautiful this book is.

Animal Crackers

Truly, I would have taken a picture of each project in this book, but my fingers are starting to fuse to the keyboard. There is a baby blanket that is flat out beautiful. There are great socks. Even the hat and mittens on the cover--a must knit for my niece Ellie who loves light blue hats.

I mean, honestly, when will I ever knit these things? But at least validate me in that this book is a MUST HAVE. And a girl can dream, can't she?

Today I'm taking the boys to see Ice Age, purely for the 2 hours of air conditioning. It will be a nice break from listening to the bickering over the slip 'n slide and the placement of the sprinkler.

For the moment, I'm going to try to get some knitting done before the yarn self combusts in my hands.

Back in the Saddle Again

Jane strikes again
New Year's Lights
and Forest

Wow--the last three weeks of my life have been out of control. Truly, this is the first moment I have had to sit at the computer for any length of time since the beginning of July. And today is only possible thanks to a handy playdate I arranged. I have 3 boys upstairs in Ryan's room as we speak. They are being awfully quiet, so I better make this quick....

Oh, where to begin....well, my husband got two jobs. Yep, two. One regular full time Monday through Friday job that we are very happy about. On the news the other night they announced that unemployment in the state of Washington is up to 9.3%, which is the highest it has ever been. So indeed we are feeling very very blessed with this job. And then he got another one. He is working swing shift about 4 evenings a week doing computer installs in different offices (where was this job 3 months ago?!). And so between the two, Mike is home for about two waking hours each day. Which kind of sucks in a I-don't-have-a-moment-to-myself-and-have-to-do-everything kind of way, but we're certainly not ones to turn down extra income right now. So Mike plans to keep up the 2nd job for a while so we can try and catch up.

And then, during the hottest July on record in Seattle, baby hat sales are at an all time high. Really? Knit baby hats in July? Whatever. Again, who am I to turn down income. So in between dealing with my kids all the livelong day, running 98% of the errands, and throwing my hands up in the air because I can't keep up with the house, I have been knitting like crazy.

Severe case of 1-itis
1 Sonata mitten,
1 Lilypad sock for
Leah, 1 Narragansett
sock for Kristin, and
1 Mixed Berries Monkey
sock for mom.

And this last week I worked close to 40 hours at the shop. So here we are. In a dirty house, in a city where it will hit at least 90 today, where I have traded poverty for single parenthood.

All of which accounts for very little blogging and an inability to finish a pair of socks or mittens.

Now, if we want to talk about knitting for a minute, you should know that crazy Jane has gifted me MORE sock yarn. Truly, I will never want for sock yarn again. I have some of it earmarked for people (should I ever get around to finishing my current sock projects. I'm not opposed to starting another pair--it's just that all my sock needles are in use), but I have several skeins just waiting for inspiration.

Must have...

Sock knitting aside, I still have about 3/4 of Mike's Town and Country sweater to go, 100% of my Must Have Cardigan to go, projects from my Estonian Lace book, a list of mittens and gloves I absolutely must make, and then there is this book. This incredible fantastic new book.

Our shop just got the new Interweave Knitted Gifts book in. And just sold out. It is fabulous. Some of the patterns are simple indescribable. And guess who has a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card burning a hole in her pocket? Technically this book is not available until August 1st (so why we got it and were able to sell it, I don't know). Come August 1st, my list of Must Knits will have grown by leaps and bounds.

Alrighty people. Time to go accomplish something. That baby Blake is coming tomorrow, so better pick up the Legos.

Q & A with the Queen

Mike and the boys have left for a trip to Target, where the boys are planning to spend the money they earned picking up pinecones in Walter's yard, and feeding the other neighbor's dog, Ginger, over the weekend. Which means I have time to answer your burning questions!

Any news on the job front?
That would be a No. To date, Mike has applied for approximately 5498751987845784 jobs. Roughly. He's making good contacts, blah blah blah and I'm sure God has a darn good reason why interviews are not filling up Mike's dance card, despite my repeated requests. I would be delighted to know what that reason is. In the meantime, we're pressing onward in the job hunt. What did we all do before the internet? That is what I would like to know.

