done!

  I may have been tying on the last fringes at the school, but the final knitting project is done. Two nights of staying up until 12:30 and I am SHOT. Being a night owl was never a skill of mine and I am glad to be done for this year. Next year the knitting for Christmas will start in September!
  The fact I stayed up late did come to some good, other than finishing a project. I found a unwelcome visitor trying to break into my house via the back of the fridge. That's right, a mouse. Urgh mice. Today I bought mouse bait and am so thankful we will be out of town for two weeks while they are limping around poisoning the environment. I also deep cleaned the entire kitchen, including but not limited to the insides of every drawer and shelf. Mice are gross. Mice will not be living in my house. I didn't find any mouse poo anywhere, so the intrusion must have just been in process and thanks to my late night knitting excursion I caught it just in time.
  Tonight I am waiting for the fed-ex guy to bring the fuel pump so I can put it in the van and we can leave tomorrow. I had hoped to get it in earlier today...wait, it just came!! Wish me luck.

$750 challange

  Steel thinks of things on a short term basis. One dollar lasts him seconds before he has spent it at the store. The professor saves his money for months, even my girl has been known to plan out a purchase, but not Steel.
  For months, Steel has told me of his great love for the Dalmatian breed. (personally its on my least fave list) He wants one desperately and when he gets an idea in his head it lasts for years. Instead of listening to YEARS of chatter about how much he wants one and why we should buy one, I made a plan.
  I told him that he was welcome to buy one as soon as he saved $750 of his own money. If he did the daily dollar chore for 2 1/2 years it could be possible. My did rolled his eyes at the plan. He said it wasn't fair to set the bar so high. I feel like, if he could do it then he would teach him about saving for big things and any kid who saved that much on their own can be responsible for big things like a puppy.
  What do you think?

crossing the finish line with my eyes closed

No, I am not posting about a race. The last 5K my girl and I were supposed to attend didn't work out. Snow and ice and freezing temperatures caused a change of plans. The finish line I'm referring to is the knitting projects and the fact I have one more to do before the kids get out of school for Christmas break. Pretty good huh. In between all the skeins of chaos, a teacher friend of mine asked a favor. Her daughter has a favorite purse and she wanted me to make a clone. A better looking twin. Here are the results.

 

The coolest thing ever is, I didn't buy anything. Sure, sure, Greg is missing a pair of jeans he didn't fit into anymore...they look much better as a purse than gathering dust on the top shelf.

 

Below is the hat I knit for Ivan. I hope he likes red and black. They were in my stash begging for a boy hat to be made out of them.

 

I knit Jasper's hat from the remains of Marilyn's sweater

 

 

Here is my box of possibilities. Can you believe cyber Monday extends to online yarn shops? This could prove deadly..to the bank account.

I knit the hat for Steel's teacher three times. The first time it wasn't deep enough so when I bound it off my girl got it. The second time, it just wasn't right, so it too found another head to occupy. FINALLY I knit the dumb thing right and it turned out perfect. 

 

 Clayton's slippers

This is the best, cutest, most awesome sweater I have ever put together. I cant wait to see it romping around the outdoors on a special little girl named Marilyn.

 

Nukka is doing the exact thing I wish I could do. That's my pillow and blanket that I set out for myself and she stole it when I went to make tea. No rest for me! I guess Ill finish the scarf tonight after all!!

 

 

Fixed it!

  The heater in my jeep died right after we traded for it. No loss, anything is better than the Volvo. As the days got colder the idea of driving and being warm sounded a lot more compelling. Greg is our usual maintenance guy when it comes to the vehicles. He fixes, tunes, does oil and anything else that is needed. I appreciate him so much and thought it would be nice to just do it myself this time instead of ask him to brave a freezing garage. So I did it.  
  I took out the old heater motor, checked it, oiled it, and then determined it needed replacement. It was full of rust and had probably never been replaced before anyway. Greg got the part and voila! I replaced it. It felt good to do something that I usually turf to Greg because 'I don't know how' and learned a new skill in the process. As crazy as it sounds, I look forward to doing more of the Jeep's maintenance...except for the oil. Greg can do that forever.