Does Eric really use The Snuggie?
Each and every day.

Seriously?
Seriously.

So Mike is done working his temporary job?
Yes indeedy. And, lucky me, this has started during Spring Break. I have ALL 3 BOYS here with me this week. It's like a family vacation gone bad. No one in this house is doing what they are suppose to be doing. Mike is not rushing off late to work, I'm not trying to convince Eric to get dressed for school, I don't have my designated Baby Hat Knitting Time while the 3 mess-makers are where they are suppose to be....today I spent hours in the yard while the boys ran themselves ragged all over the neighborhood (after picking up Walter's pinecones. In which he is sorry he agreed to 2 cents a pinecone since he apparently shelled out much more than originally budgeted. But since most of it went to his own daughter, I find it kind of funny). In fact, I was surprised to see the phone guy show up to fix our phone line that was apparently gnawed by small animals outside the kitchen window (perhaps the same animal that broke my birdbath. I'm developing a deep hatred of small animals. And big animals. But I digress) because it felt so much like a Saturday. But no, it's Monday and no one is where they are suppose to be. NO ONE IS WHERE THEY ARE SUPPOSE TO BE. I know that is grammatically incorrect, but it is SO TRUE.

You worked in the yard today? Does that mean is has finally stopped snowing?
Yes, 4 days ago it snowed, and today it's in the 70's. Both boys got sunburns and begged to play in the sprinkler. And by the end of the week it is supposed to be cold and rainy again. Seattle has apparently moved to the midwest.

As The Knitting Queen, are you actually knitting anything these days?
Let's see...Mike's Town & Country sweater is currently in a big heap. I have completed 1 Duet sock, 1 sock for Pat, 1/2 of a sock for Caroline, 1 mitten for my mom, and 1/2 of another Lorna's Laces sock, courtesy of my dear friend Jane. I think I'm too preoccupied with Mike's job hunt and our impending doom because I seem to be unable to finish anything I start these days. I have so many half finished projects that I really think I need to restrict myself from starting anything else. But as any knitter will tell you, the lure of the new project is always there. Especially when you actually have the yarn and the pattern. I could probably start 7 or 8 more projects. There are times when my stash calls to me. Loudly. But my knitting is so schizophrenic these days that adding one more project might make it spontaneously combust.

Did you know Keith Urban has a new album?
Oh yes. And guess who actually had enough money in her itunes account to get it....

Is Eric truly into Junie B. Jones?
Oh yes, that Junie B--she makes us laugh. Currently we're reading Junie B. is a Cheater Pants. Eric, that kid, is an enigma.

How is that baby, Blake?
We babysat Blake the other night. He has teeth, crawls, eats food--all that real baby stuff now. He is 10 months old (I think...is that right? Maybe 9 1/2. I don't know. I'm preoccupied, people!) and pretty darn cute. The boys and I read books to him before bed and that baby sat on Ryan's lap and listened to all of If You Give A Mouse A Cookie and Donald Duck and the Case Of the Missing Peanuts with more patience than Eric has.

I think those people will be returning at any moment. Sigh.....if I can magically make them all disappear again sometime this week, you may see me again. If not, then you'll know that I've smothered by the mess that can only come from 2 boys and their father during a week at home.

So, what do you want to know?

Christmas Eve

I'm back. It's been two weeks, in which I've accomplished virtually nothing, but now I'm back. The snow has come and gone, come and gone, come and gone. And now we have torrential rains, wind, and flooding. In Seattle, that is called JANUARY.

I did almost no baby hat knitting, no lever shocks, and clearly no blogging. Know what happens when you take two weeks off? You find yourself two weeks behind. And what did I do with myself during that time?

Well, we had Christmas.

What a great idea
See that ball on the left?
That would be the one that bounced
down the stairs and broke my front window.

The boys made out just fine. They got new basketballs, Nerf guns, a build-your-own-Clone-Wars-lightsaber, books books books, DS paraphernalia, Hot Wheels...you know, a bunch of boy stuff.

...and they got Nerf guns

Santa brought Eric a copy of Kung Fu Panda, which has greatly increased the amount of times Eric has talked about his tenders. And Ryan is so excited to have a stack of new chapter books--he now sleeps with a pile of books in his bed each night. Which I suppose is more comfortable than the basketball Eric had been sleeping with until we made its permanent home the garage after the window incident.

Gettin' Down with Grandma

Santa also brought our family Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party, which is just about the funniest thing we have ever seen. Between watching my mom try to pick up the dance moves to "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" and realizing that, yes indeed, there is a game in which you pee in the garden...well, it just doesn't get better than that, now does it?

Cousins
Grandma Keene bought the
boys and Blake matching
Christmas pjs.

We had our traditional Christmas Eve celebration with Tiffany and Marcus on New Years Day, due to the vast amounts the vomiting and snow. It took us awhile to make our way up from Renton to Edmonds that day, since we had to do some New Years shopping. First, Daddy had to get a much needed and long overdue free haircut from my sister. Another casualty of the snow. After the boys were able to recognize their father again, they begged him for their allowance and then immediately went next door to Barnes and Noble to spend it. Which is why Ryan and I are now reading Inkheart.

I then ordered them to take me to the New Years Sale at Village Yarns, where I purchased some ShiBui sock yarn (I'm a ShiBui virgin, but I hear it's worth the wait) and some chocolate brown Shetland wool to make my mom a pair of Druid mittens which she requested after seeing mine. And I stood in line for over half an hour to make my purchase. Half an hour! I'm sorry, but I they really should have been offering a lot more than 20% off for that kind of a wait. I love that shop and the ladies that work there are very sweet. But sllllllooooooowwwwwww.........

But we finally made it to see that baby (oh yeah, and his parents). Now tell me--is that not the most adorable creature you have ever seen?

Blake's Earflap Hat

And look what I am making for that baby. A little stripey earflap hat. Tiffany says he needs hats and well, if she's buying, I'll knit anything for that kid. He's also getting a cabled hat, which I think will be in the blue with a blue, green, and brown pompom on top.

Eric's Harry Potter Sweater

And let's see...what else have I done with my time? I'm back to working on Eric's Harry Potter sweater, I've learned how to play Boom Blox, I read Bunnicula, and I am actually caught up on my laundry.

Mike won a $100 Amazon gift card, which he lovingly split with me, and I bought for myself the Interweave 25 Favorite Socks book, which I have been coveting for quite some time now. I also bought the new Nancy Bush Estonian Lace book. Now I am not a lace knitter and, mark my words, I WILL NEVER KNIT A LACE SHAWL. EVER. That being said, this is an exquisite book and it has stunning scarves in it. Stunning. Again, I need to point out that I am not a scarf knitter. NOT A SCARF KNITTER. Beyond Knitting 101, I have never understood the habitual scarf knitters. Branch out, people! However, and this is a rather big HOWEVER, the scarves in this book are not merely scarves. They are works of art. They are challenging and gorgeous. So I treated myself to the book. And since I had a couple of dollars left over, I added a little bonus of the Casino Royale DVD. Merry Chrismas to me.

Eric has asked me about 45 times to come play Boom Blox with him, so I guess I should go pay attention to that person I am legally responsible for. Although since he recently requested that I no longer walk him to class and would prefer that I remain hidden in the car where no one can see me, I'm taking my own sweet time wrapping this up.

More from the palace soon...

Uncle

Uncle Mike

Tiffany and Blake came over for the day yesterday. That baby. I tell ya...both Ryan and I fought with each other all afternoon to hold him. Mike came home from work early so he could enjoy the visit as well. This is the most time Mike has ever spent with his new nephew and he wanted to make the most of it.

Bruiser

I think this may be my new favorite picture. Of all times. How can you not completely fall in love with this little monkey? He almost makes my womb ache. And that's saying a lot because this is by far the closest I have come to baby fever since the birth of my VERY LAST BABY FOREVER AND EVER AMEN THERE WILL BE ONLY 2 CHILDREN AND NO MORE. AFTER ERIC IS BORN WE ARE DONE. MIKE HAVE YOU MADE THE APPOINTMENT WITH THE DOCTOR YET BECAUSE I HAVE SOME SCISSORS HANDY....