Friends of family

  My brothers and I were close in age and fairly close as family. There were those moments when we took things a bit to far and ended up punished by mom for it, but for the most part we functioned as our own mini-society.
  It has been a secret hope of my that my own three could follow suit. Many of my own happy memories are built on the fact my brother was there to share it with me. As kids, for a spark of a moment, everyone is moving in the same direction.
  I feel like Greg and I are in the 'sweet spot' of our kids lives. They are all young enough to be required to come along but old enough to manage themselves in most situations, even resolving their own disagreements. (most of the time)
  The professor came home last week and told me he and Steel had played on the playground. He usually plays by himself because he is shy, but Steel roped him into a game involving others. I suppose there are some advantages to having a giant outgoing brother. Steel is nearly a head taller than the professor and the two of them together are an unstoppable force when they want to be. Throw my girl into the equation and its a little community.
  Its nice that everyone likes each other. Some days it feels like I'm outnumbered, especially when they get mad at me for disciplining. I have heard the words, "you were much to harsh with (fill in the blank)" after one gets in trouble, or sent to their bed. Seriously funny, considering the offender is sent to their room using a calm/firm voice. A part of me is proud to know that they are pulling for their sibling and I hope that when life sends them different directions they too can look back with the happiness I do.

 Professor on the left and Steel on the right

 

 

Beach snow...heck any snow is so pretty

Looking back..Christmas 2012

Last years Christmas we picked up a huge tree from goodwill. Yes, yes it was fake. But, a very nice fake if you ask me. The pre-lit part had died and I convinced Greg we could just pull them off easily. As you can see from the 'happy' expression on his face below, it might have been a little less easy then I had made it out to be. The professor was having so much fun rolling around on our dirty floor, pretending the lights were attacking him. The next on of Mr. Steel cracks me up. He spend the year 2012 growing out his romantic hair (that's what he called it) so he could put his head out the window and let the wind blow it. Apparently this is the only way for a 6 year old to attract the opposite sex. Well, that and saying things like, "Your name is Bowen ( a girl at school) you know what else starts with a B? Beautiful. Beautiful Bowen." Oh the things that boy says. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

knit to the bone

Holey smokes is it December second already! I have been knitting off of a list since October and the months flew by. So far I have knit:

1. a long sleeve sweater
2. a short sleeve sweater
3. a pair of men's slippers
4. a pair of kid's slippers
5. a slouchy hat
6. a fair isle hat
7. a black hat...that turned out the wrong size so my girl got it
8. a  baby size hat
9. a sweater for me
10. a boiled wool cloche
11. a boiled wool fedora
12. a boiled wool hat that looked like a lemon
13. a set of creature gloves for the professor
14. a long scarf

I still have seven things on my list, but I'm getting so close! Knitting Christmas gifts has proved challenging and sometimes a bit crazy. My greatest hope is that everyone likes the gifts enough to wear them more than once before tossing them to the back of the closet. Here's hoping they don't look too home made. *smile*
 Happy Monday everyone.

Santas workshop and other things

Yesterday, my three decided to open Santa's workshop. They had discussed presents for the cousins amongst themselves and decided to sew things for them instead of buy from the dollar tree. I have to chuckle, because I had nothing to do with their plans. They are all so independent! I spend much of my time these days as a fly on the wall as they work things out by themselves, only intervening when one sings a mean song about the others pet.
  None of them have drivers licenses of yet, so I drove them to the fabric store where they wandered around and found the perfect fabric to make leeches (yes leeches) for their cousins. Its a good thing Kristen's kids have the same interest base. Not everyone appreciates receiving a blood sucking parasite for Christmas.
  We arrived home and they spent the next several hours cutting, sewing, and gluing. My girl did all but the touch up on her own. The boys needed some help steadying the fabric, but I was surprised by all the elfish ingenuity. The house did not fare as well.
  I braced myself as the words, "now you have to clean up" edged past my lips. Believe me, these words have caused much flopping and whining in the past. Healthy children have experienced extreme exhaustion and flue like symptoms at the very mention of the words. I was more than shocked when after 30 minutes the house was clean and there had been no plague outbreaks.
  In a few short years this independence won't be nearly as amazing. They will have their own lives, cook their own meals, and do their laundry without all the fanfare. Its nice to be there at the beginning though. Its just one of those mom things.