But this kid...I dare you to turn away from this picture. I dare you to find a picture, even of your own child, that is as hilariously precious as this.

Finally!
It took Eric all day,
but he finally asked
to hold Blake. And
then he wouldn't give
him up!

Eric was all ready to hold Blake this time. Until Blake actually arrived. Eric then suddenly remembered that this kid is really rather dull and Aunt Tiffany is a lot more fun. So Eric and Tiffany played the Wii while Ryan and I played Pass the Baby. And then, in his own Eric way, in his own Eric timing, he finally announced that he was ready to hold Blake. And he was hooked. Eric has officially jumped on the Blake Bandwagon and there is no turning back. I think the clincher was when Blake was flailing his arms around and got a finger stuck in Eric's nose. Because if you are Eric, a baby picking your nose is the funniest damn thing in the world.

In knitting news, the polls are in and it is the Hoodie by a landslide. Now I think that cardigan is pretty darn cute as well, but I seem to have a very opinionated audience out there. All 4 of you.

I just picked up a copy of A Fine Fleece from the library and am trying to figure out a way to lock the boys in a closet so I can study each and every page in blissful peace. And that big list I shared with you earlier this week? Yeah, that's still there.

School starts in 27 days.

Craziness!

I don't even know where to begin. Finishing my sweater seems to have had a freeing effect on me. I suddenly am New Project Crazy, which is a little scary because I actually didn't gain any time by finishing that sweater. I still have a kazillion baby hats to knit and I still have a big messy pile of unfinished projects. And yet I'm crazy with the new ideas. Crazy, I tell you!

Turns out that the Alice Starmore book, Aran Knits, that I want to use for Mike's sweater, is a hot commodity. It is a rare book, out of print, and currently going for $200 or more on Ebay. She still has some of the most stunning and compelling patterns out there and there is a side of me that wants it all the more, knowing that it can only be found on the black market (apparently she had a big falling out with her publisher and so, while her books were, and still are, wildly popular, they are no longer printable). I have it on reserve at the library, but so do 34 other people. For one copy. And so while I am still coveting the Irish Moss pattern, I'm not sure it is meant to be. In the meantime I have also discovered this brand new book, A Fine Fleece. I was able to sit at Barnes and Noble yesterday and peruse it. You have no idea the willpower involved in placing this book back on the shelf. Must Knit Every Item In Book. Including a fabulous sweater for Mike that they made out of Cascade 220. It is perfect in every way. Must. Have.

Should I make this sweater?

At the same time, I have narrowed the finalists for Baby Blake's sweater down to 2. This precious Trellis cardigan, or

Or this one?

this adorable cabled hoodie. I can't decide. They are both too darling for words. Tiffy--your thoughts?

Mrs. Weasley's sweater

And if that were not enough, I realize that it's time for me to start on Ryan's Harry Potter sweater. If he is going to have it for the late fall and winter, I should probably start now. And so I have. I'm using Cascade 220 Superwash, so it is both economical (only $29 with my discount!) and practical. But of course, after I made a sweater with a giant R, I will then have to make one with a giant E.

Leah's bag

I've started on Leah's felted bag....

Leah's yoga socks

and I'm also close to being done with one yoga sock (her Panda Silk project was suppose to be a surprise, until Caroline spilled the beans. Of course, I should take some responsibility for not actually telling Caroline it was a surprise).

Emily's fingerless gloves

and then there are the fingerless gloves I am making for Emily out of my beloved Sublime Baby Silk Cashmerino.

On top of all that, I have about 2/3 of Linda's 2nd sock to go and both Caroline and Ellie have selected special sock yarn for new socks.

Yes, this is my knitting To Do list. Maybe To Do isn't the right title for the list. It should be Things Jen Really Wants To Knit. Because To Do is reserved for tasks like sweater design classes, cupcake hats, the laundry (we have so much laundry right now that Mike accidentally brought down a basket full of folded clean laundry, thinking it was dirty. I finally had to explain that clean laundry is in the giant unfolded heap on the right. Dirty laundry is in the giant unfolded heap on the left. I DO have a system).

And so how am I spending my morning? Certainly not working off either of my overwhelming and insurmountable lists. Instead I'll spend the morning taking pictures and blogging about it.

This may not be the best time to tell you that these are just my current projects. I'll save the list of Cardigans Jen Must Make For Herself Before She Dies for another post.

Everything Has Its Price

Mike and I have returned from the Kah-Nee-Ta High Desert Resort & Casino in Central Oregon. Located in the middle of nowhere. Seriously. Middle Of NOWHERE. You drive east for about two hours upon leaving Portland into a vast and never-ending desert until a resort appears along the side of the road.

Mike was there for an investment specialist conference, completely paid for by his company. Including the $50 in chips for the casino. So a lovely time was had by all. I sat by the pool and read and knit. I sat in the lodge and read and knit. On Wednesday Mike had the afternoon off so we drove again through the vast Oregon desert until we reached Sisters. Bought some coffee from the Bad Ass Coffee company, bought some yarn from The Stitchin' Post, went back to the resort and watched a movie in our room while Mike schmoozed with other schmoozers, then we went to the casino to play blackjack. Between the two of us we pretty much lost the entire $50 that had been given to us, but then Mike won $100 at one of the slot machines. Which paid for our trip to Powell's.

I really wish we could have spent more time in Portland. I never go there, which is strange because it's only a couple of hours away. Maybe it's the fact it's in another state. We only actually made it to two stores in Portland. In the time we spent looking for these stores we could have done quite a bit of damage, but time was of the essence. So I was able to go to Knit/Purl, which was everything I had hoped it would be. I found the yarn I have been searching for to make the knit birthday cake, and I found a wonderful book on making these adorable baby booties. And Powell's--there are no words. We gave ourselves exactly one hour. Which is such a small fraction of the amount of time we needed in the greatest bookstore I have ever encountered. Ever. I would only allow myself to purchase used books, and I found 2. And we made the mistake of buying really cool Spiderman books for the boys. Which we thought they could share since it seemed really dumb to buy identical books for them. Clearly we were having a moment of temporary insanity, since they have done nothing but fight over these books since we came home at 8:45 last night.

Ryan and Eric stayed with my parents on Whidbey Island for 3 nights. A very long time for little boys who aren't use to sleeping away from home. Apparently Eric was sick one day with a cough and fever and one night when I called it was almost 10:00 and they had not gone to bed yet. My dad drove them to our house yesterday to wait for us, and fix the giant hole in my bathroom ceiling, and the initial meltdown occurred about 30 minutes after we returned home. They are both grubby, grimy, and exhausted. They really missed us and it's clear that they need to spend no more time with each other. This morning when Ryan started to sob when he heard that Daddy had to go to work, Mike told him to brush his teeth, load up his backpack, and meet him at the car. Ryan went to work with Dad while Eric stayed home with me and did not nap.

I have spent the day cleaning, doing laundry, and starting on the knit birthday cake. And if I don't wrap up this blog entry, my bookgroup is going to get to witness post-vacation meltdown, day 2. I'm not sure which I am more concerned about--a meltdown by the boys, or by me.

And you may be wondering how Alice, the passive aggressive-neurotic-peeing-cat fared while we were away. No accidents on our bed. Zero. Nada. Used her litter box faithfully during the entire time she was alone (with Shirley, Emily the Neighbor Girl's mom looking in on her). Peed on our bed within an hour of our return.

It's All About ME

"One of my strongest-held beliefs is that no one should ever finish a book that they're not enjoying, no matter how popular or well reviewed the book is. Believe me, nobody is going to get any points in heaven by slogging their way through a book they aren't enjoying but think they ought to read." Nancy Pearl, Book Lust.

I can't tell you how liberating Nancy's words were to me the first time I read them. I am someone who will slog my way through a book, and in some cases, through several books, spurned on mainly by guilt. I often suffer from a severe case of "the shoulds" and I find my life becoming less and less enjoyable. I love to read. LOVE IT. I can't find the words to describe how enraptured I can feel when I'm reading a truly enjoyable and/or well-written book (ok, no one will find a book about, say, The Holocaust, enjoyable, but being moved to tears is just as good). But lately I've been reading (slogging) my way through a couple of books that have felt like 100 pound weights.

My sister Caroline gave me I, Elizabeth for my birthday last year. I love historical fiction and had been reading a lot about that era. Give me anything by Sharon Kay Penman or Phillipa Gregory and I'm in heaven. But I, Elizabeth proved to be painful. I wanted to love it. I wanted to learn everything I could about Elizabeth I and I wanted a juicy romance with Robert Dudley. But right now this is not a lovable book. My guilt is two fold. First of all, Caroline carefully picked out a book for me, knowing I would love it. Not reading it and declaring it to be dry, boring, droning.....is an insult to Caroline. Also, I really do love that genre, so there must be something wrong with me if I am having a hard time with that book.

At the same time I've been reading the biography of Marie Antionette. Again--a subject with which I am very interested. I have read Antonia Fraser before and thought I remember liking her work. I am a fast reader but it was soon apparent that it was going to take me a year to finish that excruciatingly detailed book. My copy of Marie Antoinette is a library book, which has added a level of urgency and upped the guilt a notch.

So last night I finally gave myself permission to quit both of those books and actually enjoy one of the many many books I have in my to-be-read pile that I keep glancing at longingly.....Life is too short. I wasn't even finished with page 1 of Julia Glass' The Whole World Over before I knew I had made the right decision. I am 38 years old. I have a college degree (in English Lit, no less!) and I have no intention of furthering my education at this point in my life. So why am I wasting my time reading books that make me feel like I'm back in my Beginnings Through Milton English Lit Survey class and I'm almost in tears because I actually do have to read Beowulf and comprehend it! (and by the way, I recently saw a movie poster for a new big screen version of Beowulf. I almost started an anxiety attack right there in the theater lobby. Beowulf?! Seriously?? I could barely handle the Cliff's Notes for it back in 1987. Someone actually pitched this idea to a movie exec and they bought it?! It will be 3 hours of pillaging and plundering by neanderthals in hair shirts. At least they won't have to pay them for speaking parts).

At the same time, I'm finishing my socks. MY SOCKS. The socks I will wear on my feet. From the sock yarn that I special ordered from Canada. A year ago. I'm not knitting for Etsy, Venue, or anyone else until I finish my socks. I realized that I was turning the things I love into assignments. And then becoming resentful. And then I love these things a little bit less. And if I end up not having a batch of felted pears for my mom's shop, so be it. Worse things have happened. But if I'm going to keep doing to things I love, I have to do them in the way I love them.

I do intend to pick up I, Elizabeth again some day. And I will of course get right back to my knitting assignments (assigned with love, mostly!), but I need focus on ME for just a moment or two.

I Rock!

First of all, I went yarn shopping the other night and bought some long overdue items--Peter's birthday gift, more cupcake materials, etc... I also splurged on a couple of things (try lifesize handknit birthday cake, with swirly frosting! And special lace needles to help me with the bobbles...I COULD NOT leave the store without all of the materials. When I will actually find the time to make this, I have no idea). My total came to $102, which was a bit hard to swallow. As I was about to fork it all over, I remembered that I had some Purl 1 dollars that the store had not sent me yet. Sure enough, I had $50 in points waiting for me!! I got everything for $52. That is one reason I rock.

Today I had my appointment with Venue. I dropped the kids off at my sister's house, and had almost an hour to make my way from North Seattle to Ballard--a 20 minute drive. Good thing I had the entire hour. I got off at the wrong exit, which really was not the wrong exit, but just poor judgement on my part. I got off at the 65th street exit, which is at Green Lake, a 3 mile lake in the middle of the city. And you have to drive around it, obviously, so the streets don't make much sense in that part of town. But not to worry since I grew up there. So I knew exactly where I was and got on the right street, heading in the exact opposite direction of Ballard. And since there are many deadend streets in the Green Lake area, turning around and heading in the correct direction was a bit of a challenge. Ok, so I don't rock when I can't find my way around my hometown, in an area where I spent most of my childhood summers. But there was no one there to see that, so it doesn't count.

I met with the owner of Venue and her assistant and showed them all of my Etsy inventory, including Cinderella They loved the hats and took them all. Seriously. They depleted my inventory! One hat they thought would do better in the fall, but they were willing to put it in their backstock. I decided to take it back home to have something left for Etsy. They then told me I should really make more. They didn't think I had nearly enough. Wow. And then they had the conversation about Cinderella:

Diane: I don't know...

Lovely assistant: It's adorable! Let's take it!

Diane: We don't have any dolls.

Lovely assistant: We could have dolls...

Diane: Ok fine, let's see what happens.

Me: Hee hee hee hee hee hee hee

Driving back up to North Seattle I called Mike to tell him how I ROCK, and mentioned that they want more. Mike told me, actually said the words, out loud, in English "you should stop by the yarn store and get some more supplies". He has never uttered those words in his life. He has never uttered anything close to those words in his life. So I drove like a bat out of hell to the nearest yarn shop to stock up.

And now, I worry. How will I ever find the time to make 162 more hats? I still have Gordon's hat to finish (it actually was finished, but when I tried it on, it didn't cover my ears, and I'm thinking that on bike rides up Mt. Rainier, his ears should be covered. So, I'm altering it a bit), and Peter's birthday party is in mid August. I also have about 52 books to read. That I want to read. That I want to be reading at the same time because I can't make up my mind. Except for our bookclub book. I have not even cracked the spine on that book and bookclub is in 10 days. But no pressure there... And I want to replenish my Etsy store, so I need to make hats for both Venue and Etsy. But which do I make first? And after I bring Venue more hats, what if no one buys them? Ever? I have made 3 trips to the yarn store in the last few days and about $80 of it is hat/cupcake money. What if I've just wasted $80? Can my family eat? Have I just made a complete fool of myself thinking that the general public, wandering aimlessly around Ballard, will stumble upon Venue and spy my baby hats and exclaim with sheer joy "that is EXACTLY what I have been looking for!"

Ah yes, my bliss is short lived. But it usually is. I don't have time to be happy and excited when I have so much work to do!

The Mondays Just Keep Coming...

This is the best thing I have accomplished since my last post. It is a baby hat for Ryan's pregnant teacher, who is due in October. I thought it would be a better end-of-the-year gift than another World's Greatest Teacher coffee mug. Seriously, this is my only worthy accomplishment this week. Oh yeah, and I did give Leah her coffee sleeve, and I believe there was a bit of squealing involved...

But after discovering that the neopolitan socks and everything associated with them were possessed by the devil (I broke another one of those darling Lantern Moon sock needles. Now I only have 3 and they are therefore useless. So not only did I spend $46 on a pair of socks, but I have wasted $46 on a pair of socks. Socks that will never exist), things just went downhill. I have been saving a skein of All Things Heather handpainted sock yarn that I bought months ago. I decided to reward myself and wind the yarn and knit a new, non-evil pair of socks. Now here is the part where all knitters will cringe: I don't own a ball winder or a swift. The set costs $100 and I generally can wind a skein of yarn myself. But the fact that I am taking up blog space on this should be a good indication that I need to rethink that $100 investment. The whole thing ended up in a big tangled mess that Mike and I worked on for hours. It is now in one large ball and 2 smaller balls, with an unidentifiable chuck of it from the middle cut out of it. However I am currently knitting sock #1 and so far it's going fine....


Alice: She is a peeing machine. And continues to have a normal appetite as well as regularly use her litter box. She clearly hates every member of our family and feels the need to act on that anger daily. I have made several phone calls to at-home-vets have so far have had no luck. 2 of them won't come to Renton (although the website said that one of them did...) and another has not called me back. There is a 3rd one to call, but his voicemail said he is on vacation so I didn't bother at the time. Clearly I need to give him a 2nd chance.


I spent all of my Monday morning cleaning bathrooms (can't even remember the last time that happened), changing sheets, putting laundry away--generally making this a save and healthy enviroment for my family. As I was changing my sheets there was a part of me thinking "why bother"? Eric and I had spent quite a bit of time in my bedroom where we made all kinds of racket, such as talking, and walking around. Alice is going to come unglued that we spent so much time in "her" room. Before the day is out I'm sure she teach me a lesson for cleaning my own bathroom and changing my own sheets...

Craig's List: Of course now that I've flaunted my Craig's List mojo, it's gone. I have tons of great kids things for sale and no one wants it. Seriously, great things. I have a darling Step 2 toddler desk that is in perfect condition. Not one inquiry. I have a ton of Duplo Legos that I've broken up into sets and they are all really cute. The only person interested is this strange woman who emails me once a week but then always forgets if she contacted me or not. I did sell a couple of baby gates this morning to a questionable woman who was missing some teeth.....

I did finish our bookclub book, so now I'm trying to decide what to read next. I have 3 books I would like to be reading. Right now. So maybe I will! I clearly have some time on my hands before my knitting mojo returns!

I need some JuJu

I seem to have lost my knitting mojo at the moment. Although I have a list, nothing is inspiring me and the things I am currently knitting are not working right. Last night I decided to knit Leah's java sleeve. I could whip it up in an evening. I'm seeing Leah on Saturday night so I wanted to get it done in time for Dinner Group. I had some leftover chocolate brown yarn (her request--to be adorned with pink beads) and started knitting. It was coming along beautifully until I realized that I didn't have nearly as much brown yarn as I thought. Her java sleeve was going to be one inch wide. I got so annoyed that I tossed it and decided to get going on the neopolitan socks again (a.k.a the socks I will never ever knit again). Once again I ripped some of it out (although not that much) and the yarn pattern is looking kind of strange where I am decreasing from the heel. You would think I had never knit a pair of socks before. Seriously, I'm sure I've knit 25 pairs of socks--this should not be that hard. It is still my goal to get Leah's java sleeve done before Saturday, but it's clearly not going to happen tonight.

I've started another Cinderella that I'm planning to give to Mike's mom for Christmas, or her birthday, or something like that. She will love it and it is quite satisfying knitting for someone who will truly appreciate your work. But her little bald head is just sitting there in the basket...I have a couple new ideas for my Etsy site, my mom wants a new pair of socks (I wonder if she'd like neopolitan?), I've begun Gordon's hat....believe me, I have things to do, but the mojo is missing.

So, what have I been doing with my time? Well, my garden is coming along fabulously! I love this time of year for the reason that you can literally see things grow before your eyes. I'm out there almost every day and it truly is satisfying. I've been selling stuff like crazy on Craigs List (you need some serious JuJu to be successful with Craig and for some inexplicable reason I've got that right now), and I've been reading.

I've never talked about reading before because, well, it's just a part of who I am. For me, reading is like breathing or eating ice cream. I need to do it every day or I will wilt. Every so often I will run across someone who is not a reader and it truly baffles me. I was the kid who sat up at night with the flashlight. I was once accused of cheating on a test in the 6th grade because I was bored and reading a book in my lap. I always have a book in my bag. I always have stacks of books on my "nightstand" (they are on my nightstand, and the floor around the nightstand). I sometimes

have a hard time decided what to read next because I have so many choices. So often I will have multiple books going. I leave my books all over the house and we have bookshelves in the living room, office, and our bedroom. Mike and I both have plans for more shelves in the living room after we become rich and famous (and replace our garage door and finish building our barn. And replace our kitchen sink. And kitchen floor. And finish painting the trim in the house....). To say that books are important to our family is like saying fish need water. It just is.

My kids are becoming readers and I could not be more proud. This is Ryan's bookcase:

And considering the way the rest of my house is decorated, it comes as no surprise that his books are literally falling off the shelves. My Library Catalog on the side of my blog is such a small representation of my reading life. I could make a full time job of cataloging my books. So I decided to start with the present and move forward. With my new Etsy venture I have had little time for reading, so I've been staying up too late reading because I cannot and will not go to bed without a book.

So, how will I get my mojo back? I'm sure it will come. And I'm sure it will be soon. But I'm trying to take advantage of the other obsessions in my life and enjoy them while I can (and you probably thought I was going to say I would spend more time cleaning my house! ha!). Maybe all it will take is a good trip to the yarn store. And there just happens to be one of my favorites around the corner from Barnes and Noble!